MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF CHIDDINGSTONE PARISH COUNCIL HELD ON

MONDAY 16THFEBRUARY 2015 AT 7.30PM IN CHIDDINGSTONEVILLAGE HALL

Present:Cllr R. Streatfeild(Chairman), Cllr A. Baker, Cllr/D.Cllr P. Cooke, Cllr J. Menges and

Cllr Mrs M. Quirk

Apologies:Cllr I. Durrant, Cllr Mrs D. James, Cllr P. Vicary and County Cllr C. Pearman

Absent:Cllr H. Williams

In attendance: Mrs L. Kleinschmidt (Clerk)and District Cllr A. Cook (Open Session only)

Open Session

Report by District Cllr Cooke

District Cllr Cooke reported that (i) Extract from South East Farmer, February 2015:D.Cllr Cooke referred to a change in Government planning policy. The move will help smaller regional house builders and landowners by exempting most developments of 10 homes or fewer from making contributions towards affordable housing and other planning payments. The new rules also establish a lower threshold of five dwellings in areas of outstanding natural beauty, but local planning authorities are free to work to the higher figure. It was quoted that ‘this change to legislation presents new opportunities for rural landowners to look again at sites which were unviable previously and to make effective use of their existing assets in and around towns and villages’. Another change is that contributions will be payable upon completion of the development of six to ten dwellings in the AONB, this will help the developer’s cash flow and increase delivery in these areas making sites more viable. The Government estimates that the policy will save an average of £15,000 per dwelling in section 106 housing contributions.Local councils can still seek obligations for site specific infrastructure, such as improving road access, where it is appropriate to make a site acceptable in planning terms.The change will be a big step forward in providing housing in rural areas and will help bring forward sites which up to now have been considered unviable or marginal in these areas.It should be noted that the planning criteria for affordable housing in the Metropolitan Green Belt remains unchanged. (ii) The Big Community Fund: D.Cllr Cooke announced that the SDC Big Community Fund has been closed indefinitely after the last of the ringfenced funds have been allocated. (iii) SDC sets parking charges for the coming year: D.Cllr Cooke stated that SDC has amended its parking charge proposals following consultation with the community.In November, SDC’s Cabinet put forward proposals to freeze all on-street charges, to increase some car park charges and to replace the £1 evening charge in Sevenoaks town car parks with the standard daytime tariff.At the same time it planned to reduce the time drivers would need to pay for parking during the evening by an hour so charging would endat 8.30pminstead of9.30pm. The changes would come into effect in April but first the Council asked the community for its views.Nearly 100 people and businesses responded to the consultation with a number objecting to the proposed changes to the evening charges.In light of the comments, the Council's Cabinet agreed to drop all proposals to change the evening charges. The remaining proposals will go ahead as planned.The new parking charges were agreed by SDC's Cabinet on Thursday 5th February.

Report by District Cllr Mrs Cook

District Cllr Mrs Cook reported that (i) Kent Police’s Rural Liaison Team comprises of six officers, two from the north of Kent, two from the east and two from the west of the county. Concerns raised by local communities helped drive the Police to protect remote rural areas, reassure communities and prevent crime. Officers assist farmers to protect their property from crime and anti-social behaviour, investigate animal welfare issues and check fishing rod licences. D.Cllr Mrs Cook said that she didn’t realise that there is such a huge trade in finches, and also hare coursing. (ii) changes to affordable housing provision as part of a new development has caused SDC to lobby government in order to try and amend some of these changes as they have a tremendous effect on this district. There are some districts and boroughs where these changes will not have any effect but in a rural district like Sevenoaks, the effects are great. It is hoped that the government will at least listen. The changes mean that developers only have to start paying for new dwellings over 1,000 square feet in size. (iii) the proposal for a footpath diversion at Polebrook Farm in Bough Beech has been under discussion with the landowner and County Cllr Pearman. This property is not actually in D.Cllr Mrs Cook’s ward, but she was asked for help by the resident. C.Cllr Pearman said that the small department at KCC could not turn around applications to re-route footpaths quickly, and they are taking two to three years to be processed. This application is currently about 30th in the queue. The landowner feels that the footpath, in its current position, has a detrimental impact on the SSSI. Cllr Streatfeild reported that the Parish Council will consider this under its agenda item later in the meeting. D.Cllr Mrs Cook reported that she will respond to the landowner to say that she has raised the matter with the Parish Council. (District Cllr Mrs Cook left the meeting at 7.50pm)

Closed Session

135.Apologies for Absence were received from Cllr Durrant, Cllr Mrs James and Cllr Vicary and their reasons for absence were accepted by members. Apologies for absence were also received from County Cllr Pearman.

136.Declaration of Disclosable Pecuniary Interest and Non-Pecuniary Interest in respect of matters to be discussed

Cllr Streatfeild declared a DPI in item 149(ii) as he is the landowner of the allotment site.

137.The Minutes of the ChiddingstoneParish Council Meeting held on 19thJanuary, 2015 were approved and duly signed. Proposed by Cllr Cooke, seconded by Cllr Baker, and all were in favour.

138.Planning

i.To consider planning applications received

SE/15/00309/HOUSE: Jasmine Cottage, 4 Chequers Hill Cottages, Chequers Hill, Bough Beech TN8 7PB - demolition of existing outbuildings and erection of replacement shed. Members supported this application.

ii.To report notifications of planning decisions

  • SE/14/03516/LDCEX: Nutlea, Ryewell Hill, Chiddingstone TN8 7BN - confirmation that the works for replacement outbuilding approved under planning permission SE/11/02378/EXTLMT have commenced. Certificate of Lawful Existing Use/ Development issued.
  • SE/14/03780/FUL: Bore Place, Chiddingstone - installation of 26 Canadian Solar black photovoltaic panels on south facing roof slope of the Old Stables, Bore Place. This roof surface is tiled c 3.2m deep x 3.8m long. 2 rows of panels would provide clearance of c0.3 m at each end. Generation capacity would be 6.5Kw reducing carbon annually by 3.7 tonnes per year. Application Withdrawn.

139.Finance:

i.To appoint a new Internal Auditor for Chiddingstone Parish Council

The Clerk reported that the Parish Council’s Internal Auditor has advised that he cannot carry on in the role so the Parish Council needs to appoint a new Internal Auditor for this year. Hever Parish Council recommended Doug Williamson, who works for SDC in the Democratic Services Team. Doug is a CCAB qualified accountant - CIPFA (Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy), and has worked for 31 years in local government finance - 22 of them at Sevenoaks District Council, and was their Chief Financial Officer between 2001 and 2006. He currently act as Auditor for 6 of the smaller Parishes. When the year-end accounts are drafted he would need to come in and have access to the Parish Council’s records for half a day, for which he would charge £75. This would enable him to complete the Audit Commission "Audit of Controls" form. If he needs to re-visit he would charge a minimum £50, £75 if it took a further half-day. Cllr Menges proposed that the Parish Council formally appoint Mr Williamson as the Parish Council’s Internal Auditor with immediate effect. This was seconded by Cllr Cooke and all were in favour.

ii.To consider request for financial assistance by Chiddingstone Sports Association to help fund their proposal to fit solar panels onto one side of the Sports Pavilion roof to improve their carbon footprint

Cllr Streatfeild reported that the Sports Association have asked whether the Parish Council would be able to help with the installation of solar panels on the Sports Pavilion. The Sports Association is currently exploring various grant options and they already have a price of £7,200 + VAT for the installation. They have also confirmed with SDC Planning Officers that the panels fall within permitted development so no planning permission is required. The Sports Association has asked for either a loan or a grant towards the cost of installing the solar panels. The association is in the process of applying for other grant funding too. The solar panels will give the Sports Association a regular income which will help pay for the upkeep of the pavilion, pay for insurances etc., without having to increase the club fees too greatly. Cllr Mrs Quirk said that the rate of return has dropped substantially and she advised the Sports Association to check the anticipated income levels. Cllr Streatfeild suggested that the Sports Association be asked to prepare a business case for the Parish Council to consider at the next meeting. Members agreed.

iii.To approve payment of cheques

Cllr Mrs Quirk proposed that the list of cheques be approved for payment, this was seconded by Cllr Baker and all were in favour.

140.To report on correspondence received

The Clerk reported that lists of correspondence received have been circulated and drew members’ attention to the following:

i.Item 2: KALC: details of their Annual Planning Conference and Workshop on Friday 27th March at Lenham Community Centre ME17 2QT from 9.30am to 4.30pm. Cost for member councils: £60 + VAT.

ii.Item 3: Email from Kelly Webb, SDC: “The North West Kent Crime Prevention Panel (NWKCPP) would like to attend any of your fetes or village days. The Panel offer free advice on crime reduction, which can include home visits to people you feel maybe vulnerable in your community. They also provide crime reduction gadgets such as timer switches, purse chains and personnel alarms at a low cost. If you would like NWKCPP to attend any of your events please let me know.”

iii.Item 5, 6 and 29: (i) Email from Dr Pav Ramewal, Chief Executive of SDC: “Sevenoaks District Council proposes to introduce dedicated Chief Officer support for Town and Parish Councils. The intention is that, where the usual communication channels haven’t succeeded for whatever reason, you would have the opportunity to discuss issues with a Chief Officer in the hope that their assistance may lead to a positive outcome, or at the very least a better understanding. Please do utilise them, and I hope that this dedicated support will be something that we both find very useful.” (ii) Email from Adrian Rowbotham, Chief Finance Officer at SDC: “Further to the email you will have received from Pav Ramewal earlier this week, I am very pleased to be the Chief Officer allocated to provide additional support for you. Please do contact me should there be anything I can help with.” (iii) Email from Dr Pav Ramewal, Chief Executive of SDC: “I thought it would be helpful to arrange a very informal working lunch to give Town and Parish Clerks and Chief Officers the chance to get to know each other better. I very much hope that you will be able to join us at St Julian’s,Sevenoaks for lunch from12.30 – 2.00pm on Wednesday 11thMarch.”

iv.Item 12: Email from Lindsey Eaton: The next meeting for the Eden Valley Footpaths Group is on Thursday 26 February from 1 to 4pm in Rickards Hall. David Munn and Nicky Biddall, from KCC Public Rights of Way, will be present to give talks on general public rights of way information, map reading, way-marking and use of hand tools. In order to be covered by KCC insurance, volunteers must have either attended this training session, or be working with someone who has attended and is ensuring that they are aware of safe working practices and only undertaking suchlow risk works as are specified.”

v.Item 15: KALC: NALC has forwarded the Minister’s statement on the Local Government Finance Settlement and confirmed that noTown or Parish Council are subject to the referendum threshold.

vi.Item 18: Kent Police: Hoath road, Chiddingstone: between 12:01am on Monday 1stSeptember and 11:59pm on Monday 26thJanuary, two chain saws were stolen from a shed at a residential property

vii.Item 19: Rural Services Network – three copies of The Rural Services Manifesto, seeking the best for rural England 2015-20.

viii.Item 23: Email from Kent Police saying that there are changes to PCSO cover, and phone call from Anne KingScott who advised that she will be our PCSO again, covering all the villages around Edenbridge.

ix.Item 24: Kent Adult Education is always looking for ways to engage with local Community Groups, so we are creating new learning opportunities for everybody in the local area, not just those who can make it to our centres. As long as there is a minimum of 8 people adult education can be brought to you and they can deliver a variety of courses in your venue. They can also offer free taster sessions with follow up bespoke courses to address your group’s needs.

x.Item 27: Emails from SDC and Play Place to confirm that the Family Fun Play Event will be held on Chiddingstone Causeway Sports Field on Friday 7th August from 2.30pm to 5.30pm

xi.Item 28: Email from Nigel Lucas to Paul Vicary with two quotes he obtained for work to the closed churchyard, Chiddingstone.

141.Aviation

i.To hear report of the High Weald Councils Aviation Action Group

Cllr Streatfeild reported that both the Parish Council and the HWCAAG have submitted responses to the Airports Commission’s consultation on additional runway capacity in the South-East. Cllr Streatfeild has visited many district, borough and county councils and all but one opposed expansion at Gatwick Airport. The one that supported expansion, East Sussex County Council, however said that they would not support concentrated flight paths, but in order to have a second runway, it would be necessary to have concentrated flight paths. It is clear, therefore, that all local stakeholders do not support expansion at Gatwick. The campaign against expansion and the existing problems, such as low flying, noisy, aircraft is growing.

GON (Gatwick Obviously Not) is pursuing the legal route, and HWCAAG is pursuing the parliamentary ombudsman route. There is so much more activity locally than this time last year. The CAA said that the airports must engage with their communities and, therefore, GAL has contacted town and parish councils in the local area in an effort to arrange meetings and discuss issues. A meeting is planned for Wednesday 25th February in Chiddingstone Village Hall at 7.30pm, and those attending will be pushing the points as set out in the HWCAAG policy document. Cllr Streatfeild reported that he met with Stewart Wingate, Tom Denton and Charles Kirwan-Taylor at Gatwick recently. GIP wants to expand the airport’s activities as much as possible until they plan to sell in 2019. Ian Harris, who is a Leigh resident, has carried out some interesting work on funding, and GAL cannot afford the debt associated with a second runway. If Heathrow is successful in their bid, GAL wouldn’t be able to afford the current debt. Hever Castle has received the statistics from the noise monitor positioned in castle grounds up until the end of June 2014. The average noise recorded is 64 decibels, which is 10 decibels higher than that which the World Health Organisation specifies as an acceptable noise level. The maximum noise level recorded was 89 decibels. Duncan Leslie is attempting to obtain the figures for July, August and September 2014, which were exceptionally busy. The HWCAAG is working with the other protest groups in order to agree a common message, which will be based on the HWCAAG policy document. This will go to GAL in due course. The last HWCAAG meeting was held on Tuesday 10th February and minutes have been circulated.

ii.To approve contribution towards HWCAAG costs

The Clerk reported that a contribution towards the Clerk’s costs on the HWCAAG has been requested from each member Town and Parish Council. This is £96.07 (7 hours a week for 8 weeks). Cllr Mrs Quirk proposed that this be approved. This was seconded by Cllr Cooke and all were in favour.

142.To discuss the proposal for a parking area by Chequers Cottages in Bough Beech

The Clerk reported that she contacted Neil Pickett, Tracey Verney and Natalie Shallcross to ask for the residents to obtain some prices for the car parking works, and Neil responded to say that they will obtain quotes in time for the March Parish Council meeting.