Present: Cllr. S. Durant (Chair)

REPORT OF THE PLANNING AND AMENITIES MEETING HELD IN THE ASSEMBLY ROOMS, THORNE ON TUESDAY 14th OCTOBER 2014 AT 7.00PM.

Cllrs. C.Blackham, J.Blackham, A.Brookes, G.Derx, R.S.Durant, A.Farrand, L.Hinchliffe, M Houlbrook, R.Porter

2 members of the Public.

2663. APOLOGIES

Apologies were received from:

Cllr D. Barton – Personal

Cllr A. Jones – Personal

Cllr. R. Powell - Holiday

Resolved: That the apologies be accepted.

2664. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST AND DISPENSATIONS

None.

2665.PRESENTATION – EARLY HELP STRATEGY AND PREMISES REVIEW

Ian Holdsworth, Early Years Commissioning Manager from Doncaster MBC gave a presentation and circulated information on the Early Help Strategy and Premises Review with particular reference to provision in Thorne and Moorends

2666. MINUTES

Consideration was given to signing the minutes of the PolicyCouncil meeting held on Tuesday 9th

September 2014, pages 4194– 4199.

RESOLVED: That the minutes be signed.

2666. MATTERS RAISED BY THE PUBLIC

Mr M. Hennessey requested that he be permitted to look at the Council’s Risk Assessments.

The Town Clerk advised that Mr Hennessey contact him to make arrangements.

Mr Hennessey questioned the funding of expenditure on the Council’s behalf enquiring as to who had authorisation to incur expenditure.

The Clerk advised that the Council is responsible for approving budgets, but that the Clerk (and Council staff delegated by the Clerk) is responsible for authorising items expenditure within approved budgets. The majority of day to day expenditure is through budgets approved by the Council as part of the annual budget setting process.

2667. PLANNING APPLICATIONS

i) 14/02264/FUL

Retrospective planning application for erection of boundary walls (1.9m high) at Nursery Bungalow, Peel Hill Road, Thorne for Mr R. Wynne.

RESOLVED: That objections be raised because the wall is inappropriate in a residential area.

ii) 14/00022/REF (PLANNING APPEAL)

Change of use of agricultural buildings to B8 (storage and distribution) and installation of package treatment plant at Warp Farm, Moorends Road, Moorends for Mr K. Lunness.

RESOLVED: No observations, as objections were raised when the application was first submitted

iii) 14/2061/FUL

Erection of 1 pair of semi-detached houses on 0.03ha of land at 54 Haig Road, Moorends for Mr L Todd.

RESOLVED: Objections be raised on the grounds that the houses should be in character with surrounding buildings

iv) 14/023175/FUL

Erection of 4 terraced dwellings with gardens to rear and off-street parking to front on approx. 0.19ha of land, alterations to site access and re-landscaping of site, following demolition of outbuildings and barn on land to rear of 9 Ellison Street, Thorne for C.E. Pennington and C.M. Smith.

RESOLVED: Objection on the access and egress on to Ellison Street which may lead to traffic issues due to the close proximity to the junction.

v) 14/02151/FUL

Conversion of ground floor retail unit with dwelling above to ground floor retail unit with 4 flats on ground, first and second floor levels and associated parking at 21 Finkle Street, Thorne for R and J Hamilton.

RESOLVED: No observations.

The following applications were considered in one group:

vi) 14/02310/REMM

Details of Access, Appearance, Landscaping, Layout and Scale for the erection of Units 1A and 1B (being matters reserved in outline application previously granted permission under ref 10/03149/OUTM on 16/12/2011) at Units 1A and 1B, Capital Park, Omega Boulevard, Thorne for Henry Boot Developments.

vii) 14/02311/REMM

Details of Access, Appearance, Landscaping, Layout and Scale for the erection of Units 2A-2E (being matters reserved in outline application previously granted permission under ref 10/03149/OUTM on 16/12/2011 at Unit 2A-2E, Capital Park, Omega Boulevard, Thorne for Henry Boot Developments.

viii) 14/02312/REMM

Details of Access, Appearance, Landscaping, Layout and Scale for the erection of Units 3 & 4 (being matters reserved in outline application previously granted permission under ref 10/03149/OUTM on 16/12/2011) at Units 3 and 4 Capito Park, Omega Boulevard, Thorne for Henry Boot Developments.

ix) 14/02314/REMM

Details of Access, Appearance, Landscaping, Layout and Scale for the erection of Unit 5 (being matters reserved in outline application previously granted permission under ref 10/03149/OUTM on 16/12/2011 at Unit 5, Capital Park, Omega Boulevard, Thorne for Henry Boot Developments.

RESOLVED: That an observation be noted on the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency for these units otherwise no objections.

x) 14/01554/FULM

Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Farm with associated infrastructure (ancillary equipment includes inverters, transformers, small embedded sub-stations and a grid connection building) at Former Thorne Colliery, Grange Road, Moorends for RES UK and Ireland Ltd.

Resolved: Objections be raised with regard to the absence of proposals to improve the access to the Moors, and the absence of information regarding local community benefits

2668. ACCOUNTS PAYABLE

Consideration was given to the Accounts Payable to 30th September 2014.

RESOLVED: That the Accounts Payable be approved.

2669. FINANCIAL REPORT

Consideration was given to the financial report to the end of Month 5. The Clerk reported that at the moment expenditure is within the approved budgets. The Clerk reported that the Council’s Bank, National Westminster had slashed interest rates and would report on the effect of this at the next meeting.

RESOLVED: That the Clerk’s report be noted.

2670. ANNUAL RETURN

The Clerk reported that the Council’s Annual Return for 2013-14 was complete and signed off by the External Auditor. The final return and External Auditor comments are attached to this report.

The Clerk reported that the following comments on the issues had been highlighted by the External Auditor:

Risk assessment / This has begun to be addressed by the consideration of the Financial Risk assessment that was considered and approved at the meeting on 15th July 2014. A Risk assessment on other Council activity will be carried out later this year.
Asset Register / The Accountants had not fully updated the Asset register figures. This will be corrected next year.
Internal Auditor appointment / The reappointment of the Internal Auditor was considered at the meeting on 15th July 2014 for next year’s audit.
Internal Auditor’s Recommendations / These were considered at the meeting of 15th May 2014, and appropriate actions agreed

The Clerk said that the comments raised had been technical in nature and had not delayed the signing off of the Return.

RESOLVED: That this report and actions indicated above be approved.

2671. THORNE MEMORIAL PARK

Friends of Thorne Park and Development of a Masterplan

At the Planning and Amenities Committee on 10th June 2014 it was reported that an independent “Friends of Thorne Park” group had been established to work with the Council to achieve improvements in the Park. Their first step was to apply for funding for additional benches which have recently been installed.

Further meetings have been held with the group to discuss the Park. They have been clear that they wish to prioritise activities which supplements and supports the work of the Council and its maintenance staff, and to access sources of funding that would not be available to the Council. The next task that they have identified is to carry out some further works to the flowerbeds to make the planting that has been carried out more effective, and to supplement the planting.

An initial schedule has been produced which will form the basis of a Masterplan.

Use of the Park for Events

A recent event held in May caused damage to the Park due to the ground being soft. In the light of this 2 new policies for the Park are proposed:

Events requiring a large part of the Park attracting significant numbers of people will be limited to 1st June to 30th September.
Any large event will be subject to an Event Agreement to be signed by the organisers and the Council which sets out each party’s responsibilities.

For the avoidance of doubt events such as the Remembrance Day Service would not be included in the above as it only requires a small part of the Park.

The event agreement would cover circumstances where the event would be cancelled or curtailed due to poor weather.

Walled Garden

It was reported that the improvement works to the Walled Garden were largely complete, works to with the pathway, seating, trees and grassed areas undertaken, and the bins in store. There are a number of outstanding elements (all works are accommodated within the S106 approval):

Repairs to the wall between the Walled Garden and Park – during construction this was identified as unstable. Following an inspection by a structural engineer it has been agreed to install some additional buttressing. These works will be accrued out shortly.
Copings – as the site is in the conservation area specialist designs had to be agreed for the additional coping stones that need to be provided where the wall is being reduced in height. The delivery time for these has proved extremely lengthy. They are now anticipated at the end of this month.
Fence/ wall next to Haworth Timber – this was identified as unstable after the works commenced. Haworth Timber have developed a proposal to replace it with a paladin fence with willow panels on the Walled Garden side to screen the builders yard.
Resin bonding – it had been agreed to include a top coating of resin bonded bauxite chippings to make the pathway more attractive. This could not be carried out until the tarmac has “cured”, and will be carried out shortly.
Plaques – these have been ordered. The designs will be agreed with the relevant parties prior to installation.
Tree – the old tree in the north east corner of the site will be removed as part of the overall tree works to be undertaken by the Council this year.
New trees – unfortunately a small number of the trees that were planted have not established. These will be replaced this autumn.

Due to the additional costs for repairs to the wall (which has included repairs to the wall fronting Ellison Street) the budget will be largely used in full.

The Clerk reported that he had discussed with the Landscape Architect and contractor whether the site can be open to the public. Whilst it could be opened, it would need to be closed again for the works to the wall, fence and pathway within the next few weeks. It would seem sensible to complete these works and to open the site in November.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted and that the following policies be adopted:

i)Events requiring a large part of the Park attracting significant numbers of people will be limited to 1st June to 30th September.

ii)Any large event will be subject to an Event Agreement to be signed by the organisers and the Council which sets out each party’s responsibilities.

2672. CEMETERY

The Clerk said that there were a number of issues in Thorne Cemetery which needed consideration by the Council relating to seats/ benches, trees and management of grave plots. The Clerk recommended a number of additional policies.

The Clerk reported that whilst some progress has been made on the transfer of the Haynes Road site to the Council it has not yet been completed. Some land ownership issues have been identified, and there is a wayleave across the site where further clarification is needed. These issues have been passed back to Doncaster MBC. An update from the Council’s Solicitor had been requested, and will report further at the meeting.

RESOLVED: That the following policies be added to the Cemetery Regulations:

i) Memorial benches/ seats can only be erected in Thorne Cemetery on sites identified by the Town Council. The design of the benches must be agreed in advance.

ii) Seats and Benches will be removed after 5 years unless the Council agrees an Extension of Time.

iii) A charge of £25 will be made for each bench/ seat and £25 for an extension of time to cover the Council’s administrative costs.]

iv)No trees shall be planted in the Cemetery without the express consent from the Council.

2673. FRACKING

The Clerk reported that a special meeting of the Doncaster PCJCC was held on 30th September 2014 for a presentation on “Fracking” (hydraulic fracturing). The presentation was given by Helen McCluskey a principal Planning Officer at Doncaster MBC dealing with minerals.

Hydraulic Fracturing is a technique that allows the enhanced recovery of shale gas (methane) by fracturing rocks to allow it to escape. It includes horizontal drilling along layers of strata. The fracturing may only need to be done once, or a number of times depending on the difficulty of extracting the gas. Water is used to carry out the fracturing which then returns to the surface. In some areas this has been re-injected into the ground once the gas is extracted, but this has caused earthquakes. In the UK the water would need to be processed at ground level.

In itself the technology is not new, and versions have been used for oil extraction. However the current proposals are more aggressive.

A single wellhead could accommodate a number of boreholes which can extend a number of kilometres underground.

There are 3 phases to developing a gas extraction site:

Exploration – how much gas is there?
Appraisal – how much gas can be produced?
Development – commercial production

Any firm interested in pursuing gas extraction must have a Petroleum Exploration Development License which is issued by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Any applicant must be “technically competent, environmentally aware, and have financial capacity” which will restrict licences to large energy firms.

Licences have been issued for most of the Doncaster area. However the existence of Licences does not mean that anything will happen. Applicants will also need planning consent and the consent of the landowner. The only current area of active exploration is east of Bawtry.

The government is in principle in favour of using hydraulic fracturing to extract gas, and this is translated into current guidance. This means that a Minerals Planning Authority could not realistically refuse an application out of principle. They would require an Environmental Impact Assessment and could refuse an application if environmental or other concerns were not satisfactorily mitigated.

There were a number of material considerations highlighted:

Seismic activity – all wellheads must have a seismograph with a low threshold set. As indicated above particular problems have occurred with the reinjection of waste water which would not be permitted in the UK.
Subsidence – the British Geological Survey do not see this as a problem due to the depth of drilling and the relatively small size of the bore.
Public Concern – through the Localism Act the Planning authority can refuse an application based on the weight of local opinion.
Water – the hydraulic fracturing requires a substantial amount of water, though as a “one off” each time fracturing takes place. This is seen as achievable in normal water supply situations. Boreholes would not be permitted within the vicinity of water extraction boreholes. The use of water would be licenced by the Environment Agency.

The Royal Society and Royal Academy of Engineering consider that “the health, safety and environmental risks can be managed effectively in the UK, by implementing and enforcing best operational practice.”

The principle of extracting gas in the Doncaster area is established as there has been conventional gas extraction. Any “fracking” is likely to be developed on sites with existing infrastructure as boreholes can extend for some distance underground. This means that proposals for a “fracking” wellhead in Thorne and Moorends seem unlikely.

RESOLVED: That the report be noted.

2674. STANDING ORDER 1C – ADMISSION OF PUBLIC AND PRESS

Consideration was given to the implementation of Standing Order 1C (exclusion of press and Public) in view of the confidential nature of the business about to be transacted.

RESOLVED: That Standing Order 1C be invoked due to consideration of a confidential matter.

2675. STAFFING

Assistant Groundsperson

It was agreed at the Council meeting on 9th September 2014 that the Apprentice Gardener would be offereda permanent post with the Council, with the job description and salary to be agreed at the next meeting.

The Clerk reported that he had prepared a draft job description so that duties can be carried out in a flexible manner that allow for changes to activities and personnel in the future. He said that It is intended initially that the postholder would maintain a significant presence at the Cemetery, though work on other sites as necessary.

The Clerk said that this job description most closely matches the work of the existing Assistant Groundsperson, and proposed an identical pay level at NJC scale 7 (currently £12,915 pa). The new post would commence on 15th November 2015 when the current Contract expires. The appointment would be on the same terms and conditions of other staff, including an entitlement to join the pension scheme.

Groundsperson

The Clerk reported that the existing postholder, employee R013reaches 65 in October and has requested that the Council consider a flexible retirement arrangement whereby he reduces his hours to 21 hours per week from 1st November 2014. If this is agreed he can draw down his Council pension. There would be no cost to the Council in agreeing to this arrangement.

Flexible retirement allows a more phased succession which will work well with the introduction of the new Assistant Groundsperson post. In addition there will be a saving which will help fund the new post. It is also beneficial to the postholder as it provides a transition between work and retirement retaining similar income levels.

Apprentices

At the last meeting a request was made to assess the cost of the appointment of further apprentices. The Clerk reported that:

The apprentices taken on last year had a cost of £11,544 over 18 months, offset by a £1,500 grant, giving a net cost of £10,044. The Council had agreed to increase pay after 6 months and 12 months.

He reported that there are ways in which the overall cost could be reduced including:

Paying the minimum wage for the full apprentice period
Offering a 12 month apprenticeship
Offering reduced hours (minimum is 30 hours)

The current £1,500 grant is available for 16-24 year old though this currently only runs to 31st December. It seems likely that it will be replaced by a similar scheme.