Minutes of the Foxton Annual Parish Meeting

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MINUTES OF THE FOXTON ANNUAL PARISH MEETING

HELD ON MONDAY, 29th APRIL 2013 AT 7.45 p.m.

PRESENTDr Oakley, Dr Grindley, Mr Bore, Mr Barnes, Mr Elliott, Mr McCreery, Mrs Macintyre, Mrs McFadzean and Mr Sutton

County Councillor Susan van de Ven (arrived after meeting commenced)

IN ATTENDANCE5 members of the public

APOLOGIESDistrict Councillor Deborah Roberts

Chairman’s introduction

Dr Oakley welcomed all to the Annual Parish Meeting. He said the past year had seen some major events in the village not least the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations coupled with the opening of the newly equipped play area in June. The Recreation Ground was also designated a Queen Elizabeth II Playing Field, thus enshrining its status as an area that can only be used for recreation. Later in the year a new village sign was unveiled and extended double yellow lines in Station Road were finally painted. Planning matters included the identification of a site at the end of Fowlmere Road for a small development of low-cost affordable housing for Foxton residents and the commencement of work on the expansion of the conservation area. Dr Oakley said that the reports to follow would be an overview of all the council’s activities during the past year together with those from other village groups and from the district and county councillors. Members of the public would be welcome to ask questions at the end of each report.

minutes of the previous meeting

Dr Oakley proposed that the Minutes of the previous Annual Parish Meeting, held on Monday, 23rd April 2012, be taken as read. Mr Barnes seconded the proposal and all were agreed.

county councillor’s report

This item was deferred until later in the meeting.

district councillor’s report

Mrs Roberts had sent apologies for her absence at the meeting and there was no report.

infrastructure report

Dr Oakley reported as follows:

Railways

The railway service from Foxton continued to be well used on both the up and down lines. With the newly built estates on the southern edge of Cambridge and a further one about to be started in Hauxton it was very likely that footfall at the station would increase over the next few years. Although there were now improved cycle parking facilities at the station more was needed and the absence of a dedicated car parking area continued to cause problems. The level crossing pedestrian gates were still causing problems with the gates being out of action for prolonged periods. The gates were being continually repaired by Network Rail but it was clear that they were not fit for purpose. The future of the level crossing was the subject of a feasibility study by Network Rail, publication of which was imminent. Dr Oakley said he would be meeting next week with Dr van de Ven and County Council officers.

Roads

The A10 now had a 50 mph limit from just north of Foxton Level Crossing to just south of the Frog End junction. However, the roads that fed into this stretch of the A10, such as Foxton Bottom were still operating under the national 60 mph speed limit and the incongruity of this situation was being addressed. Within the village, the long-awaited extra double yellow lines in Station Road had now been painted making the junction with the A10 safer. Also the yellow hatching at the level crossing has been repainted to increase safety at the A10/Station Road junction.

Parking remained a problem in the village, especially in the High Street at certain times, and the police would continue to ticket those cars, which were illegally parked. The council-owned car park in Hardman Road needed to be more widely used and would be resurfaced over the next year. The past winter had been unusually long and severe and had caused numerous potholes in the village and surrounding roads. These had mainly been dealt with and the county council would continue to repair them as when necessary. There was sufficient grit for the County Council to grit all the through roads in Foxton when needed.

A meeting had been held with the county council to discuss HGV traffic through the village. The county council did a desktop study to determine the environmental sensitivity of Foxton to HGV traffic. This took into consideration the size of roads and footways, nearness of houses to the roads, foot and cycle traffic and the location of schools etc. In this survey Foxton came out with medium to high sensitivity. When a traffic survey based on sensors was carried out it was found, however, that there was only an average of 0.4 HGVs per hour over a 3-day testing period, which was low compared to other villages in the study.

Footways

The state of some of the pavements in the village was very poor and the council had made a request to the county council for them to be resurfaced (although of course there was a very limited budget for such work).

Drainage

Poor drainage was a concern in the village, particularly at the junction of St Laurence Road and the High Street (Vicarage Corner), War Memorial Corner and on the roadway through The Green. The county council had jetted the St Laurence drain and was investigating possible blockages further on in the system (some under private ownership). The county council had also jetted the drain at War Memorial corner. The situation at Vicarage Corner had worsened due to the Hardman Road development drainage feeding into the High Street surface water drainage system. Also, the new development of four houses behind The Green had not helped drainage in that area of the village. Drainage problems which had occurred in Barrington Road were due to wear at property access points and years’ worth of lcommercial traffic to and from the cement works; these would be rectified by the county council with financial aid from Cemex.

Buses and Cycle paths

The No. 26 bus service continued to run through the village and would get a boost by patronage from the new development in Hauxton when that was completed. Dr Oakley said that County Councillor Susan van de Ven was a tireless campaigner for the interests of cyclists and was in discussion about funding for better cycle access to Foxton Station and a Foxton to Harston cycle path.

reports from the working parties

recreation and amenities

Mr McCreery said that this year the members of the working party had been himself as Chairman, Rachael Macintyre, Christine McFadzean and Geoff Barnes.

Grass Cutting

Grass cutting of the Recreation Ground and the approaches to the village continued to be a major cost. 2012 had proved a difficult year with weather conditions generally unhelpful. This had meant that the presentation of the village was not as good as the council would have liked. This had been conveyed to the contractors and an improvement was looked for in 2013.

The Cricket Club continued to maintain the main area of the Recreation Ground during the summer months.

Recreation Ground

Some tree surgery had again been carried out in the past year. In the high winds a tree branch fell on a resident’s fence but was dealt with quickly and the fence repaired. In addition the Tennis Club had cut down the overgrown conifer in the hedge adjoining the Recreation Ground.

One application of herbicide was applied in July. This had proved more successful than the 2011 application but the intention was to spray twice in 2013.

The training area was out of use for parts of the winter owing to the difficult weather conditions and the increased demand from the growth in number of members of Dynamo Foxton. The area would be over-seeded in the next month.

Play Area

The new Play Area was opened by the Chairman of South Cambridgeshire District Council (SCDC), Tony Orgee, as part of the Jubilee celebrations in June. Major grants were received from Amey Cespa, SCDC and Foxton Parish Council to augment the successful fund raising by the Play Area Improvement Group.

Two new picnic benches were installed by David Salmons in time for the opening. Some refurbishment of the old retained equipment was carried out plus the installation of a new gate.

Prior to the opening of the Play Area, a ROSPA inspection had been carried out and subsequently a schedule of bi-annual inspections had been agreed with Kompan.

Litter Pick

A litter pick was held in July covering the village and Foxton Woods. The village was generally in good order, the problem areas being the A10, Barrington Road and Foxton Bottom. In both these areas the litter picked up was almost exclusively that thrown out of car windows by people passing through.

Sports Clubs

Two meetings were held in the past year with representatives from the sports clubs who use the main area of the Recreation Ground namely, the Football Club, the Cricket Club and Dynamo Foxton. These meetings had been a useful forum to keep the clubs and the parish council in touch with each other’s requirements.

Due to the shortage of football pitches caused by the expansion of Dynamo Foxton to include more age groups, additional pitches on either side of the cricket square had been used occasionally.

The clubs would again provide and spread fertiliser on the Recreation Ground based on previously obtained soil sample analysis.

Other areas discussed were:

The ball wall.

This has now been re-sited to move it away from the cricket and training areas. The Bowls Club filled in the hole created at the previous site.

The hard standing

The football clubs were both interested in an all weather Astroturf facility and it was agreed to put on hold any alterations to the training lights while this was reviewed. If there were sufficient interest, a public meeting would be held before any fund-raising commenced.

QEII Challenge

Mr McCreery said that the QEII Challenge was a programme to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee intended permanently to protect a network of outdoor recreational spaces across the UK. The completed Deed of Dedication covering the Recreation Ground and allotments had been received in March and the relevant registration documents were lodged with the Land Registry in April.

The plaque recording the registration had been received and this would be sited on the Recreation Ground in the next couple of months.

Half Pipe / Scooter Park

A letter expressing interest in a half pipe project had been received at the end of April last year. This was publicised in the July issue of “The Laurentian" in an article looking for comments from residents. A number of people expressed an interest and a committee was formed. A survey of the primary school was carried out to measure interest in this project rather than the existing BMX track. The vast majority of children expressed interest in the half pipe project. An open meeting was held in September and no objections to going forward were raised.

Fund raising commenced with a pub quiz in September. A pantomime raised in the region of £2,000 and further funds were received from Waitrose. The parish council and a further donor had both promised £1,000. The committee was now obtaining quotations to enable grant applications to be pursued.

Other Matters

Solar lights had been installed at the St. Laurence Road path to the Recreation Ground and in the Dovecote field.

The inconsiderate attitude of a number of dog owners was a problem and dog fouling on the Recreation Ground continued to be an issue. This has been highlighted in “The Laurentian” and additional signs had been put in place.

Cambridgeshire County Council’s programme for replacing street lighting with fewer brighter lights was ongoing but the council did not have a date for commencement of the work in Foxton.

The parish council assisted the Cricket Club in purchasing a new roller.

The trees overhanging the Station footpath had been cut back.

The Youth Shelter had again been repaired.

The fences in Foxton Wood were inspected during the litter-pick and again in March when the condition of fences was found reasonable, with less damage than experienced last year

New picnic tables were planned for the picnic bank on the Recreation Ground when funds were available.

Mr McCreery concluded by thanking all the working party members and, in particular, David Salmons, the Village Warden, for all their hard work during the year.

Dr Oakley thanked Mr McCreery for his report and invited questions.

Mr Howard commented that the new Play Area was well used.

FINANCE

Mr Sutton reported as follows:

Membership of the Finance Working Party remained unchanged as Dr Oakley, Dr Grindley and Mr McCreery and himself as chairman.

The Precept for the past financial year was £21,000, which represented an increase of only 2.4% on the previous year. The contribution from Cambridgeshire County Council towards grass cutting was unchanged at £708.

The most significant item of expenditure during the year had been the purchase and installation of the Play Area equipment at a cost of £51,600. Grants and donations received by the Fund Raising Group amounted to £34,350 and, with VAT recovered of £8,600 and £350 received in a previous year, the net contribution from the council was £8,300. This sum was covered by the Section 106 receipt of £8,498 received in 2011.

Insurance cover continued to be one of the council’s largest liabilities each year and in 2012/13 the premium had increased by £682 from £1,780 to £2,462. This increase was due to two factors. Firstly, asset values had been increased by 4.75% and the council was now covering the Play Area equipment at a value of £43,000 against all risks. The total value of assets covered was £145,847.

Grass cutting commenced in March, as in 2011, and costs were broadly similar at £2,961 inclusive of spraying at £225. Tree surgery at £323 was much less than the £1,944 amount spent in the previous year. As would be expected Play Area inspections at £850 were £674 higher than in the previous year. Village Warden costs at £2,506 were in line with 2011/12 at £2,565.

The council had spent £618 on lights and signs (relating to the Play Area and supervision of dogs) as compared with £79 in the previous year. Jubilee celebration costs at £857 were extremely good value for the wide range of activities organised by Mrs McFadzean and her team of volunteers. Another exceptional item of expenditure had been the furniture and equipment purchased to set up the council office at a cost of £1,119 inclusive of VAT.

Overall the deficit for the year was £6,843 but, excluding the contribution in the year of £8,650 towards the Play Area equipment, the council recorded a surplus of £1,807. This surplus was higher than budget only because the council had deferred into a subsequent year a contribution of £1,000 towards the cost of the Half Pipe.

The council’s unrestricted cash reserves at the year-end were £35,912 and a further £198 was held as restricted funds arising from the Section 106 receipt already mentioned. This small balance would be used against future village facilities - probably the Half Pipe.

In conclusion, Mr Sutton expressed his thanks to the parish clerk, Joan Burns, for the accounting records she had kept so ably and to Mike Matthews for carrying out the duties of Internal Auditor for another year.

Dr Oakley thanked Mr Sutton for his report.

Mr Challis commended the council for keeping the precept down for 2013-14.

PLANNING COMMITTEE REPORT

Dr Grindley reported as follows:

The committee had held eleven planning meetings during the year. Members of the committee had also attended:

• A South Cambridgeshire planning workshop
• Two SCDC Planning Committee meetings
• A Cemex liaison meeting
• A meeting of the Common Stream History Society

Tree applications.

SCDC approved applications to:

• Fell a sycamore at 63 Station Road
• Reduce the crown of five Cherry trees between 8 & 12 High Street
• Fell two trees at 4 Shepreth Road.

Two trees on the green bank in Station Road were also felled and replaced by SCDC.

Planning applications.

Five planning applications to extend existing dwellings were approved by SCDC.

An application to replace two small dwellings in Fowlmere Road was refused, amended and subsequently approved by SCDC.

A proposed new dwelling on the A10 was refused and dismissed on appeal. An application for a new dwelling next to the Press in Station Road was also refused, and dismissed on appeal, then amended, refused once more and again dismissed on appeal.