Musbury Parish Council

Minutes of the meeting held Monday8 January 2018in Musbury Village Hall Committee Room

PRESENT:CllrC Corbett (Chair); Cllrs C. Ellis,J. Albano,M. Perry, P. Perrymanand P. Smith;District Cllr I. Chubb (from 8.15 pm); County Cllr I. Hall Ms J. Bishop (Clerk); 9 parishioners.

1APOLOGIES: there were none.

2.MINUTES OF THE MEETINGheldMonday 4 December2017were accepted as a true record and dulysigned by Cllr Corbett.

3DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST:there were none.

4POLICE MATTERS:no report had been received. PC Aldred emailed to say that Axminster now has a second PCSO, Chris Bolsover. He is hoping to go to the next Coffee morning at the village hall.

5LOCAL GOVERNMENT BUSINESSandCOMMUNITY ISSUES:

Musbury display at Axminster Heritage Centre – A meeting held Tues 5 December attracted 13 residents. A further meeting is scheduled for Sat 20 Jan at 10.30 am in the village hall to which residents are invited to bring along photos, objects etc. Martin Minter has kindly agreed to coordinate the display. A theme will be decided after reviewing what’s available. The Spar has generously donated coffee.

EDDC/ DCC Meeting 5 Dec 2017- Cllr Albano attended. She reported that

a)DCC:

  • Made £206m savings over last 6 years and aims for further £22m this FY. Savings made by workforce reductions and 130 spare buildings decommissioned/ sold.
  • Will lose most of government funding by 2020; all council work will be funded through council tax and business rates.
  • Proposes to work with Somerset to create a joint organisation. A bigger unit means economies of scale and shared resources.
  • Priority will be road repairs and drainage. Emphasised that all shoddy jobs should be reported as they will not be paid for.
  • Chair John Hart has asked for a report on the state of East Devon roads and the impact of the community warden scheme- self help schemes were again promoted.

b)Devon Air Ambulance Trust

  • Aiming to create a network of community night landing sites.
  • Crew members use night vision goggles which restrict peripheral vision so night landing sites need to help deliver a safe service.
  • Sites need to be free from power lines and in central part of the community where lights from the site are helpful to paramedics on the ground.
  • TAP fund can be used and grants are available- partner parishes should be within 5 mins drive.

c)Neighbourhood plans

  • East Devon has 39 active plans, 9 approved in 2017.Communities are encouraged to engage in a local plan.

6HIGHWAYS AND PUBLIC SPACES:

Road Closures – The following were noted, all19.00- 6.00

  • A358 Abbey Gate to Warlake 5 -8 Feb;
  • A358 Warlake to Whitford Road 6-9 Feb (excl weekends)
  • A358 Musbury to Boshill 14-16 Feb

Drainage:

Top of Combpyne Rd – The work of clearing the ditch and the surrounding area remains outstanding. Cllr Corbett and Cllr Perry will ensure the work is done by the end of January. ACTION

Mounthill / Northfield ditch –The heavy rain and high winds on Boxing Day caused blockages in the various drains and gullies with resultant standing water on the roads. Brian Hoare, Highways, came out to Mounthill Lane. He reported that he will add jetting and clearance of this drainage system to the programmeofworks on an annual rather than 3-yearly basis (funding permitting).Because at least 3 of the gullies,upfromWestbank,aresubstandard(i.e.toosmallwithnosumpsinthem) he will submit a scheme to upgradethem tomatchtheothergully justaboveMountPleasant Farm.

He is considering an overflow pipe to drain excess water into the Northfield ditch. Cllr Albano emphasised that this was not the answer as the road drain receiving water from the culvert would be unable to cope. Cllr Corbett suggested that splitting the overflow would help. Cllr Perry said freeing up the drains at the bottom of Adcroft was another part solution.

Cllrs Corbett and Albano will meet Brian Hoare and an EDDC rep on site on 11 January. ACTION

They will ask them to look at the problem of the drain in the A358 outside Valley View while in the village. ACTION

Seats- Resident Chris Irving will start on the seat improvement work this month. ACTION

Salt storage – Cllr Smithhas agreed that it is feasible to transfer the current stocks at Baxters Farm to store with the sand. There had been concerns about this location on the top of a hill as it is difficult to access in icy weather. If the original bags have degraded it may be necessary to use dumpy bags. The move needs to

take place before 10 March.

Volunteer grass cutting for The Street – Councillors noted gratefully that resident Ray Cross and his neighbour in Marlborough Close have agreed to take over the mowing of the grass from Mr Brock.

7ACCOUNTS:

Recent transactions- The Clerk presented the accountsfor December(below). These had not been reviewed by Cllr Ellis for internal audit prior to the meeting.

The Clerk had double checked all payments made to Halycon but confirmed that remittance for August and October was overdue (invoices had not previously been received).

It was noted that online banking had now been set up and two payment transactions would be made online

The accounts were approved by CllrsPerry and Perryman.

The Clerk will amend the Council’s Financial Regulations to take account of the online process. ACTION

Precept – This FY the Parish received a total of £6325 made up from £6206 precept and £119 Council Tax Discount Grant (CTDG). Councillors noted that, while the Spending Review had estimated a carryover figure of about £3815, they were aware that the parish would have to take on more responsibility for works currently done by either EDDC or DCC.

After discussion it was agreed to raise the precept by 15%. The Clerk will ask for £7230 (£6206 x115% = £7136.90 precept -rounded up to £7140- plus £90 CTDG). The CTDG this FY reflects the lower grant received by EDDC from Central Govt.

Parishes Together FundsTAP 2017/18 - Musbury still has to make a decision aboutits application for £513.70. The final closing date for applications is8 February 2018.

Councillors were happy to consider the suggestion put forward by Cllr Albano of using funding for a night landing site for the Devon Air Ambulance. Grants are available for labour costs to install lights (which are remotely controlled by the air ambulance cetre. The Playing field and the School field had both previously been put forward. The football pitch at Axmouth was another possibility. A survey by DAAT is the first step to assess suitability. Site costs were unknown but will vary according to local conditions. It was thought a rough cost was about £5k per site.

It was agreed the Clerk will contact All Saints, Shute and Whitford and Axmouth to determine the interest level in partnership. She will contact Jamie Buckley to establish which parishes are available to partner. She will also make contact with Axmouth FC and the school. ACTION

Cllr Hall said there could be additional money available from the DCC Locality Budget in May.

8P3

Annual Bid – To inform her bid for money Cllr Albano said she needed any further information on FP defects by the end of January.

FP 36 – Cllr Albano said PROW has agreed a site visit with a view to advising about the need for resurfacing. ACTION

9PLANNING MATTERS

East Devon Villages Plan- EDDC is consulting on proposed changes or ‘main modifications’ to the plan. For Musbury the proposed changes are given below with additions underlined.

“Within the centre of the village is an area that was excluded from the BUAB defined in the previously adopted Local Plan, adjacent to the Mountfield grade ll listed building. Whilst this has now been included in the BUAB, it lies at the heart of the conservation area and close to a number of listed buildings. The relationship of this land to these heritage assets, coupled with the open nature of thisthe land, coupled with its topography and tree cover and relationship with neighbouring listed buildings makes it unlikely that it willwould be suitable for development unless, inexcept in exceptional circumstances, development would minimise harm in all respects upon the historic environment and secure the future of Mountfield, a heritage asset at risk”. Deadline for comments is 2 February

Mountfield –No further progress towards a resolution known.

Decisions notified

17/2550/FUL - September Cottage The Street Enlargement of first floor window on west elevation- Approved

Applications received

Councillors were happy to support the following application:

17/2956/FUL - 2 Adcroft Rise- Construction of replacement garage

Documents were not yet available online for the following application but the deadline for comments will be before the next meeting.

18/0051/FUL - Westways Axminster RoadConstruction of extension to existing roof to create additional first
floor accommodation; widening of garage and addition ofpitched roof.

10PLAYING FIELD

Safety inspection – Cllrs Corbett and Perrystill need to meet on site to discuss priorities amongst the jobs identified in this year’s report. ACTION C/F

11ALLOTMENTS:

Polytunnels- High winds in early December resulted in one poly-tunnel lifting off and seriously damaging its neighbouring structure. The Parish Council is insured at the allotments for public liability to third parties but was advised it needs to take all reasonable steps to minimise risks. The Clerk sent out a notice to all tenants stressing the need for adequate installation and maintenance of poly-tunnels and coverage on their own insurance for damage or loss.

Hard-standing for car-parking- Cllr Smith had investigated plastic tracking strips to lay down the paths but these would require a considerable bed of hardcore. It was decided to monitor the situation.

12REPORTS FROM DISTRICT& COUNTY COUNCILLORS:

District Councillor Iain Chubb reported:

Drainage – StreetScene has made major efforts to be on top of drainage issues. Cllrs Albano and Perryman confirmed this, applauding the vigilance in clearing the Northfield ditch.

HQ Buildings- Exmouth now up and running. Honiton expected to be occupied by Dec 2018. Results of the appeal by the developer of The Knowle against the rejection of his application expected soon.

Recycling – EDDC handling 680 tons of waste each week.Other councils now approaching EDDC to learn the secrets of their success. Cllr Albano queried whether the recent Chinese ban on importing plastic waste would have an impact.

Collection lorries are not permitted to drive with open sides in rural areas and may face littering challenges if reported.

County Councillor Ian Hall reported:

Axe Vale Academy 6th Form closure – He and Neil Parrish MP had met Lord Agnew, the Academies Minister, to argue for its retention. While still waiting for an official response it was not looking promising.

Ice on roads – Residents are asked to contact him about areas of standing water on highways which could become ice-rinks when temperatures drop.

Allen Parkman confirmed the problem of standing water outside Valley View. Cllr Corbett said there was often a sheet of water from land run-off just before Ashe Corner.

Broadband- He was confident that Gigaclear and Airband, the new contractors for the Connecting Devon and Somerset project Phase 2 would deliver a better service than BT

13MATTERS BROUGHT FORWARD BY PERMISSION OF THE CHAIRMAN: there were none.

14 CORRESPONDENCE Received:

Clerks & Councils DirectDec 2017.

15QUESTIONS FROM PARISHIONERS:

Recycling centre charges –Cllr Hall said he was still awaiting a response for Allen Parkman to his issues with unhelpful staff at the Offwell Recycling Centre and the charging policies which inevitably lead to flytipping.

With no further business outstanding, the Chairman closed the meeting at 20.50pm

Date of Next Meeting Monday 19 February 2018

ATREASURERS ACCOUNT

DECEMBER

Income Received 0

Payments made

1129 Musbury Village hall hire (4/12 ) and (5/12) 17.50*

1130PO for HMRC (/Dec/Jan/Feb/ March) (G) 195.36

1131 Clerk Salary Nov (G) £195.35 +

Expenses Nov (G) £7.50 = 202.85

1132 Halcyon Landscapes £197.33 + £39.47 VAT (G) = 236.80

1133Bradfords - part bill (G) 50.54

* cheque still to clear

Earlier cheques cleared

1119Musbury Village Hall hire (23/10) (G) 17.50

Balance of account as at 31/12/2017 Statement sheet No 1 £ 6912.33

Includes

Allotment deposits520.00

Allotment funds available 844.37 = 1364.37

P3 68.25

TAP Fund 15/16 4.84

TAP Fund 16/17 503.80

General 4971.07

(£ 17.50 chq to clear)

Cheques signed (not included in balances)

1134Clerk Salary Dec (G) £195.35 +

Expenses Dec (G) £11.40 = 206.75

1135Halcyon Landscapes £72.33 + £14.47 VAT (G) = 86.80

1136 Halcyon Landscapes – originals not received

Aug £206.33 + £41.27 VAT (G) +

Oct £72.33 + £14.47 VAT (G) = 334.40

Online transfers approved(not included in balances)

Musbury Village Hall Hire (8/1/18) and (20/1/18) 21.00

Gerard Wood - Website domain renewal 2 years £23.98 +

Website hosting £33.32 = 57.30

B READING ROOM TRUST ACCOUNT Statement No 16

9 OctGross Credit Interest 0.01

9 NovGross Credit Interest 0.02

30 Nov COIF dividend 4.87

11DecGross Credit Interest 0.02

Balance 376.53