Minutes of the Wigginton Parish CouncilAnnual Parish Meeting

Meeting: / Annual ParishMeeting
Held on: / Wednesday 25thApril 2018 at 8pm
Location: / Village Hall, Chesham Road, Wigginton
Present: / Cllrs. David Wilde (Chair) (DW), Debbie Meech (Vice chair) (DM), John Shelton (JS), Trenna Axon (TA), Steve Walker (SW),Jane Mitchell (JM), Stuart Fordyce (SF), Dacorum Borough Cllr. Stan Mills (DBC) Herts County Councillor Nick Hollinghurst and Cheryl Williams (Parish Clerk);
15 Parishioners
Copies: / All Councillorsand the WPC website
Item / Description / Action by
1 / Welcome
1.1 / The Chair welcomed all those present and explained that this was not a normal Council meeting but an opportunity for the Council to present to the public what they do and receive their feedback.
It was also an opportunity for the Parish Council to recognise those who make a special contribution to our community.
He hoped that all had received their copy of the new-look Oddy and liked the new format. Favourable comments had been received and whilst it did cost a little more than the black and white version Council considered it was worth it to grab the readers’ attention. The Chair thanked Councillor Trenna Axon for her work in producing this.
The Oddy serves as the Council’s annual report to the village and it was not proposed to repeat all the information in it. / Note
2 / Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on April 26th 2017
2.1 / Acceptance of the minutes as a true record of the proceedings was proposed by Debbie Meech and seconded by Steve Walker and the minutes were signed by the Chair. / Note
3 / Matters arising from the Minutes
3.1 / None. / Note
4 / Summary Report
The Chair reported as follows on the Council’s (WPC’s) activities:
4.1
4.2
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
4.8
4.9
4.10 / Financial Arrangements
WPC hasa modest income of about £13000 pa (about £21 per household) from the precept which is part of the council tax, and is set by WPC. This is one of the lowest in the Borough.
In addition,WPC has a grant from Dacorum to provide services on their behalf and funds from various other sources to make the total about £23,000 pa.
This will be supplemented this year by other one-off grants and donations to make the total closer to £30,000. These include the community infrastructure levy, and grants from Tesco and the former show committee. He thanked the former show committee for their donation.
Maintaining Open Spaces
WPCowns and maintains the sports field, the recreation ground, the play equipment and gym equipment. There is also a budget for footpath maintenance.
Litter Picking
The litter warden (Sue Morgan) regularly picks litter and this is supplemented by an annual public litterpick. This years was organised by Jane Mitchell on 7th April and was very successful. WPC also reports fly tipping as and when seen.
Street Lighting
WPC own and run most of the street lights in the village - but not for long as itis in the process of handing over to Herts the streetlights which it owns and upgraded to LED over the last year. After paying off a loan for this over a few years, WPCthen will have no further running costs, which is good because Dacorum have withdrawn support for this. (without advance notice).
Supporting Community Projects
WPC supports or implements projects of benefit to the community, such as:
  • The proposed Multi use games area (or MUGA) at the school, to which WPCwill contribute a modest sum for legal fees. Steve Walker is the driving force behind this, made possible by a very generous donation from Stephen Purdew of Champneys.
  • Upgrading of the children’s’ play equipment. WPC has chosen upgraded equipment for the play area in the sports field and have some additional funding earmarked for further equipment. WPChas yet to decide where and what exactly to spend these additional funds on.
  • The community shop project. The Parish Council does not contribute any funds to the shop.The only cost to WPC is the nominal solicitor’s fee with services being kindly provided at a very low rate by ChrisSmee(of Barnes and Partners) from the village. WPCis however fortunately able to provide the shop site on the sports field at no cost to you or the shop.
  • Planning
Dacorum is the Planning Authority and consults WPC on all planning applications in the parish. WPC discusses these at council and passes comment to Dacorum.
If WPC’s view on an application is opposite to the officers’ recommendation, then an application is referred to committee.
Residents are invited to let WPC know your views if there is an application which concerns you.Contact us either by email to the clerk or by coming to our next meeting following the application.
WPC supports events such as the fete, and the fireworks organised by the Friends of Wigginton on our sports field.
4.8Supporting Other Village Groups
Over the past year councillors have assisted in maintenance of the churchyard by joining working parties (organised by Cllr John Shelton) to help keep the churchyard tidy and save them maintenance costs.
Several councillors are also involved with the Friends of Wigginton, the Village Hall, and also, of course, the shop.
4.9Communicating with Villagers
One of WPC’s key functions is to communicate with residents and get their views and concerns so that we can take action. The means used are:
♦WPC website,♦the WPC noticeboards,♦Streetbank,
♦Wiggintononline, ♦the Oddy magazine, ♦and this meeting.
Residents are also welcome to come along to monthly PC meetings held on the 3rd Tuesday of each month except August. Agendas and minutes are on the website. You can always email the clerk at
WPC aims to address residents’ concerns and take these up with the relevant authority where it cannot act directly, for example:
  • Hertfordshire County Council: Highway matters, speeding, road maintenance.
Many thanks to county councillor Nick Hollinghurst for his help and support on those matters and we look forward to working with him on some items arising from the survey.
  • Dacorum Borough Council: Planning, litter/fly tipping, dog mess.
Thanks also to Dacorum Councillor Stan Mills for his advice and support with these and for attending so many WPCmeetings.
In summary WPC’s aim is to make this a better community to live in year on year.
Thanks
The Chair expressed his thanks to Steve Cannon, who stood down a year ago after 10 years as chair and stood down from the council last summer after 20 years and to Charlotte Pardy, who also left us last year due to ill health.
He welcomed 2 new councillors who were co-opted in their place, Trenna Axon who put the superb Oddy together and Jane Mitchell who organised the litter pick and represents us on the village hall committee.
He was sorry to announce that Cllr John Shelton was standing down in July. He had been a great asset to the council with his computer and website skills and his willingness to organise working parties and will be sorely missed. WPCwill need to co-opt a new councillor in July so anyone interested was asked to get in touch.
And finally, he gave special thanks to WPC’s Clerk Cheryl Williams who was leaving to pursue her career as soon as a replacement could be found.
5 / Survey Results
5.1 / The Vice-Chair reported that the village survey was delivered to the 620 homes within the Parish and 58 responses,48 with comments had been received. Further responses from the floor would be welcomed.
Spending – The following was a list of the spending items on the survey form, inascending order of popularity:
AChristmas tree at the cross roads. Low priority but there is an opportunity for someone to sponsor a tree.
Flower beds in the Recreation Ground
Streetlighting in the sports field car park
An extra Speed indicator on Fox road/Vicarage Road
Most requested was that footpathsand pavements be kept clear of vegetation and overgrown hedges and less muddy with 41 responses. WPC would contact owners of hedges. The P3 grant we receive each year also helps to improve footpaths in the Parish.
Other items commented on were as follows:
Litter.This was a perennial problem. Councillor Jane Mitchell reported there is more rubbish where there are no houses, especially beyond Beech Park, WPC was considering organising two litter picks per year.
Traffic speed. Possible speed limiton Chesham Road between Evans and Champneys. Herts County Councillor Nick Hollinghurst agreed to look into this and report back.
Dog mess. More signs were requested. WPC has requested and received 6 signs from Dacorum’s dog warden.
Parking on pavements – Wick Road, Chesham Road and Commonfield were especially highlighted to having a major problem.
A plan of action, in response to the survey results, will be put together as the year goes on.
6 / Questions
6.1 / The Chairman invited questions and comments from the floor.
David Newton said thank you from St Bartholomew’s Church to Councillor John Shelton and his volunteers for organising the clearing of the churchyard.
No further questions or comments were made.
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8 / Good Citizenship Award
The Chair reported that this idea had been in WPC’s communication plan for 2 or 3 years, but this is the first time it had been done. There had been a good response with a number of nominations and he hoped people liked the idea.
The objective was to encourage and recognise community minded activities and also more engagement of residents with the Parish Council so that it can serve the village better.
It had been decided to limit the award to activities over the past year as it would otherwise have been too wide ranging.
The chair paid tribute, without mentioning names, to the many individuals who had served the village so wonderfully in the past, making it such a great place to live andwished to record our gratitude to them.
The decision on the award was made by the Chair, the clerk and 3 other councillors, none of whom was a nominee or connected to one.He expressed his thanks to all who made nominations.
The nominations were, with extracts from the citations:
Steve Walker.
“He is making the MUGA happen, an amazing asset for the village and the School.
…..He is a central figure in the village on the Friends of Wigginton, the ParishCouncil and the shop team. ….He is always helping round the village e.g. trimming trees, helping in the church yard, sorting out roads when they are impassable. ….An incredible citizen.”
The Chair thanked him on behalf of the community.
Sue Hexter and the WI
“…Sue…. is the reason why the WI is flourishing with her tireless initiatives. …Secretary and Treasurer of the Wigginton History Society. ….On a wider front she is active in the University of the Third Age .. a long time volunteer for HomeStart which supports families who need help in practical ways. …Wigginton WI has been instrumental in bringing the community together, supporting the village shop, organising community activities, looking out and supporting the elderly people in the village …….and fund raising.”
Sue unfortunately could not be present but the Chair recorded appreciation for her excellent work and that of the superb WI.
Sue Morgan
“…she quietly, practically and, stoically with no drama, or publicity supports the community of Wigginton. ……As long as I have known her has picked up litter in the village, has popped over to her elderly residents she knows and just sat with them……. supported the WI, been an active Wigginton wildlife follower. …..Sue has gently pottered through life helping adhere to that community spirit ..…for all her hard work litter picking and trying to keep the village tidy.….what an excellent job Sue Morgan is doing as our village warden….”
Again, Sue could not be present but the Chair expressed his thanks on behalf of all.
David Newton
“For supporting individuals and organisations, in particular serving as Church Warden, Trustee of the Wigginton Poor’s Allotment Charity, and on the Committee of Wigginton History Society.”
The Chair expressed his appreciation and thanked David on behalf of the community.
Rebecca Fleckney and the Village Shop Team.
“Rebecca for her work instigating the village shop. …..(she) worked tirelessly to enthuse the residents, she devised the survey which she coordinated, her efforts to establish a shop management committee..…an amazing job …her outstanding leadership skills and tireless commitment have underpinned the success of every stage of the proposal…for her vision, commitment and determination… for getting the shop up and running and getting the support of the village….so much time and effort into making this happen”
“The Committee for the village shop for all their hard work and insight. As this project has progressed you can see the effects of bringing the community together.…A lot of hard outstanding work undertaken by the Wigginton shop team ….”·
The winner was Rebecca Fleckney and the shop team as follows:
The founding shop committee is Rebecca, plus Deborah Simcock, and Simon Crichton.
The present shop committee is Debbie Meech (who has taken over from Rebecca as chair) Deborah, Simon, Caroline Burrage, Terri Baker, Becky Sawyer, Nancy Watters, Les Smith, Zoe Chamberlain, Bryan Hayter, Jan Wheeler, Hilary Shephard, Nick Williams.
The Chair thanked Rebecca, Debbie and the rest of the team, very much and congratulated them on their achievements so far and wished them every success with the shop!
Regrettably Rebecca could not make it due to commitments with her young family. The award was received by Debbie Meech, on behalf of Rebecca and the shop committee.
8Chair’s Closing Remarks
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  • He reminded the meeting thatthere are PC elections early next year. Anyone interested is invited to get in touch. Also, WPC will be looking to co-opt a replacement for John Shelton.
  • The Chair would be pleased to hear of anyone who might be interested in the position of clerk.He sincerely thanked Cheryl Williams and wished her the very best for the future.
  • He thanked all his fellow councillors who gave so freely of their time and contribute so much in their different ways to what WPC tries to do.

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WPC Annual Parish Meeting Minutes April 2018