MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON THURSDAY 21st SEPTEMBER 2017 IN THE VILLAGE HALL, VICARAGE LANE, MEARS ASHBY.

Present: Cllrs: N Wookey, D Payne, T Graham, Borough Councillor J Bone, Inspector D Lyon, Ms A Palmberg (Clerk) and one resident.

129/17Opening Procedures

a)Apologies for absence – Apologies were received from Cllr M O’Halloran, Cllr S Burton, Cllr V Smith, County Councillor Rob Gough and Borough Cllr Clive Hallam. Cllr C Stockdale did not attend.

b) Declarations of interest from members – None

c) Approval of the minutes from the meeting held on Thursday 17th August 2017

Members approved the minutes from the ordinary meeting held on Thursday 17th August 2017.

130/17

Inspector Daryl Lyon gave a presentation on the new Northamptonshire Policing 2020. The major difference regarding community and rural policing is that whilst there is a reduction in headcount, the officers will be dedicated and focused on this area and unlike previously, will not be pulled off for major incidents or other duties such as football matches etc.

A full report on these changes are published on the website:

In response to parish council questions, the following responses were discussed:

  1. Rural crime in our vicinity is not increasing, it occurs in “spikes” and is often evident who the culprits are.
  2. Speeding issues are always important apart from police enforcement cameras and other community initiatives e.g. Speedwatch. It was suggested that rumble strips are considered.
  3. HGV Traffic – the PC and parishioners were encouraged to carry on monitoring and reporting these.
  4. Regarding pavement parking, the police must make a judgement as to whether it can be classified as obstruction i.e. if pedestrians etc. were forced onto the road it could be considered.

In conclusion, Inspector Lyon will communicate with councils in his area of responsibility i.e. Neighbourhood policing for Wellingborough and East Northants, and operates an open-door policy at Wellingborough Police Station.

131/17 Public Time

To receive comments from members

Mr Damien Keane, aresident, began by explaining his history with Mears Ashby and his observations regarding young residents in the parish. He is keen to set up a youth club in the village and asked the Parish Council to consider giving their support. The Chairman agreed that it would be a promising idea in principle but enquired if there was any interest at present.

Members RESOLVED: It was agreed that Mr Keane would do a village survey to gauge the level of enthusiasm for a youth club. It was agreed that the matter would be included on the October agenda. The Chairman would ascertain capacity and availability of the Village Hall at the meeting on 25th September.

132/17Reports

Clerk

Highways -The Clerk reported that a letter from Helen Howard had been received since her email highlighting the incident with a resident suffering a broken ankle as a result of a fall in a pothole. Ms Howard clarifies that unless a pothole is situated in a so called “sensitive location” which would include a school or hospital, the issue would not be considered critical. She suggests contacting Street Doctor on such occasions.

Following the Parish Council’s repeated requests to move the 30mph speed limit sign on Wilby Road to reduce the speed of cars entering the village, particularly where the new barn conversion is located, Ms Howard has responded that any change in speed limit or indeed changing the location of the speed limit needs a lot of concrete evidence and will in some cases be considered by Northamptonshire road safety panel.

Members RESOLVED: It was agreed that the Clerk would continue to pursue the above with Highways as the Parish Council feel it is an issue of concern.

Village Mirrors - A request to Highways was recently made and a response has since been received and is summarised as follows:
Traffic mirrors are regarded as traffic signs and as they do not appear in the Traffic Signs and General Directions 2016, their use would require special authorisation from the Department for Transport, a lengthy process and permission is unlikely to be granted except in exceptional circumstances. However, NCC has always refused to allow traffic mirrors on the highway due to the following reasons:
• The image created by a mirror is deceptive and the distortion of that image can lead a driver to believe that an approaching vehicle is straight ahead when it is, in fact, around a corner.
• It is very difficult to judge the speed of an approaching vehicle from the reflected image.
• Drivers may concentrate on the image in the mirror and miss seeing a nearby pedestrian or cyclist.
• There can be problems with glare from daytime sunlight or headlights at night.
• Mirrors can be subject to vandalism and are affected by wear and tear, rain condensation, frost and snow.
• Even a minor misalignment can result in a distortion of the image even to the extent of giving no image of an approaching vehicle.
Owners and tenants of properties having accesses with limit driver visibility are encouraged to look at possible ways to overcome the problem such as removing or lowering the height of any obstructions, e.g. reducing the height of walls, or repositioning the point of access. However, it is appreciated that such action is not always practical.
If the owner or tenant of such a property wishes to erect a mirror on private land then the permission of that landowner must be sought. It may be necessary to obtain planning permission and in this respect, enquiries should be made to the local district council’s planning department.

Mobile VAS/SID Speed sign – The Clerk advised the Parish Council that quotes have been obtained but a section 50 license is required. The locations of the sign must be agreed and approved by Highways and nominated person responsible for relocating the sign has yet to be considered. It was resolved that a decision would be taken at the next meeting where the representatives of Town Estates would be present.

Grounds Maintenance – The Clerk advised that she has received a quote from Norse for approximately £350 per cut. The frequency and extent of these cuts will have to be established and will be followed up by the Clerk.

Community Enhancement Gang – The Clerk reported that she has contacted the organiser at NCC Highways to receive clarification on the works undertaken. She will follow it up.

Energy Supplier – The Clerk reported that an energy procurement survey had been completed in 2016 by NCALC and it appears that most parish councils still prefer to use E.on. The Clerk mentioned that Aylesbury Mains ought to be considered and she will follow this up.

133/17To receive an update on the Millenium Book (Cllr Graham)

Cllr Graham advised the Parish Council that having met with the Mears Ashby Society recently, there appears to be no interest at present in pursuing a millennium book. It was resolved that Councillor Graham would be the appointed contact between Mears Ashby Parish Council and Mears Ashby Society to avoid duplication and improve communication.

134/17 To agree type of mobile speed sign

Members RESOLVED: It was agreed that the Clerk would pursue this as mentioned in her report.

135/17 To receive an update on the mobile phone signal/proposed new mobile phone mast

There was no update.

Members RESOLVED: It was agreed that the Clerk would chase the developers.

136/17To agree on the proposed relocation of the streetlight in Church Walk

Cllr Graham mentioned that residents ought to be approached in Bakehouse Lane and asked their opinion. At present, the quote to relocate the light is considerable.

Members RESOLVED: It was agreed that Cllr Graham and Cllr Smith would speak to residents.

137/17 To receive an update on recent training courses/PCC Mold Clinics/JAG meetings

The Clerk reported that she had attended the SLCC (Society of Local Council Clerks) Annual Regional seminar in Peterborough recently. Cllr Bone mentioned that she attends the monthly JAG meetings and is happy to report back. Parish Council representation should be encouraged however.

138/17 To receive, discuss and decide on new applications:

Harpers Yard

The reply from the letter sent to WBC regarding retrospective approval was unhelpful. It was felt that the lack of enforcement of the previous planning conditions regarding caravan numbers was a cause for concern for the future.

Members RESOLVED: It was resolved that Carol Haybyrne at WBC should be contacted regularly regarding reports from the monitoring officer. Parishioners should also be encouraged to report breaches of planning conditions, particularly caravan movements in and out of the site between November and March to Ms Carol Haybyrne on:

To receive an update on Sywell Aerodrome

The Chairman attended a meeting on 12th September at the offices of WBC. The minutes of the meeting will be posted on the parish council website.

WP/17/00505/FUL- Pending

application for a 2 bed dwelling in land to the rear of 34 Earls Barton Road, Mears Ashby

(access to be determined at this stage)

34 Earls Barton Road Mears Ashby Northampton Northamptonshire NN6 0DR -

The Parish Council object to the planning proposal for the following reasons:

The height of the building in relation to the height of the neighbouring dwellings which are all bungalows

The proposed size of the footprint of the building in relation to the plot

Access to the dwelling:

. Item 10 of the application “vehicle parking” – this item does not appear to be reflected in the plans submitted

A site visit has been requested.

139/17Financial Matters:

a)To receive the receipts and payments account to 31st August 2017

b)Balance at bank before payments have been deducted: £9,933 (Less £5k Lark Energy grant)

c)Payments to be authorised

Payments - September 2017 / £ / VAT
HMRC / 000686 / PAYE and NI / £19.20
S&L Garrett-Harvey / 000687 / Grounds Maintenance (August) no. 0313 / £240.00 / £40.00
S&L Garrett-Harvey / 000688 / Grounds Maintenance (Sept) no. 0340 / £240.00 / £40.00
NCALC / 000689 / Training Course (Cllr S Burton) / £42.00
Anna Palmberg / 000690 / Clerk's Salary (August) / £353.40
Anna Palmberg / 000691 / Expenses (Mileage SLCC Seminar) / £64.90
£959.50 / £80

d)To receive the annual internal audit report and agree on any actions to be taken

The report was received and the Clerk had included all omitted payments onto the minutes.

e)To review the Clerk’s employment terms and conditions

The Clerk advised the Parish Council that as Cllr Burton is now responsible for the website, she would be happy to reduce her hours from 8-6hrs per week. All were in favour.

The above payments were approved. All were in favour.

The meeting closed at 21:21pm

Date of next Parish Council meeting – Thursday 12th October 2017

…………………………..Signature

Chairman

…………………………..Date

LOCAL GOVERNMENT ACT 1972

Please note, this is a public meeting and you may be filmed, recorded and published.

Copies of all council papers are available at:

Please note that these minutes are in draft format until formally approved and signed by the Chairman.

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