Cotherstone Parish Council
Chairman’s Report May 2016
Yet another very busy and intense year for your Parish Council.
We started the year by advertising for a new Parish Clerk after Brenda’s retirement, two applicants were interviewed and Mrs Liz Gill was appointed as the new Parish Clerk. Liz bought a lot of “computer expertise” to the role and we finally had a good clear out and archived a lot of historic documentation which we were progressively incorporating into the Parish Council website. Unfortunately Liz has had to resign on personal grounds and as an interim measure Kathryn Towler(clerk to Romaldkirk and Mickleton PCs) has stood in to help us through year end and the AGM. Your Council has subsequently co-opted Alison Sabey as the new clerk, so a big thanks to Liz for all her hard work, to Kathryn for helping us out and a very warm welcome to Alison, who I’m sure will continue to build on the work that Liz put in place.
Your Parish Council has fully supported the Neighbourhood Planning Group in its quest to produce a Neighbourhood Plan for the Parish, not an easy job especially in the light of the Durham County Plan being shelved. Community engagement has been via a public consultation and various newsletters. The outcome of which has been analysed and a series of “Aims and Objectives” developed from which the group is currently developing draft policies with the help of various village residents with relevant expertise to get us to a second public consultation to get endorsement from the Parish. The whole process is both time consuming and requires a lot of effort to get the wording right to ensure it's compatible with Durham County and National Planning Policy frameworks , this has not been helped by capping of the grant monies, so bear with us , we will get there and complete the whole process by the end of the year.
On the planning front it's been a relatively quiet year compared to previous years, the only contentious issues being the barn conversion off Hawcroft Lane which Durham planners approved against strong local opposition, and the proposal for a new house to the west of Four Winds in the Hagg which was refused by the Planning Authority and has subsequently gone to appeal, which we are still awaiting the outcome.
Other areas of interest that have been covered by your Parish Council over the past year have been
-Grass cutting tenders, we retendered for the cutting of greens and cemetery in March, yet again the village team of Gerry, Barry and various helpers were the most competitive and we look forward to the excellent service we have received over the past few years.
-High speed Broadband, we successfully lobbied BT to install a second hub at the telephone exchange to enable ALL residents in the Parish the opportunity to get connected to this now essential service.
-Village Precept, we reviewed in Feb and decided to increase it by £500 to support the Village Hall due to it's reduced funding by Durham CC, this is an essential element of village life and benefits all age groups within the village.
-Xmas tree lights, again they were a credit to the village so once again a big thanks to all involved in putting up and taking down of the trees and lights , and a special thanks to those residents who allow us to use their electricity.
-Water issues, we had some spectacular after effects from Storm Desmond back in November, the disintegration of the village hall carpark and flooding of the Church and neighbouring properties due to a blocked drain under the carpark, which we successfully repaired in conjunction with Cotherstone Moor Field Reeves and the lake in the bog field which is still there but slowly going down.
And finally, I would like to thank all my fellow Councillors and the clerks for all their hard work and support over the past year, so often the unsung heroes of getting things done around the Parish especially in these financially challenging times.
Thank you
Richard Hunter
Chair, Cotherstone Parish Council