Meeting Minutes: 24th November 2022
KIMBOLTON & STONELY PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES of the Council meeting held at 7 p.m. on Thursday 24 November 2022 in the Youth Hall at the Mandeville Hall, Kimbolton.
PRESENT Councillors P Seabrook; J Gray ; K Hutchinson; Ms C Jessup; L Farrer; Mrs D Hellett; Ms H Bradbury and Mrs J Stainer
IN ATTENDANCE County Councillor I Gardener; District Councillor J Gray & Lionel Thatcher, Clerk to the Council.
172/22 APOLOGIES were received from Councillors Mrs E Milne; R Gooderham and Mrs R Lloyd.
173/22 PUBLIC FORUM was not used.
174/22 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST.
No declarations were made.
175/22 COUNTY COUNCILLOR Ian Gardener was delighted to report that the County Council has agreed to pay all additional funding for the pedestrian crossing. Members thanked him for all his efforts.
He is meeting Sharon Middleton of Highways in the High St on Monday 12 December at 10am, should anyone wish to join in.
The Mayor of the Combined Authority is concentrating upon speeding up the consultation on electric vehicles.
LHI bids close on 6 January, with the Panel meeting in May.
Consultation on sustainable travel and buses is on the Cambs County Council website and there is an exhibition at the Priory Centre St Neots next Wednesday from 1600 to 1930 hours.
The proposal re the charging for vehicles entering Cambridge between 0700 and 1900 includes enhancements to bus services, in order to compensate. This however, does not include this area – there are none proposed west of St Neots, though they are extending them to Newmarket; Bury St Edmunds and Royston.
There is also a survey on the Cambs CC website regarding their admin and budget decisions.
A new parliamentary constituency is proposed for Huntingdon area, which will lose St Neots, Gt Paxton and Huntingdon area, whilst gaining the Alconbury; Gt Staughton and Kimbolton wards.
Christmas activities for children will take place at Grafham Water Centre.
Kimbolton School is considering applying to divert the footpath which runs through school buildings away from their premises, due to security concerns.
Councillor Farrer joined the meeting.
Various road issues have been raised with him, including flooding in Newtown at the Stow Road junction.
Councillor Farrer commented that the gully sucker was out yesterday, though it appeared to have little effect due to the poor condition of the drains.
176/22 DISTRICT COUNCILLOR
Councillor Gray apologised for his sparse attendance over the past few months.
He said that the Mayor of the Combined Authority has been on leave of absence for some three months due to ill health.His Deputy is covering. Meantime his authority is considering a bus tax to pay for improvements to bus services.
The Chief Executive of Huntingdonshire District Council, Jo Lancaster, is retiring at the end of February, following 9 years’ service. An interim appointment is to be made.
There has been an average 9% increase in the cost for the use of Leisure Centres due to the cost of fuel and the reduced footfall. Should it not be possible to keep them viable it may be necessary to sell them or hand them to a leisure provider.
177/22 MINUTES of the Council meeting of 27 October 2022 were read, approved and signed as a true record of that meeting.
178/22 MATTERS ARISING
- Neighbourhood Watch. No report
- Pound Lane A quote for c£80000 has been received for the car park, but the quoting contractor has moved away from the specification provided and quoted for a much more expensive method. Further quotes will be sought.
- Walnut trees have arrived and are ready for planting.
Councillor Farrer was called away and left the meeting.
- Pedestrian Crossing The crossing is now complete with the exception of cowls for the beacons, to prevent glare into nearby homes, and it is in use.
- Cemetery Wall repairs. Quotes will be sought
- MVAS signs Councillor Gray provided the latest figures from the signs and pointed out that the information came in 9 different formats. It was suggested that the most useful would be the pie chart plus the traffic speeds. Councillor Gardener advised that the maximum speeds and average speeds are what should be provided to the Panel when making our LHI bid for funding.
It was agreed to follow Tilbrook’s course. Councillor Gray said that he had deleted all data to date.
Councillor Hutchinson asked whether an LHI application could be made for 20mph limits, but was advised by Councillor Gardener that this was not possible under LHI, though more will be known in January.
- Christmas Lights and Fair Councillor Mrs Hellett said that 23 traders had booked stall space.It was understood from Councillor Farrer that the lights were in place and the trees are due to arrive and be put in position next weekend.
h). Butts Tree Planting. Rotary have organised the planting for next weekend very well and in preparation, the ground has been sprayed and the roots ground off…
i) Health & Well-Being of Residents – winter project. The Clerk reported that the fitness sessions were proving popular and he had been able to arrange swimming aqua fitness on three occasions, tonight and 15 December at 7pm and 22 December at 2pm. Another Zoom meeting had been held and a new attendee was an NHS Social Prescriber who worked some of her hours at Kimbolton Medical Centre and was in a position to get to know the number of people needing assistance over the winter and what type of assistance. This could prove very useful to help our planning. There is still doubt whether a Warm Hub could be established at the Mandeville Hall, perhaps the most that could be hoped for is an extension to Bytes, but that, of course, would require volunteers to help run it. There is also the possibility of using other village halls if necessary, since we can now include surrounding villages in our plans.
Councillor Gardener left the meeting
179/22 PLANNING
a)The following applications were considered –
22/02171LBC & 02170HHFUL 11 London Road, Kimbolton – retrospective application to erect wall and railings.
Councillor Mrs Hellett, although having no pecuniary interest in this matter, decided that since she is a neighbour of the applicant, she would take no part in this decision. She therefore remained silent and did not vote on the matter.
A letter from a neighbour was read.
Members considered the application and concerns were expressed about the wall and railings being placed upon the footpath and becoming a danger to pedestrians as well as restricting parking in that area. Councillor Hutchinson said that his concern is that Certificate A of the application form stated that the applicant owned the whole of the property upon which the development was to take place. Clearly this is incorrect as it appears at least part of the area is Highways land.
It was proposed by Councillor Ms Jessup, seconded by Councillor Gray and agreed to recommend refusal due to an apparent incorrect statement and to the danger to pedestrians and to make both the Planning Authority and the Highways Authority aware of our concerns.
22/02154HHFUL & 22/02195LBC 11 East St, Kimbolton – extension & alteration of outbuilding to form annexe.
There was considerable discussion on this application and finally it was proposed by Councillor Hutchinson, seconded by Councillor Seabrook and agreed, that the application be refused because of overdevelopment to a listed building and an unattractive design. There were also concerns about drainage and runoff.
180/22 REPORTS
Allotments The report was presented by Councillor Mrs Hellett who said the condition of the allotments was varied. The orange fencing around the bonfire has collapsed.
Playpark. A date for the roundabout repairs has now been set as 4 December. Councillor Gray referred to the need to place a warning sign on the broken outdoor exercise equipment and will arrange to do so by 2 December.
Village Maintenance
Councillor Mrs Hellett provided details of a local Handyman service.
It was agreed to place an order with Alan Linger re tree work in the cemetery.
A crab apple tree on the Causeway requires clearing up underneath it and the footpath from Constables Leys to Halls Meadow needs leaves collecting.
Outside Bodies
Mandeville Hall – Councillor Hutchinson said that the Mandeville Hall committee wished to join with the Parish Council in commemorating the Coronation next May.
Kimbolton Trust. The Chairman said the Trust had met and had amended the list of needy people.
Kimbolton School Governors. Councillor Mrs Hellett said that a short-list of 4 candidates for the Headmaster’s post had been drawn up. She said she had attended at talk on sustainability. Comberton College has had ground source heat pumps installed . The whole village of Swaffham Prior is on a scheme for renewable energy. The School is investigating solar panels and the castle windows need work as does the swimming pool.
District Councillor Gray left the meeting.
181/22 LOCAL HIGHWAYS INITIATIVE BID
It was agreed to seek funding for 40mph buffer zones, initially on the B645 towards Tilbrook and on Park Lane and to request painted 30mph signs on the road surface of the B645 leaving towards Tilbrook. Renewal of the 18 tonne weight limit signs will also be requested, though this may not be under the LHI scheme.
182/22 CORRESPONDENCE
- The Clerk reported receipt of the NJC for Local Councils Staff pay agreement for 2022, effective from 1 April 2022. He estimated the cost to the council as being £1600 per annum.
- A request for a memorial to Brynmor Digby was approved.
- A letter from the Chairman of the Mandeville Hall Committee was received thanking Council for the £500 donation and expressing his pleasure that the matter of the tarmac repairs had been concluded.
183/22 ACCOUNTS
- The following were approved for payment –
K & M Lighting streetlight maintenance 128.15
Smith of Derby Church clock maintenance 274.80
1st Kimbolton Scouts Room hire 70.00
Barcham Trees 2 x walnut trees 284.00
Nick Small Alter cottage kitchen cupboards 456.00
Grafton Projects stationery/cartridges 78.28
Anglian Water Allotment water 262.38
Payroll costs Pay, PAYE & NIC + McAfee sub 4551.27
- Budget for 2023/24 The Clerk present a summary of estimated income and expenditure for the current year together with his forecast for the 2023/24 year.
- Precept. The precept for 2023/24 was considered and it was proposed by Councillor Hutchinson, seconded by Councillor Mrs Hellett and agreed to increase it by £1243 to £63387, an increase of less than 2%.
184/22 HIGH ST CAR PARKING no report
185/22 MEMBERS’ POINTS OF INFORMATION
Councillor Farrer said that trees and hedge on Stonely Hill had been trimmed but needed a further three feet cut off, as the foliage and rubbish was covering the edge line to the road.
Councillor Gray asked whether the defibrillators were operational.
Councillor Mrs Stainer said that UK Power had done a poor job of replacing the cobbles outside Blue Blancmange, following their recent works.
She also said that parking on Hunters Way was increasing and now almost reached the junction with Newtown.
186/22 NEXT MEETING
It was agreed that the next normal meeting of Council will be held in the Youth Room at the Mandeville Hall on Thursday 15 December 2022 commencing at 7pm.
There being no further business, the meeting closed at 2210 hours.
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