Meeting Minutes: 24th September 2020

KIMBOLTON & STONELY PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES of the Council meeting held at 7 p.m. on Thursday 24 September 2020 by means of video conferencing due to the coronavirus pandemic.

PRESENT  Councillors P Seabrook; K Hutchinson; D Poole; Mrs R Lloyd; Mrs C Jessup; L Farrer ; Mrs J Stainer; Ms S Mugglestone; Mrs D Hellett.

IN ATTENDANCE  County Councillor I Gardener; C L Thatcher, Clerk to the Council .

Councillor Seabrook being initially absent, Councillor Hutchinson took the Chair.

137/20  APOLOGIES  were received from Councillors Mrs E Milne & R Gooderham..

138/20  PUBLIC FORUM  was not used.

139/20  DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS

Councillor Mrs Hellett declared her interest in the ongoing matter of Mulberry Cottage stables.

140/20  COUNTY COUNCILLOR    Councillor Gardener said that he had asked about the clearing of the gullies in both Easton Rd and London Road and had been told that a 3 month timescale was being operated.

Reference had been made to Station Rd flooding and he asked where this was happening.

A diversion has been agreed for Park Lane when closure is necessary so that work to the drains can be undertaken.

Councillor Seabrook joined the meeting and took the Chair.

Councillor Gardener continued by stating that the hedge alongside Main Road Stonely does not meet the intervention requirements.

The plan for the pedestrian crossing has been started.

The County Council has no knowledge of the traffic monitoring camera in Newtown.

Councillor Mrs Lloyd mentioned the standing water on Stonely hill and outside the Malthouse. Councillor Gardener said that there had been a burst main and, lower down, the problem lies with the new entrance drive.

The question of speed ‘buffer zones’ was raised due to the Parish Council having been told that these were not permissible, whereas an individual appears to have been told the opposite.

The Chairman asked that it be recorded that all footpaths had been trimmed at his expense.  He mentioned this particularly because he did not want the contractors to claim having done them and receiving payment.

Councillor Gardener left the meeting.

141/20  MINUTES  The minutes of the Council meeting of 27 August 2020 were read, and approved  as a true record of that meeting.

142/20  MATTERS ARISING

• Neighbourhood Watch.   Nothing to report.
• Hearse House .    Nothing further to report.
• Churchyard cobbles. Work is proceeding now with the laying of the cobbles..
• Notice board.  The Clerk confirmed that Nick Small will make a noticeboard.
• Pound Lane Working Party  The Chairman said that he will circulate a possible design.
• Twinning with Fernie.  Not progressed due to circumstances.
• Pedestrian Crossing.  Funding has been approved & detailed plans will now be drawn up.
• Christmas Lighting.  Councillor Farrer said that he needs to map out distances and cable runs. On Sunday next he will meet with Councillors Mrs Hellett and Ms Mugglestone to progress this.
• Stattie Fair.  The fair operator was thanked for providing a childrens’ ride and for giving proceeds to charity.
• Tree Survey.  The Clerk has met with the contractor, who will inspect all trees on Parish Council land and prepare a report on them.  The report will identify those needing urgent attention together with those which will need attention in a year or two as opposed to those in good health.
• Remembrance Day.  The Clerk reported that RBL are proposing a service in St Andrew’s on Sunday 1 November and this service will be recorded and available for Sunday 8 November.  On that day some sort of commemorative event will be held within school grounds and this will not be open to the public.    The principal guests will walk from the event to the War Memorial and lay wreaths and the usual wreath-laying will take place at the airfield.

On Wednesday 11 November a short ceremony and further wreath-laying will take place at the War Memorial. 

• Coronavirus Update.  Nothing further to report.

143/20   PLANNING MATTERS.

• Applications  

20/01596  18 High Street, Kimbolton – change of use from A1 and C3 to C3.

Councillor Hutchinson said that there had been some changes since 1 September to the various use classes.  They will not affect this but could apply to others.  The new Class E concerns commercial and residential which now  become ‘lumped together’. 

This application, if approved, would mean the loss of two more shop units and it would appear to be contrary to the new Local Plan.

Councillor Mrs Lloyd said that the entire premises had been converted to provide the retail units and Councillor Mrs Hellett pointed out that the business might not be there to justify retail use.

Upon being put to the vote, it was proposed by Councillor Hutchinson, seconded by Councillor Poole and agreed, with one abstention, to recommend refusal as being contrary to section LP22 of the Local Plan.

20/01576  58 Main Rd Stonely – replace windows; re-roof, internal alterations.

It was proposed by Councillor Mrs Hellett, seconded by Councillor Mrs Stainer and agreed to recommend approval as appropriate development.     

• Ongoing Matters.     Mulberry Cottage stables.  No report.

• Solar Array at Perry.  Councillor Hutchinson raised this as a point of concern.  Anglian Water is able to install this large array without the need for planning approval, and he thought it very poor that the installation had been done without the provision of landscaping to mitigate its impact on the area.    The Clerk has spoken to the Clerks of both Perry and Southoe Parish Council and they confirm that their Councils have been making representations to Anglian Water about this.  It seems that everything which is suggested, such as hedge planting, is met with ‘In hindsight, perhaps that would be a good idea….’      It is understood that screening is now being undertaken, but it would have been of more sense to plant this long before the array was installed.

144/20  DISTRICT COUNCILLOR

Councillor Gray commented that solar does generate a lot of business rates, but as it is part of the national infrastructure all rates go into the national pot.

HDC’s budget process is starting and at the end of quarter 1, it is thought there will be a £3million shortfall at the year end.  Income from leisure centres and car parking is missing and this is now lost and will not be recoverable.     It should be the end of the year before it becomes necessary to borrow.      Business rate receipts are about 4% behind where they usually are at this time.

Leisure centres are starting to open again but he suspects there may be a backlash against the reintroduction of car park charges.

The Planning Department still faces challenges due to staff shortages and the difficulty in retaining staff.   There are delays and more complaints than ever.

Councillor Gray left the meeting.

145/20    REPORTS

Allotments  Councillor Mrs Hellett said that there has been little change in the standard and letters have gone to the worst offenders.

Dog Fouling  It was felt that ‘dogs required to be on leads’ signs should be requested from HDC.  The whole of the District is covered by the order to keep dogs on leads and that applies to fields as well as the built area.

Footpaths.  Councillor Mrs Stainer said that the stile on the footpath in Old Ford Lane is in poor condition.

Playgrounds  Councillor Mrs Hellett said that new signs are needed regarding coronavirus as the others have been torn down.  She was concerned that a child could open the gate into the car park without too much difficulty and thought a spring on the gate would be a good idea.  

Village Maintenance.  The following were mentioned as needing attention-

• The surface to Carnaby footpath
• Excessive loose gravel in Grass Yard
• The Pound Lane name sign is still broken.
• Planting flowers by the village signs to be investigated.  Perhaps volunteers would do this?
• Parts of the cemetery wall are crumbling badly and it is suggested that a programme of repair be commenced.  This item will be added to the agenda for the next meeting.

Outside Bodies.

Kimbolton Trust.  The Chairman said that the next meeting will be in November.

Kimbolton School.  Councillor Mrs Hellett said that the school is holding a meeting via Zoom tomorrow.

Mandeville Hall   The AGM has been held and further guidance on Covid received from ACRE.

146/20  WEBSITE UPDATE

Disability Act requires all websites operated by a public body to be accessible.  The standard required is WCAG 2.1 AA and our website, being old in computer terms, does not meet that requirement and cannot be amended to do so.  We are therefore required by law to provide an accessible website.  It had been hoped that our present provider would be able to do this, but the Clerk has recently learned that they cannot.     He is therefore approaching other providers for quotes, but wishes to forewarn Council that the likely cost is in the £1100 to £1500 range.

One problem area might be our Burial Record Search and it is feared that we may not be able to continue to provide that facility.

147/20  PIAGGIO

The Clerk reported that the vehicle had received its annual service followed by an MoT.  It had passed the MoT but with an advisory that the corrosion on the tipper bed must be welded before next year. There has recently been a further problem, in that the engine will not stop when switched off.  The repairer says that fuel appears to be getting past the cut-off valve and he is concerned that wear in the engine might indicate that the engine could fail before too long.

148/20  CORRESPONDENCE

None other than that reported elsewhere.

149/20  ACCOUNTS

The following were proposed and approved for payment –

        Hofman Motors           Piaggio repair & service                     252.00

         K & M Lighting           Maintenance                                       125.48      

         Fishers                            Sundries                                          35.69

         Anglian Water            Allotment water                                      7.93 

         Mick George Ltd             Skip hire                                        207.60

         D Eades                     September work                                 351.27

        Payroll costs             Pay, PAYE & NIC                              2255.35

150/20  HIGH STREET CAR PARKING  Nothing to report.

151/20  MEMBERS’ POINTS OF INFORMATION.

Councillor Mrs Hellett mentioned that the gate stop at the war memorial gate had rotted and needs replacing.  Councillor Farrer said he would investigate.

Councillor Mrs Jessup said that she and Councillor Mrs Hellett had weeded around the Mandeville Hall, on the car park side and asked that weeds be treated  there.

152/20  DATE OF NEXT MEETING

The next normal meeting of Council will be held on Thursday 29 October 2020, commencing at 7pm in the Youth and Community Room at the Mandeville Hall, if permitted, otherwise by means of video conferencing.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 2135 hours.