Meeting Minutes: 30th September 2021

KIMBOLTON & STONELY PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES of the Council meeting held at 7 p.m. on Thursday 30 September 2021 in the Youth Hall at the Mandeville Hall, Kimbolton.

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

IN ATTENDANCE   County Councillor I Gardener; C L Thatcher, Clerk to the Council and 2 members of the public.

160/21  APOLOGIES  were received from Councillors Mrs E Milne and R Gooderham; District Councillor J Gray.

161/21  PUBLIC FORUM  was not used.

162/21  DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST.   

Councillor Mrs Hellett declared an interest in the ongoing matter of Mulberry Cottage stables and Councillor P Seabrook in planning application 21/01827

163/21  COUNTY COUNCILLOR

Councillor Gardener said that the deadline for submitting LHI bids had been extended.

Flood reporting has been improved and online flood training introduced.                  The County Council has sent a letter to parents regarding protecting children and various actions which could be introduced.   There will be free school meals over the October half term break. Consultation is taking place on transport to special schools in the evenings.

The upgrade of the A428 between Black Cat roundabout and Caxton is now expected to be completed in 2025/26 and it will then be re-numbered as the A421.

Library week is 4-10 October.

A new Chief Executive for the County Council will shortly be appointed and will serve only the County Council.  It will not be a joint appointment with Peterborough, thus costs will be higher.

A new Highways Maintenance Engineer responsible for this area commences work mid October.

Attempts are still being made to chase the revised costs of the pedestrian crossing, but the officer dealing with this at the County Council is currently on leave. Councillor Gardener will chase the contractors, Milestone, from whom the quote is awaited.  The Chairman said that he was disappointed at the way this parish is treated by Highways.

The new Shire Hall at Alconbury is now open.

Highways England are consulting with parishes regarding upgrading the A14 between Ellington and Thrapston, with a view to removing right turns and improving acceleration lanes.  The consultation will be online.

Councillor Farrar joined the meeting.

164/21 MINUTES of the Council meeting of 26 August  2021 were read, approved and signed as a true record of that meeting, subject to item 146/21, third line from end, being amended to read that Councillor Hutchinson thought that the site could be allocated for development, not that it would be. 

165/21  MATTERS ARISING

• Neighbourhood Watch.  No report
• Pound Lane  The Chairman referred to the drawings of possible car park layouts drawn by John Lightfoot and an alternative provided by himself, which had been circulated.  Councillor Hutchinson said that he thought that these should have been discussed by the Working Party before being brought before Council and the Chairman confirmed that this would have been done, had John Lightfoot not sent a formal letter to the Clerk enclosing the drawings, thereby causing the Clerk to circulate them.     He agreed that the Working Party now needs to discuss options with a view to bringing a proposal back to Council.
• Twinning.   No action to be taken during the pandemic.
• Pedestrian Crossing   As reported by Councillor Gardener, the County Council officer dealing with this is on leave, but it is understood that Milestone, the County’s Highway Contractor, is the body working up the quote.
• Cemetery Wall repairs.  It was agreed to defer this item

 f) Street Market  The Chairman thanked Councillor Mrs Hellett for all the hard work she had put in to make the last Market a success.    A discussion took place on future markets and it was agreed , due to shortness of time, not to proceed with one on 23 October, but to concentrate on 5 December.  This would coincide with the Church Christmas Tree decoration competition; the switching on of the Christmas lights and the School’s Christmas Fair.      The Clerk will liaise with the School and with County Highways, to ensure that we operate with their blessing and in accordance with requirements.                          It was agreed to establish a Working Party comprising Councillors Mrs Lloyd; Ms Jessup; Mrs Stainer and Ms Mugglestone and they will meet on 14 October at 7pm in the Mandeville Hall.  The Clerk will arrange the booking of the room.

Councillor Farrer referred to the Christmas lights and said that this year there will be one large tree in the churchyard plus 50 small trees as well as the tree on the Green supplied by Rotary.  There will consequently be more lights and it was agreed to allow for an additional £500 to be spent on Christmas decorations this year.

Councillor Gardener left the meeting

g)  Flood protection.  The Chairman said that a reply from the Environment Agency is still awaited.

h) ‘Stattie’ Fair – A review of the Fair took place. The Chairman firstly asked Councillor Ms Jessup whether there were any problems with HCV’s this year.  She said that, had she not been there, her house would have been hit by a vehicle certainly once and possibly three times.    There was a police presence throughout the day, but it is not known whether they targeted HCV’s coming this way.

The Fair itself went well, though a lot of rubbish was left behind and it was disappointing that HDC had failed to provide street cleaning, despite being asked.    There was a complaint from a resident regarding the giving of live goldfish as prizes, but it seems that this is not unlawful.

i)  Piaggio replacement.  The Clerk reported that once again the gear box had jammed and the vehicles was beginning to prove expensive to operate.   It was decided to defer consideration of replacing it once again.

.k)  Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebration.  The Working Party has yet to meet so there is no report.

l) Goat walking – Councillor Ms Jessup said that she had encountered a goat being walked on a footpath and was concerned that dogs might attack it or it might attack dogs.  The owner of the goat was present and, with the Chairman’s permission, said that she used public footpaths , was insured and followed a licensed route.  There are always two people with the goat and the idea is to help those with special needs and for ADHD therapy.

m) Traffic Management Course.  Unfortunately, despite booking four places, no-one had attended the course.

n)  Scheme of Delegation.    The Clerk said that should there be another lockdown we could find ourselves in difficulties, because there is no longer any power to hold remote meetings.  In those circumstances it could prove difficult to administer the Council.

It was therefore proposed by Councillor Mrs Lloyd, seconded by Councillor Ms Mugglestone and agreed that authority to make any decision necessary for the operation of the Council in the event of it being impossible to hold a meeting be delegated to the Clerk, in conjunction with either the Chairman or the Vice Chairman.  This authority to remain in force until May 2022.

o) Coronavirus Update.   It is understood that daily infections are increasing in this area..

166/21  PLANNING

The following applications were considered –

21/01966   8 Station Rd, Kimbolton – single storey side extension; dormers and new fenestration.

It was proposed by Councillor Poole, seconded by Councillor Mrs Stainer and agreed to recommend approval as appropriate development.  There was one abstention.

21/01827  Land SW of 12a Brook Rd, Stow Rd, Kimbolton – construct access road.

The Chairman declared an interest in this application, vacated the Chair in favour of the Vice Chairman and left the room, taking no part in the discussion or vote.

Councillor Hutchinson in the Chair.

Following discussion it was proposed by Councillor Mrs Stainer, seconded by Councillor Poole and unanimously agreed to recommend refusal.  It is considered that creating a junction with Stow Road at that point would be dangerous due to the proximity to the blind bends.  Furthermore, this proposal would effectively bring the industrial area within the sight of the village and a landscape appraisal should be undertaken to support the application because of possible impact upon amenity. 

Councillor Seabrook re-joined the meeting and took the Chair.

21/01800/801LBC   27 High St Kimbolton – change of use to single dwelling.

Councillor Hutchinson said that this application was contrary to policy.  The Local Plan section LP22 to be precise. He said that if this is allowed others could not then be resisted and this undermines the settlement’s role in the provision of services.

It was accordingly proposed by Councillor Hutchinson, seconded by Councillor Mrs Lloyd and agreed to recommend refusal.     Councillor Farrer abstained.

Ongoing matters – no reports.

167/21  REPORTS

Allotments.     Councillor Mrs Hellett presented her report.  The Clerk said that John Whitehead had been asked to spray off the vacant plots.

Playpark. The Clerk reported that John Whitehead had repaired the gates and put new latches on them.   It was agreed to place Play Equipment for consideration on the agenda for the next meeting..

Personnel.   A Working Party meeting will be held after 5 October..

Mandeville Hall   Councillor Ms Jessup said that the recent film night had been a success.

Kimbolton Trust.   The Chairman said that the Trust was very busy at present, in assisting local people.

Kimbolton School Governors. Councillor Mrs Hellett said that Covid was present amongst the pupils.   Some members of the CCF will be going to the Cenotaph and Royal Albert Hall for the Festival of Remembrance.

168/21  CORRESPONDENCE    

• Remembrance Day.  The Clerk has been in touch with both RBL and The School and has been told that arrangements have not yet been finalised, though should be broadly as previous years.     It was agreed to invite Mrs Dawn Gooderham to again lay the wreath at the Airfield memorial.
• A letter relating to community flooding was noted.
• Flood incident training is being offered by HDC.
• A request to display banners to promote fostering has been received.  The Clerk was asked to enquire the size of the banners.
• A temporary closure of Station Rd later this month was reported.
• A High St resident has asked to be included in the Christmas tree decorations.   Councillor Farrer could not see any problem with this.

169/21  ACCOUNTS

• The following were approved for payment –

K & M Lighting.               Streetlight maintenance                 £128.15

J Whitehead                   Misc repairs                                    £432.00 

FJW Humphrey & Co        MoT on Piaggio                             £52.56

Came & Co                    Annual insurance premium           £2150.90 

Fenland Leisure Ltd       Repairs to play equipment              £803.69

Payroll costs                   Pay, PAYE, NIC August               £2244.77

                                          Daffodil bulbs                                £26.98   

170/21 DISTRICT COUNCILLOR  was unable to be present.        

171/21  HIGH ST CAR PARKING

          Councillor Mrs Stainer said that traders were still complaining about parents parking in the High St whilst awaiting their children leaving school.

172/21  MEMBERS’ POINTS OF INFORMATION

Councillor Mrs Lloyd said that streetlight PC03 in Montagu Gardens was out and the light at the junction of Carnaby with Thrapston Rd was also reported as being out.

Councillor Mrs Stainer said that there is a trench across Hunters Way at its junction with Newtown, which has the potential to damage vehicles; the hedge at the junction of Stow Rd and Newtown needs cutting back further; Carnaby bridge is a disgrace and needs painting; there is a tree obscuring the sign to Station Rd.

Councillor Farrer asked that the question of installing a new streetlight in Thrapston Rd be considered at the next meeting.

173/21  IT WAS RESOLVED to exclude the Press and public from the next item in accordance with the provisions of the Public Bodies (Admissions to Meetings) Act 1960.

174/21  STAFFING MATTERS

The proposals made by the Working Party had proved not to be suitable and a further Working Party meeting is to be held..

175/21  NEXT MEETING

The next normal meeting of Council  will be held on Thursday 28 October 2021 in the Youth hall of the Mandeville Hall commencing at 7pm..

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 2205 hours.