EASEBOURNE PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL COUNCIL MEETING
HELD ON WEDNESDAY 9TH MAY 2007
AGM Business
07/08
2 Election of chairman: The Clerk asked for nominations for the position of Chairman. Mrs Deacon-Ford proposed and Mr Dabson seconded the nomination of Mr Ian Heustice. There were no other nominations. All in favour. Mr Heustice then took his seat
3 Election of Vice-Chairman: Mr Heustice proposed and Mrs Hamilton seconded the nomination of Mr Stringer for the position of Vice-Chairman. There were no other nominations. All in favour.
4 Members were then appointed to serve on the following panels:
Planning: Mr J Stringer, Mr J Dabson, Mrs J Deacon-Ford, Mr B Gowar and Mrs E Hamilton
Playing Field: Mr D Pack, Mrs A Marchand, Mrs E Hamilton and Mr M Taylor
Burial Ground: Mr A Guyatt, Mr J Stringer and Mrs A Marchand
Footpaths: Mr F Martin, Mr J Dabson and Mr B Gowar
Finance: Mr J Stringer, Mr F Martin and Mr B Gowar
5 The date and time of meetings for the coming year: 11th July 2007 at 7.30pm, 12th September 2007 at 7.30pm, 14th November 2007 at 7.30pm, 9th January 2008 at 7.30pm, 12th March 2008 at 7.30pm, 9th April 2008 (Annual Village Meeting) at 7.0pm, 14th May 2008 (AGM) at 7.0pm, 9th July 2008 at 7.30pm, 10th September 2008, at 7.30pm and 12th November 2008 at 7.30pm.
Council Meeting
Present: Mr I Heustice (Chairman), Mr J Stringer (Vice-Chairman), Mr J Dabson, Mrs J Deacon-Ford, Mr D Pack, Mr M Taylor, Mr A Guyatt, Mr F Martin, Mrs E Hamilton (EPC & CDC) and the Clerk
6 Apologies for Absence: Mrs A Marchand, Mr B Gowar and Lt Col T Pemberton (WSCC)
7 Declaration of Interest by Mr Taylor on Agenda item 16 (Cowdray Estate Shooting Ground)
8 The signing of the Minutes as a true record of the meeting held on 14th March 2007 was proposed by Mr Stringer and seconded by Mr Dabson. Majority in favour. The signing of the Minutes as a true record of the meeting held on 4th April 2007 was proposed by Mr Pack and seconded by Mr Stringer. Majority in favour. Mr Guyatt and Mr Taylor abstained as they were not Councillors at that time and therefore not present at the meetings.
9 Matters Arising: Ref Minute 06/07 80 (1), proposed crossing at Wheelbarrow Castle. Mr Dabson asked about the current situation. Clerk said that letter objecting to the removal and replacement of the Parish Council’s bus shelter had been sent to WSCC Highways and Lt Col Pemberton. Their responses awaited.
10 New Code of Conduct: All Councillors had received a copy of the model new Code of Conduct and Mr Heustice emphasised the importance of adhering to this. Mr Stringer proposed and Mr Taylor seconded the motion that the Parish Council adopt the new Code of Conduct. All in favour.
11 Finance:
.a) The following payments were noted (cheque numbers 800-)
. .443 R Wallis, burial ground maintenance 01.01.07 to 31.03.07 £590.83
. .444 I Heustice, Chairman’s honorarium 01.10.06 to 31.03.07 £50
...445 C Allan, Clerk’s salary 01.01.07 to 31.03.07 £900.00
...445 C Allan, Clerk’s telephone/travelling expenses £103.00
...446 Cowdray Estate, playground rent 25.03.07 to 28.09.07 £80.00
...447 SALC, New Councillor training for 29/30 June 2007 £199.76
...448 R Page, playground gate repairs £47.00
b) Receipt of the Parish Precept for 01.04.07 to 30.09.07 in the sum of £6250.00 and a VAT refund for 01.10.06 to 31.03.07.
c) The internal check of accounts for March and April 2007, by Mr Stringer, was noted.
d) Mr Dabson proposed and Mrs Deacon-Ford seconded the re-appointment of Mr R Martin as the Council’s.Internal Auditor. All in favour.
e) The renewal of the insurance policy with Allianz Cornhill was considered. The Clerk was asked to get an alternative quote from Jardine Lloyd Thompson. It was proposed by Mr Heustice and seconded by Mrs Hamilton that the Council accepts whichever policy is the cheaper, provided that the cover is the same. All in favour.
f) The large increase in the cost of renewal of the SALC subscription for 2007/2008 was explained. It was suggested that costs could be reduced slightly by receiving only one copy of the Local Council Review and circulating this among all Councillors. Mr Martin proposed and Mr Stringer seconded the renewal of the subscription on the above basis. All in favour.
g) Mr Stringer proposed and Mrs Deacon-Ford seconded the continuing payment of an Honorarium to the Chairman in the sum of £100 pa. All in favour.
h) The Clerk left the room. Mr Dabson proposed and Mr Stringer seconded an increase in the Clerk’s salary of £100 pa (2.77%). This to be reviewed when SALC give guidance on the agreed rates fo .2007/2008, which are not available at the present time.
i) Approval of the new rent for the playground, as per the terms of the lease, from £150 pa to £160 pa was proposed by Mr Martin and seconded by Mr Stringer. All in favour.
The following planning decisions were noted:
07/00200/LBC: North Mill, install flood protection wall
No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/00333/DOM: Spring Cottage, Dodsley Grove, porch & garage
No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/00418/DOM: Middleton Lodge, Easebourne Lane, link to join
two outbuildings No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/00621/DOM: High Path Cottage, ground floor and roof extensions
and loft conversion with dormers & velux windows
No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/00773/DOM: 34 Lutener Road, single storey rear extension
No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/01048/DOM: 13 Easebourne Street, single storey extension
No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/01056/DOM: Dawslea Cottage, Hollist Lane, extension for new
staircase No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
07/01057/LBC: Dawslea Cottage, Hollist Lane, internal alterations
& extension for new staircase No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
06/03700/FUL & 06/03702/LBC: King Edward VII Hospital (Subject to S106 legal agreement) No obj (EPC) Permit (CDC)
13 Reports from the Panels
a) Playground – estimate received from Playsafe Playgrounds for new cradle swing seats. As this is very high Clerk asked to get alternative quotes for next Council meeting. As there was no major expenditure on playground last year all Councillors asked to visit the playground and at next meeting discuss possible refurbishment of some items.
b) Burial Ground – Mr Heustice read a letter from Mr Rhodes, a Councillor until the recent election, which spoke of the state of the Burial Ground and kindly offered to continue disposing of the rubbish that accumulates there. Mrs Deacon-Ford had received a letter from Mr Absolom regarding the disposal of rubbish. The provision of wheelie bins would involve three different bins (green, black and red) due to the current waste disposal requirements of CDC. This would not be practical and the offer by Mr Rhodes to continue disposing of the rubbish has been gratefully accepted.
c) Footpaths – no problems to report.
d) Grants – A letter of thanks has been received from the Rotherfield Sports Association for the grant of £200 towards the upkeep of the mowers. Midhurst & District Swimming Club were disappointed that they were not awarded a grant following the March meeting. They have contacted us again with a list of specific swimming aids that need replacing, together with instructor training courses, which are an expense in excess of their annual fee income. The Council considered their application again and Mr Stringer proposed and Mr Martin seconded the awarding of a grant in the sum of £100 towards these specific items. All in favour.
14 Budgenor Lodge S106 contribution – it was proposed to hold this item over until the next Council meeting when Mrs Hamilton, as District Councillor, will have further investigated the situation.
15 Parish Council Website – Mr Taylor kindly offered to take on responsibility for the Parish Council web site from outgoing Councillor, Mr Warner. Clerk to ask Mr Warner to liase with Mr Taylor.
16 Cowdray Estate Shooting Ground – in anticipation of a new planning application to be submitted by the Cowdray Estate to the District Council in the near future, representatives of the Parish Council have held informal talks with the Estate to discuss the requirements of both the parishioners and the Estate. These discussions are ongoing.
17 Cowdray Heritage Trust – the opening day of the “Ruins” project, on 31st March 2007, was a great success and the attraction has made a promising start.
18 Correspondence and notices received
1) CDC questionnaire on Empty Homes in the Chichester District – it was felt that asking the Parish Council to provide this information was inappropriate.
The next Parish Council meeting will be held on 11th July 2007 at 7.30pm in the Refectory. All are welcome.
The meeting closed at 9.15 pm
Mrs Carole Allan, Clerk to Easebourne Parish Council, Ashfield Cottage, 1 Ashfield Close, Midhurst, West Sussex, GU29 9RP. Telephone: 01730 813374
e-mail: easebournepc@tiscali.co.uk
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