Meeting 4th June 2018

MINUTES OF PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

Meeting of the Parish Council
held on Monday 4th June 2018
at 7.30 pm at Edingale Village Hall.

Members present:
Cllr Startin (Chair)
Cllr Cliffe
Cllr Dhillon
Cllr Lacey
Cllr Mason
Cllr Wesley

Mrs M Jones, Clerk, Mr Twomey, Lichfield District Council Environmental Health, and 3 members of the public.

1. To receive apologies
None received

2. To co-opt a member on to the Parish Council. To receive the Declaration of Acceptance of Office
RESOLVED to co-opt Mr Jim Meikle. He was welcomed as a Member of the Council and the Declaration of Acceptance of Office was received.
3. To receive any Declarations of Interest
Cllr Mason declared a pecuniary interest in item 16.

4. To approve the Minutes of the meeting of 2nd May 2018
The minutes were approved and signed by the Chair.

5. To adjourn the meeting, to hold the Public Session (maximum 15 minutes) and to reconvene the meeting.
A representative of the Village Hall gave an update. Finances were doing well. The work on the drainage and guttering had been completed and Cllr Lacey was thanked for helping with this. As rental had not increased for 4 years this was being considered in relation to running costs, although would be kept affordable for regular groups. Grant applications were being made for improvements such as heating, toilets and a PA system. If received the next main expenditure would be on the car park. BT had still not finished work to enable WIFI. Cllr Startin offered to arrange to spray weeds on the car park prior to the Open Gardens event on the 16th/17th June.
Mr Jack Twomey, Lichfield District Council Environmental Health Officer had attended to explain how the Parish Council could assist regarding loose dogs in areas where children were playing, and with dog fouling in public places. He explained about cards which could be delivered to households giving details of how to report these problems anonymously. It was agreed that the District Council would supply these and Parish Councillors would deliver them with a covering letter. The cards frequently lessened such problems by around 40% by raising local awareness.
Councillors explained their concerns about dogs being off their leads in areas where children were playing, such as on the land near Rowley Close. Mr Twomey explained the legal background and the use of Public Space Protection Orders, which could be enforced by an officer of the Council who had the power to issue fixed penalty notices or even take people to court. There would need to be evidence of the problem before imposing such an order, and owners would need to have other places to exercise their pets.
There was discussion about dogs attacking other dogs; it was a matter for the police to take action if a person was hurt or feared being hurt, or a dog was dangerously out of control in a public area.
If there was evidence of problems caused by dogs in the village the District Council would contact the owners if they were sent evidence of times or places problems occurred, or even descriptions, photos or addresses.
Mr Twomey was thanked for attending and explaining this.

6. To receive the Clerk’s Report
Rights of Way – The gate across the bridleway at Mill Lane had been reported to the Rights of Way team – they would be sent more details. An obstructed right of way beyond the end of Pessall Lane had also been reported, and it was agreed to ask the County Council to request their tenant to clear it.
Grass cutting – there had been complaints about the work done and the contractors had been asked to cut the areas missed. Cllr Startin had removed a lot of grass from near the Village Hall which had not been removed or mulched properly. An onsite meeting would be arranged for their next visit on June 11th to discuss matters with the contractor. There were concerns that the mowed areas would affect the hard work done to keep the village looking tidy for Best Kept Village.
Street name signs – estate agents boards had been attached to some signs and this had been reported to Lichfield District Council who had contacted many of the agents. This did not present a good impression to the Best Kept Village Judges or visitors to the Open Gardens Village Festival.
Scotland Lane – the road would be closed at Oak Tree House on 2nd July.
Aethelflaed Service – Cllr & Mrs Mason would attend this event in Tamworth to represent the Parish Council.
Next meeting date – it was agreed to hold this a week later on 9th July, Cllrs Startin and Wesley gave their apologies in advance.

7. To receive correspondence
SPCA bulletins
National Forest newsletter and information on Timber Festival 6th -8th July
Suggestion to hold garage sales to raise money for local causes such as Village Hall, this would be passed on to the Village Hall Committee.
New Village Hall website www.edingalevillagehall.co.uk
Fly the Red Ensign information

8. To receive Councillor’s Reports
Cllr Cliffe said that the Pessall Lane road repairs had still not been done, this would be chased up.
Cllr Mason had trimmed a Sycamore tree near the entrance to Blakeways Close as the branches were hanging very low.
Cllr Dhillon asked that the police be contacted to ask whether there were any orders against dog owners in the village as he felt it would be helpful to inform residents about this. The Clerk would contact PCSO Costas.
Cllr Lacey asked that the recent traffic disruption caused by the event at Catton be discussed at the next meeting. This would be on the next agenda. Cllr Startin said there had been an apology from the owner and this would be put on the website and notice board.

9. To consider any planning matters
(a) Lichfield District Council Local Plan Review consultation. It was agreed to respond that the Parish Council would prefer development to be in more sustainable locations such as Options 1 and 2.
(b) Elford Neighbourhood Plan consultation, Fradley Neighbourhood Plan consultation. The Parish Council would not respond.

10. To consider dog control measures As discussed earlier, cards and a covering letter would be delivered to households to encourage residents to report concerns.

11. To receive an update on the bus service The County Council had confirmed that the tendering process had not produced any affordable options for them to subsidise an 82 service. Cllr Mason had suggested to Harlaston and Clifton Parish Councils that they support a twice weekly hire service such as that currently being run by Elford and Edingale, and that Wigginton and Hopwas could also contribute to this for passengers from Comberford, and was waiting for a response. Around 7 residents were using the Solus hire service and were contributing donations; this was working well and would continue while it was affordable.

12. To consider Data Protection Officer It had been confirmed that Parish Councils would not have to appoint a Data Protection Officer. An audit had been done and the Council was complying with GDPR, so a DPO would not be appointed.

13. To consider play house in memory of Cllr Norah Mason Quotes had been received and an agreement reached with the Village Hall Committee on an appropriate choice. It was RESOLVED to order this.

14. To consider a request for a donation to Let’s Play Group It was RESOLVED to donate £200 to Let’s Play to support this service for young families.

15. To receive the Financial Report The bank reconciliation was given, following receipt of the precept the current account stood at £13,624 prior to the meeting. Donations towards the bus service had been banked via the Post Office. The audit paperwork had been sent to the Auditors and the notice of date of public rights displayed. RESOLVED to approve the Financial Report.

16. To approve the payments on the payment schedule Mrs M Jones, salary and expenses, £253.57; HMRC, PAYE £16.00; Perennial Landscapes Ltd, grounds maintenance, £357.00; Elford Parish Council , half share of Solus bus hire, April, £135; A. Mason, plants, £70.42 RESOLVED to approve the payments.

17. Date of next meeting; Monday 9th July 2018

The meeting closed at 9.15 p.m.