Meeting 9th April 2018

DRAFT MINUTES OF PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

Meeting of the Parish Council
held on Monday 9th April 2018
at 7.30 pm at Edingale Village Hall.

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

Mrs M Jones, Clerk, and 10 members of the public.

1. To receive apologies
Cllr Wesley and Cllr Van Arkadie had apologised as they were away; the apologies were accepted.

2. To receive any Declarations of Interest
There were no pecuniary interests to declare.

3. To approve the Minutes of the meeting of 5th March 2018
The minutes were approved and signed by the Chair.

4. To adjourn the meeting, hold the public session, and reconvene the meeting
Many residents had attended following the closure of the 82 bus service. One said that the County Council’s website showed a service on Tuesdays and Fridays, but this was not running, no-one knew what was happening.
Cllr Mason explained developments over recent weeks. Edingale Parish Council had agreed at the last meeting to provide £1500 towards a solution for transport over the financial year. The County Council were trying to procure a reduced affordable bus service, but this would incur a delay of at least two months and was not guaranteed to provide a long term solution.
An interim service had been arranged but two other local Councils had decided not to contribute to a temporary solution. Edingale and Elford could pay for a service together but this would cost more, each Council would need to agree, and the Parish Council would consider this later in the meeting. The residents were asked what sort of minimum service would be needed, and it was agreed that they needed transport on Tuesdays and Fridays to Tamworth, and they would be willing to pay a sum of around £5 per return trip, which was more affordable than paying for individual taxis. Cllr Lacey asked whether a taxi to Alrewas would help, but all felt that it was most useful for them to reach the shops and services in Tamworth. Local people would be given information about whatever could be arranged.
An update was given regarding the Village Hall; the AGM would take place on 14th April at 11am, followed by a Community Clear Up in preparation for Best Kept Village. The couple running the newly reopened Black Horse would donate snacks for volunteers taking part in the clean-up. Drainage work at the hall had been completed and the gutters would be cleared. Finances were good; sums would be spent shortly on resurfacing part of the car park and on wifi, with various options for installation to be considered. The Chair thanked the Committee for their hard work.

A resident had offered to plant up the tubs near to School Lane. Another resident raised the poor state of the verges near the School, which had been churned up by vehicles, and asked whether double yellow lines could be painted. The Chair said that this had been previously requested of Highways, but the cost to the Parish Council was too high.

5. To receive the Clerk’s Report
Date of May meeting (Annual Meeting of the Council and Annual Parish Meeting) – As the first Monday in May was a bank holiday the next meeting would be held on Monday 30th April at 7pm. The Annual Parish Meeting would hear reports from local organisations. The Annual Meeting would appoint a Chair for the following year and confirm policies.
Audit – the external auditors Mazars had sent the Annual Governance and Accountability Return. The internal audit would be done on April 16th.
Website – as nothing had yet been heard about this the Clerk had asked the current site manager to make some amendments to modernise the website.

6. To receive correspondence
SPCA bulletins
Trent Valley Community Conversations
Came & Co insurers, Parish Council Matters newsletter
Lichfield District Council, GDPR briefing 23rd April
Staffordshire County Council, Rights of Way consultation results

7. To receive Councillor’s Reports
Cllr Cliffe had cleaned the notice board, she confirmed it did not need replacing. She commented on the amount of litter around the village.
Cllr Mason gave details of 3 village clean ups during April; volunteers were welcome to come along to help on Wednesday 11th at 10am, to clear the surrounding lanes, on Saturday 14th at 11.30am, starting at the Village Hall and on Tuesday 17th evening with Fields Farm residents to clear the bank.
Cllr Startin reported on flooding between Croxall Hall and White Knights and asked the Parish Council to report that the gullies needed clearing.
Cllr Dhillon asked for potholes in Pessall Lane to be chased up, and the damaged footpath. He also said that large dogs were let off the lead on the Green in Rowley Close when children were playing and asked whether the dog warden could attend a meeting to advise on the legal position.

8. To consider any planning matters 18/00397/FUL 5 Blakeways Close, ground floor garage extension. RESOLVED no objection.

9. To consider future options for the bus service Following a discussion, it was agreed that if Elford agreed to share a £90 per day service offered by Solus on up to two days per week, this would be viable, especially if users made a donation of £3 towards it. Elford would meet on the following Monday and if both councils supported the proposal appropriate arrangements could be made that week. It was hoped to also have further information about Tamworth Community Transport’s minibus. In the meantime, a taxi could be booked to assist users, and this could be a regular option if the other solutions proved not to be possible. Information would be circulated to those who had attended the public session and provided contact details.

10. To consider purchase of play equipment in memory of Cllr Mason The Village Hall Committee had agreed to the suggestion that a play house be installed near to the children’s play area. Quotes for the play house and fencing would be considered at the next meeting. The budget of £3,000 would come from the capital fund.

11. To consider General Data Protection Regulations An audit of data held by the Parish Council had begun, and a draft policy and privacy notice prepared. The Clerk would send an expression of interest in using the County Council’s Data Protection Officer service. It was proposed by Cllr Lacey and seconded by Cllr Mason that the Council would use Tier 1 of this service, this was RESOLVED.

12. To receive the Financial Report The bank reconciliation was given. The sum of around £2,000 would be carried forward to the next financial year, and the precept would be received in late April. The performance against budget was in line with expectations. The capital fund, which was earmarked for spending on assets, was currently £82,000. RESOLVED to approve the Financial Report.

13. To approve the payments on the payment schedule Mrs M Jones, salary and expenses, £166.64; HMRC, PAYE £121.45; Staffordshire Parish Councils Association, subscription £198.00; Eon, seasonal lighting, £8.51; Edingale Village Hall, room hire £132.00; K. Pilgrim, Best Kept Village entry, £19.18 RESOLVED to approve the payments.

14. Date of next meeting; Monday 30th April 2018

The meeting closed at 8.55 p.m.