Parish Council
Minutes of the Annual Meeting of the Parish Council held on 9th September 2020 at 7.30 pm at Sticklepath Village Hall.
PRESENT:
Cllr. Cruse (Chairing (part)), Cllr. Moore, Cllr. Bell and Cllr. Grubb (Chairing (part)).
IN ATTENDANCE:
Lois Rowlands and Ian Duffield
Andrew Wyer (Clerk).
490/1 ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN
Cllr. Cruse opened the Annual Meeting of the Council by calling for nominations for the role of Chairman. Cllr. Grubb was proposed by Cllr. Moore and seconded by Cllr. Cruse. There were no other nominations so Cllr. Grubb was elected to the position of Chairman of the Council. He then read and signed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office before presiding over the rest of the meeting.
490/2 ELECTION OF VICE-CHAIRMAN
Cllr. Moore was proposed by Cllr. Cruse and seconded by Cllr. Bell. . There were no other nominations so Cllr. Moore was elected to the position of Vice-Chairman of the Council.
490/3 APOLOGIES
Apologies were received and accepted from Cllr. Daniel (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb.)
490/4 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
No member of the public wished to speak.
490/5 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
There were no declarations of interest.
490/6 PART 2
It was resolved that no agenda items needed to be held with the public excluded but that this would be reconsidered at the time if it became necessary. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb.)
490/7 APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD 15th July 2020
It was resolved to approve and sign the minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on Wednesday 15th July 2020. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb.)
490/8 ACTIONS REPORT
8.1 Clerk to contact DCC Highways Officer – The Clerk reported that there had been no reply to the request for SLOW to be painted on the road. ACTION : The Clerk to try through DCC rather than directly with the Highway Officer. ACTION : Cllr. Moore to contact the school and ask them to mention the issue of speeding traffic on their newsletter.
8.2 Cllr. Cruse to liaise with DNPA over Bridleway Clearance – Cllr. Cruse reported that Ian Brooker (DNPA) had responded saying that the vegetation clearance was done in the same way as in previous years.
8.3 Tree reinspection – The Clerk reported that some new buds had been present when the tree was inspected at the end of July. ACTION : The Clerk to monitor the tree over the winter and make recommendations in the spring when the extent of any recovery being made.
8.4 Sycamore Tree – Cllr. Bell reported that the tree had been felled.
8.5 Bramble clearance quote – Cllr. Bell reported that this would be £50-100 and would be included in the maintenance contract for next year.
8.6 Roadside Bank – Cllr. Daniel was not present to report directly.
8.7 Suitable species for Roadside Bank – Cllr. Cruse reported that Duncan Rice had been liaising with Cllr. Daniel over suitable species.
8.8 Dispute Letter – The Clerk reported that the letters had been sent. Cllr. Moore reported that WDBC had received numerous submissions about the issue. ACTION : Cllr. Moore to obtain an update from WDBC.
490/9 CO-OPTION
Two residents had put themselves forward for Co-Option. Both were invited to say a few words about who they were and why they wanted to join the Council. Lois Rowlands and Ian Duffield were unanimously voted onto the Council, filling the two vacancies that existed. Both then read and signed their Declaration of Acceptance of Office forms and joined the rest of the meeting as Councillors.
490/10 COUNCILLOR REPORTS
10.1 Chair’s Report – Cllr. Cruse reported that the Foundry were prioritising grounds maintenance time to the garden rather than the meadow but that the meadow should be mowed in autumn. The owner of the abandoned van in finch car park has promised to have it towed away. The sign blocking the car park has been moved, allowing parking. The footpath leading towards Okehampton has now been cleared. The footpath near Darkins garage has become unsafe due to subsidence. DCC are aware and have coned off the area temporarily until works can be completed. Gravel and other debris have been washed onto the highway near the lane to Skaigh. This has been reported to Highways but nothing has happened yet. The Two Museums walk leaflets are going to the printers this week after the return trip route had been included. Two new leaflet holders have been purchased, one as a replacement for the broken one and one as a spare. A supply of face coverings has been provided for shop customers who had forgotten their own. A tree near Billy Green had come down which Ina Brooker (DNPA) made safe. The lighting unit in the defibrillator kiosk had failed and has been replaced under delegated powers/emergency repairs provisions.
10.2 WDBC Report – Cllr. Daniel was unable to attend the meeting but had submitted a report that is attached as Appendix 1.
10.3 Any other reports – Cllr. Bell reported that she had received a donation of £10 towards the Playing Field funds and was in the process of organising the memorial bench using the funds donated by the Cooper family.
490/11 FINANCE
11.1 Paid Invoices – It was resolved to note the following payments made since the last meeting. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
Mr. A Wyer Salary £140.91
HMRC PAYE £35.20
DJ Stallion Ltd Defibrillator lighting £65.00
11.2 Current Year Finances – The financial reports for the current year had been circulated before the meeting. It was resolved to accept these. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
11.3 It was resolved to approve the following payments (set up by the Clerk and to be approved by Cllr. Moore): (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
Information Commissioners Office Data Protection Fee £35 – paid by Direct Debit
Mr. A Wyer Zoom x 2 £28.78
Mr. A Wyer Audit Expenses £14.06
Mr. A Wyer Postage £3.36
Cllr. A Cruse Chairman’s Expenses £27.00
Cllr. A Cruse Leaflet Holders £18.50
Cllr. A Cruse Hardship Vouchers £20.00
Cllr. A Cruse Coronavirus Masks and Gel £24.99
Mr. A Wyer Salary £140.91
HMRC PAYE £35.20
Rhino Play Basket Swing £4675.20
Rhino Play Benches £708.00
490/12 PLANNING
12.1 There were no applications to consider.
12.2 It was noted that 0295/20 Shepherds Hut at Ash Park Farm, Sticklepath had been refused planning permission by DNPA.
490/13 ANNUAL MEETING
It was resolved to suspend the Standing Orders requirements relating to the content of the Annual Meeting for this year as alternative arrangements had been put in place when the meeting was not held in May. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
490/14 CORONAVIRUS
It was resolved for Cllr. Rowlands to take the vacant space on the Hardship Fund Committee. (Proposed by Cllr. Cruse)
The ongoing loan of the marquees was discussed and concern about them being out through the winter was raised. ACTION : Cllr. Bell to advise that we would like the marquees returned at/by the end of October half-term.
490/15 WEED KILLER TRIAL
Cllr. Daniel was not available to deliver her report, although the contents of her report were noted. For various reasons, including a proliferation of grass and weeds in the village since the spraying was undertaken, it was felt that the trial had not been successful. This is a disappointing outcome given the collective will to find an eco-friendly solution to this issue but without further action there is serious concern that extensive damage will be caused to footpaths and the roadside. The grounds contractor is currently trialling a weed killer that does not use glyphosate and this could potentially be a good solution. It was resolved to delegate Cllr. Bell to organise the use of this product in Sticklepath if the cost/benefit is appropriate. (Proposed by Cllr. Moore)
490/16 VERGES MANAGEMENT
Cllr. Grubb reported that he had now mapped the verges and green spaces. The next stage would be to identify landowners and draw up some sort of management scheme. The correspondence received was read out and discussed, as was methods of consulting with the residents. It was resolved to start this work at the next Council meeting, including agreeing the best means of ensuring villagers had their say over verge management going forward. Once a management plan is adopted, there will be no need for further discussion and debate until it is reviewed (suggested at 24 months). (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
490/17 HIGHWAYS ISSUES
Correspondence received about Back Lane was read out and the issues raised discussed. It was resolved for the Clerk to contact DCC Highways and to request signage be erected advising drivers of the unsuitability of the road for larger vehicles. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
490/18 WEBSITE ACCESSIBILITY
Following previous discussions and a short update following website testing the following was agreed:
(all Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
18.1 It was resolved that due to the amount of work and costs involved, meeting the criteria required was an “disproportionate burden” on the Council.
18.2 It was resolved to approve the Accessibility Statement prepared by the Clerk. ACTION : The clerk to ask the website administrator to add the Statement to the main home page menu bar.
18.3 It was resolved to plan and budget for updating the website in 2021. ACTION : Cllr. Bell to investigate if any financial assistance is available.
490/19 PUBLIC EVENTS
The Council do not organise any events (Remembrance Sunday / Christmas Lights / etc) so do not have to make difficult decisions about continuing with them this year. With the new limits on social gathering numbers and any potential future tightening of restrictions, it is hard to know what events will still be happening and how they will be managed safely.
The Beating of the Bounds event is due to be held next year
490/20 CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED / DATES TO NOTE
It was resolved to note the Correspondence and Dates to Note. (Proposed by Cllr. Grubb)
490/21 DATE OF NEXT MEETING
The next meeting of the Parish Council and will be held on 7th October 2020 at 7:30pm, depending on the regulations at the time, this will be held in Sticklepath Village Hall but the venue will be confirmed when the Agenda is published.
Meeting ended at 9.58 pm
Appendix 1 (Minute: 490/10.2) WDBC REPORT
This has been a difficult year for WDBC, with so much unexpected work and expense following the Covid19 emergency. The officers have worked tirelessly to support local residents. Home working for all staff and councillors has been extremely effective and we are proud to have done our bit to reduce our carbon emissions from commuting, to almost zero. The future is looking very uncertain with a second corona virus wave predicted, rising unemployment and the prospect on a no deal Brexit. I am sure we will weather the storm.
The Covid19 response has been efficient overall and a Devon wide response has been successful in ensuring parity across the region in grant distribution. The messages from national government have been confused so a Team Devon approach was a successful solution for us. We developed good hospital discharge practices so older people returning to care homes were protected and we have had very few deaths overall in our area.
WDBC has held a series of meetings for councillors to plan the direction of the council after the Covid19 crisis has eased. The council is half a million pounds in debt so we have had to formulate a new budget. Very little financial assistance has come from central government to bridge this gap. It is likely that the plans to invest in projects such cycle tracks and to boost the local economy will be postponed. However vital services are protected. The Build back Better initiative will look at all aspects of council work to see where savings can be achieved and improvements made.
WDBC will continue with its work in creating a sustainable future for our residents. Will work within our budget to get the best outcomes for people. This will mean changes to how we operate and what we do as council. Our Environment plan is ready to be approved by full council and will see changes that will reduce our carbon emissions and enhance our biodiversity, if agreed. We will also be closely following the DCC carbon reduction plan, when this is introduced.
One main policy is to become more connected to our residents. The Communities online line group meets monthly, which I facilitate. This is to bring together the voluntary groups set up to respond to Covid19 and to ensure these continue. With the Covid emergency not yet over the voluntary groups are vital for local on the ground response to people’s needs. It is well worth attending the hour long meeting, for the information and support given. The PC clerk will have the link and invitation if you wish to do so.
WDBC is keen for residents to share their views on the direction for the council, these can be shared online or directly to me as your local councillor.
Thankyou
Cllr Lynn Daniel