Minutes of a meeting of Standlake Parish Council, held in the Standlake Youth Club, on 9th October 2018 at 7.30pm.
Present:
Mr. C. Naylor Chairman
Mr. J. Rippin Vice-Chairman
Mr. S. Jones
Mrs. S. Garrett
Mrs. S. Adams
Mr. B. Parnham
Mr. S Hoskin
Mr. D. Bevan Clerk
Mr. C. Mathew (OCC councillor) and 3 members of the public.
1. APOLOGIES – Mr. S. Good, Mrs H. Fenton.
2. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST – There were no declarations of interest.
3. PUBLIC ITEMS – Mr. Naylor asked the public for their comments but they indicated they were attending only out of interest.
4. COUNTY AND DISTRICT COUNCILLOR’S REPORTS. Mr. Mathew reported that a new joint CEO for OCC and Cherwell councils is in place. A new management system is in operation and point of contact will be via computer. Gravel consultation is ongoing. Mrs. Garrett asked what impact the new Local Plan would have on Standlake. Mr. Mathew suggested that this was a matter for the district councillors but in his opinion the impact on the A40 and, by extension, the other roads such as the A415 will be considerable and the plans for the A40 were inadequate. Mr. Naylor said that the local plan should have the effect of protecting Standlake from the speculative development proposals we have seen recently.
5.
PLANNING
18/02755/HHD: Erection of new outbuilding to form garden room and shed (Retrospective).: 91A High Street Standlake Witney Mr Paul Turner. No objection.
6. MINUTES - Minutes of the Meeting held on 11th September 2018, copies of which had been previously circulated to all members, were agreed as a true record and signed by the chairman.
7. MATTERS ARISING
Roads/Traffic/Speeding – The clerk has collated actions taken regarding traffic calming and
noted the failures and challenges faced; this has been distributed to
councillors. Mr. Jones has been in touch
with Mrs. Goodall and she has now indicated that she is content to leave the
matter in his hands. Mr. Jones is examining what has happened in the past and what
funding might be available. Mr. Naylor noted that Mr. Parker, and volunteers,
has been active with the TVP Speedwatch equipment with the result that many
reports of excessive speed have been made to TVP; so many, in fact, that they
have been asked to desist as the volunteers at Eynsham who input the details to
the police database have been overwhelmed!
The
matter of the flashing lights at the school was raised with the question as to
why they were never in use as they were in other villages. The clerk and Mr.
Naylor said this has been asked on frequent occasions in the past but no
acceptable answer has been forthcoming; Mr. Naylor will approach the school
again and ask for an explanation. Mrs. Garrett noted that the school road sign
on Church End was obscured by overhang from a tree. The clerk will confirm who
the landowner is and ask for the branches to be removed.
Playground/Recreation Ground & Maintenance – the work identified by Mr. Parnham on his recent inspection has been
carried out. It was agreed that the play surface bark surface was becoming thin
and worn in places but it would seem prudent to leave replacement until the
spring.
Flooding, Sewers, Winter, Windrush – Mrs.
Adams attended the WODC ‘Water Day’ and has made a full report. In brief, there
is evidence, and Thames Water admits, that sewage is being discharged into the Windrush
not only in flood conditions but on a more regular basis. Furthermore, the
required monitoring and recording of these events is not being carried out and
plans to put this in place at all locations are not expected to happen before
2025 and even then will only cover about 80% of locations. The Environment
Agency says the water condition at Standlake (taken by St. Giles’ church) is
poor and advises against people or pets entering the water. It is not known if
discharge is happening from the sewage works at Standlake as the EA have not
been able to visit this site to date, but it is known that the water quality at
the junction of the Windrush and Thames is poor. WODC have suggested that
another meeting takes place in a year’s time. Mr. Naylor thanked Mrs. Adams for
attending the meeting and for her very full report.
A member of the public, Mrs. H. Milne, asked for progress on the provision
of winter grit bins on the corner of Standlake Road/Cow Lane. The clerk said no
further information was forthcoming from OCC but he would follow it up.
Dog Bins– The
saga continues. A resident has complained directly to WODC regarding the bin at
Lincoln Farm Park. Mr. Parnham volunteered to survey the bins while walking his
dog and take photos. The clerk will ask WODC for a full list of the dog bins in
Standlake.
The Bell – status:
Nothing further to report at this meeting.
War Memorial cleaning – the cleaning has now been carried out to a very high standard by O. G.
Stonemasonry.
Graveyard Water Pipe – Mrs. Adams again raised this matter. The clerk reiterated his view that
this was not something the council should or can support. Mr. Naylor said that,
while the council was always ready to consider a request to contribute to a
project, it was not realistic to fund a whole project to the tune of £2000+
especially one that would benefit few people. This view found general
agreement.
8. CORRESPONDENCE – No significant correspondence.
9.
ACCOUNTS – the following accounts were
approved for payment.
Absolute Solutions – repairs to playgrounds,
The Butts cutting 115.00
Absolute Solutions – grass cutting, litter
picks, 375.00
O. G. Stonemasons – War Memorial cleaning 540.00
Moore Stephens – audit fees 294.00
10. ADOPTION OF AUDIT REPORT 2017/18 – The clerk presented the external auditor’s report for FY 2017/18 noting that there were no comments or observations. The council unanimously accepted the report.
11. INITIAL 2019/20 BUDGET – the clerk explained the budget process and presented the initial draft for 2019/20 noting that some large items from the current year, such as the provision for a contribution to planning consultant fees, would not recur. There were other areas where there was either an actual, or estimated underspend, thus giving greater flexibility in future planning but his opinion was that every effort be made to reduce the precept for the coming year; Mr. Naylor agreed and said he felt the council should consider this as the precept had been increased in recent years to cover expenditure such as on fighting speculative planning appeals. It was agreed that any unused funding in the community fund should be carried forward into next year. The final budget decisions will be made at the November meeting and then reviewed before setting the precept in December.
12.
ANY OTHER BUSINESS – There being no further business
the meeting closed at 9.15 pm.
....................................................................................... Chairman .................................................................... Date