Council Meeting, 28 September 2011

HELMDON PARISH COUNCIL
All Councillors are summoned to an Ordinary Meeting of Helmdon Parish Council to be held in the Reading Room, Church Street, Helmdon on Wednesday 28th September 2011 commencing at 7.30 pm.
Members of the public and Press are invited to attend and to participate in the Open Forum
1. To elect a Vice Chairman
2. Apologies for Absence
3. Declarations of Interest
4. Approval and Signature of the Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on 27 July 2011
5. Matters Arising from the Minutes of 27 July 2011
6. Open Forum
7. To co-opt a new Parish Councillor
8. NCC matters a) to receive update on the repairs to the bridge(comments from Andrew Grant)
b) to receive completed licence agreement for the School field
9. Finance
10. Planning:
11. Correspondence Review
12. To consider any additional nominations for Committees in the light of the resignation of Cllr Earl
13. To receive an update from the Parish Plan Group regarding a) Fast Internet Service for Helmdon (FISH) project.
b) proposals for forming a committee to develop the cycle route to Brackley
14. To receive an update from the Quality Council Working Party including publication of newsletter
15. To consider Finance Committee’s recommendations a) To set up a panel to carry out the clerk’s appraisal b) To review the reminder of the terms and conditions of the contract when the new Model Contract is published
16. Paths: To consider the sign off of the two new Permissive Path Agreements and consider further information regarding the footpath application along the railway
17. To receive further information regarding “Pilot Villages” for Neighbourhood Plans and agree any action necessary
18. Health and Safety – to receive completed Inspections Reports and consider action necessary from the RoSPA
Playground Inspection Report
19. Allotments issues
20. Councillors’ Questions th th a) Financial statement b) To consideration recommendations from the Finance Committee to
 Increase the contacted hours of the Parish Clerk to 7.74 per week
 Apply Spinal Column Point increases for completion of the CiLCA and annual service increment c) Bills for Payment d) Payments Received e) To consider the Internal Auditor’s correspondence regarding the asset statement f) To consider what to purchase with the £225 received from the Best Village Competition a)
b)
To receive decisions of Planning committee on applications since 27/07/11
To consider the response to the NCC regarding the Blackpits farm application S/2011/1022/PC
– Erection of an Anaerobic digestion facility (and ancillary elements including a silage clamp)
for the treatment of green waste and grown crop (maize)
Signed _______________________
Dated________________________
Liz Hart, Parish Clerk
[address removed]

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HELMDON PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Ordinary meeting of Helmdon Parish Council held on Wednesday 28th
September 2011 in the Reading Room, Church Street, Helmdon at 7:30 pm
Present: Councillors Barnes, Duncombe, England, Coatsworth, Moody, Adhemar, Simpson
(from item 7)
Parish Clerk: Liz Hart
4 members of the public were present.
County Cllr Andrew Grant was present to item 8 inclusive.
Action
1 To elect a Vice Chairman
Cllr Moody proposed, seconded by Cllr Barnes, that Cllr Coatsworth be elected Vice Chairman.
All were in favour.
2 Apologies
Cllr Burns had given apologies due to being in hospital; these were accepted by the meeting.
Cllr Coatsworth informed the meeting that Cllr Burns was now recovering from his operation and the Parish Council wished him a speedy recuperation.
3 Declarations of Interest
Cllr Moody declared an interest as Chief Executive of NCALC regarding item 9 c).
4 Approval and Signature of the Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on 27th July 2011
th Cllr Moody proposed, seconded by Cllr Adhemar, that the Ordinary Meeting Minutes of 27
July be approved with no amendments. All were in favour.
5th Matters Arising from the Minutes of 27 July 2011
Item 5 – Village Correspondent – Cllr England had contacted the press to become a correspondent but had heard nothing. The Clerk was asked to approach the publications on his behalf.
Clerk
Item 6b – it was noted that some items under 6b) had been recorded as s137 unnecessarily.
The Clerk explained that this was because the grant amount was budgeted under the s137
heading. It was suggested that the Finance Committee review the use of s137.
Item 6d – it was noted that the Finance Committee had reviewed the reserves policy and that the reserves would be taken into account in detail when setting the budget.
Item 7 – Cllr Barnes had been unable to repair the old signs due to their poor condition.
6 Open Forum
Bryan Short congratulated Cllr Coatsworth on his election as Vice Chair which he felt was well deserved given Cllr Coatsworth’s efforts regarding the Best Village Competition.
Audrey Forgham felt that there was still confusion regarding the operation of the new Bus
Connect service and suggested a leaflet and an article in a future newsletter. The Clerk was asked to obtain some leaflets for distribution.
Clerk

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The Clerk was asked to thank all groups in the village who maintain the public areas of the War
Memorial and the Pump Garden.
Encouraging feedback had been received regarding the new newsletter; Cllr Barnes emphasised that as articles needed to be short and brief, some detail of full explanation may be lost.
7 To co-opt a new Parish Councillor
The two candidates present gave a brief presentation before leaving the room while the
Councillors voted and the ballot papers were counted by the Clerk. The candidates returned to the meeting and the Clerk announced that Eddie Garner had received a majority of votes cast.
Eddie Garner was welcomed as a new Parish Councillor.
8 NCC matters a) to receive update on the repairs to the bridge(comments from Andrew Grant)
Cllr Barnes commented on the lack of progress with the bridge repairs – it had taken eight weeks and two further emails to receive a response to his letter. The response received did not address or even acknowledge any of the proposals put forward by Cllr Barnes.
Cllr Grant gave an update on the timescales for repair which were due to start by the beginning of 2012. He agreed it was disappointing that no response had been made to the suggestions put forward and suggested it be forwarded to David Farquhar and Debbie Thorne.
Cllr Grant agreed to chase up the confusing speed limit signs.
Cllr Grant was thanked for attending the meeting.
b) to receive completed licence agreement for the School field
The licence agreement was reviewed by the Councillors; it was noted it contained amendments made by NCC which had not all been signed or properly made but it was resolved to accept the document per se, having felt defeated by the ineptitude of NCC.
9 Finance a) Financial statement
Current Account (Coop) £26, 164.03
Cllr Duncombe proposed, seconded by Cllr England that the financial statement above be accepted. All were in favour.
b) To consideration recommendations from the Finance Committee to
• Increase the contacted hours of the Parish Clerk to 7.74 per week
• Apply Spinal Column Point increases for completion of the CiLCA and annual service increment
Cllr Moody proposed that members of the public and press be excluded from this item of the meeting. All were in favour.
Cllr Moody proposed seconded by Cllr Adhemar that the contracted hours of the Parish Clerk be increased to 7.74 hours per week and the appropriate SCP increases for completion of the
CiLCA and annual service increment be applied.
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Clerk

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Members of the public and press returned to the meeting.
c) Bills for Payment
Cllr Adhemar proposed, seconded by Cllr Barnes that all bills below be paid. All were in favour.
Accounts Payable NET VAT GROSS Cheque
Brown and Barden (3363) 121.43 24.29 145.72 500233
Parish Online 10.00 2.00 12.00 500234
Brown and Barden (3373) 121.43 24.29 145.72 500235
Clerk’s Wages 666.84 0.00 666.84 500236
NCC (Legal Costs for Licence) 200.00 0.00 200.00 500237
Playsafety Ltd 69.00 13.80 82.80 500238
NCALC (newsletter printing) 110.00 0.00 110.00 500239
Brown and Barden (3353) 121.43 24.29 145.72 500240
d) Payments Received
The following payments were noted:
Payments Received Amount
Interest (August) 3.03
Interest (September) 2.69
Mrs Shepherd 5.00
Precept 5344.00
Mrs Harvey 5.00
Mr Harman 5.00
Village of the Year 225.00
e) To consider the Internal Auditor’s correspondence regarding the asset statement
Cllr Moody proposed ,seconded by Cllr Barnes, that he should discuss the figures with the
Clerk prior to a response being sent. All were in favour.
f) To consider what to purchase with the £225 received from the Best Village
Competition
Cllr Duncombe proposed, seconded by Cllr Moody, that the four signs should be ordered. Cllr
Barnes declared a prejudicial interest in this matter. All other Cllrs were in favour.
Other ideas for the remainder of the money were put forward. Cllr Barnes proposed, seconded by
Cllr Moody that any remaining monies be used to finance a project to record daily life in the village
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by way of some photo books. All were in favour.
10 Planning:
a) To receive decisions of Planning committee on applications since 27/07/11
Application number: S/2011/0918/FUL
Location: 54 Church Street Helmdon
Proposal: Extend dormer windows to front and rear. Two storey side and single storey rear extensions.
The Committee resolved to support the application which was felt to be of minimal impact.
Cllr Coatsworth declared a prejudicial interest in the following application and was not present for the meeting.
Application number: S/2011/1088/FUL
Location: 85 Wappenham Road Helmdon
Proposal: Larger garage to the front/side
The Committee resolved to object to the application for the following reasons:
Under application S/2010/515/FUL the Parish Council had raised concerns regarding the parking/manoeuvring space; it is noted that the larger proposal would impact this further.
Under application S/2010/515/FUL the Parish Council had raised concerns regarding the building line used and queried whether the frontage of 83 Wappenham Road should be used rather than 10 Lukes Close. This new application is seen to exceed the building lines of both of these properties. The development appears excessively large for use as a domestic garage; the Parish Council assumes that the previous planning condition regarding restricting use to garaging of a private vehicle would be imposed , should permission be given. The varying roof pitches and designs are felt to be unattractive.
b) To consider the response to the NCC regarding the Blackpits farm application
S/2011/1022/PC – Erection of an Anaerobic digestion facility (and ancillary elements including a silage clamp) for the treatment of green waste and grown crop (maize)Village of the Year Competition
It was resolved to SUPPORT the application but make the following comments:
1. Traffic management – it is anticipated that a spike would be seen at harvest time but the data doesn’t seem to show this.
2. The noise assessment seems cursory and does not seem to relate to the development in question.
3. No reference can be found regarding how the applicant would access the National Grid to feed back the energy.(ie over ground by pylons etc)
11 Correspondence Review
Correspondence as listed in Appendix A was reviewed.
The Clerk was asked to forward details of the NCALC Councillor’s Survey to Cllrs Duncombe and Simpson.
Clerk
Jenner’s Piece – overgrown area. The Clerk was asked to contact Brown and Barden to arrange for it to be cut back.
Clerk
Cllrs Coatsworth and England volunteered to compile the response to the “Have your Say”
survey.
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DJM Consulting – notification of application to divert a footpath. It was resolved that Option B
was acceptable, Option A was objectionable.
12 To consider any additional nominations for Committees in the light of the resignation of
Cllr Earl
Cllr Garner was appointed to the Planning and Finance Committee.
Cllr Adhemar was appointed to the Playground Committee.
The Clerk will check the position regarding the Poppies and report back to Cllr Coatsworth.
Cllr Coatsworth was appointed Health and Safety Officer.
13 To receive an update from the Parish Plan Group regarding a) Fast Internet Service for Helmdon (FISH) project.
The project is progressing well and was recently featured in the NCC newsletter regarding
Faster Broadband.
b) proposals for forming a committee to develop the cycle route to Brackley
No further progress to date.
14 To receive an update from the Quality Council Working Party including publication of newsletter
The newsletter had been published. NCALC was thanked for printing it at cost. It was suggested that the School Liaison Officer could promote the various competitions at the School to ensure a good response.
The Clerk was asked to organise the next meeting of the Working Group to progress the Action
Plan.
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Clerk
To consider Finance Committee’s recommendations a) To set up a panel to carry out the clerk’s appraisal
It was resolved that Cllrs Moody and Simpson would carry out the Clerk’s appraisal with the
Clerk to arrange a mutually convenient date.
Clerk b) To review the remainder of the terms and conditions of the contract when the new
Model Contract is published
It was resolved that the Finance Committee should review these once the new Model Contract is published.
16 Paths: To consider the sign off of the two new Permissive Path Agreements and consider further information regarding the footpath application along the railway
It was resolved to sign off the agreements regarding i) the Bottom Railway (Humphrey) and ii)
the Churchyard (Pitt).
Regarding the Great Central Railway Cllr Duncombe will talk to Ben Humphrey to make him aware of the forthcoming application.
17 To receive further information regarding “Pilot Villages” for Neighbourhood Plans and agree any action necessary
Cllr Duncombe

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Cllr Coatsworth reported that Andy D’Arcy from SNC was to have a meeting regarding
Neighbourhood Plans; Cllr Barnes expressed an interest in attending.
18 Health and Safety – to receive completed Inspections Reports and consider action necessary from the RoSPA Playground Inspection Report
It was resolved that all hazards raised in the RoSPA report be reviewed by Cllrs Simpson and
Adhemar in conjunction with Cllr Coatsworth.
Clerk
Cllrs Adhemar and Simpson
It was further resolved that Cllrs Adhemar and Simpson should produce a strategic plan regarding further development and expenditure for the playground area.
19 Allotments Issues
The spruce boughs have been removed to a height of two metres.
The Clerk advised that the plot adjacent to the brook would be vacant after this season.
20 Councillors’ Questions
Cllr England advised he would be attending a Neighbourhood Watch session.
Lamp 29 on the War Memorial is still not working.
Cllr Coatsworth advised he would lay the wreath on behalf on the Parish Council this year.
It was commented that the tank and crushed car at the Tanks A Lot entrance is a distraction for motorists.
The meeting was closed to allow a member of the public to speak. Bryan Short regretted the fact that Cllr Burns was unable to attend the meeting due to being in hospital; he wished to publicly thank Cllr Burns for his fortitude and patience in responding to his comments and queries over the last few years. Bryan wished the Parish Councillors all the best for the future.
The meeting closed at 9.55 pm
Clerk

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Appendix A – Correspondence Received – 27th July – 27th September 2011
South Northamptonshire Council
 Weekly Planning Application listings
 Planning Applications:
o S/2011/1022/PC – Blackpits Farm – Erection of an Anaerobic digestion facility (and ancillary elements including a silage clamp) for the treatment of green waste and grown crop (maize) silage – plans for information only o S/2011/1088/FUL – 85 Wappenham Road Helmdon – Larger garage to the front/side –
Planning meeting held
 Details of New Appointments made
 Confirmation that PC may co-opt a Councillor at September Meeting
 Notice that Precept has been paid into bank account
 Alterations to Electoral Register
Northamptonshire County Council
 Northamptonshire Minerals and Waste Development Framework – notice of hard copies being available and website address for downloading
 Completed Licence Agreement and invoice
 Blackpits Farm – Erection of an Anaerobic digestion facility (and ancillary elements including a silage clamp) for the treatment of green waste and grown crop (maize) silage – consultation
 Superfast Broadband Newsletter
NCALC
 Survey for Parish Councillors
 Update September/October 2011
 Focus on Planning Framework
Miscellaneous
 SNH – poster and communication regarding allocation of new homes on Station Road site
 SNH – details of lifeline and support service
 BDO – request for amendment to box 9 to restate asset figure for 2010
 The Clerk magazine
 Countryside Voice – CPRE
 Coop Bank Statement for August and September
 South Northants Homes – works briefing,
 ACRE – Village Viewpoint Magazine, Annual report & accounts, Survey (completion by end Oct)
 Playsafety Ltd – RoSPA Inspection Report
 RHS – request for PC to consider entering the Britain Bloom contest

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
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Letters of thanks from Village Café, Tuesday lunches, Helmdon Acorns and Friends of Helmdon
Churchyard for the grants from the Parish Council
 Country Gardens and Ground Care- Promotional Literature
 Police – Have Your Say – questionnaire for group completion by 30 November
 SNVB – newsletter – September/October
 Traditional Village and Town Signs – promotional literature
 Request from householder to clear Jenner’s Piece of undergrowth
 DJM Consulting – notice of intention to apply for footpath diversion
 Order Form for Diamond Jubilee Commemorative Mug
 Responses to Cllr Barnes’ communications with NCC regarding the Bridge th
Accounts received
 Brown and Barden – invoice 3363 – £121.43 + 24.29 VAT = £145.72
 Brown and Barden – invoice 3373 £121.43 + 24.29 VAT = £145.72
 NCC – invoice for Legal Costs of producing licence – £200 + 0.00 VAT = £200
 NCALC – invoice for printing newsletter – £110.00
 Parish Online Subscription – £10 + 2.00 VAT = 12.00