- Present
- Councillors Clive Hawkins (CH) (Chairman), Clive Morris (CM), Stephen Russell (SR), Diane Donat (DD), District Councillor Richard Meyer and County Councillor Jane Storey, County Councillor Andy Mellen and 7 members of the public.
Election of Chairman and Vice Chairman
- Councillor Hawkins handed the meeting to the Clerk to conduct the election of a new Chairman. There was only one nomination – for Mr Hawkins – to re-stand as Chairman which he agreed to do.
- Councillor Hawkins signed the Declaration of Office and resumed the position of Chair of the Annual Meeting.
- The Clerk read out a citation from Councillor Walsh indicating his willingness to take on the role of Vice Chairman in his absence tonight. This was unanimously approved and Councillor Walsh will sign his Declaration of Office at the next Parish Council Meeting on 9 June 2021.
Public Forum
Mr Robert Austin expressed his thoughts (as owner of the private drive of Austin Close) about the need to resurface part of the drive following the repairs to the pavement. He did not feel it was necessary and questioned why he was being asked to do so. It was explained that following an accident last year, the Parish Council had consulted with the residents of Austin Close who all agreed to club together to reinstate the surface of the lower portion of Austin Close if the Parish Council had the pavement repaired. Now that the pavement has been reinstated and to avoid further gravel travelling down Austin Close and damaging this work, it is still hoped that Mr Austin could see his way clear to honouring his side of the arrangement.
Apologies
Richard Morris (RM), Ed Walsh (EW), David Smith (DS).
Declarations of Interest and Requests for Dispensations
- Councillor Donat regarding 7.8.
- None.
Minutes
- The minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on 14 April 2021 had previously been circulated. It was resolved that these were an accurate record of the meeting and signed accordingly.
- None.
Clerk’s Report and Correspondence
- The Clerk had no correspondence that was not covered by the current agenda items.
- The new website commissioned and owned by Badwell Ash Parish Council was now live (badwellash.suffolk.cloud). It is hoped that residents will find this upgrade an improvement and a useful tool. It will be monitored regularly with updates and changes as and when they occur. Training for Councillors to use the website will be discussed at the June Parish Council Meeting.
Environment
- The Clerk had purchased a new dog litter bin which will soon be installed on a post at The Broadway junction with the footpath leading to Walsham le Willows. It is hoped that this will eliminate the amount of dog litter currently found in this area and that all dog walking residents use this facility.
- Following complaints received from residents in St Mary’s Crescent about the open litter bin on the green, the Parish Council have agreed to purchase litter bins with lids to replace both this one and the other open one in Richer Close with more modern editions. A letter had also been sent to the owner of Rumbles Fish and Chip shop asking them to supply a decent sized litter bin with a lid for use by all their customers which can be emptied on a regular basis. To date no reply had been received from Rumbles.
- Councillor Walsh had prepared a report, in his absence, about identifying any ‘Quiet Lanes’ in our parish that could be signed accordingly. Councillor Walsh listed The Broadway, Sheepgate Lane, and Langham Road as possible contenders that meet the criteria. He further advised that funding for this Quiet Lane Project expired in 2020 but he had registered our interest when the next funding cycle becomes available.
- Councillor Russell gave a comprehensive report on the issue with speeding in both Badwell Ash and Long Thurlow and highlighted meetings that had been held with Suffolk Police regarding the way forward. He had discussed the various options with the Police and would be expecting the results of investigations to be available in the future. Separately the Parish Council was still planning to go ahead with Solar SIDs in Badwell Ash as soon as Suffolk County Council supplied the posts. County Councillor Andy Mellen offered to chase this up with SCC and the Clerk will supply him with previous correspondence to aid his enquiries.
- Long Thurlow had requested two new batteries for the SID they operate on our behalf. This was approved by the Parish Councillors and the Clerk would purchase same as soon as possible. Discussion on the setting up of a Community Speed Watch group in Badwell Ash would be deferred until the June meeting.
- The Council had requested quotations for installing concrete pads and renewing the fencing around the playground as part of the initial project which had been delayed due to Covid. The Council had now received a quotation for this work and it was unanimously agreed that this be implemented as soon as possible in order that benches and picnic tables could be installed in time for use this summer.
- Congratulations and thanks were expressed to Jennifer Jarvis for undertaking and completing the Playground Inspectors Course recently held in Elmswell. The Parish Council are very grateful that the playground will be checked on a regular basis for safety, breakages, reporting of illegal use by persons over the age of 12 and general advice regarding the equipment.
- This item was covered by Mr Austin’s comments in the Public Forum and despite his thoughts, it is hoped that he will honour his commitment to reinstate the surface of Austin Close soon to avoid any further accidents by pedestrians.
- The position regarding the pathway leading to Orchard Way is being considered by lawyers at the moment with hopefully an update coming soon.
Planning
Progress of recent planning applications as follows:
- DC/21/01176 1 The Row, Long Thurlow, Badwell Ash DC/21/00639 Ivy Cottage, Back Lane, Badwell Ash, IP31 3JD - PLANNING PERMISSION GRANTED
- DC/21/00268 Pattles Barn, Badwell Green, IP31 3JG - PLANNING APPLICATION WITHDRAWN
- To consider a planning consultation request letter relating to planning application - DC/21/02142 – 3 The Paddocks, Badwell Ash, IP31 3LW. It was resolved to advise MSDC that the Parish Council were unanimous in their objections to this planning application for the same reasons that were listed on the previous two planning applications and the Appeal to the Planning Inspectorate which were all refused.
Finance and Policies
- To review the Financial Risk Assessment annually. The Clerk produced a copy of the financial risk assessment which had not changed since it was last reviewed and was up to date and correct. The Councillors unanimously approved this.
- To review the Asset Risk Assessment. The Clerk produced a copy of the asset risk assessment which, this year, had the addition of the new playground equipment and fixtures on it. The Councillors unanimously approved this.
- To review the draft Annual Receipts and Payments Statement for 2020/2021. The Clerk reported that the Internal Auditor had approved all the paperwork connected with the end of year accounts to 31.3.21 and signed it accordingly. The appropriate paperwork and forms would now be submitted to the External Auditors for verification.
- The Councillors considered the issue of the following payments:
- £150.00 – SALC Councillor training
- £95.00 – Elmswell Parish Council Playground Inspector training
- £45.10 – S Brown Badwell Broadsheet
- £211.92 – Vertas Q1 quarterly grounds charges
- £272.49 – Salaries April
- £245.63 – Glasdon dog litter bin
- To agree a schedule of payments for 2021/22 in accordance with 5.6 of the Financial Regulations. The Clerk produced an updated copy of this to cover the upcoming year. The Councillors approved this and the Chairman signed a copy.
Next Meeting
Dates of Parish Council Meetings for 2021 – 2nd Wednesday of the month.
- 9 June
- 14 July
- 8 Sept
- 13 Oct
- 10 Nov
- 8 Dec
Carole Rose, Parish Clerk
22 May 2021
New website: badwellash.suffolk.cloud