Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting

Meeting Date:

Present
Councillors Richard Morris, Stephen Russell, Will Draper, Maciej Siarkowski, Roy Woodfine, Nick Harvey and Bill Woodhall. District Councillor Richard Winch and 29 members of the public also attended.

Chairman’s Introduction

Cllr Richard Morris welcomed the newly elected Parish Council with a special welcome to our new District Councillor Richard Winch. The Chairman also commented on how gratifying it was to have 29 residents attend.

Public Forum

  1. None.
  2. Following a complaint by a resident of St Mary’s Crescent to the Parish Council in April, the Parish Council agreed to invite all the residents of St Mary’s to give their opinions in response to the complaint. There followed a lengthy and heated discussion regarding the various elements of the original complaint but the overwhelming majority of the residents of St Mary’s Crescent had no complaints or queries and were fully behind the Parish Council and their management of the War Memorial, the public benches and the flower troughs. The residents assured the Parish Councillors that they didn’t want anything to change and were very comfortable with the status quo. Regarding the residents’ ownership of the two green spaces in front of St Mary’s Crescent the Parish Council suggested that it might be prudent for the residents to take legal advice regarding registering the green spaces on the Land Registry to avoid any confusion as to ownership in the future. The Parish Council could offer no further advice and considered the original complaint now closed.
  3. None received.
  4. Cllr Mellen submitted a report by email which was distributed to the Parish Councillors in his absence at another event.
  5. Cllr Winch spoke of the District Council’s plans to clean up litter and cut fuel bills by way of extra insulation over the coming year. He also advised the Councillors of new plans and developments at the Jaynic site at Stanton and the likelihood of increased traffic through our villages – something to be monitored going forward.

Apologies

County Councillor Andy Mellen.

Declarations of Interest and Requests for Dispensations

  1. Cllr Harvey re 7.2.
  2. Cllr Harvey re 7.2.

Minutes

  1. The Minutes of the meeting held on 9 May 2023 were approved and signed by the Chairman.
  2. No matters arising.

Clerk’s Report and Correspondence

The Clerk had received a request from a resident regarding the lack of a litter bin at the Village Stores. The Clerk had written and visited the shop to request them to provide extra litter facilities in an attempt to keep our village tidy. The proprietors agreed to look into this.

  1. Clarke’s of Walsham had generously agreed to sponsor three editions of the Broadsheet per annum and the Clerk would liaise with them regarding their sponsorship monies.
  2. The draft Social Media Policy had been read by the Councillors and this was now approved and the Clerk was asked to load this onto our website. A further request for a policy on Freedom of Information requests was raised and the Clerk to look into draft documentation to be shared and adopted at a future meeting.
  3. The Clerk had produced a draft CIL Grant Policy and a draft CIL Grant application form. After discussion it was agreed to adopt these two documents and the Clerk was asked to load these onto our website for future use. Whilst these formal documents were necessary in support of requests for funding, it was emphasised that informal advice and discussions with the Parish Council would be welcome from prospective applicants before completing the forms if required.

Environment

  1. Cllr Russell confirmed that the Government have still not updated the situation regarding future grants for Neighbourhood Planning. It had been anticipated that this would have happened by now and he would continue to monitor the situation. Cllr Russell warned the Council that in the absence of new funds being made available soon, the Parish Council would have to look to fund the first instalment of £1400 from within our own funds in order to progress our NP journey. This to be brought forward on the July agenda.
  2. Cllr Draper and Cllr Woodfine outlined their initial plans to put on a festival within Badwell Ash during 2024. It was suggested that September would be the best month for this and hopefully either the village playing field or an alternative farmer’s field might be appropriate. It would be a day’s event from midday to midnight involving children’s activities during the day and adults’ music and BBQ in the evening. The Councillors were in unanimous agreement for Cllr Draper and Woodfine to take this forward to the next stage and report again in September. The project was endorsed by the Parish Council as being an ideal vehicle to bring the community together and would be added to the Agenda again for September.
  3. Cllr Harvey shared a detailed drone plan of the playing field in readiness for the start of the regeneration project. He explained that it would be necessary to install drainage on the field as well as plans for an enlarged car park to fit in with the existing proposition for a path and outdoor equipment. Cllr Woodhall will be working with Cllr Harvey on this project and they would report again in due course on next steps and quotes. The chairman thanked them both for their work to date on this exciting new project. It is anticipated that this project would be broken down into Phases as it is likely to be both expensive and lengthy. Unanimously agreed by the Parish Councillors.
  4. The Chairman has agreed, with a small working party of fellow Parish Councillors, to move the Coronation sandpit to the inside of the children’s playground on health and safety grounds.
  5. The Clerk reported that initial contact had been made with Barclays Bank legal team who will (eventually) reproduce the Deeds they have mislaid. This is likely to be a long and painful exercise.
  6. The Parish Councillors were shown a blue cross hatched plan of the intended area of purchase of the village hall drive. This they agreed was an accurate reflection of what they envisaged they were buying from Maple Developments. The Clerk was instructed to go back to the solicitors to obtain a Deed showing any or all of the Rights of Way attached to this purchase to ensure there were no hidden surprises further down the line.
  7. The Parish Council had purchased a second solar street lamp on behalf of the Village Hall and this had now been installed.
  8. The informal meeting between the Parish Council and the Village Hall Committee had taken place where the formal requirements regarding funding explained and discussed. Cllr Draper has volunteered to act in a liaison capacity should the Village Hall need any assistance in their future planning for improvements at the Village Hall. It is hoped that both bodies can work in tandem for the benefit of the village community. It was suggested to the Village Hall Committee that it might be prudent to employ a consultant to help them with their funding applications and requests. The Clerk reported that the Village Hall had requested that £6930.00 of the allocated £10,000 be repaid to them to cover the new heating in the small hall and had provided a copy invoice to confirm the exact amount. The Councillors gave the Clerk approval to transfer these funds to the Village Hall account.
  9. The bus timetable cases and inserts at the two Badwell Ash bus stops at the Village Hall drive and the Bus Shelter on Hunston Road are both in a very poor state of repair and defaced with graffiti. The Clerk to contact Suffolk Onboard to request replacements.

Planning

Progress of recent planning applications are as follows: None.

  1. To consider a planning application letter relating to DC/23/02609 27 Orchard Way, Badwell Ash IP31 3JL. The Councillors discussed this planning request and were unanimous in their approval. Resolved: to approve this application.
  2. To consider a Planning Consultation letter DC/23/02739 Land South of The Broadway, Badwell Ash – to Vary Condition 2 (Approved Plans and Documents). Cllr Harvey explained that two of the houses had been exchanged to become bungalows and the design and layout of them altered accordingly. The remainder of the site is largely unchanged. The Councillors approved these modifications. Resolved: to approve this application with one abstention.

Finance and Policies

  1. To consider and confirm the issue of payment of the following:
    • £603.48 – May salary
    • £120.00 – Suffolk Cloud hosting fee
    • £96.00 – M&TJs April
    • £288.00 – M&TJs May and June
    • £852.58 – MSDC annual litter and dog emptying
    • £51.22 – MSDC emptying new bin (Durham House)
    • £2173.20 – Prolectric 2nd solar light for Village Hall
    • £186.00 – Gipping Press June/July Broadsheet
    • £153.74 – Clerk’s expenses including Nest Cups
    • £5.00 – HSBC monthly bank charge
    Resolved: that these payments could be made. The Chairman signed an approval for these to be paid by BACS.
  2. The Clerk reported that the Coronation expenses by the Village Hall had totalled £1311 against the original budget of £2000 so a worthwhile and economical expense.
  3. The Clerk reported that she had reclaimed the VAT for 2022 in the sum of £10,916.00 which was a worthy project and the monies could be spent on further improvements for the villages.

The next Parish Council meeting would be held on Tuesday 11 at 19.00 in the Village Hall. Cllr Morris gave his apologies in advance for the July meeting. Cllrs Draper and Woodfine gave their advance apologies for the possible August meeting although it was hoped that this would not be necessary.

Carole Rose – Parish Clerk
01359 259045
15 June 2023

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