LENHAM PARI SH COUNCIL MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE LENHAM PARISH COUNCIL
HELD ON THE 4th MAY 2011 IN THE COMMUNITY CENTRE AT 7.30pm
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| PRESENT |
Cllr. N Godfrey, Chairman presiding.
Cllrs. A Barr, J Bone, C Gillett, S Goodwin, R Greenwood,
M Osborne, I Younger.
Mrs. M. McFarlane (Clerk)
B.Cllr. T Sams C.Cllr. J Whittle
2 members of the public
Cllr. Godfrey announced this would be the last meeting of the present council and wished to thank Cllr. Osborne, (who was standing down, after twenty years serving on the LPC) for his hard work and dedication which was much appreciated.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Mr. George commended the working party for cleaning the Cross and commented on the visual improvement. Cllr. Greenwood suggested placing edging on a section of the Cross for a trial period.
Mr. Sherwood (Community Warden) reported incidents of graffiti in both Lenham and Harrietsham. A safer plates scheme will be organized, dates and location to be announced.
Cllr. Barr and Cllr. Younger pointed out potential safety issues with broken fences on the boundaries of Ham Lane play area and at Swadelands School. Mr. Sherwood will patrol the area. Cllr. Godfrey thanked Mr. Sherwood for his support.
REPORT BY C. CLLR. JENNY WHITTLE
Six zones as pilot schemes for the 20s plenty scheme will be announced. Cllr. Sams voiced his concerns about the lack of lighting at the Faversham Road junction. Atwater Court access road has been resurfaced. A county wide consultation concerning the Gypsy travelling community will be undertaken by KCC. The application for funding the crossing at the primary school was in the system. Cllr. Younger pointed out that some lorries using the road to/from Lenham Storage were on the wrong side of the road. Cllr. Whittle will investigate improved signage/road marking. Cllr. Osborne was concerned that a redistribution of traveller sites would increase the pressure on Lenham and surrounding areas. Cllr. Whittle suggested waiting for the policy outcome from KCC. Cllr. Gillett suggested putting LPC point of view forward via the B. Cllrs. possibly linking up with Ashford Borough Council.
Cllr. Godfrey thanked Cllr. Whittle for her continued support.
The Chairman declared the meeting open at 8.05pm
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
The Council accepted the reason for apology for absence from
Cllrs. Bate & Huggens. B.Cllr.Barned. PCSO Rowley. |
| 11/01 |
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST AND CONFIDENTIAL ITEMS ON THE AGENDA
No declarations of interest or confidential items on the agenda. |
| 11/02 |
MINUTES
The minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on the 6th April 2011 were confirmed as a true record and it was RESOLVED that they be approved and adopted. |
| 11/03 |
MATTERS ARISING
a. Concurrent Functions update (10/108b)
Cllr. Godfrey read out a draft letter to MBC from the review panel. A report will be produced following the next meeting.
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b. Playground inspection/fence repairs (10/113)
All the play areas will be inspected on May 11th. The Clerk will accompany the inspector.
Acceptance of the quote to repair the fence at Ham Lane play area for £120 from Complete Landscapes proposed by Cllr. Osborne, seconded by Cllr. Bone. RESOLVED to accept quote. Cllr. Younger suggested extra support using struts and iron angle to strengthen the fence.
c. Annual Meeting 10th May 2011 (10/113)
The meeting will be held in the Appleton room at 7.30pm. The agenda with register of personal assets forms were distributed.
d. Annual Assembly Meeting 18th May 2011 (10/113)
The meeting will be held in the Osborne room following the Planning, Finance & General Purposes Meeting. Reports from LPC will be followed by presentations from local groups and societies. The evening will conclude with an informal buffet. |
| 11/04 |
Reports & Committees/Spokespersons |
| A |
Finance & General Purposes. Report by Cllr. Godfrey
Cllr. Godfrey confirmed that all members had seen the minutes of the meeting. Cllr. Osborne suggested an amendment to the wording under section 7 Accounts to read, LPC wish to see year ending accounts before donations can be approved.
Cllr. Bone will undertake regular risk assessments of the Glebe pond area.
The report of the meeting on 20th April 2011 were received and it was
RESOLVED that the recommendations contained therein be approved and adopted. |
| B |
Planning Report by Cllr.Osborne
Cllr. Osborne read out a brief report of the applications received.
A rear extension to a property in Loader Close will be inspected by the Housing Association and Cllr. Barr will be informed of the findings.
Joint Parish Group Report by Cllr. Goodwin.
The key points and issues relating to the core strategy were outlined by Cllr. Goodwin.
The public consultation period will give LPC an opportunity to ask questions and to put forward a cohesive response. Cllr. Barr suggested the JPG could be advantageous, providing a more professional approach. Cllr. Osborne agreed that any opportunities to protect rural areas would benefit from the input of a consultant.
Cllr. Goodwin agreed to inform the Focus magazine of developments and ask for questions and comments to be sent to the Clerk.
The report of the meetings held on April 20th 2011 were received and it was RESOLVED that the recommendations contained therein be approved and adopted. |
| C |
Parish Plan Steering Group Report by Cllr. Barr
The future meeting of the group would be as and when required or annually.
Discussions concerning the recycling site were ongoing. All agreed in principal that for safety reasons the hedge needed to be cut back and lower, each side of the site. Cllr. Barr will organize having the hedge cut ASAP.
Overgrown brambles at the Cherry Downs picnic site will be cut back.
The Royal wedding celebrations were a success and well attended with the Church showing the event on a large screen and the Square being used as a picnic area. The next royal celebration will be the Diamond Jubilee in June 2012. A committee will be formed in order for organizations to work together to coordinate celebrations. |
| D |
Highways & Transportation Report
A parking review will take place at 2pm on Wednesday 11th May. Cllrs. Bate, Greenwood and Younger will attend with the Clerk and Mr. Reynolds from MBC.
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MBC quotes for work to the long term car park are £200 for cleaning the site and £887 for removing, repairing and repainting the barriers. If the work could be done for under £1000 then Cllr. Bone proposed & Cllr. Osborne seconded, the work be undertaken. All agreed.
The damage to a bollard in the Square has been reported to MBC. |
| E |
Law & Order Report by Cllr. Godfrey
CCTV update. Cllr. Osborne will speak with the contractor working on the upgrade to confirm works are being carried out as per specifications. |
| F |
Emergency Plan Report by Cllr. Goodwin
Cllr. Goodwin hoped to work with Swadelands School and Age Concern on a draft plan.
Cllr. Bone suggested a list of people in Lenham who use the Age Concern facilities. |
| G |
Environment Reports
White stones which had been spread on the ashes section in the cemetery will have to be removed. Quote to be sought for cost of replacing stones from Complete Landscapes.
Changes to the access gates at the Pilgrims Way will be monitored and reported on by Cllr. Greenwood. Concerns were voiced about the standard of grass cutting in the parish, situation to be reviewed. A meeting with the contractor, Cllr. Barr, Godfrey and the Clerk to be organized.
Friday May 6th at the Community Centre. |
| 11/05 |
REPORTS FROM OUTSIDE MEETINGS
Age Concern Community Hub Report by Cllr. Bone
A recruitment evening was held on April 11th. The Easter egg raffle raised £400. The amount was divided equally between the hub project and the Air Ambulance. The next event will take place on June 2nd at Lenham Social Club. |
| 11/06 |
KALC/RURAL KENT No report |
| 11/07 |
Cheques for consideration and PAYMENT 4TH May 2011
Southern Water. Sept 2010 to Feb. 2011 WC waste water £218.24
KALC. Conference for Parish Clerks 72.00
Complete Landscapes. April ground maintenance £850.00
Mr. W McFarlane. Clerk’s broadband use 18.22
DD Maidstone Borough Council. Cemetery rates. 74.00
DD Scottish Power. WCs April charges 25.00
Salaries and expenses detailed as Appendix A and filed with the signed copy of these Minutes.
No monies received.
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| 11/08 |
TO REPORT CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED
Came & Company Insurance quote. Cllr. Greenwood proposed and Cllr. Gillett seconded, LPC accept cover recommendations.
Cllr. Osborne thanked the LPC members for their support. He had enjoyed being part of a team and was proud and honored to be a Parish Councillor. Cllrs. agreed that Cllr. Osborne’s contribution during the past twenty years had been considerable and he would be missed at the meetings.
The meeting closed 9.55pm |