BREWOOD AND COVEN PARISH COUNCIL
WITH
BISHOP’S WOOD AND COVEN HEATH
MINUTES
OF THE MEETING OF THE COUNCIL TO BE HELD IN THE COUNCIL OFFICES, STAFFORD
STREET, BREWOOD ON THURSDAY, 22 FEBRUARY 2007
PRESENT:
Mr
A. Ball, Mr F. Barrett, Mrs J. Carr, Cllr I. Clay, Cllr Mrs D.M. Holmes, Mrs
K.A Holmes, Mrs J.C. Jeffries, Mrs L.E. Jones, Mr R.M. Jones, Dr R.C.H. Taylor,
Mr P.G. Sanders, Mr P.G. Wakeham, Mr M. Webb, Mr I. Westwood.
APOLOGIES:
Mrs A.Y. Millward –
family commitment, Cllr M.R. Hampson – attending a presentation.
IN ATTENDANCE:
Cllr R. Roberts
O.B.E.
MINUTES:
The minutes of the
meeting of the Council held on 8 February, having been circulated, were taken
as read and were approved and duly signed by the Chairman.
DECLARATIONS
OF INTEREST:
Dr R.C.H. Taylor
declared a prejudicial interest in matters relating to Jacob’s Ladder.
Section 17 of
the Crime and Disorder Act, 1998 places a duty on local authorities to consider
the crime and disorder implications when exercising its functions and to do all
that it reasonably can to prevent crime and disorder in its area. Unless otherwise stated it was not
considered that the resolutions to moved herein would have any adverse impact
for the purposes of the Crime and Disorder Act.
PUBLIC
PARTICIPATION
The Chairman
moved that the meeting be adjourned for a period of no more than fifteen
minutes to allow any elector of the parish or his/her representative to raise
or question any issues appertaining to proper parish council business.
No matters were raised.
POLICE REPORT
Email received from PCSO Charlotte Edwards with regard to the garages in Sunset Close, Coven – Clerk’s report referred.
MATTERS ARISING:
154* Public Conveniences, Sandy Lane. Clerk’s report referred. The Clerk reported that an
installation date was required from e-on to schedule access to the site and to
make arrangements for the meter to be installed. Letter received from Mr P.
Mullard requesting a completion date and a complete breakdown of the project
costs, in writing.
It was resolved that a letter of appreciation be sent to Mr Cummins for his assistance in getting the connection charge reduced. It was further resolved the Clerk reply to Mr Mullard explaining the Standing Orders and procedures we were bound to work to including the requirement to appoint an approved contractor. The Clerk to also write to SPCA highlighting the problem that the Council were in effect penalised by procedures and such criticism had been received before.
347* Buildings Committee. Letter received from Mr M. Heath thanking the
Council for the Statement regarding the proposed re-development of the Council
offices site but questioning the number of objections received. The letter requested a copy of the Council’s
Rules and Regulations by which the Council was governed and also clarification
as to when the rule that questions from the floor be restricted to 15 minutes
came into force. The letter also asked
what was the status of the Development Grant application.
It was resolved the Clerk respond in accordance with the draft letter circulated at the meeting.
303. Carers Helping Independent Carers
- CHIC A letter had been received from Sir Patrick Cormack
which stated that he supported the general aims and objectives of CHIC and would
gladly make his views known to Government Ministers.
Matter of report.
320. Burial Grounds Provision and Maintenance.
Members discussed the maintenance and provision of Burial Grounds, deferred
from the precept meeting. Mrs L.E. Jones reported that Reverend Baker intended
to refer the maintenance of the closed churchyard at Coven to the Parish
Council but the existing churchyard had at least 8 to 10 years provision. Mr I.
Westwood asked whether the Council would give consideration to any proposal
submitted to extend the provision at St John’s in Bishops Wood.
It was resolved:
·
the Clerk
invite Father Standen of St Mary’s R.C. Church, Brewood and Pat Davies and
David Burton-Pye of South Staffordshire Council to a meeting to discuss the
options for repairing the wall at St Marys
·
confirmation
be sought from Reverend Burgess as to the number of plots currently available
at St John’s, Bishops Wood
·
the status
of the Government consultation on Burial Grounds be ascertained
·
no further
action be taken with regard to Burial Grounds in the parish until the Council
is requested to do so by any of the Churches.
321.Local Development Framework – Wolverhampton
Airport Policy Document
Deferred from the
previous meeting – replies required by 12 March.
It was resolved the matter be deferred again
to the next meeting of the Council and the Clerk obtain individual copies of
the report to be circulated to members with the agenda.
331. Planning - Old Weston Road. Cllr
I. Clay reported that, as a result of his enquiries, it was his understanding
that this road was not adopted and no planning application was required to
create a new access.
It was resolved the Clerk seek clarification
as to whether this information applied to the whole length of Old Weston Road
and the status of the other roads in the area.
333. V2006 Concert (Clerk’s report). A letter had been received from the
Secretary of St. John’s Nursery and Out of School Care Club. The letter
requested that if there was any grant money forthcoming the Out of School Care
Club be given consideration to provide additional resources for the children
during it’s initial set up year.
It was resolved the Clerk reply advising the
Club of the current situation, enclosing a copy of the letter Mrs J.C. Jeffries
had sent to Mr Mark Blackstock of Roseclaim. A copy of the letter from the Out
of School Care Club be forwarded to Roseclaim.
333. Jacobs Ladder (Clerk’s report). Clerk’s report
referred. Dr R.C.H. Taylor reported that in view of the advice received to
date, he believed the best option would be to install Chestnut Paling fencing
to fill the gaps and plant suitable shrubs either side. Dr Taylor then left the
meeting for the remainder of the debate. Cllr R. Roberts reported that
Staffordshire Council, as a gesture of goodwill, and South Staffordshire
Council would hopefully work together to assist in providing a solution, that
Staffordshire County Council considered Chestnut Paling acceptable and
Staffordshire County Council were investigating the implications of
highlighting the steps (reference letter received from Rev. Clive Burgess at
the last meeting).
It was resolved the Clerk obtain further
details with regard to Chestnut Paling and report back on the recommendations
of the County Council Footpaths Officer.
333. Boscobel
Grove (Clerk’s report). Cllr I.
Clay reported that Staffordshire Housing Association would be erecting suitable
signage to address the parking concerns reported.
Matter
of report.
334. Maintenance of Finger Posts. Mrs L.E.
Jones reported that the finger post at Cross Green, Coven required maintenance.
It was resolved the Clerk raise the matter
with the appropriate authority.
CORRESPONDENCE RECEIVED:
Letters had been received from:
335.
Underhill
Langley & Wright, Solicitors and Birkenhead Land Registry with regard to
the discrepancy in the registration of the site of the public conveniences in
Sandy Lane, Brewood. The letter from
the Land Registry noted that a surveyor would be visiting the site to update
the Land Registry map records if it proved necessary. The advice given by the Solicitor was that
the Council would need to apply for rectification of the Title which would, in
turn, involve a notice being served on the adjacent landowner asking for
agreement to the papers being amended to marry up with the position on site.
Matter
of report.
336.
Stuart Dobell with regard to the allotments at Coven Heath. He had recently acquired an allotment and
whilst in the process of clearing it had come across an historic tip containing
metal, plastic, wire, glass, etc. He
asked that the Council arrange for a mini skip to be sited adjacent to his
allotment to enable him to clear the plot for future use.
It
was resolved that the Clerk be authorised to arrange for a skip to be supplied
and if appropriate to order a “large” skip rather than a mini-skip for the use
of other allotment holders.
337.
David Kidney, MP advising of a Climate Change Forum on 8 March, 7.30pm
at the Hadley Centre in the Chetwynd Centre in Stafford. Mr P.G. Sanders sought
the approval of the Council for him to attend on behalf of the Council even
though there was a meeting of the full Council the same evening.
It
was resolved that the Clerk confirm the attendance of Mr Sanders at the event.
338.
Chairman of Sustainable Staffordshire giving notice of the AGM which was
to be held 9.30am Thursday, 22nd March at the Wedgewood Visitor Centre,
Barlaston.
It
was resolved that anyone wishing to attend would advise the Clerk.
339.
Staffordshire Police giving notice of the next Police Authority Consultative
Committee meeting to be held on Thursday 19 July and seeking permission for the
meeting to be held in the Council Chamber.
It
was resolved that the request be approved.
340. Head of Architectural and Landscape Service
with regard to the future administration of the South Staffordshire Free Tree
Scheme. A copy of the letter was copied
to members.
It was resolved the Clerk reply in favour of
the Parish Council administering the scheme locally and requesting a selection
of larger trees be made available for planting in suitable locations.
341. The Chairman of South Staffordshire Youth
Council. The letter drew attention to
the negative representation of young people in the media and decried the fact
that young people were being stereotyped such that it gave a perception that
groups of young people were always committing acts of anti-social
behaviour. The letter also drew
attention to the fact that many young people were actively involved in
voluntary work and that young people themselves were more likely to be a victim
of crime than adults. The letter called
for help in correcting the image and to present young people in a more positive
light.
It was resolved that this be highlighted in
the next Parish Newsletter.
342. Defra Rural Social and Communities Division
regarding the review of the Quality Town and Parish Council Scheme. The partners to the current scheme had
agreed that existing accreditations should be extended until such time as the
new statutory provisions came into effect and that the electoral mandate would
stand at 80% rather than the current 100% which was considered to be
impractical. The letter reiterated that
Defra was fully committed to the Quality Town and Parish Council Scheme.
Matter of report.
343. The Office of the Chief Executive, South
Staffordshire Council with regard to the Capital Grant and Loan for the
Changing Rooms at Coven. The letter
confirmed that the grant and loan would be carried over into the 2007/2008
year, subject to the work being completed in the financial year. Any alteration to the plans or the tenders
would need to be re-submitted for approval.
It was recommended that a letter of
appreciation be sent to South Staffordshire Council.
344. Mr T. A. Evans regarding the public footpath
from Hillcrest to Deansfield. The
letter provided a history of the pathway and noted that the Managing Director
of McLeans, developers of the Crestwood Park estate, resided in Brewood and
could provide information regarding conditions that were imposed relating to
the pathway.
It was resolved that Mr Evans be asked to
complete a witness statement form for submission with the application to
Staffordshire County Council for the footpath to be included on the Definitive
Map and the gentleman to whom he refers, Mr W. E. Powell, also be invited to
submit a Statement.
345. Mark Jenkinson, SSC’s Community Development
Officer (Sport) with regard to the provision of a bowling green within the
parish. The letter noted that he had
been contacted by the Brewood, Coven and Bishops Wood Crown Green Bowling Club
and asked for his assistance in moving the project forward. To this end he requested a meeting with all
interested parties and would be pleased to receive dates of which
representatives of the Council could be available.
It was resolved that Cllr Mrs D.M. Holmes
and Mr M. Webb attend such a meeting representing the Parish Council – to be
notified of date when available.
346. Audit Commission gave notice of the
proposal to extend the 5-year fixed rate fees for local Councils introduced in
2001/02. The new fees would remain in
operation for the next five years and could be viewed on the Commission’s
website. It was also proposed that
Michael Newbury an officer of the Audit Commission would be appointed as
external auditor for the financial year 2006/07.
Matter of report.
347. Staffordshire County Council regarding its
“Changing Lives” policy. A copy of the
letter was copied to members for information.
Matter of report.
348. Local Democracy Directorate, Communities and
Local Government regarding the revised model code of conduct for local
authority members. As comments were required by 9 March a summary of the
proposed revisions was provided to members at the meeting.
It was resolved to defer the matter to the
next meeting of the Council to allow members more time to consider the matter
and feedback to the next meeting.
349. Mr Wrenall with regard to problems experienced
in School Road, Brewood and requesting additional signage.
It was resolved the Clerk forward a copy of
the letter to David Wright, Staffordshire County Council and to also forward a
copy to Cllr R. Roberts.
350. CORRESPONDENCE CIRCULATED:
Agenda and reports for the meeting of South Staffordshire
Council’s Direct and Support Services Scrutiny Panel to be held 20 February.
Agenda and reports for the meeting of South Staffordshire
Council’s Regulatory Committee to be held 20 February.
‘Opportunities’ the public sector recruitment weekly
Staffordshire
County Council Pension Fund – Annual Report and Accounts.
‘Village News’
Copy
correspondence from Brewood Civic Society addressed to the Head of
Architectural and Landscape Services in connection with the application to fell
a Corsican pine at the Old Vicarage, Vicarage Road, Brewood.
Copy of
correspondence from Brewood Civic Society addressed to the Tourism and Events
Officer in connection with Brewood Tourist Information Points.
‘Enjoy England
Celebrate St George’s Day – Lets have a Party’ pamphlet.
Copy of
correspondence from Mrs E. A. Claydon addressed to Severn Trent Water Ltd,
together with enclosures. The
correspondence is in relation to a CCTV Survey of Sewers, Crestwood Park
Estate.
The Planning
Inspectorate acknowledging the Council’s letter regarding the proposed
development at Cat and Kittens Lane, Featherstone, Staffordshire.
351. COUNTY
COUNCIL REPORT:
The Council received the report of County
Councillor, Rex Roberts O.B.E. who reported on the County Council Budget for
2007/2008 and provided further details on the proposals for Care Homes in the
County. Cllr Roberts also provided information on the Responsibility Allowances
due from 1 April 2007.
352. CHAIRMAN’S
REPORT:
The Chairman had
nothing to report.
353.
FINANCE REPORT:
The Council
received the report of the Head of Finance, Mr P.G. Sanders and resolved the
following matters:
·
the
Financial Summary for the month of February be approved
·
the outcome
of correspondence with HM Customs and Excise (Clerk’s report refers) be noted
·
the renewal of the subscription payable to the South Staffordshire
Tourism Association be approved
·
the expenditure on the playing fields – Clerk’s report referred
– be approved at a cost of £200 for play equipment at Coven, £70 per play area
for the safety inspections and bark chippings, as required, for all three play
areas.
·
the recommendations of the Clerk’s report for The Bront be
approved to purchase one picnic bench and one seat in the “Dark” finish at a
cost of £762
·
the maintenance of the Council Office boiler – Clerk’s report
referred - be approved
·
the order for four planters at a cost of £210 each for Bishops
Wood be approved and that this be funded from the Council Charity Account if no
funds become available from the V2006 Festival. In the interim it was resolved
the invoice be paid from the Council account and funds be transferred as
appropriate at a later date. The supplier confirmed that they would drill
drainage holes in the planters free of charge.
Mr M. Webb reported on recommendations to improve the children’s play
area in Brewood.
It was resolved Mr
Webb review the matter with Mr R.M. Jones and report to the next meeting of the
Council.
354. PLANNING
REPORT:
The Council received the report of Cllr Mrs
D. M. Holmes and made the planning recommendations as set out in the attached schedule.
355.
CLERKS REPORT:
The Council
received the written report of the Clerk, Mrs D.E. Drury and resolved the
following matters:
·
Coven
Changing Rooms – the plans be approved in principal subject to approval of the
Football Foundation, the planning application be submitted to South
Staffordshire Council subject to the same approval and tenders be sought from
local builders when appropriate.
·
Council
Office submission for Feasibility Grant – the grant be submitted noting the
recommendations made during the meeting: project name, existing community use, future
use and partnership funding. It was resolved that a plot of land at the far end
of the playing field in Engleton Lane would not be sold to fund the
development.
The Chairman
moved the suspension of Standing Order 44 to enable the completion of business.
·
The
possible development sites in Bishops Wood be approved for referral to South
Staffordshire Council including the land to the rear of The Royal Oak with
possible access off Offoxey Road.
·
Recommendations
with regard to The Bront and the Definitive Map be approved.
·
A catalogue
be obtained from Playquest to progress the Trim-trail at The Bront
·
A key be
made available to the Tennis Club to allow access, in case of emergency,
through the gate at Coneybere Gardens.
Mr I. Westwood
left the meeting while matters relating to possible development sites in
Bishops Wood were debated.
356. DISTRICT
COUNCIL REPORT:
The Council received the report of Cllr Mrs
D.M. Holmes who had attended a presentation by Mid-Staffordshire General
Hospitals Trust which had proved very interesting.
It was resolved a representative be invited
to attend a meeting of the Parish Council to give a short presentation.
ANY
OTHER MATTERS OF REPORT:
357. Road Sweeping. Mr P.G. Wakeham raised
his concern at the need for the roads of the parish to be swept.
It was resolved the Clerk raise the matter
with South Staffordshire Council.
There being no other business the Chairman declared
the meeting closed at 9.50pm.
Toilets –
Sandy Lane, Brewood – Electricity Connection
EON had reduced the charge for the reconnection of
the electricity supply to £601.17 plus VAT.
The acceptance form had now been sent off and the Council awaited notification
of the connection date. In order not to
delay matters any further the Clerk had notified the electricity supplier as
Central Networks although all other Council electricity supplies are from
British Gas.
Recommendation: that a letter of appreciation
be sent to Mr Cummins for his assistance in getting the connection charge
reduced.
Changing
Rooms at Coven
The Clerk had had received the revised drawings
from the architect which had been considerably enlarged and now incorporated a
different roof line. The Football
Foundation had been contacted to check that the plans met their specification
prior to re-submission of a planning application – awaiting reply. The amendments were too significant for the
application to be treated as an amended application and the process would
therefore take between six and eight weeks to determine. The plans were tabled at the meeting.
Recommendation:
that the new plans be considered by the Council and a decision taken as to
whether or not they would be acceptable.
Proposed
Re-Development of the site of the Council offices and British Legion
Ivor Clay and the Clerk met with PC Maurice Annett
last week to go through the lottery application form for the development
grant. Martin Shufflebotham, County
Secretary of the British Legion should have been present but was called away
through urgent business, however, Ron Beddows, Club Secretary, was
present. In order to stand a chance of
success with the application it would be necessary to demonstrate substantially
increased benefits to the community and in order to do this the Council would need
to agree on what provision was to be included.
This needed to be determined in order that the application could be
submitted before the deadline of end of March.
The following was a list of suggested provision:
o
Office
accommodation for the Council – reception office with
counter, two other offices, a storeroom.
o
British
Legion – A
social room with a facility to seat 100 people, a bar with refrigerated cellar,
a small office, storage space and spirits store.
o
Information
Centre to
be housed in the foyer
o
Accommodation
for the police
– one office with phone connection and an outside storage area for bicycles.
o
Accommodation
for evening classes
– Staffordshire County Council’s Adult and Community Learning has indicated an
interest in this. Should two rooms be
included?
o
A
podiatry surgery
o
A
safe interview room
which could be made available to various local services
o
A
keep fit suite - such facilities are available on franchise
and could be taken up by an outside body or the British Legion may wish to
consider it as a source of income.
o
Shared
accommodation
- Access and toilets for the disabled, cloakroom, and kitchen facilities and a
large meeting/function room for Council meetings, elderly persons meeting room,
etc.
Additional issues that need
to be agreed in principle to enable
the grant application to be made:
The name of
the proposed development.
Suggestions: The Oak Tree Community Centre or The
Jubilee Oak Community Centre. Either of
these could be appropriate given that the proposed building needed to centre
around the oak tree.
Source of
funding.
Suggested partnership
funding, i.e. British Legion, The Police and County Council and to meet any
shortfall the possible sale of a Council asset, i.e. one executive building
plot as was put forward in the initial report
Recommendation: the Council establishes, in principle, the
above to enable the grant application to be completed.
The Bront
In the grant application to
Central Networks inclusion was made for two public seats for which a sum of
£600 was set down. I had a catalogue
and samples from Glasdon, suppliers to many local authorities. This also included picnic tables which would
be a more cost effective option. These
products were sustainable being manufactured from recycled plastic or sawdust
and were virtually indestructible, requiring no maintenance, painting,
etc. However, they were more expensive
and a picnic table was priced at £406 plus fixtures and a matching seat would
be £365 plus fixings. For comparison the
Clerk had sent for a seating catalogue from a local company used by SSC. Delivery from Glasdon would be six to eight
weeks.
Recommendation: the Council determines the foregoing as a
matter of urgency.
With regard to the trim
trail, which was being partly funded from the Quality Councils’ grant, several
of the Coven members met with the contractor who, in the past, had supplied
much of the Council’s wooden adventure playground equipment. He was drawing up a scheme and a quotation for consideration. Did the Council wish for other quotations
given that this company had provided a reliable service and equipment that has,
without exception, been substantially cheaper than other rival companies? The Parish Councils’ Association was asking
for a progress report by 14 March, together with photographs showing the
project. As there was an opportunity to
apply for further Quality Council funding in the near future it would help if
we could show good progress with the current project.
Recommendation: the
Council determines the foregoing as a matter of urgency.
Moles – Coven playing field and The Pavement, Brewood
The Coven playing field was
again infested with moles and in view of the problems encountered the last time
we employed the mole catcher the Clerk had referred the matter to SSC’s Grounds
Maintenance. They were in the process
of obtaining a quotation to deal with various sites throughout the District and
would include the aforementioned sites.
The Clerk had contacted Area Highways and they would meet the cost of
the treatment at The Pavement.
Matter of report
Stone troughs/planters
Following on from the last
meeting when some concern was expressed about drainage and the depth of the
planting area, the Clerk had spoken to the supplier and they were prepared to
drill a drainage hole(s) in the troughs to facilitate drainage. There would not charge.
Confirmation as to whether or not an order is to be placed.
The Bront
The Council were asked to
consider whether it would be appropriate to make an application for the pathway across The Bront to be placed on the
Definitive Map. This would be
advantageous as the status of a public right of way would make the pathway
eligible for funding from the County Council’s Footpaths Initiative programme.
Does the Council wish me to initiate this?
Maintenance – Council offices
The gas central heating
boiler needed servicing.
Did the Council wish me to
arrange for a Service Engineer to visit?
Playground
Maintenance
The area under the swings
at Bishop’s Wood playing fields urgently needed topping up and as it was
cheaper to buy a bulk load it would be opportune to top up the chippings on all
three playing fields. Also required at
Coven were two new cradle safety seats for the swings and repairs to the
climbing net which should be in the of order two hundred pounds. Did
the Council wish me to pursue this?
The playing field inspections had been arranged by South Staffordshire
Council and would be undertaken in the near future. The cost this year was £70 per site.
Tennis Club
The Tennis Club had
requested that it be provided with a set of keys for the Coneybere Gardens
entrance to the playing field. They had
pointed out that should there be an accident requiring the attendance of an
ambulance it would not be able to gain access to the field.
Pathway through the Churchyard of St Mary & St Chad
County Council had offered
to help with the cost of providing fencing and the Clerk had written to the
Head of Architecture and Landscape at South Staffordshire Council asking if her
Council would contribute. They had said
that chestnut fencing was inappropriate in the conservation area and would wish
to see steel fencing. The contractor
who was approached before has said that he would not undertake the installation
work but would be prepared to supply some panels of steel fencing at cost. I had asked the County Council’s Footpaths
Officer to inspect and advise on installation.
It could be that the BTCV voluntary group could be involved in the
clearance and excavation work.
Vandalism at garages in Sunset Close
The police were following up reports of youths breaking into one
of the garages and using it was a meeting place. The Housing Association was arranging for the vacant garage to be
blocked off completely which would prevent access.
Housing Development
At Bishop’s Wood three sites were put
forward as suggestions for the possible development of starter homes. The one site was to the rear of The Royal
Oak with access off the car par. In
view of the housing development currently underway did the Council wish to
reconsider this site and perhaps choose an alternative?