held on Monday September 3rd 2007
Present; Stuart Campbell, Chairman Mary Stanhope, Hugh Delap, Rowena Wood, Richard Blamey, Betty Harris, Ray Benfield, Ann Ross, Mandy Knowles and Stephanie Jenkins, Clerk. The Chairman welcomed Neil Butters, District Councillor, to the meeting.1 Apologies for absence ; Richard Blamey had warned of his late arrival at the meeting.
2.Minutes
With one minor amendment, the Minutes of the meeting of July 9th were agreed to be an accurate record and were signed by the Chairman.
3.Planning Matters
Decisions;Tennis Club Lighting; permitted. RW to write supporting the lateral light condition as requested by Chris Lyons.
Flat above Surgery/ change of use to Temporary Post Office; permission granted under delegated powers for one year, until 31st July 2008. The following footnote to the permission is noted “The Local Planning Authority is satisfied that the proposal does not have a significant detrimental impact on the amenities enjoyed by surrounding residential occupiers and would not be harmful to highway safety.”
Ford Cottage, The Hill/ replacement window; permission under delegated powers.
The Old Brewery/ erection of first floor extension etc; permission under delegated powers.
On-going Items
Woodwyck Hall Pond; Ludek Majer had handed this matter on to his successor, Tim Guymer, at present on leave. RW is to follow up to establish the principle for future reference. Some critical comments on the Parish Council’s response having been noted, the Clerk was asked to make an explanatory phone call.Flat 5, The Old House/ internal alterations to window; the application was classed as invalid by planning and withdrawn, despite Listed Building permission having already been granted.
PC Responses since July meeting.
Cornerstone, Freshford Lane/erection of a single-storey extension, detached garage, replacement of existing garage doors with glazed door and construction of stone garden wall; the Planning sub-committee had a number of concerns;
- The garage would be outside the building line at that end of Freshford Lane. Granting this application could set a precedent for neighbouring properties.
- The property closely abuts the Conservation Area, both in New Road and Freshford Lane and therefore the impact of the proposed extensions needs particularly careful consideration.
- The beech tree at the corner of the property is a feature of the area and any foundation work should not damage the roots of this tree.
- The aluminium of the roof light should be treated with a dark colour powder coating, rather than the white coating specified.
- The tiles for the roof should be second-hand clay tiles, to minimise the impact on the adjacent Conservation Area.
Bath Preservation Trust had also expressed concern over this application, on the building line and the treatment of the roof light. The Parish Council’s response was therefore under “comments only”.
New Applications
Laughing Snakes, Midford Lane/ new summerhouse, replacing old, but on different site; this is close to neighbours at Swallowfield and the Parish Council response should refer to this.
General Items
Park Corner Pump Area; Ray Benfield and a team from Park Corner had done a superb job in clearing the area and Councillors expressed their thanks to him for undertaking this so efficiently. RB stated that work on the fingerpost and the pump was still to be done. RJB is to follow up fingerpost renovation across the parish with Highways.Parking at The Inn and internal alterations; ongoing. RW to raise the matter with Historic Buildings.Planning Training Meeting; this will take place on October 23rd, 6-9pm, in the Memorial Hall. A number of Councillors and the Clerk will not be able to attend, but RW and AR, with, possibly, MK and RB indicated that they could be there.
Revised Scheme of Delegation and Pre-Application Protocol; SC had responded very fully to this, after circulating a draft of his response to Councillors for comment.
Sharpstone House/ garden area and shed; following a report that building work appeared to be underway, SC had spoken to the owner who had stated that a garden shed was to be constructed. He had agreed to involve the planning department.
Planning Notification; the Clerk reported that Limpley Stoke Parish Council have been alerted to the need to liaise with Freshford on any applications close to the parish borders.4.Freshford Mill
Ypres Rose Developments had submitted an application to vary a number of the conditions imposed on the application as granted. RW reported that the Parish Council had responded, approving the application with the following comments;
- Ecology- Clause 4.1 (page 5) The Parish Council is concerned with the statement by YRD that “…it is necessary to remove the buildings without delay in order to mitigate the return (of the bats)”. All the conditions originally laid down for the application were conditional on maintaining a bat colony on the site by the provision of a bat house to provide a new roosting ground for the bats, not to move the bats from the site. This statement appears to suggest that, if it could be proven that the bats have moved out of a building, this would be sufficient to allow work to commence. Proof of the bats taking up residence in the new roost is not seemingly required. The original understanding was that the bat house must be built and seen to be occupied, before any other building work on the site could be started.
- Traffic Management Plan; errors in both road naming and routing could lead to confusion and congestion. The map should be amended and the route to the site be very clearly listed as being via Westwood and Staples Hill, left onto Crabtree lane and then right onto Mill Lane.
- Site Access; The Parish Council, whilst agreeing to the present site access being used for the initial works, would request that planning Officers liaise with Highways over the realignment of the new entry. This could be angled so that traffic leaving the site would be forced to turn right, thus avoiding the inevitable congestion problems on Rosemary Lane. YRD had agreed, at a meeting with the Parish Council, to consider this.
5. Parish Plan
HD reported that the programme for the delivery of the draft plan to the Parish Council in March 2008 is still on course.
6. Village Shop and developments re Post Office ClosureReplacement Post Box; this has been installed.
Temporary Post Office; HD announced that the temporary Post Office would be ready to open for business on the morning of Tuesday September 11th. It will then open every Tuesday and Friday morning, offering the full range of Post Office services. Additionally, a table and chairs have been set up for serving coffee and biscuits so that the element of a meeting place is not lost.
The costs of setting up the temporary PO (decoration, furniture, carpeting etc) have been met by the Shop Project’s funds and all labour has been voluntary. However Planning Application and Building Control fees and the legally-required electrical work amounted to an additional £700. HD, as a member of the shop committee, asked if Councillors felt that the Parish Council might fund this. The Chairman asked if other funding sources had been investigated and was assured that this was so. There was discussion and Councillors were asked for their views before a vote was taken. SC felt that the Parish Council should be seen to support the initiative. RW agreed, providing that it was clearly a “one-off” payment, creating no precedents. She urged that detailed documentation on the exact spending be provided.
Apart from HD, who abstained from the vote, Councillors voted unanimously to support the contribution of no more than £700 gross, supported by a detailed statement of the costs.
Site for New Post Office and Shop; The Chairman stated that it was imperative that action on a permanent shop be taken at this point, bearing in mind the expiration date of July 2008 for the planning permission on the temporary PO. HD reported that plans for a permanent shop and part-time Post Office on a strip of the Dawsons’ land, adjacent to the Memorial Hall are being developed, prior to being submitted for planning permission.
7. Affordable Housing
HD reported that there had been little progress over the summer.
Gary Ward (B&NES) had learnt from Somer Community Housing Trust that the fifteen garages behind the Glebe are all let. There would be no possibility of development there. Councillors expressed surprise on learning that a number of the garages were rented by non-residents.
John Mutter (Western Challenge Housing Association) is working with Mischi Wilks (B&NES) on the proposition of comparing the capital funding for a six-unit, new-build scheme with the purchase of six units in Freshford on the open market.
8. Footpaths, Walls and Trees
Footpath/Pipehouse; contact with landowner (AR) ongoing.Overgrown hedges; complaints had been received about visibility at the school crossroads. SC is to take up the matter with the head teacher. The pavement alongside the Dawsons’ field and the pavement in front of the section of private road are again difficult for pedestrians, particularly those with pushchairs, to negotiate. MS is to circulate notes to households involved. She stated that, with no apparent statutory width for such pavements, it was difficult to request definitive action from householders. AR suggested checking the Government website, HD suggested contacting ALCA and NB stated that he would investigate the matter within B&NES.
Street Sweeper; MK has composed a detailed statement of responsibility (to be circulated), which Ian Croker will be asked to sign. She had also been considering the matter of disposal of the waste generated by his activities. The Clerk stated that a supply of orange bags had been purchased from B&NES some time back, and that these were supposed to be collected by the Council. MK is to investigate the details of this. She reported that Alan Dodge had asked about the possibilities of clearing the Village Pound, alongside the cemetery. This would involve the removal of a tree, growing partly in the adjacent field and might involve assistance from Alan Duck. RB and RJB agreed to look at the task and see how much they felt able to tackle themselves, initially.
Cemetery Inspection; the Clerk reported that she and the Chairman and Vice Chairman had conducted the biannual inspection of the gravestones (under the Parish’s Risk Assessment scheme). Of the older headstones, 4 needed to be placed flat and 3 wedged in place. Disturbingly, two very recent headstones proved unstable and did not appear to have been fixed into the ground in any way. She will liaise with Alan Duck and ask him to deal with the old stones and will attempt to contact relatives about the new stones. The Clerk was also asked to check with B&NES to find what code of practice they employ for the setting up of new headstones.War Memorial; RJB reported that he had received a quote of £1674 + VAT from Williams stonemasons for the necessary repairs. He stated that it was possible that the Friends of Freshford might be prepared to pay half this amount. It was agreed that he should check the availability of grants for the work (RW has information on file) and a decision would be made at the October meeting.
9. Highways and RailwaysFlooding; with recent heavy rains two properties experienced serious flooding problems, largely as a result of blocked drains/culverts. The problem has been exacerbated by the fact that both B&NES and West Wilts are involved. SC is to approach both Councils (copying correspondence to Neil Butters).Dark Lane Closure; RJB reported that Dark Lane had reopened after repair to the walls. He warned that, given the state of the wall on the other side of the road, further collapses can be expected.Signpost Cleaning and Renovation; RJB reported that he had contacted B&NES Highways about the need to clean and repair a number of attractive older signs and had not received a very helpful response. He was asked to take the matter to a higher level within the department and to quote from the Appraisal Document which emphasises the importance of such signs. He was also asked if he would get Highways to straighten the “Give Way” sign by the Murrays’ house on Freshford Lane.Ashe’s Lane; RB reported poor standards of both work and communication during the re-surfacing of Ashe’s Lane.Rosemary Lane; SC told the meeting that, as a resident of the lower section of Rosemary Lane, he had received advance notice of road resurfacing in October/November. In his view this will be money wasted unless the drainage problem on the road is also dealt with. Instead of an underground drain, which constantly blocks and then overflows, to take the spring water away, he would like to request that Highways remove the concrete surface and create an open channel, similar to that further up Rosemary Lane. This could be an attractive feature with a permanent water flow. Councillors agreed that SC should approach Highways with this suggestion.Doctor’s Parking Space; RJB reported that B&NES have turned down the surgery’s request for the doctor’s bay to be returned to its original site. The Area Engineer had ignored the Parish Council’s strong recommendation and rejected the request on the grounds of residents’ objections. The Chairman stated that he felt that the views of individual residents should not carry more weight than the considered views of a Parish Council, members of which would have consulted with a wide section of the public before coming to a decision. He asked NB to investigate the standards which Highways apply in making these decisions, which seem to lack consistency. Perhaps it would be possible to ask a senior officer to talk to the Parish Council on the matter. SC felt that, if no satisfactory explanation was provided, he would need to write to the Chief Executive, expressing the Parish Council’s dissatisfaction.Station Matters; RW reported that the formal opening of the newly landscaped area had taken place, very successfully, on July 26th. A plaque, placed on the wall behind the bench paid tribute to the work of the Vaisey sisters. Only a few days later the whole area had been laid waste by contractors working for First Group. The Regional Manager, Andrew Griffiths, has agreed that First Group should fund the replanting and restoration of the gardens. Melanie Everard will deal with this. She will also supervise the contractors when they come back in September to cut back more of the chestnut trees.The contractors have also taken out the stump of the ash tree in the car park, creating two further parking spaces.The new noticeboard is in place and First Group have provided another noticeboard for the other platform. RJB stated that the Friends of Freshford will fund a second village poster (£70) for this board. The Clerk reported that she had received a contribution of £100 from Iford Manor and had written in thanks. 10. Shared SpaceRJB reported that Hamilton-Baillie Associates have agreed to address a public meeting on the effect of a “Shared Space” scheme on the village on Friday November 9th. In advance of this, RJB, with Ben Hamilton-Baillie, hopes to set up a meeting, attended by B&NES Planning and Highways Officers to explain Freshford’s interest in a “shared space” approach to the ongoing traffic issues and seek their response.
NB suggested inviting senior Planning and Highways Officers to attend the public meeting in November, also other Parishes who could be interested.
There was some discussion as to which official, at what level, would be best placed to help and SC and RJB agreed to draft a letter to the Chief Executive (to be copied to NB before sending). HD emphasised the need to persuade the chosen official of the benefits of the scheme. NB felt that, if the Chief Executive’s response is positive, it could also be useful to involve the District Councillor Cabinet Member (Highways).
Publicity; it was agreed that this would be of vital importance. A high public attendance figure would be essential and a number of approaches were suggested; a Mailshot, carefully-timed; details on the village website; freestanding boards (Candy Harrison); the Parish News; the village noticeboards.
11. Correspondence
Community Action; notice and agenda for AGM October 19th.
CPRE B&NES Committee; Newsletter, Fieldwork Magazine and suggested response to Planning White paper.
Wiltshire County Council; fliers for the RUH Hopper Service and other bookable services; Community Transport Directory.
Wiltshire County Council; notice of consultation period on Issues and Options for Aggregate Minerals Site Allocation DPD.
First Great Western; newsletter.
B&NES’Legal Sevices; review of Polling Districts and Polling Places (no changes thought necessary for Freshford)
ALCA; newsletter.
Jean Hawker; various communications about the parking issues at the Surgery.
Avon & Somerset Constabulary; newsletter from Olivia Pinkney and details of changes to the Community Contact Vehicle rota. Freshford’s day will now be a Friday, from 11am until midday.
12. FinancePayments needing to be made in SEPTEMBER
Ian Croker, Street Cleaning, £196.68. X 2 (3/7/07 & 1/10/07)
Alan Duck, repair to cemetery stonework, £125
Stephanie Jenkins, Clerk’s second quarter salary, £687.50
Retrospective Payments to be approved
Ray Benfield; glazing for noticeboard, £37.47
Sharpstone Productions; poster design and production costs, £470
MLD Printing; Freshford Bulletin, £84
B&NES Financial Services; additional copies of the Area Appraisal Booklet, £160.20
Income
B&NES; Street Cleaning, £282.71
Iford Manor; Contribution towards Poster, £100
Possible Contribution towards costs of setting up the temporary Post Office
See under Agenda item 6
Expenses involved
Planning Application, £275
Building Control payment (inc VAT), £117.50
Electrical work, £300
Street Lighting
The Clerk reported on a meeting with SEC’s Lighting Engineer at which she had asked a number of questions;
- The type of maintenance contract (once the on-going problems with two lamps have been resolved). Richard Griffiths (LE) agreed that it should be more economical to revert to the “pay-as-you-go” contract, now that most of the lamps have been upgraded. It was agreed that this could be tried for the next financial year, 2008-09.
- Complex Photo Cells; the Clerk reported requests from two residents for these to be fitted to lamps outside their houses. This would mean that the lamps, instead of burning right through the night, would switch off at approximately 12.30am, coming back on before dawn in the Winter. Each cell would cost in the region of £80. In the interests of energy conservation, the Clerk suggested that it might be sensible to replace just one old street light this year, spending the rest of the budget on photo cells to be fitted into lamps currently burning all night.
- Replacement Lamp; the Clerk suggested that this should be the lamp near The Old Chapel in Pipehouse. She asked AR to approach the owners of the garden in which the lamp is sited to see if they would agree to the cutting back of the heavy growth of vegetation round the supporting pole.
- Further replacements; the Clerk stated that there were only 4 old lamps left to replace, two of which, being lamps on metal columns, would be expensive. She asked Councillors to consider whether they would wish to upgrade a further four modern (efficient but not beautiful) lamps as part of the programme of improvement. Councillors felt that this would be unnecessary.
- The Glebe Footpath; Following a request from a resident, the Clerk had asked the Lighting Engineer about the logistics and possible expense of installing low-level “bollard-type” lights along the length of the footpath. He stated that it would mean digging a trench alongside the path, but that linking up to the supply by the War memorial would be relatively easy. He estimated that a total of six lights would be needed. It was agreed that the Clerk should further investigate costs of lights etc before any decision be reached.
Chairman’s Broadband Upgrade; ongoing.