Serving Ewyas Harold, Rowlestone, Dulas and Llancillo
Tuesday 8th September 2020,
Finance Committee meeting: 6.45pm on Zoom
Present: Councillors: Peter Jinman (PJ) (in the chair), Sarah Eynon (SE);
Finance sheet had been circulated to all cllrs. Meeting started pm
1. To accept apologies for absence.
Clive Stainton (CS),
2. To receive declarations of interest & written requests for dispensation. Consider minutes of previous meeting
None and all happy with the minutes.
3.Finance
Nat West Business Current account: 07.09.20 £ 32,746.11
Nat West Business Reserve account: 01.09.20 £ 55,150.31
3.1 To consider outstanding invoices
CT Groundcare: £ 478.00
HMRC PAYE £ 9.40
DM Payroll solutions Ltd £ 42.00
Mr & Mrs BE Chance (Rec loo cleaning) £ 272.95
Recommend Payment all in agreement
3.2 To approve regular payments schedule and Direct Debits
Clerks salary and expenses;
Clerks salary increase was sent round by NALC for the PC’s consideration.
Recommend the spending above.
Proposed: PJ Seconded: SE
The clerk asked for support in the suggested quote for the electrician – agreed with going ahead with engaging the electrician.
EHGPC has been awarded the grant for businesses who have lost money through Covid – this will go towards covering the extra Covid related costs incurred.
It was proposed to agree to all of these payments as one item having reviewed them individually.
Proposed: PJ Seconded: SE
3.3 To review the 2020/21 budget and expenditure to date – members content with the spending to date.
Action: Clerk to action these agreed payments.
4. To raise matters for the next agenda: Clerk to source the figure for early repayment of the loan on the KC building.
5. To note the date of the next scheduled meeting : 13th October 2020
The committee agreed with the cheques that were being submitted for authorisation and with their authorisation.
Meeting closed at 6.55pm SE left the meeting sending apologies for the PC meeting.
Parish Council meeting: 7.05pm on Zoom.
Minutes
Meeting started: 7.07
Present: Councillors: Peter Jinman (PJ) (in the chair), Alex Culpin (AC); Malcolm Watkins (MW); Michael Wrigglesworth (MWg); Sally Probert (SP); Liz Overstall (LO); Connor Price (CP) from 7.30pm:
Also: Sophie Glover (Clerk), Amanda Huntley (Artivarious now Arts and Craft Community Centre), Fiona Witcher; Angela Thoo
1. To accept apologies for absence.
Stephen Clayton; Clive Stainton (CS), Sarah Eynon (SE);
2. To receive declarations of interest & written requests for dispensation.
MWg– is working with the Lengthsman doing the road works, so he is working with the Lengthsman as a private individual including the hiring of him as a labourer and he has many machines that are of great asset to the jobs undertaken. He would therefore not take part in any debates relating to the financial aspects of the lengthsman work. He would respond if asked as to detail of work carried out, if the lengthsman was unable to attend a meeting, or if additional input was required
All Cllrs were happy with this position.
3. To consider minutes of the previous meeting – 08.20. All were in agreement that the minutes were an accurate record of the meeting. The Chair duly signed the minutes.
Action: Chair to sign the minutes when there is a physical meeting again. Clerk to move agenda to under ‘council business’ on the website.
4. Matters arising: open forum
4.1 Matters arising: Kissing gate on Pontrilas Court Farm; Savills agent has not responded to the clerks calls and e mail, but she will continue to pursue him whilst the chair will approach the land owner directly if her approaches fail
Action: Clerk: forward the detail e mail to PJ to send on to the estate owner.
4.2 To receive a brief report from the Ward Councillor/PC Chair.
PJ spent a significant amount of time with the people who were flooded early last month. Some homes were flooded more than once in a week. There were issues of flood water gaining entry to homes and also of sewage mixing with the flood waters. The drains were either inadequate or blocked and field ditches also proving inadequate in carrying water away from houses. The drainage is not fit for purpose and certainly not for the level of water that had recently been seen falling. PJ took Jesse Norman to the site of the floods and he has offered his support should it be needed to get action. The pumping station was struggling to cope with the excess water and it raised a question as to whether the new housing opposite that site would put too great a strain on the system and if it could cope. The expected cost for the village of dealing with the whole issue of drainage will be considerable and will involve the Environment Agency, Welsh Water, Herefordshire Council through Balfour Beatty as well as some private landowners..
SP asked if the work that has been happening on Pontrilas Rd is any thing to do with this flood alleviation. So far they have just dumped the silt on the side of the road, so with further rain it will just be washed back into the drains.
Action: MWg will go and look at it tomorrow and pass on to Paul Norris should this need our intervention.
Drains at the front of SP’s property do not work now, when it rains they just bubble up rather than carrying the water away.
PJ passed a huge vote of thanks to John Chance and the fire service for their amazing work with the floods.
LO was down with flood victims today, one person was reporting sewage coming up through their bath.
4.3 To receive views of local residents on parish matters;
LO was asked to mention by a parishioner about the noise from helicopters who are circling low over homes, she agrees that this was completely unacceptable.
Action: PJ will have a word with the flight control for the helicopters if matters get worse.
SP was asked to raise the problem of lack of street lamps in the village.
Action: Clerk to contact BB to find out why the street lamps are not working throughout the village. It was suggested that bulb casements need to be replaced with the yellow ones not the white ones.(ie. to reverted back to the original colour).
SP was also asked to mention the light pollution from the timber merchants. The lights were so bright that they light up the whole sky around their premises.
4.4 To receive a report from PCSO –
FW told the meeting about the mini digger that was stolen from the Abbey Dore road, it has been returned.
4.5 To receive report from footpath officer – circulated
The FO has been put in contact with a specific land owner to get him to look at a stile.
5. Finance
5.1. Balance as in the Finance Committee minutes
5.2. To authorise payments to be made: As in the finance minutes.
5.3. To authorise regular payments: As in the finance minutes.
Football club has continued to pay the PC for the recreation ground despite being unable to use the ground because of Covid restrictions Rather than a repayment, the club suggested restarting the direct debit in 2021. The Council agreed.
5.4 Clerks cost of living increase as put forward by NALC was agreed, to be back dated to April.
Proposed to make these payments: all in agreement.
Proposed: PJ Seconded: MW
Action: Clerk to make these payments.
5.5. Monies received: £20,000 from the Covid small business grants scheme. £10,000 for the library and £10,000 for the pavilion.
PJ suggested that the library grant might be able to assist CG with getting the book exchange going in the phone kiosk.
6. Planning
a. To consider comments on applications to be determined by Herefordshire Council:
202227: Plots 11 and 12 for Land East of Callowside
No comments from the PC.
b. To note the applications determined by Herefordshire Council:
201511 – Land East of Trappe Cottage – approved with conditions.
7. Recreation ground/pavilion: play area now Open
There needs to be a formal rota set for each cllr to do the checks.
Action; clerk to send out the rota.
SE: Called for a meeting with the rec committee on site
Action: MW to give clerk 3 dates for SE to agree to meet.
MW: Can NC-T be reminded to move the ivy from the pavilion and to get the bin moved and the new bin in position. MW has worked with the electrician to get the loos painted and the doors fixed.
Action: Clerk to contact Nick C-T.
PJ thanked Cllr Steve Clayton for his swift action to remove the cows that escaped onto the recreation ground – getting them moved before they did too much damage to the football pitch.
Lengthsman
8.1 To receive an update and consider vital work required around the parish.
DR has been away for two weeks, so no further report. PJ asked for a monthly rota for him to go round the grips and gullies regularly to keep them clear.
9. Kemble Centre
-
- Update from working group :- AC and LO fed back from the meeting yesterday:
CS had asked for the PC to agree for the lease to go ahead. It was noted that Artivarious was now a registered charity in the name of Arts and Craft Community Centre.
The council agreed to the drawing up of a lease between Arts and Craft Community Centre (ACCC) and EHGPC. It is expected to have this lease ready to present to the October Parish Council meeting for their agreement so that the tenants can start working on the building.
There was a request that the PC consider the payment of rent, that there should be a discussion about this in a closed PC meeting, with the Council in committee at the end of this agenda.
When the lease had been signed, ACCC indicated that they will be submitting a planning application and they hope to have a decision by Christmas.
PJ clarified that the solicitor is doing this work at no cost so that the PC and full council agreed, it would not have to go out to get three quotes for the work.
LO asked the Chair that the lease should be circulated around all Cllrs before the next meeting so that Cllrs can debate the matter and are aware as to what are the terms and conditions that would be incorporated in the signed agreement.
MW asked what the feedback had been from the Saturday morning that they stood outside the KC to glean public feeling for the building being used. PJ said that overwhelmingly the feedback on the day was positive with some comment as to extra car parking space being needed in the village centre
Next steering group meeting is on Monday 21st September at 4pm, and then 12th October at 4.15pm.
All ACCC interested parties left the meeting at this point (8.28pm) so it was proposed by the chair that the EHGPC continued the discussion ‘in session’, seconded by LO.
The Chair was clear that the PC had to be thorough in their analysis of how to proceed with the Kemble Centre as they would be using public money.
Following a discussion, it was agreed:-
– to lease the Kemble Centre to Arts and Crafts Community Centre (ACCC) and for the solicitors that CS has contacted to be given the go ahead to advise and to draw up a lease .
– It was also resolved that no structural work was to be done to the premises without Council’s agreement and that it would require professional assessment of the safety of said works before any such actions were undertaken and these are to be carried out by a trained professional. It was resolved that CS would produce a simplified sheet as to what the lease says for the clearer understanding of all Councillors.
- The possibility was discussed, of the need to hold an extra council meeting – possibly in session if necessary, to discuss the lease once the solicitor has drawn it up ie before the next monthly meeting and once it has been circulated to all Parish Councillors.
- The lease should be drawn up for 12 years with a 5 year break clause and rent review built in, with the possibility of extending the lease for a further 12 years.
- The PC needs to be made aware of the likely business rates now and also when it is enlarged with any new building.
- Clarification as to whether we will need landlord insurance.
- The chair invited any Cllr who had not been into the Centre to do so.
The closed session having been completed and there being no members of the public present the Council returned to full business
Road safety.
10.1 Road safety improvements: SID update from clerk. BB are now starting our assessment based on the ‘old’ method of carrying these out. The delay in starting this has been down to the system changing and possibly the price reducing in the future, however, it was felt that this has caused enough delay so the PC wanted to push on with getting something in place as soon as possible.
10.2 Letter to companies about speeding in the village
Clerk is creating this data base and when completed a letter will be circulated to remind drivers to drive slowly.
10.3 Herefordshire Car Parking charges consultation: Cllrs to complete this themselves if they wish to do so.
11. Assisting dog owners with their responsibilities: Clerk and SP actioning
12. Notice boards
Brandon Hall has been approached and has come back to us with a quote for £350 to do the work necessary to renovate the board. This was agreed by 6 of the 7 councillors present and it was resolved that the clerk engages him to do the work.
13. Railway station update: PJ informed the meeting that all was progressing but it was a slow process.
14. Co-option of new councillor. Prospective Cllr had changed their mind before the meeting.
15. To raise matters for the next agenda : no discussion: Zip line/adult gym on the rec.
16. To note the date of the next scheduled meeting : 13th October 2020.
Meeting closed at 21.05
Signed:_________________________________ Date: ________________