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MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE PARISH COUNCIL Prior to the Parish Council meeting Mary Mychaleckyj, Central Cotswolds Youth Worker and Emily Whitehead, Young Gloucestershire charity worker were welcomed to a meeting of Parish Councillors by Chairman Cllr M. Stuart. Mary and Emily both enthusiastically explained their roles with the local youngsters which generally they had divided, for ease of management into two groups: one from those aged 8-13 and the other for 14 and over. Contact had been made with 38 young people and their parents. They had met with others who could not be included in the statistics as they were not prepared to reveal their details. A survey was carried out to find out the perceived needs which only reinforced the requirement for a youth provision in South Cerney. The ladies were confident that through regular contact with the youth a rapport and trust will be established. Contact had also been made with the travelling community and the plan is to treat this group separately but eventually as trust develops they will join with youngsters from the village. Meeting facilities are very limited although the landlord of the Royal Oak lets the group use part of his premises for gratis. This is not ideal as some parents object to the location. With minimal guidance youngsters had been successful in applying for a grant from the Youth Opportunity Fund and had been offered £1,000. Particular emphasis is to encourage young people to make the decisions about the content of the activities and sessions they undertake. This empowers them to take ownership and develops responsibility. Currently there are two volunteers undergoing CRB checks and if successful will help and support the project. Provision of space for the 8-13 age group is a high priority which must be addressed. There is evidence that the older group 14-19 year olds have a need for information, advice and a safe place to meet and relax. Hugh Gladman from St. James’ Place in Cirencester who is a trustee for Young Gloucestershire has indicated that he is interested in providing funding for a youth provision in the Cirencester area. He has offered to match fund grants offered to the group from the Parish Council. Cllr Nicholas replied that he was very impressed with the talk given by the two ladies and could personally identify with the plans and problems as he had young children. He noted how opportune the presentation was in relation to the proximity of the deliberations on the precept. The Parish Councillors agreed with his suggestion that Mary Mychaleckyj acts as catalyst between all the groups. Cllr Stuart totally agreed and further suggested that a group of Parish Councillors should arrange to meet with the youth to develop plans. Cllr Mrs Chubb was pleased to learn that the group was well spread about through the village. Cllr Caunce was, in his words “well impressed” with the presentation. Cllr Jay was informed that a session worker would cost approximately £8 per hour which he calculated would be about £1,000 a year. The ladies would now go and prepare a “wish list” for the Parish Council to consider. Cllr Stuart, on behalf of the assembled Parish Councillors, sincerely thanked both Mary and Emily for the work they were accomplishing with the youth of the village. The ladies then left the meeting.
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The Chairman, Cllr Stuart opened the meeting at 7.45pm.
Cllr Mrs Land had sent an apology for her absence as she was recovering from
a recent illness. MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 14th November 2007 Page 2325: 360 Degree Swing – 1st line delete “seat” insert: platform Page 2327: TREES ON THE PIECE (Correspondence items 26/27/40) – 2nd paragraph 6th line before “Beech” insert: mature Page 2335: REPORT OF THE PERSONNEL COMMITTEE ON THE CLERK’S ASSESSMENT – 2nd line delete “firm.” insert: firm and left the room. It was proposed by Cllr Webb and seconded by Cllr Mrs Chubb that the Minutes were a true and accurate record. Cllr Jay abstained as he had not attended the meeting. The remainder of the Parish Council were all in favour and Cllr Stuart signed the Minutes. YOUTH PARISH COUNCIL REPORT No representative from the Youth Parish Council attended the meeting. MATTERS ARISING Cutts Charity Severn & Thames Canal CLERK’S REPORT On the 28th November I attended a meeting of the South Cotswolds Neighbourhood Area Police and Community Consultative meeting in the Early Years Learning Centre, Watermoor, Cirencester. The meeting was ably chaired by Mrs Vera Coulson a member of the Police Authority. She explained the difficulties the force was experiencing in balancing its budget as this year the reserve fund was used to make ends meet. Inspector Steve Williams gave a facts and figures update to his crime statistics. Crime detection is currently only 2% below the target and that should be met before the period expires at the end of March 2008. He was pleased to report that the response time for incidents was very high at 93%. Target times for urban areas was 10 minutes and 20 minutes for rural areas. A policing survey was distributed which aims to categorise residents’ fears and police action taken. An open day has been planned for Cirencester Police Station for Sunday 27th January. The public will be given access to most of the Police Station and it is hoped to have the helicopter land in the Forum car park. On 29th November I attended a meeting of the Chartered Parishes group at the Westwood Centre in Northleach. Only three parish representatives attended. Nevertheless it was an opportunity to network with Gloucestershire Highways personnel. Chris Franklin, Area Stakeholder Manager for our area confirmed that he had received the cctv survey of the culvert and had passed it to a colleague for analysis. Other Highways officers present included Jennifer Watkins and Martin Midgeley. Martin Bruton, GCC Trading Standards gave a very interesting talk on how his department operated. The next meeting will take place on Tuesday 5th February at a venue yet to be decided. On 4th December I attended a training day organised by GAPTC at Hucclecote Parish Offices in Pineholt Village Hall. Over 30 clerks attended the event which started at 10am and finished about 2.30pm. Titled “Clerk’s Networking” the day began, after registration with an award ceremony for those Clerks attaining qualifications in CiLCA, WWYC, Quality and Publishing. Ivor Ward-Davies who used to work for local radio gave a talk on how to deal with the press and ten tips on how to avoid being misunderstood. After a buffet lunch networking continued. I enquired from the group on how their different District Councils interacted on planning and was surprised to learn from a clerk in the Stroud area that if 5 or more residents objected to an application then it was automatically decided by the regulatory committee. I have mentioned this to Cllr Bennett (CDC) but he did not think that CDC would be implementing such a scheme. The attendees were then divided into six groups to try and thrash out how GAPTC should go forward and what clerks and councils needed from the organisation. Kim Bedford the new County Secretary will analyse the feedback and report at the next meeting. During November, of the 22 available working days, I averaged 3 hours 15 minutes per day which is slightly less than my contract allows. REPORT OF THE PLAYING FIELDS AND VILLAGE MAINTENANCE COMMITTEE HELD ON MONDAY 10th DECEMBER South Cerney Sewer Replacement Scheme Station Road Ditch River Churn Bank Reinstatement 360 Degree Swing Clarks Hay Notice Board Bus Shelter Designs Flood Plan Template VAS Reliability Permissive Path to rear of Kingfisher Place Ambulance Response Times INSPECTION REPORTS Cerney Wick Robert Franklin Way Upper Up INTERRUPTION TO ELECTRIC SUPPLY Cllr Stuart drew the attention of the Committee to a continuing series of interruptions to the electricity supply in the western end of the village. On one evening there had been 14 breaks in the supply lasting anything from a couple of seconds to 10 minutes and occasionally for longer periods. By his estimation there had been in excess of 30 power cuts in 10 days. Cllr Stuart had spoken to a Southern Electric engineer who admitted that they were unsure of what was causing the disruption but investigations were continuing. Cllr Stuart was disturbed that the problem was taking so long to fix and described the situation as quite unacceptable, comparable to somewhere in the third world. DOG BIN INSTALLATIONS Cllr Caunce reported that the cost of supplying a dog bin ranged from the basic model at £78.26 to a pedal operated version at nearly £300 which would be more favourable in operation. Three sites had been identified: (a) at the eastern end of the permissive path to the rear of Kingfisher Place (b) at the entrance to Gypsy Lane (BSC 48) off Broadway Lane and (c) at the entrance to the play area in Cerney Wick. The Clerk was to repeat the request to CDC to move the bin at the entrance to the Upper Up car park to the start of the gravelled path at the western edge of the car park across the playing fields. It was proposed by Cllr Nicholas and seconded by Cllr Jay that the Parish Council is minded to agree to purchase pedal operated dog bins when the installation costs are known. The Clerk will enquire. CORRESPONDENCE
COUNCILLORS’ REPORTS Cllr Harris had met with Jim Sokol from the Environment Agency to discuss the ditches between the disused railway line and Crane Farm. Mr Sokol was powerless to insist that the ditches are dug out but advised that the Parish Council should write to the landowners involved requesting that they cleaned them out. The Committee agreed to recommend that the Parish Council write such a letter. Cllr Harris requested that Gloucestershire Highways be asked to have a road sweeper operate through Bow Wow now that the leaves were off the trees. Cllr Stuart reported that he had attended a biodiversity meeting at the Cotswold Water Park Society last week. The Committee agreed to recommend that the Parish Council invites Dr Simon Pickering, CWP Society, to a meeting to discuss how both parties might combine their activities. A meeting had been arranged with Cllr Harris, Peter Jay in his capacity as South Cerney Trust Chairman, Cllr Stuart and Dr Pickering for 18th December to familiarise Dr Pickering with the different areas of the village and inspect them for wildlife habitats. Cllr Stuart enthused that Dr Pickering will advise on how to access part of the S.106 contribution from the Four Pillars development. CERNEY NEWS The Committee agreed that residents should ring 0845 7 70 80 90 to report a disruption to the electricity supply. Only by continually reporting the outages will it become apparent to the Southern Electric that the problem should be taken seriously. Otherwise letters to Tony Cooper, Swindon Depot, Southern Electric, P.O. Box 65 Melksham CN12 7SY (telephone 01225 761500) would also help. There being no further business Cllr Caunce had closed the meeting at 8:30pm. PETITION Cllr Caunce, as Chairman of the Playing Fields and Village Maintenance Committee, made a plea to Parish Councillors to restrict themselves to items of debate which referred only to the business of the Committee. He was critical that Ambulance Responses and breakdown of Electrical Supply should have been discussed in his Committee. Cllr Stuart was conscious that certain items have nothing to do with the Committee but disagreed that interruption of Electrical Supply was one of them. Nevertheless the point was understood and items in future should only apply to the business of the committee. REPORT OF THE FINANCE COMMITTEE HELD ON MONDAY 10th DECEMBER Cllr Jay, Cllr Nicholas and Cllr Webb had attended the meeting. Cllr Jay had opened the meeting at 8:37pm.Cllr Mrs Land had apologised for her absence as she was recovering from a recent illness. Matters Arising Spread sheet analysis Playing Fields and Village Maintenance Recommendation
Cllr Jay inspected the invoices and agreed the Clerk’s travel expenses for November. The Finance Committee had recommended that the Parish Council agrees to make the above payments. It was proposed by Cllr Jay and seconded by Cllr Webb that the Parish Council agrees to make the above payments. The Parish Council was all in favour. Cllr Harris declared a prejudicial interest in the next payment as recipient and left the room.
It was proposed by Cllr Jay and seconded by Cllr Caunce that the Parish Council agrees to make the above payment. The remainder of the Parish Council was all in favour. Cllr Harris returned to the room. Correspondence
There being no further business Cllr Jay had closed the meeting at 9:10pm. REPORT OF THE PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 10th DECEMBER Cllr Mrs Chapman, Cllr Nicholas and Cllr Webb attended the meeting. Cllr Nicholas opened the meeting at 9:10pm. Apology Matters Arising Planning Applications Received by Cotswold District Council CT.0006/4/T CT.1454/4/R CT.3592/G It was proposed by Cllr Jay and seconded by Cllr Caunce that the Parish Council accepts the deliberations of the Planning Committee not to object to the preceding three applications. The Parish Council agreed. CT.0479/H It was proposed by Cllr Harris and seconded by Cllr Jay that the Parish Council ratifies the decision of the Planning Committee. Cllr Caunce abstained. The remainder of the Parish Council agreed to ratify the committee’s decision. Cllr Harris declared a prejudicial interest in application CT.1470/1/E as the applicant was a business associate and he was a friend of the applicant applying for permission with CT.2533/L. Cllr Harris then left the room. CT.1470/1/E It was proposed by Cllr Caunce and seconded by Cllr Stuart that the Parish Council ratifies the decision of the Planning Committee. The remainder of the Parish Council was all in favour. Cllr Jay declared an interest in this application as he was a friend of the applicant and then left the room. CT.2533/L It was proposed by Cllr Caunce and seconded by Cllr Stuart that the Parish Council ratifies the decision of the Planning Committee. The remainder of the Parish Council was all in favour. Cllr Jay and Cllr Harris returned to the room. Planning Applications Granted by Cotswold District Council CT.0650/G CT.8163/N Correspondence
COUNCILLORS' REPORTS Cllr Jay was indignant that person or persons unknown had vandalised the public highway outside the Village Hall by painting white lines on the roadway. Cllr Stuart had enquired from CDC if the newly appointed Traffic Assistants would enforce the proclamation but was advised that the markings were advisory and not statutory. Cllr Webb announced that he will be attending a meeting of the Cotswold Water Park Society Ltd on Friday 14th December. Cllr Mrs Tunbridge asked the Clerk to remind Glebe contractors that a reply was still awaited to the request for advice on how to obviate the problem when contractors’ grass cuttings are left covering gravestones in the cemetery particularly where plots are maintained by relatives of the interred. Cllr Mrs Chapman asked the Clerk to remind South Cerney Riding School in Cerney Wick of the need to clear the ditches opposite and north of Bakers Farmhouse and also opposite the Crown public house to the playing field. Cllr Stuart was involved in numerous activities since the last meeting and reports of them follow: On 27th November Cllr Stuart attended a SARA Problem Solving Course organised by Glos Constabulary at HQ Quedgeley and run by Christine Morrison of CMA training. Main objective is for the police and all the community to work in partnership in the reduction of crime. Aim and objective of the course was to provide an introduction to the problem solving processes used in crime reduction with the intention that all present would be instructed to be able to understand how the SARA system works and be able to apply that system in their own communities. Community Partners present included two County Councillors, two Mayors, a few town and parish councillors plus several PCSOs from various parts of the county; three Stroud District Council Neighbourhood Wardens plus Charles Kingsbury, Ian Kennedy and myself representing South Cerney. SARA. This name represents the four stages of the system, Scanning, Analysis, Response and Assess. Each stage has definite and tried methods and formulas to follow and the entire system is cyclical. To attempt to explain the system here would be impossible but it is sufficient to know that it has to be used in all police cases and by all police personnel from s to the very top. At the end of the day we divided into groups and applied the system to an actual situation that had been experienced in Derby some month’s ago. It was interesting to see that all of our groups used the method quite well and that our “results and recommendations” were virtually the same as those of the police and council in Derby. The works we recommended had all been applied and monitoring of the results had shown distinct success. What next? I now await the next stage which I believe will take the form of a local meeting with various people, organisations and business representatives to attempt to set up a consultative group to use the SARA system to reduce crime in the area. Exactly how and when that will take place is anyone’s guess but I await the directions with great interest! I have requested detail from our PCSOs but they have not been able to get back to me in time for this meeting. On 28th November Cllr Stuart attended a Biodiversity Action Plan Consultation Workshop at the Cotswold Water Park Society. There were three such meetings that day with the two previous being for Developers and Mineral Extractors. As only two Parish Councils plus two District Councils were present plus Dr Simon Pickering and Jill Bewley of the CWP, we had some good discussion. Simon outlined the successes and failures they have had in the past and their plans for the 2007-2016 period. He also explained that all local councils are obliged to comply with the terms of the NERC Act 2006 regarding biodiversity in their areas. This is I believe a Europe wide scheme to ensure that the environment is improved. This works well with the plans already set out by the CWP and we can be involved in our parish. I suggested that we have a meeting with Simon in the near future (Tuesday l8th Dec at 9.30) to discuss what we can do and how we can apply to the 106 fund to finance various works. I also suggested that Simon also comes to speak to this Council before our January meeting and the Clerk has followed this with an official invitation. On 6th December Cllr Stuart attended an Airfield Liaison meeting. I represented the Parish Council at this meeting which had only four non military people in attendance. Cllr Clive Bennett CDC, Michael Grace CDC Planning Enforcement Officer deputising for Ray Brassington who is on compassionate leave due to a bereavement in his family and a member of Ampney Crucis PC. Col Iain McEnd chaired the meeting and it went very quickly as there was little to discuss. CDC have received only two or three complaints in the past 12 months and one of those could not be taken too seriously. RB had written to the people who had complained in previous years to enquire if they had any new complaints. It is understood that one of these replied that he had moved from the village of South Cerney and was now no longer involved! It was emphasised by Col McEnd that the flying of the noisy boxcar plane is not controlled by 29 Regt and they have no say in what flight path that machine takes. However, it has been rarely used in the past year. There is a change in the aircraft used. A smaller plane than the previous one will be used and is based at the Army flying centre on Salisbury Plain. It is owned by an ex-military man who is the chief pilot and he uses mainly ex military or current military pilots who do the job for fun or to log extra hours on their diary. The plane(s) are turbo and very much quieter than the old piston jobs that caused so many complaints. It is likely that the new plane will be housed at South Cerney to save on the cost of commuting and will be used from Wednesday to Sunday evenings. Despite there being the provision made at last year’s meeting for the end of flying to be extended to 7pm on Sundays, this has not been taken up in the past twelve months. It is there in case they should be running late and need to get the final drop done to complete that day’s programme. The continuation of these meetings was questioned by the civilians. Col McEnd stated that the Army wished them to be retained as they provide a good conduit between the military and the community. Next meeting is planned for Nov 08. On 11th December Cllr Stuart attended a meeting with Severn Thames Canal personnel and South Cerney Parish Council Representatives. At request from the Canal Trust a meeting was held at the Village Hall on Tuesday 11 Dec at 10.30am. Present were three members of the Trust including Bruce Hall who was until recently the overall chairman of that organisation, Neville Holder a committee member plus Nigel Stoddart Kennedy a member of the Stroud District Council and chair of the Trust’s Western Footpaths committee. Representing South Cerney were Cllr James Harris and myself. The objective set out by the Trust was to set up a group consisting of Parish Council members representing all the councils along the line of the old canal from the Tunnel House to Inglesham. This will be to increase support for the renovation of the Canal. Cllr Harris stated that there would not be universal support for the full renovation as many people would prefer to see the money required spent on “more worth while projects”. The Trust agreed that was a problem but one that they had been dealing with for many years. I suggested that every council would want to see what benefit their parishes would see from the canal and went on to emphasise that we wanted to see the tow path brought up to a standard suitable for all users especially the section between the Old Lock House and Siddington as that was part of our Village Plan. The Trust members were totally in agreement with this and were going to contact GCC PROW to see how things can be speeded up. We suggested that many people use the footpaths along the canal and to establish a route from the Severn to the Thames would attract many more. The Trust are already working on this project and are in negotiations with several landowners to establish a permissive path as there are no actual public rights of way from Latton to Inglesham. The Trust asked if I would take on the task of setting up the group of local councils but I declined as I am too involved with other commitments but said that I and others from this village would no doubt be prepared to be involved at the actual meetings. There being no further business Cllr Stuart closed the meeting at 9:30pm. |
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