Latest Minutes subject to approval

MINUTES OF A MEETING OF GRINDON PARISH COUNCIL
IN GRINDON PARISH HALL
ON WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13th 2010, AT 7.30 pm

1. PRESENT
Mr D Godfrey (Chair), Mr W Allison, Mr P Burke, Mr J Atkinson, Mr G Rees.
In attendance: Mrs S Humble (Clerk), PC Ollett, Cllr J Gardner, Mr T Bowman ( Stockton Borough Council - Standards Committee) and one elector.

2. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Mr D Jones.

3. POLICE AND COMMUNITY INTERESTS
3.1 PC Ollett reported that there had been 3 crimes recorded in the Parish since the last meeting:
• Burnt out transit van found on Blakeston Lane.
• Theft of stainless steel from the old Samsung Site area of Wynyard Business Park.
• Assault in village area of Wynyard.

4. INTERESTS TO DECLARE
There were none.

5. MINUTES
Mr P Burke proposed and Mr W Allison seconded the adoption of the minutes of December 9th, 2009 as a correct record. All in favour. They were therefore signed by the Chair.

6. MATTERS ARISING FROM PREVIOUS MINUTES
6.1 Dog Fouling: The Chair advised the PC that dog fouling was again an issue in Wynyard, particularly around the village area. Following discussion, the PC asked the Clerk to alert Mark Berry from the Environmental Health Team at SBC of the issue and request he get the enforcement officers to carry out random patrols in the area again in an effort to identify and then take action against the owners.
6.2 Traffic Calming in Thorpe Thewles & Wynyard: The Clerk advised that she had repeated the PC’s request to Mr M Gillson (Senior Engineer, Network Safety), originally made in Feb 09, for a Speed Indication Device in Thorpe Thewles. A response has been received from Mr Gilson acknowledging the request. He advised budgets for 2010/11 have yet to be set and once they are he will confirm whether Thorpe Thewles has been selected to receive a SID. The PC also requested that Mr S Lumb (Community Engineer) be invited by the Clerk to the next PC meeting to further discuss proposals for traffic calming in Wynyard.
6.3 Momentum: Mr G Rees advised the PC of the following:
• A public consultation meeting took place on the 7th December regarding the hospital proposals. 60 members of the general public attended and comments/opinions were recorded and sent to the PCT for review/comment.
• A working party from LINk sent a letter to the Assistant Director of Patient and Public Involvement on 27th November querying transport, contingency plans for funding and capacity in relation to hospital proposals. The letter has been acknowledged and LINk are awaiting a detailed response which will be shared with the PC.
6.4 The Stables Car Park: Nothing to report.

7. PLANNING
7.1 Planning Decisions:
7.1.1 09/2606/FUL 10 The Plantations, Wynyard – Erection of two storey extension to front/side to include 2 No. dormer windows to the front and 2 No. dormer windows to the rear and single storey extension to the rear – Approved with Conditions.
7.1.2 09/2629/FUL 19 Wynyard Road, Thorpe Thewles - Erection of single storey extension to the rear and installation of Juliet balcony to first floor rear (demolition of existing single storey rear extension) – Approved with Conditions.
7.1.3 09/1754/FUL 33 Maynards Grove,Wynyard - First floor extension to side with balcony to rear over existing garage, family room and utility room – Approved with Conditions.
7.1.4 09/2713/TC Electricity Substation Whinney Moor Plantation, Coal Lane, Wynyard – Application for erection of 25 metre high radio mast within existing substation compound – Approved with Conditions.
7.2 Planning Applications:
7.2.1 09/3008/FUL 1 Wellington Drive, Wynyard – Erection of swimming pool enclosure to the rear/side – No Comment.

8. HIGHWAYS
8.1 Road Behind Hamilton Russell: Due to the current weather conditions no opinion on the current state of road could be given. The PC therefore, agreed to carry the matter forward to the next meeting.

9. ACCOUNTS
9.1 GRINDON PARISH COUNCIL BUDGET 2009-10
INCOME RECEIVED TO DATE NOTES
PRECEPT 7250.00 7250.00
VAT REPAYMENT 355.11 355.11
INTEREST 75.00
WAYLEAVE 0.00
EARMARKED RESERVE FROM 2008-9 800.00 Election Costs

TOTAL 8480.11 8405.11

EXPENDITURE SPENT TO DATE
PARISH APPEARANCE
Comprising
£780.00 St James’s, Grindon churchyard grass-cutting 780.00
(see item 9.6 was £900.00 in Dec 09 minutes – chq £120.00 rec’d in refund from GPPC as per agreement)
£500.00 Thorpe Village tidy-up 500.00
£1000.00 External Power to Tree @ Thorpe Thewles
£1000.00 Wynyard Entrance – Signage
£500.00 Grindon Parish Hall 500.00
AUDIT FEE 150.00 138.00
DONATIONS 400.00 250.00
STATIONERY 25.00
INSURANCE 425.00 420.05
POSTAGE 36.00 22.45
ADVERTISING 100.00 28.00
GRINDON PARISH HALL MEETING HIRE 250.00
CLERK’S SALARY AND EXPENSES 1584.00 1320.00
CONTINGENCY 500.00 193.49
ELECTION COSTS 800.00
TOTAL £8050.00 £4151.99
BALANCES AS AT 01.01.10
Current a/c £ 1098.54
Reserve a/c £10,137.10

9.2 Mr G Rees proposed and Mr W Allison seconded the payment of the Clerk’s monthly salary for January of £132.00. All in favour.
9.3 Mr G Rees proposed and Mr W Allison seconded the payment of the Meadowfields invoice for Grounds Maintenance/Caretaker role within Thorpe Thewles in the sum of £500.00. All in favour.
9.4 Risk Assessment and Management of Financial Activities: The Clerk and GPC conducted a thorough review of all PC expenditure to date for Budget Year 09/10 together with additional planned expenditure to the end of the period. The pro forma (see Appendix 1) was reviewed in detail and the PC agreed unanimously that the Accounts are all in order and all identified risks are being managed in accordance with specified guidelines.
9.5 Mr J Atkinson proposed and Mr G Rees seconded the payment of the Clerk’s postage expenses of £13.17. All in favour.
9.6 The Clerk reported receipt of a reimbursement of £120.00 from St James’s PCC, this being the full amount required to balance payments made by the council to Lush Lawns as per the standing agreement. The Clerk confirmed that the cheque will be credited to the PC current account.
9.7 Bank Transfer: Mr J Atkinson proposed and Mr G Rees seconded the transfer of £1000.00 from the reserve account to the current account. All in favour.

10. PARISH ISSUES
10.1 Play Park – Mr D Jones was not present at the meeting so update carried forward to the next meeting.
10.2 Wynyard Woodland Park – Mr G Rees advised that he had attended a meeting of WWP and updated the PC with the following information:
• Play Park Area - Development is progressing well.
• Possible further monies may be available for the development but it is as yet unknown whether this money could be diverted to footpath improvement. Further information to follow.
• Further discussion took place regarding a proposal re. a possible re-routing/improvement of the cycle ways. Mr Rees advised he was unsure where the proposal had come from and he had concerns that an area outside the confines of WWP (i.e. from the cycle bridge across the live railway which connects with Harrowgate Lane near Hardwick Social club / Bishopsgarth School) would be missed from any redevelopment plans. Mr Rees asked Cllr J Gardner, who agreed, to take this issue up with SBC on the PC’s behalf.
10.3 New Member Vacancy – Mr J Atkinson advised the PC that there has been no interest in the vacancy to date. The PC agreed the vacancy should continue to be advertised on the Parish Notice Board.
10.4 Advertising – The PC agreed that the next advert to be published in the Parish News should be the advert introducing the PC members. Mr J Atkinson is to arrange this with Gwynn Dunn @ Parish News.
10.5 Thorpe Thewles Village Tidy Up – Mr D Jones was not present at the meeting so update carried forward to the next meeting. Final Invoice from Meadowfields was approved as in 9.3 above.
10.6 Care For Your Area – Cllr J Gardner confirmed that he had arranged for the Care For Your Area Team to carry out a “one-off” tidy up to the private land (off Hell Hole Lane) previously identified by the PC as an area of concern due to fly tipping. Mr G Rees advised that the area was much improved and asked that Cllr Gardner pass on the PC’s thanks to the CFYA team. With all in favour.
10.7 Thorpe Thewles Power to Xmas Tree – Mr D Jones was not present at the meeting so update carried forward to the next meeting.
10.8 Plot 6, Grindon Cross Roads – Nothing to report.
10.9 Wynyard Woodland Park Footpaths – The Clerk advised she had yet to receive a response from SBC in relation to this matter despite chasing the matter again earlier in the week. The PC asked Cllr J Gardner if he would take up this issue with SBC on the PC’s behalf which he agreed to do. Further updates to follow.
10.10 Parking Restrictions in Thorpe Thewles – The Clerk advised she has received e-mails from SBC in response to questions raised by the PC and was able to confirm the following:
• The parking restrictions sign was removed by the CFYA team at the request of the Road Safety section. Further information is to follow from Mr Thicket of the Road Safety section as to why the sign was removed.
• A request had been made to Highway Network Management to have the double yellow lines renewed.
• The Enforcement Team have been requested to carry out ad-hoc patrols in the area in an effort to identify and fine those in violation of the restrictions.
The Clerk also advised she had referred the matter to PC Ollett to see if the police could also carry out ad-hoc patrols in the area. PC Ollett advised that the Police can no longer issue tickets to offenders as this duty is now under the remit of SBC enforcement team.
10.11 Precept 2010/11 – The Clerk referred the PC to the current state of the Parish Council finances and a budget proposal sheet for 2010/11 was drawn up following discussion by the PC (see Appendix 2). It was proposed by Mr J Atkinson and seconded by Mr P Burke that the precept should be reduced by £1250 from £7250 to £6000. This amount will cover all anticipated expenditure for 2010/11 period (note: only one new Parish Project has been identified for 2010/11 to date). Furthermore, the PC holds a sufficient amount in reserve should they wish to undertake any additional projects in the year. It was further proposed by Mr J Atkinson and seconded by Mr P Burke that the Clerk’s salary be increased from £132 per month to £136 per month in line with inflation/cost of living. As all were in favour of the two proposals, the Clerk was asked to return this precept figure to SBC.
10.12 Salt Bin – Mr G Rees raised the issue of replacement salt for the North Close Salt Bin which the PC provided in December. Following discussion, it was agreed that the PC would fund two salt refills a year and a budget of £160 was allocated by the PC to cover the cost of this. Mr Rees is to inform North Close residents of the future arrangements. All in favour.
10.13 Bus Service in Thorpe Thewles – Mr G Rees advised the PC that a rumour has been circulating in the Village that the bus service is to be cancelled. Following discussion, the PC asked the Clerk to enquire whether this was true with Arriva Bus Company and Cllr J Gardner to raise a similar enquiry with SBC and then report back to the PC at the next meeting.

11. CORRESPONDENCE
11.1 Stockton Borough Council – Parish Council Liaison Forum agenda for meeting on 21st December was received.
11.2 Stockton Borough Council - Community Protection Update including ASB and crime statistics by ward for October & November 09 were received and details taken by Mr D Godfrey for consideration.
11.3 Billingham Partnership - Agenda Papers for meeting on 4th January were received.
11.4 Stockton Borough Council – Parish Council Liaison Forum agenda update for meeting on 21st December was received.
11.5 Stockton Borough Council – Agenda for Standards Committee Meeting on 18th December was received.
11.6 Further e-mail from elector was received regarding the Old Wynyard School demolition requesting further information on future plans for the site. The Clerk advised she has requested this information from Bellway (developers) on two occasions but has not received a response to date. The Clerk was asked to chase the matter again on behalf of the PC.
11.7 Tees Valley Rural Community Council – TVRCC Rural News was received.
11.8 Hartlepool Borough Council - Notification that Planning Application H/2009/0569 has been approved was received.
11.9 Stockton Borough Council – War Memorial Playing Fields – A request for information was received. The Clerk was asked to respond to the e-mail request and advise SBC that there are no War Memorial Playing fields within the Parish to the PC’s knowledge.
11.10 Stockton Borough Council - Extended consultation on admission arrangements for 2011/12 information/posters were received for display in the Parish notice boards.
11.11 NALC – Local Council Awards 2010 details were received.
11.12 Stockton Borough Council – Agenda for Standards Committee Meeting on 15th January was received.

12. DATE OF NEXT MEETING: Wednesday, February 10th, 2010 at 7.30pm.