LINTON PARISH COUNCIL

Bromsash Gorsley and Linton

Minutes Of The Meeting Held On December 8^th 2003

In Gorsley Village Hall At 7:30 p.m.

Present:

Cllr Richard Smith , Chairman

Cllr Jean Foley, Vice Chairman

Cllr Rob Crawford

Cllr Ken Downham

Cllr Audrey Duke

Cllr John Foley

Cllr Margaret Pearce

Cllr Keith Summers

Cllr John Wheble

Cllr Gary Woodman

Brian Atherton (Clerk)

In Attendance:

7 Parishioners

Cllr Harry Bramer

Minute Item			Action
1		Apologies
	1.1	Cllrs Gary Woodman and John Wheble.

2		Declarations of Interest
	2.1	None

3		Minutes of the Meeting Held on 10^th November 2003
	3.1	Proposed by Cllr Jean Foley, seconded by Cllr Margaret Pearce and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED that these by signed after two amendments: Item 10.2.3: Delete “to Gorsley below the Linton Lower Ridge Road” and replace with “from Bromsash to Burton Mill”. Item 13: D1094 should read “Consultation on Car Parking Charges”.

4		Matters Arising Not Covered in the Agenda
	4.1	CHDC has been asked whether planning permission was given for the new wall and gateway on the U70240, north side of the M50 and they are investigating.	The Clerk
	4.2	CHDC would like to know the name of the occupier of Jasmine cottage before writing to enquire about suspected change of use. Nobody present knew the answer and Cllr Harry Bramer promised to check.	The Clerk/Cllr Harry Bramer
	4.3	Re-instatement of Red Bands on the B4224 in Bromsash: CHDC have reported that the nature of the new surface precludes use of red bands.
	4.4	Dog Fouling: Now waiting on CHDC’s Legal Department to post notices proposing erection of penalty notices. This may take place before Christmas.
	4.5	Broadband: 207 Registrations have been achieved, against a trigger level of 150. Now waiting for the all important “Ready for Service” (RFS) date which should be set within the next week or so.	The Clerk
	4.6	Public Footpath Partnership: The application form has been returned and accepted. It is probable that nothing will be heard until early spring 2004.
	4.7	Mud on the road at Burton Mill: Nothing has been heard in response to CHDC’s letter to Mr Vines so the Clerk has written to CHDC suggesting enforcement action.	The Clerk

5		Cllr Harry Bramer – Personal Report on CHDC
	5.1	In the 6 months since the election, the UDP has been moving along, with, in Planning terms, Gorsley as the only significant settlement within his ward.
	5.2	Over 500 Council employees have moved to Jarvis. The contract calls for services to be provided for at least 1% less than they were costing when in-house with CHDC. Jarvis brings levels of sophistication that individual councils could not afford such as computerised survey equipment to check on street furniture, etc. However, Cllr Bramer voted against the contract award.
	5.3	CHDC are taking over some of Bulmer’s Offices thus reducing the number of outlying offices and hence costs.
	5.4	Some expected Objective II Funding is now in jeopardy because of over subscription. This may affect projects such as the Rotherwas Relief Road.
	5.5	The 50% Council Tax discount on second homes is to be reduced to 10%. This will add £400,000 a year to CHDC funds.
	5.6	Cllr Bramer has been campaigning for a Science Park in Ross to be included in the UDP, in addition to the major business park proposed behind the BT garage. As a result, the Model Farm at Hildersley has been included.
	5.7	CHDC’s funding of festivals throughout the County is under review. It is now probable that the Ross International Festival will continue but in a different form.
	5.8	Prior to the meeting, Cllr Bramer had not heard of the review of the Lengthsman Scheme. He will look into it.
	5.9	Questions from Councillors:
	5.9.1	Cllr Ken Downham: Q: The Jarvis contract bothers me. Who is accountable? Are they responsible for roads maintenance? A: Yes they are responsible for road maintenance but CHDC places the individual contracts and so preserves accountability.
	5.9.2	Cllr Jean Foley: Q: Why were we not consulted about Jarvis? A: I did not know about it until immediately after joining the new Council. Generally I am trying to change the consultation procedures and I will find out what happened prior to the election.
	5.9.3	Cllr John Foley: Q: What are Jarvis’s reporting responsibilities? A: Methods of reporting are the same as before. Jarvis is only responsible for the execution of contracts.
	5.9.4	Cllr Jean Foley: Q: How long is the Jarvis contract? A: 10 years.
	5.9.5	Cllr Richard Smith: Q: Given Jarvis's “Track Record” has CHDC received adequate guarantees about their competence? A: The railways are a special case. Jarvis's other business records are good. It took two to three years to finalise the contract.
	5.9.6	Cllr Richard Smith: Q: Re the Bulmer’s Site relocation I have heard about unrest amongst those required to relocate. A: I haven't heard that.
	5.9.7	Cllr Richard Smith: There is a growing dissatisfaction with CHDC and especially their lack of consultation. A: Equally, CHDC Councillors feel the same way.
	5.10	Questions from Parishioners
	5.10.1	Phil Page Q: Will Jarvis be taking the printing out of Herefordshire? A: One condition of the contract is that local contractors must be invited to quote for Jarvis work. Phil Page: Please keep your eye on it. A: Of course.
	5.10.2	Gwynne Rowley: Q: Re new business development in Ross, will CHDC favour the Model Farm Site? A: Yes. The model farm site can be controlled as to tenants. The BP site, being much larger, although initially defined to exclude, for example warehousing, might attract larger developers who might perhaps challenge CHDC restrictions in the High Court. Q: Will they sort the flooding out first? A: Yes, all service issues will have to be resolved before development can proceed.
	5.10.3	Gwynne Rowley: Q: There’s not much hope for the Lengthsman scheme then? A: I don't know but I will look into it.
	5.10.4	Gwynne Rowley: Q: The Cabinet take all the decisions. What happened to accountability? A: the Cabinet has been increased from 8 to 10. Meeting agendas are published three months in advance and the meetings are open to the public. Q: Has the member’s allowance gone up? A: I'm not sure but the figures are in the public domain.
	5.11	The Chairman thanked Cllr Bramer for his time and invited him to stay on for the remainder of the meeting.

6		Lengthsman Project
	6.1	Grass Cutting of Gorsley Common
		Parishioner Gwynne Rowley was invited to speak as he had asked for this item to be included in the Agenda. He said that the Lengthsman Appointment had not been openly tendered and Gorsley Common which in previous years had been cut for £140 was now costing much more due to the cuttings being cleared. The Chairman said that Council will bear this in mind when the Lengthsman Contract is renewed.	The Clerk
	6.2	CHDC Review of the Lengthsman Scheme
		The Chairman explained that a recent CHDC report states that the Lengthsman Scheme is not affordable at its current rates and proposes in year 2 to reduce the grant to 67% and in year 3 to 50%. This implies adding £1600 and £2400 to the Precept respectively. Thus, by year 3 our Precept would have increased hugely. He reminded Councillors that he had expressed concern at the possibility of a move of this sort and asked “Do we need to make an allowance for this possible increase in next year's budget or withdraw from the scheme at the end of this year”.
	6.2.1	Cllr Ken Downham said that he was very unhappy with the idea of the Lengthsman being dropped.
	6.2.2	Cllr Jean Foley asked whether we expected to spend the whole of the grant this year. The Clerk said “No but then, when in possession of the figures for the first three quarters, CHDC has the right to reduce the grant in the fourth quarter, to match expected expenditure.”
	6.2.3	Cllr John Foley asked if there are any commitments not yet shown in the figures. The Clerk said “No”. Cllr Foley then said that if we are to take pride in our Parish, we should expect to pay more.
	6.2.4	Cllr Rob Crawford said that he can’t believe that this was not a deliberate ploy. How could an officer get his sums wrong by 50%?
	6.2.5	Cllr Richard Smith pointed out that the Lengthsman was not intended as a service enhancement, it was meant as a means to give greater local control. He said that he would be prepared to accept an increase in the Precept but only against a balancing reduction in the Council Tax.
	6.2.6	Cllr Harry Bramer said that he was delighted to see the positive effects of the Lengthsman Scheme and that it would be sad to see this Council set a precept that precluded its continuance.
	6.2.7	Proposed by Cllr Richard Smith, seconded by Cllr Ken Downham and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED to note with concern the Lengthsman input but to continue with setting the precept as already circulated.

7		Accounts, Treasurer’s Report and Authorisation of Payment of Accounts
	7.1	The Clerk reported that the new Lloyds mandate waits for him and Cllr Jean Foley to provide more evidence of their identity. This is in hand.	The Clerk/Cllr Jean Foley
	7.2	The external auditor has issued an unqualified certificate for the year 2002/2003.
	7.3	There is one outstanding allotment rent. The Chairman will speak to the holder.	Cllr Richard Smith
	7.4	Proposed by Cllr Richard Smith, seconded by Cllr Audrey Duke and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED to adopt the accounts to date, as tabled.
	7.5	Proposed by Cllr Richard Smith, seconded by Cllr John Foley and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED to pay the following invoices and the cheques were duly signed.

AP149	Audit Fee	10-Nov-03	141.00
AP150	Gorsley Allotments Re-Ordering	24-Nov-03	1703.75
AP151	Charles Arnold Baker New Edition (50% shared with Lea)	20-Nov-03	21.28
AP152	Clerk's Salary for November 2003	08-Dec-03	180.00
AP153	Clerk's Expenses for November 2003	08-Dec-03	13.87
AP154	Lengthsman Administrator's Fee for November 2003	08-Dec-03	28.40
AP155	Web Master's Time in November 2003	08-Dec-03	10.62
AP156	Parish Plan Questionnaire Time in October	08-Dec-03	95.75

8		Annual Review of Clerk’s Salary
	8.1	Proposed by Cllr Jean Foley, seconded by Cllr Richard Smith and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED to maintain the authorised hours at 24 per month but to increase the hourly rate to £7.80.

9		Budget for 2004/2005
	9.1	Some minor variations were made to the previously circulated budget and the final version is attached to these minutes. Proposed by Cllr Richard Smith, seconded by Cllr Keith Summers and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED to set the precept at £4780. The Clerk to advise CHDC.	The Clerk

10		Gorsley Village Hall VAT Recovery Scheme
	10.1	The Clerk explained that HALC, Community First and CHDC have been asked to comment on the legality of the scheme. To date there have been no replies. Council decided that as the matter is not urgent to take no further action until a reply is received.	The Clerk

11		Trees in Linton Quarry (Report circulated at last meeting)
	11.1	Proposed by Cllr Richard Smith, seconded by Cllr Ken Downham and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED that Cllr Downham and the Clerk, acting under advice from the Tree Warden, will prepare a rolling programme of husbandry, starting with the 6 trees already identified. Later in the meeting (see 17.1.2 below), proposed by Cllr Jean Foley, seconded by Cllr Margaret Pearce and approved unanimously, IT WAS AGREED that, in the event of an emergency as defined by the Tree Warden, the Clerk is empowered to authorise up to £500 of tree surgery without obtaining competing quotations.	The Clerk

12		Car Parking Consultation (including report on meeting held 26 November 2003)
	12.1	The Chairman reported that several Councillors went to Brampton Abbots to hear CHDC Cllr Wilson report to that council. He stated that the date when a topic is published in the Forward Plan marks the start of the consultation period. However, the new proposals were not explained and, in the Chairman’s opinion, Cllr Wilson did not want to consult.

13		Working Party Reports
	13.1	Planning
		P90. DCSE2003/2443/F. Conversion of barns to form swimming pool and granny annexe and proposed conservatory to main dwelling. Cothers Farm, Gorsley, HR9 7SE. Permission was granted on 05/11/03.