BAYDON VILLAGE NEWS

From

 Barbara Furber

Baydon Parish Council Meeting – 7th July 2008

Three Parish Councillors only were present at the meeting on Monday 7th July, as Mrs Heather White had resigned.

The BYPA Hall was opened at 7.30pm for viewing of the proposed changes to the layout of Gleeson housing development application K573477F along Aldbourne Road.

Mr Don Carmichael, Chairman, began by warning the public that he would not accept banter from the floor, and that he would not accept a meeting like the previous one. He proposed that items 9 & 10 on the agenda Finance and Co-option of New Members be discussed first.

The Annual return and Financial Statement for 2007-08 was given out by the Clerk. Although Cllr Alison Tomkins voiced her concerns that she needed more time to study the papers, the Statement was approved and signed.

The payment of £1,146.33 to Sodexho for the grass cutting contract was approved.

The Clerk, Mrs Elizabeth Carmichael said that she had received a CV from Mrs Tamsin Witt, who wished to be co-opted onto the Parish Council. She was duly voted in but at the suggestion of the chairman, Mrs Witt is to join the Parish Council at the next meeting. Mr Ian Timms had also written a letter of application but was not able to attend the meeting. Mrs Tomkins said that having read his letter she felt that he had the experience of committee work, and the right attitude. It was agreed that the Clerk contact Mr Timms and get him to sign the declaration before the September meeting, when he then will be able to join the Parish Council.

Public Question Time:

Mr Steve Webb of the Baydon Resource Group was asked to update the meeting on the fundraising plans for a play area and the progress of the BMX Track. Mr Webb said that only half the monies required for the track had been raised so far. It was therefore not possible to do any work this season. He had however talked to Mr Peter Bracey about the possibility of doing the job at a cheaper price. County Councillor Chris Humphries reminded Mr Webb that the insurance would not cover a job if not done by BMX Track specialists.    

Cllr Tony Prior asked how far the Baydon Resource Group had gone with the BMX Track plans and quotations. Mr Webb replied that he had not actually revised the original plans or quotes following the change of agreed area of land on the Parish Field as yet. Mr Webb said he felt that as Kennet was “capital rich” there was a potential for funds there. He felt that the Baydon Resource Group needed to come out of its “dormancy” and get more done. In spite of County Councillor Chris Humphries insistence that grants of up to £500 only were available from Kennet, Mr Webb felt that there could be more.

Chairman Don Carmichael said that there were still the 106 monies from Fiveways. He said that he had seen a play area that he had been advised could be obtained for around £12,000. This, he felt, was possible if a proper project was devised. County Councillor Chris Humphries warned that there were maintenance issues to be considered too.

The proposed play area allocated to the Gleeson development was briefly discussed and the Clerk agreed to check matters with Gill Salisbury about what actually will be provided.

The possibility of a play area in the Cricket Field was also touched upon again, but Chairman Don Carmichael stated that it needed to be discussed at another time. Mr Webb suggested that he meet with the Councillor soon to discuss such matters.

Ms Bridgett Walker, a school governor, then raised the matter of the Paddock. As the School and the Village use the land for recreation the school wanted help and support from the Parish Council on matters of litter and a broken gate. County Councillor Chris Humphries said that as the land was owned by the County Council and sublet to the school, the school were liable for its maintenance. He suggested that the Parish Council write to the Director of Environmental Services for advice. The Clerk agreed to write and then refer decisions to the school secretary. It was a matter that would be added to the agenda for the next meeting.

Mrs Jenny Gribble reported that in her opinion the cutting of the Parish Field by Sodexho was not a job well done, particularly as one of the trees had been damaged.

Mrs April Dukes reported that the pile of rubbish which had been moved to the entrance of the field had yet again been scattered by children. Some she said had been tied to the young trees. The Parish Council, she said, had agreed to have the rubbish removed. The Clerk replied that she had expected it to have been removed by now, and that she would have a word with the contractor.

Mrs Dukes also asked if the Clerk had written to Mrs Enid Johnson about the status of the Parish Field. The Clerk replied that she had, but it didn’t help as she needed to find the actual minutes recording the purchase of the land. The Clerk was then asked if she could read the letter, which she did in part to the effect that it was purchased with monies from the Sylvia Mather Trust for recreational use. The Clerk added that according to her legal advice allotments were not recreational use, and that she had received further advice at short notice before the meeting that the solicitor believed the land maybe open space land under law. There then followed a very heated disagreement which ended in a shouting match between the chairman and a member of the public. The chairman finally told her to shut up which resulted in 3 members of the public walking out of the meeting.

Chairman Don Carmichael said that having had advice from solicitors the Parish Council had to make a legal response and he could, he said, understand the frustration of the Allotment Association.

Mrs Janet Rees, a former councillor, and County Councillor Chris Humphries both stated that the former owner of the land, Mr Bill Deacon, had wanted it to be used by the village and sold it under those conditions. Mr Humphries stated that he was a party to the negotiations at the time. He added that if the Parish Council agreed that the field could be used for allotments at a previous meeting, there was nothing stopping them for using it for such.

Cllr Tony Prior asked if County Councillor Chris Humphries were to write a signed statement to that fact, would that suffice. Cllr Alison Tomkins asked what could the Parish Council formally to make the land available for allotments. The Clerk replied that the Parish Council was duty bound to follow the law. It seemed she said that it might be open space land which is not a planning issue. It would need, she said, an order from the Secretary of State and several adverts in the newspaper to rectify the matter.

Mrs Heather Birch asked what would happen if the allotments were deemed unsuitable for the Parish Field. The Clerk replied that this matter did not change the legal obligation of the Parish Council to provide allotments. The Chairman remarked that they must put action into this matter, but the meeting must move on to other matters.

Mrs Janet Rees said that she had finally managed to contact “Clarence” herself, as having raised the problem of blocked drains in Ermin Street several times at Parish Council meetings without success. She was pleased to report that the drain outside Plough House was cleared of silt for 200 yards each way. Mrs Barbara Furber also reported that she had contacted Clarence about silt in the Storm Drains and that the matter was in hand. However she expressed concerns about the overgrown ditch that carries all the storm water from the village passed the Sewage Plant. She asked that the Parish Council contact the owners of land adjacent and Wiltshire County Council about the matter. County Councillor Chris Humphries also said that he would chase the matter up.

As only two Parish Councillors were able to vote on the Gleeson Planning application it was deferred to the next meeting. However Mr Carmichael mentioned that the Red Lion Pub application had been withdrawn.

At this point in the meeting it was decided to skip the Clerk’s report and all other items on the agenda except items 7.5, 7.6 and 7.9.

7.5 – To consider administration procedures for agendas, minutes and Clerk’s report.

Cllr Tony Prior asked that the minutes be produced no later than 2 weeks after a meeting and that matters be date coded and initialled for action. It was requested that the Clerk’s report be sent before the agenda which in turn should be out by the Tuesday before a meeting. The Clerk agreed to write a working policy to be agreed at the next meeting.

They then discussed the allocation of actions to councillors as Mr Prior had noted that out of 25 outstanding items at the last meeting 22 were down to the Clerk. Cllr Mrs Tomkins said that in view of the fact that the Clerk only had 7 hours per week to complete her tasks it seemed reasonable that the councillors should take on some of the tasks.

Cllr Tony Prior then gave a brief report on the progress of the Village Plan. Some questionnaires had been returned, he said, and the analysis had begun. There will be a further process to try and get more of the questionnaires in. The findings will be reported to the Parish Council on 13th October 2008 and there will be a public meeting on 20th November 2008. He also asked that the £2,075 costs incurred be paid as soon as possible from the Government grant funds being held by the Parish Council. The Clerk said that as the matter was not on the agenda it would have to wait until the next meeting.

Cllr Alison Tomkins then asked how the Clerk planned to reply to the various letters received from the public who were concerned about the delays to plans for the allotments. The Clerk insisted that the letters should be written by the Clerk, but Mrs Tomkins persisted as she felt people need to be kept up to date and that she personally had also received letters. It was agreed that the Clerk write a holding letter expressing the procedures that the Parish Council are going through, what the issues are and the Parish Council’s understanding of their frustration.

All other issues on the agenda were to be carried forward to the next meeting which will probably, said the Clerk, be Monday 21st July 2008.

She also reported that the appeal for the footpath diversion at Baydon House had been dismissed.

The meeting then closed at 10.15pm

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