FVPC minutes 26-09-22

Minutes of the Parish Council meeting

held on

Monday 26th September 2022

at 7pm at the Savill Hall Cattistock

Present:

Cattistock                                                    Frome St Quinton                                    Chilfrome

Cllr G Browning (GB)                                Cllr S Palmer (SP)                                      Cllr I Mitchell (IM) (Vice Chair)

Cllr B Sennett (BS)                                     Cllr S Stovin (SS)                                        Cllr S Tosswill (ST)

Cllr W Lashbrook (WL)                             Cllr D McCallum (DM)

Cllr C Ould

Cllr D Newman

2 Vacancies

 

In Attendance

Mrs M Harding (Clerk)

Cllr A Alford (AA) (County Councillor)                                                          3 members of public

 

Democratic Period- Ten-minute period prior to the Council meeting for members of the public to raise issues or comment on Agenda items-none

 

  • Welcome and opening introduction from the Chair

SP welcomed all to the meeting, the Community Play area project group and the 2 new Councillors to be co-opted.

 

  • To receive apologies for absence– none

 

  • To receive disclosures of interests from members on matters to be considered at the meeting –

S Palmer declared an interest in the application for Orchard House, whilst SP does not have a pecuniary interest, there is a shared boundary with Orchard house, as neighbours they have been consulted. Whilst this is a neighbour only interest, SP’s personal interest may influence the Council. SP will continue to Chair the meeting but will not comment or vote. Cllr McCallum will lead the discussions on this as the 3rd Cllr for Frome St Quintin.

S Stovin declared an interest in the application for Orchard House as a personal interest with the applicants in the application and has also been consulted as a neighbour so will not comment or vote.

 

  • To consider the Co-option of Councillors for the 4 vacancies in Cattistock Parish

Chris Ould and Dan Newman were asked to speak briefly on their reasons for joining the Council, Chris has lived in the village for 17 years and felt it was about time to do something useful, Dan was a Cllr a few years ago and now has the time to take this on again.

Both Chris and Dan were Proposed by BS and Seconded by GB -All agreed. Both Cllrs signed the Acceptance of office and joined the meeting.

 

  • Minutes of the meeting held on 25th July 2022

The minutes were approved as an accurate record of the meeting.

Proposed DM                                             Seconded SS

 

  • To receive any matters arising for information only – none

 

  • To receive a report from Dorset Council (Tony Alford)

AA had supplied a report prior to the meeting and reported on the EV Charging infrastructure in rural areas, there will be new EV charging points- 3 at Dorchester, 2 at Sherborne, 2 at Bridport and 1 in Beaminster, there will be several plugs to cover different technology.

Dorset Council are holding a festival of the future- The festival showcases exciting digital innovations happening across the county. This year’s festival runs from 10 to 14 October 2022 in 5 different locations: Bridport, Dorchester, Ferndown, Weymouth and Winfrith.

There is to be a second consultation on libraries in the next few weeks.

The Local plan is to be discussed by cabinet and debating the delay of the plan by 2 years from the agreed plan completion date in 2024. The work being carried out is behind schedule as further evidence needs to be gathered. More work is being done on Nutrient Neutrality across the 5 water catchments areas. Also, on the levelling up and regeneration bill. Now the delay is likely to be 2026.

The budget paper is to be presented to cabinet but there is a budget gap of 29M, this is not as bad as other Councils. The deficit is mainly due to inflation and adult social care.

AA also commented on the issue of the caravan at Sandhills- it was reported that an inspector was allocated in Nov 21. The planning enforcement office did receive notice, but this was not notified. The inspector will start work on 3rd October. Cllrs asked about the process of entry to the site and would there be access for the inspector. This information was not known at the meeting but the Clerk to contact the case officer for more information. AA was thanked for his support and report. AA left at 7.21pm to attend another meeting.

 

  • Community Space
  1. To receive an update on the Community Space and projects

The Outdoor Gym group had supplied a report prior to the meeting detailing the costs and funding for the project. The grant obtained by Dorset Council is £500 short of the amount applied for.

It was agreed to cover this shortfall by the Parish Council and the Community Cattistock Fund.

It was explained that when the order is placed 50% of the cost would need to be made.

The annual maintenance cost will be determined once the equipment has been installed. This will be in the region of £400 per year.

Once the project is complete there will be an open day organised by the project group.

The Clerk will now place the order on this basis.

The members of the group were thanked for their time and left the meeting at 7.34pm

 

  1. To consider the latest inspection reports.

The inspection reports had been reviewed with the following comments:

  1. The surface around the tyres still needs to be replaced, costs are being gathered
  2. The goal posts and nets have come up again the net does not meet current Health and safety regs and needs new nets or new posts; the Community space group will be involved in the next stage to see what is appropriate.
  • The entry gate should open inwards so children cannot escape onto the road.
  1. There is no external sign noting the management of the play area, Clerk to arrange a sign.
  2. The Zip wire is being serviced on 3rd Oct at a cost of £200 inc vat.

The play inspection report will be sent to the new Chair of the Community space group, the Cllrs will continue with the visual inspections until a new rota is arranged.

 

  • Parish Council Assets
  1. To consider the future use of the Bus Shelter

       A member of the Fete committee attended the meeting to ask permission to renovate and tidy up the bus shelter, it is currently only being used by the children on the school bus.

It was explained that the Fete money is raised for the benefit of the community, and it is the wish of the committee to carry out some work on the bus shelter, minor repairs, painting and updating the notice board. The Bus shelter is owned by the Parish Council, the bus shelter was installed from Millennium Fund money 20 years ago. The Council agreed to the work and asked that part of the notice board within is made available for village notices. The group were thanked for taking on this project.

  • Finance and procedural matters
  1. To consider the cost of the replacement village sign at Holywell

A quote had been gathered from Dorset Council sign shop for £284.32, this was agreed

Proposed GB                         Seconded DM

 

  1. To consider the PC contribution towards the Outdoor Gym equipment

The council agreed to fund 50% of the shortfall for the project

Proposed GB                         Seconded BS

 

  • To consider the annual grants:
  1. Cattistock PCC Churchyard -£525
  2. Cattistock PCC Clock- £85
  • Frome St Quintin PCC Churchyard -£260
  1. Chilfrome PCC Churchyard -£260

The Council approved items i to iv

Proposed SP                          Seconded SS, these payments will now be made by bacs

  1. Purchase of the Wreath for remembrance for November £50

The Council agreed to a donation rather than purchase a wreath, so more funds go to the charity.

Proposed BS                          Seconded SP

 

 

  1. To authorise payments for goods and services
Payment Description Voucher No Amount
DAPTC Training 20 25.00
Savill Hall Hall hire 21 20.00
DAPTC Training 22 8.00
Staff Costs Salary, expenses, PAYE 23,24,25,26,27 1036.81
PCC Cattistock Grants and Donations 28,29  610.00
PCC Frome St Quintin Grants and Donations 30 260.00
PCC Chilfrome Grants and Donations 31 260.00
Ken Hussey Play inspections 31 70.00
Receipts      
  Interest   0.32

All payments were made in line with internal controls   Proposed GB                         Seconded DM

Bank rec as at 31st Aug 2022- £36,297.79

  1. To authorise the external audit arrangements for the coming 5 years

This was noted

 

  • Planning and Development matters
  1. To consider planning applications currently in circulation-

P/FUL/2022/05175- Cattistock Lodge- Conversion of residential dwelling into 7 no. dwellings and associated parking (revised scheme)-the Council supported the reduced scheme but noted the proximity of the public right of way.

P/HOU/2022/04485- Woodlands- Chantmarle lane- Erect single storey garage- no objections

P/FUL/2022/005532- Orchard House- Frome St Quintin- Reconfiguration of existing Orchard House farmhouse, construction of a new extension to house living area, including change of use od old stables and re-landscaping including formation of natural swimming pond– The Council noted that over all this is an improvement but noted that the site notice had not yet been displayed. There is an issue with the policy of dark skies being affected due to the number of skylights, this will also have an effect on the Bat boxes, finally that part of the development is in the conservation area, so consideration should be given to the whole development. Comments to be circulated prior to submission, and the case officer to be contacted regarding the site notice.

Proposed GB                         Seconded DM

TPO/2022/0064– Cattistock lodge- this was for information only, but Cllrs supported the TPO and will comment to this effect.

 

  1. To note development decisions received since the last meeting–

The situation with the caravan at sandhills had already been discussed.

 

DM commented on the planning at Wardens Hill, as noted by the ward Cllr the application is likely to go to committee and could be refused. The PC commented in January and are still very concerned about the traffic management plan for the site.

 

  • Highways

Work to the new finger post at Higher Chilfrome is being carried out and will hopefully be completed by mid-October.

 

  • Footpath and Rights of Way- none

 

  • Correspondence- previously circulated
  1. Update on the meeting with Ammonite– GB reported on the meeting with Ammonite staff and parish reps from each of the parishes served by the practice- the meeting was a very positive meeting opening up relationships with the surgery.

It is hoped to reinstate the PPG- Patient Participation group.

A new telephone system is being installed in October which will mean that calls will not drop off, and you will know where you are in a queue, this will be answered by the central system and then passed to the correct department or surgery.

There have been huge staffing issues as it has been very difficult to employ Doctors in the rural parishes. When Ammonite took over the surgery many Doctors left so they are managing with 8 Doctors. They have also had to use an agency to make the calls following e-consult or triage at a cost of £120 per hour. This is also an issue if you miss the call, as you are then placed back at the start of the system, as you cannot call back.

There is a hub in Bridport who deal with the e-consults, they have dealt with 1100 e-consult and triages a week.  The e-consult system was set up by a government department and is a national system so the questions etc cannot be changed you have to manipulate your responses to get the result you want.

The surgery if funding is agreed with the CQC will carry out some changes to the layout so there is a much larger dispensary with dedicated staff.

The outcome of the meeting was positive as they are trying to make changes for the better and it is hoped that when the PPG is reinstated that communication will be much better. GB was thanked for attending these meetings.

  

  1. To discuss the land by the spring in Frome St Quintin– SP spoke on the wish to plant a tree for the Queens Canopy project and the land by the spring in Frome St Quintin was suggested. It has historically been mown by the residents of Frome St Quintin and treated as a village asset it also had a tyre swing in the past.

The Clerk will look further into the land and consider registering this with the Land registry to keep the area tidy for the benefit of the village and consider the installation of a bench in this location.

  • There was a request for a Fish and Chip van to visit the village, the Councillors did not have a problem with this as long as all permits and permissions have been gathered.

 

  • Parish Reports- Cattistock, Frome St Quintin and Chilfrome parishes-

WL commented on the Hound poo left in the village after their exercise as it had not been picked up at times- Cllrs also commented on the hounds not being under control- the Clerk to contact the master of the hunt to raise these issues.

 

  • To confirm the items for the meeting on the 28th September-

Budget

      

 

Meeting closed at 8.53pm