MINUTES OF THE WATER ORTON PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 24TH APRIL 2019 AT 7.30PM IN THE PAVILLION

In the chair: Councillor Coldrick

Present: Councillors Chown, Foley, Triplett, Stuart, Kelley, Lowe, D Hodkinson, K. Hodkinson

In attendance:

Daphne Robinson – Newly appointed Parish Clerk

Daphne Robinson – Clerk
16 members of the public

A representative from the Water Orton Supper Club informed the council that they had been established for 50 years and had used various venues in the village during that time. Their recent meeting place had been the school. He reported that due to the building of the new school, the head had not been able to give them an answer as to whether they would be able to use the facilities once the school opened. Cllr. Stuart explained, as a member of the school of governors, he knew that there were no clear plans on how the school would be used for outside hiring. He said he would speak to the head and report back with any information. Judy McDonald said she would talk to the vicar to see if there was a possibility of the club using The Link so that the club could remain in the village.

A concerned resident asked if the rumours were true that the GP surgery was due to close. It was explained that the forms in the surgery were part of the consultation which was taking place and did not include the consideration of closure.

  1. Chairman’s remarks

Cllr. Coldrick acknowledge the hard work and commitment that the outgoing councillors (Cllrs. K Hodkinson, Foley, Stuart and Lowe) had shown over their time served on the council. He said that they had weathered difficult times and thanked them personally for all their efforts which had been very much appreciated. On behalf of the council and the village he thanked them and wished them well for the future.

  1. Apologies and absence and reasons given

BC & CC David Reilly, BC Ray Payne 

  1. Declaration of interests and Dispensations

There were no declarations of interest

  1. Public Participation

Cllr. Reilly had submitted a report regarding HS2. The compound on Gipsy Lane is now being constructed and will have dual use. It will bring the rerouted gas pipe under the motorway and up to Attleboro Lane. Gas works on Attleboro Lane will be undertaken during the summer holidays. They are proposing a traffic route off Coleshill Road, Vicarage Lane and into Attleboro. Cllr. Reilly said he had objected to this and they have said they will again explore the haul road from Birmingham Road to Attleboro following the route the train will take. He reported that he had raised the challenge of the Attleboro and Vicarage lane junction and the potential for damage to the The Green from corner cutting.

HS2 would be doing exploratory archeological trenches along the hillside of Attleboro. If nothing is found the trenches are closed and covered. If artefacts are found then a dig which will be done swiftly, probably completed by the end of the year.

The new school build is progressing well and on schedule to be fully functional for the beginning of the September term. He reported that Plank Lane would be discussed at the next meeting. At the moment all options are on the table and he will give an update on proposals.

The village spring clean which took place on 13th & 14th April had been successful with 20 volunteers taking part.

Judy McDonald reported that there had been a consultation regarding the landscape options for the War Memorial. The most popular option included bedding areas and benches. The benches would be made from sustainable African Teak with a poppy design on the back panel. Prologis will pay for the benches once WCC have given permission for them to be sited. WCC also needed assurance that the area would be maintained. It had been agreed by the War Memorial committee and the PCC that the PCC would take responsibility of the maintenance of the landscaping as long as they could count on the Parish Council’s support. It was unlikely that work would be carried out by May. Mrs McDonald said there was concern that WCC would not be happy for the PCC to take on the responsibility of maintenance, she explained that Cllr. Reilly would talk to WCC regarding this. Mrs McDonald reported that the committee were ready to disband and that there was £8309.82 left in the War Memorial funds. This would be transferred into church funds and ringfenced for any future work required on the War Memorial. Cllr Stuart expressed his concern that, as far as he was aware, African teak was not from a sustainable source. Mrs McDonald said that she had been assured by suppliers that is was but that she would double check and report back.

Mr Bevan reported that a formal action group had been established to optimise use of the old toilet site and train station building and improve the appearance of the site. He advised that the group were in touch with the owners of the car park, Network Rail, to also discuss the possibility of improving the layout of the car park. He reported that rumours were circulating that the train station would be closed down and the station building demolished, he said he would send a link to the clerk regarding this. Mr Bevan asked if the council would consider supporting the station building to be made an Asset of Community Interest. Mrs McDonald, also a member of the group, reported that the group were looking for funding for the project and having the council support would be beneficial. Cllr Coldrick said that their commitment was highly commendable, however he explained that the council had been down this route before with the land next to the Dog Inn on Marsh Lane. Cllr. Stuart advised that the council put in a request to NWBC some 18 months ago and that they had not received any response. No decision on this was reached.

  1. Minutes of the Council Meeting held on 27th March 2019

PROPOSED by Cllr Kelley, SECONDED by Cllr. Chown and RESOLVED (unanimously) that the Notes of the meeting held on 6th February 2019 be approved as a true record of the meeting. The Chairman signed the minutes.

  1. Reports from Borough and County Councillors

Cllr. Reilly had submitted an email explaining that there was little to report as both councils were in purdah pending the 2nd May election.

  1. To consider responding to the planning application PAP/2019/0171

There were no objections raised.

  1. To consider the renting of premises for use as a council office

The clerk reported that she had spoken to both the Methodist Church and The Link with regards to potential office space. Both offered the same rent rate of £100 per week.

The Methodist Church would need to have the telephone line reconnected and broadband installed. The Link could offer a room with the Broadband already available the council would just need to supply a phone line for its own use, probably a mobile. It was thought by the council that this cost may be excessive and a suggestion was made for the clerk to contact NWBC with the possibility of hiring the community centre on the White City.

  1. To discuss environment and sustainability

Cllr. Stuart advised that he wished to open up discussions, not enforce but put forward recommendations for the environment and sustainability within the parish. He reported that his recommendations included:

  • The parish council taking a more proactive stance towards environmental issues
  • That the parish council uses communications means at its disposal – noticeboards, websites and The Coleshill Post to advertise approved environment actions.
  • That the parish council responds to all planning applications both to NWBC and to the applicant with a list of approved environment actions which include the following:
  1. The use of wildlife friendly gravel boards
  2. Each property should be encouraged to provide specific habitats for avian, insect or amphibian species using such things as bird/bat boxes, bug hotels, hedgehog houses, toad abodes etc.
  3. Each property should provide a method for capture and provision of rain water for avian, insect, amphibian or mammalian species.
  4. The use of subsidised water capture and water saving technologies available from Severn Trent.
  5. Waste management products available from NWBC such as compost bins.
  6. The use of sustainably sourced materials for all construction within the village.
  7. That any driveway improvements allow for soakaway.
  • That the parish council write to the borough councillors to detail that the PC would like to see that all future waste management contracts should be evaluated giving the highest range of recyclable products possible, specifically to include tetrapak and cooking oil and where this is not possible for there to be more localised arrangements.
  • That the parish council writes to borough councillors to ensure that any development of car parking within the village should include provision for sustainable transportation or for the future installation of infrastructure to allow for sustainable transportation. Also, that provisions for those with mobility issues is prioritised.
  • That the parish council writes to WCC Public Health Department to see what materials could be provided to encourage greater use of walking within the village environment.
  • That the approved environment actions are reviewed annually
  • That the parish council circulates any approved environmental actions to other parish councils within Warwickshire.

Cllr. Coldrick thanked Cllr. Stuart for his indepth statement. It was agreed that the points raised would be considered by the councillor in the future.

  1. Play Equipment

Cllr. Chown reported that the swing on the playing filed had been repaired. He advised that on the small slide there was a crack in the stainless steel weld. He would contact Paul Collins to discuss having it repaired. The inspection on the play equipment was due to be carried out soon.

  1. To receive an update on financial matters

The clerk reported that she was on track with bringing the accounts for 2018/19 up to date and that they would be completed in time to meet the deadline for being sent to the external auditor.

She advised that she was still trying to sort out the mandate for the bank account with Lloyds and hoped to have it resolved soon.

The report from the external auditor for the accounts prepared for 2017/18 concluded that there were failings on timing issues regarding notification to the public. Cllr. Coldrick explained that this was due to not having submitted the accounts on time. The clerk advised that the External Auditor Certificate 2017/18 had been issued to the council and would be available to view on the parish council website.

  1. It was proposed, seconded and unanimously resolved to approve the following payments:
Payee Details Amount
Hyperbole Website posting £66.00
NWBC Refuse Service £639.87
WOPCC Service of Church clock £231.60
Littlejohn LLP External Auditor fee £456.00
Sherringtons Skip hire £156.00
HMRC PAYE &NIC Jan- March 2019 £481.82
Salaries Clerk, Caretaker, Groundsman £2479.22
NWBC Grounds Maintenance £656.90
D Robinson Expenses – Clerk £83.73
N Smith Cleaning expenses £14.39
WALC Subscription 2019/2020 £751.00
HSD online Cleaning materials £35.78
Greyhound Leisure Repairs to swings £444.00