Minutes of the 2018 annual meeting of Nuneham Courtenay Parish Council held on 8th May 2018 at the Village Hall
The Chair opened the meeting at 7.37pm
• Present
Parish Councillors: John Peters, Madhvi Saini (Chair) and Mandy Rigault
Also: County Councillor Lorraine Lindsay-Gale, Geoffrey Ferres (Clerk) and two parishioners
Apologies: James Fallon and Sue Lawson.
• Election of Chair for 2018-19
Madhvi Saini was elected unanimously.
• Election of Vice-Chair for 2018-19
John Peters was elected unanimously.
• Declarations of acceptance of office
Madhvi Saini and John Peters signed declarations of acceptance of office.
• Co-option
James Fallon was elected unanimously to fill the vacancy on the Council.
• Declarations of interest
None
• Minutes of the last meeting
The minutes of the meeting held on 6th January 2018 meeting were approved, then signed on each page by the Chair.
• Minutes of the Extraordinary Meeting
The minutes of the Extraordinary Meeting held on 26th March 2018 meeting were approved, then signed on each page by the Chair.
• Standing Orders
The Council reviewed the existing Standing Orders and many amendments were put forward.
Mandy Rigault proposed that the time designated for public participation be increased from 10 to 15 minutes. She also proposed that members of the public be required to identify themselves before speaking and that their comments be minuted against their name.
The Chair proposed that members of the public should be required to alert the Chair before the start of the meeting if they wished to address the Council.
Mandy Rigault proposed that the limit on the length of meetings be increased from two hours to two and a half hours.
Mandy Rigault proposed that new standing orders be drafted regarding the website and she suggested that the approval of two people be required before anything is added to the website.
It was agreed that the Clerk would bring to the next meeting a revised set of Standing Orders for approval incorporating all the amendments that had been suggested. Action: Clerk
• Financial Regulations
The Council reviewed the existing Financial Regulations and no amendments were put forward.
• Code of Conduct
The Council reviewed the existing Code of Conduct and no amendments were put forward.
• Register of Assets
The Register of Assets as at end March 2018 drafted by the Clerk was approved after clarification that the new Noticeboard had not been in place before the start of April 2018.
• Risk Assessment
The Council reviewed the Risk Assessment which had been drafted in 2015 by the (then) Clerk but not approved at that time.
The Chair offered to arrange for the Council’s electrical equipment to undergo Portable Appliance Testing. Action: Chair
The Clerk asked if the Council kept petty cash and the Council agreed that as it does not keep petty cash, that risk should be deleted from the table.
It was agreed that the Clerk would bring to the next meeting a revised Risk Assessment for approval incorporating all the amendments that had been suggested. Action: Clerk
• Review of Insurance
The Clerk said he had not been able to find a copy of the schedules detailing the Council’s current insurance. Mandy Rigault offered to see if she could find a copy of the policy and forward it to the Clerk. Action: Mandy Rigault
• Complaints Procedure
The Council reviewed and approved the Complaints Procedure which had been drafted in 2015 by the (then) Clerk but not approved at that time.
• Privacy Notice (and Data Protection Policy)
With regard to data security, the Clerk said he still needed to arrange for the Council’s laptop to be protected. The Chair expressed concerns about access to the Council’s Gmail account by unauthorised persons. Action: Chair and Clerk
It was agreed that the Council needed to deal with the material currently kept at the Village Hall. It would need to be examined and decisions made as to what needed to be kept and where, and what needed to be destroyed and how.
The Chair, Vice-Chair, Mandy Rigault, Lorraine Lindsay-Gale and the Clerk all expressed willingness to help with this task.
The Council approved the document drafted by the Clerk.
• Guide to Information and Schedule of Fees
The Council approved the Guide to Information and Schedule of Fees, which had been drafted by the Clerk using the template provided by the Information Commissioner’s Office.
• Dates and venues for Ordinary Council Meetings 2018-19
It was agreed the Council would meet on the first Tuesday of September and November 2018, the second Tuesday of January 2019 and the first Tuesday of March 2019.
The Clerk said the Council might have to meet in late June to consider the Internal Auditor’s report.
• Parishioners’ issues
Peter Brooks asked about a garden waste bin for the churchyard, a matter he had raised at the Annual Parish Meeting. The Clerk said it would not be appropriate for the Council to put a bin on land it did not own without the landowner’s written permission. Action: Clerk
It was agreed the Council would pay up to £30 for a garden waste bin to be put at the churchyard, provided the church gave permission in writing.
• Matters arising from the minutes of the last meeting held on 6th March 2018
It was noted that the obstruction discussed at the last meeting and the bollards have now been removed.
The Chair reported that she had spoken to Anthony Kirkwood from the County Council and he had told her there are two kinds of Vehicle Activated Signs, ones that flash:
• A message or image specific to the individual vehicle (for example, informing the driver of the speed of their vehicle), or
• A reminder of the speed limit.
The second type can, in theory, be operated continuously but not the first type.
There was a discussion about speed data and enforcement. Lorraine Lindsay-Gale offered to make further enquiries.
• Matters arising from the minutes of the Extraordinary Meeting held on 26th March 2018
None.
• County Councillor’s report
Lorraine Lindsay-Gale presented her report.
• District Councillor’s report
The Clerk said he had received no report.
• Planning Applications
The Chair had attended Planning Committee when it considered the application relating to 37 Nuneham Courtenay [P17/S1363/HH]. The committee had approved the application in spite of the various objections.
The Vice-Chair as Planning Champion took the Council through recent planning applications in the parish.
• The Old Smithy Road: Discharge of condition 1 on application P17/S0666/FUL; Variation of conditions 4 (additional details), 6 (contamination), 7 (internal doors) and 12 (rainwater goods) on application P16/S0544/FUL “Demolish existing A1 show rooms and workshop and remove/remediate contaminated soil. Build 4 new 2 bed flats using previously approved access and amended parking layout. Retaining listed building for conversion all as previously approved P14/S2431/FUL and P14/S2432/LB as amended to incorporate raised floor level to meet engineering requirements” [P18/S1271/DIS] [Not subject to public consultation].
The Vice-Chair said he found the handling of this planning application frustrating.
• Woodside Farmhouse, New Barn Farm, Nuneham Park: Part single-storey, part two-storey rear
extension to house, amendment (no. 1) on application P18/S0162/HH.
The Vice-Chair said he had nothing to say about this application.
• 12 Nuneham Courtenay: Use of detached outbuilding as a separate dwelling house with no reliance or dependency upon the host dwelling [P18/S1123/LDE] [Consultation deadline: 9th May 2018].
The Vice-Chair said Planning seemed to think there was nothing that could be done but to approve this because it had been going on for more than four years.
• Finance
• End year bank reconciliation
The Council noted the end year bank reconciliation for 2017-18 put forward by the Clerk as Responsible Financial Officer.
• Provisional accounts 2017-18
The Council noted the provisional accounts for 2017-18 put forward by the Clerk as Responsible Financial Officer
• Consideration of draft Budget 2018-19
The Council approved the draft budget put forward by the Clerk as Responsible Financial Officer
• Payments
The Council approved the following payments to staff made by the Chair and Vice-Chair since the last Council Meeting:
• £135.59, Stewart Deakin, Responsible Financial Officer’s pay and expenses, 2017-18 Quarter 4
• £620.31, Geoffrey Ferres, Clerk’s pay and expenses, 2017-18 Quarter 4
• £135.80, HMRC, PAYE Income Tax deducted, 2017-18 Quarter 4
• Grant applications
• £1,565, Nuneham Courtenay Village Hall Committee, whole cost of constructing proper disabled access
It was agreed that the Chair and Mandy Rigault could speak but should not vote on this application.
June Harris presented the grant application from the Village Hall Committee. She explained that the Village Hall had generated a surplus of less than £400 in the past year and that the money held by the Committee was primarily the residue following the payment of the insurance claim.
The Clerk advised the Council that it had the power to make the grant under section 19 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976.
The Council approved a grant of £1,565 to the Village Hall Committee, the exception to the typical policy of paying no more than half the cost of a project being justified by the urgent need for the Village Hall to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act:
• £400, Nuneham Courtenay Adult Lunch Club
The Clerk advised that this application would be deferred to the next meeting at the applicants’ request as no one was available to present it at this meeting.
• Payments
The Council approved the following payments:
• £133.26, Baldons and Nuneham PCC, 30% share of 2017 Newsletter costs
• £30, Nuneham Courtenay Village Hall, one hour’s hire for Extraordinary Meeting on 26th March 2018 and two hours’ hire for Annual Parish Meeting on 20th April 2018 @ £10 per hour
• The Council agreed to pay for three hours’ hire of the Village Hall for this meeting and instructed the Chair and Vice-Chair to sign a cheque for £30 to the Village Hall Committee.
• £60.26, Madhvi Saini, cost of refreshments for Annual Parish Meeting. The Council agreed that the Chair could co-sign this cheque, although it was to herself, as she is currently one of only two authorised signatories.
• Internal Auditor
The Council approved the appointment of Arrow Accounting as Internal Auditor for 2018-18.
As the two hours’ limit was approaching, the Council agreed to extend the meeting by half an hour.
• Playing Fields Lease
The Council agreed to defer this item to the next meeting due to lack of time to discuss it.
• Proposal to apply for a grant from the SSE Resilience Fund to purchase an emergency generator and a secure shed in which to keep it
The Council approved Mandy Rigault’s proposal that it apply to the SSE Resilience Fund for a grant towards the cost of purchasing an emergency generator and a secure shed in which to keep it. Mandy Rigault offered to submit the application. Action: Mandy Rigault
• New parish notice board
The Council expressed satisfaction with the new noticeboard, the cost of which was not yet known. It was agreed that rather than the incurring the likely expense and delay of having the Council’s name added on the outside, it could be placed inside instead.
• Proposal to purchase four new litter bins to have two on each side of the main road, for which permission has been granted by SODC Waste team
It was agreed the Council needed to know the cost before it could make a decision. Mandy Rigault offered to find out how much the four bins would cost. Action: Mandy Rigault
• Correspondence
The Clerk reported that the Council has been invited to send up to two representatives to a series of town and parish events organised by the County Council which are taking place at different venues between July and November.
The Vice-Chair and Mandy Rigault had informed the Clerk they are willing and able to attend the event in Abingdon on Thursday 6th September between 2pm and 5pm.
• Proposal to plant bulbs in the verges in the Autumn
The Council agreed this proposal in principle and agreed it would discuss it further at a future meeting.
• Any other business
None.
The meeting closed at 9.52pm.