Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on Tuesday 6 February 2007

PRESENT
Mr T Hughes (Chairman), Mr P Davies, Mr W Davies, Mrs B Sharpe,
Mrs F Hughes, Mr C Savery, Mr K Barnett, District & County Councillor N Hartin,
Mrs Caroline Oakes, Community Council.
9 members of the public.

PRESENTATION RE: PARISH PLANS
The Chairman introduced Mrs Oakes, who referred to the Scrutiny event which took place in the village last year and explained that a Parish Plan identified plans for the future and included an Action Plan to achieve those aims. Bucknell had carried out a consultation for the Scrutiny event and so a lot of information was already to hand. Mrs Oakes set out the advantages of producing a Parish Plan. Lisa Bedford at the District Council, and John Hargreaves at the County Council would provide additional advice if required.

Mrs Oakes handed round some Parish Plans by way of example, and took questions from the floor.

The Community Council would provide a grant of £2,000 per Parish Plan, some match funding would be required, but this could be in the form of voluntary labour.
A Steering Group would need to be formed, which included two members of the Parish Council. Bedstone’s Plan would be a part of Bucknell’s.

The Chairman pointed out that the Village Design Statements produced in the past had been ignored. Mrs Oakes replied that the Parish Plans were different, the most important part being the Action Plan. Ideally this should be delivered to every household, the full Parish Plan being available on the website.
The Community Council’s website had more information.

The Chairman closed the Open Discussion and thanked Mrs Oakes, who then left the meeting

OPEN DISCUSSION
Mrs Parker said that two drains at the top of Bridge End Lane were blocked. Clerk to report these.

Mrs Jackson asked what were the planning requirements for solar panels and wind turbines. It was understood there were no problems with solar panels, but wind generators could be noisy, thereby affecting neighbouring properties.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Mr I Owen (Vice Chairman), Mrs K Law.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
None

MINUTES OF MEETING HELD 2 JANUARY 2007
Agreed unanimously and signed by the Chairman as a true and accurate record.

MATTERS ARISING
Precept. Mr Barnett noted that this had been increased to £10,000 from £7,000, and asked whether the Precept could be lowered when the work on the churchyard wall was complete. The Chairman replied that this was a strong possibility

Land at Chapel Lawn Road. The bill had now been received for £725 + VAT. Mr Barnett said that the maintenance of the area should be put out to tender now.

Street Lighting. Street light opposite the Butcher’s. Mr Barnett had faxed the fault through to Pirelli.

PLANNING
Application No. 1/07/19094/TC Tree works (conservation area) at Orchard Court. No comment.
Application No. 1/07/19080/O Four affordable dwellings and access adjacent to Brooklyn. The Chairman was concerned that it was outside the village envelope. Mr Barnett said that should the District Council grant this application, the dwellings should be bungalows, to fit in with the surrounding existing dwellings. Agreed unanimously.
Application No. 1/06/18628/CE. Lawful use or development at Crabtree Bank, Bedstone Road, had been certified.
Application No. 1/06/18910/F. Replacement domestic garage and carport with storage over at Misty Meadows, Oil Mill Lane, had been granted.
Appeal Ref: APP/K3225/A/06/2026420. Dwelling at Gove End Paddock, Redlake Meadow, had been dismissed.

DAFFODIL LANE DEVELOPMENT
Mrs D Edwards said that the grant applications were progressing. The Shropshire Hills AONB had asked for a full application. Mr Cornes was invited to speak from the floor and asked whether the affordable houses could be built on the field. Mr Barnett replied that there were clauses in the terms of sale to prevent housing being built.

Miss N Edwards said that various events were being planned, and mentioned public liability insurance. It was thought the Daffodil Lane project had their own insurance, but the Clerk would check Parish Council insurance. Clerk had received a parcel by post from Natural England containing balloons and tee shirts for publicity purposes.

FINANCE
It was unanimously agreed to pay the following:

It was further agreed unanimously to pay the following:

On the understanding that this would be in full and final settlement. Clerk to obtain clarification.

The Chairman reported that the heating system in the Memorial Hall had been condemned. Mrs Edwards confirmed from the floor that the new system would cost £1,000. The Chairman proposed a donation from the Parish Council of £250 towards this. Agreed unanimously.

A written request had been received from Coxall Baptist Church for a donation towards the upkeep of their graveyard. It was agreed to donate £50.00.

CORRESPONDENCE
South Shropshire District Council letter re: Parish Guide to the Planning Process – meeting at Clun on 22 February. Mr Hartin said he would be attending, and would report back to the Parish Council.
Shropshire County Council letter + enclosed community magazine. To Post Office.



CHAIRMAN’S ITEMS
Scrutiny Event. The Chairman said the consultation process had identified a need for bus shelters. As there were five bus stops in the village it was difficult to decide where to site one or two shelters. Although grant funding was available, the costs involved were prohibitively expensive.

Craven Arms Partnership meeting. Chairman gave a verbal report. Affordable Housing. The Chairman related this saga from the original Petition, up to the present. It was not known who would be carrying out the required housing needs survey.

Health Authority Meeting in Knighton 5.2.07. Chairman had attended this and reported there were proposals for social housing, medical facilities, etc all in one. Knighton hospital would then close, but it was important that it did not close before the new facilities were up and running.

Fire Service. There was some uncertainty as to the priority of local fire stations should a call be made from Bucknell. It was thought that first call was still Leintwardine.  

ANY OTHER BUSINESS
Poultry Manure. This was again being stored opposite Knowlend and was causing great offence with the unpleasant smell. Clerk to telephone Environmental Health.


DATE AND VENUE FOR NEXT MEETING
The next meeting will be held on Tuesday 6 March 2007 in Bucknell Memorial Hall at 7.30pm.

There being no further business the meeting closed at 9.20

Revised: 25 November 2006