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CARLTON and CHELLINGTON PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES of ANNUAL PARISH MEETING held 10th APRIL, 2006.
PRESENT :- Mr. L. BENSON - in the Chair
Messrs. V.G. BRANDON G. CHAPMAN
S. DEVINE D. JENKINS
County Councillor Mrs. P. GERSHON 3 Parishioners
Speakers :- Mr. V.Cirin, Bedfordshire County Council Head Civil Contingencies
Miss K. Dathorne, Bedford & District Home Watch Liaison Officer
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE were received from Councillors R. Davis, J. Goggins, E. Simpson and J. Tusting.
MINUTES of ANNUAL MEETING, 27th APRIL, 2005, were agreed and the Minute Book signed.
CHAIRMAN’S REPORT
Affordable Housing. The Parish Council remain committed to the provision of low cost housing in the village and to this end we have asked The Rural Housing Trust to attend the May meeting. We decided not to pursue the partnership with Affordable Housing Co. Ltd.
Village Maintenance. Billy Crammen continues to do good work around the village and is totally funded by the Parish Council and the Playing Field committee. He was provided with grass cutting and hedge trimming equipment.
Village Grass-cutting. Changed the grass-cutting contractor for the village by accepting the lowest tender from Warner’s, who already do the school and playing fields. Council would like to thank Chris Horne for all his past work. The village green and some small verges in the High Street have been removed from the contract and are to be undertaken by Billy as part of his duties.
Emmaus Village. Mike O’Meara came to the February meeting to hear our concerns about behaviour of some of the resident companions. He assured us that any companions seen drinking alcohol in public in Carlton would be asked to leave Emmaus.
Harrold Causeway. The broken roadside railings are to be replaced by the County Council and they have been made aware of the condition of stonework on top of the causeway. 30 m.p.h. signs have been brought forward from Harrold to cover the bridge as we requested but we have complained about the difference in height of the actual signs.
The Baptist Chapel. The graveyard now has a footpath which allows access to the new seat. The
remainder of the ground will be cut as a wild flower meadow, as advised by the County botanist. Repairs to the rear stone wall and front wall will be undertaken this year. The side gate entrance is in need of repair but ownership of this gate and wall have yet to be established. A public lay-by for three vehicles is to be cut into the grass verge in front of the Chapel.
Home Watch. The Parish Council is looking at ways to resurrect the Homewatch scheme and is looking for volunteers.
Hedging. 150 hedging plants have been given to us by the County Council to establish a new hedge around St. Mary’s Church car park, and to repair the playing field hedge.
Highways. We objected to the County Council painting new white lines around the village. They agreed with us but could not inform their contractors in time. The dragons teeth traffic calming at the entrances to the village were put in by mistake, and should have been in another village. We have asked for the removal of unnecessary bollards.
Vandalism. Instances of vandalism seem to be getting worse. The Oak tree and bench were covered in paint, playing field fence broken, the bus shelter is a frequent target, the latest being covered in eggs, litter bins attacked, road signs in Bridgend and at the causeway broken. The Festival of Britain sign by the village green was removed and thrown into the garden of Stayesmore Manor. The “Bathing is Dangerous” sign was removed from the Chellington side of the river. Each of these things take time
and money away from projects to enhance the village as well as being demoralising for the people who have given their time and energy to make the village better in the first place.
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CHAIRMAN’S REPORT contd.
Clerk. Miss Gabrielle Forde resigned as clerk and Mrs. Iris Allsopp has taken over on a temporary basis until a new clerk can be found.
Planning. The main planning issues were - Wind Farm at Hinwick. We invited both sides of the argument to put their views. In the end, Parish Council decided to object to the proposal.
5 Dwellings, Victoria Farm site, which we did not object to. As a result of this application being granted, the developers are to contribute £6,908. for the provision of outdoor playing space for sport in line with N.F.P.A. standards. If Carlton does not meet the standards or cannot find a use for the money
it will go to Hillgrounds, Kempston. It was agreed the playing field should have the money if possible.
Buckingham Palace Invitation. Graham Chapman’s name was put forward into a draw for the opportunity to go to a Buckingham Palace garden party.
Telephone Box. B.T. have said they will remove the damaged box in the High Street. It will not be replaced as there is another one in the village.
Bus Service. There have been several instances of Stagecoach buses either not turning up or missing out the loop around the village and driving through Bridgend. Stagecoach have promised to look into our complaints.
The Mayor of Bedford. Frank Branston attended March Parish Council. Some of the things he is in favour of are - unitary authorities, clearing rubbish along main roads in the Borough, western by-pass, and park and ride schemes. He reminded us that the Rural Grant scheme, with a fund of £450,000. is under used.
FINANCIAL REPORT for year 1.4.2005. - 31.3.2006. Presented by Mrs. Allsopp, Acting Clerk, a copy having been handed to everybody present.
Total receipts were £16,652., comprising Precept £13,500., grass-cutting grant £603., Natwest interest £293. and a grant of £2,000. from Bedford Rural Fund for the Chellington Project. Home Watch was disbanded last year and they asked the Council to hold £255.57. until such time as it is resurrected.
Expenditure totalled £14,232. and £4,143. was spent from Reserved Funds. Main expenditure was the clerk’s salary £2,673., grass-cutting £2,551. and the handyman’s wages £1,177. Street light energy and maintenance was £1,096., insurance £668. and other establishment expenses £908. The equipment included a lawnmower and hedge trimmer for Billy’s use, accountants’ fees are for two years audit, and another seat was purchased £450. sited on the triangle of grass near Harrold Causeway. Reserved money spent was for a new street light, at the junction of The High Street and The Causeway, Billy’s wages for work in the Grace Baptist burial ground, and the Village Hall toilet block. Parish Council’s accumulated fund now stands at £10,553. plus Reserves £10,749.
The Precept for the year 2006/7 was set at £11,500. The Council has budgeted £1,000. for the Village Hall, £500. towards village fete in June and £500. for donations to The Bridge, The Villager Bus, etc.
Mr. Brandon proposed adoption of the accounts as presented by the clerk.
PLAYING FIELD REPORT - presented by Cllr. Mr. Benson.
The past 12 months has seen many changes to the playing field with ever increasing usage. The grant for £4,945. from Local Network Funding was secured and new equipment purchased, the basketball hoop was installed along with a low level wooden trail. A treasure hunt was organised for school children to celebrate its completion and was featured in The Bridge. The trail has proved to be an extremely popular addition to the playing field, appealing to children of a wide age-range. The summer also saw the completion and fitting of the wonderful oak bench around the oak tree, generously made by Mr. Nick Tusting.
The grass cutting services of Warners’ were retained but a local contractor trimmed the perimeter hedge along The Causeway. The village handyman has continued to ensure the bins are emptied regularly and
that litter is kept to a minimum. Any hours the handyman carries out on the playing field are re-paid back to the Parish Council.
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PLAYING FIELD REPORT contd.
One unfortunate event during the year was the vandalism of the oak bench with paint in November.
Hopefully this was an isolated incident and possible methods of improving the appearance of the damaged tree and bench are being looked into.
The finances for the year 2005-6. are as follows :-
Income £6,573.38., including rent from barn, grants, donations and interest
Expenditure £7,206.26., including insurance, inspections, maintenance and new equipment.
Current balances are - £1,031.72. in the Community Account
£2,590.13. in the Business Premium Account
£ 25.22. cash
The playing field committee are in the process of organising the next village fete, scheduled for 24th June, 2006, which will be the dominant fund-raiser for the forthcoming year. Currently the income from rent of the barn no longer covers essential annual expenditure. Fund-raising has become essential in maintaining the playing field to allow maximum usage by all village children.
EMERGENCY PLANNING BRIEFING - Mr. Vladek Cirin was introduced to the meeting. Have you ever thought what would happen if there was a Major incident that affected the residents of your Parish?
Do you know which organisations might turn up at the site of the incident ? Do you know what their responsibilities are ? Do you know what to do to help yourselves ?
The Civil Contingencies Unit strongly believe that informing local groups about the issues of Emergency Planning and Local Resilience before, during and after a major emergency, is of great importance. Mr. Cirin’s presentation on Emergency Planning in Bedfordshire was very enlightening and included key points of recent Emergency Planning legislation, possible hazards in Bedfordshire, details of Bedfordshire and Luton Local Resilience Forum Support Group, Multi Agency Incident Response, the role of local authorities, and how to help ourselves. The full presentation is on Carlton’s website.
Mr. Cirin left a draft Community Emergency Plan for Carlton and Chellington Parish Council to consider and this will be discussed at May meeting with a view to producing a parish plan. Mr. Cirin concluded by talking about Avian flu and a possible flu pandemic and was thanked for his presentation.
CARLTON HOME WATCH - Miss Karen Dathorne updated meeting regarding the state of Home Watch in the village, we have street co-ordinators but need a village co-ordinator. She was unable to co-opt anyone at the meeting because there were only three parishioners present, but will continue seeking a volunteer. Following questions to Miss Dathorne, she was thanked for attending Carlton.
Parish Council will continue to liaise with her in this matter.
GENERAL VILLAGE MATTERS
Mrs. Keron asked whether the Parish Council received any revenue from the advertisers who use the village notice boards ? No.
Mr. Brandon thanked the Chairman, Mr. Benson, for his year in office, and thanked Mrs. Allsopp for
agreeing to undertake the clerk’s position temporarily.
THERE BEING NO FURTHER BUSINESS, The Chairman thanked everyone for attending and the
meeting closed at 9.45. p.m. |
