Minutes 7th November 2017

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MEETING NUMBER 457

Held at Downing Court on Tuesday 7th November 2017 starting at 7.30pm

Present: Cllr Mrs Sue Romero (SR); Cllr Mary Smith (MS); Cllr Gordon Reid (GR); Cllr Peter Raby (PR); (KB); Cllr Robin Sewell; Cllr Mrs N Bates; Cllr Mrs Lynn Reed;
Members: 9 Quorum: 3

Absent:

Members of the Public:
Clerk: Mrs D Bayliss
D Cllr Allen Alderson
C Mathew Shuter
0 Parishioners
Meeting opened at 7.32pm

4356 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Kay Ballard; John Trapp;

4357 MEMBERS DECLARATION OF INTEREST FOR ITEMS ON THE AGENDA
Cllr SR – 4362c) Other Planning Matters
Cllr NB – 4367 f) Payments

4358 OPEN FORUM FOR PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
None

4359 TO APPROVE MINUTES OF MEETING 456 3rd OCTOBER 2017
It was proposed by Cllr PR and seconded by Cllr MS that the minutes of the meeting held on 3rd October 2017 are approved and signed by the Chairman with an amendment 4344a) to include the word ‘were’.
CARRIED
LR & NB abstained from the vote as they were not at the meeting.

4360 MATTERS ARISING including REPORTS FROM CLERK AND COUNCILLORS
(For information only)
Item 4134 (September Meeting) The address should be 79 High Street, not 67 as stated in the minutes of that meeting.
Allen Alderson had contacted the planning department re the telephone kiosk. The clerk to the council will need to contact the planning department about whether it needs planning permission or not. This will depend on what the box is to be used for.
SR attended a planning workshop organised by CPRE which was a very informative session – a full day’s training crammed into a morning.
NB attended the new councillor training sessions in Sutton. Very informative course. Will attend the third session in February.

4361 COUNTY AND DISTRICT COUNCILLORS REPORTS
County Councillor
Mathew Shuter introduced himself and apologised for not having attended a parish council meeting since his re-election in May.

  • Representing 14 Parish Councils, the meetings of some of these overlap.
  • Has been a County Councillor for 12 years and is also the District Councillor for Cheveley.
  • Recently been fighting the local plan and ad hoc planning applications as he does not believe there is the necessary infrastructure for additional houses in the south of the district and Cheveley in particular.
  • Will endeavour to attend meetings if the parish council have specific issues that they would like him to pursue for them.
  • Chair of the Highways and Community Infrastructure Committee
  • Great supporter of the Speed Watch Scheme and would be happy to support a group in the village which may help with receiving funding from the minor highways improvement scheme.
  • Chair of the County Road Safety Committee responsible for dealing with potholes/gritting – the Gritting Routes are staying the same this year. 40% of the roads are currently salted.
  • £1.3m has been secured from the government for upgrading the A1303 from Quy to Newmarket which is one of the most dangerous roads in the country. The County Council will come up with a range of proposals and then consult on them.
  • Most of the speed cameras in the district are not active. This matter needs to be addressed as does the matter of the money for the fines going to the police when in fact it is the County Council who pay for the cameras. The cameras are to be updated to digital models.
  • The Ely by-pass is back on track to be delivered on time.
  • The street lighting contract with Balfour Beatty has been fraught with problems. All lights should be included on the county register. The bulbs are all to be replaced with LED’s over the next few years under the PFI contract.
  • Swaffham Bulbeck may wish to be a part of the Parish Forum as there is a feeling that ECDC does not properly represent councils in the south of the district.
  • Completing a Neighbourhood Plan might be a good way to consider forward planning for the village and can be done in conjunction with other parishes.
    District Councillor
    The District Councillors report was distributed before the meeting. There were no questions from councillors about the report.

4362 PLANNING MATTERS
a) Planning Applications
17/01782/VAR Variation of condition 1 (Approved plans) of previously approved 16/01318/FUM for change of use to equine use, construction of 3No dwellings and 3No stable blocks at New England Stud, Heath Road, Swaffham Bulbeck (Information only).
b) Planning Approvals
17/01386/FUL Proposed single storey to side/rear of existing detached dwelling with internal alterations at 70 High Street, Swaffham Bulbeck for Mr & Mrs David Saunders.
17/01605/FUL Alteration to South Porch to provide a lavatory at St Marys Church, High Street, Swaffham Bulbeck for St Mary’s Church.
c) Other Planning Matters
I. East Cambs Local Plan Update – 8th November – 19th December. The Clerk will complete the form and state that there are no further comments from the parish council.
II. 17/01231/FUM Construction of 20 dwellings with associated parking and amenity space and retention of existing offices on site at Former Hillside Quarry Corner of Quarry Lane and Heath Road, Swaffham Bulbeck for Greensons Properties Ltd. Not all available information was presented to the Planning Committee on 4th October and as a result local opinion from individual members of the community and the Parish Council were not taken into account when the decision was made. As a result of a letter sent to ECDC by the Chair of the Parish Council this application will be re-visited by ECDC at the Planning Committee Meeting on 6th December. SR will speak about this proposal at the meeting and NB, RS, MS may attend.
III. 17/01652/TRE/Swaffham Bulbeck /CA Tree work approval for Martin House, 1 Station Road, Swaffham Bulbeck.
IV. 17/01758/TRE & Trees/Swaffham Bulbeck/CA Tree Work Approval for 73 High Street, Swaffham Bulbeck. Clerk

4363 DENNY AND PLAY AREA MATTERS
a) NB will carry out the play area inspection in November. An updated rota will be circulated. Clerk

4364 Pavilion Matters
PR reported on the latest pavilion development meeting.

  • A meeting has been held between Guy Marsden, Sue Romero and the planning officer who had consulted officers from the conservation and trees teams. Overall, the proposal had met with a very positive response from the District Council.
  • It was agreed that a list of potential architects should be drawn up by Guy Marsden, and a selected number invited to submit expressions of interest based on the existing Design Brief.
  • George Ballard will be updating the business plan for the next meeting.
  • English Heritage will be approached for comments on the plans because of the site’s proximity to a Scheduled Ancient Monument.

AA & MS left the meeting at 8.30pm

4365 CEMETERY MATTERS
a) It was proposed by Cllr LR and seconded by Cllr MS that the quotation for levelling the graves in the new cemetery from Mr Wilding for £950 is approved.
5 in favour
I against
1 abstained
CARRIED

Clerk

4366 UPDATE FROM THE INFORMATION COMMISSIONER
No payment has been made to the website provider so it is not able to be updated. Cllr MS is trying to contact them to request an invoice. Once this matter has been addressed councillor email addresses will be considered. MS

4367 FINANCES INCLUDING APPROVAL OF OUTSTANDING ACCOUNTS
a) The clerk’s salary will continue to be paid by BACS by 28th Month. Councillors should receive an email 25/26th of each month asking them to authorise payments.
b) It was proposed by Cllr GR and seconded by Cllr NB that delegated authority is given to the Clerk to the Council to approve training expenditure for councillors and clerks not exceeding the agreed budget figure in any one financial year.
CARRIED
c) The ½ year budget reports were noted by the councillors.
d) The budget will be re-visited before the next meeting in the light of the invoice for the zebra crossing
The clerk will contact Sally Bonnet at ECDC to check whether there are any outstanding CIL monies due to the council.
e) It was proposed by Cllr MS and seconded by Cllr RS that the bank reconciliation for September is approved. The second half of the precept (£9,450) for 2017/18 is included in this reconciliation.
CARRIED
f) It was proposed by Cllr MS and seconded by Cllr LR that the November accounts are approved and paid.
CARRIED
Cheque No; Payee Item Net VAT Total Power
Payments Since the Last Meeting
BACS Mrs D Bayliss Clerk’s Salary £501.90 £0.00 £501.90 LGA 1972 s112
BACS HMRC Tax & NI £125.40 £0.00 £125.40 LGA 1972 s112
Payments for Tonight’s meeting:
BACS Mrs D Bayliss Travel/Telephone £80.36 £0.00 £80.36 LGA 1972 s174
300164 East Cambs Trading Co Ltd CLT Set Up Fees £2,898.00 £0.00 £2,898.00
300165 JCS Bookkeeping Payroll £17.00 £3.40 £20.40 LGA 1972 s112
300166 Glasdon UK Litter Bins £1,270.04 £254.00 £1,524.04 Open Spaces Act 1906 ss9 & 10 LGA 1972 s214
300167 Mr T Wilding Install Litter Bins and Remove Waste £255.00 £0.00 £255.00 Open Spaces Act 1906 ss9 & 10 LGA 1972 s214
300168 Nightingale Landscapes Grass Cutting £913.75 £0.00 £913.75 Open Spaces Act 1906 ss9 & 10 LGA 1972 s214
300169 CAPALC Councillor Training/Clerks and Councillors Catch Up Day £120.00 £0.00 £120.00 LGA 1972 s50
300170 Stoakley Bookbinders Bind PC Minutes £120.00 £0.00 £120.00 LGA 1972 s 50
300171 Parish Online Annual & Set Up Fee £48.00 £9.60 £57.60 LGA 1972 s 50
300172 Mrs N Bates Travel Expenses £40.50 £0.00 £40.50 LGA 1972 s174
Grand Total>>> £6,389.95 £267.00 £6,656.95

4368 Motion to Exclude
That the public (including representatives of the press) be excluded during the consideration of the remaining item No 4369 because it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during the item(s) there would be disclosure to them of exempt information of Category 1 & 2 Part 1 Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).
4369 It was proposed by Cllr SR and seconded by Cllr PR that the meeting be closed to the public and press at 9.15pm
Following a verbal report from Cllr SR and the Clerk following the interviews for the position of handyman it was proposed by Cllr MS and seconded by Cllr LR that the council offer a handyman contract to Mr J Sugg for a retained 2 hours per week at £10 per hour for an initial period of one year. The Council will consider at the next meeting whether to make a contribution towards the cost of the public liability insurance required for this role.
The meeting is Re-opened to the public and press at 9.30pm

4370 TO CONSIDER PRODUCING A WELCOME PACK FOR SWAFFHAM BULBECK
It was agreed to defer this to a future meeting. A lot of information already in the Beacon. SR

4371 CORRESPONDENCE/MATTERS FOR INFORMATION
a) Cambridgeshire County Council Newsletter. Noted
b) Cambridgeshire ACRE Town and Parish Council Conference 17th November 2017.
4372 DATES OF NEXT MEETINGS
A further budget meeting will be arranged.
December 5th 2017
Pavilion Charity Meeting December 5th 7pm.
The meeting closed at 9.46pm