Upton Parish Council Minutes of the Meeting held on 19th July 2023

September 7, 2023

Minutes of the meeting of Upton Parish Council held in the main hall at Upton village hall on Wednesday 19^th July 2023 at 8.00pm.Continue Reading Upton Parish Council Minutes of the Meeting held on 19th July 2023

Minutes of the extraordinary meeting of Upton Parish Council held on Tuesday 6th June 2023 at 7.30pm in the meeting room at Upton village hall.

July 21, 2023

Continue Reading Minutes of the extraordinary meeting of Upton Parish Council held on Tuesday 6th June 2023 at 7.30pm in the meeting room at Upton village hall.

Minutes of the meeting of the Annual Parish Council held in the meeting room at Upton village hall on Wednesday 17th May 2023 at 7.30pm.

July 21, 2023

Continue Reading Minutes of the meeting of the Annual Parish Council held in the meeting room at Upton village hall on Wednesday 17th May 2023 at 7.30pm.

Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council held in the meeting room at Upton village hall on Tuesday 14th March 2023 at 7.00pm.

April 20, 2023

In attendance:- Chairman Ben Shaw (BS)

Vice Chairman Neil Thorp (NT)

Councillors David Beckles (DB), Brendan Heneghan (BH), Peter McLaughlin (PM)

Clerk Liz Cooper (EC)

District Councillor Hayleigh Gascoigne (HG)

To receive apologies for absence

County Councillor S Povolotsky, K Humphrey (Nature Garden)

To record any declarations of interests relating to this meeting

B Shaw – items relating to own property planning consultation & waste collection contract.

To receive the County Councillor’s report

Received in advance of the meeting & sent to Councillors. In addition, SP asked the Clerk to report the

following:-

3.1 A meeting on site regarding the A417 crossing is planned for 24^th March.

3.2 Coffin Way – Bridle Way sign off is expected in April, with a public consultation in June (tbc).

3.3 20mph in the village may be towards the end of 2023.

3.4 The cameras that have been installed & then removed in the village without any notice or agreement,

are connected with Didcot Garden Town. Representations have been made, but with no response.

3.5 Upton PC received a copy of a letter from Chilton PC regarding the crossing from Chilton Road

across Hagbourne Hill. NT to produce a similar letter from Upton PC.

3.6 SP stated that ‘off-grid’ of c£200 grants are available.

To receive District Councillor’s report

Received in advance of the meeting & sent to Councillors.

In response to previous requests for information on expected health care facilities in Great Western

Park, Didcot, HG stated that the Integrated Care Board provide the facilities & the District Council are

not experts & that it is a complex & complicated area. The Parish Council did not accept this

explanation. BS asked as the money sits with the District Council, why can they not start with the basics

(i.e. install car park & portacabins, as had been demonstrated before in the area)? BS, on behalf of the

Council, asked what the Council can do to help? Also, can the monies held be secured & not expire?

Further answers were requested from the District Council via HG.

5. Open Forum

Mr & Mrs Concannon attended the meeting to raise their concerns over the works related to the

installation of the crossing on the A417 between the turnings of Chilton Road & Station Road, & the

effects these actions were having on their home. These included:-

Toucan crossing – regulations not met (must be 20 metres from a junction)
Two lights over crossing installed, only one required
Substantially re-establish severely removed greenery/trees
Confirm line of sight through junction
Establish if ‘no beep’ crossing?

Mr Concanon to confirm details in an email to BS.

PM to draft email to local MP.

To hear an update from the PCC

Provided in advance of the meeting by P Batho as follows:-

6.1 We are very pleased to report good progress on the vestry refurbishment project at St Mary’s. Thanks to the generosity of villages and the confirmation of two outstanding grant applications, we have now reached our funding target and the architect is seeking tenders for the work. The submission date is 5^thApril. We have still not managed to repair the broken bell rope. Access is the main issue. Many thanks to Neil Thorp for his help and advice. We are currently awaiting a response from the building insurers on whether we can hire equipment and do the job ourselves. The village fete for 2023 is currently in the balance. Several volunteer organisers from previous years are not available this year and the PCC does not have the resources to organise the event by itself. Paul Batho and Rob Traynor are liaising over a campaign to seek a new band of volunteers, especially from people who have moved to the village more recently, to help not just with the fete but with other village events. A leaflet drop is planned to all houses in the village imminently.

6.2 Councillors stated their willingness to help with the Upton Fete. NT to contact P Batho & ask how the

Council can help.

Councillor B Heneghan arrived at 7.30pm.

To hear an update from a UVHAT representative on village hall operations

No response was received from UVHAT following a request for representation at the meeting & a report.

BS & BH, as Council representatives on UVHAT, stated that a UVHAT meeting due to be held on 22 February was cancelled on the day of the meeting. A new date has not yet been notified.

To hear an update from the Nature Garden representative

BH, as the Council representative on the Nature Garden group, expressed his unhappiness with the non-

attendance of other Nature Garden representatives at Parish Council meetings. The Council understands

that K Fletcher is no longer the Nature Garden’s representative to the Parish Council.

The following update was received from K Humphrey in advance of the meeting:-

Our update is as follows:

– bulbs planted (November)

– sign installed (December)

– bench stripped, repaired, repainted and reinstalled – many thanks to Ian Wright for arranging Brian

for his time and craftsmanship prepping this, and Rob for help transporting (January)

– overflow cemetery hedging trees tended/ 6 replaced (February)

Plans for spring are as follows:

– water butt installation. Aim is to carry out as part of village hall guttering repairs. UVHAT intend to

hire a workman to complete in the next few weeks (March).

– initial pruning of pome fruit and hedging (March)

– spring prep volunteer day tba tasks in line with annual plan

– assessment of plant health and additional stock required (March)

– prep for additional wildflower seed sowing (March)

We’d like to purchase some wood chip/mulch as a grass suppressant as we’re nearly out of the last batch. I recently had a truckload from a tree surgeon for £20, so not v expensive. We’d also like to buy wildflower seed to ensure we get as good a display as last year (£60).

To approve the minutes of the Parish Council meetings held on:-

UPC Meeting 17^th January 2023

Council unanimously agreed the minutes to be a true record.

10. Planning

10.1 To agree / ratify the council’s response to the following consultations

10.1.1 P23/V0433/HH South Springs, Stream Road, Upton

New car port.

Deadline 24.03.23

Council agreed no objections to this consultation, with one abstention.

10.1.2 P23/V0475/FUL Horse & Harrow, Main Street, West Hagbourne

Change of use of land to provide residential garden space in association with P22/S3609/FUL.

Deadline 29.03.23

Council agreed no objections to this consultation, with one abstention.

10.1.3 P22/S3609/FUL Horse & Harrow, Main Street, West Hagbourne

Change of use of public house & build of other dwellings.

Deadline 27.02.23

UPC unable to return response as refers to P23/V0475/FUL

10.1.4 P23/V0252/FUL Skippets Stables, Dene Hollow, Chilton

Erection of single storey amenity building, together with a 3-bay equine building providing a

treatment centre & secure storage.

Deadline 15.03.23

UPC agreed no objections & returned 28.02.23

10.1.5 P23/V0257/HH Somerset House, Chilton Road, Upton

Demolition of existing conservatory & screen wall. Erection of to-storey extension to dwelling.

Deadline 03.03.23

UPC agreed no objections & returned 02.03.23

10.1.6 P22/V2219/FUL Amendment 1 Land between Upton footpath & Upton byway off Hollow Way, Upton

As amplified by LVIA, landscaping scheme etc.

UPC returned objection 14.02.23

It was also noted by Council that HG had successfully amended the site address of the original application, which was incorrect.

10.1.7 P22/V2281/HH amendment no.1, Halt House, 4 Beeching Close, Upton

Two-storey rear extension. Single storey extension with raised entrance ramp etc.

Deadline 14.02.23

UPC agreed no objections 14.02.23

Returned 14.02.23

10.2 To note planning permissions /withdrawals received during the month

10.2.1 P22/V2956/HH Icknield House, Chilton Road, Upton

Planning permission 26.01.23

10.2.2 P22/V2432/HH Conifers, Stream Road, Upton

Planning permission 02.02.23

12. Finance & Administration

12.1 To receive an update UPC Finances

12.1.1 Treasurers Account to 28.02.23 £4947.10

Business Bank Instant Account to 28.02.23 £13,086.81

Total funds available as at 28.02.23 £18,033.91

12.1.2 To hear an update on UPC’s VAT 126 reclaim

Claim totalling £4301.05 sent to HMRC by post 06.03.23

12.2 To agree the authoriser for this month’s payments.

BS & PM

12.3 To approve payments to be made noted spending powers and within budgeted amounts

Council agreed to include a third Krystal Hosting invoice for £9.59 received after the agenda was

issued.

DATE	Description /Payee	Amount
28.02.22/ 28.03.23	Clerk’s salary since last meeting [LGA1972 s112(2)]	Not publicly disclosed
14.03.23	Clerk’s expenses [LG(FP)A 1963r5	-£16.40
28.02.22/ 28.03.23	HMRC PAYE (Feb £95.60*, Mch TBC) [LGA 1972 s112(2)]	£95.60 +Mch23 TBC
28.02.23 / 28.03.23	Microsoft subscription @£4.50pm* [LGA1972 s111]	£9.00
24.02.23	Stationery* (via debit card) [LGA1972 s111]	£13.04
27.02.23	Krystal Hosting domain name renewal* (upton-village.co.uk) [LGA 1972 s142]	£9.59
20.02.23	Krystal Hosting domain name renewal* (uptonpc.co.uk) [LGA 1972 s142]	£9.59
20.02.23	Kingdom Signs* (rec ground entrance) [LGA 1972 s137]	£426.55
20.02.23	Kingdom Signs* (play areas) [LGA 1972 s137]	£309.22
20.02.23	OALC Course EC [LGA 1972 s111]	£36.00
	Expenses NT (timber for play area repair) [LG(FP)A 1963 s5]	£36.84
06.03.23	Organised Grime* [LGA 1972 s137]	£168.00
06.03.23	Broxap 2 x new bins* [LA 1983 s5]	£636.00
Total		£1733.03 (plus salary above)

Receipts	Description	Amount
SSE	Wayleave payment	£2.00
Lloyds Bank	Interest January & February 2023	£12.26
Total		£14.26

*All paid to be ratified

12.4 To sign off bank reconciliation to end February.

Provided in advance of the meeting & signed by BS at the meeting

The Chairman left the meeting at 8.15pm & vice-chair Neil Thorp took over proceedings.

12.5 To hear / agree on any other financial or administration updates

12.5.1 2023 Elections update

The Clerk gave an update on the elections pertaining to the Parish Council. The Clerk asked that those who intend to complete nomination papers do so as soon as possible & ensure that their forms are completed correctly. The Clerk will then take all forms to the District Council offices.

12.5.2 Defibrillator status

The Clerk confirmed that the pads & possibly battery needed to be replaced. To speak to S

Robertson who originally donated the defib unit.

12.5.3 Ratify updated UPC Planning Consultation Procedure

Council duly ratified the updated procedure.

12.5.4 Deputy Clerk in Training – Council to finalise / agree job ad & description content

Council formally ratified its decision to recruit a Deputy Clerk (November 2022 Finance

Committee minute 6.2, November 2022 meeting minute 12.5.2.2 iii).

The Clerk explained that the job ad & description produced by Council were not factually

correct & a corrected version explaining this had been issued. Council asked the Clerk to re-

issue these versions to Council for further consideration.

Clerk’s note:- Council subsequently agreed to corrected version of job ad & description, with a

wide pay range. Clerk to proceed to issue job ad as directed by the Chairman.

To hear any updates on any aspect of the recreation ground play areas

13.1 Adventure play area remedial work / inspections

13.1.1 RoSPA carried out a quarterly inspection of all the play areas, but did not notify the Council in

advance. Clerk to speak to RoSPA. It was also noted that it was subsequently deemed by

Council that it was not necessary to take the slide out of use for minor repairs.

13.1.2 Remedial work to swings – three contractors were approached to quote for the work to

reinstate the swings, with two responding. Final quotes TBC.

13.1.3 It was noted that two new play area signs had been installed on the recreation ground.

13.2 Toddler play area

See 13.1 above. No other issues highlighted.

13.3 Pump track

See 13.1 above. No other issues highlighted.

13.4 The leader of the Amazons Girls Football is to meet with BS on site to discuss arrangements for

football training.

To hear any updates on the maintenance of the recreation ground

14.1 New bin provision

Two new bins had been delivered & would be installed in due course by BS/PM.

Clerk to order ‘no dog waste’ stickers for new bins.

14.2 New bin collection

This was going well with the new contractor, Organised Grime.

14.3 Maintenance activity

14.3.1 Update on the appointment of Scofell

A 12-month contract with Scofell for the management of the recreation ground, cemetery

field & other areas had been signed & commenced on 1^st March.

14.4 New signage for the recreation ground

A new sign at the entrance to the recreation ground has been installed.

14.5 Any other updates on the recreation ground

The Amazons girls’ football group were in discussions with BS on behalf of the Council to ensure that the football training could continue. To this end, Council agreed that if the leader of the Amazons organised a portaloo to be installed in an unobtrusive spot on the recreation ground, & that this was kept locked when out of use & was emptied on a regular basis.

To hear an update on Speed Watch Activities from BH

Speed Watch activities would be organised when all roadworks are complete.

To hear an update on UPC IT from PM

Three annual Krystal Hosting invoices had been received & paid.

To hear any update on Risk Management

Compliance, GDPR & any other risk management updates.

No update for this meeting.

To hear an update on the production & issue of Upton News – NT

Agree content for next edition of Upton News

Council agreed for the following items to be covered in the next edition:-

Play area update
Crossing update
New signage update

To set the date and venue of the next full council meeting

19.1 The annual meeting of the parish will take place on Wednesday 26^th April from 7pm in the Village

Hall

19.2 The next full council meeting will be the Annual Parish Council meeting on Wednesday 17^th May, or

Wednesday 24^th May 2023 at 7.30pm in the meeting room in the village hall. See also 19.3 below.

The Council noted that these dates are election outcome dependent.

19.3 BH put forward a proposal to move UPC meetings to Wednesdays at 7.30pm. This was seconded by

NT & all others in favour. Clerk to organise.

The meeting finished at 8.55pm.

Appendix A – Actions from meetings

No.		Actions from March Meeting	By when
1.		NT to produce letter re Hagbourne Hill crossing	Actioned
2.		PM to draft letter to MP re Upton crossing works	ASAP
3.		NT to contact P Batho re offer of Council help to organise village fete.	Actioned
4.		Clerk to speak to S Robertson re replacement defib pads/battery	Actioned
5.		Clerk to speak to RoSPA re notification of inspections	ASAP
6.		Clerk to order ‘no dog waste’ stickers for new bins	ASAP
7.		Clerk to organise change of meeting dates	Actioned
8.		BS/PM to organise installation of new bins	ASAP
9.		Clerk to issue Deputy Clerk job ad as appropriate	Actioned
No.	Actions from previous meetings		By When
7.		BH to speak to B Lott re marquee storage inside UPC garage.	ASAP
6.	BH to source fencing quotes for replacement of fence at end of recreation ground		This is postponed until further notice.
7.	BS to obtain quotes for chain & post fencing to delineate current overflow parking area.		This is postponed until further notice.
8.	BH to produce a specification for a new surface for overflow parking		C’fwd
9.	BS to obtain quotes for a new surface in the overflow area (once spec produced)		C’fwd
10.	Clerk to email UVHAT re parking considerations		C’fwd
17.	BH & PM to arrange the installation of the speed watch signs.		C’fwd until roadworks complete.
19.	All to consider IT back-up & future proof options		C’fwd

4.	PM to organise fitting of nets to goal posts	C’fwd
7.	BS to invite villagers to state what they would like to see from a ‘welcome to the village’ pack.	From November meeting

Minutes of the Upton Parish Council Meeting held on 17th January 2023

January 30, 2023

Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on Tuesday 17^th January 2023 at 7pm in the meeting room in the village hall.

In attendance:- Chairman Ben Shaw

Vice Chairman Neil Thorp

Councillors David Beckles, Brendan Heneghan

Clerk Liz Cooper

District Councillor Hayleigh Gascoigne

To receive apologies for absence

Peter McLaughlin, Sally Povolotsky

To record any declarations of interests relating to this meeting

B Shaw (any discussion on recreation ground bin collections)

To receive the County Councillor’s report

No report received this month.

To receive District Councillor’s report

Report received & distributed to Council members. In addition:-

The Council confirmed to HG it was not aware of any ‘Warm Spaces’ being run in Upton.
NT & BH asked for an update on the provision of new healthcare facilities? HG explained that no planning consultations had yet been raised for healthcare facilities in Great Western Park or any other new development. BH to provide HG with a list of related questions.

HG explained about the possibility of a future district council boundary change that may affect Upton village. This is the responsibility of the Boundary Commission & any changes would not be in the near future.

To receive a report from the PCSO

No report received.

Open Forum

No members of the public were present.

To hear an update from the PCC

The following report was received from P Batho & J West:-

We were pleased to welcome good numbers to the Christmas services held at St Mary’s, and it was
great to see a full church for the Crib Service on Christmas Eve.

It was also a pleasure to welcome the Parish Council to the church on 15th December. This was a good
example of how the church building might be used more widely by the community especially once the
proposed improvements have been completed, aided maybe by a heating upgrade!

A newsletter and final appeal for the vestry improvements has been distributed to all houses in the village in the last couple of days. In summary, planning consent and a diocesan faculty have been received and a bat survey and tree protection measures are in hand. We are aiming to raise the final £12,000 which should enable us to seek tenders for the work in the spring, with the hope of undertaking the works as soon as possible thereafter.

Finally, we are still awaiting an estimate from Whites Bellhangers for the repair of the bell rope (which broke in September) and a general overhaul of the bell frame. It appears they may not be prioritising such a relatively small job, so we are looking at the possibility of undertaking the work using voluntary labour. In particular, if anyone in the village has access to a portable scaffold tower, we’d be very pleased to hear from them.

To hear an update from a UVHAT representative on village hall operations

There was no report nor attendance from any UVHAT representative. However, BS & BH reported that

the UVHAT AGM would be held on Wednesday 25^th January.

To hear an update from the Nature Garden representative

There was no attendance from a Nature Garden representative. The following update was received

from K Humphrey:-

Headlines from the nature garden are:

bulbs successfully planted
sign erected
the team was concerned to learn about the development proposal on the boundary – and dismayed that no parish council comment was recorded about the proposal and potential impact on the nature garden
next maintenance day in the works – probably in the spring

To approve the minutes of the Parish Council meetings held on:-

UPC Meeting 23rd November 2022

Council agreed that the minutes were a true record of the meeting.

11. Planning

11.1 To agree / ratify the council’s response to the following consultations

11.1.1 P22/V2956/HH Icknield House, Chilton Road, Upton

Single storey rear extensions with double glazed full height frames & Ultraframe double

glazed roof.

Deadline 20.01.23

Returned 18.01.23. Four no objections & one abstention from UPC.

11.1.2 P22/V2432/HH Conifers, Stream Road, Upton

Convert existing single garage to habitable space & reorder interior. Create new flat-roofed

extension with small porch in the north re-entrant corner of the existing. Provide/extend

parking for 4 cars to the front.

Deadline 09.12.22

UPC returned no objections 20.12.22

11.2 To note planning permissions /withdrawals received during the month

None.

12. Finance & Administration

12.1 To receive an update UPC Finances

12.1.2 Treasurers Account to 31.12.22 £7,428.59

Business Bank Instant Account to 31.12.22 £13,080.14

Total funds available as at 31.12.22 £20,508.73

12.2 To agree the authorisers for this month’s payments.

NT & PM

12.3 To approve payments to be made noted spending powers and within budgeted amounts

DATE	Description /Payee	Amount
28.12.22/ 28.01.232	Clerk’s salary since last meeting [LGA1972 s112(2)]	Not publicly disclosed
24.11.22/ 08.01.23	Clerk’s expenses [LG(FP)A 1963r5]	£21.80
28.12.22/ 28.01.23	HMRC PAYE (Dec £84.50, Jan £85.40) [LGA 1972 s112(2)]	£169.90
28.12.22 / 28.01.23	Microsoft subscription @£4.50pm [LGA1972 s111]	£9.00
16.12.22	CloudAlly 1 year backup wef 16.01.23 [[LGA1972s111 ]	£42.00
05.12.22	Dark White Digital – IT updates (Paid to be ratified) [[LGA1972s111]	£40.00
06.12.22	Moore external audit (Paid to be ratified) [[LGA1972s111]	£480.00
19.12.22	OALC W2284 BS Budgeting course [LGA1972s111]	£66.00
18.01.23	OALC W2351 BH Training course [LGA1972s111]	£132.00
18.01.23	OALC W2352 BH Training course [LGA1972s111]	£144.00
18.01.23	OALC W2353 BH Training course [LGA1972s111]	£48.00
Total		£1152.70 (plus salary above)

Receipts	Description	Amount
Blewbury Parish Council	SLCC Membership share [LGA1972s143]	£124.00
Lloyds Bank	Interest December 22	£2.99
Total		£126.99

12.4 To sign off bank reconciliation to end December.

Provided in advance of the meeting & signed by BS at meeting

12.5 To review the final budget for 23/24 & agree the precept

Council formally agreed, by majority (with one against), to increase the precept by 5%. The precept

application would therefore be in the sum of £26,500. EC to return precept application.

12.6 To hear / agree on any other financial or administration updates

End of Q3 results were distributed to Council ahead of the meeting & were accepted by Council.

To hear any updates on any aspect of the recreation ground play areas

13.1 Play area inspections

13.1.1 RoSPA had carried out a quarterly inspection in January & Council had received the

subsequent report. The play area bin would be replaced as soon as a new one can be

ordered & delivered. The Slide was noted in the RoSPA report & would be taken out of use,

due to the wear on the wooden platform. Council to organise ASAP. PM & BS to issue a

notice via usual communication channels

13.1.2 Ground inspections were carried out by Council members on a regular basis.

13.2 Toddler play area

No areas of concern reported.

13.3 Adventure play area

See 13.1.1 above. A new sign has been ordered.

13.4 Pump track

No areas of concern reported. A new sign has been ordered.

To hear any updates on the maintenance of the recreation ground

14.1 New bin provision / new bin collection proposal

14.1.1 Council agreed unanimously to order two new single bins for the recreation ground. One

to replace the one by the play area & the other to be placed elsewhere on the recreation

ground. EC to order bins.

14.1.2 Council unanimously agreed that Organised Grime would be formally engaged to collect bin

refuse from the recreation ground with effect from 1^st February 2023 for a trial period of 3

months. EC to formalise.

14.2 Current maintenance activity

Previously received quotes are to be reviewed & updated for further consideration.

14.3 New signage for the recreation ground

A new sign for the entrance to the recreation ground has been ordered.

14.4 Any other updates on the recreation ground

BH to speak to B Lott regarding additional storage within the UPC garage to house the marquee.

To hear an update on Speed Watch Activities from BH

No update.

To hear an update on UPC IT

EC reported a problem with the UPC laptop. Council agreed for EC to pursue outside help to sort out

the problems.

To hear any update on Risk Management

Compliance, GDPR & any other risk management updates – no update.

To hear an update on the production & issue of Upton News – NT

Agree content for next edition of Upton News – Council agreed to note the 23/24 budget had been

agreed & the precept would be increased by 5%. Also to include play area considerations.

To set the date and venue of the next full council meeting

Full council meeting Tuesday 14^th March 2023 at 7.00pm, meeting room in the village hall

The meeting closed at 8.30pm.

Appendix A – Meeting Action Points

No.	Actions from January Meeting	By when
1.	BH to provide HG with questions relating to health care provision on Great Western Park & other new developments.	Actioned.
2.	EC to return precept form.	Actioned.
3.	Council members to arrange taking the adventure play area slide out of use.	ASAP
4.	PM, NT & BS to issue notice via usual communications channels re slide taken out of use.	ASAP
5.	EC to order 2 new bins.	ASAP
6.	EC to formalise trial agreement with Organised Grime.	ASAP
7.	BH to speak to B Lott re marquee storage inside UPC garage.	ASAP
8.	EC to sort out laptop problems & report back.	ASAP

No.	Actions from previous meetings	By When
6.	BH to source fencing quotes for replacement of fence at end of recreation ground	This is postponed until further notice.
7.	BS to obtain quotes for chain & post fencing to delineate current overflow parking area.	This is postponed until further notice.
8.	BH to produce a specification for a new surface for overflow parking	C’fwd
9.	BS to obtain quotes for a new surface in the overflow area (once spec produced)	C’fwd
10.	Clerk to email UVHAT re parking considerations	C’fwd
12.	Clerk to organise formal agreement for new bin collection.	Actioned
15.	HG to let Clerk know what replacement VoWH signage is available.	Actioned
16.	BH to investigate further improvements to the inside of the garage.	Actioned
17.	BH & PM to arrange the installation of the speed watch signs.	C’fwd until roadworks complete.
18.	Clerk to check IT budget & report back to Council	Actioned
19.	All to consider IT back-up & future proof options	C’fwd

3.	BS & EC to work on Clerk in Training, Lengthman job descriptions & ads	In progress
4.	PM to organise fitting of nets to goal posts	C’fwd
7.	BS to invite villagers to state what they would like to see from a ‘welcome to the village’ pack.	November meeting

Upton Parish Council Minutes 23rd November 2022

January 3, 2023

Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council held in the meeting room at Upton village hall on Wednesday 23^th November 2022 at 7.00 pm.

In attendance:-

Chairman Ben Shaw (BS)

Vice Chairman Neil Thorp (NT)

Councillors Peter McLaughlin PM)

Brendan Heneghan (BH)

Clerk/RFO Liz Cooper (EC)

County Councillor Sally Povolotsky (SP)

To receive apologies for absence

District Councillors Hayleigh Gascoigne (HG)/Sarah Medley (SM)

Councillor David Beckles was not present

To record any declarations of interests relating to this meeting

None.

To receive the County Councillor’s report (see Appendix B below)

BS raised concerns over the Upton road works. BS to email position statement to SP regarding specific

concerns raised by residents & other concerns noted. SP confirmed the A417 now has a constant repair

schedule. SP will call in for review & an emergency site visit.

To receive District Councillor’s report (see Appendix C below)

Received in advance of the meeting & sent to Councillors.

NT to confirm recent fly tipping incidents to Clerk to forward to the District Councillors.

To receive a report from the PCSO

No report this month.

Open Forum

No members of the public were present.

To hear an update from the PCC

There was no PCC representation at the meeting.

To hear an update from UVHAT representative(s) on village hall operations

There was no UVHAT representation at the meeting.

To hear an update from the Nature Garden representative(s) on progress

There was no Nature Garden representation at the meeting.

To approve the minutes of the Parish Council meetings held on:-

UPC Meeting 29^th September 2022

UPC Finance Committee Meeting 3^rd November 2022

Council agreed that the minutes were a true representation of the meetings.

11. Planning

11.1 To agree / ratify the council’s response to the following consultations

11.1.1 P22/S3609/FUL Horse & Harrow, Main St, West Hagbourne

Change of use of public house to 3 & 4-bed dwelling, plus erection of 3 further properties on

land adjacent to the public house.

Deadline 25.11.22

UPC agreed no objections to this consultation (3 no objections & 1 abstention)

11.1.2 P22/V2219/FUL Land at Alden Farm, Hollow Way, Upton

Proposed erection of a new agricultural dwelling with landscaping & associated works.

Deadline 02.11.22

UPC objected 01.11.22 & requested District Council to investigate further.

Clerk to note to the District Council that this application is not land at Alden Farm, it is land

owned by R Napper.

11.1.3 P22/V2281/HH Halt House, 4 Beeching Close, Upton

Erection of 2-storey side extension with partial basement for pool, 105 storey rear extension,

single storey front office & porch extension, conversion of first floor of garage to hobby room.

Deadline 27.10.22

UPC no response.

11.2 To note planning permissions /withdrawals received during the month

11.2.1 P22/V2103/FUL Manor Farm, Main St, West Hagbourne

Planning permission 07.10.22

11.2.2 P22/V1676/FUL Church of St Mary, Church St, Upton

Planning permission 14.11.22

11.2.3 P22/V1790/HH Winterbourne, Stream Rd, Upton

Planning permission 05.10.22

12. Finance & Administration

12.1 To receive an update on the Audit 2021-2022

12.1.1 To receive an update on the external audit conclusion

To hear Moore’s final query on UPC’s EA submission

Moore’s final query asked the Council to restate its eligibility for exemption from an

external audit in 20/21.

To confirm that the Certificate of Exemption for 20/21 is duly ratified as being correct &

complete. To countersign the Certificate of Exemption at this face to face meeting.

Council duly agreed that the Certification of Exemption was correct & this was counter

signed by both the Chair & Clerk.

12.2 To agree the authoriser for this month’s payments

Cllr P McLaughlin.

12.3 To approve payments to be made noted spending powers and within budgeted amounts

12.3.1 Council to note National Salary Award has been concluded & will apply to Clerk’s salary from

November 2022, back dated to April 2022.

DATE	Description /Payee	Amount
28.10.22/ 28.11.22	Clerk’s salary since last meeting [LGA1972 s112(2)]	Not publicly disclosed
30.09.22/ 23.11.22	Clerk’s expenses [LG(FP)A 1963r5	£5.40
28.10.22/ 28.11.22	HMRC PAYE (Oct £90.00, Nov £133.80) [LGA 1972 s112(2)]	£223.80
27.10.22 / 27.11.22	Microsoft subscription @£4.50pm [LGA1972 s111]	£9.00
27.10.22	G de Wilde expenses for Frog Alley clearance (Paid to be ratified) [LGA 1972 s137]	£1017.43
03.11.22	Kompan play area remedial work (Paid to be ratified) [PHAAA 1907 s76(1)]	£3865.80
24.10.22	RoSPA play area annual inspection (Paid to be ratified) [PHAAA 1907 s76(1)]	£302.40
10.11.22	Royal British Legion donation [LGA1972 s137]	£100.00
24.11.22	SLCC Membership (confirmed 14.11.22 to be split with BPC) [LGA 1972 s143]	£186.00
24.10.22	Nature Garden – Gedneys bulbs [LGA 1972 s137] (Paid to be ratified)	£368.70
10.10.22	Nature Garden –Etills water butt [LGS 1972 s137] (Paid to be ratified)	£680.18
Total		£6,434.91 (plus salary above)

Receipts	Description	Amount
Uptonogood	Donation	£3959.45
Lloyds	Interest (Oct/Nov)	£1.96
Total		£3,961.41

12.4 To sign off bank reconciliation to end October.

Provided in advance of the meeting & signed by the Chair at the meeting

12.5 To hear / agree on any other financial or administration updates

12.5.1 Treasurers Account balance at 31.10.22 £13,710.59

Business bank instant balance at 31.10.22 £13,075.75

Total funds held as at 31.10.22 £26,786.34

12.5.2 To hear & agree all items from the Finance Committee meeting held on 3^rd November as

follows:-

12.5.2.1 Council priorities to the end of the financial year – full council ratified items i-iv .

i. Establishing the parameters around the car park extension (physical & financial)

ii. New recreation ground signage

A quote for two new play area signs had been received & was with Council for

consideration.

iii. New waste collection provision & new recreation ground bin. Clerk to order new

bin. BS will arrange installation. Clerk to complete new waste bin collection

documentation.

iv. Further work on footpaths & the cemetery field. Work had been carried out

to establish suitable contractors & one was recommended to the Council for

one-off work before the end of the financial year. Council acknowledged that the

footpath leading from behind the George & Dragon was particularly bad.

12.5.2.2 Council priorities for the next financial year. Council agreed that while investigative

work on projects to establish parameters could be carried out, due to the overall

financial crisis which was creating difficulties with suppliers & the supply chain, large

projects such as the recreation ground fence, may take up to 5 years to come to

fruition.

Car park extension

BH to provide a quote for the supply of telegraph pole markers as a temporary

measure around the car park extension. BH also to speak to UVHAT on the same

subject.

Recreation ground fence

iii. Recruitment of deputy Clerk

Engagement of contractors to carry out green spaces maintenance & play area

remedial work.

12.5.2.3 PM is looking at alternative banking arrangements to present to Council

PM confirmed he is looking for alternatives to Lloyds Bank & would present a

comparison in due course.

12.5.2.4 Committee proposed £100 grant to the Royal British Legion

Full Council agreed to the continuation of this donation, & also agreed to the

continued donation of £50 to the CAB at the end of the financial year.

12.5.2.5 Committee proposed increase in Clerk salary to SCP27 with effect from 01.04.23

This was agreed by full Council.

12.5.2.6 Committee ratified UPC Overtime Policy

Duly acknowledged by full Council.

12.5.3 Following the issue of the draft budget to the full Council, Council to agree to proposed budget,

& the proposed precept for 23/24 of £28,000. This is an increase of 15% on the previous

precept, which is calculated to cover inflationary increases in costs across the board, together

with the employment of contractors & salary increases.

On reflection & in discussion with the full Council, Council recognised that in the current

circumstances, the budget & precept for 23-24 should be reconsidered. All agreed in principle

to keep the precept the same as last year (£24,326), with no increase. This would involve a little

work on the budget & largely means no increases in reserves to fund future projects. NT to

adjust the budget accordingly & forward to Council.

Council was mindful of obtaining villagers opinions on how the financial crisis is affecting the

Parish Council & it’s spending priorities. NT to prepare a written invitation to villagers

accordingly.

12.5.4 To hear an update on any other financial or administration activities

Council resolved to amend its Financial Regulations to include payment by debit card (held by

the Clerk) in paras 6.3 & 6.9.

12.5.5 Council agreed to ratify the following decisions made by the Finance Committee:-

That the Council’s assets & liabilities are sound.
That the Council’s Risk Management Policy is sound.

iii. That while the Council’s insurance is adequate, NT is to carry out a review & report to Council

before the next renewal on 1.6.23.

12.6 Lloyds Bank Mandates

12.6.1 To hear an update on the last Lloyds Bank mandate issued by the Clerk (remove Clerk as

signatory & add Cllr NT as signatory).

Clerk to contact Lloyds & request they fulfil the details of the last mandate issued.

To hear any updates on any aspect of the recreation ground play areas

13.1 Play area inspection arrangements

The play areas were formally inspected by RoSPA in September 2022.

13.2 Toddler play area

No serious areas of concern were highlighted by the inspection report.

13.3 Adventure play area

13.3.1 The swings & swing basket have been removed due to safety concerns. The Council

Acknowledged the difficulties experienced in sourcing both suitable contractors & parts for remedial

work. Council agreed it was unfortunate that items may be out of use for some time.

13.3.2 Council agreed the wood chip surface of the adventure play area needed turning over &

topping up. Clerk’s note:- Top up last supplied by Giffords at a cost of £1590 + VAT.

13.4 Pump track

The pump track is in good order following its resurfacing earlier in the year.

To hear any updates on the maintenance of the recreation ground

14.1 New bin provision / new bin collection proposal

The Clerk is working on sourcing a new bin(s) to be sited at the entrance to the recreation ground.

The Clerk is also working on engaging a new contractor to collect from the new bin.

14.2 Current maintenance activity

BH to check on any planned maintenance activity by the volunteers via R Lott.

14.3 Review of recreation ground signage progress

Briefs for both the play areas signs & a new sign for the recreation ground entrance had been

submitted to suppliers to obtain quotes.

14.4 Any other updates on the recreation ground

14.4.1 Provision of cycle parking at the Rec

BS/BH to consult with UVHAT on the potential provision of cycle parking in the village

hall/recreation ground area.

To hear an update on Speed Watch Activities from BH

No Speed Watch activity can be introduced until the Upton road works are complete. BH to write a

suitable paragraph for the next Upton News & forward to NT.

To hear an update on UPC IT from PM

PM confirmed further works to improve the web site would be carried out by Dark White Digital as soon

as a quote was received & approved.

Risk Management

17.1 To receive an update on Compliance & GDPR

No update.

17.2 To receive any other updates relating to risk

See 13 above. Clerk also to speak to RoSPA regarding additional inspections.

To hear an update on the production & issue of Upton News – NT

18.1 Agree content for next edition of Upton News

Speed Watch update
Budget/Precept update for 23/24

iii. Adventure play area remedial work update

To set the date and venue of the next full council meeting

Full council meeting Tuesday 17^th January 2023 at 7.00pm, meeting room in the village hall

The meeting finished at 9.35pm.

Appendix A – Actions from previous meetings

No.	Actions from September Meeting	By When
2.	Clerk to check & update NG finances	Actioned
3.	Clerk & BS to consider response to external auditor	Actioned
4.	NT to confirm he is fully set up as a signatory for the Council	Actioned
6.	BH to source fencing quotes for replacement of fence at end of recreation ground	November meeting
7.	BS to obtain quotes for chain & post fencing to delineate current overflow parking area.	November meeting
8.	BH to produce a specification for a new surface for overflow parking	November meeting
9.	BS to obtain quotes for a new surface in the overflow area (once spec produced)	TBC
10.	Clerk to email UVHAT re parking considerations	ASAP
11.	BS & PM to organise removal of swings from play area pending replacement	Actioned
12.	Clerk to organise formal agreement for new bin collection.	ASAP
13.	BS to contact previous grounds contractors for new quotes.	Actioned
15.	HG to let Clerk know what replacement VoWH signage is available.	ASAP
16.	BH to investigate further improvements to the inside of the garage.	November meeting
17.	BH & PM to arrange the installation of the speed watch signs.	ASAP
18.	Clerk to check IT budget & report back to Council	ASAP
19.	All to consider IT back-up & future proof options	November meeting

No.	Actions from May meeting	By when
3.	BS & EC to work on Clerk in Training, Lengthman job descriptions & ads	In progress
4.	PM to organise fitting of nets to goal posts	C’fwd
No.	Actions from March meeting	By when
7.	BH to provide quote for rec ground posts & chain.	ASAP
8.	BS to invite Commissioner of Police for photo op following funding for new nets & wheels on goal posts.	ASAP post installation
No.	Actions November meeting	By when
7.	BS to invite villagers to state what they would like to see from a ‘welcome to the village’ pack.	November meeting

Appendix B

OCC news: cost of living special

Cost of living support for low-income pensioners and families: OCC are sending a one-off payment of £85 to 11,000 lower income pensionable households to support with energy bills. Eligible residents will receive an Oxfordshire-branded letter from the Post Office, redeemable for cash at Post Office branches. Schools and colleges will provide children entitled to free school meals with a £15 voucher.

100K pot to help community organisations with energy bills: Applications for grants between £250 and £3000 can be made through the Oxfordshire Community Foundation. Expected to be popular – deadline is 21 November 2022.

In November I proposed a motion around off grid living / energy parity, the council voted to request more energy support for off-grid residents: Many residents in rural areas live without access to mains energy and instead use heating oil, bottled gas, or other forms of fuel. The leader of the council will write to government to request off-grid residents receive the same level of support (£400) as on-grid residents. Conservative councillors abstained on the motion.

In East Hendred & Steventon we have Warm Spaces – I’ve attached the November details for Hendreds, I believe Steventon is every other Tuesday at St Micheal’s Church Hall, well done to everyone for making these happen! Yesterday I met with Cllr Medley and she has ideas for Harwell too!

**************************************************************************

OCC supports care business start-ups: OCC is supporting new ‘micro enterprises’ to become established care providers, helping local businesses to grow, and develop greater local choice for people looking for additional support. The Community Catalysts’ programme takes people through the standards, so that new micro-enterprises have a thorough understanding of what it takes to deliver quality care. Over one hundred people have signed up and have the combined capacity to support one thousand people in the county.

Renewed call on government to fund Special Educational Needs & Disabilities (SEND): OCC is appealing to the government to urgently address the national funding issues facing all local authorities providing SEND services for children and young people. The county council has also submitted to the Department of Education bids for two further special free schools.

Tree services team successfully bids for funding: OCC tree services team has been successful in a bid to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). Funding will be used to provide two new community tree and woodland planting officers who will work to increase tree cover across the county.

More sustainable streetlights policy: OCC has approved a new policy for streetlights to reduce impact on climate change and the environment. The policy considers the impact of light pollution on nature and dark skies in assessing where lighting should be added. When new lighting is necessary, dimming and reduction in operating hours will be used to preserve the night sky.

Parking standards for new developments: Developers will need to follow a revised set of guidelines when they consider parking provisions for new developments. New standards place much more emphasis on cycles, shared car clubs, and public transport than on multiple cars per household. A graduated approach is taken to allow for increased need for parking in rural settings.

Cheaper Park and Ride tickets up and running: Passengers can now buy a combined ticket covering both parking and return bus travel for £4 for a car with only 1 adult and £5 for a car and 2 adults. With both options, up to three children under 16 can travel for free. Drivers are encouraged to purchase a combined ticket through the RingGo parking app, or at one of the onsite ticket machines.

Oxford traffic filters: Public consultation closed on 13 October 2022. The next step is for the cabinet to take a decision on 29th November 2022, where the cabinet will consider the outcomes of the public consultation and the closure of Botley Road for a year by Network Rail to accommodate improvements to the railway.

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Local News

Harwell, annual Speedwatch data submitted to roads safety teams and once again I’ve asked for a review of Reading Road, also highlighted again concern over the SIDS data. Am also chasing final designs of the high street and now the S278 works for Grove road (which apparently is happening this month!!!). I’ve had more complaints about Grove Road, the “rural” section and it needs a resolution, it’s still too fast at 40mph, poorly maintained and used as a racetrack by LGV and drivers.

Chilton – Hagbourne Hill issues have now raised this as a complaint to directors as simply getting no where. Now has a weekly monitoring station and minimal works due Nov – Dec, won’t solve the issues in my view. 20mph consultation is open.

Chilton Fields – chasing legal on adoption – no news yet!

Rowstock – Rowstock Relief consultation now closed for phase 1. This I’ll review with officers and speak to Steventon PC once data in, as the effected parish. Sadly Milton Heights isn’t in my division so will try and get engagement.

Former Esso – Milton Hill Hotel – appeal set for January 2023, main points of objection for the review pending from VOWH. Noted RRA meeting set for Thursday 10th November, sadly I have 4 clashes on the same evening.

East Hendred – 20mph consultation open (Let’s Talk Oxfordshire), listening to comments and ideas from residents. PC has asked for speed reduction on Newbury Rd to Ridgeway – it’s non residential and would be rejected I think, however it’s fair to ask up to Icknield way as part of active travel network / vision zero!

Mill Lane – further complaints over football parking by residents, raised with Sports Club Committee, car park was rammed this weekend, and despite cones / markers by the club the traffic was still bad on a small access country lane!

Mill Lane – chasing resurface / dressing as deteriorating, as well as “some” pot holes filled, others left despite being marked up!

West Hendred – crossing feedback design to be completed by end 2022, reminder that this was an additional scheme “slotted” into forward plan due to a near miss incident. There’s a need for a retaining structure which meant further needs by Milestone who are the contractor. Noted the email of complaint by WHPC, but the scheme is in the work programme.

Upton Crossing, delays for finishing communicated to PC, resurfacing shifted to December. Given the lead time of over 2 years to this and a decade before the scheme was even funded, I have written to cabinet member in disgust and confusion – I do hope he’s revising the KPIs of Milestone given their contract renewal is soon! Whilst I shout cries of “bring it all back in house!!”. Several issues arose and have communicated these with chair and clerk.
Blewbury, chasing 20mph sign installation. Meanwhile safety review started with officers on Bessels and London road, early days. No other issues flagged in Blewbury

Steventon – resurfacing is November for the subsidence on the High street side of the bridge, questions asked over how far does this work go, as far as I’ve seen it’s fairly isolated to the most effected area.

Stonebridge road defects rectified

Meanwhile we await WRSE report which due next week, and will be supporting GARD with series of public meetings to discuss.

Bells now installed, pending panting – hopefully that will slow down the HGVs

Barnett Road, ongoing concerns for safety due to parking – still trying to get sense of what can be done due to other localised parking issues

20mph scheme designed an waiting for consultation link!

A417 Hendreds, now have a NO CUT sign for the wildflower Meadow and have bulbs to plant (native) and some foxgloves for plant now the ground is sodden, needs a cut around March and we going to go again!

Ongoing

– Village Safety cases – especially those around major A roads (4130 and 417 two main issues locally)

– 20mph schemes / casing the first block which was Steventon, Chilton, Blewbury and E.Hendred – either for signage or final designs, should all be complete by Dec 2022. Note that Harwell 20mph was a S278 scheme

– HIF1 – although now in planning

– Didcot masterplan on traffic, and representing the division at that table, my primary objective is reducing HGV movements!

– Valley Park – working with ward Cllrs Medley and Gascoigne to get residents forums up and running by Dec 22.

– I work at the community hub volunteering 3 x a week, and we distributing food around the local area, happy to discuss how we have made this work with anyone who wants to do something locally, all welcome at the Steventon and Hendred hubs!

– Raising concerns on SEND provision and supported local residents at recent OCC protest, have pulled together a cross party group to listen, and ensure these voices and issues are not forgotten.

– Looking at School Streets locally and school safety concerns, happy to discuss with PCs around how that works, if suitable, in their parishes.

– attended the Zero Hour event last week, around the CEE Bill, sadly although invited the MP didn’t attend

– ongoing letters and work on Thames water SESRO including county water summit which now has a date (finally!!)

– I’ve stepped off most of the committees now at County to focus on cost of living and division centric work, which is frustratingly experiencing delays, I now only sit on AONB, Place Scrutiny, and Localities (which I chair), as feel these are the three most important committees to influence for our people and place!)

That’s all folks, see you at PCs where I can this month, remember you can always ring me with any issues. Councillor priority funding is now all spent and we await to hear if we get anything in 2023. Meanwhile resources and budgets are getting tighter and tighter, especially in non-essential service delivery. It’s not going to be a good winter I feel, and am very concerned, let’s see what 17th November brings us all!

Sally

Cllr Sally Povolotsky FRSA (She / Her)

County Councillor for Hendreds & Harwell Division

Appendix C

Monday 7^th November 2022 Monthly Parish Update

Vale of White Horse District Councillors

Cllr Hayleigh Gascoigne and Cllr Sarah Medley

Hello from Hayleigh and Sarah

Hello! November has started with some great local events in the community – firstly, the annual fireworks display on the Harwell recreation ground on Friday 4^th November. Well done and thank you to the Harwell Scouts for organising the event, the fireworks were very impressive! On Saturday 5^th November we attended the first ever Didcot Eco Fair at Cornerstone Arts Centre. Well done to Sustainable Didcot and South & Vale Business Support for organising – it was a perfect opportunity to shop local with eco-friendly small businesses in the area. Thank you to the local organisations there giving advice and information on home insulation, recycling and ways to save on your energy bills.

We know that the recent energy price increases and rising cost of living continue to be a concern for many residents. A reminder that the council has put together a Cost of Living Help webpage for more information about financial and housing support, and local community food services. You can also contact the council’s Community Support Hub for practical support and advice: call 01235 422 600 (Mon to Thurs 8.30-5pm and Fridays 8.30-4.30pm) or visit www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/communityhub. Citizens Advice Oxfordshire South and Vale can provide you with free, confidential advice via 0808 278 7907. Vale Community Impact can provide free advice too, call them on 01235 765348.

We use these monthly updates to keep you updated on our activities, general council news and any COVID-19 developments. We also post regularly on our councillor Facebook Page: Cllrs Hayleigh Gascoigne & Sarah Medley Please do not hesitate to get in touch with any issues or concerns, either via Facebook message or email: hayleigh.gascoigne@whitehorsedc.gov.uk and sarah.medley@whitehorsedc.gov.uk.  

Community Support

The Council Community Support Hub

The Community Support Hub, originally set up by the council in 2020 in response to the pandemic, is still available for anyone in need of help: if you have COVID-19, or if you are struggling financially due to the cost-of-living crisis, or if you are just finding life difficult due to the pandemic. Whether it’s practical support or just advice, get in touch. Call: 01235 422 600 (Mon to Thurs 8.30-5pm and Fridays 8.30-4.30pm) or visit www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/communityhub.

Ukraine

General Ukraine queries:

www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ukraine
Oxfordshire Ukraine helpline: +44 1865 966444 / 01865 966 444 (opening hours: 8.45am – 5pm, Monday to Friday. Closed weekends and bank holidays).
Email: ukraineresponse@oxfordshire.gov.uk

For housing and community support in South and Vale:

www.southoxon.gov.uk/ukraine
www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/ukraine
South and Vale helpline: +44 1235 422600 / 01235 422600 (press option one). Opening hours: 8.30am-5pm Monday to Thursday, 8.30am-4.30pm Fridays, Closed weekends and bank holidays.
Email: communitysupport@southandvale.gov.uk

Checking your benefits entitlement

From Age UK Oxfordshire – With financial difficulties becoming an issue for more and more people, now is a good time to check your benefits entitlement. Government grants for support with fuel bills commonly check if you were getting a means-tested benefit, such as Pension Credit, so it’s important to ensure you’re not missing out. You can ask a local advice centre to help you, or if you have access to the internet there are several well-known benefits check websites that you can use.

Age UK
https://benefitscheck.ageuk.org.uk

Entitled To
http://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator

Turn2Us
http://benefits-calculator.turn2us.org.uk

You can ring the Pension Service who can check your eligibility for Pension Credit over the phone on 0800 99 1234 (8am to 6pm weekdays). Age UK Oxfordshire Advice Line – 0345 450 1276
www.ageuk.org.uk/oxfordshire

Local News

Didcot & Villages Health Care

Healthwatch Oxfordshire is hosting an online Open Forum on Tuesday 29th November from 4.30pm to 5.30pm, and all are welcome to attend to have your say about local health and care services. For details, including a Zoom joining link, see here.

As part of Healthwatch Oxfordshire’s support for Patient Participation Groups they also hold regular webinars for PPG members and patients on topics of interest. The next webinar will be held on Friday 25th November at 1.30pm and will explore ‘Who else can I see in my doctor’s surgery other than my GP’. More details on this, including a joining link, will be given on the website – click here.

Talented young people star in A Christmas Carol at Cornerstone

Young People from Didcot and the surrounding area will play starring roles in an adaptation of A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens’ festive tale of redemption and compassion, taking place at Cornerstone in Didcot.

To book tickets or find out more visit www.cornerstone-arts.org or call the box office on 01235 515144.

Climate & Environment News

Solar farm public consultation

A developer has launched a public consultation for proposals for a large solar farm in the Vale, West Oxfordshire and Cherwell. The developer proposing the Botley West Solar Farm advise that it is large enough to be considered a ‘Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project’, which means it will be determined by a government appointed Planning Inspector – you can read more about that process here.
The deadline to submit any comments is the 15 December and there will be public events taking place across the area from 19 November – 5 December. There’s more information on the developer’s website

Funding available for community climate projects – apply now!

Communities in the Vale have another chance to apply for funding to help grassroots projects aimed at tackling climate change. Local groups and town and parish councils can apply for a share of £50,000 from the latest round of Vale of White Horse District Council’s Climate Action Fund, with up to £5,000 on offer for individual projects.

The funding is aimed at projects that help to address climate change and increase people’s awareness and knowledge of the climate emergency. Work could focus on areas such as the natural environment, energy, waste and consumption, or transport and travel. Applications are open until midday on 25 November 2022.

New LEDs light up leisure centre

New LED lighting at the White Horse Leisure and Tennis Centre in Abingdon has given the centre a new lease of life and is saving energy at the same time.

Council presents colourful bench to the winner of its litter bug trails competition

There’s a new ‘seat of learning’ at Wootton St Peters School after the school was presented with a bright multi-coloured recycled plastic bench for their playground by Councillor Sally Povolotsky, Vale of White Horse District Council Cabinet Member for Climate Emergency and Environment. Report highlights council’s work towards tackling the climate emergency

Report highlights council’s work towards tackling the climate emergency

Vale of White Horse District Council’s work towards tackling climate change has been highlighted in a new quarterly report. As part of its commitment to openness and transparency, the Vale publishes a performance report showing the progress of its Climate Action Plan. As part of its commitment to openness and transparency, the Vale publishes a performance report showing the progress of its Climate Action Plan. The Plan sets out the steps it will take to become a carbon neutral council and how it will support local efforts to reduce carbon emissions across the district. You can read the full report on the cabinet meeting agenda page.

Claim a free tree for your garden

The International Tree Foundation and Oxfordshire Trees Collaborate are working together this autumn to offer free tree saplings for people to plant in their garden.
For more information and to order a free tree please visit the International Tree Foundations website.

Climate Emergency Advisory Committee – 5^th December

The next climate emergency advisory committee meeting is 5^th December.
The agenda will be published on the website closer to the time.

As always, if you wish to speak in this meeting, or any other, please email Democratic Services a few days in advance of the meeting. The contact is: democratic.services@southandvale.gov.uk

Council News

Full Council meeting – 12 October 2022

Cllr Emily Smith, Leader of Vale of White Horse District Council, delivered her Leader’s statement to Council at the meeting on 12 October 2022.
“At the forefront of my mind at the moment is the worsening Cost of Living Crisis and how we as a council can best support local people and businesses from huge energy bills, rising prices and runaway inflation…“
Head to press release to read the full statement.

Cllr Hayleigh Gascoigne proposed a motion pledging support for businesses struggling with rising costs. Following the approved motion, Cllr Emily Smith, Leader of Vale of White Horse District Council, will write to The Rt Hon Jacob Rees-Mogg MP, Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, to ask him to consider lengthening the energy cap period for small businesses and provide more direct support for the hospitality industry, particularly pubs and restaurants struggling with rising food and energy costs. Read the press release for more information.

A new approach for community health and wellbeing

“We want our residents to be active, healthy and happy.” Those were the words of Cllr Helen Pighills, Cabinet Member for Healthy Communities at Vale of White Horse District Council about a new Active Communities strategy her council has launched in partnership wit South Oxfordshire District Council.

“Our aim is to give our local residents the ability and tools to make a real and sustainable difference to their own activity levels, their physical health and in turn their mental wellbeing,” added Cllr Maggie Filipova-Rivers, South Oxfordshire’s Cabinet Member for Community Wellbeing.

The strategy is a brand new approach to health and wellbeing developed by the two neighbouring councils to help their residents come together to take part in sport, health and recreational activities that improve their physical and mental wellbeing, while forging stronger social links within their local communities.

Bin day changes
Almost every household across Blewbury, Harwell, Chilton and Upton has been affected by the Bin Day changes.

The vast majority of collections have gone ahead without disruption following Biffa’s recent rollout of rerouted collection rounds, however there have been a few issues here and there. If you have been affected, then you can use the contacts below or contact one of us in the usual way to chase this up.

issues connected to the changes to collections should go to the waste team: team@southandvale.gov.uk or 01235 422146.

missed collections not connected to the changes should be reported by residents in the usual way to Biffa by calling 03000 610610.

Anyone needing to check their waste collection details can visit Binzone – whitehorsedc.gov.uk/binzone or southoxon.gov.uk/binzone

Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council held in the meeting room at Upton village hall on Thursday 29th September 2022 at 7.00 pm.

November 30, 2022

This meeting replaced that originally scheduled for the 20th September, which was cancelled following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

Continue Reading Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council held in the meeting room at Upton village hall on Thursday 29th September 2022 at 7.00 pm.

Minutes of the Upton Parish Council Meeting held on 19th July 2022

August 30, 2022

Minutes of a meeting of the Parish Council held in the meeting room at the Upton village hall on Tuesday 19^th July 2022 at 7.00 pm.

In attendance:- Cllr Ben Shaw (BS) Chairman

Cllr Peter McLaughlin (PM)

Cllr Neil Thorp (NT) Vice-Chairman

Cllr David Beckles (DB)

Cllr Brendan Heneghan (BH)

County Cllr Sally Povolotsky (SP)

Miss E Cooper Clerk/RFO

To receive apologies for absence

District Cllr S Medley.

To record any declarations of interests relating to this meeting

BS – any Nature Garden discussion relating to his adjoining fence. Also any discussion on a new bin

collection proposal.

To receive the County Councillor’s report (see Appendix B below)

In addition to the report, SP added:-

Chilton Road dates to be confirmed. Last day of work 18^th October. A TRO is expected & traffic lights

will be in place during the work. A letter of confirmation is imminent.

Coffin Way – a letter to the landowners is imminent from the Upton & Blewbury Chairmen. Intention

to follow with a meeting inc SP, with the objective of re-designating to a Bridle Way.

NT asked about ‘Litter Mapping’? SP explained mapping branded litter will help address the problem, in

proving where the litter is found & addressing with brands, but also local establishments. NT asked that

this information be included in initial notifications in future.

SP will provide a more comprehensive update on waste recycling in November.

To receive District Councillor’s report (see Appendix C below)

To receive a report from the PCSO

‘Very much like the Blewbury in terms of crimes of note for the village, nothing to report.

Slightly wider afield there are no real concerns to report on either. Please let me know if anything comes

up that you think I should be aware of’. PCSO G Kirby 18.07.22

Open Forum

No members of the public were present.

To hear an update from the PCC

Paul Batho on behalf of the PCC reported via email that having received a generous offer of a donation

towards the proposed works, there may be a final appeal for funds, before a revised plan is submitted.

To hear an update from UVHAT representative(s) on village hall operations

No UVHAT representative was present or had produced a report. From a UVHAT meeting held on 4^th July,

BS & BH reported that UVHAT representatives contacted regarding UPC meetings were not receiving such

emails. EC to provide copies of emails & send to BS.

To hear an update from the Nature Garden representative(s) on progress

Report received in advance of the meeting, but no Nature Garden representatives were present.

The Council considers the following requests from the information provided:-

9.1 Installation of water butts. Further information required. If the water butts are to run off the VH

downpipes, the guttering & downpipes would need to be repaired first.

9.2 The Council agreed in principle to the purchase of an A2 oak lectern. It was not clear which supplier

was the best value, based on the cost of the lectern & the application of the artwork panel. KF to

please confirm.

9.3 The Council was unable to approve the artwork for the panel & had the following queries:-

9.3.1 ‘Welcome to Upton Nature Garden’ para. Last line ‘The chemicals that come from dog food will

contaminate the soil.’ If you mean dog poo or faeces, please say so.

9.3.2 ‘In the hedge’ para. The Council was very concerned by the second para ‘For hungry humans’. Of

particular concern is the ‘rugosa rose for hips’ (esp. small hairs irritating the digestive system),

but also the encouragement of the eating of any items in situ, without any further information

or disclaimer. It was felt this left the Council vulnerable & should be addressed. The same would

also apply to ‘In the Glade’.

9.3.3 The Council felt that the bottom right hand list should be preceded by ‘With special thanks to’

or something similar, with UPC listed first, TOE second & OCC third.

9.3.4 The Council noted that despite a request & agreement at the May UPC meeting for the compost

area to be removed from alongside a resident’s fence, this had not happened by the time of the

July meeting (8 weeks later). The Council noted on the NG schedule, ‘re-site compost heap to

behind garage’ in August. The Council did not agree to anything from the NG being deposited

around the garage, & another area (not on the recreation ground & not next to any resident’s

fence), must be found without further delay.

Clerk’s note:- Apologies from K Fletcher received post meeting.

To approve the minutes of the Annual Parish Council meeting held on:-

UPC Annual Meeting 17^th May 2022

Unanimously agreed as a true record.

11. Planning

11.1 To agree / ratify the council’s response to the following consultations

There are no outstanding planning consultations since the last meeting.

11.2 To note planning permissions received during the month

11.2.1 P22/V0802/HH Winterset, Newmans Close, Upton

Planning permission 15.6.22

11.2.2 P22/V0168/HH Rowlands, Church Rd, Upton

Planning permission 24.5.22

12. Finance & Administration

12.1 To receive an update on the Audit 2021-2022.

12.1.1 Internal audit

12.1.1.1 To hear feedback from the internal auditor, IAC

The Clerk reported on the IA’s findings & all minor issues had been addressed.

Further issues are covered below.

12.1.1.2 To ratify that both the Accounting Statements & Annual Governance Statements for

2020-21 were agreed by Council & duly signed (highlighted by internal audit 21-22),

albeit during an virtual meeting held on 2nd June 2021. Council duly ratified.

12.1.1.3 To ratify that both the Accounting Statements & Annual Governance Statements for

21-22 were agreed & signed at the meeting held on 8^th May 2022. Council duly

ratified.

12.1.1.4 To confirm the period for the exercise of public rights

Published on 9.6.22, to commence on 10.6.22 & end on 21.7.22.

12.1.2 To receive an update on the external audit

No report had yet been received from the external auditor.

12.3 To agree the authoriser for this month’s payments.

PM.

12.4 To approve payments to be made noted spending powers and within budgeted amounts

DATE	Description /Payee	Amount
28.6.22 / 28.7.22	Clerk’s salary since last meeting [LGA1972 s112(2)]	Not publicly disclosed
18.5.22 – 19.7.22	Clerk’s expenses	£5.40
28.6.22 / 28.7.22	HMRC PAYE (June £77.20, July TBC)	£154.40
27.6.22 / 2775.22	Microsoft subscription [LGA1972 s111]	£7.60
10.06.22	IAC internal audit (paid to be ratified)	£342.00
06.06.22	BH Expenses – Community Speed Watch Starter Kit (paid to be ratified)	£575.98
16.06.22	Sign Wizzard – Speed Watch signs (paid to be ratified)	£287.56
30.05.22	B. Lott Petrol for mowers expenses	£34.76
Total		£1407.70 (plus salary above)

Receipts	Description	Amount
TOE	Remaining Nature Garden funding	£1223.84
Lloyds	Interest (June/July)	.22
Total		£.1224.06

12.5 To sign off bank reconciliation to end June

Provided in advance of the meeting & signed at meeting

12.6 To hear / agree on any other financial or administration updates

16.6.1 Treasurers Account balance at 30.06.22 £3386.69

Business bank instant balance at 30.06.22 £13,074.09

Total funds held as at 30.06.22 £16,460.78

12.6.2 To hear confirmation of Upton Parish Council’s VAT deregistration

Letter of confirmation received from HMRC dated 15.6.22.

12.6.3 2022/23 UPC Budget

12.6.3.1 To consider if a review of the budget is necessary due to economic circumstances

Council to consider further in September after 2^nd half of precept received & figures to

end August produced.

12.6.3.2 To hear an update on the end of Q1 budget

Council agreed that all was on track, with the only outstanding payment being for

Kompan. However, this payment is expected to be revised by Kompan before being

re-presented for payment to Council.

12.7 Lloyds Bank Mandates

12.7.1 To complete a mandate to update signatories on the account (remove Clerk as signatory & add

Cllr NT as signatory).

Council unanimously agreed to this change to the signatories on the account. Lloyds Bank had

incorrectly set the Clerk as a signatory as well as administrator & the new mandate would

correct this error.

12.7.2 To complete a mandate for the application for a debit card on the account. This replaces the

mandate originally completed in January 2021, which Lloyds Bank failed to fulfil.

Council unanimously agreed to the new debit card application for two members of the

Council.

12.8 To formally agree to adopt the Oxfordshire Councils’ Councillor Code of Conduct 2022

Council unanimously agreed to adopt the Code of Conduct 2022 with immediate effect.

Clerk to send the new Register of Interests form to all Councillors for completion as this now includes

the Code of conduct.

To hear an update on any aspect of the recreation ground play areas

13.1 Toddler play area ) To hear an update on discussions with Kompan regarding their inadequacies

13.2 Adventure play area ) following inspections & minor remedial work in 2021/22.

A meeting was held with a Kompan representative & members of the Council on 12^th The

meeting was held because the previous year’s inspection reports were found to be inadequate &

some remedial work included on an invoice had not been carried out. The Kompan representative

agreed to come back asap & complete the remedial work. He also agreed that he would be the only

person to carry out work on the Upton play areas.

Clerk’s note:- All remedial work has since been completed.

BS was already in discussions with a Kompan manager regarding the inadequate reports &

attention to remedial works. Council agreed that if Kompan are unable to issue a satisfactory invoice

following completion of the works, & offer suitable terms for a further year’s inspections, Council

agreed unanimously to invite a different play area inspector to carry out the inspections.

Clerk to update inspection report & issue to Council to implement new rota of weekly inspections.
Council also unanimously agreed to remain with Kompan for repairs, under supervision, & until a new contractor is found if necessary.

13.3 Pump track

13.3.1 Keeping stinging nettles under control

This will continue to be carried out as & when needed by volunteers.

13.3.2 Any other update on the pump track

None.

To hear any updates on the maintenance of the recreation ground

14.1 New bin provision

BS explained the situation regarding the difficulties now faced with waste collections where unless a

bin is sited on the roadside, it will not be picked up by the District Council’s contractor. This also

applies to bin bags, which will also not be collected if they are not in a bin. This requires a re-think of

the Council’s proposal to buy a multi-bin for the recreation ground, as this may also not be collected.

14.2 To discuss the new bin collection proposal

A bin collection proposal had been received from a new company ‘Organised Grime’, which is owned

by the Chairman, B Shaw. This proposal was in response to the waste collection problems already

being experienced in the village. Council asked Mr Shaw to demonstrate his research in to the

problem & it’s potential solution by producing a formal case for further consideration by the Council.

14.3 Current maintenance activity

Currently only the grass on the recreation is mowed by volunteers. Excessive nettles in & around the

play areas are removed, again by volunteers, as needs be. Council acknowledged a more

comprehensive solution to the management of the whole of the recreation ground was needed.

14.4 Any other updates on the recreation ground

No other updates.

To hear an update on Speed Watch Activities from BH

BH confirmed that Speed Watch village signs & a starter pack had been received. He would update

further when Speed Watch activities are able to start.

To hear an update on UPC IT from PM

PM to send out details of task management software for potential use by the Council. All to feedback to

PM.

Risk Management

17.1 To receive an update on Compliance & GDPR

No update this month.

17.2 To receive any other updates relating to risk

No further updates this month.

To hear an update on the future formats of Upton News – NT

18.1 Current usage analysis NT / PM

NT expressed concern about the lack of contributions to Upton News, suggesting that it had been

supplanted by other formats such as Facebook. However PM advised that usage analysis showed that

it was still frequently accessed by villagers

18.2 Proposed future Upton News format(s)

Council agreed Upton News wold continue in its online format only for the time being, but only one

reminder would be sent to potential contributors.

18.3 Agree content for next edition of Upton News

Council agreed topics for the Council update. Council also agreed that adverts would be excluded with

immediate effect.

To set the date and venue of the next full council meeting & next year’s AGM.

19.1 Full council meeting Tuesday 20^th September at 7.00pm, meeting room in the village hall

19.2 UPC Annual Meeting Tuesday 16^th May 2023 in the meeting room of the village hall (confirmed)

The meeting finished at 10pm.

Appendix A

No.	Actions from this meeting	By when
1.	EC to provide copies of UVHAT emails to BS.	Actioned
2.	KF to confirm best option for lectern & artwork	September meet
3.	KF to confirm other NG actions highlighted have been addressed (compost area, water butt, artwork amends)
4.	EC to send mandates to Lloyds Bank	Actioned
5.	EC to update play area inspection report & implement new rota for weekly inspections.	September meet
6.	BS to report back on Kompan discussions re invoice & future inspections	ASAP
7.	BS (as Organised Grime) to produce formal case waste collection for further consideration by Council	September meet
8.	BH to update on Speed Watch activity start dates	ASAP
9.	All to feedback to PM on task management software	ASAP

No.	Actions from May meeting	By when
1.	KF to arrange removal of NG compost area to elsewhere on the site away from neighbour’s fences.	ASAP
3.	BS & EC to work on Clerk in Training Lengthman job descriptions & ads	In progress
4.	PM to organise fitting of nets to goal posts	June
No.	Actions from March meeting	By when
3.	KF to produce Nature Garden maintenance plan.	Actione4d
7.	BH to provide quote for rec ground posts & chain.	ASAP
8.	BS to invite Commissioner of Police for photo op following funding for new nets & wheels on goal posts.	ASAP post installation
No.	Actions November meeting	By when
7.	BS to 1. put together a welcome pack proposal & 2. look at ways of engaging volunteers. Also spk PM & NT re technical options.	Ongoing

Appendix B – County Councillor Report

Climate Action Oxfordshire website to launch

Thank you to everyone who completed the Oxfordshire climate change survey a few months ago. Working from what we discovered, we’re excited to launch a new website offering practical advice for people in the county who want to reduce their carbon footprint.

Climate Action Oxfordshire lists measures people can take and rates them according to effort, impact, and cost. It also gives people an idea of what financial savings they can make and includes tips and links on how to get started – from large projects such as home insulation to simple things like turning off lights when not in use.

The website is part of a collaboration between all of Oxfordshire’s councils, as well as Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP), to help Oxfordshire fulfil its commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions before 2050.

The site launches officially this coming TODAY (11 July). Please let your friends, colleagues and other networks know about it by sharing our announcement on our social media channels, which will go out at 11am on TODAY.

We have also created a Climate Action Oxfordshire communications toolkit for you with messages and graphics all ready to be posted on social media.

Additionally, if you know of content which could make the site even better, please email antonio.ferrara@oxfordshire.gov.uk with your thoughts.

Our plant-based food initiative showcased as best practice

The Climate Change Committee has highlighted our decision to serve plant-based food at councillor catered events (page 309) as an example of local authorities developing their own policy in the absence of central government guidance relating to dietary shifts to low-carbon alternatives. The committee is an independent statutory body made up of internationally recognised climate scientists and sector specialists who advise the government on tackling climate change. It’s a huge achievement to be recognised by the committee and in such a high-profile report.

Recognition from Michael Gove for our partnerships

Last week, Michael Gove singled us out as an example of local government ‘service at its best’ during a speech at the Local Government Association’s annual conference. It was in recognition of our work during the pandemic to pool resource between us and the district councils to establish a comprehensive system, which ensured a coherent and holistic approach to COVID-19 compliance and enforcement. You can read the speech in full online.

Face mask guidance updated at Oxford University Hospitals (OUH)

From 6 July 2022, the guidance around wearing face masks at OUH has changed. Patients must wear masks in the following areas and under certain conditions:

if you have symptoms of COVID-19, or have tested positive for COVID-19
if you have symptoms of a respiratory illness
in clinical areas, such as on wards.

You do not have to wear masks in other areas, but you are encouraged you to do so, and you will be supported if that is your choice. Visitors must wear masks in all clinical areas.

Further information can be found on the OUH website.

Consultations

We are currently running one major consultation for residents on east Oxford low traffic

neighbourhoods (until 30 November). Please encourage your constituents to have their

say by sharing the link. For details of all other live consultations, visit Let’s Talk Oxfordshire.

A round up of useful links to help you:

Signposting

A reminder, you can direct general Ukraine queries to:

Website: oxfordshire.gov.uk/ukraine
Oxfordshire Ukraine helpline: +44 1865 966444 / 01865 966 444 (opening hours:
45am – 5pm, Monday to Friday. Closed weekends and bank holidays)
Email: ukraineresponse@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Local Roundup

Fairly slow week, I am chasing / working on the following;

Dates on when Harwell new scheme goes to consultation, and final designs
Chilton Road / Upton / Cycle Network – updating chair.
Additional speed / traffic surveys on Hanney Road (Rowstock is in now!)
Managed to help out East Hanney, so their 20mph scheme now the same time as West (anticipated end of 2022 completed)
HEG Community larder moving from 18^th July to Snells Hall, East Hendred due to size / demand (thanks to all who have helped make this happen)
Rowstock Relief, next steps / new timeline
Steventon bridge update given at Parish Council, full report by end summer for Steventon, but no changes any time soon!

Appendix C – District Councillor Report

Monday 11^th July 2022 Monthly Parish Update

Vale of White Horse District Councillors

Cllr Hayleigh Gascoigne and Cllr Sarah Medley

Hello! This month we were delighted to attend the official opening of the District Community Centre on Great Western Park. It was great to see all the local groups offering activities and classes at the centre, and to meet some of the fantastic young people at Didcot TRAIN.

The event included a ceremony awarding three former district councillors the honorary title of Aldermen, in recognition of the service they provided to the council and the district. Congratulations to Jerry Patterson, Jim Halliday and Reg Waite for receiving this honour.

It was great to see the progress being made on the new Extra Care facility next door to the community centre. It is just over a year since construction started for these 80 new affordable extra care homes, funded with support from the District Council.

The Extra Care building is directly opposite the allocated site for the long-awaited GWP Health Centre. Representatives from NHS Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG) and Woodlands Medical Centre attended the Great Western Park Residents’ Association public meeting on Monday 13th June to provide an update. We have summarised the key points in our report, and the good news is that progress is being made at last! Hayleigh is asking for a further update on the GP surgery from the cabinet member for development and infrastructure at the next Vale Full Council meeting on Wednesday 13^th July.

Community Support

The Council Community Support Hub

The Community Support Hub, originally set up by the council in 2020 in response to the pandemic, is still available for anyone in need of help: if you have COVID-19, or if you are struggling financially due to the cost of living crisis, or if you are just finding life difficult due to the pandemic. Whether it’s practical support or just advice, get in touch. Call: 01235 422 600 (Mon to Thurs 8.30-5pm and Fridays 8.30-4.30pm) or visit www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/communityhub.

Council tax rebate
As of the end of June, more than 90 per cent of households (around 35,000 in Vale) who are eligible for the Council tax energy rebate have now either received their £150 payment or have already applied.
Everyone else who is eligible, if they pass the verification checks, will receive their payment by 4 July.

Financial Support Helplines

With rising energy prices and the cost of living increasing, it is a difficult time for many residents. Anyone who is struggling financially can contact Citizens Advice on 0808 278 7907, Vale Community Impact on 01235 765348 or the council’s own community support hub – details below.

Ukraine

Here’s the latest system-wide response to the government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Unaccompanied children

The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) has written to local authorities confirming that the Homes for Ukraine scheme will begin processing existing applications from unaccompanied children.

Scheme outline for unaccompanied children

The scheme will allow eligible children and minors under the age of 18, who have already applied for a visa and who are not travelling with or joining a parent or legal guardian, to come to the UK in carefully defined circumstances.

Sponsors will be asked to commit to hosting the child for up to three years, or until they are aged 18 (and the sponsorship placement has lasted for a minimum of six months) – whichever is soonest. This is in recognition of the need to provide greater security to these children.

There will be a crucial role for local authorities to ensure that robust safeguarding processes are put in place and to undertake extensive checks prior to any visa being granted. DBS checks must be completed on the sponsor and adults in the sponsor household, before any visa is issued by the Home Office.

Funding and support payments

Families hosting a child under the Homes for Ukraine scheme will be offered £350 a month as a thank you payment, for as long as the guest remains in their accommodation for up to three years. Oxfordshire County Council will continue to administer these payments as it does under current arrangements for the scheme and the government has confirmed it will allocate additional funding to councils for this. As outlined above, this payment can only be made when all checks have been completed. The DBS checks are currently taking time to be processed by government, which can slow things down a little.

Better Leisure support for refugees

Our leisure provider, GLL, is offering refugees a free three month Better Health Centre membership, or a subscription to a course or lesson. More on their website.

For more information

General Ukraine queries:

www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ukraine
Oxfordshire Ukraine helpline: +44 1865 966444 / 01865 966 444 (opening hours: 8.45am – 5pm, Monday to Friday. Closed weekends and bank holidays).
Email: ukraineresponse@oxfordshire.gov.uk

For housing and community support in South and Vale:

www.southoxon.gov.uk/ukraine
www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/ukraine
South and Vale helpline: +44 1235 422600 / 01235 422600 (press option one). Opening hours: 8.30am-5pm Monday to Thursday, 8.30am-4.30pm Fridays, Closed weekends and bank holidays.

Email: communitysupport@southandvale.gov.uk

Local News

Didcot & Villages Healthcare Update

Representatives from NHS Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (OCCG) and Woodlands Medical Centre attended the Great Western Park Residents’ Association public meeting on Monday 13th June to provide an update on the long-awaited GP surgery planned for the site next to the pharmacy. The good news is that progress is being made at last! We have summarised the key points below.

Woodlands Medical Centre will be operating the new building as a new branch surgery. The new surgery will serve the Didcot Primary Care Network – this covers Didcot and the surrounding villages, and includes Blewbury, Harwell, Chilton and Upton. Woodlands have identified an appropriate medical developer for the new building and they have submitted for pre-application planning advice. Dr Alex Hart from Woodlands showed us all some designs of the building – great to see what it will look like!

Next steps are to apply for planning permission, the value for money to be determined by the government-appointed District Valuer, and then the affordability to be determined by the new Integrated Care Board (Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire – BOB).

Clearly this is a long process, and the OCCG could not specify exact timescales, but they emphasised that both they and the Vale of White Horse District Council are committed to delivering the healthcare centre as soon as possible. Dr Alex Hart stated 2025 as a viable target, especially as the construction of the 3300th home on GWP triggers a two-year deadline for the developer funding.

OCCG recognise the existing pressure on Woodlands and the other GPs in Didcot, and highlighted that the Oak Tree Health Centre on Ladygrove has now converted some of its facility into additional consultation spaces – see the news story from South Oxfordshire District Council.

In the meantime, the OCCG are working with Woodlands and the Vale to determine how to accommodate the current demand. They are exploring the use of an area of the new District Centre on GWP, determining the cost and viability of this being adapted to a suitable clinical grade. The OCCG confirmed that any temporary solution will not impact the plans for the permanent new healthcare centre.

The new GWP centre is expected to meet the projected local demand in the Didcot Primary Care Network by 2027. This will inevitably include some initial residents from Valley Park, although please note that there is an entirely separate healthcare funding agreement with the developers for Valley Park. As a reminder – the Valley Park legal agreement states that the developers are to provide either £3.2 million towards local healthcare provision in the area surrounding Valley Park, or a dedicated 0.25 hectares of land for a new GP health centre on Valley Park with £2.8 million towards its construction. The new Integrated Care Board needs to decide which of these options to pursue, but in any case the legal agreement specifies that all funding is to be ringfenced for healthcare provision in the local area around Didcot only.

Residents can take immediate practical steps to assist the existing Didcot GP surgeries. Firstly, reduce pressure on GPs by choosing the right NHS service. Secondly, join the Patient Participation Group (PPG) at your GP – this is an invaluable way to provide input into the new health centre and to shape the future of healthcare in the Didcot area.

As your district councillors, we know how frustrated everyone has been with the delay in this much-needed facility. We have been pushing on this issue for the past few years, working with the GWPRA and PPGs to put pressure on the OCCG, and inviting them to provide public updates. We are very encouraged to see that there is now an open dialogue between the OCCG and the council and that they are working very closely together on delivering the new healthcare centre on Great Western Park.

Thank you to the GWPRA for your hard work on keeping the community informed via the public meetings. The full recording of the meeting can be accessed via this link. Please keep an eye on the GWPRA website and Facebook Page for information about future meetings with further healthcare updates. We will of course also publish any further healthcare updates we become aware of via our Facebook Page and parish council reports.

Valley Park Update

There are currently several live planning applications for Valley Park, following on from outline planning permission being granted last year. However, permission for these additional applications cannot be granted until the Strategic Design Code for the site is approved. The application containing the Strategic Design Code was rejected by planning officers on 4^th July 2022 – see the list of reasons on the Vale planning portal.

Below is the list of current planning applications for Valley Park. Some of these are ‘discharge’ applications, as they contain detailed information on how the planned development will discharge (satisfy) one or more conditions from the outline planning permission. There are also ‘reserved matters’ planning applications, which give additional detail not provided in the outline planning permission – for example the appearance and layout of the specific parcels of housing. The initial consultation for these reserved matters applications has closed, however they will all be re-opened for consultation once a Strategic Design Code is agreed.

As the development of Valley Park progresses over the coming years, there will be an increasing number of planning applications relating to the development. We always endeavour to keep you updated with the key news relating to Valley Park, including highlighting opportunities to comment on the applications. In the meantime, valleypark.uk is an excellent informal resource, listing all of the information and planning applications relating to the development. Thank you to David Marsh from Harwell village for putting together such a useful website!

Reserved Matters Applications

P22/V0539/RM – Taylor Wimpey’s first housing phase – 246 dwellings
P22/V0907/RM – Persimmons first housing phase – 161 dwellings
P22/V0604/RM – infrastructure details for the first phases of development

‘Discharge’ of conditions:

P22/V0643/DIS –– surface water and foul drainage details for Taylor Wimpey’s (TW) first phase
P22/V0796/DIS – Framework plan for TW’s first phase
P22/V0868/DIS – Strategic Design Code, phasing plan, housing delivery document and noise

P22/V1208/DIS – framework plan, construction environmental management plan, landscaping, tree protection, foul and surface water drainage and ecological construction plan for Persimmon’s first housing phase
P22/V1482/DIS – community employment plan

Getting families active

The councils have just just launched YouMove – a new initiative providing low-cost or free activities for children and families who receive benefits-related free school meals in Oxfordshire.

Activities available so far include cricket, swimming and badminton. More on our websites at southoxon.gov.uk/youmove and whitehorsedc.gov.uk/youmove

The Big Screen at The Beacon

Cinema returns to The Beacon this summer with a variety of popular award-winning movies for all ages.
In July don’t miss ‘The Duke’ starring Jim Broadbent and Helen Mirren.

For children, Monkey Mayhem, our pre-school stay-and-play session, is on every Monday 9.30–11.30am (excluding bank holidays) with bouncy castles, a ball pit and lots of toys for under 5’s to enjoy.
To find out more visit beaconwantage.co.uk.

Climate & Environment News

Litter pickers urged to join the councils’ litter mapping project

Vale of White Horse and South Oxfordshire district councils have launched a joint litter mapping project aimed at identifying where and what type of items are littered, this information will then be used to target those areas.

Climate Emergency Advisory Committee

The most recent meeting was held on 11^th July, the agenda and minutes are on the Vale website, and the recording of the meeting is on our YouTube channel. If you have any questions regarding something on the agenda, or another climate related topic, please reach out to Hayleigh, who is the chair of the committee. Remember, that any member of the public is also permitted to speak at public council meetings (virtually or in person, where applicable) and just needs to register by emailing Democratic Services at democratic.services@southandvale.gov.uk

Council News

Government pledges £100,000 of support for two local garden villages

The government has allocated £100,000 for two garden communities based in South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse districts. Berinsfield Garden Village will be receiving £50,000 towards the costs of work to help develop the village. The other £50,000 will go to Dalton Barracks Garden Village to help put together a masterplan for a new community to be built that includes a variety of new homes, shops and business buildings, community facilities and green spaces that will help to enhance local wildlife.

Alderman honour awarded to three ex-councillors

Three former Vale of White Horse councillors who served the district for a combined total of 52 years have been honoured as Aldermen. Jim Halliday, Jerry Patterson and Reg Waite were awarded the title at a recent special Council meeting in recognition of the service they provided to the council and the district.

More help for people to pay food and energy bills

More help is on the way for people who are struggling to pay their food, energy and other related bills. Vale of White Horse and South Oxfordshire district councils have opened a voucher scheme to support households who can’t afford to pay for life’s essentials.

Revised focus for Didcot Garden Town

Revised plans to help improve the lives of residents living in and around Didcot Garden Town have been approved at two Cabinet meetings. South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils have approved a renewed, ambitious delivery plan for Didcot Garden Town. It will focus on providing community benefits, a special retail recovery strategy, encourage healthy lifestyles and help to tackle climate change.

The Didcot Garden Town Advisory Board worked together to simplify priorities, which will bring significant community and environmental benefits to the area. While reprioritising the delivery plan, the advisory board also took into consideration feedback received from their Residents, Business and Parishes Sounding boards.

Work can now progress on looking at what improvements can be made to existing community open spaces and public walkways to create more attractive areas using plants and public art. A cycling network plan will be delivered to build more connections between various existing routes and to look at where new paths can be built. This will help reduce congestion and make residents feel safer while travelling between home, the town centre, business parks and surrounding villages.

New Design Guide website adopted to help create high-quality, sustainable development

An online guide that helps create high-quality and sustainable development in South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse has been improved and extended following feedback from users. The Joint Design Guide is an up-to-date, innovative, concise, engaging and interactive document that acts as a tool for anyone undertaking a development to ensure it fits with the character of the local area.

Minutes of the Annual Meeting of the Parish Council held in the meeting room at the Upton village hall on Tuesday 17th May 2022 at 7.00 pm.

May 26, 2022

In attendance:- E Cooper (Clerk/EC), B Shaw (BS), P McLaughlin (PM), N Thorp (NT). Also in attendance K Fletcher (KF), PCSO G Kirby (GK), District Cllr S Medley . B Heneghan joined the meeting at 8.10pm.

To elect a Chairman

Ben Shaw was nominated, seconded & all in favour to carry on as Chairman of the Parish Council.

To elect a Vice Chairman

Neil Thorp was nominated, seconded & all in favour to carry on as Vice-Chairman of the Parish Council.

To complete Declaration of Acceptance of Office forms

BS & NT duly completed their acceptance of office forms.

To complete the Register of Members’ Interests forms

BS & NT confirmed no changes to their member’s interests.

To receive apologies for absence

County Cllr S Povolotsky, Parish Cllr D Beckles

To record any declarations of interests relating to this meeting

BS declared an interest in the Nature Garden as he is a neighbour. Otherwise, none declared.

To receive the County Councillor’s report

Received in advance of the meeting & circulated to Council.

To receive District Councillor’s report

Received in advance of the meeting & circulated to Council.

To receive a report from the PCSO

PCSO Gary Kirby attended in person. He reported no crimes of note in Upton & no ongoing issues in the village. He is still carrying out patrols in the village. BC reported that the previous anti-social behaviour in the car park & recreation ground had reduced. GK reported that further afield they continue to deal with rural crime: farm breaks & car break ins. There is now a Rural Crime Task Force in action. GK advised if there was anything to report to call 101 or go online.

Open Forum

To receive representations from members of the public if present.

None present.

To hear an update from the PCC

Paul Batho had confirmed to the Clerk there was no update following the report issued at the APM.

To hear an update from UVHAT representative(s) on village hall operations

No apologies or report were received from UVHAT.

To hear an update from the Nature Garden representative on progress

13.1 KF asked for the following update to be included:-

The initial garden creation phase is complete save for commissioning the sign. Work commitments

of the volunteers are delaying the final copy, which will be circulated asap.

The meadow is shown and watered. The gates into the garden are completed and the fire escape

path has been realigned to improve safety. There have been regular maintenance visits during

April and May by the Nature Group members to water the new plants and shrubs, and a volunteer

day where the meadow area was prepared for seeding and the areas around the new plantings

were weeded.

A social celebration event for all the volunteers is being planned.

The five-year maintenance plan for the garden is in preparation, drawing on best practice

documents from conservation and horticultural bodies.

The nature group would like to thank the Parish Council for their support over the past year, and

look forward to next.

13.2 BS asked as an immediate neighbour of the nature garden that the compost area be moved from

the other side of his fence, due to the smell & increased level of insect affecting his property. KF

agreed to arrange this.

13.3 NT raised concerns about the large amount of cow parsley that appeared to be overtaking much of

the garden. He was particularly concerned that this would restrict the growth of other items

planted. KF to report back the Nature Garden group.

To approve the minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on:-

UPC 15^th March 2022

The minutes were approved as being a true representation of the meeting.

15. Planning

15.1 To agree / ratify the council’s response to the following consultations

15.1.1 P22/V0899/FUL Dulcina, Newmans Close, Upton

Erection of dwelling & sub-division of existing plot

Deadline 15.05.22

Although this deadline had been missed, Council agreed a response of ‘no objections’ should

still be submitted, along with a comment as to the siting of the condenser.

15.1.2 P22/V0802/HH Winterset, Newmans Close, Upton

Proposed replacement porch extension, first floor addition to front elevation, new dormers,

changes to windows & doors, 2 storey rear extension etc.

Deadline 28.04.22

Although this deadline had been missed, Council agreed a response of ‘no objections’ should

still be submitted.

15.1.3 P22/V0524/HH South Spring, Stream Road, Upton

Double garage

Deadline 29.03.22

UPC no objections, plus comment.

15.2 To note planning permissions received during the month

15.2.1 P22/V0105/HH Jasmine, Chilton Road, Upton

Single storey extensions & alterations.

Planning permission 15.03.22

16. Finance & Administration

16.1 To receive an update on the Audit preparations for 2021-2022.

16.2.1 To receive an update on the internal audit

EC reported that the IA continued to ask for documentation & no feedback had as yet been

received.

16.2.2 To agree the accounting statements

The accounting statements were sent to Council ahead of the meeting & all agreed that they

should be signed off. Clerk & Chair duly signed the appropriate documents.

16.2.3 To note the start of the period for the exercise of public rights

EC explained the parameters around the Notice of Public Rights & intended to issue this as

soon as the IA had completed their report.

16.3 To agree the authoriser for this month’s payments.

EC confirmed all payments awaiting authorisation through Lloyds Bank. PM to authorise.

16.4 To approve payments to be made noted spending powers and within budgeted amounts

Council agreed to the addition of the last 9 payments listed.

DATE	Description /Payee	Amount
28.4.22 / 28.5.22	Clerk’s salary since last meeting [LGA1972 s112(2)]	Not publicly disclosed
28.4.22 / 28.5.22	HMRC PAYE	£180.00
27.4.22 / 27.5.22	Microsoft subscription [LGA1972 s111]	£7.60
16.03.22-17.05.22	Clerk expenses [LG(FP)A 1963 s5]	£35.64
18.05.22	P McLaughlin expenses [LGA 1972 s37]	£43.92
18.05.22	Kalehurst – Motor Mower service [LGA 1892 s8(1)(I)] (paid to be ratified)	£758.12
18.05.22	Siochi – cemetery fence repairs labour only (paid to be ratified) [LGA 1972 s214 (6)]	£208.32
18.05.22	Gallagher local council scheme insurance (yr3 of 3yr agreement) [LGA1972 s111]	£727.02
04.05.22	PBC Plant Ltd – Pump track top soil (paid to be ratified) [PHAAA 1907 s76(1)	£300.00
10.05.22	MP Property Services – bus shelter refurb [LG(MP)A1953s4/PCA1957s1]	£1362.00
18.05.22	Webbs Fencing – fencing supplies (cemetery fence – paid to be ratified) [LGA 1972 s214 (6)]	£176.33
13.04.22	Rustic Summerhouse – banana bench for nature garden (paid to be ratified) [LG(MP)A 1976 s19(3)]	£792.00
14.04.22	R Traynor expenses (paid to be ratified)	£15.58
31.03.22	B Rippon expenses (paid to be ratified)	£94.50
31.03.22	Krystal Hosting (paid to be ratified)	£59.99
18.05.22	SCS Pump track resurface	£9366.00
18.05.22	OALC – course BS W2108	£132.00
18.05.22	OALC – course BS W2109	£66.00
18.05.22	OALC – course BH W2120	£132.00
18.05.22	OALC – course BH W2121	£66.00
18.05.22	OALC – course PM W2135	£66.00
Total		£14,589.02 (plus salary above)

Receipts	Description	Amount
VoWH	Precept 1^st half	£12163.00
Lloyds	Interest (April/May)	.24
Total		£12163.24

16.5 To sign off bank reconciliation to date

Provided to the Chair in advance of the meeting & signed at meeting

16.6 To hear / agree on any other financial or administration updates

Treasurers Account balance at 28.04.22 £15,405.79

Business bank instant balance at 28.04.22 £13,073.88

Total funds held as at 28.04.22 £28,479.67

16.7 To hear & consider a case for a deputy Clerk (in training) & Lengthman to be employed by the Council

16.7.1 BS explained how work levels for the Clerk had risen & the difficulty in completing the Clerk’s

tasks in less than one hour a day. Together with the shortage of trained Clerk’s, BS proposed

that a ‘Clerk in Training’ be sought by the Council who would be trained to take over from the

existing Clerk at some point in the future. Council unanimously agreed to the proposal.

BS & EC would work on a job description & advertisement.

16.7.2 BS explained how the work previously carried out be a single volunteer, largely on the

recreation ground, but also around the village, was no longer being carried out. A volunteer

mowing rota was in operation for the recreation ground. It has become clear that the level of

work required cannot be carried out by volunteers (no matter how willing) & a contractor(s)

would need to be engaged. BS proposed to the Council that a Lengthman, similar to the

person employed by Blewbury PC, should be engaged by Upton PC. Council unanimously

agreed.

BS & EC would work on a job description & advertisement.

To hear an update on any aspect of the recreation ground play areas

17.1 Toddler play area

Minor repairs recently completed by the play area contactor.

17.2 Adventure play area

Minor repairs recently completed by the play area contractor.

17.3 Pump track

The resurfacing of the pump track was recently completed.

To hear any updates on the maintenance of the recreation ground

18.1 The volunteer mowing rota is suspended during May to support ‘no mow May’.

18.2 The new nets are due to be fitted to the goal posts. PM to organise.

18.3 Discussions have taken place regarding the use of the recreation ground for the Uptonogood?

Mountain Bike Challenge on Saturday 18^th June & a full event management plan is in place.

To hear and consider proposals for upgrading the car park extension & for discouraging parking on the

recreation ground

The Parish Council will be setting up a working group to cover all elements of parking for the village hall

& recreation ground.

To hear an update from PM on UPC IT

PM confirmed that all is currently working well.

Risk Management

21.1 To receive an update on Compliance & GDPR

No update this month.

21.2 To receive any other updates relating to risk

An incident involving the motor mower, the gate to the recreation ground & a car is being dealt with

by the Council. This was considered to be an unfortunate incident & no further action to mitigate risk is required.

To agree the content for the next council update for Upton News

Council agreed to highlight all play area actions, Council meeting updates, Bus shelter repainting & car

park working group.

To set the date and venue of the next full council meeting & next year’s AGM.

Full council meeting Tuesday 19^th July at 7.00pm, meeting room in the village hall

AGM (provisional) Tuesday 16^th May 2023 at 7pm, meeting room in the village hall

The meeting finished at 8.30pm.

Appendix A – Actions from previous meetings

No.	Actions from May meeting	By when
1.	KF to arrange removal of NG compost area to elsewhere on the site away from neighbour’s fences.	ASAP
2.	EC to complete Notice of Public Rights at earliest opportunity.	June
3.	BS & EC to work on Clerk in Training Lengthman job descriptions & ads	July
4.	PM to organise fitting of nets to goal posts	June
5.	NT to ensure all agreed PC items are included in Upton News
No.	Actions from March meeting	By when
3.	KF to produce Nature Garden maintenance plan.	July meeting
7.	BH to provide quote for rec ground posts & chain.	ASAP
8.	BS to invite Commissioner of Police for photo op following funding for new nets & wheels on goal posts.	ASAP post installation

Appendix A

County Councillor Report

Weekly update for councillors: 16th May

This week, we bring you news of some changes to senior roles in environment and place, share that we are providing food vouchers for eligible young people this May half-term and link you to resources to support residents this Mental Health Awareness Week. As usual, we update you on progress for the Homes for Ukraine scheme, including an internal news article with reflections from individual colleagues about their contributions.

Finally, we have attached the latest vaccination programme update from the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West (BOB) integrated care system.

With regards to the division, it’s been a busy time the last few weeks and some changes happening ahead of our Full Council tomorrow. However my focus the last 2 weeks has been highways, and escalated the following;

11. Chilton Footpath issues / surface / ownership

12. Hagbourne Hill

13. Steventon – Didcot cycle path next steps

14. Hanney Road – multiple issues

15. Harding Vale footpath (again) and estate entry / S278 works

16. Steventon Hill Speed limit now changed on an eTRO from 60mph to 40mph and 30mph to 20mph as communicated within the community

17. Mill Lane East Hendred – surface

18. Pot Hole repair time

19. Training for FMS for community member ‘super users’ – still escalating

20. TVP and Speedwatch kit – communication with PCC

21. Byway 16 Steventon – surface review

22. Thames Water issues (throughout division)

23. Stonebridge Road / Path

24. This week the sidings on A4130 Rowstock to Packhorse are underway

25. Harwell High Street engineering works – design and Active travel concerns – also chased the 20mph roll out

Remember you can check any permits anytime at https://one.network

Ive also had a few enquiries about Rights of Way, and you can check these anytime at – https://publicrightsofway.oxfordshire.gov.uk

Homes for Ukraine

We continue to evolve our partnership approach to responding to the government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme and that includes acting on new guidance or finding solutions to better ways of working. Overall, accommodation and safeguarding visits are working well with, this week, proof of residency letters beginning to be issued to guests. This enables guests to open bank accounts and relieves pressure from GPs being the only route for providing this confirmation.

We are currently putting into place arrangements for the city and district councils, in addition to us, to hold pre-paid payment cards that are used to issue £200 payments to guests. This is part of our collective approach to supporting those in need quickly through whoever has the first face to face contact with our guests. The process for issuing the £350 thank-you payments to hosts will be in place as of today. As mentioned last week, we expect to receive the first grant funding from government for these payments in June.

We are also working at pace on a proposed process and procedure for rematching guests with hosts following the guidance we shared last week. This requires a system wide approach and will only take place where it is unviable or unsafe for the sponsorship relationship to continue.

Applications for school places are being successfully progressed with additional resource helping to process these quickly. The process is in line with government guidance and is the same for all children requiring a school place. A reminder has been sent to schools who manage their own admissions to inform the county council if they have accepted, or plan to accept, any Ukrainian children onto their school roll.

We are working on identifying activities, and accompanying funding support, for those waiting for a school place. Children who are eligible to receive free school meals will be able to access any activities funded through the government’s Holiday Activity Fund. This will include children in hosted families.

Our work with Asylum Welcome to expand the community liaison officer resource available in each district and the city is going well. Shortly, these additional officers will all be in place across the county to coordinate, advise and refer guests to the support that is available to them, including across housing, education and health.

We are also beginning to see community organisations and groups offering meeting spaces for hosted families in all districts and Asylum Welcome is working on coordinating and promoting these offers.

As always, we will keep you updated on progress.

A reminder, councillors can direct general Ukraine queries to:

· Website: www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ukraine

· Oxfordshire Ukraine helpline: +44 1865 966444 / 01865 966 444 (opening hours: 8.45am – 5pm, Monday to Friday. Closed weekends and bank holidays).

· Email: ukraineresponse@oxfordshire.gov.uk

Food & Energy Poverty – Working Together in Hendreds & Harwell

The Food and Energy Crisis continues to worsen, and I am picking up more cases and needs by the week. In response to this, apart from raising my voice at County Hall around concern and action, we need to be pragmatic on the ground.

26. We have the HEG Community Larder, people can sign up for this and working together (like we are in Steventon) we can get a network of distribution drops sorted for those in need – just contact me for more information

27. Please see the news below about the £15 food vouchers for half term, although £15 is hard to stretch these days.

28. The wonderful Emma from East Hendred has a brilliant You Tube Channel, and she has a meal voucher menu planner here – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLZw0bNAGKwni_cM1OkdsfM70nlpQE8WvE

29. I am looking into funding streams and financial help packages that may be available at District or County Council and will share asap when known.

30. The £150 rebates from Council Tax at VOWH have started to appear for those on Direct Debits, I am informed for those without bank details stored, the Districts are corresponding accordingly, please liaise with your District Councillor.

31. Knowing who is in need is something that Parish Councils have done so well since Covid restrictions, and maybe check in with those individual’s and see how they are ?

32. There is some helpful information here – https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/everyday-money/budgeting/what-to-do-if-worried-about-energy-bills-rising

33. More news to come….

Latest news

Celebrating recognition for our zero emissions zone

Six years of collaboration is set to cut pollution levels, increase active travel and improve the environment thanks to our work to set up the UK’s first zero emissions zone in Oxford. The ambitious project contributes directly to our vision to work in partnership to make Oxfordshire a greener, healthier and fairer county. It has now been recognised as an example of sector best practice with an article in the Local Government Chronicle, which you can read online.

Foster care fortnight from Monday 9 May

Foster care is an important topic throughout the year. People often rule themselves out before they have even spoken to the fostering service, but our recruitment team is on hand to answer questions and provide further information about fostering. Read our news story to hear from one of our residents who has been fostering for the county council for 35 years and you can check out our refreshed webpages, which help people navigate through any questions they might have.

Half–term food vouchers for eligible young people

This May half-term we are again providing resources to early years settings, schools and further education colleges for eligible children and young people to receive £15 free school meal equivalent support. In most cases this will be provided as a supermarket voucher.

In other news:

· Climate action survey – closing on 13 May

· Our partnership with The Care Workers’ Charity to provide grants

· New technology could support Oxfordshire residents with additional needs

· Plans to improve cycle safety.

Consultation and engagement activities

We are currently running two major consultations for residents. Please encourage your constituents to have their say by sharing the relevant links. For details of all other live consultations visit Let’s Talk Oxfordshire.

Consultation

Link to consultation

Closing date

Parking Spaces – Disabled Changes

https://letstalk.oxfordshire.gov.uk/southvale_dppp2022

20 May

Keeping safe in open water

Let’s talk Oxfordshire

31 May

COVID-19

Latest statistics

At 7 May, the weekly case rate for Oxfordshire was 119.4 per 100,000. You can view the latest figures on our COVID-19 dashboard.

Vaccination update

There are still 64,000 people who are eligible for the spring booster but have yet to come forward and they are encouraged to do so as soon as possible. Boosters are available through the national booking service at various locations including GP-led sites, community pharmacies and the large vaccination centres. To book visit the NHS website or call 119 free from mobiles and landlines. Lines are open every day from 8am – 8pm, and 119 can provide support in 200 languages. You can read more in the attached update from the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West (BOB) integrated care system.

Council meetings and information

Upcoming meetings

The following are scheduled next week:

· Tuesday 17 May, County Council, 10.30am

· Wednesday 18 May, Confirmation Hearing for Chief Finance Officer of the PCC, Thames Valley Police and Crime Panel, 10.30am

· Thursday 19 May, Health Improvement Partnership Board, 2pm.

And finally…

Professor Irene Tracey has been nominated as the next Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford. A renowned neuroscientist, Professor Tracey is currently Warden of Merton College. The professor has led the college since 2019. She is also Professor of Anaesthetic Neuroscience in the Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, a department she led for several years. She will take up her new role in 2023 – you can read more in the University of Oxford’s press release.

For the latest news and information from the council, check your emails regularly and keep an eye on our website. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram and sign up for our residents’ newsletter, Your Oxfordshire.

With best wishes,

Sally Povolotsky

Hendreds & Harwell Division County Councillor

Appendix B

Monday 9th May 2022 – Monthly Parish Update – Vale of White Horse District Councillors

Cllr Hayleigh Gascoigne and Cllr Sarah Medley

Hello from Hayleigh & Sarah

We hope everyone enjoyed the extended Easter weekend, and had the opportunity for some family time, time to relax or time away – however you please! And ‘Eid Mubarak’ to those who were fasting over the month of Ramadan and celebrating Eid.

The month of April was a reasonably quiet one for council meeting, but the work of the council officers carries on and we have included the latest press releases in this update as well as some more information on how the council is supporting Ukrainian refugees, and a link to the latest planning application for a parcel of homes on Valley Park (please submit your comments!).

The next full council meeting is our AGM on 18th May. Should you wish to speak at this (or any) meeting, please email democratic services democratic.services@southandvale.gov.uk by 12noon on the working day before the meeting. You can also attend meetings in person or watch the stream on YouTube – details about this are here.

Hope the month of May brings everyone some sunshine and some fun as we look forward to the Queen’s jubilee celebrations locally, and the start of summer.

Council tax rebate

All households living in properties which are in council tax bands A-D are entitled to a £150 payment. The government is providing this money, also known as the ‘council tax rebate’, to help people with the rising costs of energy bills with the payments being made by local councils. The Council can pay the money directly to someone’s bank account if they are the person responsible for paying council tax at the property. A letter will be sent to all remaining eligible households (those not on direct debit, or whose bank account can’t be matched to those liable for the council tax at the property) asking them to complete an online form to confirm their bank account details so they are able to receive the money. Anyone who is not able to complete the form online will be able to call a special customer service team for assistance.

Community Support

The Community Support Hub, originally set up by the council in 2020 in response to the pandemic, is still available for anyone in need of help: if you have COVID-19, or if you are struggling financially, or if you are just finding life difficult due to the pandemic. Whether it’s practical support or just advice, get in touch. Call: 01235 422 600 (Mon to Thurs 8.30-5pm and Fridays 8.30-4.30pm) or visit www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/communityhub.

Financial Support Helplines

We use these monthly updates to keep you updated on our activities, general council news and any COVID-19 developments. We also post regularly on our councillor Facebook Page: Cllrs Hayleigh Gascoigne & Sarah Medley Please do not hesitate to get in touch with any issues or concerns, either via Facebook message or email: hayleigh.gascoigne@whitehorsedc.gov.uk and sarah.medley@whitehorsedc.gov.uk. Vale and South Oxfordshire councils step up to support Ukrainian refugees

The system is working and in full swing across Oxfordshire to support the government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme.

Whilst, there is still limited government guidance in some areas, all partners across the county are working together to find solutions and put guests at the heart of any action required. The accommodation and safeguarding checks are progressing well, with the backlog of home checks almost completed, and with no significant concerns raised.

The government is providing funds to provide support to families to rebuild their lives and fully integrate into communities, which the councils will be the administrators of.

The county council has continued to process school place applications and is recruiting an additional admissions officer to manage demand and avoid administrative delays.

You may have also seen that the Department for Work and Pensions has laid emergency regulations so those arriving in the UK from Ukraine, as a result of the Russian invasion, can access Universal Credit and jobs support immediately. Families can therefore claim for free school meals in the usual way under the usual eligibility criteria.

And as we approach half-term, the council are working to identify what holiday activities could be offered for children and also activities for children waiting for a school place.

For more information

General Ukraine queries: · www.oxfordshire.gov.uk/ukraine

Oxfordshire Ukraine helpline: +44 1865 966444 / 01865 966 444 (opening hours: 8.45am – 5pm, Monday to Friday. Closed weekends and bank holidays). · Email: ukraineresponse@oxfordshire.gov.uk

For housing and community support in South and Vale: · www.southoxon.gov.uk/ukraine · www.whitehorsedc.gov.uk/ukraine

South and Vale helpline: +44 1235 422600 / 01235 422600 (press option one). Opening hours: 8.30am-5pm Monday to Thursday, 8.30am-4.30pm Fridays, Closed weekends and bank holidays. Email: communitysupport@southandvale.gov.uk

Finally, as we work hard to support the government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme, it’s important to recognise that we are continuing to work collectively across the county to support people of all immigration status, including refugees, whatever their country of origin.

In recent years, all councils across Oxfordshire have established specific support arrangements for those from Syria and Afghanistan working together with our voluntary and community sector partners to deliver wrap-around support for those temporarily accommodated in hotels. We will all continue to support relocating refugees and work with Thames Valley Police and other agencies to identify and prevent modern slavery.

Local News

Valley Park Update The planning application for the first ‘parcel’ of 246 homes on Valley Park has now closed for consultation on the online planning portal – reference P22/V0539/RM. The decision will take at least 6 weeks as the planning officers at the Vale read all the comments submitted, and look at how the application complies to national as well as local planning policies. They may go back to the developer with changes to make, meaning the decision could take longer.

In the meantime, another planning application for a parcel of houses by Persimmon as been submitted, and can be viewed and commented on here – reference P22/V0907/RM. The deadline for a response here is 1st June. Witness the thrill of elite cycling in Oxfordshire

People will be able to witness the thrill of elite professional cycling when the Women’s Tour returns to the Vale of White Horse on Saturday 11 June.

Following successful events in 2019 and 2021, this will be the final year that The Women’s Tour will visit Oxfordshire, following a three-year partnership with race organiser SweetSpot. For 2022, the county will host the sixth and final stage of the Tour in what promises to be a spectacular finale.

On the day, you will be able to see the riders pass through Harwell and Didcot. The full timetable will be published closer to the time.

Communities across the district are being encouraged to mark the occasion – this could be as simple as lining the route to cheer the riders on, putting up bunting, flags, or cycling inspired artwork, creating a cycling themed window display or having cycling themed events. To learn more visit whitehorsedc.gov.uk/womenstour.

New cinema nights at The Beacon

New film nights will start at The Beacon from Saturday 21 May with a matinée of Encanto and an evening screening of Belfast. Later screenings include Sing 2 and West Side Story. More info here.

Cornerstone’s summer of fun

Cornerstone’s summer programme is now in full swing with a line-up of shows and activities from science extravaganzas to live blues music. With classes, workshops, and gallery exhibitions including ‘Oxfordshire Artweeks: Inspired By Nature’ from 3 May – there’s something for everyone. More here.

Climate & Environment News Councils to let wildflowers bloom during No Mow May

Wildflowers could bloom in more public areas next month after South Oxfordshire and the Vale of White Horse District Councils pledged their support for No Mow May.

The two councils already designate wildflower meadows which they only cut two to three times a year but this year they will trial leaving several additional areas of land uncut for No May Mow, a national campaign which encourages people to not mow gardens and public areas during May.

For more information about how the council carry out grass cutting visit whitehorsedc.gov.uk/NoMowMay For more information about No May May, visit the Plantlife website.

Council News Didcot Garden Town

A wide range of improvement projects and facilities in the Didcot Garden Town area will be prioritised to ensure climate change and pandemic recovery are tackled first.

The Didcot Garden Town Advisory Board discussed the actions set out in 2017’s Delivery Plan to identify the projects they thought were the most important to bring more community improvements and assist recovery for the garden town area following the pandemic. More information on the Didcot Garden Town can be found here. You can read the full minutes of the Didcot Garden Town Advisory Board meeting here. Have your say on a new technology park development in Didcot Garden Town

Residents and businesses can give their views on how greener commercial buildings can be built at a Didcot technology park.

Hill Farm, in Appleford and near to Didcot, is the site of a proposed Local Development Order (LDO), something that local planning authorities use to set out the overall design of a site. It also helps speed up the planning process for preferred types of development there, such as industrial buildings with energy efficient measures. This LDO design includes a data centre, waste management, a wood recycling organisation and a battery storage facility. The formal consultation is now open until midday 25 May 2022 via this link to the planning application page. Street naming consultation

The government is asking people to comment on proposals to alter process for changing street names. This includes replacing the current system with a single requirement for a residents’ vote on any changes to street names and some changes to regulations and statutory guidance for councils. To find out more and to have your say visit the government’s consultation

THE ANNUAL PARISH MEETING OF UPTON VILLAGE

May 26, 2022

Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting of Upton held in the Village Hall at 7pm on Wednesday 4^th May 2022, facilitated by the Parish Council.

Present:- Mr B Shaw (Chair / BS), Miss E Cooper (Clerk / EC). Also present:- District Cllr H Gascoigne (HG), County Cllr S Povolotsky (SP) and approximately 50 Upton residents.

Reports received from various groups were made available to view from 6.45pm.

Welcome and opening remarks – Parish Council Chairman Ben Shaw

BS noted the number of attendees in the hall & thanked everyone for attending.

Apologies for absence

No apologies were received in advance of the meeting.

Chairman’s Report

BS covered the main points of his Parish Council Chairman’s report. He also stated that the other

reports were available to read at the back of the hall.

Open Forum

Questions from those present to the Parish Council or other groups represented.

A list of 9 questions were submitted by J Fidgen, with other resident nominated to speak on the

subjects.

4.1 To discuss traffic calming measures on the A417 (Di Rabetts/DiR)

DiR highlighted concerns regarding the speed of traffic through the village. County Cllr S

Povolotsky updated as follows:-

20mph in the village – Upton is in the second tranche which currently is the end of 2022,

beginning of 2023.

A417 crossing – this is scheduled for September/October of 2022.

DiR was particularly concerned about how traffic calming might be introduced at the Blewbury end

of the village.

SP added that there is a bigger picture ‘safety review’ with a push for other alternative transport

methods, as roads need to be made safer for all.

SP advised people to continue to use Fixmystreet as they have a 28 day response.

4.2 To discuss plans to erect a fence along the end of the Rec (proposed by Brian Rippon/BR)

BR expressed his opinion that a palisade fence would be completely unsuitable.

Other suggestions included a gate at that end of the field. BS stated that the other side is

private land. Also the purchase of a strip of land to enable access. This would involve major costs,

works & maintenance.

BS confirmed that previous quotes for a fence were in the region of £16k. He also confirmed the

need for a fence (the land the other side is private/Council should be legally compliant with

covenant) & that no decisions had as yet been made.

4.3 To discuss the viability of a cycle path between Upton & Blewbury (Kieron Humphrey/KH)

County Cllr S Povolotsky confirmed that work to change Coffin way from a footpath to a bridleway

started last September. This is a long process & SP hoped to have the next update in June. An

estimate for creating a ‘banded surface’ route is c£250-295k. SP stated again this is part of the

bigger decarbonisation picture.

4.4 To discuss improving verges in the village for wildlife (Kieron Humphrey/KH)

KH explained he had spoken to County Cllr S Povolotsky regarding verges at the village end

of Chilton Road, Upton, which he would like to fill with wild flowers. KH stated that wilding is a

science backed way to promote diversity. The verges are the responsibility of the county council &

he indicated that the Parish Council could take on responsibility for the verges from the County

Council. A case would need to be put forward to the Parish Council detailing how the verges would

be planted & cared for now & into the future, together with any potential costs involved,

immediately & in the future.

4.5 To discuss plans to erect a fence around the toddlers’ playpark (Guilia Rippon/GR)

GR asked about plans to place a fence around the new toddler play area. This has been

discussed by the Parish Council, but no decisions yet made due to the high costs. The fence must

meet child friendly regulations & consideration will be given to a wooden fence (cheaper to install,

but required maintenance) or a recycled plastic fence (twice as expensive as wood, but no

maintenance).

Derek Whitmell said there was a Magnox socio economic fund that may help.

Bins on the rec were also raised at this point. Replacement bins are in the budget for this year, but

consideration also needs to be given to the emptying of the bins, which is under investigation.

Placing 2 or 3 wheelie bins around the rec was suggested. A volunteer would then need to move the

bins to the gate on waste collection days.

4.6 To discuss overflow parking in the Rec (Jacqui Reid/JR)

JR acknowledged that additional parking was required for specific events, & that the level of

matting used for the overflow was not designed for the level of use. BS explained that part of the

precept increase was to make improvements to the overflow parking. This needs to be revisited by

the Council, but this may not be this year due to a lack of resource.

JR said that the village hall would be happy to contribute to ideas & solutions.

4.7 To discuss maintaining access to the Rec (Duncan Reid/DR)

DR thought the closing of the gate to the rec at night was preposterous. BS explained that ‘out of

hours/anti-social behaviour’ use of the car park was why the gate had been closed at night &

opened early in the morning. Anti-social behaviour was reported to the police & patrols had been

increased. D Whitmell said traditionally the gate was always locked at night.

A new combination lock was suggested.

4.8 To discuss the near-doubling of the precept (Jo Fidgen/JF)

JF complained that the increase of the precept had not been discussed ahead of residents receiving

their council tax bills. BS explained that everyone was welcome at Parish Council meetings.

Clerk’s note:- UPCX Meeting 7.12.21, item 5.1.1 re precept refers.

JF requested that all plans are published in all the usual places. Also requested more information in

minutes. The Clerk said that more information could be included in the minutes.

BS explained that this was a two-way street & that residents can contact Councillors outside of

meetings.

4.9 To discuss plans for the installation of CCTV in the Rec (Rob Traynor)

Mr Traynor was not present at the meeting.

B Heneghan (BH) explained that with CCTV came the problem of GDPR. BH will look in more detail

at potential funding for such systems & whether it is worth investigating.

BH gave an update on Speed Watch

5 volunteers are undergoing online training.

Teams of 3 are required.

Requested more volunteers to put themselves forward (please contact the Clerk).

BH is teaming up with Harwell & Blewbury who have Speed Watch up & running.

The Chairman again thanked all for attending & brought the meeting to a close at 9.40pm.

Date of the 2023 Annual Parish Meeting – Wednesday 26th April 2023

Reports received from:-

UPC Chairman

UPC Finance

County Councillor

District Councillor

Blewbury Primary School

Downland Village Transport Group

Harwell Stakeholders Group

St Mary’s Church

United Charities

Upton Nature Garden

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