UPTON PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of meeting of Upton Parish Council held on

Wednesday 24 September 2008 at 8.00 p.m. in the Village Hall

Present: Mr M Brown (Chairman), Mr J Dickens, Ms B Drew, Mr D Mason, Mr S Norman,

Mrs T Seelig (part time), Mr C Lamont (part time), Mrs C. Lightfoot (clerk)

1. Apologies for absence received and accepted from Mr Farrell.

2. Declarations of Interest

Members are asked to declare any personal interest and the nature of that interest which they may have in any of the items under consideration at this meeting. None recorded

3. Minutes of meeting of Upton Parish Council held on Wednesday 23^rd July 2008. Mr Norman asked that in the penultimate sentence in item 11(i) be amended to read “Mr Norman said this did not seem to be a practicable idea”. With this minor amendment, the minutes having been previously circulated, were signed as a true record by the Chairman.

4. Matters Arising: there were no matters arising.

5. County Councillor’s Report:

Mr Lamont told the meeting that since Oxfordshire County Council now works in partnership with other bodies, ie PCT, Voluntary Sector, Police, Quangos, etc it no longer makes strategic decisions on its own. He said that County Councillors are now removed from representing the people and there is a perceived democratic deficit.

6. Planning Application

UPT/1062/4 – application made by Mr & Mrs E Johnson for erection of a dwelling with garage and erection of a replacement garage at Rowlands, Church Street. The Vale of the White Horse Planning Department has advised that this application has been withdrawn.

UPT/18307/3 – re-application for erection of single 2 storey family dwelling at 1 Beeching Close for Mr Curran. The Chairman and Planning Officer, Ms Drew, had studied the new application which was very similar to the earlier application . The only perceived changes were that the boundary fence had been moved back and the splay at the entrance had been altered. The clerk has responded to the Planning Department reinforcing the comments that had been made to the earlier application.

UPT/8232/4 – application to build summerhouse/store at Manor Lawns for Mr M Collins. The plans were viewed and no objections raised. Clerk to advice the Planning Department accordingly. Clerk

UPT/832/5 – modification of planning obligation – application by Mr R Napper. The Chairman will endeavour to find out the implications of this application and advise councillors by email so that a decision can be made. MB

9. Villagers’ Forum: there were no villagers present.

10. Parish Transport Representatives Report: the clerk advised the meeting that she has asked bus users how the new timetable was working. The cessation of the 9.00 a.m. bus has created the biggest difficulty. She has written to Oxfordshire CC conveying this. In their reply they state that some adjustment to the times might be possible when they undertake a review, usually after about 9 months or so.

11. Reports from Councillors’ on areas of responsibility

i) Roads and Footpaths – nothing new to report. Mr Norman requested that the PC should debate any change of status before implementation be carried out. Complaints have been received about the overgrown footpath at the back of the George & Dragon . The clerk has been assured by the tenant that the footpath is being cut this week.

ii) Recreation Ground: the Chairman reported that the drive belt on the tractor mower had broken. Kalehurst Garden Machinery Ltd will collect the mower to repair and service it. A check will be carried out to determine why the drive belt has broken after only 60 hrs use.

Working parties will be arranged for the morning and afternoon of Saturday 11^th October to position slabs in front of the ball wall and to lay safety surfaces beneath the swings and the climbing net. MB

iii) Playground: the ROSPA report was noted. The following items need to be considered: adjustment to gate catch to prevent finger entrapment, height of overhanging branches to be at least 2.4m

iv) Village Hall: The Chairman reported that village contribution to the hall fund has almost reached its original target of £10k.

v) Planning: in light of Ms Drew’s resignation from the Parish Council, Mr Brown agreed to act as councillor responsible for planning until a further councillor is co-opted.

vi) Young Parishioners: Mr Mason said that he is open to suggestions and he hoped to bring a proposal to the next meeting. DM

vii) Communications: the Chairman reported that the web site is undergoing a major revamp and will be back on line any day. (Note – it is back)

viii) NAG: nothing of relevance to Upton to report. Mr Dickens proposed that Mrs Celia Davies,

Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator be invited to attend future meetings. This was agreed.

JD

ix) UKAEA Stakeholders Committee: nothing to report. It was noted that a new nominee is required. Mrs Seelig expressed an interest in taking on the responsibility of representing UPC on this forum, a decision will be made at the next meeting.

x) Playground Management Committee: It is proposed to co-opt 2 new members to this committee to replace Colin Batchelor and Kathryn Fletcher who have resigned. Mrs Seelig to advise the Chairman of anything that needs the attention of the working party. TS

xi) Energy Saving Initiative: Mrs Seelig will pick up on this initiative and report to the next meeting.

TS

13. Finance

i) Invoices and payments since last meeting

Mrs C Lightfoot – donation to village tea party – £10 (paid)

Vale of White Horse – dog bin emptying (April – June) £41.47 + VAT (paid)

Clerk’s Salary – August & September – £311.80 + £24.99 expenses

Vale of White Horse – dog bin emptying (July – Sept) £41.47 + VAT

M. Brown – purchase of petrol for grass cutting £93.91

A. Brown – purchase of items for Tiddleywinks playgroup – £71.86

Playsafety Ltd – fee for annual inspection of play equipment £69.00 + VAT

The above payments were noted and agreed. The Chairman said that receipts and expenditure is in line with budget.

ii) Financial transactions since last meeting

Bank Interest: July 29.48, August £28.99

These receipts were noted. Clerk has invoiced Mr & Mrs Wright for 2 cuts to footpath at the rear of the George & Dragon.

The clerk asked for a nominee to become signatory in place of Ms Drew. Mr Dickens was proposed. Clerk to arrange bank mandate. Clerk

11. Correspondence recently received

i) Letter from Chairman of Vale of White Horse thanking the village for hospitality at Tea Party 29/7/08

ii) invitation to attend Didcot Community Forum meeting on 30 September

iii) invitation to renew subscription to FWAG

iv) SE England Regional Assembly – Partial review of the SE Plan: Gypsy and Traveller accommodation needs. Response to consultation document required by 21 November 08

v) CPRE “Fieldwork” magazine

vi) Guide to Roadsafety in Oxfordshire 2008/9

vii) Joint Strategic Planning Unit – Publication of the joint minerals and waste core strategy DPD

The above items of correspondence were noted.

12. Future of Volunteer Group: the Chairman floated the idea that the Volunteer Group might be set up as a charitable trust. This Group might feed back to the Parish Council ideas on what might be done to improve the village. The idea is to be debated at the next meeting. Clerk

13. Changes on the Parish Council: a letter of resignation from Ms Drew was read. The Parish Council expressed their gratitude to Ms Drew for her contribution and wished her well in her move away from Upton.

14. Date of next meeting. The next meeting has been arranged for 26^th November at 8.00 p.m.

There being no further business the Chairman closed the meeting at 10.05 p.m.

Clare Lightfoot, Clerk

Tel: 01235 850486

26^th September 2008

UPTON PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of meeting of Upton Parish Council held on

Wednesday 23 July 2008 at 8.00 p.m. in the Village Hall

Present: Mr M Brown (Chairman), Ms B Drew, Mr D Mason, Mr S Norman, Mrs C. Lightfoot (clerk),

Mr R Farrell (part time), Mr C Lamont (part time), PCSO G Kirby (part time).

1. Apologies for absence received and accepted from Mr Dickens (holiday) and Mrs Seelig (holiday).

2. Declarations of Interest

Members are asked to declare any personal interest and the nature of that interest which they may have in any of the items under consideration at this meeting. None recorded

3. 3. Co-option of additional councillor: The chairman welcomed Mr David Mason to the council.

4. Minutes of meeting of Upton Parish Council held on Tuesday, 13^th May 2008 and extraordinary meetings held on Thursday 19^th June and Monday 30^th June 2008, having been previously circulated, were agreed to be a true record and duly signed by the Chairman.

5. Matters Arising

13/11/07 Field at rear of George & Dragon. In Mr Hood’s reply, dated 22/5/08, he suggested we attend a meeting with him, his officers and the Chairman of the Development Control Committee to discuss on-going concerns. Miss Drew and Ms Alexander of the Wessex AONB have subsequently attended such a meeting at the Vale offices. The Vale will look at case histories to see how chattels have been dealt with in other areas. Ms Drew told the meeting that she is awaiting a response from the Vale setting out issues following the meeting. Ms Alexander is hopeful that she can help us and will go through the Vale’s response with Ms Drew.

13/5/08 Draft Vale Sustainable Community Strategy. Miss Drew circulated the draft document for information.

13/5/08 Vale’s response to Thames Water – report by Mr Norman. Due to an oversight this report was not taken but the matter was discussed by the District Councillor.

6. County Councillor’s Report: Mr Lamont reported:

• the Great Western Park development at Didcot now has the go ahead;
• Oxfordshire County Council web site now contains Highways fact-sheets;
• planning applications are in the pipeline for incinerators to deal with much of the counties waste at both Sutton Courtenay and Ardley.

7. District Councillor’s Report: Mr Farrell reported:

• In a recently issued government report the Vale is only required to accommodate 60 additional houses on top of the 11,500 that it is already expected to provide by 2026;
• Sir Michael Pitts’ report on Lessons to be Learned from Floods can be seen on the Vale web site. There are 8 recommendations for Local Government which are likely to have a significant impact on the Vale’s finances. The Government is being asked whether they will help with funding, or alternatively agree to raise the cap on Council Tax;
• SODC and the Vale have agreed to proceed with joint management arrangements. Three councillors from each council will oversee the process;
• Thames Water Reservoir: the Vale is not convinced by the case which has been made by TW. The Vale’s final response will be made in August.

8. Planning Application UPT/1062/4 – application for erection of a dwelling with garage and erection of a replacement garage at Rowlands, Church Street. Application made by Mr & Mrs E Johnson. The plans were discussed and it was unanimously agreed that the Parish Council should not object. The clerk was asked to request clarification that the land on which the new property is to be built is not agricultural land. Clerk

The following permissions were noted:

UPT/19332/1 – Alterations to Upton Lodge – Permission granted

UPT/20551 – Change of use of land at Scotlands Ash – Permission granted

UPT/3644/1 – Sign of the Crown – permission has been granted, with conditions prohibiting commercial use.

Request to reduce the crowns on Horse Chestnut and Sycamore trees at Corderoys by 20% – permission granted.

UPT/18307/2 1 Beeching Close, permission has been refused. Mr Farrell will investigate the reason for refusal.

9. Villagers’ Forum

PCSO Kirby briefly attended the meeting to hear if there were any concerns. He said that special attention would be paid to monitoring vehicles traveling illegally on the Sustrans track particularly during the school holidays. The Chairman advised that the most appropriate siting for the SID machine is on the A417 and in Chilton Road

10. Parish Transport Representatives Report: no report

11. Reports from Councillors’ on areas of responsibility

i) Roads and Footpaths – Cycle track to Blewbury: Mr Norman reported that a Blewbury landowner has offered land alongside the A417 for a cycle track between Upton and Blewbury, terminating at the boundary of Upton. Mr Norman said this did not seem to be a credible idea. He will seek a further discussion with those involved in Blewbury. SN

ii) Recreation Ground: the Chairman reported that the grass-cutting arrangements for the recreation ground were working well and he thanked those responsible. He said that some maintenance was required on the garage. MB

iii) Playground: the ROSPA inspection is due this month. The Chairman said that help is required to lay the new safety mats. The Chairman stated that he would continue with the cutting of the stinging nettles and would also cut the hedge, B.D. agreed to help. The membership of the Playground Committee needs to be reviewed. MB & BD

iv) Village Hall: The Chairman reported that an £8,750 grant has been made by the County Council. Our application to WREN is through to the second phase. In this area 2 grants will be awarded from 4 applicants. Donations from the village have exceeded the half-way mark, ie over £5k.

v) Planning: see Item 5. Matters Arising and Item 8

vi) Young Parishioners: nothing to report

vii) Communications and other Amenities (Environmental Project). The Chairman said that he has written to the Highways department regarding the installation of gates in Frog Alley. A reply is awaited.

viii) NAG: no report was available following the last NAG meeting.

ix) UKAEA Stakeholders Committee: Ms Drew said that nothing of direct interest to Upton was discussed at the last meeting.

x) Energy Saving Initiative: no further progress to report.

12. Lead Roles for 2008/9: it was agreed that each lead role should be supported by another councillor as follows:

Planning: Ms B Drew/Mr M Brown

Roads & Footpaths: Mr S Norman/Mr M Brown

Recreation & Playground Mr J Dickens/Mrs T Seelig

Youth Mr D Mason/Mrs T Seelig

Communications & Amenities Mr M Brown/Ms B Drew

Energy Saving Initiative Mrs T Seelig/Ms B Drew

Parish Council representation on other bodies was agreed as follows:

UVHAT Mr S Norman

NAG Mr J Dickens

UKAEA Ms B Drew

Other areas where councillors would be expected to give assistance:

Finance Mr S Norman

Transport Mr J Dickens

Village Workforce Mr M Brown with assistance from Mr D. Mason

13. Finance

i) Invoices and payments since last meeting

Wicksteed – safety mats £777.26.

Payment to Public Works Loans – 30 June – £412.91

Hire of Hall for meetings – £88

Milton Garden Machinery – £369

Mr G de Wilde, contribution towards roller for recreation ground and petrol costs for both mowing and rolling- £55

Allianz Insurance- additional premium for mowers and fidelity guarantee – £27.53

Mr M Brown – grass cutting expenses – £82.64
Clerk’s Salary – June & July & postage – £328.24

The above payments were noted and agreed. It was unanimously agreed to make £10 available towards the village tea party for the elderly and housebound planned for 29^th July.

ii) Financial transactions since last meeting

Bank interest – May £31.11 & June £33.46

Repayment of VAT claimed end June – £227.72

These receipts were noted.

iii) Charitable Donations

Request has been received from Oxfordshire Association for the Blind. This will be considered along with other requests at the end of the financial year.

14. Correspondence recently received

ORCC – 10/7/08 – County Council Grant Aid for Village Hall Project – grant of £8,750 has been awarded towards village hall extension project. Clerk to write a letter of thanks. Clerk

Oxfordshire CC – 25/6/08 – Application to add bridleway to the definitive map has been unsuccessful. Noted

VWH – 18/7/08 – Housing needs assessment – survey being carried out. Posters advertising this to be displayed.

Vale Chairman’s letter, 10/6/08, requesting visit to village activities. The Vale Chairman will be attending the village tea party.

CPRE AGM – 26/7/07: noted

The following correspondence will be circulated to councillors:

Oxfordshire 2030 Consultation – draft plan for consultation.

Oxfordshire Highways Annual Report:

Oxfordshire County Council, Countryside Service, Annual Report

ORCC Review, Summer 08

15. Date of next meeting. The next meeting has been arranged for 24^th September at 8.00 p.m.

There being no further business the Chairman closed the meeting at 9.50 p.m.

Clare Lightfoot, Clerk

Tel: 01235 850486

27^th July 2008