Charleton Parish Council.

 Minutes of a Meeting of Charleton Parish Council, held on Thursday 8^th May 2003, immediately following the Annual General Meeting, at 8 pm., in the Village Hall.

Present were:- Mr. Hoggart (Chairman, presiding), Mr. Conboy, Mr. Faulkner, Mrs Hawkes and Mr. Smith.

 Also present were:-    Mr. Masters (DCC), P.C. Potter (acting Community Policeman) and Mrs Raymond (Clerk).

1. Apologies for absence were received from:- Wg. Cdr. Leigh.

2. The MINUTES of the previous Meeting, held on  Thursday 3^rd April 2003, had been circulated, were approved and signed as correct.

3. MATTERS ARISING:-

 (i)   Parking in West Charleton:- Mr. Halliday telephoned in response to the Clerk’s letter suggesting that a lay-by to enable three vehicles to be parked opposite the school would be desirable. He agreed that the suggestion might be acted upon, and will inform the Parish Council in due course of what will be done.

(ii)               Parking in Lyte Lane:- P.C .Potter promised to look into this matter, and to consult Inspector Singer.

(iii)             Traffic speeds:- It has been observed that motorists are beginning to take less notice of the new speed limit and the virtual footpaths. Mr. Masters said that most of the correspondence received by the District Council concerning these matters has been expressing approval of the new measures, and suggested that a poster warning motorists to avoid parking on the virtual footpath outside the Post Office might be helpful, especially in avoiding obstruction to pedestrians with prams or push chairs. The road from the Post Office to the Rectory might even be wide enough for an actual pavement to be made, and so it was felt that tis suggestion should be passed on to Mr. Halliday by the Clerk, with the support of Mr. Masters. Mrs Hawkes suggested that signs indicating pedestrians in the road might be helpful, especially in East Charleton. Mr. Hogggart said that the Parish Council had also suggested to Mr. Halliday that double unbroken white lines would prevent dangerous overtaking on the stretch of road from the school to the foot of Lyte Lane, and P.C. Potter agreed. Mr. Smith had also mentioned this idea to Inspector Singer, who also agrees that it might be helpful, so the Parish Council awaits the reply of Mr. Halliday concerning this.

(iv)             Notice board at Charleton Garage:- Mr. Smith reminded the Meeting that the proprietor of the garage had expressed his willingness to erect a Notice Board in East Charleton if the Parish Council would provide one. This matter will be discussed further at a future Meeting.

(v)               Co-option of Parish Councillors:- Three more Parish Councillors will be co-opted to fill the vacancies arising after the recent uncontested election. The present Parish Councillors approved of Mr. Hogggart’s suggestion that Mr. Brown and Wg. Cdr. Leigh be invited to accept co-option, together with one other person, as soon as practicable. Under the regulations concerning the filling of vacancies, this should be done within 35 working days of the election, that is, by the middle of June, and so the matter will be dealt with at the June Meeting.

4. Public participation:- None.

5. Correspondence:-

6. Planning:-

 A Grant of Conditional Consent was received in respect of the Application RK/PS/TPO/076, for Work to Tree Preservation Order Trees at West Waterhead, West Charleton.

A Grant of CPP was received in respect of Application No. 09/0402/03/F, The Creek, West Charleton, TQ7 2AW

Revised Plans were received for Application No. 09/0654/03/F, Blakes, West Charleton, TQ7 2AL. The changes were considered to be too minor to make any further recommendations to be made by the Parish Council, who had no objections to the granting of this Application.

7. Reports:-

(i)                 Coleridge Association:- Nothing to report.

(ii)               Footpaths:- Nothing to report

(iii)             Saltstone Group:- Nothing to report.

(iv)             School:- Mr. Smith reported that the school has recently received excellent reports from both the OFSTED and Diocesan inspection teams.

(v)               Village Hall:- Mr. Smith reported that the hall has recently been revalued for insurance purposes, and a copy of the valuation has been forwarded to the insurers, in order to obtain a rebate on the premium, as the hall was insured for a higher sum than the valuation. Bookings continue to reflect the satisfaction of all the regular hall users, despite the recent increase in fees. A brief history of the Village Hall was compiled, and copies will be made available to the Parish Council and for a display in the hall in due course.

8. Finance:-

 The following cheques were passed for payment:-

            Cheque no. 100598, £256.11 to Allianz Cornhill for insurance premium

            Cheque no. 100599, £19.05 to SH Newspapers for ad. for Annual Assembly

            Cheque no. 100600, £200.00 to St. Mary’s Church for grant (S137)

 The annual accounts will be prepared for presentation at the next Meeting, and submission to the Audit Commission for the annual audit.

9. Matters of urgency, at the Chairman’s discretion:-

Mrs Hawkes said that she has contacted Mrs Gross, who sends the village news to the Gazette, and suggested that she mention East Charleton. This has been done in the latest article to appear in the paper.

Mr. Smith reported that the fountain has been replanted, and will probably require some further refurbishment next year.

10. Items for the next Meeting:-

 (i)                 Co-option of Councillors.

(ii)               Election of Vice-Chairman.

(iii)             Signature of Declarations of Acceptance of Office.

(iv)             Appointment of representative to Coleridge Bus Committee (if necessary).

(v)               Annual accounts for year ended 31/3/03.

(vi)             Parish Plan and Emergency Self Help Plan

(vii)           Parish Notice Board for East Charleton.

11. Date of the next Meeting:- Thursday 5^th June 2003.

Signed as a true and accurate Record of the Meeting,

Signature………………………………………….                              Date……………………..