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Dedham |
Minutes of meeting held on 14 June 2006
| DEDHAM PARISH COUNCIL Minutes of Meeting held on 14th June, 2006 in the Assembly Rooms Present: In the Chair Cllr Mrs. V. Guglielmi Councillors D. Bradbrook, R. Cannon, C.Clover, R. Cort, R. Laverick,P. Moorhouse, J.Osborn,. Ward Councillor C. Garnett Parish Clerk Mrs. J. Flewin Electors 22 Electors Prior to the start of the open meeting Inspector Glen Mayes attended to give a brief presentation on the subject of Police Community Support Officers. Inspector Mayes spoke of the training and duties of PCSO’s and the limits of their powers. In nearly all respects these were the same as a policeman except for the fact that they carried no enforcing equipment and were not allowed to use force to restrain or handcuff members of the public. The aim is to have these officers on foot in and around the village in order to maintain a feeling of security – i.e. to be the “Bobby on the Beat”. PCSO’s were at the present time match funded. The total cost per officer at present was £26,000, half of which was funded by Essex Police Authority and the other half by the parish/town. A further one off payment of £1,088 was payable being the cost of setting up the system. Insp. Mayes agreed that by the end of March, 2008, all Wards would have their own fully funded PCSO but this did not guarantee that they would not be “poached” and deployed elsewhere on occasions. Following a question time the Chairman thanked Inspector Mayes for his very thorough and enlightening talk. Insp. Mayes said he was happy to give a fuller presentation at a village meeting and it was agreed that this would be discussed during the Parish Council meeting which was to follow. |
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE received from Cllr. Mrs. West. ELECTIONS Chairman Cllr. Mrs. Guglielmi was unanimously re-elected, and took the Chair. Vice-Chairman Cllr. P. Moorhouse was unanimously re-elected. Planning Sub-Committee Cllrs Cannon, Clover, Cort and Moorhouse were unanimously re-elected, Cllr. Laverick to attend meetings as required. Playing Field & Amenities Representatives Cllrs Bradbrook and Osborn were unanimously re-elected. Finance Sub-Committee Cllrs. Mrs. Guglielmi, Mrs. West, Bradbrook and Laverick were unanimously re-elected. Footpath Representative Cllrs. Osborn and Laverick were unanimously re-elected. Press Officer Cllr. Laverick was unanimously elected to this post. Emergency Co-ordinator Cllr. Laverick was unanimously re-elected. Transport Representative Cllr. Bradbrook was unanimously elected to this post. Dedham Primary School Representative Cllr. Mrs. West was unanimously re-elected to this post. Dedham Village Design Statement Cllrs. Clover, Cort, and Mrs. West agreed to act as Parish Council representatives. Surgery Steering Committee Representatives Cllrs. Mrs. Guglielmi, Mrs.West and Osborn agreed to represent the Parish Council on this Committee.` MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETING having been circulated were approved. MATTERS ARISING (a) Royal Square – Bus Stops Following discussions which Mr. P. Simpson of ECC Highways has had with County Cllr. A.Clover and a site meeting with Cllrs. C. Clover and J. Osborn, it has been proposed that the Bus Stop on the south side of Royal Square should be re-sited by the telephone kiosk which would mean a loss of about three parking spaces as opposed to nine or ten if the stop stays where it is. It is hoped that residents whose drives are affected will be agreeable to this minimal inconvenience when a bus is actually at the stop. The stop opposite will be remarked as Bus Stop clearway with restrictions applying only on a Sunday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. and unrestricted parking at other times. The Parish Council agreed that this was a very acceptable proposal and thanked all concerned for their perseverance with ECC. (b) Re-location of Post Office The Post Office is now operating out of the pharmacy and seems to be working well. (c) War Memorial The last time the war memorial was totally refurbished was in 1992. Cllr. Garnett said that grants were available for the maintenance of war memorials and the Clerk will make enquiries of the Langham Parish Clerk. |
CORRESPONDENCE Skateboarding & BMX Day – Manningtree. A “skateboarding day” held in Manningtree in May had been a great success and several Dedham children had attended. Manningtree Town Council were proposing to hold another such day in July and hoped that surrounding parishes whose youngsters will undoubtedly attend would be willing to contribute towards the overall cost of £920. It was proposed by Cllr. Clover, with a majority vote in favour, that the sum of £150 be donated in view of the fact that children from the village would benefit from the activity.. Advertising will be in the form of posters and the Youth Club advised. (b) Dedham Run 2006 This year’s Dedham Run will take place on Sunday, 24th September, in aid of Dedham Primary School. It was unanimously agreed that the sum of £50 be donated again this year for a Winner’s Cup. (c) Affiliation to E.A.L.C. The Parish Council has again been approached by the Essex Association of Local Councils inviting Dedham to re-affiliate. This will be considered further at the next meeting. It was noted that the Colchester Association of Local Councils was reforming. Dedham Parish Council had been a member of this Council. (d) Dedham Village Design Statement A questionnaire is being prepared to be sent to every home in the parish and The Village Design Statement Association have asked for an informal chat with the Parish Council Planning Team in order to understand their point of view. Cllr. Cannon agreed to contact Mrs. Frances Weeks to agree a mutually convenient date for a meeting. (e) Traffic Problems – Long Road West Resident Mrs. Beeton has written asking for the Parish Council’s support of representations which she has made to ECC. She is concerned that there is no footpath on the Long Road side of Ardleigh Road and nowhere to stand safely if one is trying to cross the road. Furthermore the verges in Long Road are being damaged by lorries and buses, creating a muddy, potholed verge on which pedestrians have to walk. Surface water is also a problem following heavy rain. Mr. Ward of ECC Highways has visited the site and was not unsympathetic to Mrs. Beetons’s concerns. He had promised to come back to her following further investigations on his part, but unfortunately he had not yet done so. It was agreed that the Parish Council would write to Mr. Ward asking what, if any, suggestions he had to make to alleviate the problems. (f) Winter Service Review This was passed to Cllr. Bradbrook together with a questionnaire regarding the efficiency, etc. of last year’s winter service for our roads. 6. DEDHAM SURGERY Work on the new building was proceeding well. The Riverside Health Centre was still interested but awaited the outcome of financial deliberations of the Colchester and Tendring PCT’s. Cllr. Garnett advised that meetings had now been arranged – Colchester PCT 25th July and Tendring PCT 27th July. Further details would be given in his report. A meeting to review outstanding funding would be held next month. Cllr. Osborn said that application packs for the new housing were available at the Post Office. Mrs. Brown was negotiating with WRVS the setting up of a volunteer car service which would serve not only the East Bergholt surgery but hospital visits, etc. |
| 7. FOOTPATHS/PLAY AREA Cllr. Osborn
reported that vandalism had again taken place affecting the safety surface
under the roundabout. This had necessitated an expensive repair. This was
the second time the safety surface had been vandalised. The trees in the recreation ground needed checking and any necessary work undertaken. A branch from a tree near the play area had recently fallen onto the Duchy Barn Shed causing damage. It was agreed that Cllr. Osborn will obtain a quote from Mr. Bland and Cllr. Laverick will obtain a further quote from his contact. A request had been made by the Sports Club that the hedges belonging to Mrs. Marshall (School Lane) and Mr. de Muscotte-Morris (The Drift) be trimmed back. Cllr. Moorhouse advised that it was against the law to touch hedges until the end of the nesting season. This request will be borne in mind and will be considered again at the end of the summer. The new fingerpost signing for the new positions of two footpaths in Dedham would be erected in due course. Cllr. Moorhouse felt that this was something which should be done sooner rather than later as the season was well advanced and walkers needed to know where they should go. It was agreed that the Clerk should write to Mary Moir requesting her help in getting the new posts positioned as soon as possible. ACCOUNTS It was proposed by Cllr. Bradbrook, seconded by Cllr. Osborn, with all in favour, THAT the following accounts be paid: Mr. A. Hodson Hours worked in May £120.00 PPP £250.00 Mrs. O.M. Ruff – Litter £144.00 Mrs. J. Flewin - Clerk’s Qtrly. Acc. April/June £722.68 Mr. R. Cannon – Expenses re Planning £ 35.12 Playquip – Roundabout repair £305.50 Lapsett – Play area repair £ 31.73 Playsafety Ltd. – ROSPA check of play equipment £88.13 Dedham Run £50.00 Duchy Barn –Hire £10.00 Assembly Rooms – Hire £180.00 ECC Lighting Costs £10.97 Manningtree Town Council – Donation Skateboarding Day £150.00 9. PLANNING The Planning sub-Committee has dealt with the following applications: COL/06/0836 Dedham Hall Farm, Brook Street, Dedham. (Cllr. Moorhouse declared an interest and left the meeting) Change of use from agricultural to office accommodation. Comments: Sympathetic to development but consider track use for access is unacceptable. Two alternatives suggested. COL/06/0702 Sundowne, The Heath, Dedham. Certificate of Lawfulness for use as builders’ yard. Comments: After consultation recommend refusal. COL/06/0702 Springfield, Long Road West, Dedham. Single and two storey rear extension plus new porch and Replacement windows. Comments: No objections but overlooking windows should be obscure glass. COL/06/00595 Mayfield, Long Road East, Dedham. Erection of new bay window and detached garage/store and Retention of roof lights. Comments: Recommend refusal. See Planning File. COL/06/0683 Bargate House, Long Road East, Dedham. Single storey breakfast room and single storey outbuilding and Garden store. Comments: No objections but boundary should be .9m clearance from neighbour. Approved June 06. COL/06/0694 Salmons Farm, Long Road East, Dedham. New stables and driveway. Resubmission of CVOL/06/0129. Comments: Approve conditional. Trees to be retained and protected. COL/06/0749 New Dawn, Old Ipswich Road, Dedham. Gnome emblem on pole. Comments: No objections, but neighbours comments should be given consideration. Highway issue to be addressed. COL/06/0830 4 Crossways Cottages, Coggeshall Road, Dedham. Widening of existing extension to facilitate a single storey kitchen/ Diner and change roof from flat felted to mono pitched tiled room. Comments: No objections. COL/06/0898 Jays, East Lane, Dedham. Single storey rear extension. Comments: No objections. Anchor Inn, The Heath, Dedham Secretary of State will make a decision on 22nd September, 2006. Abbotts Sign, High street, Dedham. No application received for erection of sign on a listed building. Clerk to write to Abbotts’ Head Office. Planning – Website Cllr. Laverick said we were ready to go live with planning information on the Parish Council website and sought approval to do so. There were no objections and Cllr. Laverick will implement this decision immediately. 10. REPORT OF BOROUGH COUNCILLOR Cllr. Garnett reported that unfortunately the hoped for toilets for this summer in the Mill Lane car park would not now be available. However CBC have agreed to half-fund the portable toilets provided for the August Bank Holiday event as in the past few years. Mr. McManus still hoped that next year proper toilets would be installed in the car park which would be additional to those in the recreation ground. So far as the two PCT meetings mentioned earlier were concerned these were open to the public and he hoped that residents would give their support and attend. The Colchester PCT meeting is on 25th July at Colchester Business Park and the Tendring PCT meeting is on 27th July at Kennedy House, Kennedy Way, Clacton.. Whilst the meetings are open to the public numbers must be advised and the closing date was 10th July. Cllr. Garnett asked that residents prepared to go would give their names to him or to Cllr. Osborn. The next Surgery Steering Committee meeting would be held in the Duchy Barn on 10th July. Cllr. Garnett asked that reports re HGV lorries on the village roads continue to be sent to him for onward transmission to Geoff Harris. He was pleased that four members of the planning committee had attended the Local Development Forum and stressed again the importance of the Village Design Statement, particularly in view of the unknown effect that The Haven development would have on our roads. 11.PUBLIC REPRESENTATION A resident asked if there was yet a village Welcome Pack for new residents. This had been considered some time ago and Cllr. Mrs. West will be consulted. It was pointed out that a good deal of information was available from the website. There was also a query as to whether details of the Neighbourhood Watch should be on the website for security reasons, but it was agreed that as this information was already in the public domain it was acceptable to publish general information. 12. ANY OTHER BUSINESS It was agreed that Mr, Brian Hindley be asked to invite Inspector Mays to return in the autumn to give a full presentation on CPSOs to a full public meeting. Cllr. Bradbrook said that the new footbridge at the ford was still a problem, particularly for those postmen carrying heavy loads on their bicycles. Cllr. Osborn is discussing the matter with PPP. Two bins in the recreation ground were being attacked by birds with a resultant unacceptable mess. Cllr. Garnett will investigate to see if the past arrangements for the emptying of the bins still operated. Cllr. Garnett had also reported the blocked drain by The Craft Centre. The village sign was being obscured by trees and CBC will be asked to trim back the foliage. Nothing further had been heard from the PCC regarding the chestnut tree in the churchyard. Cllr. Garnett mentioned that grants were available from, for instance, The Dedham Vale & Stour Valley Society for projects of this nature. This would be mentioned to Mr.McShane. 13. DATE & TIME OF NEXT MEETING The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, 12th July, 2006. at 7 p.m. in the Assembly Rooms. It is hoped that Mr. Geoff Harris, ECC Highways, will be present. There being no other business the meeting closed at10.10 p.m. |