Discussing local issues

February parish council meeting
These notes are written by the blog editor from the draft minutes and may contain information that is amended at a later date.
Three members of the public came along to the meeting and all parish councillors attended apart from Paul Boggia. Kerry Talbot was also present to take the minutes as the Parish Clerk was unable to attend.
The minutes of the January meeting were signed as a true and accurate record. There were no matters arising.
Bribery Act 2010. Akis Chrisovelides asked if all councillors had read the previously distributed Act and asked for the document to be adopted by the Council. This was agreed unanimously.
Development in Old Buckenham. This subject was discussed and it was agreed that the Parish Council would consider small developments of 8 to 10 properties and bungalows. The Clerk had tried to obtain demographics of the area from the County Council without success. Adrian Joel is to find out when the 2011 census data will be available to analyse.
Parking issues in Old Buckenham. Tim Ing instigated a discussion on the issues of parking around the Village Hall and the two local schools. There have now been several incidents of verbal abuse and threatening behaviour regarding exit and entry to the Village Hall car park. Tim Ing and Carol Marshall undertook a head count one afternoon and reported that better positioning of vehicles in the car park would alleviate some of the congestion. Various suggestions were put forward with councillors agreeing that although this was not necessarily a parish council issue it was an issue that affected Old Buckenham parishioners. It was agreed that a Village Hall representative and a parish councillor should meet with the Education Authority to find a solution. The Parish Clerk to contact the schools and Village Hall. Adrian Joel and John Frost to arrange a meeting and then report back to the next parish council meeting with their findings.
Planning. Arenal, New Buckenham Road. Continued use without compliance with agricultural occupancy condition. Councillors agreed that this was not a planning issue but a legal one and offered no comments.
Land at St Andrews Close. Discharge of conditions 3, 4 and 6 on previous planning permission. Agreed unanimously.
Land adjacent to 12 Hargham Road. Erection of 3 bedroom detached dwelling and garage (re-submission). Councillors still felt that this is an overdevelopment of the site and objected unanimously to the application on these grounds.
The Parish Council had also received planning documentation for a compost plant in Carleton Rode – this has been placed in the correspondence folder for councillors to comment on at the next meeting.
Planning decisions received from Breckland. Land at corner of Grove Road and Crown Road. Extension to existing stable block plus new hay barn/field shelter. Permission granted.
The Council had received information regarding ‘Section 106’ money and details of this will be available in the correspondence file for councillors to read.
Chairman’s report. Tim Ing read a letter received from parishioners regarding parking in the village. The Clerk is to respond. The Parish Council has received notification of a seminar from Norfolk Rural Communities Council regarding the Localism Bill. It will be held on Thursday 1 March and Sarah Dye agreed to attend on behalf of the Council. The Community Ranger has been at work in the village and details of the work that had been undertaken were received. Tim Ing is to write to the individual concerned to convey the parish council’s appreciation at the work completed to date. The parish council has been asked to support the Village Hall in developing a project to install solar panels at the village hall. Councillors agreed to underwrite an expenditure of £1500 to be confirmed at the precept meeting in October this year for payment in 2013/2014. Tim Ing will consult with the Parish Clerk to ensure this proposal is within the parameters of the council’s financial guidelines.
District Councillor’s report. Adrian Joel reported that Breckland have joined the County Council and the EDP to support the “Say Yes to the Better Broadband” campaign. Bursaries are on offer for aspiring sports coaches. The Breckland Sports Coach Development Bursary Scheme, designed to celebrate London 2012, will help aspiring sports coaches to gain qualifications in a number of sports’ disciplines. Those who wish to obtain a coaching qualification in a ‘priority sport’ can obtain funding for 75% (up to £300) of the cost of the course; those applying for qualifications in other sports can receive 50% (up to £150).
Parish Councillors’ reports. Tom Johnson reported back from a Village Hall management meeting which reiterated previous discussion on a solar panel project. John Frost informed the council that All Saints Church has registered with a scheme called Wi-spire which provides reliable broadband to rural areas together with providing an income to churches and the provision of a network of surveillance cameras. Five villages currently have this scheme in operation. Jonathan Kemp and Carol Marshall updated the council on the Recreation Area and their investigations into Section 106 money being available to provide funding. They have also organised a meeting with Breckland Council to discuss the provision of sports coaching over the Jubilee weekend celebrations together with advertising for the sporting events. Sarah Dye reported that the maintenance of the play area is ongoing and that Playdale will be on site for maintenance issues covered under their guarantees. The coloured benches have been vandalised and the Clerk is to put a report in the village newsletter to highlight this and to ask parishioners to be vigilant and report any actions of vandalism to the police. Sarah Dye had also received information from Norfolk Warm & Well Scheme which provides help to people in need during the cold months. They also help with insulation, loan heaters and emergency oil supplies. If anyone knows of parishioners that could benefit from this scheme Sarah Dye is happy to be a contact and distribution point. Mugs for the Jubilee need to be ordered. Orders for around 220 mugs have been received and Tim Ing is to liaise with John Hicks and the parish clerk to organise order and payment. Derek Smalley apologised for missing the last Attleborough Safer Neighbourhood meeting but had distributed the minutes from that meeting to all councillors. Councillors were invited to put forward items for discussion at the next meeting under the headings of anti-social behaviour and speeding. Derek Smalley was asked to raise the issues of vandalism at the play area and parking at the school. Steve Milner reported on the events formulated for the Jubilee celebrations. Leaders have been allocated to each task group with the next meeting scheduled for Saturday 3 March – all ideas are still welcome. Tim Ing expressed the Council’s thanks to Steve Milner for leading this event. Akis Chrisovelides will arrange a further Youth Council Meeting for Thursday 1 March starting at 6.30pm. The question of equipment for the Recreation Area was raised and Carol Marshall and Jonathan Kemp reported that they have applied for some Section 106 money but only small amounts of money are available as there are four villages in the group which can apply for the money and within that there are restricted funds for certain aspects such as play, sport, etc.
Highways. A pot hole was reported by the ‘triangle of grass’ at the top of Church Lane opposite the play area. The junction of Mill Road/Grove Road was still of concern and the Parish Clerk is to write to Highways to ask for their ideas on how to make this junction safer.
The Green. Tim Ing reported that the Green Right Proprietors’ AGM will be held on Tuesday 21 February. This will be followed by an ordinary meeting where it is hoped that agreement will be reached on the parking proposals. The Parish Council is to contribute some funding for the work and local businesses have indicated their agreement to make a financial contribution.
The next meeting of Old Buckenham Parish Council will be on Thursday 1 March at the Village Hall at 7.30pm. The Youth Council Meeting will also be on Thursday 1 March at the Village Hall and starting one hour earlier at 6.30pm.
The Annual Parish Meeting will be held on Wednesday 21 March in the Village hall at 7.30pm.