Old Buckenham Parish Council in November

Minutes of November Parish Council meeting
These notes have been written by the blog editor from the draft minutes and so may contain information that is changed at a later date.
All parish councillors, except Tim Ing, attended along with seven members of the public and Stephen Askew (Norfolk County Councillor).
Steve Milner and Carol Marshall both declared an interest in individual planning applications that were to be discussed.
The meeting was suspended to allow members of the public to ask questions. Notes on subjects discussed will be posted on this blog at a later date. The meeting then resumed.
Minutes of October Parish Council meeting. After a small amendment the minutes were signed as a true and accurate record of the meeting.
Matters arising from the minutes. John Frost said that the missing gates from the play area had been found and should be put back. Steve Milner said the proposed rent increase for the recreation area would be postponed until ownership of the area was established. He also said the Village Hall did not rent the recreation area for boot camp. Carol Marshall stated she could find no other parish council who had to pay rent for a recreation area. Also there was a dispute as to the ownership of the site.
Adoption of Financial Risk Assessment. This was agreed by nine for and one abstention.
Planning applications. 6 Oaklands. Single storey front extension, change flat roof over porch and garage to lean-to roof and extensions to front roof slope dormers. Derek Smalley said these alterations relate to a previous application which Parish Council objected to as the then proposed extension was too big and out of character. The new alterations have reflected those concerns and the new proposed extension is fully acceptable to the Parish Council.
1 Barbers Yard. Change garage to annex. Derek Smalley said it was a garage and always will be a garage and was not in keeping with other properties and would also result in increased traffic levels to the dwelling. Akis Chrisoviledes, Carol Marshall, Sarah Dye and Adrian Joel commented on the application. Derek Smalley then proposed that the application be refused but no seconder could be found so the motion failed. Steve Milner then proposed approving the application subject to “The living accommodation shall be incidental to the use of the main dwelling and shall not be let or occupied at any time as a separate and un-associated unit of accommodation”.
Whitehands Farm, Stacksford. The Parish Clerk is to obtain a time extension and the application will be put on the December agenda.
Planning decisions received from Breckland. 15 Fen Street. Front extension, replacement garage, reformation of existing rear extension. Permission granted.
Downmoor Farm. Single storey residential extension. Permission granted.
Chairman’s report. Steve Milner reported that he had attended a recent NALC meeting and had found it an excellent meeting with two main presentations. One was on the Parish and Town Partnership which gives 50% funding to highway projects. He will be meeting with local highway engineer next week to discuss costing and road safety measures. Breckland Council have just released an Issues and Options consultation document relating to their Local Development Plan and urged all councillors to read it when they see it in the circulation folder as there is a lot of pressure on Breckland to allow more development in the district. NALC said a Neighbourhood Plan would not be approved if it goes against the Local Development Plan and he suggested another working party be set up to look at the National Planning Policy Framework and see how they can protect the village against aggressive developers.
District Councillor’s report. In November Breckland Council will be launching their consultation on the Issues and Options document. They are inviting comments on key issues and priorities that should be considered when shaping planning policy over the next 20 years. In addition it provides people with the opportunity to suggest any issues that they feel should be addressed in the document. The document will be found on http:/consult.breckland.gov.uk. There will also be a drop-in session on Thursday 4 December at Attleborough Town Hall between 2pm and 6pm. A hard copy is available through Adrian Joel on 01953 860663. Alongside the consultation there is also a call for sites. If there is any land that residents think should be considered for allocation, details are on http://www.breckland.gov.uk/content/consultations-contact-us. The recycling revolution got off to a good start in October with an overall increase in recycling of 10% in the first four weeks. Breckland has also agreed to the route for the Attleborough Link Road. The option selected was option 3 which is from London Road near the Breckland Lodge to Bunns Bank. He raised his concerns about future HGVs going through Old Buckenham on the B1077 and suggested that the Link Road be adopted as the lorry route hierarchy in both directions, the suggestion was well received.
Parish Councillors’ reports. Tom Johnson attended the Village Hall meeting and they had indicated they still wanted a grant at this year’s Precept meeting. Broadband is now available in Village hall and parish councillors will be able to access it. He also reported he had received complaints from a resident concerning overgrown hedge in Banham Road. Paul Boggia said he would speak to the landowner on the matter. Paul Boggia also raised the matter of the recently reported water leaks in Grove Road, both of which are now repaired. Derek Smalley recently attended a meeting of The Attleborough Neighbourhood Plan Steering Committee. Akis Chrisoviledes had done some work on a Neighbourhood Plan (NP). He had spoken to an expert on the matter who said any NP should be embedded in Breckland’s Development Plan, not wait until a Development Plan is produced. Steve Milner said a Neighbourhood Plan could not be produced before the release of Breckland’s Development Plan as there was insufficient time and also there was the high cost of producing a Neighbourhood Plan. Adrian Joel said the Community Infrastructure Levy was not yet agreed by Breckland due to government constantly changing the rules. John Frost reported that the church tower repairs are now complete.
Parish Clerk’s report. The Parish Clerk had conversations with NCC Highway Department and they reported the depression in Harlingwood Lane was programmed for repair within four to six weeks. The vast majority of potholes in the village have now been repaired. The depression in Hargham Road has been reported to Anglian Water who will carry out repairs. The Public Right of Way leading up to primary school has been inspected and is now free from obstruction. The matter of the pond near Manor House was raised and the pond needs dredging to prevent surface water collecting on the highway. Also some trees near the pond need cutting back to improve visibility for road users.
Highways. The 30mph flashing speed sign outside the Gamekeeper is not working. White give-way lines at Dambrigg are not working. The 30mph sign at the south end of village has been damaged. The Parish Clerk to contact Highways on these matters.
The Green. Steve Milner attended the recent Green Right Proprietors’ meeting where the pond issue was discussed and concerns over possible litigation following an alleged tripping accident. Tree and parking issues were raised and the three donated trees will soon be planted.

The next meetings of Old Buckenham Parish Council will be a Precept Meeting on Wednesday 19 November and a regular monthly Parish Council meeting on Thursday 4 December. Both meetings will be at the Village Hall commencing at 7.30pm.