Meeting on Thursday 6 March
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.
Old
Buckenham Parish Council met on Thursday 6 March. Those present were Councillors Naomi Bailey (Chair), Doug Irons (Vice
Chair), Stan Burton, Lesley Evison, Steve Gowers, Pete Twissell and David
Taylor. Also present were Megan Elvin (Clerk), Donna Oakley (RFO) and Stephen Askew (District Councillor)
as well as eight members of the public. The
minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 6 February were approved (7 in
favour).
Financial matters. Available funds were £29,340.95. Payments for approval totalled £3,118.11 and included Almshouses Trust Grant £500,
TH Fencing & Landscaping £1,184, Clerk £304.20, community car drivers
£95.80 and £18.51 for water at the allotments. Suggit Farm Services not been
paid for last year as Parish Council did not have the invoices and £3,600 is outstanding.
Once invoices have come through, approval was given for paying straight away (7
in favour).
Councillors’
reports. Steve Askew said he will get an assessment done on Fen
Street and 30mph limit through his own members budget. This should measure
speed and types of vehicles. If assessment meets criteria needed then they can
proceed further. Weight limit assessment is different all together and would
cost more money. So for now just going through the speed limit assessment. Breckland Council have grant money
available for VE and VJ day applications so need get applications in now. Devolution
is currently up in the air’ As far as Breckland Council and Norfolk County Council
are concerned it is business as usual. Both presented balanced budgets. Tough
timelines given to the council to give preferred timelines. Final submissions
in September 2025 and looking for 2026 elections.
Breckland’s local plan has
new targets which has increased amount by half a million again. Will need to
look for significant amount of housing throughout the district. Should this
take place; what Breckland are envisioning to do is to put a call out for sites
where people can assess. They would like to engage with parishes in a greater
way and have an event at Breckland inviting a few parishes at a time where maps
will be at tables and where they can take ownership with Breckland on where
they can put more housing. Call for sites should go out by the end of March
2025. As a Parish Council he would suggest being pro-active about it rather
than saying we don’t want anything as it could then be taken out of our hands when
deciding where new houses would be.
Naomi Baily had attended
meeting at Primary School regarding parking due to the posts being put in and
parents not being able to park. Seems that it is starting to get sorted out.
They asked what the solution would be. We do not have to provide them a car park
but she has spoken to the landlord of the The Gamekeeper. They are going to allow parents
to park there for pick up and drop off only, not all day parking. She is looking
to arrange another meeting with the High School regarding parking. Spoken with Stuart Barker regarding
the Handyman job. He is happy to do this again this year and would like to tie
up with the Green Working Committee to discuss this and looking to the end of
March/April time finalise this.
Stan Burton reported that he
had cleared up broken silver birch by the phone box. Also cleared up some
branches that were getting close to the road. There are twenty posts left over from
those posts that were put into Reggies Way and are now at his house. Pump is now
working.
Steve Gowers said the CPR and
defibrillator training is going ahead on Monday 10 and Saturday 22 March. NARS
is a charity and he proposed the Parish Council give a donation of £100 per
session. This was approved (7 in
favour). Another volunteer had come forward for the Community Speed Watch and
another is pending. He has been meeting with Highways regarding Cake Street and
also given ok to do a weekend Speed Watch.
He had now done the Playground
course. Inspections should be done weekly and records of the inspections to be
forwarded to the Clerk and a hard copy kept in the office at the Village Hall. He
asked if our insurance does cover the playground and Doug Irons is to check
this.
The Clerk, Megan Elvin. has
received a request to post the agenda in the phone box for residents who do not
have access to the internet. This will be done in future. Also received a
request for temborary signage to be put on the Green for the Station 144 Bistro
Café at the Aerodrome. Councillors agreed that this can be done. She had her
initial Clerk training in February. Was advised by the training to purchase
book called ‘Arnold-Baker on Local Council Administration 13th edition’. This
was referred to being a Clerk’s “bible” and has all the up to date legislation
in it. It costs £178.40 direct from the manufacturer. Purchase was approved (7
in favour).
Our subscription to Office
365 on the computer has ended. If we renew on a business plan, there are two
options to use. Basic which would just be access to the web apps of Outlook,
Word, Excel, etc. Standard allows desktop versions of these that we have now.
Both versions include Teams and identity, access and user management for 300
employees. Basic costs £55.20 per year + VAT and Standard is £115.20 per year +
VAT. Agreed to go for the standard plan (6 in favour).
Planning
applications. All planning applications are
available for viewing on the Breckland District Council planning portal. Parish
Councillors have been asked by the chairman to view the new applications in
advance of the meeting)
New planning applications. Robert
Cocks Armshouses. Raising of Ridge Line and Parapet Coping In Association With
Proposed Re-Roofing & Removal of Modern Chimney Pots on planning permission
3PL/2021/1650/LB (PL/2025/0159/LB). No issues and proposal to support was
approved (7 in favour).
3 Mill Cottages, Mill Road. Demolition
of existing, fire-damaged outbuilding. Date of fire: 10th December 2024.
Reinstatement of the outbuilding with the scale, form, overall height and
footprint to match that of the existing building prior to the damage – light
commercial level as a family-run business from home (PL/2025/0167FMIN). No issues
and proposal to support was approved (7 in favour).
21 Hargham Road. Single Story
Extension (PL/2025/0208/HOU). No issues and
proposal to support was approved (7 in favour).
Decision
on the allotments. Lesley Evison had spoken to
Allison Hannah and apologised as unable to do anything. Steve Gowers had spoken
to those who have allotment and who have advised to close it now or close it at the
end of the year. It was proposed to give notice that the allotments will be
closed by the end of 2025. This was approved (7 in favour). Invoice the holders that are
there now for the year and also pay the land owner for this year. Formal notice
when paying this invoice to be given by Doug Irons to land owner saying that we
will no longer be carrying on with the allotments.
Green
Lease Committee. Should use of the
Green be required, the Lease agreement should be signed. Should any section of
the lease not be carried out, then a fine can be carried out and termination of
the lease agreement. The committee have taken on board the concerns from those
in the village and have amended the lease accordingly. They have issued the following
statement: "To whom it may concern: The Old Buckenham Parish Council is facing
unwarranted criticism for a lack of support for local businesses. Remember we
are always impartial. As leaseholders of the Green, we are simply seeking
adherence to a signed lease agreements for use of the Green. The business in
question, a lessee and not an owner, is failing to comply with the terms of
that agreement. This discrepancy between their actions and contractual
obligations is constant and time consuming, along with being difficult to
reconcile or even understand. The Parish Council proactively revised the lease
agreement through extensive behind-the-scenes work and collaborative
discussions with all involved parties. These efforts have resulted in a
mutually agreed-upon resolution of previous differences. Key terms and conditions,
while consistent with prior agreements, are now explicitly defined, eliminating
ambiguity and ensuring transparency for all. If a renewed agreement for TWT is
approved, rigorous monitoring will be implemented, and any non-compliance is
breach of that agreement and will result in immediate termination of said
agreement."
The
Solar Farm. The clerk is finding out the latest progress and will report back
at the April meeting.
The
Weather Radar Tower. The clerk is finding out the latest progress and will
report back at the April meeting.
Update
on the Church Yard. Steve Gowers
is in the process of setting up the meeting regarding this and waiting for
people to confirm when they are available. Naomi Bailey has spoken to a current
tenant on the land. He can understand why we would want to have the land back however
it would be a lot of money for the council to pay out. This is not an easy
decision to make, we are trying to gather the facts before making a decision. Need
to find out within the lease as the land we are proposing to use brings in
money into the council or the charity. Doug Irons will be asked to confirm
this. Have been asked that if we are looking to turn the parcel of land into
the cemetery, would we be able to also put allotments on this area as well?
Unsure if we can do this – will need to look into it. We will need additional
funding from the church to cover the costs.
Training
for Councillors. The Clerk to
keep an eye on new dates for suitable training.
Review
of Lease Agreements. This is to be
reviewed next month
Pump
for the pond. The pump for the pond is now
fixed and running. The sump now needs to be dug out and the water pumped out.
If it empties where the drain is then we should know where the water comes
from. Left for Doug Irons and Stan Burton to sort out.
Parish
equipment. A list is being drawn up. Stan Burton has the trailer, pump, Christmas lights and posts. Stuart
Barker has the lawn mower. The coffee shop has the strimmer. Stan Burton and
Pete Twissell are to send a full list to the Clerk and Donna Oakley.
Eleemosynary
Trustee appointment. There is a need
to appoint another trustee . Lesley Ivison and Naomi Baily are already trustees.
No qualifications required but ideally someone that has lived in the village
for at least ten years. Request to go into the village newsletter, on social media
and websites to request this.
Village
Hall as a Emergency Rest Centre. Breckland Council have asked if the village
hall could be considered for use in a national emergency. The Clerk to pass
this request on to the Village Hall Management Committee
Post box for Parish Council.
Need to consider acquiring a new post
box for the Parish Council at the Village Hall. The Clerk to liaise with
Pete Twissell regarding this and confirm with the Village Hall if this would be
allowed. It was agreed in principle to have a separate Post Box and this was
approved (7 in favour).
Prince
Harry’s Wood. There was a need to re-sign the Land Transfer of Prince Harry’s
Wood confirming that the purple marking is also part of the land being
transferred. The document was signed by
Naomi Bailey.
Pot
holes near Post Office. The drain outside Wardman’s house was blocked up by
leaves. The pot hole is on the bend where
vehicles turn and they are pushing dirt up and into the drain and causing a
blockage. Stan Burton to look at taking some rubble over to the pot hole to
fill this up.
Approval of lease. The approval of lease of part of the Green to David
Tranmer was agreed in principle when fees and paperwork in order.
Public
participation. A member of the public asked
what will the next step be once we have found where the water should drain out
of Ottomer Pond. Once we have found out everything, we will need to liaise with
the planners and land owners regarding the next steps to organise drainage.
Putting six months maximum on this to get it sorted.
Next
agenda. Items should include hedge rows at
Puddledock, Churchyard update, Green Working Committee update, Solar Farm and
Radar Tower updates and also VE and VJ day celebrations.
The
next Parish Council meeting will be on Thursday 3 April at Old Buckenham
Village Hall starting at 7.30pm.
