Minutes of meeting held February 2018

29/06/2018

MINUTES OF THE MEETING THURSDAY,15 FEBRUARY, 2018 AT RANTON VILLAGE HALL

PRESENT:

Cllr. N MacLeod (Chair)

Cllr. M. Russell (Vice-chair)

Cllr J. Forrester

Cllr. M. Winnington

G. Whelan (Clerk)

18/12 Apologies

BC R Sutherland and BC S Leighton

18/13 Declarations of interest in the following agenda:

None

18/14 Previous minutes:

Minutes agreed as a true record.

18/15 Public questions:

No public were in attendance.

18/16 Finance matters

Three cheques were signed:

£49.98 for Christmas tree lights - the original receipt was lost, however councillors agree that the credit card receipt could be used as proof of purchase.

£30.00 was paid for Grant Thornton audit fees.

£35 was paid for SPCA councillor training.

A print out of last year's bank statement was obtained by Cllr Russell. The change of address and authorised signatories forms were signed which will now be submitted to Nat West bank to officially remove former Cllr Williams, and add on Cllr Edwards as authorised signatory.

18/17 Accounts to date:

A 1.5% council tax precept increase was agreed by all councillors, an increase of 50p per week to the parish.

Budget planning: This coming year's is likely to be similar to last year's with the added expense of inclusion of the school in the regular village mowings - the parish clerk is obtaining a new quote on this.

Civic amenity dates were planned for: Saturday April 7; Saturday June 9; Saturday August 4

and Saturday October 6. All for one hour from 10am. The details will be added into Ranton Parish Council's newsletter.

It was confirmed that the Village Hall Committee no longer require the parish council to purchase tables.

18/18 Reports:

Footpaths: New stiles have been replaced throughout village and towards Seighford.

Mowing: No mowing has taken place since the last meeting. A quote for mowing has not been received yet.

It has not been possible to remove the village Christmas tree as the ground is too muddy and sodden. The Christmas Tree lights will also need removing and storing for this Christmas.

Highways: Pot holes on Stocking Lane have been reported to highways by the parish council and residents. There is a particular problem with flooding in parts of the village. A manhole cover has broken by Chapel House Farm which is potentially dangerous especially when it ices over in the frosty cold nights.

Action: Parish clerk to contact highways to complain around flooding.

The condition of the road along Bourne Avenue/Stocking Lane was poor with many potholes. Cllr Forrester also commented on the amount of mud on the road along these roads by the school.

Action: Cllr MacLeod will draft a letter asking the farming community to be more responsible for their vehicles.

Weed control will also be considered over the winter period and councillors will watch the problem over the coming months.

Following a complaint by Cllr Winnington, contractors have been out and looked at the state of road repairs through the village. The chippings on Hextall Lane, Brook Lane and Butt Lane as part of patched roadworks have come loose. It was noted that while there were expensive and extensive drain work carried out by the bridge Hextall Lane and Brook Lane, which is of little benefit if the gulleys are not cleared.

Consultation about footpaths expecting the Parish Council to write in and highlight which are their most used footpaths.

Action: Parish clerk to check online and list the most used footpaths in the village, including: Ranton Abbey, Gnosall Road, and the bridal path towards Seighford.

Consultation group meeting and letter to county council

Action: The parish clerk will contact both county and borough councils.

Gulleys - The local parish councils' collaborative group have asked Ranton for their support in collectively putting pressure on the borough council to clean gulleys. It is estimated that it costs £1000 a day for a gulley emptier to work on between 120 gulleys to 80 in rural areas per day. Ditches also need clearing out although it is considered the farmer's issue in some cases. This is a particular issue for centre of the village. Cllr Winnington said work should be ongoing to identify gulleys across the borough. There are 185,000 gulleys in Staffordshire which increases with new housing.

18/19 Clerk's reports

The parish council need to look into its website to easily publicise its meetings and associated documents. The parish council will approach Ian knight the rantoninfo website administrator to discuss how documents can be uploaded and easily accessed. Pdf documents of the agenda, minutes and financial records as well as archived documents.

Ongoing action: Parish clerk to set up a meeting between Ian Knight, Cllr MacLeod and the parish clerk regarding the website and online storage of all the parish council's documents.

18/20 Planning updates

Driveme - a meeting took place with Staffordshire Borough Council on 14thFebruary. Planners agreed that noise limits could be self-regulated. Cllr Forrester attended the meeting and was disappointed at the committee's unanimous decision in favour of Driveme's application. Councillors urged any residents to report any noise directly to the council.

Polytunnels in the village have all gone and it is uncertain whether they will be erected again.

18/21 To resolve on planning applications.

None received

A letter was sent to the Village Hall Committee asking for their support against Mr Busby in making the areas with polytunnels as permanent in Derrington Farm, part of Seighford parish. Cllr Winnington stated that the farm was not in the Ranton parish. However, it was felt that a comment be submitted to the borough council's planning portal (17/27543/ful) stating that while the parish council appreciates the need for rural businesses, conditions should be in place to ensure not impact on highways or local people. Traffic wheel washing flood ditches etc. water management road cleaning and contingency for any situation where impact on local residents. submit comment online

18/22 Chairman's Questions/Items for Information/Next Agenda

None

17/23 Date of next meeting

The next parish council meeting will be held on Thursday 19 April, 2018 in Ranton Village Hall at 7.30pm.

Signed.................................................. Date...........................