Meeitng held on Tuesday 8 September 2009, at 7.30 pm in the Much Hadham Village Hall.

*Cllr Mrs A M Aranha   *Cllr B H A Morris
*Cllr W Compton    *Cllr Mrs C Naughton
*Cllr W Bird    *Cllr Mrs F Tate
*Cllr M L G Dillon (Chairman)  *Cllr J H A Williams
      Vacancy

* denotes present.

In attendance: 6 members of the public
  Cllr M Carver (EHC)
  Cllr Mrs L Newlyn (HCC)

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

None.

DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

None.

MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING HELD ON 7 JULY 2009

Under ‘Declarations of Interest’ –
Cllr Mrs Aranha – delete “play equipment” insert “Great Hadham Golf and Country Club”

Having given effect to the above amendment, the Minutes were confirmed as a correct record of the proceedings and were signed by the Chairman.

MATTERS ARISING

1. Provision of Litter Bins

Cllr Compton gave details of the type of litter bin proposed (light oak timber with lid) at a cost of £165, excluding installation.

RESOLVED that Cllr Compton be authorised to purchase the litter bin and the Clerk to arrange the installation.

RESIDENTS’ COMMENTS

1. Condition of the Ford

Concerns were expressed regarding the reappearance of potholes in the vicinity of the concrete apron and to the fact that the infilling was shoddy and of very poor quality.
Cllr Bird informed members that, having spoken to Ms Chrissy Jacques (Hertfordshire Highways), it had been established that work was planned to extend the apron and to carry out more permanent work.

Members requested that a date when such work was planned be ascertained.

2. Traffic Management

Cllr Morris, speaking on behalf of Sir Bob Scholey drew attention to the excessive speed of traffic in the vicinity of  the junction of the High Street and Church Lane and the difficulty of driving out of his property.  A request had been made for a mirror to be erected opposite the driveway.

Cllr Morris requested that consideration be given to erecting oak bollards to prevent people parking on the pavement.

PLANNING

To note the planning matters as set out on the attached schedule.  See Appendix A.

PARISH PATHS PARTNERSHIP

Cllr Mrs Naughton reported on the following:

FP39 – Stile still missing and footpaths ploughed.
FP18 – Stile on the footpath too high.

Both the above matters had been reported.

Oak Notice Board – Ash Meadow – Black lettering showing signs of “bleeding”.  No similar problem had been observed in respect of the other notice boards.

Work on production of the map was well under way and hopefully a draft would be delivered within a few weeks.  Members were asked to consider suitable locations.

STANSTED AIRPORT RELATED MATTERS

The Chairman stated that he had very little to report.  Both flights and passenger numbers continued to fall.  The appeal by BAA against the decision of the Competition Commission was to be heard on 19 October 2009  with a possible decision in December 2009 and a possible further appeal thereafter.  The Chairman hoped that there would be no resumption of an inquiry into the second runway until after the General Election in 2010.

HIGHWAYS MATTERS

Cllr Morris reported on the following matters:

1. Culvert bottom of Station Road and the High Street

Victorian grill had been broken and the matter had been reported, but no action had been taken to date.  The wrought iron railings were also broken and in need of repair.

2. Request for speed restriction sign

A letter had been received from Mrs Lisa Keys (Swiss Cottage) drawing attention to the excessive speed of traffic entering the village and to the damage which had been caused to the flint wall fronting her property.  A request had been received for a speed restriction sign to be erected.

3. Widford Road – South of the Village – Blackbridge Lane

Ongoing issue of rebuilding the culvert with concrete safety barriers erected on the bend.  Matter had been going on for approximately 7 years.  The Chairman stated that the reason given for not concluding the work was that compensation for the purchase of the land had still to be agreed.

Cllr Morris agreed to liaise with Cllr Mrs Newlyn (HCC) to ascertain the current position and when it was envisaged that the work would be undertaken.

PARISH PLAN

Cllr Williams informed members that a meeting of the newly formed group was scheduled to take place next week.  Currently there were 8 members of the group and efforts were being made to recruit an additional member.  Cllr Compton confirmed that an additional grant of £500 had been secured from an off-shoot of the CDA.

The Chairman requested that the Parish Council be kept fully informed of the Group’s progress in producing the Parish Plan with regular updated reports being sent to the Parish Council.  Cllr Williams acceded to the request.

PROPOSALS FOR THE PROVISION OF PLAY EQUIPMENT

Cllr Mrs Naughton informed members that the Play Much Hadham group continued to work hard to secure funding to provide replacement play equipment.  Unfortunately, no grant would be forthcoming from BIFFA as a change in the Company’s policy had resulted in no financial support being made available for such equipment. 

The Group was enthusiastic and it wished to maintain the momentum in its endeavours to raise sufficient capital (£60,000) to provide equipment which would last for a considerable length of time.  It was suggested that as part of the replacement programme the Parish Council should consider purchasing an item of equipment in the current financial year and details of an item of equipment proposed (Multi Sport – football wall and basketball net) were given to members, together with a summary of the costs.  The Chairman stated that no contribution could be considered at this evening’s meeting as members had not had occasion to consider the full cost implications and how these would impact on the Council’s finances.  However, a positive indication was given that some level of financial support could be given which would be considered at the next meeting of the Parish Council.

SPEED REACTION LIGHTS

Cllr Compton had circulated members with details of the various types of equipment, together with the costings.  However, the prior approval of the Hertfordshire County Council would be required, together with a survey of the proposed site, before any installation could be considered.  Cllr Compton was proposing that 2 speed reaction signs be purchased for the northern and southern approaches to the village with the possibility of acquiring an occasional speed indication sign.  It was accepted that the poles might not be in the right place which would add to the cost.  An approach to the Hertfordshire County Council (Ms Chrissy Jacques) had established that there would be no County funding for the signs, although there might well be other sources of County funds available.  In correspondence with the County Council on this matter it should be pointed out that it was accepted that this was a County matter which the Parish Council was prepared to undertake on its behalf.

Members were fully supportive of moving forward on the issue and in principle of purchasing one sign at a cost of £3,500 in the current financial year on the basis that the installation cost did not exceed £1,000.

Following the above, Cllr Carver gave members a verbal update on the following matters:

Great Hadham Golf Club – Planning application

Environment Agency – Pollution into the river

North Leys – wall and pier - impending application for a swimming pool.

CHURCH LANE – FLOODING

Cllr Morris informed members that the gulley had been cleared and the matter of the flooding in Church Lane had been semi-rectified.  However, a considerable amount of mud had been deposited on the grass verge with amounts being deposited in the drain.

REQUEST FOR DOG BIN

Cllr Compton informed members that the cost to supply and install a bin in the vicinity of the Village Hall would amount to approximately £270.
Members approved the expenditure being incurred subject to the matter being referred to the Village Hall Management Committee for its opinion.  Cllr Mrs Tate agreed to raise the matter at the next meting of the Management Committee.

ITEM FOR FUTURE AGENDA

(i) Vacancy on the Parish Council

The Chairman stated that it would be advisable to agree a procedure for co-option in the event of 10 electors not requesting an election.

Members agreed to submit names of applicants to be considered and for a formal interview to be conducted by both the Chairman and Cllr Mrs Tate.

(ii) Annual Return – 31 March 2009

(iii) Precept 2010/2011

PAYMENT OF ACCOUNTS AND CURRENT FINANCIAL STATEMENT

(i) Payment of Accounts

RESOLVED that the accounts as set out on the attached schedule be duly authorised for payment.  See Appendix B

(ii)` Current Financial Statement

RESOLVED that the contents of the attached statement be received. See Appendix C.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

No matters were raised.

CONFIRMATION OF DATE OF NEXT MEETING

It was confirmed that the next meeting would be held Tuesday, 3 November 2009, at 7.30 pm in the Much Hadham Village Hall.

______________________________________

There being no further business the meeting closed at 9.20 pm.