MINUTES of the Much Hadham Parish Council meeting held on Tuesday, 11 Janaury 2011, at 7.30 pm in the Much Hadham Village Hall.

MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING HELD ON 9 NOVEMBER 2010

Cllr Carver had challenged the accuracy of the minute under Planning, item 2 “General”, page 2, final paragraph.  Members concurred that the minute was an accurate record.

Having noted the above, the Minutes of the last meeting held on 9 November 2010 were accepted as a correct record of the proceedings and were signed by the Chairman.

PLANNING

1.         Planning – General

RESOLVED that the contents of the attached schedule (Appendix A) be noted.

2.         Planning – Other Matters

The Chairman read out the contents of an e-mail received from Cllr Carver dated

19 January 2011 which gave an update on the following matters:

(i)         North Leys

It was reported that the black and white tiles remained in place and an application had been requested for the handrail.  Enforcement action might be considered if no application was submitted or if permission was refused.  Officers had advised the owner that if the approved staircase was not installed by early June, then the previously authorised enforcement notice would be served.

With regard to the driveway it would appear at present that a breach of planning control had not occurred.  However, if the nature of its use changed, then officers could revisit and review matters.

(ii)        Pear Tree Cottage

This planning application had been refused on 29 November 2010.

(iii)       7 Windmill Way

The appeal on the refusal of 3/10/1169/FP had been dismissed on 26 November 2010.  The revised application for the site 3/10/1875/FP had been approved on 20 December 2010.  The matter was with the enforcement team to progress compliance with the approved scheme.

(iv)       Circle Anglia – Windmill Way

Application 3/10/1572/FP for an extension of car parking into the grass island to provide an additional 4 car parking spaces, including one disabled space, had been refused on 24 December 2010.  As this was a retrospective application, it had been referred back to Enforcement who would be progressing with a report to committee for authority to take enforcement action (unless, of course, an appeal was lodged against the refusal).

(v)        Moor Place

Officers had visited the site and had photographed the house interior and exterior, together with all the outbuildings.  The house was still occupied and it was understood that the buyers were intending to seek pre-application advice in respect of the outbuildings.  Updates on progress would be made on a regular basis.

Members expressed their concern at the late communication received from

Cllr Carver which they felt to be unacceptable.  With regard to future meetings in respect of Moor Place between East Herts Council and the buyers it was suggested that two members attend.

PARISH PATHS PARTNERSHIP

1.         Report on Rights of Way Matters

Cllr Mrs Fowler tabled Appendix B and she referred specifically to those rights of way within the Parish of Much Hadham.  Members were asked to consider any small projects which required attention as there were funds available within the current financial year.  In addition, Cllr Mrs Fowler confirmed that remedial work was still to be completed on footpath 20.

2.         Rights of Way Improvement Plans

Members had been circulated with a letter from the Rights of Way Service inviting Parish Councils to think about improvements that they would like to see in their Parish or local area.  Cllr Morris felt that it would be a generous gesture to parishioners on the western edge of the village to have the facility of having a designated right of way along the line of the old railway (currently permissive) from Windmill Way to its junction beyond Brand’s Farmhouse.  Three quarters of the old railway line was a current right of way, but not the stretch referred to above.

Members supported Cllr Morris’s proposal and the Clerk was asked to notify the Hertfordshire County Council accordingly with a copy to Mr Bryan Norman.

STANSTED AIRPORT RELATED MATTERS

The Chairman stated that there was very little to report on this matter other than the Government was concentrating its efforts in reducing emissions from airports at the expense of noise.  The Chairman felt that emissions and noise should be considered in tandem.

HIGHWAYS MATTERS

• Cllr Bird reported on the situation regarding the vehicle activated signs which had been discussed at the Joint Member Panel.  It would now appear that the previous speed survey had not shown that the 85 percentile criteria had been met and Cllr Bird was liaising with Chrissy Jakes on this matter.
• No funds were available for surfacing work to Winding Hill.
• No official notification of the work currently being carried out at the southern of the village.
• Concrete curtain provided at both sides of the ford.  There would always be an underlying problem of water flowing over the surface of the road.
• Extremely bad potholes in Church Lane.

PARISH PLAN

The Chairman reported that the questionnaires were due to be analysed at the next meeting of the Working Group to be held on 27 January 2011.  It was disappointing to note that there had been a poor response to the questionnaire.

GRANT APPLICATIONS

1.         Much Hadham Sports Association

Reference was made to the correspondence received at the last meeting of the Parish Council when it had been noted that there had been a request by the Committee for a grant towards the grass cutting of the recreation field.

RESOLVED that a grant of £500 be approved.

2.         Much Hadham Village Hall Committee

Reference was made to correspondence received at the last meeting of the Parish Council relating to the previous and anticipated expenditure in respect of refurbishment work to the Village Hall.

RESOLVED that a grant of £1,500 be approved to be expended on the fabric of the building.

CONSULTATION ON PROPOSED CHANGES TO SCHOOL TRANSPORT POLICY

Members had been supplied with a copy of a letter from the County Council in respect of the above.

It was agreed that a copy of the letter be inserted into the parish magazine.

VILLAGE PARTY TO COMMEMORATE THE WEDDING OF

KATE MIDDLETON TO HRH PRINCE WILLIAM

Whilst the concept was felt to be laudable, by a majority of the members it was, nevertheless, felt that there was little time to organise a suitable function.  However, should residents feel that they wished for the date to be commemorated, then the Parish Council would be prepared to offer the sports field free of charge as its contribution.

RISK ASSESSMENTS – GENERAL AND FINANCIAL

1.         General

Members had been issued with a copy of the risk assessment adopted on 30 January 2009 and, having considered the content, they felt there to be no amendments required.

RESOLVED that the risk assessment be readopted.

2.         Financial

Members had been circulated with the financial risk assessment adopted on

30 January 2009 and it was felt that there were no amendments required to the document.

RESOLVED that the financial risk assessment document be readopted.

EFFECTIVENESS OF INTERNAL AUDIT

The Clerk referred to the requirements of the External Auditor for the Parish Council to review the effectiveness of the internal audit in order to comply with Regulation 6(3) of the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2006.  The review should cover such topics as the competence, independence, relationship with the Clerk and audit reporting.  The Clerk outlined the work of the Internal Auditor and he referred members to the very detailed reports issued on the final accounts.  He stated that the auditor was professionally qualified and acted totally independently.  Members confirmed that they were completely satisfied with the services rendered by the Internal Auditor and that the key risks of the Council were being addressed.

HENRY MOORE FOUNDATION

The Chairman referred members to an e-mail he had forwarded to

Mr Richard Calvocoressi (Henry Moore Foundation) outlining the terms of the proposed lease and the Parish Council’s acceptance of the one-off capital payment of £10,000, £2,000 of which would be forwarded to Play Much Hadham.  To date the Chairman had received no formal response, although an indication from

Mr Calvocoressi had led the Chairman to believe that a positive response would be received from the Trustees following their meeting in February.

PAYMENT OF ACCOUNTS AND CURRENT FINANCIAL STATEMENT

1.         Payment of Accounts

RESOLVED that the accounts as set out on the attached statement (Appendix C) be duly authorised for payment.

2.         Financial Statement

RESOLVED that the contents of the attached statement (Appendix D) be received.

PRECEPT 2011/2012

Members had been circulated with a copy of the draft precept for the financial year commencing 1 April 2011.

RESOLVED that the precept be confirmed at £24,000.

ITEMS FOR FUTURE AGENDA

• Review of Standing Orders.

RESIDENTS’ COMMENTS

1.         Parish Information

A resident was pleased to note that the Parish Council had held its precept with no increase over the previous year and he felt that this fact, together with details of the activities of the Parish Council over the preceding year, should be made known to the public via the parish magazine.

2.         Commemoration of Wedding

A resident expressed disappointment at the Council’s decision not to commemorate the occasion and he offered to write to organisations within the parish to establish whether there was a groundswell of feeling for any action.  Cllr Mrs Tate agreed to also raise the matter at the next meeting of the Village Hall Committee.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

1.         Transfer to the Parish Council of the Spinney between the Sports Field and the High Street

The Chairman informed members that he had questioned the physical boundary to the north of the site, which differed from the 1947/1988 conveyances.  Nevertheless, it was felt that the position on the ground should be accepted, which was reflected in the current transfer document.

The Chairman confirmed that both he and Cllr Compton would duly execute the transfer document.

2.         Flow of Information

Members expressed their concern at the lack of prompt information being made available to the Parish Council with reference being made to the e-mail being received on the evening of the meeting.

3.         Provision of Dog Litter Bins

(i)         Garage area – Windmill Way

Cllr Compton confirmed that the bin had been erected.   However, he had had a officer of the District Council contact him expressing disapproval of the Parish Council’s actions in this matter in siting the bin on District Council land.

Cllr Compton was advised to supply Cllr Carver with the relevant facts.

(ii)        Village Hall

Cllr Compton stated that he had a new bin in his possession for installation.  Concerns were raised that the area of Tansley Bank had been put forward with a number of members feeling that this location would not be acceptable.  They felt that a more appropriate location would be near the stile in the vicinity of Two Bridges.

Cllr Compton agreed to contact the owners of the verge in order to action this matter.

4.         Karate

The Chairman referred to an e-mail received from Mr Grant Nicholls informing members of the commencement of a karate class at the High Wych Memorial Hall commencing on Wednesday, 19 January 2011.

5.         Sports Association Representation

Cllr Mrs Tate stated that the next meeting of the Association was scheduled for

20 January and she had agreed to deputise in the absence of Cllr Mrs Aranha.  However, as Cllr Mrs Tate would not be standing for re-election, she questioned whether it would be appropriate for her to attend the meeting.

Members were of the opinion that it would be appropriate.