Great Bardfield Parish Council  

'ESSEX VILLAGE OF THE YEAR 2009'

Present: Cllrs Dyson (Chairman), Hayward, Hockley, Slemmings, Holmes

Mrs Myrtle Henry and colleague and Mr Michael Barry and Mrs Frances Prattent.

(i) Mrs Henry was concerned about the poor state of Gibraltar Mill and wanted to know if anything was being done regarding the sails and if the Parish Council were making relevant bodies, such as English Heritage, aware of the situation. The response was that it was understood that the present owners were in the process of having sails constructed, which work was being carried out in Scandinavia, and it was felt that they would have liaised with the relevant organisations prior to this. However, the Clerk would contact the owners, and advise Mrs Henry of any up to date information.

(ii) Mr Barry and Mrs Prattent wished to register their concerns in respect of planning application 01149/FUL Bridge Farm, which was on the Agenda. They felt the new two storey extension would block light from the living area and that the proposed new access point would be hazardous in this new location. The Chairman stated that their comments would be included in the Council’s response but that they should make their own representation including contact ECC Highways, and if possible, attend the District Planning meeting when this application is discussed.

The Meeting opened at 8.20 p.m.

There were no declarations of interest.

Apologies had been received from Cllr Ruffle, who was on holiday, and Cllr Walsh who was absent on business.

These were approved and signed as a true record of the meeting. Proposed Cllr Slemmings, seconded Cllr Holmes.

Fountain: It was disappointing that despite meeting with Mr Hitchcock, and speaking with him on the telephone, when he promised to have provided a receipt in time for tonight’s meeting, a quotation had not been received. The Clerk would speak to him again but if there was not response the Council may have to look to other contractors.

Amenity Land: The Clerk reported that the Parish Council had been awarded funding in the sum of £1750from Essex Environment Trust towards the establishment of an community amenity area. Accordingly it was resolved to enter into the deed with Essex Environment Trust in the form before the meeting, and to authorise the Parish Clerk, as Responsible Officer, to execute the deed on behalf of the Parish Council and to agree any minor amendments which may be necessary and to execute any supplementary deeds or documents required by the deed. This resolution was unanimously approved and the deed (plus one copy) duly signed by the Parish Clerk and witnessed by the Chairman.

Affordable Housing: A suitable letter had been prepared and once reproduced by RCCE it would be delivered to the PC together with a copy of the housing needs survey and a freepost envelope. It was agreed that the PC would undertake the distribution the week commencing 1 September with a request for this to be returned directly to RCCE no later than 26 September.

The Clerk would display some suitable posters and the Chairman would report this in the September edition of the Bardfield Times, encouraging residents to respond.

Co-op Store: There had been some positive feedback regarding the store but there were still problems with stock. A letter will be sent directly to the CEO regarding the distribution network failings. A letter had also been received from Mr Barry Cutler who was being affected badly by the noise from the new refrigeration unit. The Clerk was asked to write to BDC, in support of Mr Cutler’s concerns, pointing out that this problem was highlighted in previous responses to the planning application.

Parish Visit: Lady Newton, Chair of BDC, would be visiting the Parish at 10.30 on 24 July and coffee had been arranged in The Bell. The visit would include the CIP, the Museum and the Oxlip project at Pipers Meadow. The Affordable Housing initiative would also be highlighted. It is hoped that as many Councillors as possible will attend.

Playingfield: The overgrown hedge has still not been dealt with and Cllr Hockley offered to undertake the work.

Beslyns Lane Drain: The Clerk had been assured that the drain had been jetted recently but the engineer from Highways would revisit the site. He also confirmed that a substantial job would be undertaken to deal with the drain outside Wellington Cottage. A new pipe would be laid under the garden of the cottage down to the river and ECC would bear the cost.

Bridge: The fact when repairs had recently been carried out, the full length of the bridge was not reinstated, was reported to Bridges; a reply was awaited.

Footpaths: The Clerk was collecting feedback from residents on the conditions of the footpaths, now that the clearance work had allegedly been undertaken, and forwarding these to ECC. The PROW Officer said he is receiving reports from across the County on the poor quality of the work and welcomed our help in monitoring the situation.

CIP Broadband/Internet connection: This was still unavailable but action had been promised for early next week.

Town Crier: The Clerk had contacted The Ancient and Honourable Guild of Town Criers and would liaise with Iain Graham regarding this. It was agreed that, if Mr Graham was agreeable, he become a member of the Guild which membership the Council would pay for in the sum of £29, which included public liability insurance. The application form would be passed to Mr Graham for completion – references and photographs were required. The membership fee could be approved at the August Finance meeting and the question of an honorarium could be discussed at the September meeting.

Three Fields Cluster: It was agreed this was unique opportunity to meet with Officers from various authorities and, as requested, the Clerk had written a strong letter to Inspector Alan Gooden, on behalf of the Three Fields, regarding their non attendance.

Advertising Boards – War Memorial: Following complaints from several residents regarding the inappropriateness of this area for the display of boards the Community Warden had been asked to take action. The Enforcement Officer had advised the Clerk that no applications had been received to display boards, and, as permission has not been granted, the Clean Team could be asked to remove the boards. The situation would be monitored.

(b) Finance Committee Meeting Monday 11 August 2008 at 7.30 pm

In accordance with normal procedure, the Finance Committee will meet in August, in the Community Information Office, to approve payment for that month. It was agreed that if a member of the Finance Committee was unavailable then another signatory would be invited to attend.

01184/TPOCON Houlkers, Beslyns Lane, to fell Laburnum

01269/TPOCON Birch Lea, work on Ash trees

The above applications had been checked by Cllr Walsh who had advised the Clerk there were no objections.

01664/FUL Spinney Cottage, Braintree Road, creation of a tennis court: no objections.

01149/FUL & 01150/LBC Bridge Farm, Bridge End 2 storey side extension. This is for a significant and visible two storey extension, although designed to be subordinate to the existing building. Members questioned the fact that the trees that need to be felled are referred to on the planning forms as being detailed on application drawing no.02, which is not the case. In addition, following representation at the public forum, the concerns over the relocation of the driveway will be raised.

01330/FUL Beattie House, Dunmow Road, proposed extension to garage. The proposed extension is 5m x 1.5 and is solid on all sides, projecting 300 mm more towards the main road which it was felt could be too intrusive in this area of Dunmow Road.

(b) RCCE "Linking to the Statutory Planning System" Cllr Slemmings gave a brief report on this very useful meeting, and will circulate information collected on the day, in due course.

The Clerk had contacted Land Registry, with a view to the Parish Council possibly taking ownership of this area of land, to facilitate continued maintenance. However, she was advised that this would involve fencing the land and maintaining it for a period of 12 years before the land could be registered in the Council’s name. The Clerk had been advised that BDC had agreed to cut it shortly, and if this was the case, she would enquire as to whether this could be done on a regular basis.

Notification had been received from BDC – sent to every household – regarding the introduction of wheeled bins. Letters and telephone calls had been received raising concerns and objections to the proposals, and the Clerk was asked to write to BDC Environmental Services regarding this, she would also highlight areas of concern such as Bridge Street, Brook Street and High Street.

The Clerk continued to receive enquiries from residents, and met with one of them recently, to discuss possibilities. However, the areas of land identified, although uncultivated, were in private ownership, and she suggested that a notice could be placed in the Bardfield Times asking if any land owners would be willing to ‘donate’ land to an allotment scheme.

Following a recent enquiry regarding the installation of speed bumps in Bardfield Road Thaxted, the Clerk had spoken to the engineer responsible, who advised that this was possible because it was neither an A or B category road.

Contact Point: As part of the above enquiry the Clerk had to contact Highways’ Harlow Office, which covers UDC, who now use a call centre which is very unsatisfactory, taking an extremely long time to reach the person concerned. The Chelmsford office which covers BDC advised her that they would also be moving to this system for contact and concern would be raised regarding this.

Town House: An update on proposals to protect this property was required.

Pavement outside White Hart: Still in need of attention.

A meeting of the Pavilion Fund Raising Committee would be held on 23 July at 7.00 pm. There were many sources of grants which needed to be examined and followed up where appropriate.

A donation of £40 had been received from a resident who had read about the work of the youth club and the pavilion project in the BT. The letter of appreciation would be sent.

Parish Action Plans: A letter had been received from Jan Cole confirming that ECC is keen to demonstrate that they can assist with Parish Plans actions. The Pavilion project was the only project still outstanding, which would be advised to Jan. This led to a brief discussion about updating and revising the Parish Plan.

(a) Cllr Hayward had suggested that they appoint parish councillors to Area Committees at BDC.

(b) "Fresh Voice" a publication for young people was being circulated.

(c) "Risk Management Course" 10 September 2008. The Clerk would be attending this course, the cost of which is refundable on completion.

(d) ECC Tree Planting Scheme 2008/09. The Clerk had a copy of the application form and guidelines and it was hoped they Council could take advantage of this.

(e) Cllr Dyson confirmed she would be on holiday in September and hoped that Cllr Ruffle could take the Chair at the next Parish Council meeting.

This would be held on 17 September 2008 at 8.00 pm

The Finance Committee Meeting would be held on Monday 11 August at 7.30 pm

There being no further business the meeting closed at 10.10 p.m.

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