Wereham Parish Council

WEREHAM PARISH COUNCIL

Draft minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on Tuesday 23rd July at 7.30pm in Wereham village hall.

Present: Chairman Cllr P Norris, Vice chair Cllr D Deighton, Cllr G Koopowitz, Cllr J Bruce, Cllr K Newell, Borough Cllr C Sampson, District Councillor M Storey.

Members of the public: 10

Minutes of last meeting

Minutes of the meeting held on 14th May 2013 were discussed and agreed to be a true recording of proceedings. Proposer: Cllr G Koopowitz, 2nd: Cllr J Bruce.

Declarations of interest:

Members are invited to declare personal prejudicial interests in items on the agenda. It is a requirement that declarations from a member include the nature of the interest and whether it is personal or prejudicial.

None declared.

Village hall management committee and John Gudgeon attended the meeting to discuss and request the following:

1 – Request PC approval to entrust the footpath marked as NK12127 with the land registry, to the Village Hall Committee.

2 – Request PC approval that a note be added to the land registry for the land registry references NK393387 (land the hall is on) and NK127127 (footpath), stating that the PC hold the land in trust for the village hall. John Gudgeon advised that this can be actioned as follows –

The Parish Council should formally resolve and record in their Minutes that they hold the land comprised in Title Number NK127127 as Trustee for the Wereham Village Hall, Registered Charity Number 1151336.

They will also need to authorise their clerk to write to me formally consenting to the registration on behalf of the Village Hall Management Committee of a Land Registry restriction in Form E against title numbers NK127127, and NK393387.

A restriction in Form E is a statement on the Land Registry title record that the Parish Council holds the land as Trustee for a charity and serves as a warning to anyone dealing with the Parish Council about the land that any disposals have to go through the procedure required under the Charities Act.

3 - Approval of the new Trust Deed and for 2 PC members to sign it off, for the following reasons-

The 1961 Deed is out of date

• The revised version allows better governance

• We require an updated version for major funding applications

• The revised version allows for an Indemnity Insurance to cover Trustees and Custodian Trustees.

4 – Short update from the Management Committee on progress since the last PC meet.

June –

Guest speaker, Colin Venes, from Thornham Village Hall, awarded £497k by Lottery. Took a core team of 4 people to action. Started Sept 2009, building should be complete by end of August.

New Trustee, Roy Stevens, representative of the Bowls club.

New chair trolleys and table clothes delivered.

Meeting with Barry Duffin from the NRCC – to discuss the evidence required for funding applications and how we can apply that to our project.

Direct input to the community survey from our area co-ordinator at the Lottery, Ed Hickman.

July –

Graeme Key, our PC representative resigned. We now have a vacancy for the PC representative – please nominate someone from the PC to fill this position.

We have resolved a builder to action the repair work to the floor, flat roof above the toilets and the far corner roadside. Work will commence on the 19th August; the hall will be closed for 1 week for internal repairs. An anonymous donor has kindly offered to pay for the repairs.

We have replaced the door bars on both fire exits, replaced the internal emergency lighting, re-levelled the step at the entrance and are working through advisory work from the 5 yearly electrical inspection.

Community surveys actioned. Prize draw for completed surveys on 20th August. Feedback to be collated to enable us to clarify the needs and issues of our community, then to discuss the options for a project, where we will need a new village hall to achieve the project outcomes.

Jenny Bevan from the NCF, confirmed that the award of £15k from the Borough Council has been rolled for another 12months.

A Wereham Fun Day has been booked for the 22nd of September. Amongst the booked/organised activities, there will be a dog show, beer tent, BBQ and band.

Helen, with the help of Janet Voutt, has started a 2nd bonus ball club.

Parish Council discussed the points raised by the village hall management committee and agreed to seek legal representation and advice on these matters before any decisions and signatures are made.

The Parish Council did consent to authorise the Clerk to write to the management committee consenting to the registration of a land registry restriction in Form E against title numbers NK127127 and NK393387.

Proposer: Cllr J Bruce, 2nd Cllr G Koopowitz, all Councillors in agreement with this decision.

Chairman's reports/ updates

Resignations received from Cllr G Key and Cllr C Humphries.

Delivering local highway improvements in partnership with Town and Parish Councils: Wereham Parish Councils bid to install railings at the crossing has been accepted. This will cost the Parish £1000.00. The total cost for the scheme is £4000.00 or which Norfolk County Council will pay £3000.00. It was proposed to accept this cost and agree to the scheme. Proposer: Cllr P Norris, 2nd: Cllr J Bruce. All Councillors in favour.

Councillor Norris wrote a letter on behalf of the Parish Council in support of the appeal by Mr & Mrs Baron ref allocation of primary school places, a response has been received from Norfolk County Council acknowledging that they have received a number of letters raising concerns about the admission process and the impact on some parents in Wereham seeking reception places in September 2013.

Work is being carried out to The Old Post Office and good progress appears to have been made. Cllr P Norris expressed concern that although good progress has been made on the main Old Post office building the outbuildings still appear to have been untouched. Cllr D Deighton stated that the outbuildings have been stabilised.

The telephone box is in a state of disrepair, this has been reported to BT (job number EA1DEC10). They are reluctant to remove the only phone box from the village due to their responsibility for duty of care and have therefore scheduled it for repainting and repairs.

Members of the public have been concerned with progress on The Old Manor house, specifically the east end of the boundary wall next to the A134. A variation to the planning permission (09/01865/F) for this boundary wall has been applied for and is expected soon. Also children have been using the block wall for free running exercises and some of the top stones have become loose and dangerous, these have been removed. Overall progress on The Old Manor House is good, with chimney repairs complete, roof work soon to be complete and first fix, electrical/water going ahead.

Correspondence

1. Village hall hire rate has increased from £6.00 per hour to £8.00 per hour for Wereham residents and £10.00 for non-residents. Hire rate for the Parish Council will be £8.00 per hour. The new rate took effect from 1st June 2013; existing bookings will be honoured at the old rate.

2. News release from BCKLWN from Monday 3rd June 2013 people using pay and display car parks in Kings Lynn and Hunstanton will need to enter their vehicle registration details when purchasing a ticket.

3. Norfolk Link newsletter.

Planning applications

Proposed wood store building, Hill House Farm West Dereham. The Parish Council were concerned that part of the proposed area is in Wereham Parish. The Clerk will contact the borough Council and request a time extension to review the full plans and submit comments.

Payments for approval/Resolutions

Clerk £ 287.70

Clerks expenses £ 33.00

E.on £ 32.18

CGM maintenance £ 120.00

Norfolk Playing Fields association £ 20.00

Haward Horological Limited Church clock £ 210.00

Glasdon UK dog bin £ 111.54

Holly Landscapes £ 494.78

J D Signs £ 12.60

Norfolk County Council £1000.00

(Parish partnership scheme – pedestrian railings).

All payments were approved by Council. Proposer: Cllr G Koopowitz, 2nd: Cllr K Newell.

Matters requiring attention

Brochures and quotes have been obtained for a new notice board, Councillors will review and discuss at the next meeting.

It has been reported that there are moles on the playing field which could be dangerous for people using the field. It was proposed that the Council engage a mole catcher and have authorised the Clerk to obtain quotes and accept the best quote to a maximum of £200.00. Proposer: Cllr D Deighton, 2nd: Cllr G Koopowitz.

It was proposed that a Barclay’s mandate form be completed to allow Clerk to discuss the bank accounts and be able to request balances etc. Proposer Cllr P Norris, 2nd: Cllr K Newell.

Clerk is entitled to an office allowance for the use of home as an office. Council will discuss and present package to Clerk.

Matters brought to the attention of the Council

Issues brought to the attention of the Council, No decisions will be made by the Council; matters will be put forward to the next meeting of the Parish Council for discussion.

Dog waste bin has not been erected as awaiting post fixings. Cllr Norris spoken to Andy Wallace-Highways regards to this matter.

Member of the public has requested goal nets for the playing field.

Cllr J Bruce requested an update with the proposed tree survey quotes.

Reported a streetlight out in Queens Close and fly tipping in Wereham Row.

Cllr P Norris obtained quotes form Holly Landscape to cut the grass areas near the village hall. Discuss at the next meeting.

The Parish used to have six general litter bins but now have none. Wereham is entitled to have one litter bin emptied per week by the BCKLWN for free.

Cllr K Newell attended a briefing session regarding the LDF consultation and preferred sites. There will be a public consultation period for 10weeks (July-October). Members of the public can make comments via email or by letter. Cllr J Bruce suggested a public meeting be held to inform the public of the consultation. It was proposed to request that Alan Gomm from BCKLWN attend the meeting to answer any queries. Cllr J Bruce and Cllr K Newell will organise an open morning/afternoon session for the public.

Cllr K Newell reported tyres dumped on Gibbet Lane.

1. Public comments/ question time:

No decisions will be made by the Council; matters will be put forward to the next meeting of the Parish Council for discussion.

The verges on the Bennett’s home site have been reseeded but are now full of weeds are require attention.

Concerns were raised with regard to the speed of vehicles leaving the Manor house development and suggested signs be erected inside the entrance to warn vehicles leaving the site that they are crossing a pedestrian pavement before entering onto the highway.

The gully pot is full on The Row, dykes have been cleared.

Member of public reported that there are water voles in the pond and requested that no cutting take place in this area opposite Chilli house.

Cllr M Storey discussed the school placements from Wereham to Hillcrest, this is the first year that it has been oversubscribed and the policies for admission will be considered in the near future, from September 2015. (Refer to earlier chairman’s updates).

Next meeting of the Council will be 10th September at 7.30pm.