Boughton Parish Council January

March 2014

Boughton Parish Council. Meeting 17th January 19:00 Councillors are summoned to a meeting for the purposes of transacting the following business.

Apologies

Minutes meeting 1st November 2013
Matters Arising

i. Village speed limit See T Roberts Report

ii. Oxbrough Broad See F Reid Report

Chairman’s Report – F. Reid
Report from Councillors.

i. Highways T. Roberts

ii. Drainage G. Proctor

iii. Signs & Communications P. Agate

iv. Planning D. Horkan

v. Fen Report M. Pogmore

vi. Playground A. Beeston

vii. Public Footpaths D. Cooper

vii Financial Report & Precept P Agate

3. Correspondence

Meeting Closes

Open Questions

Date of Next Meeting Annual Parish Meeting 11th April 2014 – 19:00

Followed by Parish Council Meeting

The Public are welcome to this meeting


Date held:	17th January Time: 19:00	Venue:	All Saints, Boughton
Present:
Dave Horkan (DHO)	Clerk	Apologies:	None
Frank Reid (FRE)	Councillor/Chairman
Mark Pogmore (MPO)	Councillor
Geoff Proctor (GPR)	Councillor	Chair:	Frank Reid
Peter Agate (PAG)	Councillor
David Cooper (DCO)Tom Roberts (TRO) Andy Beeston (ABE)	CouncillorCouncillor Councillor	Distribution:	Boughton Parish CouncilGroup 4 Village Pump
Public Members	4 number also Norfolk County CouncillorMartin Storey and KL& WN Borough Councillor Collin Sampson.

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Item

Action by

Action date

| | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1. | Apologies: | | | | | None | | | | 2. | Minutes meeting November 1st 2013 | | | | | Minutes of meeting from the November 1st 2013 presented for agreement and signature by Chairman | | | | 3. | Matters Arising | | | | |

a. Village speed limits

b. Oxbrough Broad

Boughton Parish Council Fen Committee have now established a small sub. Committee to work with the Hawk & Owl trust, to examine the feasibility of acquisition of Oxborough Broad.

The terms of reference of the Sub. Committee have been agreed and are on file.

Drain Cover. New pond o/flow.

The existing drain cover of the new catch pit allows leaves to drop into the sump. The sump has been cleared ready for the pond to reach overflow level. A piece of Chicken wire has been fitted below the cover to prevent recurrence of leaf fowling.

Church yard grass.

Cutting cost for 2013 amounts to £472 and we have received a 50% donation from the PCC.

J. Adcock quote for 2014 has been submitted at £39.50 per cut. I now request Council agreement to continue with this service.

FRE Proposed PAG seconded, agreed.

Policy for Charitable donations.

Council policy with regard to Charitable donation has been compiled and circulated, and is now on file. I request Council ratification of this policy.

FRE Proposed PAG seconded Agreed

DHO to file for review at AGM

Village Christmas Trees

Trees were again obtained by Geoff for the village and the Church. I wish to record our thanks to Geoff. Also to Peter Agate and Kevin Fisher for installing the lights, Giles and Carol Lucket for providing the power. The trees have become a feature of Christmas in Boughton, and I am sure are very much appreciated by many people.

DHO

17/1/14 | | 5. | Councillors Reports | | | |

i. Highways T. Roberts

Introduction of a 20 MPH speed limit in Boughton, Norfolk

Following representations about speeding through Boughton I was asked to investigate the support for a 20 MPH limit, and how such limit could be implemented.

Background

Over the last few years it has become increasingly evident that there are a number of motorists who drive through Boughton exceeding the speed limit. In some cases the speeding vehicles appear to be considerably over the limit.

Speeding vehicles can be the cause of accidents, which in some cases can be fatal. We are lucky that so far in Boughton there have been no human casualties and I am sure we all want to keep it that way.

To help the parish council assess the support for a lower speed limit I have spoken to a number of households in Boughton. I stress that I have only spoken to 21 households – principally those on the main road through Boughton. Of those households spoken to 90% were content for a lower speed limit – indeed some were extremely keen on a lower speed limit. The concerns people most mentioned were:

Walker’s safety

There are often people walking through the village for example going to visit friends; going to pick up eggs from a local farm; walking their dog or just going for a walk. These people have to walk in the road as there are no pavements on the main road which is of course quite narrow in places. Clearly they are at risk if a speeding vehicle were not to see them in time. This is particularly so at night when visibility is much poorer – not least as there is no street lighting in Boughton. In addition to the safety aspect it is noteworthy that when it has been raining there is often much surface water on the road and speeding vehicles seem oblivious to the fact that as they go through at speed the water sprays up. This is particularly annoying for residents who have been soaked by water from passing vehicles.

Doctor’s surgery

On the main road in Boughton there is a doctor’s surgery. This can be busy and often patients resident in Boughton walk to the surgery. Some patients visiting the surgery drive there but have to park on the road due to inadequate parking facilities and then walk to the surgery.

Children

There are a number of children who live in the village. Some of them use a school bus and to get to and from the bus pick up points they have to walk on the main road. As noted earlier there are no pavements and parents have expressed concerns at the excessive speeds of some vehicles – with the drivers having no apparent regard to the fact that children are around.

Horse riders

Horses are regularly ridden on the roads in and around Boughton. There have been no known incidents with horses involving speeding vehicles but again we would wish to keep it that way.

Cyclists

Cyclists are increasingly common on the roads in and around Boughton. There have been no known incidents with cyclists involving speeding vehicles and again we would wish to keep it that way.

Boughton pond and wildlife

At the centre of the village is the pond. This is a very attractive feature and it attracts quite a number of visitors. It is particularly noteworthy for its large population of ducks. Ducks by their nature go wherever they choose and this includes going onto the roads around the pond. However what can be quite upsetting for both residents and visitors is that significant numbers of ducks are regularly found dead on the road around the pond. The deaths have almost certainly been caused by cars ignoring the speed limits.

Summary

Speeding is a very annoying matter for the residents of Boughton. There have been no human fatalities so far and I am sure we all wish it to stay that way. The introduction of a lower speed limit should help considerably in reducing the problem and lead to an improvement in the quality of life in Boughton. Of course limits may just be ignored by the determined speeder but one would hope that a lower limit would have a significant effect on the accidental or occasional speeder.

Next Steps

To implement a new lower speed limit will need a Traffic Regulation Order. This would have to be made by Norfolk County Council (NCC).

The next step will be to formally approach NCC however before doing that we (the PCC) think it is important that all villagers have their chance to make their views known. With this in mind we have placed a notice on the Board and in G4 – with a view to hearing further views.

We intend to make a decision on whether or not to proceed to approach NCC at our April PC meeting.

Highways Rangers

NCC Highway Rangers will be visiting Boughton during the week commencing Monday 20th January 2014.

ii. .Drainage G. Proctor

As previously stated the Rangers have worked on some ditches.

The catch pit alongside Crab Lane is on the long list to be investigated

The ditches which run alongside the chicken field will also need cleaning soon.

The problem at the junction of Cavenham corner has been sorted, this was a blocked outfall which was jetted to free up and encourage flow

iii. Signs & Communications P. Agate

1) Nothing to report on village signs and seating.

2) Reports have been issued to Group 4 News advising parishioners that; i) on their behalf the PC have donated a total of £250 raised through the Wishing Bucket; and ii) asking for feedback on a proposal regarding the speed limit through the village.

iv. Planning D. Horkan

No applications received in the period, one application received as approved, the removal of a conservatory and construction of single storey rear extension at Hall Farmhouse.

DHO has set up automatic electronic notification through planning portal for ant new applications.

v. Fen Report M. Pogmore

This autumn, the fen has been quite dry , with only small areas becoming wet as we approached Christmas, but the January rain has changed the character of the fen, giving us pond areas behind the new banks constructed by the Environment Agency, as well as wet reed areas as we would expect at this time of year.

As some of you may know, we have been successful in the Lloyds Bank Community Fund vote, coming top of the poll with 35% of the vote. This has resulted in an award of £3000 to continue in our improvement works. Thanks to everyone who voted for us, and to the staff at Lloyds Bank Downham Market branch for nominating us in the first place.

Later in the winter, the team from Baling for Biodiversity will be at the fen, cutting selected areas of reeds and grass.

We held the first working party of the season on Sunday 12th January, with 13 participants, including two new faces, removing scrub, stumps and willow re-growth. Our future working parties are planned on the following dates: 26th January, 9th and 23rd February, and 9th and 23rd March.

And finally, more good news. Since the formation of Boughton Fen Committee in October 2007, the fen has progressed from being in an Unfavourable Declining Condition, through Unfavourable No Change to our new status of Unfavourable Recovering. In short, we have moved up from level 4 of 5, to 2 of 5 in the Natural England assessment levels. This has been achieved with help from larger bodies including Natural England, Norfolk Wildlife Trust and the Environment Agency, and of course, most importantly, by all of you who have helped on the first five years of the journey to make Boughton Fen a top SSSI to be enjoyed by wildlife and ourselves.

If you would like to be part of this please call me on 01366 500461, or email mark@pogmore.myzen.co.uk.

vi. Playground A. Beeston

As previously advised, the new swing has been procured and installed

General upkeep and maintenance inspections have been completed by the Chairman with no issues to report.

Playground annual safety inspection by independent third party is book to be completed wc 20th January

There has been some accumulation of moss on some of the timbers which will require removing but cannot be completed at this time due to the prevailing conditions.

Hedge trimming is booked for February.

vii. Public Footpaths D. Cooper

Nothing of note to report other than the possibility of a ringworm infection on some of the livestock adjacent to the path to the Church, villagers notified of this possibility, council do not have the qualifications to guarantee if this is now clear but have performed duty in notifying where possible.

Finance Report P Agate

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7. | A copy of the accounts has been circulated to all councillors.

A) Since the last meeting income has been derived from;

a) £236 for church contribution to grass cutting in the churchyard.

b) £12 from the Wishing Bucket.

c) 78p Interest on the Fen Committee Reserve Account

d) £3,000 to the Fen Committee from the Lloyds Community fund Award.

e) £45 donation to the Fen committee for their website.

B) Since the last meeting expenditure incurred has been;

£45.02 for mower fuel
£112.50 for grass cutting

C) Payments to be made.

a. £176.95 by cheque to be passed to the Fen committee in respect of VAT refund.

b. £150.00 for mower service. A cheque to be raised accordingly.

Following the discussion regard the account status, Council moved to confirm precept setting, this was agreed to be set at £1,350.00, the first increase in 4 years, as the council have been informed we should be eligible for a grant, application will therefore be for £1,320 with a £30 grant to supplement, DHO to compile paperwork and submit request by end January.

Correspondence

Very little to report mainly flyers, brochures and charitable donation requests.

Confirmation received regard the PCSO ability to now administer on the spot fines for any individual allowing dog fouling, this fixed penalty is for £75.

Recently received notice of funding available for WW1 commemoration funding, this is match funding and has been sent to council for information/action if required.

| | | | Meeting closed | | | | | | | | | | Open Questions | | | | | | | | | | Date and Venue of Next Meetings:Annual Parish meeting, followed by Parish Council meeting and adoption of accounts, 11th April 2014 - 19:00 All saints Church Boughton | | | | | | | | | | The Public are welcome to these meetings | | |