Stoke FeMins Aprilrry

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STOKE FERRY PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of the meeting held on 13th April, 2016

Attendance: Chairman Mrs D Clements Vice Chairman Mrs C Hardy Councillors M Leamon S Lintern J Nicholas-Letch M Precey Mrs J Taylor County Councillor M Storey Parish Clerk Mrs J M Markwell Members of the public 8

1. Emergency Evacuation

Members and members of the public were advised of the emergency evacuation procedures for the Village Hall.

2. Apologies

There were no apologies for absence.

3. To received Declarations of Interest from Members on any item to be discussed

Cllr Mrs Taylor declared an interest in item 13 Payment of Bills

4. To agree Minutes of the last meeting held on 9th March, 2016

Proposed – Cllr Mrs Taylor Seconded – Cllr Mrs Hardy

‘That the minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday 9th March, 2016 be approved’

For – 5 Abstention – 2

5. Matters arising

Members were informed that the medals for the Queens 90th Birthday had been ordered and should be delivered in the near future. Quotes were still awaited from the Playing Field Committee regarding the reconnection of the electricity supply.

6. To consider Public Rights of Way (Footpaths/Bridleways)

Cllr Lintern advised members that she, together with Mr Philpott and two other residents had walked some of the footpaths and taken notes and photographs of their condition and any missing or damaged signage. Cllr Lintern would then report their findings to Norfolk County Council and ask that the repairs be made particularly to the signage.

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It seemed that the main concern is that many residents do not know where the footpaths are, which in part would be due to the bad/missing signage. It was suggested that a simpler map be produced showing the bridleways/footpaths which could be circulated and placed in library and local businesses for residents/visitors to pick up and use.

Proposed – Cllr Nicholas-Letch Seconded – Cllr Leamon

‘That Cllr Lintern contact Norfolk County Council to take forward discussions on repairs/maintenance of local bridleways and footpaths’

All in favour

To discuss Speed Signs

Confirmation had been received that the Parish Council had been awarded grant funding towards the purchase of one VAS sign. There followed a discussion on where the signs should be placed. There had been two recommended sites, one being on Lynn Road (near the garage) and one on Bridge Road (village side of the bridge) As there were members of the public present at the meeting it was agreed to adjourn the meeting and ask for their opinion on the siting of the signs. The general consensus of the members of the public was that the sign should be placed on Lynn Road near the garage. The meeting resumed.

Proposed – Cllr Precey Seconded – Cllr Mrs Taylor

‘That the new traffic speed sign be placed on Lynn Road near to the garage’

All in favour

Proposed – Cllr Mrs Hardy Seconded – Cllr Lintern

‘That this Council purchases one traffic speed sign in association with Norfolk County Council Partnership Scheme’

All in favour

7. To discuss letters requesting Parish Council Funding i. Stoke Ferry Playing Field Trust Information was still needed on the cost of reconnecting the electricity. ii. Car Scheme It had been agreed that a full report should be presented to this meeting relating to the finances of the car scheme. Unfortunately Cllr Nicholas-Letch was not in a position to present a report citing that he was unaware that one was needed for this meeting. It was agreed that it is essential that this report be available at the May meeting. There was further discussion on the viability of the scheme alongside whether or not the Parish Council should continue to support it. It was agreed that this would be further discussed at the next meeting. It was also suggested that there should be a public meeting to gauge the opinion of the residents of the village.

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8. To discuss an event to celebrate the Queen’s 90th Birthday Cllr Lintern had produced a poster to promote the event to celebrate the Queen’s 90th Birthday celebrations. The poster did mention the involvement of the Bluebell but this was yet to be confirmed. A climbing wall and spider mountain have been booked along with music from 1pm to 4pm and information about a bouncy castle was expected. The budget for this event is £1700. It was suggested that there should be a leaflet drop in the village and Cllr Nicholas-Letch agreed to do this as long as the information was given to him in good time.

9. Website The Council does have a basic website, but this needs to be updated. The Clerk would obtain the password so amendments to the site can be made.

10. Phone Box The phone box has been cleaned. The Chairman had contacted BT and they advised that although the phone box could be painted by residents it is scheduled to done by BT between April and October.

11. Future cost of receiving paper plan s from the BCKL&WN Members were advised that in future if the Parish Council wished to receive paper plans there would be a cost involved. The information did not detail when this would be brought into effect and therefore the Clerk was asked to ring and confirm this.

12. To discuss the future of the crossing person for children of All Saints Academy Information had been put in the press that some School Crossing Patrols were to be stopped and it was thought that Stoke Ferry may be one of the ones to be axed. Great concern was expressed that some children in the village to walk to school on their own and to get to the school meant crossing the road on a bend. It was felt that it was

13. To Approve Payments to be made

Proposed – Cllr Mrs Hardy Seconded – Cllr Lintern

That the bills as per the attached schedule be approved for payment.

For – 6 Declared Interest - 1 (Cllr Mrs J Taylor)

14. Correspondence Received

All members had received a copy of recent correspondence received and also emails correspondence which was forwarded during the month.

15. To receive further information or suggested items to be considered for the next meeting i. Dog bins

16 Date and time of next meeting – Wednesday 11th May, 2016 at 7.30pm

Public Participation

Concern was raised on the cutting of the playing field and it was agreed that the Clerk would contact CGM and ask for a schedule of cutting. Page (014) 16

It was noted that some dog walkers are simply throwing the black dog waste bags into the hedgerows and also there is litter along Lynn Road and in the small ‘cut threw’ paths between the village roads.

There had been a caravan parked on the Common, but it only stayed one or two nights and then moved on.

It was noted that there are pot holes in School Lane and also the ‘dead end sign’ had been knocked over.

Concern was raised on the cost of the Car Scheme as it was being advertised both in the Doctors Surgery and on other notices as 23p per mile, this price had increased and therefore the notices should be amended. There was still concern that this scheme should not be supported by the Parish Council.

It was stated that it is the parents’ responsibility to get their children to school safely.

There was great concern that the BCKL&WN would be charging for paper plans. It was felt that not everyone had access to a computer to view forthcoming plans online and therefore this was a service that should be continued free of charge.

With regard to footpaths there are some which go over farmers land and they are consistently ploughed up and not reinstated until someone complains.

The meeting closed at 9.40pm.