Stoke Ferry Parish Council Minutes February

DRAFT STOKE FERRY PARISH COUNCIL Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on Wednesday 6 February 2019 at 7.00pm in Stoke Ferry Village Hall

In attendance: Cllr Sue Lintern (Chair) Cllr Jim McNeill (Vice-Chair) Cllr Daphne Clements Cllr Mandy Leamon Cllr Trudy Mann Cllr Gail Reeve (Vacancy – 1) Helen Richardson (Parish Clerk and Financial Responsible Person)

Public: 10 Also, in attendance: Cllr Martin Storey, Norfolk County Council Mr Chris Philpott, Footpath Warden

21/19 To Receive and Accept Apologies for Absence Apologies were received and accepted from Cllr Kit Hesketh-Harvey (personal) and Cllr Grant Tomkins (work commitments).

22/19 Declarations of Interest on Agenda Items and Dispensation Requests There were none.

23/19 Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting on 9 January 2019 The minutes of the Ordinary meeting held on 9 January 2019 were proposed as a true record by Cllr Jim McNeill, seconded by Cllr Gail Reeve, all agreed.

24/19 Clerk’s Report (Inc Matters Arising)

• The Clerk asked the Handyman in January to collect leaves in the garden area and litter pick in hedge rows. • The grit bins had been filled by Norfolk County Council. • The precept figure was returned for the 2019/20 to the Borough Council who confirmed receipt. • Recovery Plan project was being progressed. • Map damaged in the gardens area was not a definitive map for the footpaths and wouldn’t be replaced by Norfolk County Council. The Chair advised that a new map would be sited in the gardens area. • The Chair reported the fingerpost missing on footpath 2 to David Mills, Public Right of Way Officer at Norfolk County Council. • The Clerk agreed to chase the Borough Council for an update with regards to the Dukes Head Pub. She advised that they had last asked for work to be done Summer 2018, but this hadn’t appeared to be done so they were going to follow up. • Cllr Jim McNeill gate the following Horticultural Update:

SF Cemetery Work was carried out to complete the hedge planting completed in November 2018: - 1,000 crocus bulbs were planted in front of the hedge on Furlong Drove - Wild meadow-flower seeds were then sown along the same stretch - 60 extra tree-guards were installed to protect hedging plants - The planted hedgerows have been mulched - The entrance front has been tidied up as has the edge of the verge along Furlong Road - 12 volunteers completed this work; 8 from Stoke, one from Wretton and three from West Winch

Proposed future work - Complete delivery & mulching of the hedgerows at a cost of £20 - Have a notice informing people of what’s been done and what is proposed - Have the notice reproduced in the Village Pump - Paint the iron gates at the entrance to the cemetery (approx. £40) - Have gravel at the entrance is periodically tidied up to stop it spilling onto the roadway - March onwards check for growth of bramble and ivy and cut back as appropriate - Autumn, plant 1,000-1,500 snowdrop bulbs along Furlong Road (approx. £150-£200)

Parish Garden Plots I have dug over and weeded the 3 plots by the village sign and tidied up the paved area. I and a fellow resident collected donated horse manure and have stored it on the empty bed by the village sign

Proposed future work - Feb: Collect a further load of horse manure - March: spread all the horse manure - March/April: weed all beds and cover all with wood chippings - March/April: The paving by the village sign needs properly weeding and cleaned between the pavers. It then needs to be infilled with a mix of sand and cement to help restrict future weed growth (Approx. £25) - April/May: Purchase and plant 4, varied-colour, buddleia shrubs in the empty plot ~ this bed is full of clay and in shade most of the day – so buddleia is suitable and will attract butterflies and other insects (max cost £60) - April/May: Purchase and plant rosemary, thyme, lavender and other herbal plants to create borders and infill (approx. cost £100) - A local resident has offered, free a large piece of local, ancient, Bog Oak which could be installed, securely in the garden plot with the village sign

Money spent (receipts supplied) - Meadow flower seed: £36.00 - Crocus Bulbs: £67.42 - Tree guards: £26.97 - o TOTAL: 130.39 o • Jim purchased 60 tree guards and so the budget went over by £10. The Chair thanked Cllr Jim McNeill for arranging the work and thanked the local people who joined the effort and those people who had donated various items. The Clerk agreed to add to the March agenda for approval of proposed work. It was agreed to include snowdrop planting elsewhere within the garden’s areas. • Bluebell Pub – It was believed that there had been various viewings of the pub and there had been interest in running it as a pub.

25/19 Streetlighting Village Inspection and Date and Village Assets Inspection and Date The Chair had shared a list of streetlights and other assets prior to the meeting. The Chair had checked the streetlights list and needed to check a few that were queried for their identification number and location. The Chair shared that they were missing the new developments. The Chair shared that the condition of grit bins, waste bins, dog bins, benches and miscellaneous items needed to be inspected and checked. The Chair advised that at least two people were needed to do it. It was felt that a day and night visit may be helpful to assess condition and splay visions as agreed. A date and time in February were agreed.

27/19 Neighbourhood Plan and Working Group Update – to include structure of the working group and communications plan The Chair advised that Cllr Kit Hesketh-Harvey was not present at the meeting for the update. The Borough Council had advised that the Parish Council needed to plan for the project and create some structure to move it forward. Therefore, a working group of the Parish Council needed to be arranged. It was agreed to defer to March to progress any proposals and when Cllr Kit Hesketh-Harvey had returned. Cllr Jim McNeill advised he would be willing to join the working group.

28/19 Repair and Painting Quote for WI Bench A quote had been obtained to paint the bench for £120, approval of the quote was proposed by Cllr Trudy Mann, seconded by Cllr Daphne Clements, all agreed. Bonnetts agreed to fix the bench to the ground for free. Cllr Jim McNeill agreed to write to a company who had also quoted to fix the bench to the ground. Cllr Trudy Mann agreed to go back to Bonnetts regarding approval of the painting work.

29/19 Mid-Summer Fayre Date and Any Other Arrangements It was agreed to hold the Mid-Summer Fayre on 23 June 2019. It was agreed to hold a sub-committee regarding the arrangements of the Fayre. Cllr Sue Lintern, Cllr Mandy Leamon and Cllr Daphne Clements agreed to assist. It was agreed to organise it in a similar format as last year but include some new entertainment items. The Chair agreed to contact the band to book them in. Cllr Trudy Mann suggested alternative items for the fayre such as carrousels instead of inflatables and agreed to investigate it. The Chair suggested incorporating a quiz for example. It was agreed to discuss other ideas in March.

30/19 Letter from Anglian Water: Installation of Eel Screens Near River Drove The Chair shared a letter from Anglian Water to the Parish Council of work they were proposing to take along River Drove to assist the endangered eels in August 2019 for around 13 weeks. This would be to install eel screens. The Clerk agreed to place the letter in the notice board, the pump and the website. The Chair suggested that the Clerk write back and mention how the walks around the village are ruined by the solar panels and ask if they have other land they could use instead.

31/19 Village Maintenance, Norfolk County Council Maintenance or Public Rights of Way (Footpaths/Bridleway) Maintenance, if any • There hadn’t been any other information found on Footpath 5, so the Parish Council had to wait for information from Norfolk County Council. • The grass cutting was discussed, and the Chair shared that there were no definitive times when there were cuts but there were numbers of cuts agreed in the year. Cllr Trudy Mann suggested if we had a schedule, we could check work against that. It was agreed for Cllr Trudy Mann to check the for dates and amounts of cuts planned during the year with the ground’s maintenance contractor

32/19 Revisions to the Complaints Policy The Clerk noted minor amends. Cllr Mandy Leamon proposed approval of the revisions to the Complaints Policy pending minor amends, Cllr Daphne Clements seconded it, all agreed.

33/19 Adoption of a Co-option Policy The Clerk noted minor amends. Cllr Gail Reeve proposed adoption of the Co-option Policy pending minor amends, Cllr Sue Lintern seconded, all agreed.

34/19 Additional Access for Website Administration – Chair/Vice Chair The Chair advised it would be ideal to be able to notify the public of progress made with the village sign initially with photos on the website and at other times. The Chair shared that Cllr Jim McNeill had offered to upload pictures and asked for permission to access the website administration only currently allowance via the Clerk. It was believed that this would be an efficient way to share this sort of news. After discussion it was agreed to review the Communications Protocol at the March meeting regarding approval of media for the public, and there was an initial feeling that in principle the Chair or Vice Chair could be given permission to carry out the act of uploading agreed media.

35/19 Cemetery Training The Clerk requested training approval for Cemeteries training. Cllr Sue Lintern proposed approval of the training costs of £60 split between Stoke Ferry and two other Councils totalling £20, Cllr Jim McNeill seconded it, all agreed.

36/19 Appointment of the Internal Auditor for Year End Accounts 2018/19 Cllr Sue Lintern proposed that the Stoke Ferry Parish Council use the same internal auditor as last year for £50, Cllr Daphne Clements seconded, all agreed.

37/19 Urgent items as agreed by the Chairman • The Post Office had advised that it would be closing on 1st March. Beryl and Shirley wished to thank all the customers it had received over the past 12 years and wished all best wishes for the future. Cllr Daphne Clements advised that she personally had asked if Elizabeth Truss MP could help with getting the mobile Post Office Van to Stoke Ferry. • Visit East of England had contacted the Parish Council on email to advise that they were building a website to promote tourism for towns and villages and had asked if the Parish Council could supply a picture of Stoke Ferry. The Chair proposed that a picture of the new village sign when in place is provided to them and all agreed that this would be a good idea. The Clerk agreed to confirm this to them. Following a query, the Chair shared that the Parish Council had agreed to colour the sign and this work was being done. • Carers Matter Norfolk had contacted the Parish Council on email and asked that a letter be read out to the meeting. The Letter would be placed on the website for information and sent to the pump if they wished to publish.

38/19 Payments and Accounts Reconciliation to Date The Parish Council had received the payments for January 2019, reconciliation of accounts to date and budget of 2018/19 with spend to date in cost and percentage spent.

06.02.19 Payments for Approval Payee Payment for Net VAT Total Clerk Clerks Wages and Expenses -Jan 19 296.75 0.00 296.75 HMRC Jan-19 70.60 0.00 70.60 NALC Election Training 10.00 2.00 12.00 EON (DD) Streetlights Electricity - Dec 19 65.28 3.26 68.54 Cllr J McNeill Purchase of Garden Area Items 130.39 0.00 130.39 Handyman Jan-19 24.00 0.00 24.00 SF Village Hall Village Hall Hire 20.00 0.00 20.00

Total 617.02 5.26 622.28

Reconciliation with Bank Statements As at 07.01.19 Community Account - Current 3,768.88 As at 03.01.19 Business Account 30,780.52 34,549.40 Minus Payments Yet to be Processed 1,147.93

33,401.47

Cllr Daphne Clements proposed the payments for approval, seconded by Cllr Gail Reeve, Cllr Jim McNeill abstained, five in favour. The Parish Council noted the accounts presented.

39/19 Receive items of concern & matters to be included on the next agenda from the Parish Council and note forward items

• Cllr Mandy Leamon suggested future planting flowering cherry trees within the Cemetery on one side at the end perhaps as an avenue. Cllr Jim McNeill shared that within the hedge there were trees that had been planted but additional trees would be welcome. Cllr Jim McNeill agreed to investigate pricing and possible locations for March meeting. • Cllr Jim McNeill shared that completion of painting of the bus stop would be useful to complement the installation of the new Village Sign and the restored metal bench. The Clerk agreed to ask the handyman to complete the painting the bus stop pillars. • Following a query, the Clerk advised that there will be various items regarding the election on the next agenda and forward items list from the March meeting.

40/19 Cllr Colin Sampson (BCKLWN) and Cllr Martin Storey (NCC), if in attendance

Cllr Colin Sampson had sent apologies to the meeting. Cllr Martin Storey shared the following update: • Gritting – 29th January within a 24-hour period, there were three gritting actions across West Norfolk, 1 am, 5 am and 7 am. Since October there had been 38 runs with many tons of salt which was being replenished as used. • The Government had ordered £220 m for highway improvements, NCC share was £5m and a lot had been designated to fen roads where foundations were not great. • NCC website showed numerous repairs to the roads and many road closures should the public wished to find out more. • NCC had a budget meeting the following Monday where they may have to be difficult decisions made around cuts. He requested that if any resident wished to share comments with him to do so anytime. He advised that he do his best for local people. • NCC website contained different consultations for the public to get involved with. • The Police consultation had been finalised as part of their budget process. There was a lot of different types of crime to be tackled in this modern world, and suggested the public consider the weekly cost to them rather than the rise in costs overall to understand the raise and the level of service needed. The Police were using drones more and more and they were getting good results. The Police Force in Norfolk were in the top four in the county though perhaps visibility appeared lacking on the ground they were fighting crimes that were sometimes not physically on the ground. • Regarding the Stoke Ferry Neighbourhood Plan, there was an item on the Borough Council Planning Committee he was a member of and there was a new local plan going to cabinet this week, and the Council had made their decision on sites within villages which would be available for consultation within the next few weeks. So, the Parish Council needed to keep a look out for more information.

Cllr Jim McNeill asked Cllr Martin Storey about the closure of Children’s Centres across the County and the Parish Council’s previous comments against closures which had been fed back to the consultation process. Cllr Jim McNeill shared that transferring services within a village setting may create stigma through removing anonymity. Cllr Martin Storey shared that the Adult Social Services Committee made that decision and he was not a part of that Committee. He shared that 15 Centres had been kept open, higher than the initial 7 or 8. Cllr Martin Storey shared that people’s views were taken on board in order to make the decision. The decision on the closures was made by full Council in December which he was unable to attend due to ill health.

41/19 Adjourn the meeting to allow for public comments The meeting was adjourned at 8.26 pm to allow for public comments and Standing Orders were suspended.

The meeting was reconvened at 8.39 pm.

42/19 Confirm the Date of the Next Meeting – Wednesday 6th March 2019 The meeting was agreed.

Meeting closed at 8.41 pm