The Minutes of the meeting of Ashwell Parish Council, held in Ashwell Village Hall at 7pm on Tuesday 1 March 2022.
Present were: Chair Mr Val Harvey; Mr Tony Graveling; Mr Brian Farr; Miss Sue Ellis; Mr Stan Davey. Clerk Mrs Sally Harnett.
There were 2 members of the public.
1 There were no apologies for absence received.
2 Mr Val Harvey declared an interest in item 6a, as a member of the committee of the Village Hall.
3 The Minutes of the last meeting were agreed and signed.
4 Matters Arising The Planning department at Rutland County Council does not inform neighbouring parishes of applications unless it falls within 200metres of the boundary. The replacement of the damaged K6 telephone kiosk is soon to be completed. The original estimate has been accepted, the subcontractor will clear the site and install, and Western Power will reconnect within 2 weeks. It is hoped that the defibrillator will be re-installed by Community Heartbeat within the same timescale.
The annual cost of electricity used by the defibrillator is approximately £10 year plus that used for lighting the kiosk. British Telecom has been paying the charge until now, but Ashwell Parish Council will now be given an account number. The kiosk will have to be replaced in its original position, it is a listed building.
Brian Farr was warmly thanked for all the work he has undertaken to achieve this result.
The Community Speedwatch group application for training has been turned down due to the class being filled, Ashwell will go on the list for the future. There was much discussion on the problem of speeding through the village on all roads, and the lack of adequate measures by RCC and the Police to control it.
There has been no progress yet in the request by Ashwell for a mobile post office visit.
Garden Centre light: a switch has been located by the proprietor and the very bright light which shone into the eyes of drivers has been switched off. Ashwell should monitor the situation in future. Stan Davey was thanked for all his work in achieving this result.
The book exchange is now in operation, there is a bookshelf at the back of the church, residents can take a book and perhaps bring a book, or just borrow one. The information has been broadcast in the Wellspring and on the village email system.
The LRALC training session will still be attempted if the dates can be mutual.
5 Public Forum A resident has requested that the village seats be decorated with the large poppies from the Royal British Legion on Remembrance Sunday. Interest was shown in this proposal, the cost will be investigated.
Request for the renewal of the Quiet Lanes system in Rutland. It was decided to approach Langham Parish Council to see if a joint effort could be made for the original suggestion of Langham Road. A resident was deeply concerned that the police informed that there is a 60mph limit in this single track winding lane used by walkers, horse riders and cyclists. There was discussion about the new Highway Code, but it was remarked that the Code was only advisory and not mandatory.
A resident stated that there is too much speeding through the village, and requested a more frequent speed check vehicle by police.
A resident requested action regarding the very loud crow-scarers, affecting the mental health of residents in this quiet neighbourhood. The loud bangs could be heard throughout the day at very short intervals, causing much disturbance around Ashwell. Stan Davey was collecting information on this subject, and RCC will again be contacted.
6 Finance report by Tony Graveling.
The present balance stands at £15,013.64. This total includes £6697.20 for the recent insurance claim for the telephone kiosk. This sum will be paid out in full to X-2 Connect for the refurbished kiosk after installation. A further sum will need to be paid for Western Power for re-connection of the power supply. Brian Farr is contacting the insurers for this additional sum. Brian Farr was thanked for all his efforts in chasing progress on the kiosk matter.
The Parish Precept of £4500 for the 2022/2023 Financial Year was applied for in January as agreed.
An invoice received for 2021-2022 street lighting electricity costs of £196.54 has been paid.
A bank reconciliation was carried out on 31 December 2021.
An item in the budget for 2022/23 listed donations that could be made to local causes of benefit to the village. The installation cost of the new notice board at the Village Hall amounted to £1000. This amount could be deducted from the monies received from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) resulting from the storage containers.
Resolution: Proposal to donate £500 to the committee of Ashwell Village Hall. Proposed by Brian Farr, seconded by Stan Davey, and passed unanimously.
The notice board has been added to the list of insured assets held by Ashwell Parish Council.
Membership fees for LRALC will be due shortly at a cost of approx. £170. Renewal of CPRE is also due shortly (£36 last year).
Resolution to renew LRALC membership, proposed by Val Harvey, seconded by Brian Farr and passed unanimously.
Resolution to renew CPRE membership, proposed by Stan Davey, seconded by Sue Ellis, and passed unanimously.
Fiona Tylecote has accepted an invitation to be our Internal Auditor for the 2021/22 Annual Return.
Ashwell Parish Council will again be exempt from an External Audit, but PFK Littlejohn will be available for any questions from the public regarding its Annual Return for the year ending 31March2022 . Hard copies of the Annual Return forms will be requested again in preference to emailed versions. A sum of approximately £300 was agreed to purchase bunting to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee. Proposed – Val Harvey. seconded Tony Graveling agreed unanimously.
The clerk was thanked for all her hard work, and wages of £302.50 were paid for 25.2 hours work. Statutory holiday pay of £208.80 has been paid to the Clerk for the 2020/2021 financial year.
6a Village Hall updates.
Work continues on the Village Hall, flooring is being completed, and secure lockers have been fitted. Bookings are healthy. One of the conditions the Grant Fund Leaders listed was to provide employment in the village, and efforts are being made to find a cleaner for the hall.
7 Planning.
The proposed Solar Farm at Essendine is so enormous in Rutland that the local MP has become involved. The panels will be 11 feet high, and the site will be 4.5 miles in length. Residents should be aware of the impact on Rutland of this solar farm.
8 Highways
Footway problems at Langham Place. An application has been made to RCC to move the crossing at the cottages to a safer position. The parking at the cottages has also appeared to affect the safety of stopping the school bus.
Notice Board License. Val Harvey has signed this license required by RCC. It is noted that should the services engineers need access to underground, the notice board would have to be removed.
Tyre marks across the village green. It is believed that it could be subcontractors working locally have been taking short cuts. RCC could be asked to mend the broken areas when all work has finished.
Potholes. There are holes in the crescent in Langham Road. A list will be made of potholes throughout the village, and reported on FixMyStreet at RCC. Brookdene continues to be a major problem.
Footpaths. The footpath near to Ashwell Hall Stables lane badly needs the edges trimmed to reveal the proper width of the path. RCC has been asked for this repair, the clerk will repeat the request.
40mph on Ashwell approach roads request. The RCC reference number for this is ITCP/2021/06, and RCC engineers have been informed.
Police speed check vehicles have been observed in Ashwell, there has been another near-miss occurring at the main crossroads.
9 Queens Platinum Jubilee.
2 volunteers have agreed to organise a street party in Water Lane on Sunday 5 June 2022. The cost of decorations for the whole village will be investigated. A decision will be made later.
The planting of trees will be looked at again in the autumn of this year. There does not appear to be a suitable verge within the parish, the Lord Lieutenant has suggested that landowners may wish to plant trees to commemorate the Jubilee.
10 Poppies on seats in Ashwell for Remembrance Sunday in Nov 2022. There was discussion on this, and the subject will be fully discussed at the next meeting.
11 Wellspring The names and contact details of parish councillors will be added to the Wellspring, details are available on the Ashwell website and at RCC. The address of the Ashwell Parish Council website will be on the new notice board.
12 Correspondence. Royal British Legion has sent a list of available street decorations, to be made by disabled ex-service people employed by the British Legion. APC will make enquiries.
13 Police PC Laurie Appleton sends a report monthly for circulation in Ashwell. It is some time since any crime was reported in the village.
14 Any Other Business for the next meeting.
Additional Signatories for the Ashwell Parish Council bank account.
15 Dates of the next meeting.
Tuesday 24May2022, the Annual Parish Meeting followed by the Annual Parish Council meeting.
Tuesday 6 September 2022, Tuesday 6 December 2022.
The meeting was declared closed at 20.25 hrs.