Present:
Cllr P Fisher (Chairman); Cllr S Tudor; Cllr C Hurst; Cllr A Hemming; Cllr V O’Dunne; Cllr E Philpott; Cllr D Borasinski; Cllr G Jones; Cllr E Adams-Elsmore
Also In attendance:
Mrs K St Leger (Clerk)
One member of the Public was in attendance.
Public Open Forum
- Meaford Business Park – The Member of the public expressed disappointment that the Parish Council had not made any comment with regards to the battery storage facility proposed for Meaford. The Parish Council advised no formal consultation request has been received from the Local Planning Authority (LPA). Cllr Jones advised the LPA had come to an agreement with the Residents with regards to the infrastructure plan.
142 Apologies – Cllr’s Dando and Bentley gave their apologies; it was resolved to accept these.
143 Declarations of Interest – There were no declarations of interest.
144 Written applications for dispensations under the Localism Act 2011 – There were no written applications for dispensation.
145 Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting 6 December 2022 – These were accepted as a true record and duly signed by the Chairman.
146 Matters arising from the meeting of 6 December 2022 and not otherwise on the agenda
92 Highway issues update – A Teams meeting has been scheduled for 23 January 2023 with Highways, the Police & Crime Commissioner, County Cllr Ian Parry and the Chair of the Parish Council. An update will be given at the February meeting.
95 Parish Strategy update – Cllr Hemming gave an overview of the proposed strategy; it was resolved to concentrate on the four focus areas determined following the last strategy meeting being: – (1) Community; (2) Families / Children; (3) Aesthetics; (4) Sympathetic Development. The budget for 2023/24 to be aligned to these areas. The strategy to run from May 2023 – April 2027 in line with local elections. Cllrs will be overseeing associated projects to take pressure off the Clerk, however any decisions and budget solutions proposed will need to be brought back to full Council for ratification.
160 Planting of trees in Barlaston initiative
(a) Regarding the installation of the wire fence separating the footpath to the Wild Play area from the Downs Car Park, this is now complete. The cost of fencing was £78.70 plus VAT (a saving of £68.30). Buxus Green costs were £200 including the cost of labour and fetching the materials. The cost of hedgerow plants from the Woodland Trust was quoted at £230, the cost from Boultons Nurseries for British species would cost £247.25 and would keep the procurement local. It was resolved to procure the plants from Boultons. A date will be set to plant the whips.
(b) The Clerk continues to look at grants for the procurement of trees / hedges and suitable locations for planting. The Upper House have confirmed we can plant a hedge along their footpath which runs from the Downs Car Park to the farmers field to create a wildlife corridor. The Upper House have advised they would maintain the hedge on their side of the footpath, the Parish Council would maintain the other side. To enable the Parish Council to obtain the grants, we need confirmation from the School that they are going to be involved, we have received verbal confirmation but no written confirmation to date. The ideal time to plant a hedge is end of February. Boultons calculate the cost of British native shrubs would be £1,004 plus VAT. There would be a cost for mulch, manual labour and the hiring of a digger. To ensure the project is not delayed, the Parish Council suspended Financial Regulations and approved a spending cap of £2,000. In the meantime the Clerk would look to offset these costs with a grant.
161 Wedgwood Memorial College update – There is still no movement on this item
180 Community led shop on Barlaston Park – It was resolved to remove this item from the agenda.
195 Land at Meadow Road lease – no update received from the Borough to date.
214 Renewal of the Cricket Club Lease – The Cricket Club are happy to accept a 40 year lease commencing 1 January 2023. The content of the terms are being reviewed.
221 Neighbourhood Plan update – Funding from the Government has been unexpectedly withdrawn. Limited funding is available for admin tweaks. It was resolved to set a budget aside to facilitate the review.
50 Homes Plus contact – The Clerk is in receipt of the new contact details. It was resolved to remove this item from the agenda.
80 Procurement / lighting of a Christmas Tree for Orchard Place update
The Parish Council procured lights which were installed above the shops at Orchard Place prior to Christmas which were well received by residents and the shops. The Parish Council would like to thank Barlaston Village Store for the provision of electricity, Terry Smith for undertaking the electric works, Paul Goodall our Lengthsman and Sylvia Wagg and Cllr Chris Hurst for helping install these.
For the provision of a permanent power supply to light a tree on the green would cost as follows:- (1) National Grid to supply a permanent power source would be £2,367.46 plus VAT. It was resolved to accept this quotation; (2) We would need to build a cabinet to house the meter, Clerk to liaise with Graham Burdett, costs unknown; (3) Installation of a Meter by a 3rd party supplier, costs unknown. The Clerk to liaise with National Grid to project manage the installation and obtain full project costings.
It was noted there are already 2 / 3 mature trees available on the green, it was resolved to defer a decision on procurement of a sapling to the next meeting.
98 Civility and Respect Pledge update – The Parish Council accepting the Pledge has been registered and a certificate received. It was resolved to remove this item from the agenda.
101 Installation of the CCTV camera at the Downs Car Park – the installation date is now the 18 January at 10am. The Parish Council to promote the installation once the device has been fitted.
Additional cost for the Cherry Picker is £300 – It was resolved to accept this cost.
103 Hedge cutting on the Village Green – It was resolved to encompass the cost of hedge cutting in the tender for grounds maintenance.
119 Procurement of a replacement noticeboard on Barlaston Park – The Clerk has advised the Company we will proceed with the order, however the colour is still outstanding along with the possible requirement for planning permission.
The decision to modernise the branding of the Parish Council is still ongoing.
120 Damaged caused by fallen tree by the Downs Car Park – the quote for the replacement pear trees is still awaited from the resident.
133 Implementation of electric charge points in the village – Cllr Borasinski advised this is a lot more onerous than initially thought. There are Companies who install devices and manage them, this could provide an income source, however the location to fit a device needs to be looked at, various suggestions included the Downs Car Park (especially as this will now have CCTV installed); the GP Surgery as this has a large car park and Orchard Place shops, however concerns were raised this could limit access to parking for shoppers. Cllr Tudor would approach the Surgery.
134 Bus stop shelter outside Orchard Place update – The Clerk has submitted the dimensions to Sutton Engineering, these are the same fabricators who installed the gates at the Village Hall and produce bus shelters for East Cheshire Council. They will work on a design and costings ready for the February meeting.
In the meantime Buxus Green will be carrying out the maintenance on the bench.
135 Drainage issues on the green update –The issue is the size of the pipework not being able to cope with the volumes of water following heavy rainfall. Water enters the manhole through 3 pipes with only one pipe dispersing the water, which invariably floods the green. There is nothing which can be done to resolve this except to keep the pipes silt free. We are still awaiting Chris Roberts to schedule these works. It was noted that Severn Trent has replaced the stop valve.
Paul Goodall to look at clearing the gully pots by the Lea and at the entrance to the School once the weather improves.
136 Purchase of Tommy Figures / Poppies for next year’s Remembrance Service – The Clerk has approached the Royal British Legion for a pro-forma invoice as their only method of procurement at the moment is via credit card.
147 Committees updates:
- Environmental Committee – Staffordshire County Council have advised there is an opportunity to undertake and fund a further grass cut before end March 2023. Buxus Green have confirmed this can be scheduled if approved by the Parish Council.
- Finance Committee
It was resolved to increase the precept by 5% from £68,968 to £72,416.00 for 2023/24 which is an increase of 4% from last year and equates to £3.30 on a Band D Property.
It was noted the tender for the grass cutting contract was now due for 1 April 2023 onwards. It was resolved for the Clerk to start the process. This was now to include the land at Meadow Road and the hedge cutting on the village green.
HR Committee – No update
- Entertainment Committee – Cllr Jones will obtain a bank statement detailing the amount in the Village Show Committee account.
148 To note financial matters:
(a) To approve bank reconciliation reports – It was resolved to accept the reports.
(b) To receive schedule of payments report December 2022 – It was resolved to accept the payments.
| Expenditure – Standard | NET | VAT | Payment |
| K St Leger – Salary / Expenses | 1227.95 | 0.00 | BACS |
| Staffordshire County Pension | 431.16 | 0.00 | BACS |
| Buxus Green – Inv 202213 – December Grass Cutting | 1000.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| HMRC NI Contributions OCT-DEC 2022 | 712.28 | 0.00 | 002853 |
| Zoom– Video Conferencing INV181639637 | 11.99 | 2.40 | DD |
| BT – Inv– Broadband Inv M040 J& | 28.98 | 5.79 | DD |
| Pozitive Energy Gas inv 26181820222437424 | 64.28 | 3.21 | DD |
| Pozitive Energy Electricity Inv 26181620222539657 | 171.09 | 8.55 | DD |
| Community Transport (Stafford) Ltd Inv 7616 – November coffee morning | 153.00 | 30.60 | BACS |
| WT Lighting Inv 0065 – Lighting at Orchard Place | 391.35 | 78.27 | BACS |
| Stafford Borough Council Inv 7070291497 – Quarterly bin emptying | 329.00 | 65.80 | BACS |
| St John’s Church grant to print 200 A5 booklets for the Remembrance Sunday Service | 150.50 | 0.00 | BACS |
| St John’s Church grant request 50% of the grass cutting fee towards the upkeep of the cemetery | 1,427.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| St John’s Church grant towards the cost of printing the Christmas edition of the Parish Gazette | 500.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| Community Group grant to continue with Silver Surfer Computer Courses | 250.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| Community Group grant towards electricity for the provision of Christmas Lights display at Barlaston Park | 100.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| Community Group grant towards transport for the Golden Ages Christmas Party | 125.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| CPRE donation | 50.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
| WCCTV Inv 64503 – CCTV Camera & 5 Year Maintenance Plan | 8000 | 1600 | BACS |
| AEDdonate – Replacement pads / 2 replacement defib devices INV 2747 | 1849.94 | 369.99 | BACS |
| Income | |||
| Quarterly Allotment Payment – Allotment association. | 300.00 | 0.00 | BACS |
149 Meeting dates for 2023/24 – It was resolved to schedule the meetings as follows:
7 February 2023
7 March 2023
4 April 2023
16 May 2023 Annual Parish Council Meeting (in line with LGA 1972 c.70 Sch 12 Part II)
30 May 2023 Annual Parish Meeting (in line with LGA 1972 C.70 Sch 12 Part III)
7 June 2023
4 July 2023
No August Meeting
5 September 2023
3 October 2023
7 November 2023
5 December 2023
9 January 2024
150 Reinstatement of 2 lampposts along Old Road – The Clerk advised the Borough has no record of provision of lighting in the area, they believe these were installed and subsequently removed by the County Council. If these are reinstated the Parish Council would have to obtain permission, procure the lighting and pay for electricity and maintenance. It was resolved for the Council to review the area prior to the next Parish Council meeting.
It was also noted that the area around the Village Green was poorly lit.
151 101 bus to continue to Meaford Road – The Clerk to liaise with the bus Company, it was noted however that the schedule was already onerous and fitting in additional stops would prove problematic.
152 Risk Assessment updates and determine actions:
- Pavement on the green adjacent to the War Memorial – We are still awaiting quotes.
- Rialtas Cloud – Training date deferred
- Obsolete defib devices – the two obsolete devices have now been replaced. It was noted the resident on Longton Road has agreed to retain the defib device outside their property, the cabinet has now been upgraded with a lit box. The Parish Council would like to thank the resident for their continued support. All defib devices requiring new pads / batteries have had works undertaken. It was resolved to remove this item from the agenda.
- MUGA improvements – Still awaiting a quotation.
- The metal restraint on the rope bridge at the Wild Play Area – Works are now complete.
- Tree stump on Park Drive – The Clerk has reported this to Highways as a trip hazard. Reference 4305279 refers.
153 Determine grant application(s) – There were no grant applications.
154 Planning issue(s) and outcomes – There were no planning applications.
155 Items for inclusion in next agenda
- Grant application received for Douglas Macmillan@ £500
- Grant application Wedgwood Cricket Club for Inter School Cricket Tournament sponsorship for April 2023 @ £200
- It was noted the Landlord and Landlady of the Duke of York have handed their notice in and will vacate the property on 6 June.
- Tim Cochin was undertaking a talk on 13 February, The Village Green Past, Present and Future.
- Cllr Tudor raised an issue of cows accessing the field behind Nursery Gardens. It was noted as this was private land and as such the Parish Council has no jurisdiction in this area.
- The library bus stop adjacent to the dry cleaners Station Road is proving problematic.
- It was noted Cllr’s Tudor and Philpott will not be in attendance at the February meeting.
156 Date of next meeting 7 February 2023