Baydon Parish Council Meeting – News Report
The Parish Council meeting held on Monday 12th September 2016 was chaired by Councillor Tamsin Witt, with the four other Parish Councillors present. Wiltshire Councillor James Sheppard also attended. There were also twelve members of the public.
There were no declarations of interest and with a slight amendment the minutes of the previous meeting were agreed and signed.
No report had been received from the police.
It was agreed to advertise for Councillors to fill the two vacancies.
Councillor Amy Bryan agreed to oversee the allotments, Councillor Kevin Howell the play grounds and Councillor John Cockcroft the footpaths, as Councillor Tony Prior was resigning.
Public Question Time was lengthy as some residents were still against the proposed “buildouts”. Debbie Moxon from the Post Office Stores said that paperwork concerning the buildouts was left at the shop without her permission and that few villagers were able to view it. In her view the buildouts were not the answer to the speeding problem. Alan Brown said that in his opinion the chicane was not working so there was no point in having another one. Councillor Witt said the chicane was put in because of the playgrounds and it was working to reduce the speed of the traffic there. We need more than one, she added, to reduce speed further up the village. Councillor Prior stated that when the motorway was closed the chicane actually generated gaps in the stream of traffic coming through the village, relieving pressure from the flow of traffic. Alan Brown suggested speed cameras, but Wiltshire Councillor Sheppard said that they were no longer in use in Wiltshire. Wiltshire Councillor Sheppard added that the Council had spent a long time working on reducing speed in the village. Speed humps cannot be introduced until other speed reducing structures are in place. It would be a sad day for Baydon if the next phase did not happen, he added. Mrs Ron Norman felt the Parish Council were hearing but not listening to her fear that she or her husband would be killed as they left their drive when buildouts were introduced. Parish Councillor John Cockcroft said that work had been suspended whilst an independent safety survey was completed, and that the survey found no fault with the proposals.
(At this point the Parish Clerk, Charlotte Booth joined the meeting)
There are very few options for traffic calming added Wiltshire Councillor Sheppard, and Highways say that the proposed site is the best.
Alan Brown reported the blocked drains on Ermin Street near the entrance to Finches Lane. He also complained about overhanging branches and hedging causing an obstruction to pedestrians.
Councillor Amy Bryan explained that the Parish Steward will be responsible for “cutting back” one per month.
Correspondence had been circulated to the councillors:- A letter was received from Debbie Sadler concerning the mowing over the flowers by her mother’s grave. It was agreed to write to Pittams about the situation.
An email requesting the council set up a Development Trust to help Ejovi Efenure with his application for wind turbines in Baydon was rejected. Councillor Tamsin Witt agreed to become a Trustee for the Sylvia Mather Trust which offers grants to Baydon students going to higher education, at the request of Peter Chambers. The application for an agricultural workers dwelling on land at Top Field Farm was not discussed as consultation fell between meetings.
Mr Bill Evans then gave a presentation of his proposals for development of the land between Beckets and Turf Run on Aldbourne Road. Councillor Witt thanked him for the presentation but said that the council could not make any decision until full planning had been submitted.
Councillor Witt said the councillors had received all the information needed from the independent safety inspection of the proposed eastern and western buildouts and asked the councillors to vote. Further lengthy discussions ensued. Councillor Prior said he was against the proposal in its present form. The buildouts need to be near the school, he said, and would not work without bumps. He also said that he felt in agreement with Mr & Mrs Norman about the position of the western buildout. Councillor Howell said the council needed to do something. It had taken16 years to get to this point. He also felt however that a different design could be possible. Finally it was agreed to proceed with the eastern buildout (near Ermin Close) and to look for more options for the western buildout. Councillor Witt was worried that the delay would result in them loosing funding. Wiltshire Councillor Sheppard said that he thought the money would be safe. He would support their exploring more options. Councillor Witt is to go back to CATG, considering alternatives, for example double buildouts so that the traffic is directed to the middle of the road.
A draft copy of the Financial Regulations was circulated and agreed. Items relating to the Clerk’s role were agreed. Villagers needed to be reminded that all correspondence needs to be channelled through the Clerk.
Extra meetings are to be called to avoid missing deadlines in future.
Councillor Witt is to attend a full days training on the use of the Speed Indicator Device (SID).
It was agreed to use Rospa for a bimonthly and annual inspection of the play area.
It was agreed to ask Pittams to remove a dead tree on The Green and replace it with a Magnolia, at a cost of £220.
It was agreed, as last year, to buy fireworks to the value of £450 for Bonfire Night, and to donate £70 towards electronic equipment. The Firework Committee have raised £170 towards this themselves.
It was agreed that Councillor Cockcroft would purchase 3 more sets of Christmas tree lights.
A budget of £200 was agreed for the purchase of a Christmas tree if one was not donated. Councillor Prior agreed to approach the Johnsons of Baydon House Farm.
The date for Christmas ‘Carols around the Tree’ was set for Saturday 17th December at 6pm. Councillor Witt agreed to be lead singer.
After much discussion it was agreed to spend £5,000 towards moving the 30mph signs on Aldbourne Road in line with the white gates and replace the rumble strips.
There then ensued a discussion between the Clerk and Councillor Prior about the budget. The Clerk felt that the Parish Council ignored the budget and it did not reflect the running costs of the council. It was however agreed to withdraw £5,000 from the reserves and to approach CATG for extra funding.
At this point Councillor Witt asked to extend the meeting by 15 minutes, it being 10pm.
Pittams have agreed to cut the box hedge twice a year for no extra cost. It was agreed that they should purchase bear root plants to replace those that have failed in the hedge.
The next litter pick will be on Saturday 19th November.
The Clerk stated that the Parish Field had been registered.
The Clerk will purchase a new electricity box for The Green and oversee the work on 23rd September.
Items for the Baydon Scene were agreed.
Finance:-
The council were still awaiting change of signatures from the Bank. The Clerk agreed to chase them up.
Barclays community fund £30,641.65; General reserve £3,672.13; Cricket fund £1,202.40; Petty cash £18.51; Parish Council total £35,534.69
Payments approved: Thames Water £16.85; Councillor Bryan travel expenses £27.00; Website public hosting cost £38.26; SSE electricity bill £22.82; Meter box on The Green £54.99; Clerk phone bill £10.00; Clerks back pay to April £13.95: Clerks monthly salary £282.07
Thanks were extended to Councillor Prior for getting the railings and gates painted, also for emptying the play area bin regularly.
The next CATG meeting will be held on 15th September at Marlborough when Councillor Witt will attend.
The meeting closed at 10.15pm
By Barbara Furber
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