CORNWORTHY PARISH COUNCIL
DRAFT Minutes of the Monthly Meeting of Cornworthy Parish Council held
In St Peter’s Church on Monday 17th April at 8.00pm
Present: Cllr Kirkland (Chair), Cllr Bradley (Vice Chair), Cllr Hunt, Cllr Bailey, Cllr Ronson, Cllr Hubbard, Cllr Hawkins (DCC) and Cllr McKay (SHDC) were present as was C Campos Parish Clerk.
Open Forum
A resident stated that the minutes of the previous meeting said that Parish Council would be funding the outline planning application for an alternative village hall, they asked how much it would cost. The Chair replied exact costs were not available but that it could cost up to £750. The resident then asked if that sum would be taken from the precept. The Chair replied it would as be as was the £750 donation made to the current Village Hall. The resident queried whether the village actually wanted a new Hall. The Chair referred the resident back to the minutes, which outlined the rationale behind the decision to support the Planning application. The resident disputed the account of a meeting where a pledge was made to present two options to the village in a poll. The Chair explained that the only way of establishing if a new village hall was a possible option would be to see if Planning permission would be granted in the first instance. The resident then asked why the minutes stated something they did not feel was accurate. The Clerk explained that minutes are a record of what is actually said at meeting and that the Devon Association of Local Councils (DALC) has confirmed that this was proper practice. DALC had also confirmed it was not the clerk’s role to fact check statements made in a meeting. The Clerk stated that the minutes were an accurate account of what was said at the meeting and are based solely on the recording of that meeting. Cllr McKay suggested that the fact that the resident disputes the account of the Village Hall meeting be recorded here so that this is a matter of public record.
The Chair stated that before the meeting opened, he would like to thank Cllrs Hunt, Ronson and Worthington for all their hard work for the Parish Council over the past four years
- Apologies for Absence
None
2. Declarations of Councillor’s Interests
None
3. Approval of Minutes
The Minutes of the Meeting of CPC held on Monday 13th March 2023 were approved
4. Matters Arising from the Minutes
None
5. Local Issues
5.1 Parishioners Correspondence to Action
An email from a resident regarding the minutes of the CPC meeting held on 13th March to which the Clerk has responded and circulated to all Councillors
A resident has also requested that Slow signs are put up in Upper Willow Lane. Everyone agreed that this was a good idea and approved the purchase of two such signs. Final costs to be approved at the next meeting
- Devon County Council Highways
Upcoming scheduled in May and July will be advised in good time on the CPC noticeboards and Facebook pages
7. Planning
All discussions on current applications will be deferred until the next CPC meeting due to Purdah– the Clerk to ask SHDC to extend the consultation period to accommodate this.
- Publicising the VETS Scheme
Cllr Ronson reported that the last VETS Training session on 23rd March was very well attended and moving forward will happen on an annual basis which is recommended. After consultation with all volunteers, the scheme will continue to be known as VETS. Cllr Bailey has researched the feasibility of hi viz tabards and it was unanimously agreed to purchase six (two per defib) and three headtorches, all to be stored for use when needed, in the defib cabinets. Cllr Ronson confirmed she would be happy to continue co-ordinating the scheme despite stepping down from the Parish Council. Leaflets can be produced now the name has been confirmed. One quote has been obtained for 300 fridge magnets for £70 the Clerk to confirm the exact number of households. A parish map needs to be sourced. Cllr McKay offered to help with this and will send a link.
9 CPC Facebook Page Management
It was agreed to run the page along the same lines as other Parish Council pages i.e., solely to post Parish Council news and updates. This means the only the Clerk can approve external posts. Cllr Hubbard suggested it is also made open access. Posts will now be made shareable. The primary purpose of the page will be to disseminate Parish Council news and business. All agreed
- To set a date for the Annual Parish Meeting
The date has been set for Monday 29th May. Time and place TBC
- May Elections Update
All the relevant notices have been put up on all three notice boards with the Notice of Poll and Situation of Polling Stations due to go up later this week. Candidates will need to put in an expenses declaration even if nothing has been spent. The Clerk will circulate the form to everyone who is standing after the election
- To Certify CPC as exempt from a limited Assurance Review
The Council unanimously agreed to apply for an exemption as in previous years.
- Map Cabinet Update
The Cabinet has been refurbished and a new map is being sourced with help of Cllr Hawkins. When this arrives, the cabinet will be put back in place.
14. Finance
14. 1 Receipts
Lloyds Bank Interest £4.30
14.2 Payments
The following payments were authorised
C Campos March Salary £240
HMRC March PAYE £60
Use of Church for CPC meetings 13/3 £35
Clerks’ expenses Jan/Feb/Mar £132.39
South Hams Payroll Service £120
Clerks overtime 5 hours @£12.50 £62.50
DALC Subscription £103.57
14.3 Financial Report
Allocated reserves £ 8446.04
General Fund £ 5275.66
Total £13721.70
15. Reports
15.1 Clerk – Report Circulated
15.2 Tree Warden – None received
15.3 Defibrillators – All working fine
15.4 Volunteer Emergency Telephone System – Given earlier
15.5 Village Hall – None received
15.6 Coronation Working Group – All going ahead as planned. The Marquees are going up on 1st May. All entertainment is booked and there will be proclamation.
15.7 Devon County Council Councillor – Cllr Hawkins suggested that the layout of the meeting made hearing what was said quite difficult and suggesting altering the layout to make it easier for members of the public to hear what was being said at future meetings. The month before an election is always quiet. DCC has been given funds to repair potholes and he encouraged everyone to report them as that is the best way to get them fixed. He expressed his appreciation of Cllr Ronson’s commitment to the community and the hard work she had expended on the VETs scheme. He expressed his thanks to Cllr Worthington for all his help and work. He then thanked Cllr Hunt for all his work on the roads and lanes around the Parish and the fact his good working relationship with DCC prioritised the recent repairs to Willow Lane. He concluded by wishing all those councillors standing in the election the best of luck.
15.8 South Hams District Council Councillor – Cllr McKay agreed with Cllr Hawkins sentiments with regard to the outgoing Councillors and those standing. SHDC is investing a further £500K in bringing the waste service in line with the rest of Devon. He has been investigating how the Street Cleaning team are working. He also referenced the new need for Photo ID at the upcoming elections. Cllr Kirkland thanked him for his support over the past few years and wished him the best of luck in the upcoming elections.
16.Items for May Agenda – Recruiting a Lengths man due to Cllr Hunt standing down. Purchase of a Grit Bin for Allaleigh. Approval of expenditure for items agreed at this meeting. Donation to Tukenhay Reggatta.
17. Current SHDC enforcement cases – None
The next Parish Council Meeting is on Tuesday 16th May 2023 at 8.00 pm
100 Club Draw
52 73 91