Minutes of the Meeting of the Council |
Date: | Monday 12th October 2009 | Time: | 7.45pm |
Place: | Community Rooms, Chineham Village Hall, Thornhill way, Chineham |
Present: | Cllr. C. Tomblin (Chairman) | Cllr. R. Parkin |
| Cllr. M. Adams | Cllr. B. Sperring |
| Cllr. M. Biermann | Cllr. D. Thornton |
| Cllr. P. Miller | Karen Ross (Clerk) |
| Cllr. L. Fryer | Eunice Jones (Asst. Clerk) |
| |
| Those present were advised of the fire exits and procedure for evacuation. | |
1. | APOLOGIES | |
| Apologies were received and accepted from Cllr. G. Wright due to personal reasons, PC Charlton and County and Borough Councillor Elaine Still. | |
2. | DECLARATION OF INTEREST | |
| Cllrs. Parkin and Thornton declared an interest in the allotments | |
3. | MINUTES OF THE MEETING | |
| The Minutes of the Full Council Meeting held on 13th September 2009 were agreed as a correct record of the meeting on a Proposal by Cllr. Thornton and seconded by Cllr. Parkin . | |
4. | EXTERNAL REPORTS | |
4.1 | Borough Councillor Martin Biermann | |
| Cllr. Biermann reported that there were concerns from Borough Councillors over the number of houses planned as outlined in the LDF and SHLAA and that development on the western side of Basingstoke was now pitched against development in the east. However, it is increasingly likely that the result will be a large number of houses between the A33 and A30 to the east of Old Basing. He confirmed that he was now the BDBC representative on the incinerator panel filling an existing vacancy. | |
4.2 | County and Borough Councillor Elaine Still | |
| Cllr. Still submitted a report in her absence I would like the Parish Council members to know that I will not support Richard Wareham’s (BDBC Officer) request to CPC and Ward Members to consider using S106 monies to bring in an external consultant to develop a master plan/framework to deliver recreational needs identified by CPC. In my view CPC has done a sterling job to identify what is needed in Chineham with extensive consultation with residents. To bring in external consultants at the cost of some £10,000 to £20,000 pounds in my view is outrageous. I am very much against spending money on external consultants unless we don’t have the expertise in house but in this case we most certainly do. I met with the Headmaster of Great Binfields School and HCC Officers to go through the proposed Great Binfields road scheme. Below is a list of some of the new measures to help with the safety of children and parents going to and from the school. - “slow” road markings on red high friction surfacing on the approaches to Great Binfields Road/Little Binfields Roundabout, adjacent to location of new school crossing warning signs, to further help highlight the school and the proposed crossing point;
· New yellow backing boards added to existing flashing amber lights and school patrol warning signs on approaches to Great Binfields Road/Little Binfields Roundabout, to further highlight the school and the proposed crossing point; · 2 “School Children Going To and From School” warning signs on yellow backing boards on the approaches to Great Binfields Road/Little Binfields Roundabout to help highlight the school and the proposed crossing point; · New staggered pedestrian crossing refuge island (minimum 2.1 wide); · New 30mph speed limit signs. The construction of the proposed works would take place likely next financial year 2010/2011, due to the time needed to arrange the new traffic regulation order (TRO) for reducing the speed limit of road to 30mph. The Head Master has indicated that they were happy and supported the proposals for the Great Binfields Road scheme and I have also received a letter from the Friends of Great Binfields group as the representative body acting on behalf of the parents and pupils of the school expressing their support. Most importantly they are happy with the proposed reduction in the speed limit from 40mph to 30mph. | |
4.3 | Police The Police Report is available as schedule A. | |
4.4 | Rapid Response Warden | |
| Having come back from leave on 29th September I can only report for the last two weeks. I have cleared most of the bus stops of rubbish and it does appear to have increased since the Schools have gone back, despite the fact that most of the bus stops have bins nearby. Rubbish and plastic bottles are still being dumped on the South East side of the mini R/B at the Junction with Reading Rd., and Thornhill Way, maybe a bin placed on this corner might help. There doesn’t appear to be a great amount of Graffiti, although I have removed small amounts on the traffic lights and road signs at the cross roads with the A33. I need to contact Blanche Miles as I have ripped one of the rubber gloves she supplied on our induction course. I apologise for not being at Monday’s meeting but will be at November’s. | |
5. | PUBLIC SESSION | |
| There were no members of the public present. | |
6. | FINANCE | |
6.2 | Current Financial Position The current financial position was noted by all Councillors and is attached as Schedule B. | |
6.1 | Payment Requests It was proposed by Cllr. Thornton and seconded by Cllr Fryer and agreed unanimously that the payments requested be made as follows: | |
| PAYMENT REQUESTS OCTOBER 2009 | |
| FROM | ITEM | AMOUNT £ | Staff | Mileage | 21.68 | Staff | Mileage | 9.25 | Staff | Expenses | 10.26 | Viking Direct | Stationery | 50.49 | Councillor | Expenses | 69.72 | Staff | Expenses | 43.08* |
*Added at the meeting | Clerk |
6.3 | Grant Application | |
| On a proposal from Cllr. Biermann it was agreed that in accordance with the Parish Council’s powers under Section 137 of the Local Government Act 1972, it would pay to The Chineham Village Hall Management Committee’s nominated contractor, a sum of up to £10,000 plus VAT, in order to assist in electrical rewiring of the Village Hall. This was seconded by Cllr. Thornton. Cllr. Sperring voted against this proposal as he believed the total cost should be paid. | Clerk |
6.4 | Reading Road Bus Shelter | |
| Cllr. Biermann proposed that the seats in the Reading Road Bus shelter be removed in an effort to combat anti-social behaviour. This was seconded by Cllr. Thornton and agreed unanimously. | Clerk |
6.5 | Parish Room Expenditure | |
| Cllr. Parkin proposed that the Parish Council authorise the following work at a cost of £339 comprising of shelving in the litter picker’s store, a shelf, a notice board, and key pad installed in the Parish Office. This was seconded by Cllr. Adams and agreed unanimously. | Clerk |
7. | PLANNING | |
7.1 | The minutes of the planning meetings held on 14th and 29th September 2009 were noted. | |
8. | RECREATION | |
8.1 | The minutes of the Recreation meetings held on 23rd September 2009 were noted | |
8.2 | Cllr. Tomblin explained that Richard Wareham from Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council had asked the Parish Council to consider using S106 funds to fund the employment of a consultant Recreational Strategist. This was discussed and on a proposal from Cllr. Tomblin it was agreed not to support this use of funds. This was seconded by Cllr. Fryer and agreed unanimously. | |
8.3 | Cllr. Miller explained that the Parish Council had received a quote from Hedley’s Solicitors for legal comment on Allotment Rules and Tenancy Agreement at a cost of £450 plus VAT and disbursements. It was requested that the Clerk clarify exactly what the quote from Hedley’s covers and that she obtain an alternative quote for comparison. | |
9. | ADMINISTRATION | |
9.1 | It was agreed that Cllrs. Tomblin and Thornton represent the Chineham Parish Council at the Mayor’s Parish Reception on 30th November 2009. | |
10. | DATE OF NEXT PARISH COUNCIL MEETING | |
10.1 | The date of the next meeting of the Chineham Parish Council will be held on Monday 9th November 2009 at 7.45pm – Community Rooms, Chineham Village Hall, Thornhill Way, Chineham. | |
SCHEDULE A
Crime Update: by PC Jim Charlton
I am very happy to report that crime and disorder have been even lower this month, particularly vehicle crime and burglary, both of which have been consistently very low for the last five to six months. This is great news as Chineham has, is, and always will be a target for criminals who commit these types of crimes due to the wealth of its population and its geographical location.
I am also pleased to say that there have been no further reports of males approaching children at play parks in Chineham since my last article. Despite conducting reassurance patrols and exhausting all possible enquiries, we have not yet identified who these males were. Therefore I reiterate the advice I gave last month, and that is if you have young children that use the local parks, please make sure that they are supervised by yourself or another adult at all times. If your children are older and more independent, you may consider allowing them to play without adult supervision, but in as large a group as possible. Please also remind them about ‘stranger danger’. If you do see any body acting suspiciously at or near local parks, please report it to the police immediately.
Safer Chineham Panel meeting:
The latest meeting of the SCP took place on Thursday 1st October and I was pleased to present to the members some very positive statistics showing that crime and disorder were lower than the previous quarter.
As mentioned above, burglary and vehicle crime had both been significantly reduced compared to the first two quarters of 2009. This is a particularly good result because reducing these types of crimes have been a community priority for the past year and great effort has been put into achieving them. Consequently this priority was deemed to have been ‘achieved’.
In addition to this, the level of ASB occurring in Simons Road and St Josephs Crescent had declined, resulting in this priority also being ‘achieved’.
After reviewing the statistics and discussing experiences and reports to members, the panel decided on the following priorities;
1) Tackle the issue of shopping trolleys being abandoned in the parish.
2) Address road safety and traffic problems associated with Four Lanes Schools
3) To combat anti-social behaviour at Guinea Court shops.
To read the minutes of the latest SCP meeting and to see the progress being made, please go to the Chineham section of ‘Your Local Policing Team’ at www.hampshire.police.uk.
If you have any issues you feel are important and wish to bring to the panels attention, please do not hesitate to contact myself or any other member of the panel.
Residents Briefing:
Over 70 people turned out to the last briefing which was held at the village hall on Monday 21st September. I gave a talk on avoiding bank card fraud and guest speaker (and local resident), Chris Sumner, gave a very informative presentation on home computer and internet security.
As a result of this, Chris has set-up a website, www.securityg33k.com, which residents can visit to view his presentation and get further information on these topics. Residents can also email him through the website if they have any specific questions they need answering.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Chris for all his efforts on the evening and for investing his own time and sharing his expertise to provide this valuable resource for the benefit of other residents.
I would also like to express my gratitude to the members of neighbourhood watch who helped promote the event and set-up/packed-away on the evening.
If you would like to read my presentation you can view it on the Chineham section of ‘Your Local Policing Team’ at www.hampshire.police.uk.
Anti-social Behaviour update: by PCSO Keith Patching
The play area at Binfields Farm Lane is close to completion and should be opened by the end of the month, however I must stress that no one should be entering the area until such time as it is officially opened. Entering the site is trespass and we have already seen one lad being injured whist on the site. Remember it is a construction site at this time and is not a safe place for children to meet/play.
The recent meeting of the Safer Chineham Panel saw the priorities changed to reflect the current demand, as such anti-social behaviour (ASB) at the Guinea Court has been raised as a concern, as such Police will be patrolling the area providing a high visibility presence to reassure the community whist challenging anyone who is engaging in ASB, which can include, shouting, spitting, swearing, throwing items at people/vehicles and acting in a manner that is likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress to other people.
I have been working closely with Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council to deal with these issues, as such a number of local youths have signed up to Acceptable Behaviour Contracts, these contract set out conditions that the person must follow and are put in place to support the person from becoming involved in further ASB. These contracts are reviewed on a regular basis by both Police and BDBC. Other youths have been spoken to about their actions and letters have been sent home to parents.
A majority of ASB in the area can be linked to alcohol consumption, This is a concern as the effects of alcohol on a younger body can be greater than an adult body. Alcohol mixed with immaturity can lead to excessive drinking, rowdy behaviour and criminal activity. Anyone under 18 found in possession of alcohol will have it removed and either we will call parents to collect their child or a letter will be sent home informing parents. Any person found supplying alcohol to under 18’s is committing an offence. We will take robust action against these persons, which could include a £80 “on the spot” fine or end up in court and be fined up to £5,000. I am aware that groups of youths approach customers at Guinea Court and the Chineham Shopping Centre asking them to purchase alcohol on their behalf. Be warned we will be watching and officers from the licensing department will be conducting plain clothes operations of the area over the coming months.
Until next month, take care and keep safe,
PC Jim Charlton and PCSO Keith Patching
Tel: 08450 45 45 45 on extension 626126 (or request to leave a message).
Email: james.charlton@hampshire.pnn.police.uk
keith.patching@hampshire.pnn.police.uk
SCHEDULE B
CURRENT FINANCIAL SITUATION
| | Balance at 31st August 2009 | 105,594.92 |
| | Interest | 5.28 |
| | Sub Total | 105600.20 |
| Less Payments | | |
102173 | Staff | Expenses | 42.00 |
102174 | Audit Commission | Audit | 460.00 |
102175 | BT | 1256477655 | 173.36 |
102176 | BT | Broadband | 103.08 |
102177 | SM Decorators | Bus Shelter painting | 349.00 |
102178 | Staff | Salary | 100.86 |
102179 | Staff | Salary | 786.25 |
102180 | Staff | Salary | 728.94 |
102181 | Inland Revenue | Tax and NI | 511.49 |
102182 | Cruse Bereavement | Grant | 500.00 |
102183 | England Netball | Grant | 300.00 |
| BT | Broadband | 75.86 |
| BT | Broadband | 93.11 |
102184 | Dell | Laptop battery | 99.00 |
| | | 4,322.95 |
| Balance at 30th September 2009 | | 101,277.25 |
| Community Account | | 6,299.66 |
| Money Manager | | 94,977.59 |
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