Minutes of Meeting held on 9 May 2006

 

Present: Cllr G Daniels (Chair), Cllr H Bryant, Cllr Mrs C Evans, Cllr Mrs J Thom, Cllr Mrs J Watson

In attendance: A A Edmonds (Clerk), Prospective Councillor Mr N Collingridge, Members of the Public

 

1.          Apologies for Absence: None

2.          Election of Chairman: Cllr Daniels was elected as Chairman, proposed by Cllr Watson, seconded by Cllr Thom. Cllr Daniels signed the Declaration of acceptance of office. Cllr Bryant was thanked for his services during his two-year period of office.

3.          Election of Vice-Chairman: Cllr Watson was elected with one abstention as Vice-Chairman, proposed by Cllr Evans, seconded by Cllr Daniels. Cllr Watson signed the Declaration of acceptance of office.

4.          Co-option of Mr Nick Collingridge: The Clerk advised that Mr Collingridge was the only person to apply to fill the casual vacancy on the Council within the period stipulated by law and that none of the Councillors had raised any objection to his co-option. The Chair put the co-option to the vote and it was agreed unanimously.

5.          Declarations of Interest: With the exception of Cllr Collingridge, the Councillors stated that there had been no change in their Declarations of Interest. Cllr Collingridge would complete his Declaration and return it to the Clerk within the next 28 days.

6.          Legal Documents: Cllr Watson confirmed that the legal documents concerning the Village Hall were deposited with Messrs Howe, Roche & Waller of Stevenage.

7.          Appointment of Councillors to Outside Bodies: It was noted that Cllr Watson remained a member of the Executive of HAPTC. It was confirmed that Cllr Evans would remain a member of the Welwyn Road Safety Committee, with Cllr Collingridge also attending as appropriate.

8.          Responsibilities of Councillors: The following areas of responsibility were agreed:

Cllr Bryant         Publicity                                    Cllr Collingridge       Environment & Transport

Cllr Daniels        Parish Plan, Website & Finance     Cllr Evans                Grounds

Cllr Thom          Planning                                    Cllr Watson              Village Hall                                                                                                                   

9.          Minutes of Council Meeting on 14 March: The minutes had been circulated and were signed as a correct record.

10.       Minutes of Extra Council Meeting on 10 April: The minutes had been circulated and were signed as a correct record.

11.       Minutes of Annual Parish Meeting on 11 April: The minutes had been circulated and were signed as a correct record.

12.       Meetings Attended by Councillors: Cllr Evans had attended a Road Safety meeting and reported that a School Travel Plan had been prepared and issued by St. Michael’s School. The School was also sponsoring a project to promote Road Safety.

13.       Meeting about the Pond: On 3 May, Cllrs Bryant, Daniels and Watson had met with Chris James of WHC, Sgt Graham Berwick of Herts Constabulary and Tony Bradford of Countryside Management to discuss the management of the Pond and, in particular, its use for fishing. Responsibility for the Pond was in doubt. Further advice was awaited on this point and also advice from Chris James on the advisability of allowing fishing to continue. As the new fishing season starts on 1 June, it was agreed to hold a special extra meeting of the Council before the end of May, in order to establish the new rules.

14.       Suspension: Standing Orders suspended for some 10 minutes to enable a member of the public to make known his views regarding the Pond.

15.       Hall Fabric & Transport

         a) CCTV – deferred to next meeting.

         b) Speed limit on Mardleybury Road: Cllr Collingridge had sent a letter to the Highways Dept and police lobbying for a reduction in the speed limit from derestricted to 40mph between Datchworth and Woolmer Green, and the Council had supplied a letter of support. The Council agreed that the Clerk should also forward the letter to County Councillor Richard Smith. Action: Clerk

         c) Cleaning of the Hall: Major cleaning work had been carried out on the interior of the Hall, together with complete descaling of the men’s toilets and the men’s and women’s showers.

         d) Quotes were being obtained for necessary redecoration of the exterior of the Hall.

         e) It was agreed to proceed with the re-upholstery as necessary of the ‘green’ chairs at a cost of £17.75 per chair using the existing boards and foam or £26.55 when supplying new boards and foam.

 

 

 

16.       Hall Management: (Cllr Watson)

         The Clerk reported that an offer of help from the Land Registry Office in registering the Council’s land had been received and he would be following up on this soon.

17.       Planning: (Cllr Thom) Application N6 2006 87 FP re 6 New Road had been refused.

Application N6 2006 532 FP for a single storey extension, front and rear, at 1a New Road was reviewed and no objections were raised

18.       Grounds: (Cllr Evans)

a.     Play Equipment: Cllr Evans had heard a talk by Groundwork Hertfordshire who might be able to help in putting together a request for funding for older children’s play equipment on the Village Hall site. It was agreed that she pursued this matter. Action: Cllr Evans

b.     Dog Fouling: A notice for the Garden Road play area had been obtained and would be given to Katriona Byers for positioning. Action: Cllr Evans

c.      Marking of Tennis Courts: The Clerk was asked to set this in motion. Action: Clerk

19.       Environment: (Cllr Bryant)

a.      PPP: No further progress yet.

b.   Cllr Bryant considered that there could be a case for making a grant to St. Michael’s Church out of the Precept. Cllr Watson pointed out that there had been several recommendations to the Church to form a lay organisation, which could help to raise funds for the Church, but these had not borne fruit. Following discussion, it was agreed that the Clerk should establish the extent to which the Council could legally grant money to the Church and to consider again at the next meeting. Action: Clerk

20.       Publicity: (Cllr Daniels)

a.      Parish Plan: A meeting of interested parties had been held on 27 April, when priorities for future action had been decided.

b.     Calendars & Books: All Calendars had now been sold and Cllr Evans had some money for banking. Lisles Garage and the Red Lion had sold more Woolmer Green Books.

c.      Aerial photography and mapping of the Parish on CD: It was agreed that this could be useful and the Clerk was requested to order the system, which would cost £112.89, discounted by 20% if ordered before 31 May. Action: Clerk

d.     Christmas Card design competition. Cllr Evans confirmed that the School were interested in this and would want to take action soon. It was agreed that the winning design would be used as the Council’s official card and that the possibility of selling the cards would be investigated. Cllr Watson agreed to establish the cost of printing. Action: Cllrs Evans & Watson

e.      Village of Year Competition: The entry had been submitted and acknowledged.

f.      Best Kept Front Garden Competition: It was agreed to run this to coincide with judging of the Village of the Year. It would be organised by Cllr Collingridge and the results announced on Village Day. Cllr Watson agreed to include mention in the next Newsletter. Action: Cllrs Collingridge & Watson

21.       Finance:

a.     The Payments and Accounts for April had been circulated. Acceptance was proposed by Cllr Bryant, seconded by Cllr Evans and unanimously agreed.

b.     Burgess Memorials had completed the work on the plinth of the war memorial satisfactorily, but the pillar was still in an unsatisfactory condition. Cllr Watson would investigate the possibility of obtaining funding for the further work required. Action: Cllr Watson

c.      The Woolmer Green Sports & Social Club submitted their accounts and a photocopy was retained.

22         PCSOs: Paul Hart had been invited to address the next meeting on this subject.

23         Cricket Nets: The Council was advised that the Sports & Social Club had applied for a grant of £7,000, but it had not yet been agreed.

24         Farmers’ Market: Following representation from the Market Manager, it was agreed establish his commission at £2.50 per stall for the first 10 stalls, £5.00 per stall for the next 5 stalls and £7.50 per stall for subsequent stalls.

25         Visit of Grant Shapps, MP, on 11 May: Cllr Bryant confirmed that posters had been distributed. Cllr Daniels agreed to provide PA equipment. Cllr Watson advised that the Lisles shop had agreed to provide wine on ‘sale or return’ which would be sold at £1 a glass.

26         Correspondence: Cllr Watson reported that the Audit Commission’s form about District Council and the Submission Statement of Community Involvement had been received.

27         Next Meeting: Tuesday, 13 June, 2006. An Extra Meeting would be arranged before 31 May to consider latest advice regarding the Pond.

 

 

AAE 30.5.06