Parish Council Minutes for 7th December 2009Minutes of the monthly Parish Council meeting held in the Small Hall, High Street, Leigh, Monday 7th December 2009 commencing at 8pm under the chairmanship of Cllr. Stratton-Brown. 1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE were received from Cllrs. Powell and Bennie. PRESENT: Cllrs. C. Stratton-Brown (Chairman), R. Sykes, A. Johnston, R. Dyton, G. Marchant, P. Croft, J. Knock, and Mrs. J. Butler (Clerk). 2. DECLARATIONS OF PERSONAL AND PREJUDICIAL INTEREST Cllr. Expressed a prejudicial interest with regard to the late application of a financial donation to the short mat bowls club (not on the agenda). 3. MINUTES of the monthly Parish Council meeting held on 2nd November were approved, proposed and seconded by Cllrs. Sykes and Johnston. A copy will be signed at the next monthly meeting. 4. MATTERS ARISING FROM PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 2nd November. Play Place Inov8 CIC - Clerk reported that she had received a letter from Chris Hennis including suggestions to progress the youth programme in Leigh, following on from his presentation last month. Play Place wish to have confirmation of the Parish Council's support in order to aid the application for funds process, although sometimes bids have more chance of succeeding if they are from the Parish Council. Play Place are able to write the bids on our behalf. Suggestions on where to meet are needed, and a 'kick start' fund from the Parish Council of up to £1,000 would be helpful in taking the project forward, which Cllr. Sykes confirmed would be possible. The Clerk was asked to respond again positively to Chris Hennis to progress the programme. 5. REPORTS i.) Police. The Clerk read out a message from PCSO Kingscott which noted the reporting of suspicious vehicles on Cinder Hill and also on Penshurst Road. ii.) District Councillor Alison Cook sent her apologies. iii.) Kent County Councillor Peter Lake sent his apologies. iv.) Open Session. Mrs Field noted that she would be please to see the Play Place initiative come to fruition. Mr Butters of Durhill Ltd representing Mr and Mrs Walker of Podium House stated that he wished to draw attention to the ambiguity in the Parish Council's response to the District Council concerning the planning application. The Clerk stated that she had reflected all Councillors' comments expressed at the Planning Meeting, and related them to policy, and confirmed that the vote of no objection had been recorded. Mr Rowley stated that it had been agreed to have the Playground before the Open Session, but the Clerk replied that although Councillors had agreed to bring it forward, it was not agreed that it should be before the Open Session. 6. PLAYGROUND The Chairman updated Council on the letter from Beverley Doherty, Chair of Governors, and Wendy Wallace-Holman, Headmistress of Leigh School, stating that the governors had agreed to allow the Lealands Avenue school playing fields to be considered as a possible location for a playground if it is mutually beneficial and in collaboration. The school have plans to develop the site into a Sustainable Living Learning resource area for the school and possibly wider community. The agreement in principle is therefore subject to the design, size, equipment type and location being determined in agreement with the school, and furthermore the school would need to comment on any consultation questionnaire before circulation. Rights of way issues would have to be resolved in writing and access allowed during construction and maintenance thereafter. Finally agreements would need to be drawn up setting out responsibilities such as ownership, maintenance, and insurance. The letter concluded with the view that governors now felt it was inappropriate to comment on examples supplied by the Clerk until the demand for a particular age range was identified from the questionnaire. Initially Cllrs. Johnston and Sykes stated that a questionnaire should specify equipment, as it would be difficult for people to respond to a survey without having more detail. The Clerk suggested that specifying the design, type and number of items of equipment was heavily dependent on the age range, and this would be determined by the questionnaire. The Clerk suggested that the two scenarios outlined in her letter to the governors were detailed enough, but still felt this was pre-determining. The Clerk was asked to send a draft of the questionnaire to Councillors before the next meeting in order to agree the format before asking other outside bodies to comment. 7. PLANNING With regard to the Planning Committee Meeting minutes of 16th November that were previously circulated to Councillors, the Clerk informed the Councillors that they were under no obligation to correct the notes of the Open Session as they did not form part of the minutes. However, she suggested that a revised copy be produced for signing to reflect certain corrections highlighted by Mr Ian Butters in the interests of accuracy. Councillors agreed. i.) Planning applications: SE/09/02443/FUL. Orchard Cottage, Home Farm, Hildenborough Road, Leigh Alterations to form a small cloakroom. Councillors had no objection. SE/09/02605/FUL. Hale Oak Cottage, Hale Oak Road, Weald, TN14 6NQ. Demolition of existing barn, erecting 2 storey extension to rear of dwelling and detached double garage. Although it appears that a non-residential barn has been used in calculations to increase the main house, Councillors had no objection. Works to Trees in a Conservation Area: 09/02757/WTCA South View, The Green, Leigh TN11 8QR. Fell 1 Winter Flowering Cherry Tree. Councillors had no objection. Appeal SE/09/01237/FUL The Cottage, Southwood, Scabharbour Road, Leigh. Two storey rear extension. The Parish Council's response of no objection remains the same. ii.) Planning decisions by Sevenoaks District Council: Grant of permission: SE/09/01841/LBCALT Little Moorden, Cinder Hill Lane, Leigh TN11 8HU. Enlargement of existing front extension at ground floor and first floor and creation of second floor bathroom. SE/09/01840/FUL Hollows End, Lealands Avenue, Leigh TN11 8QU. Loft conversion with front and rear dormer windows. Refusal of planning permission: SE/09/01620/LBCALT & 1618/FUL Southdown House, 1 The Square, High Street, Leigh. Replace conservatory with new extension. Withdrawal of application: 4 The Square, High Street, Leigh. Single storey extension to the rear of the existing property and internal alterations to ground floor kitchen. Appeal Dismissed: G2245/A/09/2103763/NWF Land to rear of Garden Cottages, Hollow Trees Drive, Leigh. 8. CURRENT ISSUES i.) Speedwatch The Clerk updated Councillors on her conversation with David Hutchins with regard to the part purchase of a Speed Indicator Device along with 2 other parishes. The conclusion was that whilst the volunteers will probably continue their operations thanks to the kind loan from Bidborough Parish Council, it was not worthwhile investing around £800 in equipment at the moment. The Clerk has already requested that KHS look into other ways of calming the traffic along the Penshurst Road/High Street to complement the work of the Speedwatch volunteers, and it was hoped that eventually a more permanent device would be adopted. ii.) Neighbourhood Watch. No response yet to requests for volunteers via the Parish Magazine and shop. 9. ENVIRONMENTAL MATTERS INCLUDING CHOICE OF TREE FOR KENT MEN OF TREES AWARD Cllr Croft complained that a collapsed drain outside of Gibbs Field was not attended to quickly enough, another drain near the church is full of tarmac, and the BT cover by Porcupine House is damaged The Clerk will make enquiries with the police and Kent Highway Services (KHS). Discussion moved to the 2009 Trees in the Village competition, which considered Leigh as 'outstanding', awarding £35 prize plus an indigenous tree of choice to be presented at a planting ceremony. It was agreed that a beech tree would be the best choice to replace the dying chestnut on the Green, by the trough. Cllr. Johnston confirmed that the application to remove and replace the cherry trees in front of the Halls has been submitted, and work to the yew trees was imminent. The Clerk was asked to chase the application to prune the yew trees by the Pump. 10. FOOTPATH WORKING PARTY This item can now be removed from the agenda. 11. VILLAGE HALLS No report 12. AGED PERSONS DWELLING See under Finance. 13. TRANSPORT Cllr. Knock reported that the new timetables were in the parish magazine. 14. CORRESPONDENCE for information only had already been circulated.
15. TO CONSIDER THE PROPOSAL TO MOVE THE OPEN SESSION AND REPORTS TO THE BEGINNING OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING. The Clerk reported that she had been advised that it was best practice to hold the Open Session and Reports at the very beginning of the monthly meeting. The reasoning behind this was:
Councillors agreed to follow best practice and start the new agenda procedure from February 2010. 16. FINANCIAL MATTERS Cllr. Sykes circulated draft budget proposals which assumed an end of year balance of £11,500, with an overspend of £1,000. It had been an exceptional year for donations. The Chairman suggested having a reserve earmarked for the APD, and it was agreed that the Clerk would first show Cllr. Marchant the maintenance survey that was carried out a few years ago. The Chairman thanked Cllr. Sykes for his time on finance. i. to approve payment of cheques detailed below and to consider receipts and payments by standing order/direct debit. These were approved and it was agreed that direct debits/standing order would be introduced where appropriate eg. BT payments and collection of APD rent. ii. to renew membership for 2010 of Society of Local Council Clerks at £82. All Councillors agreed. iii. to consider NALC 2009/10 recommended pay rise of 1% for Clerks from £8.26p.h. to £8.34p.h., backdated from April 2009. All Councillors agreed. iv. to consider estimate of £2,195 for installation of electric showers, screens and tiling surround for no's 1 & 2 The Bungalows, The Green (APD). The Clerk advised that she needs to obtain at least one more estimate. Councillors agreed to £50 for Tonbridge Volunteer Centre as they claimed to have 20 regular users residing in Leigh. A request for a financial donation towards the cost of a new mat for the Short Mat Bowls club was submitted, and Cllr. Croft left the room for the duration of the discussion. It was agreed that the old mat needed replacing, that the club were building membership and were helped with the renovation of the Large Village Hall. Councillors agreed to award £500 which was half the cost of the mat.
16. ANY FURTHER MATTERS FOR CONSIDERATION The Clerk reported problems accessing the noticeboards and has contacted Graham Fuller to look into the matter. She reported the Chair of School Governors request to publicise the 'cash for schools' competition. Cllr. Marchant requested KHS be informed about drainage issues on Coppings Road prior to resurfacing. The Chairman reported a pot hole adjacent to the trough by The Green, and requested reinstating of a sign warning of a major road junction coming from the bridge along Lower Green. Cllr. Knock appealed to Councillors to promote Leigh United Charities for those in need. The meeting closed at 9.50pm. Signed................................................. Chairman................................................... Date.....................................................
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