Denton a village in South Norfolk, England

Denton Parish Council

Minutes of the Meeting Held on 13th March 2007 at 8 pm at Denton Village Hall

Present: Eddie Winter (Chairman), Jo Wright (Vice Chairman), Liz Cargill, Terry Hanner, Adrian Hipwell, Pauline Sandell (Clerk).
Also Present: Dr. Murray Gray (District Councillor), a member of the public.

1. Apologies:
Clare Valori, Malcolm Skinner and Alan Burrell.

2. Declaration of Interest:
None.

3. Minutes of the Last Meeting:
Agreed and signed.

4. Minutes of the Planning Meeting on 24th February 2007:
Agreed and signed.

5. Matters Arising:

a. Playing Field; Adrian Hipwell had completed the monthly report. Malcolm Skinner has done the bark. The new 7-a-side goal posts are in and the concrete base for the new bin has been done. The Shelter is well used and a photograph will be taken to send to the Youth Bank to show them what has been done. It was suggested that the teenagers should be asked to write a short note to Youth Bank to tell them how much they use the Shelter. Adrian Hipwell reported that a car had driven over the playing field during the day. Unfortunately, nobody had been able to see the registration number.
The Clerk had received quotes for the playing field sign from Diss Signs – approximately £45 + VAT, Apex Signs - £75. Although she had telephoned Bartlett Signs at Long Stratton she had still not received a quote from them. Proposal: Purchase a sign from Diss Signs. Proposed by Jo Wright, seconded by Liz Cargill, unanimously agreed. Some discussion took place regarding a way of stopping people from driving onto the playing field. It was suggested that either tree trunks should be placed on the edge or a padlocked barrier installed. Jo Wright will complete the next report.

b. An application for a grant for the shredder has been sent and Liz Cargill is waiting for the result. Ken Barnes had paid a brief visit to the composting site. A rumbler has been given, free of charge, by a nursery and Keith will adapt it to a petrol engine. The rumbler and the shredder need to be kept somewhere safe and it was suggested that a shed, at the site, would be useful. In the meantime, the shredder will be kept at Liz’s. There is now a need for 3 bins to be built. The Composters will meet on Monday 26th March at 8pm.

c. Village Sign; Terry Hanner reported that the work is in progress.

d. Village Speed Limit; The Clerk reported that she had received a telephone call from Gary Overland in response to her letter. Unfortunately, there is still no change in their view that Denton does not merit a speed limit. He suggested that Denton could ask for a footways assessment, so that footways could be built for pedestrians to walk off of the road. However, the Councillors decided not to do this.

e. Stiles on the Walk; The Clerk reported that Mr. Fairhead had changed his mind about the gates and had decided to keep the stiles. He has agreed to lower the top rail. Adrian Hipwell reported that so far this has not been done and will monitor the situation in the next few weeks. If nothing has been done in that time the Clerk will speak to the Footpaths Officer again. Terry Hanner will speak to the owner of the land, Mr. Lambert. The Councillors were concerned that the stiles were not suitable for the elderly or people with a disability.

f. Wind Turbine/Solar Panels Survey; Liz Cargill and The Clerk had drawn up a survey form and will be distributing them on Wednesday 14th March. The Clerk gave the Councillors a collection rota.

g. Any Other Matters Arising; None.

6. Travellers:
Murray Gray reported that SNC have given the Travellers a deadline of 22nd April to leave the site. Any time after that the Council can evict them.

7. District and County Council Matters:
Murray Gray reported that the Government have published the recycling statistics and SNC had come third in the country for dry recycling. However, they were not so good at composting and in order to achieve a target of 40% in 2010 they will expand the brown bin recycling.

8 Questions from the Public:
None.

9. Parish Council Elections:
The Clerk circulated nomination papers to the Councillors.

10. Planning:
a. Application 2007/0169 - Beck Farm, Trunch Hill. Retention of replacement building. It was decided that the Councillors would prefer to look at the site before making a decision. Therefore, a site meeting will be held on Monday 19th March at 6pm.
b. Application 2007/0387 – Richmond, Darrow Green Road. Rear extension to kitchen and utility room.
Proposal: Approved, a suitable improvement for a growing family. Proposed by Terry Hanner, seconded by Liz Cargill, unanimously agreed.
c. Application 2007/0510 – Darrow Farm Barn, Darrow Green Road. Proposed sun room.
Proposal: Approved, a good extension to the property and compatible with the existing design. Proposed by Terry Hanner, seconded by Liz Cargill, unanimously agreed.
d. Planning Decisions. Application 2007/0268 – Valley View, Grove Farm, Middle Road. This application has been withdrawn.

11. Correspondence:
Entertrag – Public consultation on proposed windfarm at Hempnall.
Local Works - Asking for the support of Denton Parish Council for the Sustainable Communities Bill and ask that a letter is written to Phil Woolas MP and Ruth Kelly MP urging them to support the Bill. The Clerk was asked to do this.
NCAPTC - Posters and leaflets regarding the election. Jo Wright took some for the post office and some were left on the Village Hall bar. One will go on the Notice Board.
EDP – Pride in Norfolk Community Awards 2007. Councillors agreed not to do this.
South Norfolk Alliance - South West Area Forum to be held at Roydon Village Hall on Wednesday 21st March at 7.30pm. Eddie will attend.

12. Finance:
a. Pay the Clerk £81.47 for March.
b. Pay Glasdon UK Ltd £249.06 for litter bin for shelter.
c. Pay Norfolk Rural Community Council £15 for annual subscription.
d. Pay Terry Hanner for remaining work on the shelter. This amounted to £440.00.
Proposal: Pay a. b. c. and d. Proposed by Adrian Hipwell, seconded by Jo Wright, unanimously agreed.

15. Any Other Business:
Terry Hanner reported that the condition of the verges outside the Chapel are now in a very bad state. This is partly due to bad weather, but mainly due to people parking alongside the verge. Cars are parked there all night long. Suggestions; tidy up the area, make a lay-by, make a high bank so that cars cannot park on the verge. There were concerns that it wasn’t just outside the Chapel that verges were getting ruined and the Clerk was asked to put a piece in the Parish Magazine asking people not to park in the road unless absolutely necessary and, to be more considerate when parking in the road. The Clerk was asked to find out if it was against the law to park at night without lights.
Liz Cargill reported that there was a very large hole by the post box on Norwich Road, which frequently fills with water after heavy rain. It was agreed to fill this in.
Liz Cargill also said that she thought it might be a good idea to put cycle racks on the playing field. She had noticed that some youngsters leave their cycles flat near play equipment which could be dangerous and also there needs to be somewhere to lock your cycle to if people want to catch the bus. It was suggested that a cycle rack may be better placed at the Village Hall. The Clerk will find prices of cycle racks and report back at the next meeting.

The meeting closed at 09.20 pm.

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