Parish Council
Parish Assembly minutes 2006
THE PARISH OF KING’S SOMBORNE MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL PARISH ASSEMBLY HELD ON 20 APRIL 2006 IN THE VILLAGE HALL COMMENCING AT 7.30pm Present Cllr D Bidwell – Chairman of the Parish Council Cllrs R Dyke, A Gannaway, R Lane and G Pearson – Parish CouncillorsCllr M J Woodhall – County Councillor17 ParishionersMr P J Storey – Clerk to the Parish Council 06/01 Apologies Apologies had been received from Cllr R Bevan, Cllr R Pidgeon and from Mrs M Pollock. 06/02 Minutes The Minutes of the Annual Parish Assembly held on 21 April 2005 had been circulated and were available at the meeting for perusal. Proposed Mr N Dennison, Seconded Cllr Gannaway, RESOLVED unanimously that these Minutes be accepted as a true record. 06/03 Matters Arising There were no matters arising from these Minutes. 06/04 Chairman’s Report for the Year 2005/06 The Chairman presented his Report for the year 2005/06, a copy of which is attached to these Minutes. The Report had previously been published in The Gauntlet magazine and was welcomed by the Meeting. 06/05 Financial Report Mr Storey, as the Responsible Finance Officer, presented the Audited Accounts for the Parish Council for the year ended 31 March 2005 in the format required by the Accounts and Audit Regulations and the Annual Return for Local Councils in England and Wales as required by the Audit Commission. These had previously been displayed on the Village Notice Boards and copies were available at the meeting for perusal. He explained that, by the nature of the procedures involved, the information being presented was historical. However, also circulated was the likely out-turn for the financial year 2005/06 which showed the Parish finances to be in a healthy state and which, with the Precept for the current 2006/07 year, would enable the Parish Council to implement many of the proposals contained within the Parish Plan. Proposed Mrs Bidwell, Seconded Mr Ward, RESOLVED unanimously that the Accounts and the Annual Return for the year ended 31 March 2005 be accepted. 06/05 Reports from County Councillor and Borough Councillor The Chairman welcomed Cllr Woodhall to the Assembly and invited him to address those present. In his opening comments, Cllr Woodhall complimented and thanked the Chairman and Councillors for the contribution they made to the community, emphasising that it was a team effort and that we were all fortunate to live in our particular area of Hampshire.Cllr Woodhall then introduced the following points; · the importance of Parish Councils attaining Quality Parish status · the County’s £1.5b Budget priorities· improvements to Test Valley School· the robust stance taken against mergers of the Police and Fire Services· the reduction in road accident fatalities across the County despite growth in traffic· engineering work on the A3057 to further reduce the risk of accidents· the sad fact that 1000 children were in County Council homes· the concept of elderly care in the community conjoined with the 500 newly provided beds for those who could not return home· concern at levels of safety in certain areas quoting that every £4m spent on repairing vandalism and wilful damage added a further 1% to the Council Tax charge· the need to recycle waste and composting and the County’s record on this· the aim was for planned growth rather than excessive growth in our County Cllr Woodhall then took questions from the floor and commented – new speed limits on the A3057 should be introduced within the next few weeks; local communities were being encouraged to form ‘Speedwatch’ groups who would be provided with radar to provide evidence for Police prosecution, Stockbridge had been chosen to trial this scheme; electronic signs warning motorists of excessive speed had proven effective elsewhere and could be installed in the Village; the Bunny Lane waste site was difficult to access and help should be provided by the operatives to the handicapped; remedial action was in hand to improve the state of the roads around Romsey following the ravages of Winter and the damage caused by tree roots (the Parishioner raising this point believed the erosion required more serious attention); more information on the road surface state of Winchester Road approaching the Rack and Manger Public House would be provided by the Parishioner raising this concern; the concern expressed at the reduction in adult education facilities had been recognised and representations made by HCC (the Parishioner raising this matter was invited to provide more detail). The Chairman thanked Cllr Woodhall for his comprehensive overview of topical matters. Cllr Bidwell, as Borough Councillor, complimented the Parish on the production of its Parish Plan. This comprehensive document now enabled the Parish Council and external authorities to comprehend King’s Somborne residents’ wishes and aspirations and hopefully react accordingly. The Plan enabled a dynamic assessment to be made or what was required which, in turn, would encourage the continued viability of local services such as the Village Shops, bus routes and Post Office. Looking at the broader picture and picking up on an earlier point regarding safety and the ‘yob’ culture, Cllr Bidwell took soundings from those present on the value to the community of working in partnership with the Police Authority by part funding a dedicated Police Community Support Officer (PCSO). Central Government was contributing the bulk of the necessary funding for the first two years of the scheme during which a local authority could also contribute and guarantee part of the PCSO’s time being dedicated to that local authority area. The annual cost of a PCSO was £30,000 and the Parish Council was considering a contribution of £3,000 over two years which would provide the Village with some dedicated cover; there was general agreement from those present in support of this concept. Finally, Cllr Bidwell reviewed the allocation of Council Tax by stating that of every £100 received, £76.70p went to the County Council, £10.10p went to the Police Authority; £8.70p went to Test Valley Borough Council which included that which came back to the Village by way of the Precept; and £4.50 went to Hampshire Fire and Rescue Authority. 06/07 The Village Hall The Chairman explained that the Village Hall was well used and provided a vital facility for the Village. However, its only regular income came from hiring charges which barely covered its running cost and left nothing for capital improvements. It had been estimated that £150,000 was needed for improvement and general agreement was given by those present to the Parish Council’s intention to meet the costs incurred by the Hall Trustees in obtaining external grants rather than taking over the financial management of the Hall and its fundraising programme; indeed, to forfeit the Hall’s separate identity would prejudice its ability to obtain the necessary grants. 06/08 Memorial to German Aircrew Relocation of the German Aircrew Memorial to the Village Cemetery was not thought necessary by those present as it was a well known point of interest in its present position and no benefit was perceived by its relocation. The Clerk confirmed that the inscription was being re-enamelled and the stonework cleaned. No further action was thought necessary. 06/09 Village Youth Shelter Resulting from a proposal contained within the Parish Plan, a meeting had been convened to discuss the need for and location of a Youth Shelter in the Village but no-one had turned up despite wide publicity. No further action would be taken on this matter for the time being. 06/10 Parish Matters The following matters were raised – · Dog signs – signs would be placed at the entry to the children’s play areas saying ‘no dogs allowed’ · Local Government reorganisation – there had been no Parish consultation in the proposals to reorganise Local Government although mention had been made of ‘neighbourhood’ consultation without any accompanying definition. Proposals exist to form unitary authorities to replace County and Unitary/District Councils which were being resisted· Parish Plan – confirmation was given of the Parish Council’s intention to further the proposals made within the Plan where feasible and to capitalise upon the encouraging responses already received from external organisations to whom the Plan had been submitted. Updates on progress would be available through Parish Council minutes, the Village Website and The Gauntlet magazine· Parish Newsletter – a Parish Council newsletter would continue to be published as part of the Parish Council’s quest to become an accredited Quality Parish· Skate Ramp – methods of reducing noise were being evaluated elsewhere after which the Parish Council would determine the most effective way of deadening the noise made by users of the Village skate ramp Closure The Meeting closed at 9.00pm with the Chairman thanking everyone who had attended. Chairman………………………………………………….. Date………………………