Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of Standlake Parish Council, held in the Youth Club, Church End, on 9th July 2024 at 7.30pm

Present:

          Mr. B. Parnham               Chairman

          Mr. Rippin                      Vice Chairman

          Mrs. A. Knipe

          Mrs. J. Macdonald

          Mr. D. Jeffcoat

          Mr. J. Clements

          Mr. D. Bevan                   Clerk

          WODC Cllr. Mr. S. Cosier.

1.         APOLOGIES –Mr. B Smith, WODC Cllr. Mr. C. Maynard, OCC Cllr. Mr. D levy.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS - Mr. Parnham stood down as chairman. Mr. Rippin assumed the chair and asked for nominations for chairman.

Mr. Jeffcoat proposed Mr. Parnham as chairman, seconded by Mrs. Macdonald; passed unanimously.

Mr. Parnham signed his acceptance of office and re-convened the meeting as chairman: he then called for nominations for Vice Chairman and Responsible Financial Officer.

Mr. Rippin proposed Mr. Jeffcoat as vice chairman, seconded by Mr. Clements; passed unanimously.  Mr. Jeffcoat signed his acceptance of office.

Mrs. Macdonald proposed Mr. Bevan (Clerk) as Responsible Financial Officer to the council, seconded by Mrs. Knipe; passed unanimously.

Mr. Rippin agreed to act as the council trustee on the Poor's Allotments Charity.

Mr. Jeffcoat agreed to act as the council representative on the Village Hall committee.

2.         DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST – None.

3.       PUBLIC ITEMS – Mr. Parnham closed the meeting at 7.40pm.  Mrs. A. Cullinan spoke about 20 mph limits in the village and about traffic in general. In summary she said as a long-time resident of Standlake she was addressing the parish council about the speed limits on The Downs, expressing disappointment that the proposed 20 mph limit does not cover this area. On safety issues she highlighted the dangers posed by speeding vehicles, especially to children and pets, and mentioned personal experiences of pet casualties. Mrs. Cullinan acknowledged the existing 30 mph electronic sign and the Speedwatch initiative but feels these are insufficient for The Downs. Finally, she urged the council to reconsider the decision and extend the 20mph speed limit to include Downs Road for better safety. Mrs. Cullinan was supported in these views by Mrs. Hinton.

Mr. Parnham thanked both ladies for their input. He explained at length how the decisions regarding the extent of the 20mph limits were arrived at. There was a public consultation by both the parish council and OCC and, as a result, OCC recommended the changes that are now in place. He explained the role of the Speedwatch group and stressed that more volunteers would mean more sessions could be carried out therefore reducing the number of offenders; the offending rate (in the 30mph zone) when the scheme started was 5% and is now 1%. Both Mrs. Cullinan and Mrs. Hinton then volunteered to join the scheme and were welcomed by Mr. Parnham and the council. Mr. Parnham will introduce them to the Speedwatch Coordinator and thanked them for coming to the meeting and joining Speedwatch. Mr Parnham also detailed that the Parish Council continues to work with OCC about traffic calming measures to improve road safety within Standlake and updates will be made at Parish Council meetings. Mr. Parnham reopened the meeting at 7.57.pm.

4.         COUNTY and DISTRICT COUNCILLORS’ REPORTS See Cllr. Cosier’s report attached. Mr. Jeffcoat asked what, if any, assessment had been made of the new government’s planning strategy. Cllr Cosier said that it was unclear at the moment, but planning officers were concerned and expected not to have any clear guidance for approximately six months.

5.         PLANNING – 24/01341/FULL: Change of use of land to increase domestic curtilage along with erection of 2m high boundary fence (retrospective): 138 Abingdon Road Standlake Witney: Mr and Mrs Geoffrey and Victoria Ling. Objection: no basis for increasing domestic curtilage; changes character of immediate area of Shifford Lane.

24/01577/S73: Variation of Condition 2 of 24/00234/FUL to make minor changes to domestic curtilages plot 1 parking area moved to frontage and old yard area turned into rear gardens for plots 1 and 2, together with alterations to approved doors (plots 1 and 2).  24/00234/FUL PROPOSAL: Conversion of three agricultural buildings to two dwellings and associated external works: The Stone Barn High Street Standlake: Mr James Jennings. No objection.

24/01681/S73: Variation of condition 02 of permission 23/00301/FUL to allow replacement of previously approved drawings: 23/00301/FUL: Erection of five industrial units with associated parking and service areas and access road: Lakeside Industrial Park Cotswold Dene Standlake: Mr Glen Coffey. No objection.

6.             MINUTES - Minutes of the Meeting held on Tuesday, 11th June 2024, copies of which had been previously circulated to all members, were agreed as a true record, and were signed by the chairman.

7.         MATTERS ARISING

Sewage/Flooding – Nothing further to report but Mr. Parnham will continue to press for updates.

Roads/Speedwatch/20mph – Mrs. Knipe reported the following: 17 Speedwatch sessions were held during June including some early morning and evening session resulting in 151 offenders being reported.  Of these, 4 had no Tax, 1 no MOT and 2 on SORN; this information is passed by TVP to DVLA.  We are still seeing an average of 1% offenders in the 30mph zones but 22% in the 20mph zones although this is a reduction so hopefully the trend will continue.  Thanks to all operators who continue to give up your time.  Mr. Jeffcoat noted that Speedwatch was working as the number of offenders exceeding the 20mph limit had dropped from 30% in May to 22% in June.

On the 14th June a meeting was held between Brian Parnham, Robert Maxwell (Speedwatch Co-Ordinator) and Chris Grain of OCC Engagement Team reviewing the state of the roads in Standlake and Brighthampton, the standard of repairs including the length of time it takes for issues to be addressed, white-lining/Dragons Teeth as well as wider issues of traffic calming etc.  A report is expected from OCC in due course which will be circulated when available.

Playground/Recreation Ground –The new gate has been replaced in the Recreation Ground and repairs in the Rack End playground have been completed. Mr. Clements said there were no new issues in the Windrush Way playground.

Environment/Nature Recovery Network - Mrs. Macdonald reported the following: Burial Ground – the new burial ground is being mown respectfully around the area of the new grave and has been mown in sections in the remainder of the area, to encourage the growth of wild flowers. The pathway to school has also been mown to enable access to school and encourage the use of the car park at school time. Village Hall – the repairs to the porch at the village hall are now complete, and restoration of the flower bed damaged during the works will be addressed shortly. Dog/Litter bins – the well-used bin at Martins Lane/Downs Road continues to be closely monitored, and apart from being emptied a day late recently, the weekly emptying regime is being followed. Coronation Planters – these are now in full flower, growing well, and generally appreciated by the villagers. The team manage these and ensure they are well watered in dry spells. LWVP – a new project manager, Martyn Lane, has recently been appointed, but will not commence work until September. Many maintenance jobs have been neglected over the past 18 months and the volunteer work force has sadly dwindled. Hopefully the new manager will be able to implement a new strategy quickly, in the meantime less popular, but necessary tasks such as emptying the dog/litter bin at the picnic area will have to be continued by individuals, including members of SBNRN.

8.         CORRESPONDENCE. – there was no correspondence.

9.         ACCOUNTS – The clerk reported that the finances were satisfactory and within budget, though the mowing budget will continue to be closely monitored.

Received: WODC (S106 boulder surface) £3907.00; M Ayres (deceased) donation £77.25; WODC (S106 recreation ground gate etc.) £543.37

For payment/approved: (* already paid)

UK2 - domain renewal                                           £17.39*

UK2 - domain renewal                                           £11.99*

Redlynch Leisure - boulder surface                     £4688.40*

UK2- web hosting                                                 £89.99*

Barlow & Sons - materials for gate etc.                  £184.05*

C Cleland – churchyard mowing                           £372.50*

Absolute Solutions – rec grnd/playgrnd repairs     £390.00*

HMRC – Clerk PAYE                                            £419.80*

10.       DATE OF NEXT MEETING - Mr. Parnham suggested that, unless anything urgent arose there should be no meeting in August. This was agreed unanimously, and the next meeting will be held in the Youth Club on Tuesday 10th September 2024 at 7.30 pm.

11.       There being no further business, the meeting closed at 8.40pm.

 

Chairman   ....................................................................  Date …………………………………………………

 

 

WODC Councillor Report July 24 - Cllr. Steve Cosier

Planning Enforcement:The WODC Enforcement Team between the months of January and June received and recorded and triaged 200 complaints which is an average 33 new complaints each month. 82 complaints have been set up as new cases which is an increase from 65 in the previous 6 months. Currently 250 are open active enforcement cases across the district. Of these, 34 (13%) are regarded as “priority” cases. Of the current priority cases 2 cases have been closed, 3 cases at the stage of, or about to be referred for, next steps (potential prosecution), 1 new Breach of Condition Notice has been served, and 2 for which formal action about to commence. A review of enforcement process is now in progress to help officers deal with the breaches in planning and priorities cases. The department is now looking at the ongoing enforcement modernisation process with emphasis on directing complaints via a form on Council website: https://www.westoxon.gov.uk/planning-and-building/planning-permission/report-a-breach-of-planning-regulations/  Parish Councils and residents are being asked to use this new portal when reporting breaches.

Tree News: Oxfordshire County Council has planted 400 young trees which need daily watering and regular weeding over the summer. They are asking for residents to become Tree Guardians and help take care of a young tree in the district. They are asking residents to contact the county’s tree team to find your nearest community tree - https://climateactionoxfordshire.org.uk/.../become-tree... #ClimateActionOxfordshire #YourChoicesMatter

 If you’d like to discuss anything to do with WODC matters, please contact me on: steve.cosier@westoxon.gov.uk