Members Present

42.     Apologies

Cllr A Hall    Cllr G Jenkinson

43.     Minutes of last meeting

It was resolved that the Chair be authorised to sign the minutes of the council meeting held on 18^th February 2008 as a true record.

44.     Declarations of Interest

There were no declarations of interest by members in respect of items on this agenda.

45.     Update on Issues and Actions from Last Meeting

  ACTION

·     Bouth Village Green Registration:  The registration documents had been resubmitted.

·     Portable speed indicator: Mr Mallett had replied saying that the locations were not suitable. Clerk to contact him to find out why.

Clerk

·     Signs to Bouth from Colton: The reference to Bouth on the signpost at Greenhead Farm had been painted out, but the post needed replacing. Clerk to contact CCC.

Clerk

·     Seats at Oxen Park: The second seat for Oxen Park had been collected from Mintons. The first seat area had been landscaped and would be completed shortly.

·     Heating Oil: The Clerk had yet to contact heating oil companies.

Clerk

·     Post Office Closures: A second letter would be sent during the consultation period.

Clerk

·     NHS Consultation: Cllr Robinson had made a copy of the completed questionnaire sent on behalf of the Council. The submission of the application for Trust status had been delayed until the autumn.

·     Repair of Notice Boards: The Clerk would contact Ron Mein for background information.

Clerk

·     New Standing Orders: The Clerk would amend and circulate the Standing Orders.

Clerk

·     Forest Enterprise - Old Hall Farm Management Plan: The Clerk had contacted Forest Enterprise but had had no response. She would follow this up.

Clerk

·     CALC Consultation: Greater Influence for Local Councils:  The Clerk would summarise any comments and send a response.

Clerk

·     Satterthwaite request for amalgamation: Cllr Barr had spoken to the Chairman of Satterthwaite PC regarding Colton's decision not to amalgamate parishes.

·     Letter to Library Service: Cllr Lovegrove would re-write letter in light of new information.

Cllr Lovegrove

46.   Public Participation

·      Mr B Cooper asked if an Agenda item on the Library Service could be included for the next Parish Council meeting in May. This was agreed.

Clerk

47.   Comments from District and County Councillors

·       Cllr Barr explained that he had only recently discovered that the district ward boundaries had changed so that Colton parish now lay entirely in Hawkshead ward. There had been no formal notification of this change. This meant that Colton would lose Cllr Anne Hall as a District Councillor. He expressed thanks to Cllr Hall on behalf of the Council for her hard work and enthusiasm.

·       Cllr Walsh highlighted the following issues:

-       The proposed wind-farm at Stribers Farm. The Council had received a letter from the wind energy company and would participate in the consultation.

-       Speeding traffic: the local 'Crash' team was launching a 'Respect' campaign. This team would write to speeding drivers if given registration numbers.

Clerk

-       Lengthsman: Cllr Walsh expressed his support for continuation of the scheme. He hoped to be able to contribute around £2000 from his Cllr's budget from the CCC Area Committee to add to the £1200 from the Community Board. Cllr Barr expressed his thanks on behalf of the Council.

-       Highways: An additional £1million was to be spent on highways until the end of April to improve the road surface. Cllr Barr explained that the speed of response to 'Hotline' reports had been fast but the quality of repair had been poor.

48.   Planning

·       The following planning applications were noted:

-      7/2008/5069 - 4, Cragg Brow, Bouth, Ulverston, LA12 8JQ. New vehicular access and car port. No objections from CPC.

-      7/2008/5085 - Dove Cottage, Lakeside, Ulverston, Cumbria. Construction of car port, canopy and front porch. No objections from CPC.

-      7/2007/5279 - Boaters, Lakeside, Newby Bridge, Ulverston LA12 8AS. Amended plans for: Demolition of vacant hotel and construction of replacement hotel building and associated access and car-parking. These plans had not been provided in time for the Council to comment.

-      7/2008/5099 - The Peat House, Nibthwaite Grange,   Ulverston, Cumbria. New glazed link between cottage and outbuilding. No objections from CPC but concern about possible flooding had been expressed.

·       Cllr Harrington reported on the site visit to Landing Close, Lakeside (7/2008/5052 - two new properties). He had explained to the LDNPA officer the Parish Council's objections, particularly concerning drainage.

·       The following Public Path Diversion Order was noted:

-      High Bethecar. Footpaths 511052 & 511056

49.   Accounts

It was agreed that the following accounts should be paid:

-           Cheque number 000393 - Lengthsman salary (Claim 13, Feb 08) - £385

-           Cheque number 000394 - CALC Annual Subscription: £178.50

-           Cheque number 000395 - Bouth VGP SLDC monthly inspections annual fee: £249.10

-           Cheque number 000396 - Clerk's salary Dec 07 to Mar 08: £670

-           Cheque number 000397 - Clerk’s website allowance – Dec07-Mar08: £134

-           Cheque number 000398 - Clerk's travel expenses Dec 07 to Mar 08 incl.: £71.60

-           Cheque number 000399 - Clerks expenses - Stationery and postage: £10.49

-           Cheque number 000400 - CiLCA course fee - £70

-           Cheque number 000401 - Chairman's travel expenses 07/08 - £144.80

-           Cheque number 000402 - Chairman's course fee, March 08 - £15

-           Cheque number 000403 - Hawkshead PCC - photocopying for newsletter - £48.00

Receipt of the following cheques was noted:

-           CCC Lengthsman salary reimbursement (Claim 12, Jan 08): £112.33

-           CALC Lengthsman salary reimbursement (Claim 12, Jan 08): £112.33

50.   May Elections

·      The Clerk had circulated nomination papers and placed notices for the forthcoming Parish Council Elections. She reminded Cllrs of procedures and deadline dates.

·      Colin Davis introduced himself as the Liberal Democrat candidate for SLDC Hawkshead Ward.

51.   Affordable Housing Working Group

A fact-finding meeting had been held on 26^th March with Judith Derbyshire (Cumbria Rural Housing Trust) and Simon Hughes (South Lakeland Housing). Cllrs were advised to urge those in need of housing to register their names with the South Lakeland Housing and also the relevant Housing Associations, as soon as possible. For example, the new affordable housing to be built at Satterthwaite (7 houses and flats for rent) by Mitre Housing Association had a local occupancy clause extending to surrounding parishes, including Colton. Cllrs Cunliffe and Atkinson provided their statistics to complete the Colton housing designation survey.

52.   Community Statement and Parish Plan Update

·      The Parish Plan Working Group had met on 17^th March to consider the results of the questionnaire sent in the last newsletter to all households and to update the Parish Plan issues and actions. These will be published shortly. It was resolved to aim at producing a new Parish Plan in early 2009 and every 6 years thereafter, with 2-yearly interim updates. The updated issues and actions would be circulated and placed on the website.

·      Cllr Barr suggested that the Chairman take up an idea put forward by a parishioner that the Council hold surgery sessions prior to Parish Council meetings. It was agreed that the Chairman would be available for half an hour before each meeting and that this would be publicised where appropriate.

Clerk

Clerk

53.   Lengthsman Scheme and Highways

Cllr Lovegrove reported on a meeting held with CALC to discuss the County’s decision to withdraw support for the Lengthsman Scheme in favour of their own ‘Highway Steward’ scheme. This new scheme would provide only an estimated ½ day per week for Colton. The Highway Steward would also be responsible for the road surface, as the Area Highways Teams were to be concentrated in urban areas. The Parish Council was keen to continue funding the Lengthsman and had allocated some funds for the purpose. Additional funding from the Community Board and Cllr Walsh’s budget should meet the shortfall for this year. It was important that the Lengthsman and Highway Steward cooperate to ensure complementary working and to avoid any possibility of double-taxation.

Cllr Lovegrove had discussed the following issues with the Lengthsman:

·       the disposal of poisonous plants away from farm animals. The District Council had been contacted to resolve how best to dispose of arisings from cutting roadside vegetation.

·       the need for a second person to be present when a chainsaw was in use: Mr Slater’s son, who was also qualified, would accompany him.

·       the problem of track wash-out onto the road at High Ickenthwiate: this was a major task that required the attention of the Highways Dept. The Clerk would report the problem.

The Clerk reported that she had responded to CALC’s request for feedback on the work of the Cumbria Area Highways Team.

Clerk

54.   Post Office Closures

The Council resolved to take the following action in relation to post office closures:

·       To send a second letter to the Post Office during the consultation period

·       To cooperate with the two parishes in which Leven Valley and Greenodd post offices were located (Haverthwaite and Egton-with-Newland) in joint parish actions.

·       To place Janet Willis’s template letter on the Colton website

Clerk

55.   Reports of Meetings

·        South Lakeland District Association on 6^th March. Cllr Harrington reported on the main issues which were:  

-         post office closures:  5-10% of POs had been reprieved elsewhere.

-         fire service changes: their role now included an educational and proactive remit

-         rural wheels: scheme now extended across most of South Lakeland.

·        Grange & Cartmel Community Board, 18th March. Cllr Barr attended. The Board agreed to allocate £4,850 to the Lengthsman Scheme, to be divided equally amongst parishes capable of delivering the service in the next financial year. Peter Ridgeway, CE of SLDC, expressed a wish to encourage 'locality working' through the Community Boards.

56.   Training Courses

·       No suitable planning course had yet been identified; the Clerk would continue to monitor training information.

·       Cllr Barr’s attendance on an ‘Experienced Chairman’ course was noted.

57.   Correspondence

     The following correspondence was discussed:

·       CALC Allotments Survey: no allotments had been identified in the Parish.

·       Windermere registration and navigation bylaws consultation – The Clerk would ask Cllr Harrington to respond.

Clerk

·       Ulverston Market Town Initiative: David Foot (representative for Furness Parish Councils) had asked for comments on the success of the initiative. Little information had been received and no meeting agendas or minutes, so it was felt difficult to comment. The Clerk would contact Mrs Dryden (ex Cllr), who used to attend MTI meetings.

Clerk

·       ‘Save Parish Councils’ petition. The Clerk would respond.

Clerk

·       Wind Farm at Stribers Farm: further action would await formal consultation.

·       SLDC Gifts and Hospitality Guidance paper: the Clerk would circulate to Cllrs.

Clerk

The following correspondence was noted: