NORTHINGTON PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE COUNCIL

Date:                Thursday 19^th January 2023                                           Time:   6:30 pm

Venue:             Northington Village Hall

Present:           Dennis Nye                                                                               Chairman

Melissa Jennings

Lucy Williams

Andrew Bason

Cllr Margot Power                                                                     District Councillor

Cllr Fiona Issacs                                                                         District Councillor

Cllr Jackie Porter                                                                       County Councillor

Wendy Simson                                                                          Clerk

Apologies:        Juliet Blanshard

Cllr Russell Gordon-Smith                                                          District Councillor

Welcome and apologies.

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting. Cllrs Blanshard and Gordon-Smith both sent apologies.

Minutes of the last meeting

The Councillors reviewed minutes for the meeting on 14^th November 2022 and agreed the minutes as a true representation of the meeting. The Clerk provided a copy for the Chairman to sign.

Matters arising

Bank Account Signatories – The bank mandate was created to add Cllrs Williams and Jennings, this has been approved. The Clerk will now set up another mandate to remove Yvonne White and John Mitchell and add the Chairman.

Action: Clerk to set up mandate

Millennium bench – Cllr Bason has spoken to the gentleman who made the bench and he is confident that he can repair it in the spring.

Blocked drain on B3046 by Village Hall – Cllr Blanshard has reported the issue to Hampshire Highways. Cllr Jennings agreed to ask the Lengthsman to look at if a grip can be cleared to ensure water escapes.

Action: Cllr Jennings to discuss with Lengthsman

Zoom account – The Clerk confirmed that this has been cancelled.

District Councillors Report

The Clerk had circulated the reports from Councillors prior to the meeting.

Cllr Issacs gave an update that Hampshire County Council Planning Department discussed the upgrade of listed properties with double or triple glazing, this has been turned down in the past but ensuring buildings are as energy efficient as possible has meant views have changed. Cllr Issacs explained that this affected several properties in the area.

Cllr Power had attended a meeting about the 20mph speed limits, this is being used as a base line but will not be imposed if communities don’t want the lower limit. The Chairman asked about the B3046 by the Grange entrance, Cllr Power explained that this would not be covered. Cllr Power also asked if the approved application to open a new entrance onto the B3046 had been actioned, the Chairman confirmed that it hadn’t, but it was due to expire.

Cllr Porter informed that Council that the budget for Rural broadband has been cut from £197,000 to £5,000, however there will be money from Openreach for completed projects.

A meeting has also taken place between Southern Water and Mark Baring to progress the Drought Scheme from the Candover Valley. Plans are due to be submitted in February and a Public Consultation is being discussed. Cllr Power invited the Chairman to the Health & Environment Policy Meeting on 1^st March where Southern Water will answer questions about the plan.

The roundabout on the A31 by Ovington is to be amended to stop the flooding which collects in the area.

Cllr Power asked for the Councillors thoughts about the plans for the M3 Junction 9.

Planning applications & related matters

Grange Farm Buildings (22/02072/FUL & 22/02073/LIS) – there are still concerns about the application and comments have been returned to highlight these concerns. Cllr Power informed the Council that the application had not been decided but agreed to follow its progress.

Clerks report & Financial update

The Clerk had circulated the financial report prior to the meeting and asked if there were any questions. The Councillors had no questions.

Highways

Cllr Bason commented that the resurfacing work has been completed on the crossroads, but the area had flooded in the recent heavy rain due to the grips being blocked. Cllr Jennings agreed to ask the Lengthsman to clear them.

The Chairman informed that Council that there had been an accident with a car losing control on black ice in the area and had turned over, there have been several similar accidents in this area.

Lengthsman

Cllr Jennings informed the Council that the Lengthsman was visiting on Friday 20^th January (the day after the meeting) and had been asked to clear the grips on Chalk Hill along with removing the silt washed into the area. The grip on the B3046 by the Village Hall and at the crossroads would be added to the list of work required.

Cllr Power informed the Council that the funds for the Lengthsman Scheme had been approved for 2023/24.

Website

The Chairman informed the Parish Council that the plan was to merge the website will the Village Hall site as it was much more user friendly.

Budgets

The Clerk circulated an updated finance report showing the planned values for line items in the 2023/24 following the discussions at the last meeting.

The recurring grants of £1,000 to the Village Hall and £600 to the Church have been included along with a Grant fund to support One Off Project of £1,000. The Chairman informed the Councillors that the Village Hall had already applied for £500 from this One-Off fund.

The Councillors agreed to remove the fund for the Coronation and if any activity is planned an application can be made for a One-Off Grant.

The Councillors also approved combining the contingency, non-budgeted outgoings and further expected outgoings lines which totalled £650 and allocate £400 under a contingency budget line.

The Councillors also agree to increase the precept by 10% from £4,500 to £4,950, this would give a predicted closing balance of £4,775 on 31^st March 2024.

The Chairman suggested that any funds not spent from the budget lines be swept into a sink fund for possible match funding with the Village Hall when the new roof is required. Cllr Power also offered to support the Village Hall Committee to apply for Grant Funds.

Cllr Bason proposed the new budget, Cllr Williams seconded the proposal, the Council approved the budget.

Action: Clerk to complete Precept request and send through to Winchester City Council.

General Correspondence

The Clerk informed the Council that training on the new Election Act is being conducted on Tuesday 24^th January.

Action: Clerk to send invite to Councillors

The Chairman gave an update about the entrance to the Grange from Chalk Hill, it had been agreed that additional signage was required but the position of this sign is being discussed.

Date of the next meeting

The next meeting is planned for Thursday 23^rd March, and it was agreed that start time should remain 6:30pm.

The meeting ended at 8:20 pm.

Smaller authority name: Northington Parish Council

NOTICE OF PUBLIC RIGHTS AND PUBLICATION OF UNAUDITED ANNUAL GOVERNANCE & ACCOUNTABILITY RETURN

ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2022

Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 Sections 26 and 27

The Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/234)

Northington Village Hall.

Thursday 19^th May 2022, following the Annual Parish Meeting.

Agenda for Northington Parish Council Annual General Meeting

• Election of Chairman
• Election of Vice Chairman
• Agreement of roles and responsibilities for Councillors
• Sign-off of audited accounts for 2021/22
• Questions from the public

Agenda for Northington Council meeting

Welcome by the Chairman and apologies for absence.

1. Minutes of the last meeting held on 17^th March 2022.
2. Matters arising
   • Cllr Porter and Clerk to exchange email addresses
   • Highways meeting on Tuesday 22^nd March
3. District Councillor Reports
4. Planning application
   • Totford Saw Mill Totford Lane Northington (22/00704/FUL) – comments by 24^th May
5. Clerk/Financial report

• HALC membership
• Jubilee funds

1. Lengthsman dates for 2022/23

• 24^th May
• 22^nd August
• 28^th October
• 20^th January
• 6^th March

1. Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebrations
2. General correspondence
3. Any Other Business
4. Date of next meeting

• Thursday 21^st July

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE COUNCIL

Date:               Thursday 20^th January 2022                                       Time: 7:00 pm

Venue:            Northington Village Hall

Present:          John Mitchell                                                                          Chairman

Dennis Nye

Juliet Blanshard

Yvonne White

Melissa Jennings

Cllr Margot Power                                                                  District Councillor

Cllr Fiona Issacs                                                                       District Councillor

Cllr Jackie Porter                                                                     Country Councillor

Wendy Simson                                                                        Clerk

One member of the Public (or item 7 only)

Apologies:       None

1. Welcome and apologies for absence.

The Chairman thanked everyone for attending the meeting.

2. Minutes of the last meeting

The Councillors reviewed minutes for the meeting on 16^th November 2021.

Councillors agreed the minutes as a true representation of the meeting. The Clerk provided a copy for the Chairman to sign.

3. Matters arising

The Councillors agreed to review the presentation made by STaND (Stand Up for the North Hampshire Downs) with a view to agreeing support for the project. However, the Councillors had asked the following questions at the meeting which are yet to be answered:

• Get STaND’s assessment of ANOB positives and negatives for residents.
• Definition of an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a National Park
• The differences between these two designations
• The involvement of Natural England and the Environment Agency with plans to create a new North Downs area.

It was agreed that until these questions had been answered that no further decisions were to be made.

4. District Councillors Report

The District Councillors had sent a report prior to the meeting.

Cllr Power updated the Councillors on the “20 is plenty” project which is being expanded to rural areas. The Councillors agreed that Northington Hill would be an ideal location for a 20mph zone. The Terms of Reference for the project are being agreed on Friday 21^st January and Cllr Power agreed to provide and update at the next meeting.

Cllr Porter explained that there were benefits for reducing speed limits to 20mph and that the changes in the Highway Code giving priority to pedestrians and cyclists supported the change.

The Chairman asked for Councillors views, Cllr Blanshard suggested that speed tests be carried out to identify current speeds as drivers would not self-police a large drop in the limits. Cllr White felt that it was unlikely that the B3046 could be reduced to 20mph but it was agreed that Northington Hill would benefit from a lower limit.

Cllr Power informed the Parish Council that the yearend financial out turn was due to be better than initially predicted so some cuts which were planned would not need to happen.

Cllr Issacs informed the Parish Council that the Winchester Movement Strategy was being developed and a meeting on the walking and cycling infrastructure was planned for 2^nd February. Reports of Child Protection issues had increased with 120,000 calling being made in the last year of which between 1/3 and ½ were investigated.

Cllr Issacs also informed the Parish Council that Southern Water plan to resubmit plans for the pipeline in March, meetings have taken place with landowners to understand concerns. The development of the Havant Water reservoir has been pushed back to 2028/29. The South Downs National Park are happier with the new plans but there is no update on concerns about the noise if the from the Pumping Station at Totford and pumps will be diesel or electric.

5. Planning Applications

The Parish Council had received an application for:

• Ruffside (22/00058/TPO) – Four Yew Trees – prune above road and balance as they are hanging below 5.2m.

The Councillors had assessed the application prior to the meeting and agreed they were happy for permission to be granted.

Cllr Nye asked for an update on recent applications, they are:

• 105 Grange Park (21/01593/HOU) – Single storey side/rear infill extension, permitted.
• Swarraton Farmhouse (21/02099/FUL) – Refurbishment of two dwellings on the Swarraton farm site, permitted.
• Swarraton Farmhouse (21/01851/FUL) – Re-landscape soft and hard across all of site boundary displayed on drawings, permitted.
• The Barn (21/02416/HOU) – Change double garage/workshop (integral to house) into single garage/barn entrance/gym and utility, permitted.
• 86 Swarraton (21/02715/HOU) – replacement single storey extension, permitted.
• 101 Grange Park (21/01536/HOU) – New vehicular field access, permitted.
• Swarraton Farm (21/02480/FUL) – The proposals are for renovation of the existing Barn House building, permitted.

6. Clerk’s financial statement

The Clerk circulated the financial report prior to the meeting, there were no questions.

The Councillors looked at the current spending and plans for 2022/23, the data is as follows:

• Current year (21/22) predicted closing balance – £11,310.32
• Predicted income (22/23) – Precept of £4,500
• Predicted expenditure (22/23) – £5,519 made up of the following:
  • Internal Audit – £50
  • Insurance – £425
  • PAYE – £220
  • Clerk’s salary – £880
  • Grant to Church for maintenance – £600
  • Grant to Village Hall for maintenance – £1,000
  • HALC subscription – £180
  • Defib maintenance – £100
  • Hall hire – £120
  • General admin – £100
  • Contingency – £200
  • Jubilee (S137) – £1,644

Cllr White asked if provision could be made in the budget for a new Noticeboard for the Village Hall, it was agreed that part of the CIF received in 2021, a budget of £500 was approved by all Councillors.

The Councillors agreed that the precept for 2022/23 should remain at £4,500.

Action: Clerk to complete application and return.

7. Habitat Improvement Project in the Grange Park

The Chairman circulated details of a scheme, including a map, which has been in discussion for 2 years but has just been brought to the Parish Council’s attention. The Chairman met Catherine Leonard and Simon Lavers on site to discuss work completed to date. The aims of the scheme are to protect the Candover Brook from cattle entering the water and breaking down the banks, this then causes the riverbed to broaden, and water become shallower. Silt is then deposited along the edges of the river meaning vegetation doesn’t grow and insects disappear. By reducing the width of the river, the flow becomes faster and takes the silt away. Two galvanised gates have been erected to limit the access points to the river for cattle.

The concerns raised by the member of parish was that the gates were not in the correct places and were not in keeping with the environment. Concern was also raised about how the grant funding allocated to the project had been spent and that this demonstrated a misuse of public funds.

The Chairman reported that the gates were to be removed and replaced with wooden units. Cllr Power informed the Parish Council that Itchen Stoke had also used galvanised gates as part of a similar project.

The Councillors agreed that they needed more information about the scope of the project and expectation of the grant funding to decide on if funds had been misused.

Action: Chairman to investigate further and report to Councillors.

8. Lengthsman duties

The last visit was on 13^th December where all actions were completed. The visit for 2022 have been booked in for 14^th February.

Cllr Power informed the Parish Council that funds would continue for the scheme in 2022/23 but were unlikely to continue beyond that point.

The Councillors discussed a flooding issue at a low point in the village. Cllr Power suggested that Hampshire Highways should be alerted if the flooding caused a potential accident blackspot. The Chairman suggested that the Parish Council could fund a survey to identify the problem and potential solutions, but Cllr Power informed the Council that Highways would always complete their own survey and would not use one carried out by a third party.

9. Platinum Jubilee Celebrations

The committee tasked with managing the celebrations were due to meeting on Tuesday 18^th January, however this has been moved to Tuesday 25^th January.

Action: Chairman to update Councillors on outcome of the meeting

10.General Correspondence

The Clerk received information about Winchester Mayor’s Awards and the Councillors suggested that the two residents who had managed the support for the community during the pandemic be nominated.

Action: Clerk and Chairman to complete forms.

11.Any other business

Cllr White informed Councillors that the Annual Village Litter Pick was being planned. Cllr Power informed the Parish Council that the Alresford event was planned for 26^th March.

The Chairman asked if refreshments were planned at the village hall.

Action: Cllr White to update Council on the date and plans.

Cllr White reported that the footpath between the Church and the Grange was litter with dog waste. Cllr Power suggested talking to the Dog Warden.

11.Date of the next meeting

The next Parish Council meeting will be on Thursday, 17^th March 2022 at 7.00 pm.

The meeting ended at 8.30 pm.