Date: Tuesday, 19th January 2021
Venue: Via Zoom
Present: Chairman: John Mitchell
Dennis Nye, Bill Wykeham, Yvonne White, Cllr Margot Power
Clerk: Wendy Simson
Apologies: None
Absent: Melissa Jennings
Time: 7:00 pm to 8.00 pm
1. Welcome and apologies for absence.
The Chairman thanked everyone for attending the meeting, held online due to lockdown restrictions. The meeting was held on Zoom which the Councillors felt worked well and agreed to continue using this platform in the future.
The Chairman noted with sadness the recent death of Paddy Barber, who had been supporter of the Council and a regular participant at AGMs.
2. Minutes of the last meeting
The Councillors reviewed minutes for the meeting on 17th November 2020, they were agreed as a true representation of the meeting and the Clerk will provide a copy for the Chairman to sign.
3. Matters arising
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Broadband update – Councillor Wykeham reported that communication with BT Openreach was sporadic, which made progress slow. There are several unanswered questions including the cost per |
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household. The most recent quote is higher than the initial one, despite more homes being added to the list. 40 of the 118 houses have expressed an interest but it appears some properties which initially expressed an interest have not responded to the most recent request for information, so number are likely to be higher. Councillor Nye offered to send out an email to all residents to remind them to respond about getting involved but Councillor Wykeham suggested that he needed to get answers from Openreach before going back to residents. Councillor Power asked for the full list of questions, so they can be forwarded to Glenn Peacey at Hampshire County Council, where he is in charge of the FFTP roll-out and finances. Councillor Power also confirmed that the grants would continue to be offered beyond 31st March 2021. Action: Councillor Wykeham to send the list of questions to Councillor Power |
4. Covid19 update
Some residents have been for the first Covid19 injections. There appears to be no issues in the community.
5. Planning Applications
Swarraton House (20/02650/HOU) – the Councillors had no objections to the plans; this position was relayed to the WCC Planning Team.
6. District Councillors Reports
Councillor Power reminded the Council that the bins for garden waste (brown bins) were available to purchase at £45 each or for those who used a bag, new brown version at £39. Garden waste will only be collected from one of these receptacles from 1st February.
Action: Councillor White and Clerk to word message informing residents.
7. Clerk’s statement
The Clerk informed Councillors that the Oct to Dec salary has been paid and the only outstanding payment for the remainder of 2020/21 was the Clerk’s salary for Jan to Mar, so the predicted balance for the close of the 2020/21 financial year was due to be £6,661 (opening balance was £5,587, £1,074 up).
The budget was agreed. It includes:
Internal Audit £50 Insurance £380 PAYE £200 Clerk’s salary £800 Grant to Church for maintenance £600 Grant to Village Hall for maintenance £1,000 HALC subscription £175 Defib pads £47 Hall hire £120 Total £3,372
The predicted year-end figure for the cash holding at the close of 2021/22 is £7,789. This is almost twice the precept and above the expected levels.
The budgets for 2021/22 were discussed and it was agreed that the precept should remain at £4,500.
Action: Councillors to look at projects to support within the community.
Action: Clerk to complete precept request and return to Winchester City Council
8. Lengthsman duties
The most recent Lengthsman’s visit was on 8th December and the grips were cleared but Councillor Wykeham questioned the effectiveness of this activity, as they fill with silt after the next downpour. As Keeper’s Cottage on Kites’ Hill is badly affected by the downpours of rain and the water travelling down the hill, has sandbags to divert water away from the property. This water should be directed off the road by the grips but because this silt up so quickly they are not effective.
A meeting was due to take place with Steve Pellatt from Hampshire Highways but there had been no response. Councillor White agreed to contact Tristan Kestle, who is the engineer for Northington from the Highways Team.
Action: Councillor White to email Highways contact The next Lengthsman visit is planned for 3rd March.
9. Any other business
Donated laptops for Schools
Councillor White reported that several old laptops and tablets had been donated along with a pledge of cash. The school at Preston Candover has the facility to wipe the device and install the up-to-date software and has asked that one delivery be made to the school to reduce contamination. Councillor Power asked that any laptops, which were too old for the Preston Candover IT team to use, be passed onto one of the Primary Schools in Alresford. Cllr Power said that old machines are being cannibalised to repair newer machines.
Kymani Glamping at the Grange
The Grange Estate are planning to allow a Glamping site with 20 tents/yurts and a maximum of 40 people, though the uptake is more likely to be 20 The site will be in woods to the south of the Estate, well away from paths used by local resident. The project will run between 2nd June and 27th July and is the permitted under the 28 days of events rule. Councillor Power wondered if the Environmental Health authorities should be told of the event.
10. Date of the next meeting
The next meeting will be on Tuesday 16th March 2021 at 7.00 pm, perhaps in the Woolpack Inn, but a decision on the location will depend on Covid-19 developments.