MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE COUNCIL

Date: Tuesday, 21st September 2021 Time: 7:30 pm

Venue: Northington Village Hall

Present: John Mitchell Chairman
Dennis Nye
Yvonne White
Melissa Jennings
Juliet Blanshard
Wendy Simson Clerk
Cllr Margot Power

Apologies: Cllr Fiona Issacs
Cllr Jackie Porter
Cllr Russell Gordon-Smith

1. Welcome and apologies for absence.
The Chairman thanked everyone for attending the meeting. The Clerk had received apologies from Cllrs Porter, Issacs and Gordon-Smith.
The Chairman apologised to Cllr Power for the confusion about the meeting start time.

2. Minutes of the last meeting
The Councillors reviewed minutes for the meeting on 20th July 2021 and agreed them as a true representation of the meeting. The Clerk will provide a copy for the Chairman to sign.

3. Matters arising
The planning application for 101 The Grange is on the agenda to discuss later.
The Councillors agreed that public funds should not be used for a memorial for Lord Ashburton.
The tractor drivers reported at the last meeting as driving recklessly, were investigated and found to be from out of the area and contracted in for harvest.

4. Broadband Update
Councillor Nye gave his report. The Broadband project is progressing albeit slowly.

1. Cllr Nye eventually received permission from both Lord Ashburton and Ian Cammack for land surveys by Openreach. This is to determine whether an element of self-dig can create a more economical way forward.
Cllr Nye has confirmed to chris.priestley@openreach.co.uk on 8 Aug 21, he has not yet heard if they have taken any action. Meanwhile Cllr Nye has sent an email to landowners on 17 Sep 21 asking if Openreach has contacted them.

2. Cllr Nye met Dudley Rees of Gigabeam on 26 July. They are the providers of Microwave broadband to the Grange estate. Gigabeam favour Microwave + cabled solutions rather than Microwave + Wireless. Wireless has to be line-of-sight and will not offer Gigabit speeds.

See attached Questions and Answers document.

Dudley Rees is talking about a Northington site visit in October (See attached).
Next step will be the proposed October site visit, which may require church tower access that Cllr Nye will coordinate with Peter Lamb.

3. Cllr Nye has registered Northington’s scheme with BDUK. Probably a duplication, but it is better not to leave anything to chance.

5. District Councillors Report
Cllr Power had sent a report prior to the meeting as had Cllr Issacs.
Cllr Power updated the Parish Council that Hampshire County Council were looking at budget cuts and a number of changes were planned, these include:
• The recycling centre in Alresford will not be closed but will be open a limited number of days. The booking system will continue.
• The Lengthsman Scheme will not be continued after the end of the current financial year.
• Hampshire County Council will take back responsibility for on street parking in Alresford.
Cllr Power agreed to send the Parish Council a link to the papers giving full details of the changes planned.
Action: Clerk to circulate to Cllrs
There was some discussion of using NPC funds to continue with the Lengthsman facility. The upshot was general support for this option.

6. Planning Applications
The Parish Council had received an application for:
• 101 Grange Park Northington (21/01536/HOU) for a new vehicular field access. The Parish Council noted concerns about the lines of sight for the new access and also the use of this new exit. It also noted that HCC’s Highways Department had given their approval. Due to the volume of concerns raised the application will go to Planning Committee.
The Chairman noted that Mrs Brooke and Ms Rutherford had made representations opposing this application. They had said that NPC should reconsider its support for this application. The Chairman said that NPC’s support was strictly limited to ancillary use. The Council decided not to revise its decision to approve the application.

The Parish Council also discussed a presentation made by Southern Water on 8 September about the proposed pipeline. There had been a presentation followed by questions. The meeting noted that SW now plans to bury the pipeline along its entire length. Burial near houses is welcome. The meeting’s attention focussed on a new aspect of the plan, namely the establishment of enhanced pumping facilities at SW’s site in Totford. There was some uncertainty as to whether the new pump(s) would be powered by electricity from the grid or by electricity derived from diesel generators. NPC noted that action would be needed to ensure that noise levels did not exceed current ambient noise levels. SW undertook to provide clarity on this point. SW will host a public meeting the next day, Wednesday 22nd September, at Northington Village Hall between 3:30pm and 8pm. Residents have been informed by village email and encouraged to attend and ask any questions. The Councillors agreed that it would be useful to have at least one PC member at the meeting to hear what was said and to pick up any points of concern in the parish

7. Clerk’s financial statement
The Clerk informed Councillors that the following payments had been made:
• Clerk’s salary (Jul to Sept) – £250
• The remaining 50% of the precept had also been received at £2,250.00
A copy of the updated financial statement was circulated along with the agenda and show a current balance of £8,314.75.
The Clerk informed Councillors that the Conclusion of Audit had been received from the External Auditors which needed to be posted on both the website and the notice board.
Action: Clerk to provide word version for Cllr Jennings to put on website
Action: Clerk to provide Cllr White a hard copy for the noticeboards.

8. Lengthsman duties
The visits for 2021/22 have been booked in for:
• 13th December
• 14th February
The Councillors agreed to look into buying the Lengthsman services if the scheme is cancelled by HCC. It was agreed to review at the next meeting once the Lengthsman has been informed of the decision.
Cllr Jennings had asked the Lengthsman about painting the sign at the crossroad at the top of Kite’s Hill. The Lengthsman had informed the Council that this would be more than a half day job and that paint would need to be charged back to the Council. It was agreed that a price for the work be requested from the Lengthsman as the work could be done later in the year when there were fewer jobs to be carried out.
Action: Cllr Jennings to get a price and circulate to Councillors.

9. General Correspondence
There is to be a memorial service for Lord Ashburton on 15th October at Winchester Cathedral.

10. Any other business
None

1. Date of the next meeting

The next Parish Council meeting will be on Tuesday, 16th November 2021 at 7.00 pm.

The meeting ended at 8.45 pm.