Parish Council Minutes - May 27th 2008

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held in the Public Room on Tuesday May 27th 2008 at 7pm. Also of the Annual Parish Meeting which was held at 8pm.

Present: Carolyn Cripps chaired the meeting. Other members present were D. Angus, T. Roberts, J. Fleet, T. Foster, R. Bragg, G. Duxbury, L. Dalzell, T. Robson and Albert Richardson.
Apologies of absence: were received from Roy Fisher and PC Andy Holliday
Declarations of interest: None
Election of Officers: It was proposed by Mr. Roberts that the existing Chairman Carolyn Cripps and Vice Chairman Guy Duxbury remain the same. This was seconded by Mr. Robson.

Minutes of the previous meeting: these were signed.

Footpath from Gategill to Scales – objection had been made by the landlord.
Recycling Bins – A letter had been received from the Clerk to the Governors of Threlkeld School stating that a third paper bin could be arranged by Deborah Garnet/EDC with the approval of the Parish Council. This was thought a good idea and John would contact the school. The problem of fly tipping would be monitored.
Safety Barrier A66 –
Works at the Castlerigg junction had been scheduled to commence after the May Bank Holiday, however these had not yet commenced. This would be chased.
Street Light at Fellside – This was now done and everything had been connected but not yet working. Les would follow up with United Utilities.
Cars Parked Outside Melbutts – Stagecoach would be contacted to obtain confirmation in writing of their concerns.
New Houses at Town Cross – Correspondence had indicated that work might resume early May, however no progress had been made as yet. Bill Murray would be contacted for an update.
New Notice Board at Fell Side – This was now in place.
Gategill Beck gravel problem – This had now been fixed.
Dickney – The donation box for parking at Dickney was in place. £146 had been collected during May and £15 had been paid out to cover the cost of the sign.
Kiln Howe – The rubbish/scrap had been cleared away. The Environment Agency proposed to carry out works to remove gravel from the catch pit during the first week of July - before Cumbria in Bloom judging.
Red Squirrel Signs – Les and Donald would look into possible sites for the signs.

Public Representations – Albert Richardson informed the meeting that a grant of £1,000 would be made to the Village Hall Revitalisation Fund as a result of the application submitted to the Neighbourhood Forum. This was good news and thanks would be made in writing upon receipt.

Joiners Shop – Mr Skelton had visited the village briefly at the beginning of May and had met with Donald, unfortunately other members of the Parish Council had not been available to meet with him as well. Mr Skelton had appologised for not having replied to Parish Council correspondence but he was keen to have something done about the building. He had talked about various options including the possibility of getting permission for access to the rear of the building. As it was a listed building any use of the building would be restricted. Mr Skelton would be contacted to clarify his suggestions.

Threlkeld Study – A summary of the final study document was handed out to the Parish Council. In order to promote the village and its facilities the formation of a marketing group had been advised, the installation of new village signs and promotion of local services to visitors and residents. Trevor Roberts noted that services ie the Post Office, Milk Man and Newsagent could be promoted through permanent advertising in Beneath Blencathra newsletter. Tim Foster would seek guidance regarding brown directional signs. Discussion of facilities and support networks for Senior Citizens was also raised and the question of housing land. The LDNPA Policy Planner would attend the next Parish Council meeting, so housing would be discussed with her then together with the Joiners Shop building.

Public Room – Trevor Roberts distributed a copy of the new Threlkeld Village Hall Trustees document. Registration of the land was in progress to include a narrow strip of land by the kitchen. Trevor Robson announced that on Wednesday 18 June a fund raising evening of television would be held to include – Ready Steady Cook, Mr & Mrs and Family Fortune themes. There would be a bar and volunteers were needed.
The Promises Auction held on 11 April had been a great success and had raised well over £3,000. The Folk and Blues night held on 4 May had raised nearly £800.

Dog Fouling on Station Road – Complaints had been received. A note would be put in Beneath Blencathra highlighting the Fouling of Land by Dogs (District of Eden) Order 2008 whereby anyone failing to remove dog faeces from the land would be guilty of an offence under article 3 and liable on summary conviction to a fine.

Small wicket gate in need of repair at the bottom of Station Road – Alastair Birket would be contacted to request that a padlock be put on the gate.

Bus Stop sign at Horse and Farrier – Stagecoach would be contacted.

Car parking at Town Cross – a complaint of parking on the footpath had been received. Also speeding along the road from Town Cross to Four Seasons – this would be looked into and Andy Holliday consulted.

Daffodils – William Airey would be contacted to request that he take responsibility to thin out the daffodils belonging to the village in order to preserve them for the future.

Car Park repair – Graham Wilson had very kindly put down gravel to fill the pot holes in the car park behind the Public Rooms and had done this free of charge. A letter of thanks would be sent on behalf of the Parish Council.

Finance:
Monies Received-
28.03.08 £1 Cumbria County Council, playing field rent
23.04.08 £4,222 EDC, precept
25.04.08 £50 Mr Rogers football hut rent
28.04.08 £30 Ground rent (Parums)

Cheques Made Out –
25.03.08 £132 CALC subscription
25.03.08 £17.95 Greenway, renewal of ThrelkeldWeb
21.04.08 £5 Cumbria in Bloom fee
21.04.08 £13.50 CALC, local council review
21.04.08 £50 Donation to Berrier Wind Farm Opposition Group
21.04.08 £41.71 U-Compute, advertising for Promises Auction
21.04.08 £8.06 Reminder add for Promises Auction
25.04.08 £15.05 Cumbria Playing Fields affiliation fee
25.04.08 £485.02 Allianz – insurance renewal
25.04.08 £20 Petty Cash
28.04.08 £321.60 Greenway, Clerk salary

Village Hall Revitalisation Project –
Monies Received –
Total at end of March £8,095.90

28.03.08 Donation – G. Woolley £5
28.03.08 Donald’s Talk £72
7.04.08 Donation – Annon £100
7.04.08 Receipe books £80.50
21.04.08 Donation – Annon £10
21.04.08 Donation – Annon £50
21.04.08 Donation – Sheep Dog Trials £50
21.04.08 Donation – W. Tyson £50
21.04.08 Donation – W. Coulthard £20
21.04.08 Dot’s Ad quiz £65
21.04.08 Promises Auction £3,130
21.04.08 Auction Admission/Brochures £201
21.04.08 Auction Bar £101
25.04.08 Promises (Gott) £50
30.04.08 Receipe book £4
30.04.08 Promises (Roberts) £50
30.04.08 Promises (Mattinson) £25
Current Total £12,159.40

Planning Applications – none.

Correspondence:
Email from Andrew Holliday – apologies for absence and note regarding theft of scrap metal, diesel and quad bikes from farms but not in Threlkeld area.
Email from Graham Sullivan, BTCV – offering their services for a fee. No interest.
Berrier Windfarm Opposition Group – thank you letter to the Parish Council for the £50 donation received.
EDC – Dog Control Orders, Notice of the making of 3 orders
EDC – Sport and Active Recreation Strategy, consultation questionnaire – already completed.
CALC – Guide to planning, 2 copies available

Representatives Reports
John Fleet had attended the Threlkeld school governors meeting the previous week where the budget had been approved.

Tim Foster would have to present the plans for the development of the Blencathra Centre to LDNPA Members before the plans could be made public.
During the Eden Green business week 25 August to 5 September use of the Public Rooms was requested for some of the events. These were usually well attended and would be a good opportunity for everyone to learn more about green issues whilst at the same time promoting the Public Room.

The Annual Parish Meeting – This began at 8.45pm.
The Chairmans Report – Carolyn Cripps extended thanks to the Parish Council for their support during the year in particular to Tim Foster and Donald Angus for their help in attending meetings on behalf of the Chairman, particularly those held during the day. Thanks also to John and Les for maintaining a tidy village. It was noted that Threlkeld Cumbria in Bloom flowers this year would be sponsored by Four Seasons and a note of thanks would be put in Beneath Blencathra. Notices of the Cumbria in Bloom judging would be requested and put up on the notice board. The possibility of getting another notice board cover made was discussed and Les would look into this.
In summary of the year, the public room fundraising had gone extremely, Kiln How was looking good and although the houses at Town Cross continued to be a problem this would be pursued.