Parish Council – October 2019 Meeting

The October 7th meeting was held as normal in the  Baptist Chapel Schoolroom.

Like all Council meetings it was open to the public.

Reports from the District and County Councillors
P Bignell SNC gave an update on Local Government Reorganisation, outlining the course of events and the timing. The next Parish Council elections will be in 2020, and will be for 5 years, thereafter it will be for 4 years.

Lighting
Work continues on the plan to renew lighting. LEDs seem to be the preferred option, and show substantial savings. AW reported that the Lighting Working Party was looking to ask for presentations and quotes from 5 companies.

Public Participation
The chair thanked Nick Essex and Dave Musson for their work on the Village Millennium sign, which was being repainted. The work has continued, and the sign now looks stunning.

Roads and pavements
A gutter on Weedon Rd was felt to be badly overgrown. Clerk to ask Mr Gibbins to look at it. There had been complaints about drainage on Watery Lane. Stuart Mann of SNC had been in contact with the clerk and subsequently with Mr Thorneycroft as a local source of knowledge on drainage systems. It was reported that the previous drains in Watery Lane were now disused as they had tended to contribute to problems as water from the river would back up them when the river reached a certain level.

The Green and Play Area
Some steps are missing from one of the Play Area rides, some older children had been seen with them. The Play Area working party were looking at different catalogues and formats and were hoping to recruit some non-councillors. Jez Wilson had been very helpful.

Allotments
There would be 2 volunteer Saturdays on Oct 19th and 26th. New plot holders had come forward. SC asked for the rent letters to go out earlier.

Wildlife area is progressing well.

Footpaths
NH reported a rotten stile remnant was now a trip hazard on the path from the fishery to the church. Clerk to report

Churchyard
Limes to be pollarded when leaves come off.

Youth Club
New lights to be put outside. New helpers had come forward.

Defibrillators
Both checked and working.

External Audit
It was resolved too accept the External Auditors report.
“On the basis of our review of Sections 1 and 2 of the Annual Governance and Accountability Return(AGAR), in our opinion the information in Sections 1 and 2 of the AGAR is in accordance with Proper Practices and no other matters have come to our attention giving cause for concern that relevant legislation and regulatory requirements have not been met.”

Overgrown hedge in South View
A petition had been put together and given to SNC who were appointing an officer to deal with this long standing issue.

Neighbourhood Plan
SC reported on progress. Midland Homes Association had been contacted regarding a Housing Needs Survey. SNC recommended that this be done again before presenting the NP for consultation. Site allocation would need to be worked on and must be well founded.

Precept Meeting
will take place on November and set the budget for the next financial year. Village organisations wishing to apply for funding must apply by November 25th at the latest.

Reporting Highway and Footpath Issues. The Clerk will report issues that Council is made aware of, but Council would encourage residents to use the FixMyStreet service to report issues themselves as there will then be no time lag and first-hand reports are almost always better than 2nd or 3rd hand reports. The service can be found here: www.fixmystreet.com 

It is easy to use; you can have your own account and can check up on any issues you have reported.

Council meetings take place on the first Monday of each month (unless there is a Bank Holiday)

Clerk to the Parish Council: Guy Ravine, c/o Old Dairy Farm, Upper Stowe, Weedon, Northamptonshire, NN7 4SH
Telephone: 07935 931787
Email: netherheyfordparishcouncil@gmail.com

Next Meeting
The next Parish Council meeting will be on the first Monday of the month at the Baptist Chapel Schoolroom at 7.30 pm and is, like all Parish Council meetings, open to all Parishioners.

For further useful information about Nether Heyford Parish Council and full contact details for the clerk and the councillors please visit our Nether Heyford Parish Council page.