Minutes of Meeting held on Thursday 3rd. February 2022 in the Upstairs Room of the Wheel Public House, Leek Road, Longsdon at 7.00pm.

Present: Councillor J. Sargeant (Chair).

Councillors T. Beastall, J. Bode, S. Dickinson, R. Lovell & K. Shaw.

In Attendance: One Member of the Public.

John Bourne, Clerk to the Council.

80/21 Apologies for Absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor C. Hawthorne.

81/21 Declarations of Interest.

There were no declarations of interest at this point.

82/21 Chairman’s Address.

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting.

83/21 Public Comments.

There was no business under this item.

84/21 Approval of Minutes of Last Meeting.

The minutes of the meeting held on 16th. December 2021 had been circulated and it was agreed that they be signed as a true and correct record.

85/21 Matters Arising.

-- At the March 2022 meeting Councillors agreed to replace Section 85/21(a) of the draft minutes (in strike through text below) with an alternative section (a) which now follows it.--

(a) Longsdon Memorial Hall.

A further letter had been sent to the Memorial Hall Management Committee regarding progress on volunteers to serve on the Management Committee. A belated reply of apology had been received. The letter asked for the telephone number(s) of Councillor Bode whose name had been forwarded to the Committee as the Parish Council’s representative on that Committee.

A suitable reply had been sent to the neighbour of the Memorial Hall regarding various complaints.

Also produced were further details, and some figures, from the affairs of the Memorial Hall. The Council’s representative on the Management Committee had tried to contact the Committee but to no avail due to the Hall’s website being not up to date.

Councillor Bode was thanked for her research into the matter.

It was agreed to write to the on-site school’s officials to obtain further information about the school’s plans and proposals as the Parish Council was attempting to act as a mediator due to the complaints received.

(a) Longsdon Memorial Hall.

The Council’s representative had tried to contact the named trustee on the Charity Commission account for Longsdon Memorial Hall without success as some details were inaccurate and out of date. Councillor Bode became concerned about involvement with the Memorial Hall as a trustee, having seen the Hall online accounts, which showed an annual overspend for the years 2016-2020, and expressed this in a report sent to all councillors prior to the meeting.

In response to the letter sent (after the meeting on 4 November 2021) to the Memorial Hall Management Committee, regarding progress on the appointment of new trustees, and the letter sent (after the meeting of 16 December 2021) informing the Memorial Hall Management Committee that Councillor Bode had been elected as Parish Council Representative on the Management Committee a reply was received by email on 4 February 2022.

No new members had volunteered for the Management Committee and Councillor Bode’s contact details were requested.

It was established that the Title Deed of Longsdon Memorial Hall is vested with the Official Custodian. Information available with regard to Longsdon Memorial Hall accounts was discussed and Councillor Bode was asked to attend a meeting with Linda Turner to clarify the Hall finances.

At the Chairman’s suggestion, it was agreed that a letter should be sent to the school to seek information about the school’s plans and ask if it was possible to manage noise levels giving rise to complaints.

(b) District Councillor’s Community Grant.

It was reported that the application form for a grant from the District Councillor’s Fund had been forwarded requesting the sum of £175.00 as per the motion at the last meeting. The Clerk reported that the sum had now been received in the Council’s bank account the previous day.

The late Parish Councillor Richard Weston’s family had been contacted about a memorial bench in his honour and had agreed to this. Sites for the bench would be investigated.

(c) The Old New Inn Site.

It was reported that the agreed letter had been sent to the new ownership of the site requesting information on the longstanding problems with the site but no reply had been received.

86/21 Other Business.

(a) Day & Venue for Future Parish Council Meetings.

A request had been received for this item to be deferred until the next meeting but as it was on the agenda it was agreed that it be discussed.

As the Parish Council had been meeting on a Thursday for the last few decades it was agreed that the day of meeting remains the same.

The historical efforts to find a suitable venue for meetings were outlined and the Council had arrived at the present venue, the Upstairs Room of the Wheel. It was agreed that meetings remain at this venue until such time a more suitable alternate venue could be obtained.

(b) Notice Board in Denford Road.

A report was given that the Council’s notice board in Denford Road had been damaged and was hanging dangerously from the support posts. After consulting with the Chairman the lengthsman was asked to remove the sign urgently and then carry out the necessary repairs. This action was sanctioned. The signboard had now been re-erected.

(c) Village Flower Tubs & Bus Wooden Bus Shelters.

Mention was made of the good work undertaken on these items by the Council’s lengthsman.

(d) The Chairman reported that he had received a request for more “Horses” road signs around the village. It was agreed to forward this request to County Councillor Gill Heath.

87/21 Correspondence.

Already distributed to Councillors :-

Further Information on the Premises Licence – Leek Show.

Letter from Karen Bradley M.P. re Severn Trent Community Fund.

Letter had also been received from Royal British Legion Industries regarding Planting a Tree for the Jubilee Plaques.

88/21 Planning Matters.

The following planning application had been distributed to Councillors due to the time scale, and no objections were received:-

SMD/2021/0843 Refurbishment & Alterations to Existing Farmhouse together with Conversion of

 Adjacent Barn to Link Extension to Form a Single Dwelling at Stone Barn Farm,

Sutherland Road, Longsdon.

The following planning application was discussed and it was agreed to forward no objections,

subject to normal planning guidelines, to:

HNT/2022/0005 Proposed Single Storey Extension to Rear to Replace Existing Conservatory, Measuring

6.625m Beyond the Rear Wall of the Existing Dwelling, 3.95m Maximum Height & 2.5m to

Height of Eaves at Ladybrook, Micklea Lane, Longsdon.

Notification had been received of a Planning Appeal for Micklea Farm, Micklea Lane, Longsdon.

89/21 Finance Matters.

(a) Bank Mandate.

The changes to the mandate with the Council’s bankers T.S.B. was still ongoing.

(b) Clerk’s Salary.

It was agreed to increase the Clerk’s salary by £120.00 per annum.

(c) Quarterly Account Update.

Figures for the quarter ending 31st. December 2021 were distributed to Councillors.

(d) Estimates for the Year 2022 / 2023 to Determine the Precept Requirement.

The Clerk had prepared estimates for the end of year balance and the requirements for next year and these were distributed to Councillors with the suggestion that the precept remains unchanged at £5,000.00.

After perusing the estimates and information given, it was agreed that the sum of £5,000.00 be applied for as the precept – the same as last year.

(e) Orders for Payment.

It was agreed that the following items be paid:

90/21 Public Comments.

The member of the public re-iterated the comments regarding the need for more “Horses” road signs.

91/21 Items for Inclusion in the Agenda for the Next Meeting.

There was no business under this item.

92/21 Date of Next Meeting.

The date of the next meeting was arranged for Thursday 24th. March 2022 at 7.00pm in the upstairs room of the Wheel Public House, Leek Road, Longsdon.