Minutes of Meeting held in an ancillary room at The Wheel on Thursday 31st. March 2016.

Present: Councillor J. Sargeant (Chair).

Councillors T. Beastall, D. Sargeant, C. Taylor & S. R. Weston.

In Attendance: One Member of the Public.

John Bourne, Clerk to the Council.

Due to the normal meeting room appearing to be inaccessible, urgent arrangements were made for the meeting to take place in an ancillary room at The Wheel public house, a short distance away.

80/15. Apologies for Absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillors L. Bills, R. Lovell & District Councillor N. Hawkins.

81/15. Declarations of Interest.

There were no declarations of interest at this point.

82/15. Chairman’s Address.

He thanked Councillor Taylor for attending the Parish Assembly on 17th. March with him. He gave a brief report on the issues discussed at that meeting.

Councillor Lovell had forwarded a report on the last meeting of Longsdon Village Hall Management Committee which he had attended. The one item of note being that there was a Rose Queen event being arranged this year.

83/15. Public Comments.

There was no business under this item.

84/15. Minutes of Last Meeting.

The minutes of the meeting held on 4th. February 2016 had been circulated and it was agreed that they be signed as a true and correct record.

85/15. Matters Arising.

A solution to the problem with the blocked gullies in Sutherland Road which was causing water to cascade into the entrance of Wood Road, a private road, and washing away the surface of the road was still awaited.

A further letter had been sent to Staffordshire Moorland District Council’s pointing out the further extensive damage and the Health & Safety issues at the damaged bus shelter opposite the old New Inn but no action had been taken. After consulting with the Chairman, the Clerk had also asked District Councillor Norma Hawkins to take up the matter.

It was reported that:

the car which was lying in a field in Denford Road had been removed.

the tree lying in the grass verge in Leek Road had been removed.

the ponding in Honeysuckle Lane / Dunwood Lane had been reported to Staffordshire County Council.

86/15. Correspondence.

A copy letter had been received from the owner of Dunwood Hall stating that she was applying for a premises licence for the permitted twenty eight events at the venue. No objections were, or had been, raised to this and an acknowledgement would be sent to her.

An e.mail had been received from County Councillor Heath informing the Council of proposed future visits of the Highways Team on dates to be announced. Work for the team would include:

Cleaning of Belisha Beacon supporting poles at the pedestrian crossing in Leek Road.

Cleaning of numerous road signs.

Tightening of direction signs at junction of School Lane and Leek Road.

Cutting back vegetation between Dunwood Hall and Dunwood Lane.

Information received under this item:

Community Paths Initiative – Bids for 2016/2017 from Staffordshire County Council.

Invitation to purchase H.M. Queen Elizabeth 90th. Birthday Commemorative Medals – no action.

Invitation to purchase bookmarks and mugs for the Queen’s Birthday – no action.

“Clean for the Queen” Event – no action.

Clerks & Councils Direct – March 16 issue.

87/15. Planning Matters.

The following plan had been distributed to Councillors, due to the time scale, and they had agreed to forward no objections, subject to normal planning guidelines, to:-

SMD/2016/0092 Proposed Sun Lounge Extension at Two Lands, School Lane, Longsdon.

The following plans were discussed and it was agreed to forward no objections, subject to normal planning guidelines, to:-

DET/2016/0018 Proposed Portal Framed Agricultural Building at Gibralter Farm, Devils Lane.

SMD/2016/0118 Erection of Garden Room at Limerick Farm, Devils Lane.

SMD/2016/0128 Outline Application, with all matters reserved (except access), for the Erection of a Single Dwelling on Land Adjacent to High View, Sutherland Road.

SMD/2016/0165 Proposed Installation of a Ground Mounted Transformer and Associated Development on Land at Ladderedge, Leek for Severn Trent Water.

88/15. Finance Matters.

The invoice for the lengthsman scheme submitted to Staffordshire County Council had been paid.

The precept request had been forwarded to Staffordshire Moorlands District Council and had been acknowledged.

The date of the Annual Audit had been received from the Council’s External Auditor – 3rd. June 2016.

It was agreed to employ the same internal auditor.

89/15. Orders for Payment.

It was unanimously agreed that the following items be paid:-

90/15. Public Comment.

There was no business under this item.

91/15. Any Other Business.

A report was given that the “Longsdon” sign in Sutherland Road had been drilled and an advertisement screwed to the sign. This to be reported to the Local Highways depot together with a query about a traffic cone standing on a metal plate in Micklea Lane.

A further report was given of exceptional amount of litter in Denford Road near to the old New Inn. This to be reported to the Council’s lengthsman for his attention.

Repairs to the pavement adjacent to the old New Inn were also needed and would be reported to Staffordshire  County Council.

It was also agreed that the following items be placed on the agenda for the next meeting:

Possible Grant to Dunwood First Responders.

Hourly rate of pay for the Council’s lengthsman.

92/14. Date of Next Meeting.

The next meeting of the Council will be held at 7 - 00p.m. on Tuesday 3rd. May 2016 at St. Chad’s Church Room, Leek Road, Longsdon.