Minutes of Meeting held in St. Chad’s Church Room on Wednesday 3rd. May 2017.

Present: Councillor J. Sargeant (Chair).

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

District Councillor N. Hawkins.

One Member of the Public.

In Attendance: John Bourne, Clerk to the Council.

1/17. Apologies for Absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor R. Lovell.

A letter had been received from Councillor Bills stating that she wished to step down from the position of Parish Councillor due to work commitments taking her away from home and not being able to attend Council meetings. She wished the Council well in the future. It was agreed to accept her decision with some regret and to write a letter of thanks for her service to the Council, especially as Vice Chair and the Council’s representative on the Memorial Hall Management Committee.

2/17. Declarations of Interest.

There were no declarations of interest at this point.

3/17. Chairman’s Address.

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting.

4/17. Public Comments.

An issue arose with the Council’s decision by a majority vote to object to the Outline Planning Application for the Erection of a Single Dwelling on land adjacent to High View, Sutherland Road, Longsdon. The member of the public asked for an explanation on why this objection had been lodged since the Council had no objection to a previous application on the site. The Chairman explained that the site was in the green belt and was not in a designated in-fill area. District Councillor Hawkins offered to follow this up with the Moorlands Council.

District Councillor Hawkins discussed the reply received from Staffs. Moorlands District Council regarding the partly completed extension at a property in Denford Road after an officer had visited the site. There still appeared to be some grey areas which could not be totally explained. Councillor Hawkins offered to take up the matter again with the Planning Department.

5/17. Minutes of Last Meeting.

The minutes of the meeting held on 30th. March 2017 had been circulated. It was agreed that they be signed as a true and correct record.

6/17. Matters Arising.

The Canal & River Trust had been contacted about a replacement litter bin to be sited by the canal bridge in Sutherland Road. A reply stated that the Trust had an agreement with the local Council that if the Trust provided a bin the local Council would empty it but current funding was not available for a replacement. It was agreed to write to the Trust and offer to buy a replacement bin if it could arrange for the servicing.

County Councillor Heath had been contacted about the erosion of the entrance to the private Wood Road by storm water from Sutherland Road. She had replied that she would recommend some remedial work.

It was reported that:

the list of the village plant tubs to be replaced with new was being arranged.

7/17. Correspondence.

An email had been received from a parishioner raising two points:

1. Commenting on the ongoing saga of who is responsible for providing / emptying the dog waste bin which has been removed from the canal tow path near to Sutherland Road.

2. The solid board safety fencing which had been erected on the old New Inn site was now obstructing vision for drivers entering or leaving Denford Road and also causing a hazard for pedestrians.

The comments were noted. Item 1 was already ongoing and it was agreed to report Item 2 to Staffs. County Council’s Highways Department.

An acknowledgement reply would be sent to the correspondent.

8/17. Planning Matters.

There was nothing to report under this item.

9/17. Finance Matters.

End of year invoices for the Staffs. County Council’s and Staffs. Moorlands District Council’s lengthsman schemes had been forwarded and payments received.

The Chairman had prepared a renewed Risk Assessment Statement. A copy was handed to each Councillor and this would be discussed at the next meeting.

The Council insurance policy renewal was due on 1st. June 2017. Two quotations had been received and after these were perused it was agreed to renew with the current insurers Zurich in the sum of £325 – 84. This was the dearer of the two quotes but Zurich offered a more beneficial schedule.

The Annual Accounts had been audited by the usual Internal Auditor after agreement of the Chairman due to the time scale. This action was sanctioned.

The internal auditor had reported that he had worked to the requirements outlined in Section 4 of the Annual Return. He had also had regard to the suggested approach in the Governance and Accountability Practitioner’s Guide and had found that the Council’s internal checking and control systems in place are effective. The records and accounts maintained are kept to a high standard and in good order. There were no matters which needed to be brought to the attention of the Council.

10/17. Section 1. Annual Governance Statement 2016/2017.

The Annual Governance Statement for the year was perused and approved unanimously.

11/17. Section 2. Accounting Statement 2016/2017.

The Accounting Statement for the year was perused and approved unanimously.

12/17. Orders for Payment.

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

13/17. Public Comment.

There was no business under this item.

14/17. Any Other Business.

Items for report included:

Chevron signs on the A53 damaged by accident – Staffs. County Council.

Crumbling tarmac edging washed away in Denford Road – Staffs. County Council.

New seat in Denford Road becoming overgrown – the lengthsman.

15/17. Date of Next Meeting.

The next meeting of the Council will be held at 7 - 00p.m. on Thursday 29th. June 2017 at St. Chad’s Church Room, Leek Road, Longsdon.