Minutes of Meeting held on Thursday 8th. February 2024 in the Upstairs Room of the Wheel Public House, Leek Road, Longsdon at 7.00pm.

Present: Councillor J. Sargeant (Chair).

Councillors S. Dickinson, C. Hogan, D. Hughes, R. Lovell & K. Shaw

In Attendance: John Bourne, Clerk to the Council.

One Member of the Public.

01/24 Apologies for Absence.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor J. Cox. Councillor C. Hogan gave his apologies for the December 2023 meeting which he had been unable to attend.

02/24 Declarations of Interest.

There were no declarations of interest at this point.

03/24 Chairman’s Address.

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting.

He reported that a handwritten letter had been received asking if there were any employment opportunities with the Council. Clearly we have nothing to offer.

The recent storms had caused some damage to the wooden bus shelter on the A53 near to School Lane causing it to tilt backwards. The lengthsman had been contacted and it was righted in a couple of days.

In the past few weeks road gully emptying had been carried out on the A53 through the village, something which had been needed for a long time. The Vice Chairman was present and had observed both that and also a person inspecting the faulty speed sign at the village entrance which should, hopefully, solve the problem with the sign. He also reported that a blockage had been discovered in a storm drain which was causing flooding near to the Church. Also reported was that many of the pavements in the area had been cleared of growth encroaching over the pavements.

The Vice Chairman was thanked for his reports.

04/24 Public Comments.

There was no business under this item.

05/24 Approval of Minutes of Last Meeting.

Minutes of the meeting held on 14th. December 2023 had been circulated and it was agreed that the minutes be signed as a true copy.

06/24 Matters Arising.

(a) A reply had finally been received from the County Council’s Cabinet Member for Highways. In the reply he apologised for the absence of a reply which was due to the fact that a member of its staff had been off on long term sickness leave. It was agreed to reply with amazement that the Council’s email service was unable to operate due to one staff absence.

He reported that the problem with the speed indicator sign had been directed to the Road Safety Manager. The white lines on the A53 Leek Road had been installed following DfT road marking guidelines but the request to review the current lining had been added to the County Councillors Divisional Highways Programme for discussion at the next meeting but may not be prioritised.

(b) Tree Preservation Order No.SM.327 (Park Lane).

A further letter had been sent to the District Council regarding this Tree Preservation Order. It appeared that a number of trees were involved on the site, The Order had since been approved.

(c) Lengthsman’s Instructions.

The lengthsman had been instructed to attend to the blown over bush shelter and was asked to ensure that the other wooden bus shelter was secure.

(d) Material for Poppies.

The further materials for the production of more Remembrance Poppies for future years had been ordered.

(e) SMDC Councillor’s Grant.

The grant of £150.00 for painting of the bus shelters had been received.

(f) Community Grant – Pelican Crossing.

County Councillor Gill Heath has been contacted regarding a contact for the proposed upgrading of the Pedestrian Crossing to a Pelican type. She had suggested that she thought that the cost would be many thousands of pounds and that her County Councillor’s grant would be minimal in comparison. A member of the County Councils Highways staff had been contacted and unofficially suggested that the project could cost between £90,000 and £100,000.

As the Community Grant would be nowhere near this figure, it was agreed the cost was excessive and the matter be put on hold.

07/24 Other Business.

The Circuit had informed the Council that the defibrillator at the Memorial Hall had been used. A check revealed that the battery charge was now very low, and the pads could possibly have been used. It was agreed to purchase replacements.

A discussion took place on the possible provision of a Christmas tree in the village for future years. Investigations would be conducted for possible sites for further discussions later in the year.

08/24 Correspondence.

The following had already been distributed to Councillors:-

Have Your Say – Policing and Fire & Rescue Services.

Engagement with Community Survey.

Christmas Greetings from Everyone Health Staffs.

Thanks from British Heart Foundation.

Views Request from West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Events Update from Moorlands Climate Action.

Notice of Public Visit to Parliament from Dame Karen Bradley M.P.

Date of Churnet Valley Festival Day – July/August 24 Invitation to SMDC Chairman’s Charity Curry Evening.

Road Closure Notice for Dunwood Road.

Winter Newsletter from Moorlands Climate Action

09/24 Planning Matters.

The following planning application had been received for discussion:

SMD/2024/0032 Proposal for a 40m x 25m Sand & Fibre All-weather Outdoor Arena on Land in School Lane, Longsdon.

It was agreed to forward no objection to this application in principle but to point out that concerns were expressed about the likelihood of the increased amount of horse boxes etc using the access on a narrow lane with possible increase in vehicles maybe parking adjacent to the site on the narrow lane.

It was agreed to contact Staffs. Moorland District Council to ask about the current situation with the recent planning application for works on the old New Inn site.

10/24 Finance Matters.

(a) Finance Account Update.

A copy of the Finance Account Update was issued to Councillors.

(b) Estimates of Income & Expenditure for the Year 2024 / 2025.

Estimates of Income & Expenditure for the Year 2024 / 2025 were perused in order to determine the amount of Precept required for that year.

It was agreed to increase the Precept of £5,000.00 from this year by 5% to £5,250.00 for the coming year.

(c) Orders for Payment.

It was agreed that the following items be paid:

11/24 Public Comments.

There was no business under this item.

12/24 Items for Inclusion in the Agenda for the Next Meeting.

Listing of tasks for the Council’s Lengthsman to undertake.

13/24 Date of Next Meetings.

The dates of the next meetings were arranged for Thursday 28th. March 2024 and Thursday 16th. May 2024 at 7.00pm in the upstairs room of the Wheel Public House, Leek Road, Longsdon.