|
Minutes of the Meeting held on Monday 1st September 2008
Present: Councillors Steve Gleadhill, Ian Hall, Norman Hooks, Melna Martin,
Julia Sayce, Mrs M Williams, Clerk.
Also present: District Councillor Mrs Eileen
Drew,
County/District Councillor Mrs Anne Dale,
Mrs Katherine Russell,
Mrs G Brown (Hexham Courant),
Ian Jopling & John Lewer, Northumberland County Council.
Apologies: Councillors Dave Porter, John Davison, Pete Barrass, Diane Hinchcliffe,
District Councillor Colin Argent.
08/36 Improvements to Station Yard
With the permission of the those present, the item on Improvements to the
Station Car Park was brought to the start of the agenda in order that Messrs
Jopling and Lewer (County Council Highways Officers) could outline proposals
for the Station Car Park.
Mr Hall welcomed Messrs Jopling and Lewer to the meeting.
Mr Hooks brought members up to date with progress on this topic since July
and said that positive meetings had been held with both representatives of the
railway companies and the County Council.
Mr Jopling then explained that the under the Local Transport Plan, the authority
was committed to improving facilities and services and officers are currently
looking to see what can be done to improve quality and ease of access at railway
stations all along the Newcastle-Carlisle line.
He asked why at Stocksfield we were not considering
a larger project. He said that there was an opportunity to apply for Government "Access for All" funding
which allowed £1 per passenger per year and that this year this would equate
to £62,000 for Stocksfield Station. He said that bids for this funding
had to be submitted and suitable projects would then be funded.
Mr Jopling then went on to say that he had discussed ideas for the Station
Yard with County engineers and had come up with a three phase scheme.
Phase 1 would be to increase the parking as outlined by the Parish Council
with the addition of improving access and parking on the area of land to the
north of the station.
Phase 2 would increase the area of parking within the station yard and within
the area of the station lease.
Phase 3 would include the old loading bay area and would possibly provide
a pull in area for eastbound buses.
These three phases were clarified on a plan of the station which was circulated.
One major problem was the gas substation near the current bus stop.
The original suggestion by the Parish Council had been
costed by County Engineers at £57,000 as opposed to the £15000 price
received by the Parish Council.
Nothing had yet been shown by County officers to the railway companies.
Mr Jopling felt that there was nothing to prevent going ahead with Phase 1
straight away.
After some discussion the following was agreed:
1 Steve Gleadhill proposed and Julia Sayce seconded and it was agreed that:
Phase 1 (the original proposal for the car park, plus the extended area, improvements
on the north side of the station, lighting to the new parking area [taken from
the highway], a
dedicated footway from the platform to the A695 and improvements to the entrance
from the A695) should go ahead immediately.
2 Ian Jopling & John Lewer would complete the application
form for funding from Access for All
and send it to the Parish Council for comment. It was noted that the bid had
to be submitted
by the end of September and that notification as to its success or not would
be received
around the turn of the year. It was suggested that should the bid not be successful
then theCounty would look again at the original suggestion for Phase 1
3 Steve Gleadhill proposed and Julia Sayce seconded and it was agreed that
Norman Hooks
should take on lead responsibility for this project.
It was also agreed that further consideration should be given to proposals
for phases 2 and 3.
The plans showing the extent of the proposals are attached to these Minutes.
Messrs Jopling and Lewer were thanked for attending the meeting.
Following the departure of Messrs Jopling and Lewer, the meeting reverted
to the agenda.
08/37 Declarations of Interest – None
08/38 Minutes
Acceptance of the Minutes of the meeting held on 7th July was proposed by Norman
Hooks and seconded by Julia Sayce. The Minutes were agreed.
08/39 Matters Arising
Hedge at Welton Close – A letter had been received from Tynedale advising
that they could not take over the maintenance of this hedge. It was agreed to
write to Tim Fish, NCC and ask if he had heard from the original builders of
Birkedene, Wimpey regarding maintenance of this length of hedge.
08/40 Public Participation
Fence opposite Cade Hill Road – County Councillor Mrs Dale raised the question
of the condition of this fence. She was advised that the Clerk is currently in
correspondence with SITA who are thought to be the owners of the field.
Trees at Burnside – Some of the trees are overhanging the pavement and
need cutting back – contact is to be made with Adamson Developments.
Station Footbridge
Mrs Drew raised concerns about the condition and safety of the footbridge over
the track.
08/41 Correspondence
The correspondence received had been listed on the Agenda and was noted.
NALC Training - no one expressed an interest in the current NALC Training
courses on offer.
08/42 Finance
The accounts for July/August were accepted.
08/43 Sustainable Communities Act
A paper had been tabled and a discussion ensued.
It was agreed to study this topic further and to consider the implications
is relation to the Parish Plan. It was suggested that a Parish Forum/Development
Trust should be considered but that its role should be defined.
It was also agreed to press the primary authority (Northumberland County Council)
to opt into the Sustainable Communities Act.
A small group of Councillors (Ian Hall, Julia Sayce and Dave Porter) are to
look further into the implications of the Act and report to the October meeting.
08/44 Brief Reports from Advisory Groups and Council Representatives
a) Parish plan
Mr Gleadhill brought councillors up-to-date with the Parish Plan. He said that
the two Action Events in July had been quite well-attended. Brief articles on
progress will appear in the September SCAN and the issue of NE43 News currently
being prepared. A doorstep survey of 250 households will take place week commencing
28th September. All the information then needs to be collated, the Parish Plan
and an Action Plan drawn up. The plans then need to be regularly reviewed. There
will also be feedback meetings with the public.
Mr Hall thanked Mr Gleadhill and his group for all their hard work.
b) Transport & Highways
Improvements to Station Car Park - see 08/36 above.
VACS – this project is now complete, but training
for the Handyman in moving the signs is to be pursued.
Railway Masts – still awaiting installation
Tyne Bridges Study – data was still being analysed – it
was hoped that a report would be available for the next meeting of the Eastern
Parishes Forum.
Bus Shelter Maintenance – a letter had been received
from County advising that responsibility for maintenance of the bus shelter at
Birches Nook now reverted to the Parish Council
Northumberland County Council – Local Transport Plan – it
was noted that the list for submission to the County should not contain items
of minor maintenance such as potholes. It was however agreed to submit the list
as tabled pointing out that these were items which had been brought top the attention
of the Parish Council.
Mrs Dale asked if the list could be prioritised and it was agreed that recommended
priorities would be submitted to the October meeting for forwarding to Mrs Dale.
Flash Flooding – Flooding had again occurred on
New Ridley Road, and it was noted with appreciation that both Tynedale Council
and the Fire Brigade had attended very promptly to alleviate the problem. Mrs
Dale advised that Tynedale are currently looking at land drainage issues within
parts of the village.
c) Finance and General Purposes Group
The Finance & General Purposes Group had met and their report had been tabled.
Grants to the following organisations were agreed:
Mencap £50
Samaritans £50
Age Concern £50
It was also agreed to make a grant to Stocksfield Netball
Team of £100.
It was agreed in principle to give a grant to the Stocksfield Junior Football
Club for new goal posts. However, before considering the amount, Councillors
felt that they need to know the cost of the goal posts, and that the Football
club should submit accounts, etc. supporting their application. Mrs Sayce is
to meet representatives from the Football Club.
Mrs Dale explained that Tynedale Council had been awarded Beacon Status and
as a result would be able to share the cash with Parish Councils. This would
be paid on a per capita basis and might be able to be used to fund the BEPA Access.
[Suspension of Standing Orders –it was agreed
that Standing Orders should be suspended and the meeting should continue until
10.00 p.m.]
It was agreed to defer discussion on grants to the Youth Service until the
October meeting. Comments and suggests should be given to Steve Gleadhill. Ian
Hall, Norman Hooks, Steve Gleadhill and Diane Hinchcliffe are to consider this
matter further and make recommendations to the October meeting.
War Memorial
No response had been received from Albemarle and the CO is to be contacted by
letter. It was felt appropriate to invite the local ministers to the service.
SICA will be booked for refreshments.
Post Offices Closures
Ian Hall had attended the meeting at County and he and Steve Gleadhill had attended
the meeting at Tynedale which had discussed this issue. It was difficult to establish
the criteria for closures.
It was expected that the result of the consultation would be announced shortly.
Christmas Trees
It was suggested that Allendale Estates should be approached again to see if
trees could be purchased from them.
It was proposed by Mrs Sayce and seconded by Mrs Martin
and agreed that expenditure up to £620 could be made on Christmas Trees.
d) Sports Facility Group
All items under this heading are deferred until October.
The official opening of the Multi Use Games Area will be on Friday 19th September
e) Play Facilities
Welton Close
The F&GP Group had discussed this issue and a letter had been written to
Tynedale suggesting three options for this area. Once a response had been received
from Tynedale appropriate action would be taken.
Branch End Play Area – New Access.
The F&GP Group had also discussed this issue and recommended that the quotation
for £15000 for the provision of th4 new access be accepted. It was stated
that the contractors could be on site within 8/10 days of being appointed and
that the work should take around 3 weeks.
Mrs Martin proposed and Mr Hall seconded and it was
agreed that Guy Rawlinson's recommendation to accept Atkinson's quotation of £15000
be accepted.
BEPA Phase 2 – Mrs Hinchcliffe is currently collating
data for the outcomes report.
Kate's Plain Tyre
Stanleys of Blaydon have been contacted regarding removal of the tyre.
Play Area Inspections
RoSPA had submitted their report on the play area inspections. The Play Facilities
Group are to study this and make recommendations on action to be taken in October.
f) Sensory Garden - no further progress on this until the new access has been
completed.
A "display" day is to be organised once the path is complete and it
is hoped that residents will be able to donate plants for the garden.
g) Policy Group – A letter had been received
from NSP regarding proposed Area Partnerships. Steve Gleadhill, Ian Hall, Dave
Porter and Julia Sayce are to look at this and compile a response to be submitted
by 26th September..
h) Planning
The Planning Report for July and August had been circulated.
Killen/Petty Review – no comment.
i) Council Representatives
The next meeting of the Eastern Parishes Forum is in October.
Calor Village of the Year
Stocksfield have won the Northumberland Competition. There will be a presentation
in November at the CAN AGM. Appreciation was expressed to all those who came
to support Norman Hooks and Margaret Williams when the judges visited Stocksfield.
Stocksfield will now submit an entry for the National competition.
h) Footpaths, Gardens & the Environment.
It was agreed to purchase a larger dog bin for Birkdene and to consider at a
later date what to do with the existing bin.
i) Communication
The next issue of NE43 News to be distributed in mid-September is now in the
final stages of preparation.
j) Local Government Re-organisation
A letter had been received from the Boundary Commission regarding changes to
wards in Northumberland. The Parish Council had no comment to make.
08/45 Other business -
Land Registry
The Clerk reported that she had now completed the forms to register the following
parcels of land as agreed some months ago
Cricket Field
Land adjacent to Branch End Terrace
Former Rifle Club site
Institution of New Vicar
As both the chair and Vice Chair were away, it was agreed that the Clerk, Mrs
Williams, would represent the parish Council at the service of Institution on
9th September.
Apologies – October – Mrs Martin
08/465 Date of Next Meeting - 6th October 2008
The meeting closed at 10.30 p.m.
| 
