Hilderstone Parish Council

Minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday 25th September 2019 at 7:30pm

Present: Cllr. Shelley (Chairman), Cllr. Stringer (Vice Chairman) late arrival, Cllr. P Davies, Cllr. Clark, Cllr. J Davies, Cllr. Woodward and Mrs Amanda Kingston (Clerk).

There were no members of the public or press.

1. Chairman’s Welcome. Cllr. Shelley welcomed everyone to the meeting.

2. Apologies. Cllr. Crump, Stafford Borough Cllr. Harp, Staffordshire County Cllr. Parry

3. Minutes of the last meeting. These were read, approved and signed.

4. Matters arising. None

5. Public Participation. None

6. Borough Councillor’s Report. Cllr. Harp was not in attendance to provide a report.

7. County Councillor’s Report. Cllr. Parry was not in attendance to provide a report.

8. Planning. No new planning applications.

Status of earlier applications
19/30989/HOU at Parcel Cottage, Sandon Road, Hilderstone, Stone, ST15 8SF. Single storey mono pitched brick and oak framed garden room to the front and side elevation of cottage; a new front door entrance covered by an oak framed canopy. Awaiting decision.

19/30783/LBC at Yew Tree House, Sandon Road, Hilderstone. Non material amendment to 18/29810/LBC. Added a black brick plinth to the north west elevation (Conservation Officer has concerns regarding ‘black’ and is in discussion with applicant) and slight increase in size of the glass box area. Allowed.

9. Traffic and Highways. The Parish Clerk provided an update on the progress of the installation of the Speed Indicator Device. Work is underway with SCC Highways, Amey and Weston Power Distribution to see if a solution to the removal and replacement of the old faulty Vehicle Activated Sign on Sandon Road will be possible. Discussions are moving in a positive direction and if approved, the cost of the device and the majority of the work will be covered by the Road Safety Grant. The Parish Council (PC) will have to contribute towards the cost of traffic management during the installation process.

The bollards on the build out by the Roebuck public house have not yet been replaced, and it has been noted that further damage has occurred. Clerk to follow up.

Details of all blocked drains that require digging out have been submitted to Cllr. Parry as requested. Cllr. Parry will be attending a meeting on Friday and will feedback to the Parish Clerk. Clerk to feedback to PC.

10. Footpaths/Village Maintenance/Best Kept Village. The Clerk informed the meeting of correspondence from a local resident offering to donate a bench to replace the one stolen from the Village Green. The resident would like to dedicate the bench to her late husband and would prefer it was wood rather than the reformed plastic wood-effect benches purchased for Roebuck Hill and the Play Area. A discussion was held regarding the kind offer. The bench previously situated on the Village Green was donated by the WI and was engraved as such. The WI are keen the replacement bench also contains a plaque with the original wording ‘WI 1992’. Cllr. Woodward will visit the resident to discuss the options for the replacement bench and feedback to the PC. Following consideration of a number of quotes, it was agreed if a wooden bench is to be purchased it will be from RP George Ltd at a cost of £190 inc VAT.

The overgrown hedge along Cresswell Road was cut back shortly after the last meeting in July. The PC extend their thanks to the homeowner for taking swift action.

Cllr. Stringer arrived at 8:05pm.

The Tree Planting event to commemorate the seven fallen soldiers from World War One will take place on the 10th November at 12:30pm. It was agreed to purchase one Oak Tree rather than the seven silver birch trees originally discussed. A plaque will be purchased to mark the occasion. Resolved Cllr. Shelley to purchase the tree. Resolved Clerk to contact the National Memorial Arboretum to purchase a plaque with the following wording ‘To commemorate the seven local soldiers who gave their lives in the First World War. Planted 10th November 2019.’ Resolved The PC unanimously approve a maximum spend of £500 for the event. It is hoped the majority of costs will be covered by an anonymous donation.

The hedge bordering Priory Cottage remains overgrown and continues to prevent safe use of the pavement. The Clerk has sent numerous letters and reported the issue to SCC Highways for a second time. Cllr. Stringer to take photos and forward to the Clerk.

Weston Ground Maintenance have undertaken a visit to weedkill and will return at the beginning of October to remove the weeds and do the final cut back.

Cllr. Woodward requested approval to purchase the daffodil bulbs for planting over the next few weeks. Resolved Cllr. Woodward to purchase one bag of bulbs at a cost of approximately £36.

Best Kept Village feedback and judges comments were received and noted.

11. Village Events. The Harvest Supper was well attended with about 45-50 people taking part. The Open Gardens event went well and raised over £600 for the Access for All improvements at the Church.

Forthcoming Events:

Tree Planting Remembrance Event, Sunday 10th November, 12:30pm at the children’s play area in Dingle Lane.

Hilderstone Village Christmas Party, Tuesday 17th December. More details to follow.

Hilderstone Christmas Concert, Saturday 21st December, 7:30pm in Hilderstone Village Hall

12. Correspondence.
• Scope – Textile banks
• Gnosall Young Drivers Event – 7th October
• Remembrance Day Service and Parade – Sunday 10th November – Stafford BC
• Staffordshire Playing Fields Association AGM – 16th November
• Parish Forum – Thursday 26th September, 7:30pm. Resolved Clerk to attend.
• Members Digest 258 and 259

Members’ Digest 259 Sports Facilities Strategy and Playing Pitch Strategy key findings
p2.1-2.7 Insufficient 3G Artificial Grass Pitches, Insufficient supply of cricket pitches to cater for current senior demand, rugby shortfall, hockey shortfall, golf enough for current demand, bowls enough for current demand, tennis sufficient. There is a need to increase the volume of activities and classes provided in community/village halls. Analysis of the bowls community is underway to ascertain the likely demand for an indoor bowls centre. There is a focus on ensuring that all school sports facilities continue to accommodate for community use.

SCC have provided information regarding the winter filling of Grit Bins. Whilst most in Hilderstone will be filled throughout the season, the Grit Bin in Dingle Lane will only be filled once, at the start of the season.

13. Finance. The monthly accounts were presented and signed by the Chairman. The current account is £14,185.36 in credit and the deposit account £3128.26 in credit. Although most of these funds are allocated as indicated by the monthly accounts which are circulated to all Councillors prior to each meeting. The following payments were approved:

1. Councillor Expenses, Printer Ink – £7.99
2. OVH Virtual Server renewal – £38.95
3. Concurrent Function and donation to the Church – £469
4. Concurrent Function and donation to the Village Hall – £469

14. Any Other Business. The Chairman informed the meeting that the workload of the Clerk is high and increasing with the various projects in progress. The budget line for additional hours is already overspent. It was agreed the Clerk continue to work extra hours as required, which will be funded through virements or reserves. Parish Councillors to consider if they can take on smaller tasks such as reporting issues to Highways, to relive some of the pressure in the short term.

Cllr. J Davies provided feedback from the most recent Stone Area Parish Liaison Group meeting.

Clerk to provide Cllr. Stringer with the replacement information for the noticeboards.

Concern was raised regarding the funding issues facing the Village Hall. It was noted that the booking process is not always easy.

15. Date of next meeting. The next meeting will be held on Wednesday 23rd October 2019 at 7:30pm. The meeting closed at 9.35pm

………………………………………………… Cllr. M. Shelley, Chairman. 23.10.19