Drayton Parish Council Minutes
of the Remote Meeting held on 1st June 2020 at 7:30pm.
Drayton Parish Councillors Present:
- Tamsin Crane (Chairperson)
- Matthew Lowy (Vice Chairperson)
- Patricia Athawes (Vice Chairperson)
- Richard Wade
- Pervin Shahin
- Shane McAleavey
- Garin Schoonhoven
- Irma Schoonhoven
- Claire Woollard
- Graham Webb
- Susan Harris.
Drayton Parish Councillors Not Present:
All Councillors were present (attending by Webex).
In Attendance:
- Lorraine Watling (Clerk and RFO)
- Christopher Price (Deputy Clerk)
- Andrew Cooke (VWHDC)
Public:
1 member of the public was present.
Clerk’s note: There was no May meeting due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
82/2020 Apologies for Absence.
None, but County Cllr Richard Webber was unable to join the meeting due to technical difficulties.
83/2020 Declarations of Interest, Dispensations or Use of Delegated Powers.
Cllrs Richard Wade, Garin Schoonhoven and Irma Schoonhoven declared a general interest in Agenda Item 8 – Allotments. It was noted that the payments made at the beginning of May were authorised using delegated powers.
84/2020 Report from OCC Councillor Richard Webber and VWHDC Councillor Adrian (Andy) Cooke.
It was noted that, although he tried to do so, Richard Webber was unable to join the meeting due to computer issues. The following matters were noted by District Cllr Andy Cooke.
- Car Parking Charges will be re-introduced in district council car parks across VWHDC from 8th June 2020. VWHDC have allowed people to park for free since 26th March 2020, to support key workers and those who need to shop for essential food or medical supplies during the Coronavirus pandemic after travel restrictions were put in place.
- Government Discretionary Business Grant. VWHDC will accept applications from 3rd June 2020 from small businesses for a share of around £1,900,000 of government support following the coronavirus outbreak.
- Planning Enforcement Officers are starting to return to work.
- Covid-19 Test and Trace. OCC will be leading on this initiative. More details will follow.
- Community Hub. The hours will change at the weekend.
85/2020 Community Support Working Group (Richard Wade).
The working group core team is still meeting weekly and the service is going very well. There are 50 families/ individuals needing help and 45 volunteers who have been paired with them. The parish council thanked all of the volunteers involved. Messages of thanks have also been received by the Parish Council. The cooked food delivery service is going well and it was noted that a grant application has been submitted to the parish council by the Drayton Community Trust to continue the service. Matter continued under item 88/2020 Finance and Personnel Committee (e) Grant Application. It was noted that there will eventually have to be an end point for the service and that plans will have to be made for this.
86/2020 Public Participation.
- P19/V2428/FUL. Single dwelling house with detached double garage (as amended by plans and additional information received on 29 November 2019 and 16 January 2020). 208 Steventon Road Drayton Abingdon OX13 6RN. A parishioner reported on the VWHDC Planning Committee meeting held on 26th February 2020 where this planning application was considered. It was noted that the VWHDC would like the Parish Council to clarify the position of the red line in Figure 4 – Current Built Up Area for Drayton Village (Outlined in Red) in the village’s Neighbourhood Development Plan.
ACTION: Deputy Clerk, Tamsin Crane, Matthew Lowy to carry out a site visit to inspect the site boundary. - Travellers / Human Excrement. A parishioner reported that human excrement had been left around the disused A34 slip road. There were concerns that this could contaminate the water course.
ACTION: Deputy Clerk to inform OCC Oxfordshire Gypsy & Traveller Services. District Cllr Cooke will also report this matter to the Environmental Health team at the District Council.
87/2020 Minutes of the Previous Parish Council Meeting.
The minutes of the Parish Council meeting that was held remotely on 27th April 2020 were approved and signed by the Chairperson.
Proposed: Claire Woollard Seconded: Susan Harris Resolved: Unanimous
88/2020 Finance and Personnel Committee (Patricia Athawes).
- Payments. The list of payments approved using delegated powers at the beginning of May had been circulated prior to the meeting and were noted. The payments list for June was circulated before the meeting. The 2 councillors nominated to approve the online payments at the beginning of June were Patricia Athawes and Shane McAleavey.
- Employee Salaries. It was resolved that, from now on, the basic salaries of employees will be paid by Standing Order at the beginning of each month regardless of when the Parish Council meets.
Proposed: Patricia Athawes Seconded: Tamsin Crane Resolved: Unanimous - Disposition of Council Funds had been circulated prior to the meeting and was noted.
- Grant Applications. The grant application from “Clean Slate” has not yet been received so this item will be carried forward to July. A Drayton Community Trust grant application for £1,000 towards the Drayton Community Support Group Meal Delivery Service during the Covid-19 pandemic was approved.
Proposed: Patricia Athawes Seconded: Claire Woollard Resolved: Unanimous - Bank Beneficiary Details. It was agreed that the Clerk/RFO will review the current bank beneficiaries list and delete any that are no longer required as an internal control.
- Internal Auditors Report. It was noted that the internal auditor has not yet signed and returned the Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR) for year end 31st March 2020.
89/2020 Allotments.
Richard Wade, Garin Schoonhoven and Irma Schoonhoven declared general declarations of interest. The draft policy on structures on allotment plots was received and considered along with some comments about the draft from the Allotment Warden. The size, number of structures and positioning on plots were discussed and agreed. The policy will be the general guidance going forwards and will not be applied retrospectively. Any requested exceptions to the policy will need to be bought to Council for consideration on a case by case basis. It was resolved to adopt the policy as amended during the meeting.
Proposed: Tamsin Crane Seconded: Patricia Athawes Resolved: Unanimous with 3 Abstentions (by the Cllrs who had declared a general interest).
Action: The Clerk will forward the agreed policy to the Allotment Warden.
90/2020 FP20 Barbed wire.
It was noted that the Parish Council had sent a letter to the installer of the stiles that have been erected along FP20 which runs between Drayton and Abingdon. There are now 6 stiles that could be problematic for some walkers and impassable for people with large dogs. Barbed wire has been included in the construction of some of these, so he has been asked to review these structures and ensure that they are safe for use by people and dogs using this public footpath. He was also asked to consider the elderly and disabled when building future stiles. It was noted that planning permision may be required from OCC when erecting stiles along footpaths.
ACTION: Matthew Lowy to circulate information on planning permision requirments for erecting stiles along footpaths. The Clerk will ask OCC to confirm whether OCC permission was required for the stiles along FP20 and, if so, if it was given.
91/2020 Website Working Group (Garin Schoonhoven).
There are requirements relating to web sites that will be coming into force in September 2020. It was agreed to set up a Website Working Group. Membership: Garin Schoonhoven (Chairperson), Claire Woollard, Tamsin Crane, Lorraine Watling, Christopher Price and Jules Meredith.
ACTION: Clerk to draft Terms of Reference for the working group.
92/2020 Correspondence.
It was noted that two emails had been received from parishioners expressing thanks for the help and support from the Community Support Working Group.
93/2020 Items to be noted from Parish Councillors.
- Public Art Working Group. It was agreed to consult the public on the public art options via the Chronicle.
ACTION: Clerk to confirm with OALC whether an Annual Parish Meeting must be held in 2020 and, if so, when it must be held. Claire Woollard will discuss the consultation with the Chronicle editor. Pervin Shahin to circulate artist information and write article for the Chronicle. - Manor Farm to Gravel Lane New Footpath. It was noted that a letter from the Parish Council has been sent to the resident along Gravel Lane who keeps blocking the new footpath with tape. A response had been received.
ACTION: Tamsin Crane to consult VWHDC Planning for clarification on footpath placement, and discuss safety concerns raised by the resident.
94/2020 Dates of the next Meetings.
Remote meeting on 6th July at 7:30pm.
ACTION: Deputy Clerk to discuss online meeting options with Richard Webber (OCC).
The Chairperson declared the meeting closed at 9:13pm.
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