Beckham East and West Parish Council

Page 187

Draft Minutes of East and West Beckham Parish Council
Meeting Held on Thursday 12th March 2020

Present.
Cllrs. R. McNeil Wilson, (chairman),G. Place, D. Barrass, R. Batt, J. Dovey, K. Lord, T. Toyn.
J.Stibbons(clerk)
The chairman opened the meeting at 7.04pm,

1. Apologies Dist. Cllr. P. Butikofer

3.There were no declarations of interest.

4. The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 9th January 2020, having been previously circulated, it was proposed by Cllr. Toyn they should be confirmed as correct. This was seconded by Cllr. Lord and carried.
The chairman then signed the minutes.

5. Matters arising from the Minutes NCC Highways will attend to the Holly tree which has partly blown into the road at the Nature area and have cut the hedge and cleared the ditch at the Garth.

6. Reports from County, District or Parish Councillors
Dist.Cllr. P. Butikofer. A written report was read to the meeting.
A copy of the report is attached to these minutes.

7. Solar Community Fund Committee
V.E.Day is on the 9th and 10th of May. The village hall will be open and there will be a large screen
television.
It was proposed by Cllr. Lord that a display board of local interest during the war years should be
installed in the village hall. This would be a permanent feature and the estimated cost would be
£250. This proposal was seconded by Cllr. Toyn and approved by the members.
The old West Beckham village sign will be removed so the base can be painted before the new sign
arrives. The new sign may not be delivered until after March.
It was agreed to obtain quotations for the cost of a new wooden bench to be placed in the bus
shelter.

8. Playing Field.
The inspection for January/February was carried out be Cllr, Toyn. The fencing near the road and the back fence near the sports wall are in poor repair. All fencing is to be kept under review and inspected regularly.

9. Insurance renewal The value for insurance purposes on the bus shelter has been increased from £2652 to £6000 and the new village sign has been included at £6500.
The premium has remained virtually the same at £473.78, the previous year being £467.27

10. Financial matters.
Bank Balances at 12/3/2020 Current a/c £7930.14 Savings a/c £17926.36
The following invoices were approved:-
The Village Sign People Invoice 141 £5675.00
Zurich Insurance Renewal 473.78
Page 188

11. Correspondence
Letters of thanks for donations were received from NARS, Priscilla Bacon Hospice and Air Ambulance
A publication concerning the Bio Diversity awards.

12. Matters for information only or for the next agenda.
It was noted that the access to the Village Green was becoming very overgrown.

There being no further business the chairman closed the meeting at 8.26pm.

Copy of the Report from District Councillor P. Butikofer

At full council meeting, held on 26th Feb 2020, the council tax for all properties has gone up. The increase of 3.99% is the maximum allowed. This is a £4.95 increase for NNDC (excluding town and parish precepts), a £54.27 increase for Norfolk County Council and a £9.99 increase for Norfolk Police and `crime Commissioner.
For every pound that is paid in council tax only 8p comes back to the district. NNDC delivers around 83 (63%) of the 137 essential local government services. It does that currently for a Council Tax charge of £148.77 for Band D domestic Council Tax properties.
NNDC also continues to have a Council Tax charge which out of over 190 District Councils in England, is amongst the lowest.
Following February’s storms and subsequent damage to the Splash Leisure Centre in Sheringham, NNDC is pleased to confirm it has commissioned essential repairs to the roof and the swimming pool is set to re-open, hopefully, at Easter.
The high winds damaged roof panelling and made it necessary, for safety reason, to close all pool access and commissioned a safety report.
Land adjacent to Splash is being sold in order to help overall funding towards the construction.
The council has bought two houses. These will be used for temporary emergency accommodation. At present the council have families having to live in the Spixworth area. There are currently 42 families requiring emergency housing – normally we have 12 but the rapid increase is due to landlords not taking on families that are on Universal credit.
Funds are in place to purchase another three properties.
These properties will eventually go into the property company currently being set up.
20,000 trees out of the 109,000 have currently been planted with1,500 being planted this week in Holt country park.
A new play area was unveiled in Holt Country Park. This included a modern zip line, bug see-saw and three different swings, one of which is an inclusive bucket swing and a ‘me and you’ swing where parents and toddlers can swing together..
The new area replaces the old playground which has been in place for 12 years and required updating and was funded by NNDC.
NNDC working in partnership with East Suffolk Council have taken the initiative to express concerns about the proposed onshore National Grid cable connections and wider implications for the district, in a letter to Dept of Business, Energy and Industrial Energy
Under proposed plans, both local authorities will see 40% of UK offshore wind generation pass through their districts.
The letter proposes that the Government explores the development of an Offshore Ring Main to minimise construction impact on the coastal region. The ring main would connect to the National Grid through one single cable connection, potentially saving the North Norfolk countryside from widespread infrastructure works delivered over many years.
Onshore wind turbines at Selbrigg and Bodham, NNDC is seeking additional legal advise and hopefully will make a decision in the very near future.

There being no further business the chairman closed the meeting at 8.26pm.

Present.
Cllrs. R. McNeil Wilson, (chairman),G. Place, D. Barrass, R. Batt, J. Dovey, K. Lord, T. Toyn.
Dist. Cllr. P. Butikofer. J.Stibbons(clerk)

The chairman opened the meeting at 7.00pm,

1. Apologies None

3.There were no declarations of interest.

4. The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 12th September 2019, having been previously circulated, it was proposed by Cllr. Dovey they should be confirmed as correct. This was seconded by Cllr. Toyne and carried.
The chairman then signed the minutes.

5. There were no Matters arising from the Minutes

6. Reports from County, District or Parish Councillors
Dist.Cllr. P. Butikofer.
Splash – started construction. Careful consideration  had been given regarding wave machine. proved to be too expensive.
Sandscape project completed. After the latest storm, some sand has been moved, but then it was always known that some sand would shift and it is not a concern.
Won a bid for the heritage High `street Action Zone Fund. government initiative £975K. North Walsham has been the beneficiary. All of it has to be spent on heritage projects.
Passed a bid for electric vehicle charging points. received a grant from OLEF.

Long term empty properties, looking at higher council tax – 200%-300%. Will be next year dependent on how long they have been empty.

Corporate plan – will be coming to full council. This will be implementing the Lib Dem manifesto which outlines the strategic direction of the council for the next four years. This included – local homes for local people, environment, quality of life, coast climate change, financial sustainability and boosting and sustaining business growth.

Year Four of `Sporting `centre of Excellence initiative. To encourage children with talent for sport to get involved and take advantage of specialist coaching at Gresham’s. Running from October during school term – hockey, netball, cricket and running.
Prosecution of asbestos offences – two firms fined over £30K. BES Safe Removals Ltd (1st Choice Asbestos) – six offences fined £30K. Park Wright Training Services £800 – non removal of asbestos – not following procedures.

Successful application for local investment in future talent (LIFT) grant towards cost of skills training workshops for people employed in small business – tourism and hospitality – b&B, cafes, restaurant, leisure. Workshops will run from November 2019 to February 2020
Solar farm – planning given for extension from 20years to 40 years.
Karen ward has been nominated as the PPC for Lib Dems replacing Sir Norman Lamb.
Wind turbines at Selbrigg – still with the planning inspectorate.
Graham Allen Award winner 2019 – just announced. Winner was the Lookout on the Holkham Estate. Its an esteemed award given each year to the project considered to have made the most significant contribution to the build environment within the district.
No Broadband in East Beckham was discussed and Cllr. Butikofer explained how parts of Aylmerton had obtained connection from the Rural Broadband Scheme with grants obtainable.
A survey needs to be carried out to get all households and businesses involved.

7. Solar Community Fund Committee.
The committee are reviewing past projects and considering new ideas.
The new West Beckham village sign will be completed in 2020. No decision has yet been taken on
what to do with the old sign.
Heavy rain has caused some washing down of the East Beckham allotment track and the
Cllr. Barrass has agreed to keep the channel at the top of the track cleared. The bonfire heap at the
top of the allotments is now becoming a tip, with old carpets being dumped. Enquiries are to be
made to find someone who will pull the pile apart and burn it. It should not be burnt in situ as there
may be hedgehogs hibernation in the foliage
The Felbeck Trust have planted 350 trees at the West Beckham allotments.

8. Playing Field.
The gate has been repaired and replaced. The October inspection was completed by Cllr. Batt. It was noted that the condition of the equipment was satisfactory but the fence would soon need attention.

9. Financial matters.
Bank Balances at 14/11/2019 Current a/c £8957.59 Savings a/c £7083.30
A provisional budget for 2020-2021 was circulated to members. This included a precept figure of £3250.
It was proposed by Cllr. Dovey that the budget should be approved. This was seconded by Cllr. Barrass and carried.
The request for the payment of the precept for £3250 was then signed by the chairman and clerk.

The following invoices were approved and cheques signed:-
Chevertons Printing £100
J. Stibbons Salary and expenses £595.30
HMRC PAYE £122.80
Bodham Village Hall fee for meetings £54

10. Correspondence None

11. Matters for information only Highways are to asked if SLOW can be written in the road at
Church Corner (approaching from Gresham) and at Long lane. Also the ditch needs cleaning and
the hedge cutting near The Garth to prevent more flooding.

There being no further business the chairman closed the meeting at 8.08pm.

Present.
Cllr. G. Place, (chairman), R. Batt, J. Dovey,, T. Toyn. J.Stibbons (clerk)
Dist. Cllr. P. Butikofer.
The chairman opened the meeting at 7.00pm,

1. Apologies Cllrs. R. McNeil Wilson, D. Barrass, K. Lord.

3.There were no declarations of interest.

4. The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 11th July 2019, having been previously circulated, it was proposed by Cllr. Dovey that the minutes should be confirmed as correct. This was seconded by Cllr. Toyne and carried.
The chairman then signed the minutes.

5. There were no Matters arising from the Minutes

6. Reports from County, District or Parish Councillors
Dist.Cllr. P. Butikofer.
A decision not to proceed with the North Norfolk Sports Hub because the exchange of land
between the tennis club and the school did no happen. There will be other investments in tennis
across the district.
Egmere Enterprise Zone. Is not financially viable without a tenant signed up for at least one
unit. Tax payers money cannot be spent on speculative development. It will still keep its Enterprise
status at no extra cost. No more money will be spent until a new contract is signed.
Sheringham Leisure Centre It was decided not to proceed with a wave machine at the
because of the additional cost. There were 2000 signatures on the petition for a wave machine but only 400 of them were from Norfolk.
Work on the Leisure Centre will start on 16th September and be complete by September 2021.
A Deep History Marathon and half-marathon will take place on May 17th 2020. This will
draw attention to the beauty of the coast line and the importance that NNDC attaches to physical and mental health in the community.
Better Broadband goals have been achieved with NCC and other district councils to provide
high speed broadband. By end of March 2020 North Norfolk should have 92% coverage.
Planning enforcement teams have been active. A Demolition Order for a two storey building
has been served on a property which had been in breach of planning control and alleged further
amendments to an unlawful dwelling. This included a swimming pool and an area of hard standing.
Electrical vehicle charging points are to be installed in six council owner car parks with a
total of 48 points.
The Felbeck Trust have won an Environmental Award.

7. Solar Community Fund Committee.
It is planned to try and establish a “Good Neighbours” scheme. This will be discussed further at the
next committee meeting.
The members agreed that a reserve of between £5000 and £10000 should be retained in the Solar
Fund account to cover on-going maintenance in the future.

8. Allotment Track Repairs.
The roadway and car park have been repaired in a very satisfactory manner by S. Witham.
It was agreed to ask Withams to cut the road hedges back when they were in the area.

9. Playing Field.
The gate has been removed for repairs. The monthly inspection was satisfactory.

10. West Beckham Allotments.
The Felbeck Trust have agreed to put a plan in place for the maintenance of the West Beckham allotment site. A short letter of approval for this scheme to be added to the existing agreement was urgently required and was signed by the Vice-chairman in the absence of the chairman.
It was proposed by Cllr. Dovey that a donation of £1700 should be made to the Felbeck Trust to assist in the first phase of four cuts and cleaning up at the West Beckham old allotment site, Also the planting of trees. The shed will also be made secure for the storage of tools and other equipment.
This proposal was seconded by Cllr. Toyne and unanimously approved by the members present.
11. Financial matters.
Bank Balances at 11/7/2019 Current a/c £12238.01 Savings a/c £7072.98
The following invoices were approved and cheques signed:-
K. Lord Travelling (Village sign inspection/commission) £42.14
S. Witham Allotment track repairs £2160
Felbeck Trust Donation (see item 10) £1700

12. Correspondence None

13. Matters for information only
Norfolk County Council have agreed that “Lefty`s Lane, East Beckham is listed as a public
carriageway. It was accepted as a road but never surfaced.
It was reported that many road side hedges were becoming very overgrown in places and are
encroaching onto the carriageway.
There was an accident at Lodge Hill Corner on 12th August when a car coming from the Beckham
Road was in a collision

There being no further business the chairman closed the meeting at 8.08pm.