SUTTON WALDRON ANNUAL PARISH COUNCIL MEETING Wednesday 4th September 2019 following the Annual Parish Meeting

MINUTES

Present: Chairman: David Smith Councillors: John Ellis, Claire Aartsen, Iain McNeil Clerk: Marianne Wheatley Dorset Councillor: Jane Somper

Residents: Gill Severn, Jane McNeil, Nick Somper, Walter Steward, Dick Hood, Helen Dixie, Caroline Marsden, Crystal Pearson.

The Chairman welcomed Cllr. Jane Somper the new Dorset Council Councillor.

04/09/01 Apologies – There were no apologises for absence.

04/09/02 Declarations of Interest – There were no declarations of interest.

04/09/03 Minutes of Previous Meeting - The Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting and the Annual Parish Council Meeting held on 8th May 2019 were read and approved and following the meeting signed by the Chairman.

04/09/04 Matters Arising a. Drains on The Street – The Clerk had followed this up with Highways and Highways had completed the works on the drains in the fields by Sutton House. There was a root problem which had now been sorted. The Parish Council thanked Mrs. Bell of Sutton House and Paul Millard for their help in resolving this matter. b. Potholes on Sutton Hill – It was confirmed that the potholes on Sutton Hill near the level stretch by the farm were getting bigger and needed patching again. It was agreed the Clerk would follow this up. c. CPR Training – The Chairman confirmed that CPR training had been organised for the evening of 15th October 2019 between 7 & 9pm. There were 20 places available and the trainer from the British Heart Foundation would do CPR training and introduce them to defibrillators. The Chairman confirmed he would put some notices up advertising the training. The trainer had asked for donations to his travel expenses and towards the cost of the materials he would be using in the training. d. Sign on Napiers Way – The sign had been repaired. They had done a good job. e. Village Climate Action Group – Cllr. Aartsen confirmed that 20 people had attended the recent meeting and they had brain stormed ideas on how to reduce environmental impact. The proposal was to send a booklet to the residents which was almost ready to go. There would be other meetings the next one would possibly be in October. It was confirmed that as not everyone in the village used emails the booklet would not be sent electronically and that paper would have to be used.

04/09/05 Correspondence/Other Parish Matters a. Reports from Dorset Councillor – Cllr. Somper read out her report which is attached. Cllr. McNeil asked about the new Local Plan and whether this would affect villages that did not currently have a settlement boundary. The Dorset Councillor confirmed that she believed that the Local Plan would still be concentrating on developing sustainable villages i.e. villages with infrastructure. b. Inspection of The Spinney, Bus Shelter and Telephone Box – in accordance with the Risk Management Policy The Spinney, the Bus Shelter and the Telephone Box had been inspected. c. Road Safety on Boyne’s Lane – The Parish Council had received a request from a resident asking if double white lines could be put down the centre of the C13. The Clerk had sent this through to Highways and Paul Eastwood the Senior Technical Officer had replied to the Resident. In summary Highways’ response was that the number of collisions on Boyne’s Lane did not justify double white lines but they would continue to monitor all collisions on the road. It was confirmed that the hedges on the corner of Sutton Hill and the C13 needed cutting back. It was confirmed that this was the landowners responsibility but as in this instance this was a safety issue the Clerk would write to Highways and ask them to cut back the hedges. It was also agreed that the Clerk would write to Highways and ask for a deer warning sign to be erected on the C13 coming North. There was one going South but not one going North. d. Statement of Community Involvement – The Parish Council were recently consulted on this statement which relates to the communities involvement in the consultation process on the new Local Plan. The A350 Community Group asked the Parish Council to submit a comment asking amongst other things for a Strategic Economic Plan and a Local Transport Plan to be developed alongside the Local Plan and asking for the Parish Councils to be involved in the development of these plans. The Parish Council agreed that they would send the submission as requested by the A350 Community Group. The Chairman commented that the A350 Community Group were a lobby group who were trying to get improvements to the A350. The Parish council were very much support of the work of this group. e. North Dorset Area Strategic Landscape and Heritage Sensitivity Assessment - As part of the consultation process on the Local Plan the Parish Council have also been asked to comment on this document which effectively deals with the various conservation areas within North Dorset. Sutton Waldron is referred to under the Fontmell Magna comments where it states:

“The assessment area also directly adjoins the Sutton Waldron Conservation Area to the south-west which could be susceptible to harm as a result of loss of its rural setting. Some of the listed buildings within it, which are all grade II, save for the grade ll* Church of St. Bartholomew, may also be susceptible to setting change.”

So effectively they have to consider the impact of developing Fontmell Magna on the Sutton Waldron conservation area. Shaftesbury were currently consulting on their Neighbourhood Plan and this could be viewed in the library, the Town Hall and the Art Centre on various dates in September 2019. One of the most important matters was that the corridor for the proposed by-pass should be retained. This was important as it could have a direct impact on the A350.

04/09/06 Planning Applications – The Parish Council had been consulted on one application since the last meeting which was by Yew Tree Cottage on the Street to erect a single storey side and two storey rear extension. The Parish Council reviewed the application and concluded that they had no objection to this application.

04/09/07 Finance a. Balance - The Clerk had circulated the up to date cashbook and the balance in the bank at 3rd September 2019 was £3727.20. the expenses to date are in line with the anticipated budget. There had been no extraordinary items of expenditure. b. Bills to be paid: It was then agreed that the Clerk’s salary for April to June 2019 in the sum of £321.30 should be paid. There were no other bills to be paid. The Clerk confirmed that since the last meeting the Parish Council has also paid Vision ICT Ltd £150.00 being the website hosting fee, The Society of Local Councils renewal and the insurance in the sum of £208.74 which was slightly less than last year and less than the initial quote. This was the best quote and The Parish Council had decided to stay with Community First the current insurers. c. Budget – The budget for the next financial year will need to be set at the next meeting. The Clerk will put together a draft budget for consideration at that meeting. The Clerk should be advised about any items of expenditure that need to be included in the budget that are not in the current budget before the next meeting.

04/09/08 Any Other Business – Cllr. McNeil confirmed that DWP had been approached to repair the litter bin by the bus stop. The Chairman confirmed that the Parish Council had been contacted by the Fontmell Magna Community Land Trust. One of the aims of the CLT was to save the shop in Fontmell Magna. The Chairman thought the CLT should be invited to hold a meeting in the Sutton Waldron to discuss its aims. He would speak to the directors to organise this. One of the residents commented on the speed on the A350 and the C13. The advisory one way system was widely abused and the speed limits were regularly exceeded. There could not be a residents operated handheld speed trap in the village as there was nowhere to safely site the speed watch team. The resident asked whether the village gates could be moved so that a speed watch team could operate. The speed of the cars through the village itself was also a concern. It was agreed that the Clerk would ask Highways whether a Speed Indicator Device could be erected on the A350 and in the Village. Cllr. Somper commented that the Director of Service had meet the A350 Community Group and there was a lot of focus on the Local Enterprise Partnership to provide funds for a large traffic study to be done with a viewing to moving the traffic elsewhere. Cllr. Somper confirmed that the residents needed to do everything to support the A350 Community Group who were well organised and determined.

04/09/09 Reports a. Church – It was confirmed that the recent treasure hunt had raised £345.00. The organisers of the event were thanked. The Breakfast Church continued to be a success there was a 2 lavish breakfast and everyone was welcome. The Harvest Festival was due to take place on 22nd September 2019 and there would be a lunch afterwards in the Old School House. Everyone was welcome to the service and/or the lunch. There would be a raffle and the perishable produce would be auctioned off. The would be a Benefice service on 29th September 2019. b. Village Hall – It was confirmed that there would be a Caribbean evening on 19th October 2019 and the Community Christmas dinner would take place on 11th December 2019. c. Footpaths – It was confirmed that some of the circular discs needed replacing. The Chairman confirmed he had a few and the Clerk confirmed that she would see if Fontmell Magna still had some. The White Hart Link had now been completed and comes through the parish. The Ride and Stride was due to take place on 14th September 2019. The proceeds from this event went towards the maintenance of the structure of the Church.

04/09/010 Date of next meetings – The next meeting was due to take place on 11th December 2019 but this is the same date as the Christmas Lunch accordingly it was agreed that the meeting would now take place on 4th December 2019. The village hall had already been booked for 4th December 2019.

There being no further business the meeting was closed at 8.35pm.

Signed…………………………………… Dated…………………………………. Chairman

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Dorset Council Beacon Ward Cllr Jane Somper

August/September 2019 The first three months in the life of Dorset Council has been busy, interesting and challenging in equal measure. Full Council has met twice, with “lively” interventions from the public each time. A raft of committees, boards, and panels are now up and running. Cross-party panels are looking at assets, leisure services, climate change, locality working, planning policy, and much more. So, a good start has been made, but the challenge will be to maintain the momentum and deliver the transformation needed to achieve the full potential of the new council, and the Leader, Cllr Spencer Flower has recently written to the Chancellor stating that without a contribution from Government for the expensive demand led services for Children and Adults, it will become increasingly challenging to continue to provide the services that residents expect from Dorset Council.

Council Workforce

We continue to shape the new workforce through converging the services of the six predecessor councils. The Senior Leadership Team and most of the Corporate Directors are in post and work is pushing ahead to restructure the remaining tiers of staff. This work will be completed by the end of the year, reducing costs of service delivery by £5.5m in year, and £10m in the first budget year. This is in line with the case for reorganisation submitted to Government and with the 2019/20 budget. Council staff are facing this tough and fast paced programme of change with commendable professionalism.

Highways

You will all be aware of the extensive programme of repairs to our roads in recent months. In particular, Dorset Highways have undertaken a number of high profile bridge repairs, most notably the major engineering project to replace the flood culverts at Durweston, and work on Blandford Bridge and at Sturminster Newton. The Durweston project has run to time throughout and is expected to finish on schedule. In engineering terms this is a nationally significant project of which our Officers are rightly proud. We have also seen a swathe of resurfacing on roads small and large throughout the spring and summer. Residents have experienced a good deal of inconvenience while this work is undertaken, but the work must be done and we were equally inconvenienced by the potholes. Dorset Highways are reasonably good at coordinating road closures and communicating with local communities before and during disruption. But given the impact on local people we should require Highways to make minimising this hardship a priority, against which the local community will measure their success. I will continue to press this view with the new Corporate Director. All scheduled work can be seen on the website, including a useful online roadwork map. Paul Starkey is the Community Highways Officer, available on [email protected]

Planning

Work has started on producing a new Local Plan for Dorset. A Local Plan determines what level of development is needed to meet known housing demand over a 15 year period, and sets out in broad terms where development should be located. It also enshrines local planning and conservation policies. We are required to have a new Local Plan in place by 2024. Consulting with local residents and Parish Councils is a statutory requirement of the Local Plan procedure. The Cabinet Member with responsibility for planning is David Walsh, whose contact details are [email protected]. In the meantime, the existing North Dorset Local Plan and the various Neighbourhood Plans continue in force across our area and remain the basis for any comments by Parish Councils or other consultees. The arrangements for requesting planning applications to be considered by committee varied slightly across the former Districts so have now been simplified and agreed across the new council. Details are on the website but, essentially, a Parish Council or Ward Member can request committee consideration. This must be done within the consultation period and the planning grounds must be given. The final decision rests with the Head of Planning. The newly appointed Head of Planning is Mike Garrity and the new Service Manager for Development Management and Enforcement is Anna Lee.

Relationship with Town and Parish Councils In the run up to the new Council there was, perhaps inevitably, some misinformation about the future role of Town and Parish Councils. A cross-party panel has been set up to work with Town and Parish Councils to establish an effective way of working in partnership for the future. The Cabinet Member leading on this is Cllr Tony Alford who can be contacted on [email protected]. 4

Corporate Plan I attended a presentation last week and will be forwarding information to the Clerk and Councillors of the Parish Council when it becomes available, so you will input your valuable views in to the plan. Public Consultation October-December 2019. I would like to, if possible and you are willing, to arrange a public meeting for the whole ward, perhaps with neighbouring wards.

Getting in Touch The quickest way to contact Dorset Council is via the website, Dorsetcouncil.gov.uk. This has been upgraded and updated, though it is still not without the occasional glitch! If you encounter a problem please do report it so that it can be picked up. Contacting individual officers is not always easy at present because of the upheavals across the workforce. In due course Parish Councils will get to know the new Officers and re-establish the good working relationships we have been used to. You will have seen the first edition of the council magazine, Dorset Council News. This is a transitional publication, with two more editions planned for November 2019 and March 2020. If it proves popular it will be continued. The content is produced in-house and the production and distribution costs are covered by advertising, so there is no additional burden on the taxpayer. I have a new, official (and very long) email address which I am required to use for data security. So if you are still using one of my old emails could you change your records to [email protected].