Minutes of the annual meeting of Weston Longville Parish Council Held at 7.30 pm on Monday 14th May 2012 in the Village Hall, Ringland

PRESENT: Peter Ross (incoming Chairman), Anthony Thomas (incoming Vice Chairman), Ruth Goodall , David Gurney, Mollie Parkinson, John Staveley, John Wright Other attendance: Jackie Orford (Clerk), Councillor James Joyce (Norfolk County Council)

1. Election of Chairman and Vice Chairman John Wright nominated John Staveley as Chairman. John Staveley declined the nomination. Anthony Thomas nominated Peter Ross. Ruth Goodall seconded the latter nomination and this being agreed Peter Ross was elected as Chairman for the coming year. Ruth Goodall nominated Anthony Thomas as Vice Chairman. Peter Ross seconded the nomination and Anthony Thomas was agreed as Vice Chairman for the coming year.

The Chairman and Vice Chairman signed the Declarations of Acceptance of Office.

2. Register of Members’ Interests There were no changes.

3. Apologies for absence There were no apologies.

4. Members’ Declarations of interests for meeting tonight None received.

5. Minutes of the Meeting held on 13th February 2012 These were agreed and signed by the Chairman.

6. Matters arising from the minutes not covered elsewhere on the agenda a. The Clerk agreed to query the position regarding Planning Application 20110848 Merryhill, Honingham. b. With regard to Planning Application 20111011 re land at Ringland Lane, Morton on the Hill, the Clerk advised that Broadland District Council were investigating activity despite the planning refusal. c. John Wright advised that a group of 466 bomb group veterans and guests were visiting. Various events had been scheduled including a ceremony in the parish on 28th May followed by lunch at the Parson Woodforde.

7. Written report from the Police Community Support Officer - PCSO Webb. The Clerk read the report for February-April and the annual report for 2011-2012.  It was agreed that it would be useful to have statistics for RTCs reported as well as those the Police attended. Accidents on Weston Hall Road were noted.  It was agreed that Anthony Thomas would attend the next Safer Neighbourhood Action Priority (SNAP) meeting if necessary.  It was agreed that it was extremely beneficial to have the PCSO in attendance at Parish Council meetings.

8. Highways Issues a. Update – John Staveley reported that Norfolk County Council did not share the parish concern regarding the bend at Weston Hall but they had suggested drainage difficulties Page 1 of 3 ‘might’ be examined further. With regard to slippery road surfaces the County Council would consider this in the near future but had reminded the parish of budgetary constraints. With regard to verge reinstatements it had been noted that the current temporary road closure afforded the opportunity for that work to be carried out. b. Traffic and speed – John Wright highlighted speed issues on Field Road. David Gurney raised concern about the level of appropriate signage on the bend. John Wright said that visibility at the new Wood Lane junction was poor (towards Frans Green). John Staveley agreed to liaise with James Winter in Highways and highlight again the number of other concerns. The possibility of the Parish Council funding road improvements on a cost sharing basis was considered and it was agreed that in the first instance figures for traffic and speed should be collated for 3 priority areas (with the main criteria of safety) so that a top priority could be identified. John Staveley agreed to take this forward. c. It was agreed that the Clerk raise with the Highways Rangers the necessity to trim the Wood Lane hedge (coming from the A47) and additionally remind Highways of the need to change the priority sign (coming from Weston Longville).

9. Village Hall and Play area a. Village Hall – The Parish Council noted that the Village Hall had now been demolished. September 21st was the target date for completion of the new hall with a grand opening scheduled for end of October. It was agreed that the Village Hall Committee should address the issue of protecting the old minute books. b. Playing Field – Ray Baker had ordered the storage container and equipment was being ordered. The Village Hall will insure any equipment. Public liability for the playing field resides with the Parish Council. The hall itself has its own public liability insurance.

10. Greener Weston a. Additional planting – Anthony Thomas asked for suggestions (via the Wensum Diary) as to areas to plant shrubs. Highways regulations were noted. Bulb purchases had already been made. Clare Morton advised that the jubilee diamond had now been planted up. Ros Finch reported that planters seemed cost prohibitive but agreed to ascertain whether local companies might agree to sponsor.

11. Parish Footpaths Concerns were raised regarding the use of parish public footpaths by motorcyclists – The Chairman advised that a landowner can give permission for anyone to use his land but motorcyclists must have insurance/mot/tax on a public highway. Landowners are responsible for repairing damage to public footpaths (caused by private vehicular use). One solution could be for motorcyclists to push their bikes to areas of land where they had permission. Use by motorcyclists of public footpaths (without permission/insurance) is a Road Traffic Offence and Cllr Joyce suggested raising this with PC Benson. In the first instance it was agreed that Anthony Thomas would speak to a user so that he could inform others that permission was a privilege which would be removed if necessary.

12. SMART Conference The report from Ruth Goodall was received. The benefits of attending NRCC conferences were noted together with the importance of considering workers as well as residents.

13. Parish Plan – update for 2013 – It was agreed that this should be revisited particularly to ensure that there was evidence to backup funding requests. It was agreed that the parish should produce a neighbourhood plan and Ruth Goodall volunteered to take this forward

Page 2 of 3 post Autumn of 2013. It was noted that there may be a desire to develop the airfield site in the longer term, and a neighbourhood plan would demonstrate a consensus as to what the parish should look like in the future. It was agreed to place the item on the agenda for the next meeting. The Chairman proposed a meeting with Chairs of 8 surrounding parishes and agreed to take this forward.

14. Planning issues 20111496 was refused but the applicants have a right to appeal. Parish concerns include - treating those who already live in the parish differently; proliferation; lack of sustainability; incorporating within a community not isolating. The importance of general engagement was highlighted. The Parish Council are keen for the District to develop a proper strategy and it was agreed that Ruth Goodall and Peter Ross should speak to Andrew Proctor and Simon Woodbridge.

15. Correspondence/items actioned since last meeting The information provided on the Clerk’s summary sheet was noted.

16. Correspondence/items to be actioned It was agreed that the Clerk would circulate the proposed Best in Broadland submission for comments.

17. Financial matters a. The following were approved: the financial accounts for 2011-2012*; the internal auditor’s report; the annual audit documents. b. Payment of accounts were agreed c. An application from All Saints’ Churchyard fund was received. The grant of £500 was approved. d. It was agreed to increase to increase the Clerk’s hours to 3 per week from April 2012 and consider this again when setting the precept. e. The updated financial accounts for 2012-2013 were received with agreement in principle to approve payment of invoices expected in advance of the next meeting.

18. Any other business a. David Gurney said that due to other pressures he had reluctantly decided to step down after the meeting. On behalf of the Parish the Chairman expressed sadness at David Gurney’s resignation and thanked him for all his years’ work and expertise particularly with regard to planning matters. He presented a personal gift from members of the Parish Council. b. Election – potential election costs were noted. If no election was called the casual vacancy could be filled by way of the co-option process. Any nominations should be forwarded to the Clerk in due course.

19. Date and venue of future meetings: 9 July 2012 – at Ringland Village Hall 12 November 2012 – Weston Longville Village Hall 11 February 2013 – Weston Longville Village Hall Jackie Orford Mrs J Orford - Clerk to the Council May 2012

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