Stoke Canon Parish Council

Minutes of Annual Parish Meeting held Thursday May 4th 2017.

Those present were Derek Boustred (Chair), David Cowie, Sarah Poole, Angela Richards, Kate Scott-Clarke, Simon Grundy and Neville Bennett(Clerk) plus two members of the public.

Prior to the meeting a talk was given by Victoria Robinson of SWITCH which organizes one day fun days for councils, and Stoke Canon was offered one such day. Following discussion of venues etc it was agreed to work towards a Fun Day between 7th and 9th August.

1. Apologies for Absence Alan Conway. Chris Jones (who has tendered her resignation).

2. Minutes of the 2016 APM (circulated). These were agreed and signed as a true record.

3. Report from the Chairman. The Chair overviewed the extensive activities undertaken over the past year. These included: Improvements in communication including Facebook and a new website under construction. Highways, particularly drainage issues and potholes. Grass cutting where we now use a private contractor. Community Payback scheme – a service which has provided labour for keeping the village tidy. Play Park – has recently been inspected and found satisfactory. A small strip of play park has been sold which will have no effect on the facilities. Path from Rewe to Stoke Canon. Highways have offered to surface dress the path over the next 12 months, and a bid to the Parishes Together Fund with Rewe will shortly be made to make further improvements. Defibrillator. This has been donated by the British heart Foundation and will soon be installed on the side of the Jubilee hall. The bus shelter has been painted. Several local and regional meetings have been attended by councillors. Planning. There has only been one significant application – this being for Stoke Cottage. The latest application has been withdrawn. Flood and Emergency Planning. Two evenings for the training of Flood Wardens have been arranged and the flood plan updated. Questionnaire. A short questionnaire has been developed to identify what parishioners think are the most important issues and will be distributed soon. Finally the Chair thanked the councilors and the Clerk for their efforts through the year 4. Report from County Councillor Peter Bowden. Not present.

5. Report from District Councillor Simon Grundy. Not present

6. Report from PCSO Jack Stannard. There were two crimes in March – a burglary where nothing was stolen and the theft of a boat and trailer. There were three crimes in April – signs were stolen from outside the post office and pub and tools were stolen from the back of an unattended van.

7. Any Other Business. None