Page 2016/149 MINUTES of the MEETING of SWALLOWFIELD
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MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF SWALLOWFIELD PARISH COUNCIL HELD ON TUESDAY 8TH MARCH 2016 IN THE ROSE ROOM, SWALLOWFIELD PARISH HALL AT 7.30PM Present: Cllr. P. Sampson (Chairman) Cllr. J. Anderson Cllr. B. Dance, Cllr. M. McDonald, Cllr. R. Norris, Cllr. J. Sant, Cllr. J. Wheelwright In Attendance: Liz Halson, Parish Clerk Stuart Munro, Borough Councillor Members of the public: 3 213 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE Cllr. G.E. Collender 214 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST None 215 QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC To receive questions or comments from the public, including those on planning. Up to 20 minutes will be allocated for questions/comments from members of the public with a guideline of no more than 5 minutes per subject. If several members of the public wish to speak on the same subject, they are requested to nominate a spokesperson. Comments will be minuted. For more details please read the document Guidelines for Public Participation at Parish Council Meetings which is available on the Parish Council website or at the Parish Office. 215.1 RA – I would like to know why I haven’t been invited to the meeting the council are having with Mason’s funfair to discuss holding the funfair in Riseley. I wrote a letter outlining 10 objections. PS - last year when the council rescinded its decision to allow Mason’s to hold their funfair at Riseley the council agreed that it would meet with Mason’s and invite residents to also discuss the situation. At the time Mr Goldsmith, original objector, and Mrs Wardle, organiser of petition, agreed that they would represent residents who were opposed to the fair. They have been invited to the meeting along with two councillors. RN – if there are concerns should we not take note of the resident’s opposition. PS – we have taken note, Cllrs. Sant and Norris will represent the council and Mr Goldsmith and Mrs Wardle will represent residents. Mason’s have been very patient with the council and we owe it to them to be respectful and give them an opportunity to answer the objections raised by some residents. It is understood that there are residents who would welcome Mason’s funfair. The council cannot take a decision based on a minority of residents. RA – I accept your decision. Page 2016/149 Swallowfield Parish Council Meeting, Minutes Tuesday 8th March 2016 _________________________________________________________________________ 215.2 RA – What happens if something comes up in a meeting that we want to comment on, we have no opportunity to say anything. PS – Members of the public have no right to speak at a council meeting; however, it is good practice to allow a time for the public to speak and Swallowfield PC has decided that they wish to offer this opportunity. Our website describes how members of the public can best have their questions answered; often by having a conversation with a Councillor or the Clerk outside of formal meeting. The agenda is published in advance and it is not permissible for topics to be discussed which are not on the agenda. The opportunity for the public to speak was moved to the beginning of the meeting at the request of Riseley residents. Are you now asking for it to be moved to the end? RN - No 215.3 MR – there is a planning application due to go in after Easter for gravel extraction on a 130 hectare site in Shinfield. This is a joint venture between Farley Farms and Cemex. Approximately 3.6 million tonnes of gravel will be extracted over 10-15 years. After extraction has finished the land will be filled with inert materials and restored to farmland except the areas in the Loddon floodplain which will be left to fill with water. Restoration will take place as the gravel is extracted with footings lifted from the Shinfield and Arborfield developments and then covered with top soil. Vehicle access will be from a roundabout off the proposed Arborfield relief road so there should be no need for lorries to use local roads other than for local deliveries. It will not directly affect Swallowfield. JW – How many lorry movements will there be? MR – lorries from this site will replace lorries already on the road carrying gravel from Eversley and Bramshill. Most of the gravel will go towards Reading to supply the development market, with the remainder going up towards London. Berkshire needs 1.2 million tonnes of gravel per year, JW – how much will I see and hear? MR – nothing. MM – where will it go? MR – past Kenny’s Farm and footpath. MM – what about the possible impact on flooding? MR – it will not make any difference, there is currently a water meadow on the site. MM – the FRG will want to meet with you to discuss. MR – I am happy to meet with them. PS – have WBC factored in the lorry movements into their transport plan? MR – I don’t know. I didn’t get invited to the Arborfield Garrison Community Forum meeting. SM – the traffic model didn’t take this into account. _________________________________________________________________________ Page 2016/150 Swallowfield Parish Council Meeting, Minutes Tuesday 8th March 2016 _________________________________________________________________________ MR – there will be a proper consultation hosted by Cemex in Shinfield and Arborfield Parish Halls. I will leave a Fact Sheet with more details. Copies available in the Parish Office. 215.4 EL – I am the owner of Brandywell on Spring Lane. I have applied for planning permission to knock down the house and build a new family home. 216 CHAIRMAN’S ANNOUNCEMENTS 216.1 Casual Vacancy – it was NOTED that there is a vacancy for a Councillor. Anyone interested in becoming a Councillor should contact the Clerk. 216.2 Working Groups – it was AGREED that the working groups would be as documented on page 2016/164. 216.3 Swallowfield Parish Clean Up Day – it was NOTED that the annual Swallowfield Parish Clean Up Day would take place on Saturday March 19th, 10am and 4pm. It was PROPOSED and seconded that up to £100 would be spent on refreshments for the volunteers. All in favour. 1 216.4 APM – it was NOTED that the Annual Parish Meeting would be held on Tuesday 19th April 2016, 7:30pm. Speakers were confirmed as Paul Southern, Assistant Chief Fire Officer, Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service; Ben Godber, Bohunt School, Arborfield Green; Anne Fowler, Marketing and Communications Officer for re3 and Roger Norris, Swallowfield Flood Resilience Group. It was NOTED that lead councillors should prepare their reports and submit to the Clerk by 11th April at the latest. 2 217 MINUTES OF LAST MEETING 217.1 It was PROPOSED and seconded that the minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 9th February 2016 be approved. All in favour. 217.2 Clerks report on matters arising and outstanding actions from last meeting. 217.2.1 Update on items from previous meetings 193.2 Mason’s Funfair – Cllrs Norris and Sant plus two Riseley residents would meet with a representative of Masons funfair on Monday 14th March to discuss resident’s concerns regarding holding the funfair on Riseley Recreation Ground. 193.4 Riseley Signs - Cllr. Norris had met with the resident to explain how the council is addressing issues with speeding and signage in Riseley. 1 Clerk to let organisers know 2 All / Clerk _________________________________________________________________________ Page 2016/151 Swallowfield Parish Council Meeting, Minutes Tuesday 8th March 2016 _________________________________________________________________________ 195.3.3 No 7 Bus - Cllr Norris and the Clerk had met to discuss the issues regarding the route of the No 7 bus. Further investigation is required. 195.3.4 Kingsbridge - Cllr. Munro had reported that the red/white barriers currently in place are temporary and would be replaced by permanent bollards. He also reported that he is in dialogue with WBC regarding the signage. 200.2 Soil Condition Surveys, Fieldfayre – the survey work had been completed, the report was expected by the end of March. 201.2 Ditch Maintenance – the work on the parish ditches and balancing ponds approved at the last meeting had been carried out. WBC had raised a works order for clearance of the Trowes Lane ditch. 205.2 Water Heater in the Pre-school area – pre-school is delighted with the new hot water tap which had replaced the water heater. 205.3 Ovens – all ovens in the hall had been professionally cleaned. Pre-school had sent their thanks to the council and would make sure that the one in their area is cleaned each time is it used. 209.3 Green Triangles at Road Junctions, Farley Hill – WBC responded to say that there is no money in the budget to install posts on the triangle in question. 3 5.2.1 Other Updates 5.2.1.1 Arborfield Green – it was NOTED that there would be a public consultation event on Saturday 19th March 1pm-5pm at Garrison Community Centre, Sheerlands Road, Arborfield RG2 9ND. Update Meeting – it was NOTED that Curtin & Co who are managing community consultation on behalf of the developer, Crest Nicholson had requested an update meeting with the council. This would be held on Thursday 7th April, Cllrs. Anderson and Wheelwright would attend. 218 BOROUGH/PARISH MEETINGS 218.1 Peer Review – it was NOTED that the Chairman was invited to take part in a peer review of WBC officers. It was disappointing that the invitation was sent the day before the meeting and not copied to the Clerk. Cllr. Sampson received the invitation after the review had taken place, other parishes experienced the same issue. 218.2 Southern Parishes Meeting – it was NOTED that an informal meeting of the southern parishes of Shinfield, Swallowfield, Finchampstead, Beech Hill, Earley and Barkham took place on 3rd March 2016, Cllrs.