MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON TUESDAY 15th JANUARY 2019 at 7.00 p.m. AT THE VILLAGE HALL, HEIGHTON ROAD, SOUTH HEIGHTON

Present: Councillors: P Julian, G Hazell, S Lo Fan Hin, A Turner and A Willey In Attendance: S Mills (Parish Clerk)

SHPC 1. Public Participation 19-001 In attendance were Jason Novis, Chairman of Denton and South Heighton Junior Football Club, Emily O’Brien from Community Action Newhaven and District Councillor Johnny Dennis.

Emily O’Brien gave an update on campaigns that CAN have been involved in, including the Port Access Road at Newhaven East Quay and the addition of Policy E1 to the draft local plan. CAN have a newsletter and are happy to add suitable items in from the Parish Council on request. The Chairman thanked Ms O’Brien for her attendance and suggested that CAN’s attendance at the Annual parish Meeting be discussed under item 9.2.

SHPC 2. Apologies 19-002 There were no apologies of absence to note.

SHPC 3. To receive declarations of interest from Councillors in respect of items on the agenda 19-003 There were no declarations of interest to note.

SHPC 4. Minutes 19-004 4.1. To Approve and sign the minutes of the meeting on 20th November 2018 The Minutes of the meeting held on 20th November 2018, circulated prior to the meeting, were AGREED and signed by the Chairman as a true record.

4.2. Matters Arising (not covered below) There were no matters arising to note.

SHPC 5. Chairman’s Announcements 19-005 The Chairman made the following announcements • The Council’s insurance company, Came & Company has been taken over by Arthur J Gallagher & Co. The Clerk and Chairman will assess what impact, if any, this will have on the Council’s insurance schedule. • The carols on the Village Green on 18th December had to be cancelled unfortunately due to the bad weather. Denton Hall was booked to transfer the event, however this had a leak so was unable to be used. Sainsbury’s in Newhaven donated a sum of money for the event and mince pies and chocolates were purchased. As these were unable to be used, the mince pies were donated to Newhaven Town Council for their band stand opening and the chocolates have been kept for the South Heighton Annual Parish Meeting. The Chairman thanked Sainsbury’s for the donation and the Clerk has written a letter of thanks on behalf of the Council. • The Christmas Tree on the Village Green was vandalised in the early hours of 1st January 2019 causing damage to the tree itself, the lights and star. The Chairman thanked Daryl D’Crus for repairing the lights, ensuring that residents were able to continue enjoying the tree; the Clerk has sent a letter of thanks on behalf of the Council. • The Chairman thanked Peter Nicholson for his generous donation of a Ryobi multi-tool to the Council, the Clerk has sent a letter of thanks on behalf of the Council.

SHPC 6. Denton and South Heighton Junior Football Club 19-006 6.1. Jason Novis of DaSH gave an update on the clubhouse project. The New clubhouse unit went in at the beginning of October last year, later than planned as it took longer to build. The clubhouse is not fully functional yet as the club were let down by 2 companies with the fitting of secure gates which are due to be delivered and installed within the next 2 weeks. Following this, electrical and plumbing services will need to be installed and then furnishings. The club intends to officially open towards the end of February. The next phase of the project will involve getting prices for the external cladding and roofing and making the steps accessible for wheelchairs and buggies, for which the club has to raise funds first. The club has enrolled in the FA pitch improvement programme which is subsidised by the FA and provides professional groundsman to assist with a

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pitch treatment plan. Repairs to the pitch will be undertaken in April including relaying the worn goal mouths and turfing of worn areas.

6.2. Members reviewed the request from DaSH to hold a Mini Soccer Tournament at the Hollow on Saturday 27th – Sunday 28th July 2019. There are expected to be 500 people on the pitch each day and 1000 over the whole weekend from 9am – 5pm; volunteers would be on site from 6am – 9pm. Cllr Turner asked why vehicle access is required, Jason Novis confirmed that this would be for a maximum of 20 volunteer’s vehicles to park on the north east section of the Hollow to prevent their cars from further blocking up the roads with so many visitors due over the weekend. It was RESOLVED to approve the application for the mini tournament as presented.

SHPC 7. Clerk’s Report 19-007 Members received a verbal report from the Clerk outlining business in progress since the last meeting. The bulk of the Clerk’s time has been devoted to collating, printing and binding a full copy of all Council Policies and Procedures to facilitate the review under item 10. In addition, the Clerk has produced financial reports for the Q3 period and has liaised with LDC regarding the remaining Newhaven Community Fund Grant spend. The Hollow booking calendar has been reinstated to the website and the Clerk has produced an annual asset register audit which has been distributed to all Councillors to ensure the asset register is up-to-date and insurance levels are adequate. Members NOTED the report.

SHPC 8. The Hollow Project 19-008 8.1. Update on progress Members received a verbal report from the Clerk who confirmed that Playsafe have now undertaken the repairs to the playhouse roof and the outstanding issues have been resolved. Members NOTED the update.

8.2. Quotes for fencing and new entrance gate Members reviewed the quotes submitted by LDC totalling £8,077.60 (exc vat) for removal of old fencing and vegetation along the western edge of the Hollow, provision and installation of new fencing along the Western and Northern edges of the Hollow and a new pedestrian gate at the north eastern corner at the Downs Villas entrance. The Clerk confirmed that, once the above costs have been deducted, the grant balance will be £12,881.23. Members suggested that a suitable use for the remaining grant funds would be to replace the ageing fencing around the play area to include some mesh at the bottom on the A26 side for children’s safety. It was RESOLVED to approve the quote and for the costs to be deducted from the Newhaven Community Fund Grant balance and for the Clerk to arrange a meeting with Chris Bibb from District Council and members of the Council to walk around the Hollow to review the final expenditure of the grant balance as outlined in the original project scope.

SHPC 9. Annual Parish Meeting 19-009 9.1. Change of date It was RESOLVED to approve a change of date for the Annual Parish Meeting from Tuesday 28th May 2019 to Monday 20th May 2019 at 7pm.

9.2. Format, venue and attendees It was RESOLVED to authorise the Clerk to book Denton Hall and to invite the following attendees to the Annual parish Meeting: • Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne (Cllr Hazell has contact details from a PCC focus group) • A representative from the Fire and Rescue Service • A representative from Neighbourhood first • A representative from the local neighbourhood/community police • A representative from Community Action Newhaven

SHPC 10. Council Policies and Procedures Review 19-010 Members provided feedback on the review of Council Policies and Procedures as circulated in a Policies and Procedures pack prior to the meeting. It was RESOLVED to approve the following procedures as presented: • Code of Conduct • Complaints Procedure

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• Data Protection Policy • Data Protection Privacy Notice • Disciplinary Policy • Email and Internet Usage Policy • Equal Opportunities Policy • Expenses Policy and Claim Form • Financial Regulations • Grant Awarding Policy • Grievance Policy • Health and Safety and Homeworking Policy • Media and Communications Policy • Performance Management and Appraisal Policy • Protocol for Representation on Outside Bodies • Protocol for the recording of Council meetings • Roles and Responsibilities Protocol for Councillors and Officers • Standing Orders • Training and Development Policy • Working Hours, Sickness and Absence Policy

It was RESOLVED to approve the Roles and Responsibilities for Councillors for the Municipal Year 2018/2019 with amendments as below:

Role/Responsibility Lead Member Substitute/Deputy 1. COMMUNICATIONS & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Cllr. Lo Fan Hin Cllr. G Hazell 2. WEBSITE CONTENT Cllr. Lo Fan Hin Cllr. P Julian 3. NEWSLETTER & FLIERS PREPARATION Cllr. P Julian Cllr. A Turner 4. NOTICEBOARD POSTINGS & MAINTENANCE Cllr. P Julian Cllr. A Willey 5. DOG BAG DISPENSER Cllr. A Turner Cllr. P Julian 6. DOG BIN REPORTING Cllr. A Turner Cllr. P Julian 7. GRIT BIN REPORTING Cllr. P Julian Cllr. A Turner 8. FLY TIPPING REPORTING Cllr. A Willey All Councillors 9. LITTER CLEARANCE Cllr. A Willey All Councillors 10. PLANNING APPLICATIONS Cllr. P Julian All Councillors 11. PLAY AREA & RECREATION GROUND Cllr. P Julian All Councillors 12. RIGHTS OF WAY & TWITTENS Cllr. G Hazell Cllr. P Julian 13. ROAD CLEANSING REPORTING Cllr. P Julian All Councillors 14. ROADS & HIGHWAYS MAINTENANCE REPORTING Cllr. P Julian All Councillors 15. STREET LIGHTING MAINTENANCE REPORTING Cllr. P Julian All Councillors 16. TREE OFFICER Cllr. A Willey All Councillors 17. CHRISTMAS TREE & LIGHTS Cllr. G Hazell All Councillors 18. VILLAGE MAINTENANCE Cllr. A Turner All Councillors

SHPC 11. Local Elections 19-011 Members received an update from the Clerk regarding arrangements for the upcoming local elections on Thursday 2nd May 2019 and distributed a copy of a presentation from LDC Electoral Services. The period of purdah for commences on Monday 18th March; candidate nominations open on Tuesday 19th March and close at 4pm on Wednesday 3rd April 2019 . The Clerk will provide Councillors with further details once released. Members NOTED the update.

SHPC 12. Planning 19-012 There have been no new planning applications submitted since the last meeting.

Members received an update regarding planning application LW/18/0785 – Loft conversion at the Westerings, Heighton Road which has now been approved following an amendment to remove the high front dormers. Members NOTED the update.

SHPC 13. Finance 19-013 13.1. Q1-Q3 Financial Update Members received an update on the Council’s Finances for Q1-Q3 of the Council’s financial year (1st April 2018 – 31st December 2018) including an Account Reconciliation, Bank Reconciliation,

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Working Cashbook, spend against budget and spend against the Newhaven Community Fund Grant (appendix A). Members NOTED the update and Councillors Julian and Turner signed the bank reconciliation and bank statements.

13.2. Precept for 2019-2020 Members reviewed the spend against budget for the current financial year and forecasted spend for the 2019/2020 financial year (appendix A). The grant from LDC has reduced again to £323 equating to a 21.4% decrease and the Council has increased expenditure to accommodate including the new grass cutting contract. It was RESOLVED to request a precept increase of 4% for the 2019-2020 financial year equating to an increase of 0.04 pence per week or £2.35 per year for a Bank D household.

13.3. VAT Return The Clerk presented the VAT return figures dating back to April 2017 totalling £22,248.62. It was RESOLVED to approve the VAT return as presented.

13.4. External Audit for 2017-2018 Financial Year. Members received an update from the Clerk regarding the External Audit for the 2017-2018 financial year which has been uploaded to the Parish Council website. Members NOTED the update.

13.5. Payments since last meeting The Council reviewed the list of payments to be paid this month circulated at the meeting as detailed in the table below:

Name Cheque made Product/Service Amount payable Parish Clerk Parish Clerk Salary for January 2019 £316.19 ESCC Additional urban grass cuts for 2018/2019 £361.20 Lewes District Council Play inspection December 2018 £18.00 Mrs G Hazell Christmas Tree from Sussex Trees £90.00 Mrs G Hazell Wire and ground spikes for Christmas Tree £28.94 JRB Enterprise Ltd Dog bags refill £39.30 Glynde Estates Recreation Ground Rent 24/12/18-23/06/19 £135.00 Lewes District Council Dog bin emptying 01/01/19 - 31/03/19 £280.80 Lewes District Council Play inspection January 2019 £18.00 GeoXphere Ltd Parish Online Mapping 2019 (annual) £42.00 Total: £1,329.43

It was RESOLVED that payments totalling £1,329.43 be made. Cllrs Lo Fan Hin and Turner signed the cheques.

SHPC 14. District/County/Parish Councillor Reports 19-014 District Cllr Johnny Dennis reported on the following raised by residents and confirmed that he is happy to raise any issues at District Council level that local residents or the Parish Council have: • Speeding on Iveagh Crescent • Dog fouling along Heighton Road. The Clerk will add this to the next newsletter. • Parking issues in the Village, particularly when pulling out of the lane from the garages opposite the Village Green. The number of parked cars, in addition to cars driving too fast along Heighton Road, is becoming very hazardous. Members agreed that a mirror opposite on the old post office would help with visibility. The Clerk will investigate this option. • Residents have raised that a safer crossing is needed between the houses at the bottom of Iveagh Crescent and Paradise Park Garden Centre and that the bus stop on the Paradise Park side, which is used frequently, is on grass and mud and can be unusable in bad weather. The Clerk will contact the Newhaven Town Clerk to enquire if Newhaven residents have raised the issue of this bus stop and to consider a joined-up approach when contacting ESCC.

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Cllr Hazell raised the issue of the number 12x buses which do not stop at Denton Corner as this is a frequently used bus stop by residents of South Heighton. The Clerk will contact Brighton and Hove buses to raise the issue.

Cllr Turner reported that Southern Gas Networks are undertaking works near the Village Green and have barriers with no lights which is very dangerous at night-time. The Chairman will speak with Southern Gas Networks to raise the issue.

Cllr Willey has been busy keeping the Hollow clean and tidy. There have been 2 fly tipping incidents of asbestos since Christmas which the Council reported immediately in addition to a dumped TV which was removed the next day.

The Chairman has spoken to Lewes District Council regarding the ongoing issues with fly-tipping at the Hollow and is pleased to report that a CCTV camera is planned to be installed at the Hollow as a preventative measure.

SHPC 15. Consultations/Meetings/Activities 19-015 To consider a response the following: 15.1. Attendance at Newhaven Energy Recovery CLG Meeting on 31/01/19 It was RESOLVED to approve attendance by Cllr Hazell, Cllr Turner and the Clerk.

SHPC 16. Date and location of next Council Meeting 19-016 It was NOTED that the next meeting would be on Tuesday 19th February 2019 at 7.00 p.m. at the South Heighton Village Hall, Heighton Road.

SHPC The meeting ended at 8.50pm 19-017 Signed: Date:

Print Name: Cllr Paul Julian - Chairman South Heighton Parish Council

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