Well Parish Council Minutes of the Annual Village Meeting Held at Well Institute on Monday 12 May 2014

WELL PARISH COUNCIL MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL VILLAGE MEETING HELD AT WELL INSTITUTE ON MONDAY 12 MAY 2014

Present: David Webster (Chairman), Sarah Sharp (Vice-Chairman), Avril Lane, Sydd Perry, Martin Jones Julia Hamby (Parish Clerk) and 14 parishioners.

1. Apologies had been received from Mr Mark Sampson, Mr James Bourne-Arton and Mr David Hobson, Mr David Greaves.

2. Minutes of the Last AVM. These had been circulated to all Councillors, published on the village website, and were available to anyone who wanted to see them via the Parish Clerk. There were no issues arising which were not also included in the agenda for this meeting, so it was agreed not to read them out verbatim. Sarah Sharp proposed, and Martin Jones seconded, that they be accepted as a true record; this was carried unanimously, and they were signed accordingly.

3. Matters Arising from the Minutes. There were no Matters Arising from the minutes.

4. Reports. The following reports were presented to the meeting:

a) Well Institute Trustees. Mr Mark Sampson was unable to attend but had forwarded the following report: Following the sudden, and unexpected, return of the Institute to the control of the Trustees a number of changes have taken place.

Sandy Henderson and David Webster have retired as Trustees and Gerry Heap stepped down some time ago. Mark Sampson remains as a Trustee and Ruth Smirthwaite and Samuel Webster have been appointed.

A change in Trustees necessitates a somewhat lengthy legal process as the Institute is not a Charity and the building is actually owned by the Trustees. The requirements are all now met and all that remains is for confirmation of change of ownership from the Land Registry.

The Trustees will hold their first meeting as soon as they have heard from the Land Registry.

The Institute is fully insured, running costs paid and lettings etc. continue albeit at a low level.

b) Well Quoits Club. Mr Dave Hobson was unable to attend but sent the following report: Well Quoit Club finished about mid-table again in 2013 in the Zetland ‘A’ Division. The 2014 season commenced on the 29th April away to Bowes ‘A;. Not a very good venue as it is normally cold and wet, snow or both, losing 5-2. Our second game at home to Cockfield wining 5-2, not a bad result as they are a fairly good team. Quoit Club Suppers – due to the Castle Arms at Snape recently changing hands and the new owners requesting £42 game for our refreshments, we quickly decided to seek an alternative option. Milbank Arms continuing to be closing Monday evenings during the summer, we had to look elsewhere. Fortunately we have now negotiated better terms with the Chef at the Mason’s Arms, Nosterfield who made us very welcome and the suppers have been excellent.

c) Well Ringmaster Scheme. Mr Geoff Ross reported the following: We currently have 8 members, and have received a total of 38 messages from the police during the last 12 months.

Thankfully we continue to be in a relatively crime free area and consequently the majority of these messages relate to incidents in the wider North Yorkshire Police area.

Any residents interested in joining the scheme are invited to make contact with me.

d) Well Oiled Club. Mr Geoff Ross reported the following: Our Oil Club is now into its third year and we currently have 23 members.

During the last 12 months we have had 5 deliveries, totalling 32,000 litres.

Kettlewell’s consistently offer the most competitive rates and as a result, all our orders have been with them, although I do regularly enquire of other companies to ensure that we are obtaining the best discount.

Our average discount, compared with an individual order, has been in the region of 5 or 6p per litre, which translates to an annual saving to the Club as a whole of about £1600, or over £70 per member.

Individual requirements obviously vary depending on the property size and rate of oil use, but an order every 2 or 3 months seems to satisfy most households.

Any Well residents interested in joining the group should contact me on 470388.

e) Community Police. This report was given by PCSO Ian MacDonald. He started his report by saying that North Yorkshire and Richmond and Hambleton were the Number One spots to live in because of the low crime rate. He then went on to give a brief update on Crime Outcomes that have replaced detected or undetected crime recording. As far as the performance overview for our area is concerned, there was nothing to report. There is a new Commander for Hambleton and Richmondshire, Superintendent Simon Lovell has taken on the role. Bedale Mobile Watch has been resurrected but there was nothing to report, he then gave some information on recent crime near to the Well Parish. Finally, although not in his printed report he referred to the mention in the Chairman’s report at the AGM regarding the possibility of a defibrillator in the village and how useful he felt this would be especially during the TDF when roads could be closed for up to 6 hours meaning that access for ambulances would not be possibly and how a defib machine saves lives. He gave a description of how they work. He also mentioned some training that would be taking place at West Tanfield in the near future and gave his contact details to the Clerk so that she could contact him regarding this. A copy of his full report is available on the Parish Website along with these Minutes. The question of the cost of a defib machine was raised and Martin Jones confirmed that the actual machine costs £900 and the box to store it in would be £600. PCSO MacDonald said that West Tanfield were fundraising to buy a machine. Finally Mrs Kath Greaves praised the NY Police having had dealings with them on a couple of occasions recently and couldn’t speak highly enough of them.

f) Well United Charities. Mr James Bourne-Arton had sent a report as follows along with his apologies for his absence at this meeting and his contact details which are available from the Clerk should anyone require them: After many years of invaluable help from Jean Kitchen, as secretary, she has stepped down. In fact she has asked to step down but as we have not been able to find a replacement we continue to rely on her generous help. We are anxious to find a replacement. It is a tough act to follow. The job is a thankless one, requiring ensuring that the rent from the houses is paid into the bank account and coordinating any repairs. We would love to be able to find a replacement to allow Jean to enjoy a very well earned break. Other than that I do not believe there is anything to report. The houses are all occupied.

g) Nevill’s Trust. The following report was received from Mr James Bourne-Arton: We are continuing to look to provide financial assistance to the children of Well and Snape towards their education. We have advertised to help any child who is looking for extra educational support otherwise not provided for by the State (i.e. Music tutorials etc.). If anyone would like to be considered for some financial help please contact me.

In addition we continue to look to help those children/young adults going onto tertiary education/apprenticeships.

Lastly we have asked Roger Hamby to join us as a trustee. He has been nominated to be the Well representative.

This nomination had gone via the Parish Council and is Minuted there, however, there were no objections to this nomination as the village trustee for Well from those present at the Annual Village Meeting.

Sarah Sharp asked about the money being given out by the Trust, can we as a PC know what amount this is? This information may be available on the Charities Commission Website in the form of published accounts for anyone who cares to look for it.

h) St Michael’s Parish Church. David Webster reported that, In the last twelve months all may have seemed tranquil on the surface but much work has been put into the re- action the Parochial Church Council has made to the Quinquennial report on the structure of the Church itself.

The project started with a public meeting a year ago where it was overwhelmingly decided to restore the fabric, (phase one) and in the longer term, convert the building into a dual purpose, worship and community use facility.

For phase one we applied to the Heritage Lottery Fund for a major grant in excess of £100,000, but unfortunately this March were informed our application had failed. This does not preclude us from applying again,

But this time with a greater perception of what it is the HLF requires from us in order to look more favourably on our application. Indeed there is a tiny silver lining in this position as we were told that the works were not urgent enough. With this delay, they are fast becoming urgent enough!

Phase two cannot obviously be considered until phase one has been secured.

On day to day issues, we hosted the annual Remembrance Service for the benefice last November, with Christmas and Easter services in the usual cycle. Regular services are held on the first and third Sundays of each month, the other two weeks services are held at Snape Castle.

The Church is served by two full time clergy, assisted by two retired clergy and we have one regular organist and one assistant. The church is open for visitors every day.

i) Hambleton District Council. District Councillor David Webster reported This is the final year of this Council as we move towards elections in May 2015. At that point the number of Councillors will reduce to 28. With this in mind Committee numbers are reducing this year in readiness for the change next year.

The last year has had as our Leader Mark Robson from Sowerby, who has implemented quite a few changes to the staffing structure, meaning the “Directors” have reduced from five to three, meaning less Chiefs, but not necessarily fewer Indians. This has gone a long way to the cuts we are obliged to make without reducing services.

We have also embarked on a partial review of our Planning Policies, meaning that there may be scope for limited building in our smaller villages, and also by considering possible changes to our Affordable Housing policies we may see renewed interest in building.

Difficulties facing the Council at the moment include the closure of Northallerton Prison and the DEFRA building. The effect on jobs in the District is considerable, not only the employees themselves but also those who work in enterprises serving those employees. HDC is doing all it can to deal with these problems.

Having said this Hambleton continues to be one of the most desirable places to live in northern England, due in part to good economic policies at Local Government level. Un- employment is almost half the rate of the regional average.

I continue to serve on the Planning committee, as well as other smaller ones.

j) North Yorks County Council. County Cllr John Weighell had been invited to the meeting and had responded saying he hoped to attend at some point but had other meetings that evening as well. He did not attend during the course of the meeting.

k) Nosterfield Quarry Liaison Committee. Margaret Smith reported as follows:

Nosterfield Quarry Liaison Group - This met for the first time since 2011 on 25 June 2013. (Scanned notes of the meeting are attached in Annex 1) A report was given to the Parish Council meeting on 5 August 2014 and the PC agreed that no immediate issues had emerged.

The next meeting is planned for June 2014 so if anyone has any they wish to be raised please let me know.

Planning Application for extension of time to sand and gravel extraction at Ladybridge Farm - A letter was received in December 2013 relating to the above from the new Departmental Manager of the site following the formation of the new Joint Venture Company between Lafarge and Tarmac.

It stated that a number of stages to be undertaken prior to the likely submission of a Section 73 Planning Application for a time extension of the current planning permission.

I have not heard anything since this letter.

Matters pursued by the Chairman of the Parish Council - The Chairman has had meetings with representatives of the Quarry in relation to the newly planted trees and views of the lakes being obscured for bird-watchers. The Quarry representatives were not unreceptive to the views expressed and suggested that the matter be raised at the Quarry Liaison Meeting.

Minerals and Waste Joint Plan – Issues and Options Consultation - The Chairman of the PC reviewed the documents in detail. “The main areas of interest to Well at this stage were the 2 proposed developments at Nosterfield, one in the Langwith Farm area and the other at Oaklands. There was nothing much new in these, but they remain Tarmac/Lafarge

aspirations“. (MJ). It was decided at this stage that the review was sufficient rather than any action needing to be taken.

o) Craft Group Annual Report Mrs Kath Greaves reported that the group continues to meet on the first Tuesday of each month at 7pm in the houses of the members on a rota basis. Projects covered this year have included a variety of paper and textile skills. Seasonal activities included the making of Christmas twigs with paper crafted decorations, and paper Easter eggs and rabbit napkins with holders. Individuals also bring along their own projects so that skills can be shared across the group. Knitting and rag rugging projects have featured prominently this year.

The group is advertised monthly in the Parish magazine with a contact number for anyone interested in joining.

p) Walking Group. Mrs Kath Greaves reported that the walking group is open to any locals who enjoy walking and socialising (followed by tea, coffee, scones, bacon butties etc).

The walks are approximately 5 to 7 miles in length and include a coffee stop on route or at the end of the walk. The walks are varied and are easy to moderate. They are scheduled for the first and third Mondays of each month. There is no membership. Walkers are emailed prior to the walk by the walk leader. A reminder is placed in the monthly Parish Magazine inviting anyone to join in. The group meets outside Orchard House in Well village at 10am to enable walkers to car share.

Walkers from Killinghall, Snape and Carthorpe have joined the group since May 2013. There are now 22 people on the mailing list with on average of 10 people walking each Monday. Walkers take it in turn to plan and lead a walk. Some walks have started from Well and have included walks from the leaflet ‘Well Walks’. A large group caught the bus in Well (much to the surprise of the driver) rode to Bedale and walked back across the fields. Local walks have included Thornton Stewart Reservoir. Elllingstring Woods, the River Ure north of Masham, Witch of the Woods Cottage Ripon and Constable Burton.

Further afield walkers have sampled the pleasures of the countryside around Killinghall, from South Stainley back to Ripon along the canal, Great Ouseburn, Kilburn and recently Farndale to see the daffodils.

In May 2013 the group stayed at Kettlewell for 4 days enjoying walking along the River Wharfe, around Grassington and along the Dales Way. September was a mid week break in Craster Northumberland with walks along the coastal path to Dunstanburgh Castle, Low Newton and Hawick. Some of the group have just returned from their third walking holiday. The base for May 2014 was Hope in Dovedale Derbyshire.

The Christmas gathering was held at the Castle Arms Snape with walkers arriving on foot having walked from Well across the fields.

We are so fortunate to live in such a beautiful area where footpaths abound.

Well Inflated Cycling Group. Mrs Kath Greaves read a report submitted by Mr David Greaves: This group was formed in spring 2013. It meets each Tuesday evening at 7pm. Anyone interested in cycling around the local lanes is invited to meet at the bus shelter in the village.

The rides have averaged about 20 miles around the local villages of Snape, Carthorpe, Exelby, Wath, Melmerby Healey, High Ellington, Ellingstring and Jervaux. 5

Rides have just started again for this season starting with a short ride around Snape and Carthorpe.

The group is advertised monthly in the Parish Magazine.

Sydd Perry asked if the walks were published in advance. Kath Greaves explained again that this was not the practice of the group, the dates were published in the magazine and those registered for the group email would receive an email from the walk leader for that particular walk prior to the walk taking place.

q) Playing Field Association. Nothing received from this group. Mrs Jean Kitching asked if she could speak at this point. She then gave a resume of the background to the playing field saga over the years from when it used to be based at the Old School through to the current position where there is an offer of Marjory’s Hen Run for use as a Playing Field and a draft lease from the lessor. She appealed to the Parish Council to ask the Nevill’s Trust to fulfil their obligation to provide a Playing Field and to please do whatever they could to move this along to provide a Playing Field for the village.

A heated discussion followed regarding this matter. It was pointed out that the PC had voted against signing the lease and this decision was then rescinded at a later meeting when Stella Pengilly had offered to head up a Playing Field Association and to liase with Mr Mark Sampson regarding the lease. Despite numerous attempts by the previous Chairman to contact her during the past year and move things forward nothing had happened and contact not made for several months now and Stella Pengilly had since left the village. Sarah Sharp proposed that this item be on the Agenda for the next PC meeting in June, all agreed

r) St Nicholas C of E School, West Tanfield. Despite contact with the school no report had been received.

5. Any Other Business.

a ) Margaret Smith thanked Martin Jones for his work as Chairman over the last few years on behalf of the village and a round of applause was given

b ) Geoff Ross mentioned that the path at the side of the church was very overgrown and would HDC come and cut it down? Their policy over recent years has been to not do urban areas, so are unlikely to do rural areas. Roger Hamby has strimmed this over recent years and would be asked if he could do it again this year. Action: JH

c) Christine Fryatt brought up the question of cars on the pavement along Bedale Road and could the PC do anything about it as it made it difficult to walk along the footpath. Agreed that the PC would write to Highways and also put a note through the doors of those houses bordering the footpath

d) Christine Fryatt then asked the Councillors if they were aware of cars coming out of Well Hall Farm Yard at around midnight on an evening, probably workers. Chris Wade said that these were customers, and despite the discussion at the previous PC meeting and restriction on movements after 7.00 pm on that yard Pennine Brewery continued to advertise their brewery tours and food etc. David Webster said that he speak to the Planning Department regarding this matter the following day Action: DW

Mention was also made about the restriction on weekend use and that this was not being complied with either. 6

e) Sydd Perry wondered if 9th June for the next meeting was too near to the TDF?

6. Date of Next Meeting. The dates of all meetings for the coming year would be agreed at the next Parish Council Meeting; however, the next meeting is already scheduled to be held on Monday 9th June, at 7.00 pm.

There being no further business the Chairman thanked everyone for attending, and the meeting closed at 8.25 pm.

Signed:

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