Minutes of a meeting of Wellington Heath Parish Council held on Monday 27th March 2023 in the Committee Room at the Memorial Hall commencing at 7.30pm.
Present – Cllrs. J. Jones (in the Chair) H. Tierney, R. Barnes, G. Kirk and J. Tearle.
Minutes – The Minutes of the meeting held on Monday 30th January 2023 were taken as read, confirmed and signed by the Chairman.
Also in attendance was County Cllr. L. Harvey and the Clerk.
Declarations of Interest in items on the Agenda – none received/declared.
County Councillor Liz Harvey advised as follows –
- The Developer at Becks Orchard, Wellington Heath is unhappy at the delay in the response from the Planning Officer and is writing to his MP about the situation.
2.Ledbury Neighbourhood Development plan going to a referendum which will take place on the same day as the local election in May.
- Discussion still taking place over second access into Viaduct site.
- No decision regarding flooding on viaduct site but this is the responsibility of the Environmental Agency.
Update Reports on outstanding matters and agree further actions as necessary –
- Lengthsman – Cllr Barnes advised all ditches had been cleared, new pipe and sloped access installed to the Plecks (the sloped access is now being used by mountain bikers) and it was agreed to purchase and spread some grass seed. Lengthsman’s work would now commence on Pool Piece.
- Seat at top of Common – seat is in place in a position where it is considered to be less vulnerable from parking and reversing vehicles. Some security work remains to be carried out to ensure the safety of the seat.
- Grit Bins – despite advice received that these had now been replaced and/or repaired as necessary it would appear to be an inaccurate statement and the Clerk was to contact Balfour Beatty to ensure that our request remained on the list for action before Winter 2023.
- Notice Board – This work should be carried out in April.
- Telephone Kiosk Defibrillator – Repainting would be carried out when weather more atmospherically suitable.
- Ash Tree – Report received from Oliver that he considered the tree to be suffering from ash die back at some stage between 2 & 3 and suggested removal of the tree which appeared to be the responsibility of Balfour Beatty for verge side maintenance work and it was confirmed that Oliver had passed this information on to them.
- Change of e-mail address to a .gov status – Cllr Kirk advised he had been in touch with both HALC and Eyelid Productions over lack of ability to run both the old e-mail address and the new one during a “change over period” and that the cost of getting the old domain back was very prohibitive due to the expense. No real response had been received from either.
- Safety for walkers on road into Ledbury – Danger to pedestrians walking into Ledbury had been a concern to the Parish Council for many years. Cllr Harvey had submitted some suggested routes as the base for consideration but one drawback was that Hill Top Farm is not within the Parish and advised that some signage concerning “walkers in the road” would need a Traffic Regulation Order plus statutory process needs to be gone through to achieve this. Lengthy discussion took place and Cllr Harvey agreed to enquire about some signage but in the meantime she suggested (1) the Parish Council explore the possibility of some red tarmac being laid on one side of the road similar to what has taken place in Knapp Lane, Ledbury as this gives the impression to motorists to expect pedestrians on the road and (2) the Council write to George Leeds asking for a copy of the safety plan which they have for their walkers and what measures they take to advise their workers of the problems.
At this stage it was noted that Herefordshire Council has just received an extra two million pounds and an early application might produce some success.
The Chairman agreed to write to Mr. Leeds.
Items for consideration –
Three Shires Rally – Councillors did not feel it necessary to hold a meeting with the Organisers as a rally had taken place two years previous. Donations are available and Councillors agreed to consider a suitable cause.
Road surface at Beggars Ash – This was discussed with Cllr Harvey and the seriousness of the road surface had already been reported to Balfour Beatty for action
Grass Cutting at Pool Piece – Harry Squires has shown an interest in taking this work on using his own equipment. Clerk to write to our Insurance Co, regarding the suitability of the Parish Council employing a 14 year old boy to do the work. Until such time as a resolution could be obtained, Cllr John Tearle kindly agreed to give the grass a first cut.
Dogberry Footpath WH15 – Cllr. Barnes agreed to enquire whether any funding was available to improve the condition of this footpath. Cllr. Barnes action.
Change of Newsletter Printers – Keith Hough had advised that the existing printers are no longer trading. However his contact had been in touch and is now working in a sales role for another Printer – Gizmo Press Ltd. To maintain the excellent appearance of the Newsletter there would be a slight increase of £12. Per edition. This was discussed and unanimously agreed that the Parish Council were happy for Keith to proceed with the new Company. Clerk to advise Keith accordingly.
Financial matters
- Clerk – salary February 2023 £314.20.
- Clerk – salary March 2023 £314.00.
- HMRC – PAYE to 5th March 2023 £61.00.
- Eyelid Productions – change of e-mail £150.00
- Clerk, home allowances & expenses to 31.3.2023 £89.00.
On a proposal by the Chairman seconded by Cllr Tierney the above accounts were approved for payment and cheques signed.
Reports from Council representatives:
Memorial Hall – Cllr Barnes reported on events for the forthcoming Coronation of King Charles including a Ceilidh on the Saturday evening at £10 a ticket including food. On the bank holiday Monday there will be a walking treasure hunt around the Village in the morning and activities for children with afternoon teas served in the Memorial Hall followed by prize giving. There will also be a scarecrow competition based on a royal theme. The Parish Council had been asked to fund the prizes and following a discussion they agreed to a donation of £100.00. Clerk to let Cllr Barnes have a cheque for the donation.
The Plecks – Nothing to report other than disposal of a large roll of wire which had been taken out during removal of the front hedge.
Pool Piece – Cllr Tearle advised nothing to report other than query regarding insurance cover for a teenager to cut the grass.
Planning applications – Cllr Kirk produced a comprehensive list of the status of various planning applications.
Information in Brief –
The Clerk reported on the current Bank balances.
Work is in hand preparing accounts for internal audit up to and including 31st March 2023. Following the increased expenditure and income due in part to activities regarding the oak tree, the Clerk advised that the Parish Council might incur an External Audit fee as they might not be in a position to certify themselves as exempt from a limited assurance review with an income and expenditure which does not exceed £25,000. The Clerk however would discuss the matter with our Internal Auditors, and advise.
Next Meeting will be held on 22nd May which will commence with the “Annual Parish Meeting” followed immediately with the “Annual Meeting of the Parish Council”.
There being no further business the Chairman declared the meeting closed at 9.55pm.
Heloise Tierney
Signed……………………………………………………………………………. Dated……22nd May 2023.
Chairman.