Minutes of a meeting of Gt. & Lt. Chishill Parish Council held in the village hall on
Tuesday, 26 th August 2008 at 7.30 pm.
Present:- Cllrs. Gardiner (in the Chair) Brearley, Dibblee, Murgatroyd and Scott,
Dist.Cllr. Barrett, the Financial Officer and the Clerk, together with one member of
the public.
1.Apologies for absence were received from Cllr. Cartwright, Dist.Cllr. Guest and
County Cllr. McCraith.
2.Confirmation of Minutes. The Minutes of the meeting held on 30 th June last were
taken as read, confirmed and signed subject to an amendment that under Item 11 (Any
Other Business), Cllr. Brearley, not Cllr. Scott, reported that the Summer Ball held on
21 st June had been very successful.
3. To confirm Co-option of Mrs. J. Erskine to the Parish Council.
Mrs. Erskine’s co-option was duly confirmed and she signed the Declaration of
Acceptance of Office, as required. The Chairman duly welcomed her as a member of
the Parish Council.
4. Matters arising
Re: 43 Heydon Road – Car Parking
Discussion took place regarding the letter received from Mr. S. Booth, Housing
Services Officer, explaining in detail the difficulty in solving this problem in view of
the fact that “Mrs. Walker is parking a legally roadworthy car on a public road that
has no parking restrictions.” It was however proposed that Mr. Booth be asked to
submit an assessment as to her needs and Cllr. Dibblee would make further enquiries.
Action R.D.
Dog Waste Bin.
In the absence of Dist.Cllr. Guest, Cllr. Barrett advised that Mrs. Guest would make
further enquiries on this matter following the Parish Council’s confirmation as to
exactly where the bin was to be sited.
Dist.Cllr. Barrett asked on behalf of Mrs. Guest if a copy of the questionnaire for the
village plan could be given to Melbourn Parish Council who were very interested in
adopting such a plan. Cllr. Scott agreed to supply this.
Action T.S.
5. Status of Planning Applications
Application for internal alterations to 6 Hope Cottages approved.
Application J.Webb, 23 Barley Road, New Dwelling. Decision awaited.
Application Mr. & Mrs. Debnam, 46 Heydon Road – application for garage/cartlodge.
Considered at present meeting and it was suggested that this building be erected on
other side of driveway where it could be screened by trees and not dominate the
lockup.
Cambridge County Council– Town & Country Planning Act. Removal of conditions
to be considered on 8 th September. Cllr. Murgatroyd agreed to refer to previous letter
and reply accordingly. Action J.M.
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6. Financial Matters
re Metal 5-a-side goals. The Clerk repeated that ROSPA (Playsafety Ltd.) insists that
these be removed. The Clerk had spoken tothe Inspector of Playsafety for advice
who had stated that plastic goal posts were available and were not considered
dangerous. The Financial Officer had made tentative enquiries about the cost of this
equipment, which would be in the region of £80 eachand he confirmed that the Parish
Council had sufficient funds available to buy these and give them to the Youth Club.
The Chairman would check that these goalposts were suitable and then the Parish
Council could go ahead and provide them.
Action A.G. & F.O
Cllr. Scott reported that consent had been given by the Tree & Landscape Officer for
the felling of one dead willow and one dead almond tree on the Plaistow. It was
proposed by Cllr. Scott and unanimously agreed that Mr. Don Leitch be asked if he
would be prepared to carry out this work and submit a quotation– if he agreed Mr.
John Crawley would be asked if he would remove the resulting wood.
Action:Clerk
Re-siting of 30 mph sign outside the new housing development. A letter had been
received from David Lines (Area Traffic Engineer) regarding this matter. He stated
that the cost of altering the Speed Limit Order would be £250 and the cost of re-
locating the sign would be in the region of £200. It was proposed by the Chairman
and unanimously agreed that this work should be carried out and he would write to
Mr. Lines asking him to proceed. Action A.G.
Cllr. Murgatroyd reported that the bus shelter light was not working and he agreed to
get in touch with Rion Designs who had carried out the repair work last year.
Action J.M
The Financial Officer reminded Councillors that he would be looking at the budget for
2009/10 and advise him that ifthey had any projects in mind they should inform him
at the next meeting.
Cheques drawn since the last meeting were as follows: -Verge cutting £480;
Playsafety £141; Eon Bus shelter light £8.46; “Direct” magazine sub. £9.50; Pear Tree
Press £51.30; and £550 being a replacement cheque for the original which had been
lost.
7. To discuss “Speedwatch”
Both Cllrs. Gardiner and Scott attended the “Speeding & Traffic Summit Meeting” of
which notes have been sent out.
In conclusion the Highways are reviewing roads and speed limits with priorities being
given to A and B roads and where statistics indicate problems. Great Chishill is
number 70 on the list and will be review in 2011.In East Cambridgeshire a
Speedwatch group has been formed by 7 Parishes around Snailwell. This has used a
speed measuring and indicator board on roads where speeding is a problem. Where
cars travelling at 30 mph +10% above the speed limit, car registration numbers and
details of the time and speed are given to the police where a letter is sent from the
police to offender. Cars caught for second or more times get a visit from a police
officer. Feedback from the system are positive in showing locals that
something is being done and where the hot spots are for Police to set up enforcement
checks.
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It is proposed to extend the programme with Police and Council cooperation.
It is proposed that Great Chishill put its name forward for the next round. The cost of
the equipment is around £3000 for which the County Council is reviewing funding. If
no funding is forthcoming the scheme could be funded by parishes clubbing together
to pay for equipment. Assuming 6 local parishes come together, the Parish should
budget for £500-£600. There is a commitment from the working group to have a
proposal finished by the end of September, which will be in time to review at the next
meeting.
8. To discuss Neighbourhood Watch
There had been little response to previous enquiries to find a volunteer to undertake
the task of co-0rdinator and it was decided to draw attention to the matter again within
the village.
9) Correspondence
A Funding Fair 2008 would be held on 13 th September at Cambourne. Parish
Council advised by email.
10) Any Other Business
The Chairman referred to the present position regarding the rabbit sanctuary, and after
a short discussion it was decided to refer the matter to the next meeting.
Cllr. Brearley reported that profits from the Summer Ball will fund a luncheonat The
Pheasant for senior citizens.
Cllr. Brearley agreed to email the result of the affordable housing questionnaire.
Action J.B.
Cllr. Scott suggested that barn owl nesting boxes be affixed to trees in Bull Meadow.
Cllr. Dibblee referred to acquiring a defibrillator for emergency use in the village and
although this matter had been discussed some time ago, it was not proceeded with.
However, the new equipment was, apparently, much simpler to use and Cllr. Dibblee
would obtain more information about it.
Action.R.D.
Cllr. Dibblee also reported that she had liaised with Janet Crouch and Eileen Murrell
for using the church for other suitable activities. They thought it was a great idea and
were happy to go along with it.
Mrs. Crouch had asked the Clerk to advise the Parish Council that the tea party for
senior citizens be would be held on 25 th September and she hoped that some Parish
Council members would attend this popular function.
11) Date of next meeting
It was agreed that the next meeting be held on Monday 13 th October. However, Cllr.
Dibblee asked if the dates of future Parish Council meetings could be regulated so as
to make it easier for Councillors to write up their diaries.
There being no further business, the Chairman declared the meeting closed.