Wellow Parish Council

Clerk

Geoff White

Myrtle Cottage, Wellow, BA2 8QS

Tel:  01225 830159

 

 

Minutes of a meeting of the Parish Council on Monday 5th December 2011 at 8pm in the Village Hall.

 

Present: Cllrs Andrews, Betts, Caudle, Clarkson, Doman, Prentice and Witty.

Five members of the public in attendance.

 

 

Agenda:

 

The Chairman announced that Cllr Caudle had been appointed Vice-Chairman which met with unanimous approval.

 

11.157              To accept apologies for absence.

Apologies had been received from District Councillor Butters and Cllr Wheeler and Cllr White. 

 

11.158              Declarations of interest in any matters on the agenda or in October 2011 minutes

                        None

 

11.159              To confirm minutes of meeting held on September 12th 2011.

The minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on November 14th 2011 were approved unanimously.

 

11.160              To report matters arising from the minutes and not on the agenda.

The Chairman said that any discussion regarding planning issues to the east of the village would be deferred until District Cllr Butters was in a position to report.

 

The Chairman asked the Clerk to provide him with a copy of our insurance policies and a list of the documents held by our bankers.                                                            GW

 

Cllr Wheeler has made the necessary arrangements with Tim and Louise Bray to provide the village with a Christmas tree.

 

11.161              Planning

 

1.       New applications

 

11/05103/TCA: Church Farm, High Street, Wellow. Fell three trees, an oak, ash and maple.

 

Cllr Caudle said that she had looked at the site and that she had no objection.  If the trees were left to grow they would become too large for it. Cllr Clarkson said that a neighbour feared that removal of the trees would cause a loss of privacy.

 

The chairman said that he had no objection to the proposal either but Cllr Caudle felt that we should seek some clarification from B&NES before responding. This was agreed.                                                                                                                  DC

 

2.       Decisions received

 

The Council noted that the proposed development at Bourne Farm had been approved.

           

 

 

 

 

11.162              Village Wear and Tear

 

Cllr Witty said that Combe Hay Parish Council will be inspecting the tree giving cause for concern on Combe Hay Lane.  She also reported that B&NES have fixed posts along a narrow stretch of the road to make it feel more secure.

 

Cllr Doman said that some drains in Wellow Lane were blocked by leaves.  He agreed to contact Council Connect about it.                                                           PD

 

Cllr Witty referred to the drain at Pope’s Lane and the need for a cover. The Clerk was asked to contact Council Connect.                                                                       GW

 

Cllr Witty mentioned that there were blocked drains on Bath Hill but Cllr Betts said that B&NES had been clearing them recently so it was felt that no further action need be taken at this stage.

 

Stewart Cole, from the floor, said that a tree opposite the church was causing damage to the wall of and should be removed.  The Clerk was asked to contact Council Connect.                                                                                        GW

 

It was reported to the Council that a resident of Manor Close had fallen over in the car park.  Concern was expressed about the state of the lane leading into the car park off Station Road.  The Clerk was asked to report the matter to Council Connect.  Cllr Doman said that, to be effective, the lane should be planed at then surface treated.  Just filling in any potholes with gravel would not be effective.                            GW

 

 

11.163              Finance

 

a.       The Council approved the payments to Stewart Cole and to the Clerk.

 

b.      The Council unanimously approved and accepted the financial report which had been circulated before the meeting.

 

c.       Cllr Andrews said that she had been unable to make any progress regarding the Millennium Fund. It was agreed to defer this item until the January meeting.   HA

 

d.      The payment of a grant to St Julian’s PCC of £100 to help with the production of the Parish Newsletter was approved. It was agreed that a cheque be written during the meeting

 

e.       Cllr Witty asked whether the Council would approve a grant of £100 per quarter to the Wellow Community Bus Group.  She asked that any grant be a general one rather than being tied to any particular purpose.  Cllr Betts said that the Council would like to see the Group’s accounts and budget before agreeing.  The Chairman expressed support for the bus but it was agreed that any decision be deferred until the January meeting to give councillors a chance to see the accounts.

 

 

11.164              Parish Plan – traffic calming

 

The Chairman thanked Cllr betts for providing a brief history. In summary:

The developer of the Peasedown development, Circle, provided £47,500 section 106 funding in 2004.The Parish Council selected a traffic consultant. Together they devised a “shared space” approach, which involved elements of cobbling the road to break up the linear feature of the High St. This approach was supported by the B&NES Highways Officer, Nick Jeanes, but he was replaced by Adrian Clarke who was less supportive. The “Shared space” approach was watered down by B&NES, to the extent that the basic concept was lost. The £47,500 was spent on:

Cobbling put in the road

At the junction of Mill Hill and the High Street

Around the Fox and Badger

In arcs, on the High Street, at the drives to some houses

Mini chicanes put in at the west and north entrances to Wellow, with cobbling and a 20mph sign

20mph signs at south and east entrances to the village

 

13th May 2011 B&NES issued a Traffic Regulation Order for a 20mph speed limit in Wellow

Subsequently (August 2011?) police issued speeding ticket to motorist for exceeding the limit; motorist appealed as the signage was not lawful. Presumably, Police will not try to enforce the speed limit until they are convinced they are likely to get a conviction.

 

In May 2011 B&NES reported that the average speed on the High Street reduced by 1mph (from 25-26mph to 24-25mph, which according to Adrian Clarke is “in line with expectations for a scheme of this nature). ie 4-5mph above the speed limit, and with “half” the cars going faster than 25mph

 

 

Traffic speeds are reduced at the chicanes to the north of Wellow – but not sure that they are reduced to 20mph.  Elsewhere there is little evidence of any change – ie where people used to go at 20mph, they still do, but where people went faster – they still do.

The speeding problem seems worse because of the increased (and increasing) traffic.

The cobbles along the High Street do not slow cars down, but they do make a significant noise such that residents keep their windows closed so as not to be woken by early morning traffic.

The cobbles outside the pub serve no discernable purpose

 

 

The Parish Council’s objective is “an effective and enforceable 20mph speed limit through Wellow village.

 

Cllr Caudle said that there are strict regulations concerning signage and that these had not been adhered to by B&NES. After considerable discussion it was agreed that we should ask B&NES to put in the necessary signage so that the TRO can be enforced. Once this is in place, we will ask the police to enforce the limit.

 

Mike Clarkson, from the floor, said that he might be able to borrow some speed guns as part of a Neighbourhood Speedwatch and this was welcomed.

 

Cllr Witty mentioned the noise which traffic makes when going over the cobbles. As the cobbles are ineffectual at slowing cars down, can they come out?

 

Cllr Betts remarked that the on-road painted signs needed to be re-done.

 

The Chairman suggested that we contact B&NES about these matters and that we publicise the need to observe speed limits in the Parish News and at the School.         HP

 

We also need to add the Wellow signs but we couldn’t undertake this until the Millennium Fund monies had been released.

 

 

 

11.165              Footpaths

 

Cllr Doman referred to an earlier letter from Rosemary Todd.  As a result of this David Phillips has kindly agreed to repair the footpaths along Wellow Brook in the summer.

 

Cllr Caudle showed a map displaying footpaths in and around Wellow.  The Chairman asked her and Cllr Doman to consult Parish Online which will provide a larger scale map.  He also asked that they walk the paths indicated and report back at the January meeting.                                                                                           PC/PD

 

 

11.166              White Ox Mead resurfacing

 

Following an exchange of emails between the Chairman and District Cllr Butters, Cllr Doman said that Geoff Pike, who owns the land concerned, has no objection to the work carried out and so no further action need be taken.

 

 

11.167                 B&NES’ plans for travellers’ sites

 

The Chairman explained that B&NES had already identified a suitable site which didn’t affect Wellow.  It was agreed that the Chairman would convey the Parish Council’s approval to B&NES.                                                                                    HP

 

11.168              Any other reports

 

Cllr Andrews said that plans for the carol singing on the Batch were well in hand.  She asked that councillors donate some mince pies and also asked that the Council agree to pay for sweets for the children.  This was agreed.

 

Cllr Witty said that she had been in touch with the owners of the shop next to the Fox and Badger. They had indicated that if were to pay for the renovation we could have 15 year lease rent free.  Alternatively the owners would carry out the renovation in which case we would have to pay rent of £1000 pa. The Chairman said that the shop would have to generate income and it was agree that we would put a suitable article in the Parish News.  Cllr Witty would also give Richard Holland suitable information to distribute by email.                                                                                            MW

 

Cllr Witty said that, although B&NES had originally turned down plans for rural broadband, they had had a change of heart.  She will keep the Council informed of any further developments.

 

The Chairman reported on the Neighbourhood Plan meetings.  He and Cllr Clarkson will be attending a further meeting on December 14th.  It is his intention to form a steering group with a view to devising a questionnaire which would identify the needs of the village with a report to follow in June 2012.

 

Mike Clarkson, from the floor, said that B&NES were undertaking a consultation in respect of the mobile library.

 

 

 

11.168                 Date of next meeting

 

It was agreed that the next meeting will take place on January 9th 2012 at 8pm in the Village Hall. The meeting closed at 9.40pm

 

                                   

Geoffrey White

Parish Clerk

December 6th 2011