Minutes of the Meeting of Eccleshall Parish Council held on 15^th MARCH 2023

A meeting of Eccleshall Parish Council was held at Eccleshall Community Centre on 15^th March 2023 at 7.30pm. This meeting was followed by a meeting of the Planning Committee at 8.40pm.

33/23).   Present were:-

Councillor P. Jones (Chairman)           Councillor B. Delanchy

Councillor R. Taylor                            Councillor C. Wilkins

Councillor S. Kean                              Councillor A. Reid

Councillor S. Mifflin                              Councillor S. Perren

Councillor C. Ryan-Bloor                     Councillor R. Langford

Councillor G. Dale                              Councillor L. Dale

Councillor J. Jones

Mrs Stacey Worden (Clerk)

Three members of the public

34/23.)   Apologies were received from Cllrs. Leather and Hill, PCSO Patrick Wright and Borough and County Cllr. Pert.

35/23).  To consider Declarations of Interest and Councillor requests for dispensation relating to       items on the agenda.

There were no requests to receive, and no declarations of interest were made.

36/23).  Public Participation:

There were three member of the public in attendance. One resident spoke regarding concerns about a lack of parking in the centre of Eccleshall and its effect on the economy of the town. Whilst the resident noted the lack of funding for a bypass, the Council were requested to consider where additional parking could be located.. The council advised that this is an ongoing item of discussion for the Traffic Management Committee. It was noted that as the Council does not have funds to purchase land for parking and that the County Council would need to take action to resolve any agreed problems. Concerns were noted that SCC do not necessarily see parking in Eccleshall as a problem.

37/23).  To approve the minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on February 15^th 2023

The minutes, which had been previously circulated, were agreed and signed with one minor typographical error to be amended in 19/23 to read ‘one member’.

38/23).   Report from the Borough Councillor, County Councillor, and police representatives

A report from PCSO Wright was provided to members prior to the meeting and noted. There were 28 calls to the police were recorded in relation to Eccleshall between 15^th February and 15^th March, the majority noted as miscellaneous & other crimes which are not in the public interest. The report noted crime remains relatively low in Eccleshall.

Borough Councillor P. Jones advised that he has spoken to the Borough Council about CCTV provision and monitoring and whether there is feasibility for installing and linking cameras in Eccleshall. A meeting is planned with the relevant officer to find out more information. It was noted that the presence of cameras would not necessarily result in immediate attendance at crimes but may be helpful for obtaining prosecutions.

39/23).   Committee Updates:

  Traffic Management:

• There were no updates to report.

Footpaths:

• Work is ongoing with the circular walks project.
• The Keep Eccleshall Tidy team are signing up with the Great British Spring Clean. 13 bags have been pledged to date and the final number will be registered online once all responses are received.

Enhancements:

• There were no updates to report.

  Policy and Resources:

• The minutes of the meeting held on the 1st March 2023 were noted.
• It was resolved to approve the recommended budget of £107,868.00 for 2023/24. A copy of the budget will be attached to the minutes.
• It was resolved to approve the recommended virements and earmarking as follows:

Virements (for overspend over £500)

• £1213 from Projects (4600) to Watering (4380)
• £555.33 from Salary (4000) to PAYE/NI (4010)

   Additional Earmarking:

• £688 – to Traffic Management projects (unspent budget)
• £2,000 – to Allotments (rents and general reserves)
• £660 – Elections (accumulated reserves for 4 yearly charges)
• £1,000 – to Community Centre (general reserves)

• It was resolved to approve the recommendation to adopt the Persistent or Vexatious Complaints Policy

  Events:

• The minutes of the meeting held on the 1st March 2023 were noted.
• An update on the Coronation Picnic was provided by Cllr. Taylor. The picnic is being held on Monday 8^th May between 12 and 4pm. There will be live entertainment and the Scouts will provide hot and cold drinks and help with marshalling duties. St John Ambulance will be the first aid providers. Tickets are £2 per person and will be sold in the library on the 15^th April between 10 and 12pm. Cllr. Taylor requested the support of members to help marshal the event. There will be 2 teams so there would still be opportunity to enjoy the event.

The Council was thanked for its contribution towards the Coronation Afternoon tea at Broughton Parish Rooms.

It was advised that funding of £1,500 had been obtained from the National Lottery Awards For All towards the event.

40/23).   To consider quotes received for the Lengthsman scheme and to appoint a contractor.

The council received one quotation for the lengthsman contract. A number of contractors were approached for quotations but were unable to quote at this time. Representatives met with the contractor to discuss the scope of work and were happy with the outcome of the discussions.  It was resolved to appoint G-Tec Grounds Maintenance as the contractor for the Lengthsman scheme, for an initial period of 1 year commencing 1^st April 2023.

41/23).  To consider a response to the Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) electoral review consultation in relation to County division boundaries.

Members considered a proposal submitted by Cllr. Reid that details an alternative option that takes into account similarities in communities within the wards.

It was resolved to submit this proposal to the Commission for its consideration.

42/23).  Update on the decision from Stafford Borough Council regarding the Eagle Street Art location.

The Council is still awaiting a decision from Stafford Borough Council and will continue to chase for updates. Members noted a recent news article detailing plans for an Angel sculpture to be sited in Eccleshall but there was no further knowledge of the project or proposed locations.

43/23).  To consider content and confirm structure for the Annual Community Forum (Public Parish Meeting) on 24th May 2023.

It was resolved to retain the same structure as last year’s forum and invite local groups to attend the forum to showcase their activities for members of the public. The Council will provide committee reports and a display to show the work it undertakes and projects delivered. The Clerk requested that committee chairmen advise what materials they require for the event. The main hall is not available on Wednesdays It was agreed for Cllr. L. Dale will look for availability on Tuesday 23^rd or Thursday 25^th May and liaise with the Clerk to find a suitable alternative date.

44/23).  To provide an update on trialling a hearing loop system to improve meeting accessibility.

A successful trial of the ‘Roger On’ portable hearing loop system took place on  Thursday 2^nd March and it was agreed to proceed with purchasing the system. The units can be used by those without a hearing aid by plugging in a set of earphones with a standard 3.5mm jack.

45/23).  Clerk’s report, containing liaison representative updates.

The report was received and noted.

46/23).  Correspondence

• To consider a resident request for the PC to find out the full picture of the cause of the flooding within the centre of Eccleshall and to support the resident to present a more environmentally friendly solution to the relevant authorities than the current practice of mixing rainwater sewer flow with the foul system and pumping it all to the sewage treatment works.

The Council considered this request and discussed options. EFLAG (Eccleshall Flood Action Group) is holding a public meeting on the 13^th April at the Royal Oak, to which representatives from Severn Trent and the County Council have been invited to discuss these issues. EFLAG representatives advised there are a number of concerns and an ongoing problem with the old drainage system in Stafford Street and that parts of Eccleshall are on a combined system where foul water is mixed with surface water.

It was resolved to:

• Refer the issue to EFLAG to raise at the meeting on the 13^th April and to receive a report of the outcome of the meeting.
• To request EFLAG to propose a set of questions for the Parish Council to put to the relevant flood authorities. Cllr. Perren confirmed this will be added to the upcoming agenda.
• To ask County Cllr. Pert for a copy of the recently undertaken drainage survey, and to confirm if it can be shared with EFLAG or is a confidential document.

• To consider the Staffordshire Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (2023-27) consultation (Details available at: https://consultation.staffordshire.gov.uk/insight-planning-and-performance/staffordshire-local-flood-risk-management-strategy/ )

All members were encouraged to complete the consultation and it was noted that EFLAG will also be submitting a response.

47/23).  Chairman’s Report:-

• The Chair will be attending the Stone Civic Dinner on the 22^nd April to represent the Parish Council.

48/23).  Financial Matters

• To accept the Financial report and bank reconciliation to 28^th February 2023:

       It was resolved to accept the financial summary, which includes the bank reconciliation up to and  including 28^th February 2023.

Payments made since the last full Council meeting were received and noted as follows:

• To approve accounts for payment March 2023:-

Authorisation was sought for payment of the following accounts:

All were in favour and the accounts will be paid accordingly.

• It was resolved to approve an order for 5 hard copies of each of the NALC Guides (Good Councillor Guide, Employers Guide (updated version) and Good Councillor Guide to Finance).
• To consider if the Council wishes to subscribe to the Rural Services Network after expiry of the free trial period. It was resolved not to subscribe to the service at this time.

49/23).  Items / Date and Venue for next meeting:-

The next meeting of the Parish Council is scheduled for 19^th April 2023, Broughton Parish Rooms at 7.30pm. Agenda items can be forwarded to the Clerk for consideration.  An agenda item to receive the EFLAG meeting outcomes will be added.

The Clerk noted that nomination papers for the upcoming elections will be available after this evening along with the timeline for the elections process. This will be advised to all members and arrangements will be made to make the forms available.

There being no further business, the Chairman declared the meeting closed at 8.37pm.