MINUTES – DECEMBER 2023

Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council of Waterhouses.

Re: Meeting held Thursday, December 14th 2023 at 7.30pm in the sports pavilion, Waterhouses

Present: Cllr Goldstraw, (Chair); Cllr Turner (Vice); Cllr Carr; Cllr Harvey; Cllr McCarthy; Cllr Simpson; Cllr Stanmore; Cllr Stone.

Also present: Mr C Hinton (Clerk); Two parishioners.

1. Apologies: Cllr Wain.

2. Minutes of the last meeting:
The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday, October 19th were endorsed as a true and correct record, following agreed amendments. Proposed: Cllr Simpson; Seconded: Cllr McCarthy.
The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday, November 16th were approved as being a true and correct record and were signed by the Chairman. Proposed: Cllr Turner; Seconded: Cllr Carr.

3. Matters arising:

Clerk’s report: The clerk asked if the order of the agenda could be rescheduled to allow discussion of the draft budget in advance of other items. This would allow any significant matters to be considered against the financial outlook for the coming year. This was agreed.

Financial Report and Draft Budget 2024-2025: The councillors reflected upon the financial forecast for the current year which indicated a small surplus, in line with the budget. They went on to discuss the possible outcomes for the year commencing April 2024. This discussion, to be concluded at meeting the in January, gave due consideration of the precept request which will be made to SMDC in February. The council’s aim will be to seek a precept which allows it to continue to operate effectively, whilst being mindful of parishioners’ own domestic expenses.
A ‘contingency’ reserve may be included within the new budget, to cover costs which could arise during the year. This would provide cover for unpredicted costs, for the example, maintenance costs for the pavilion, now over 15 years old. If this idea is adopted, such a reserve may not necessarily increase the precept, but it would reflect costs that could arise and which would ‘deplete’ the balances held. Such deficits could be then considered in future budgets.
It was agreed that the costs of any projects, such as the desired provision of an improved play area, would need to be funded largely by grant funding, rather than by increases in the precept.

At this point, the chairman adjourned the meeting to allow the two attendant parishioners to address the meeting. They were representing the Waterhouses Swim Club and reported that their recent application for grant funding had not been successful. The council were disappointed to hear of this as the swimming pool is regarded as a valuable asset. The clerk was asked to write to the trustees of the premises, to establish the reasons why the bid had failed and to ask how future funding might be obtained to safeguard the facility and assist with improvements.

Parish Assembly: The chairman had attended this meeting on November 23rd and he reported back to the council. He had raised the subject of the recent announcement, by the Peak District Planning Dept. to no longer advise consultees of their decisions in relation to applications.
This move means more expense for parish councils. The chairman’s concern was supported by other councils and a meeting is to be arranged with Cllr Hart of SMDC and Cllr Garratt of Grindon parish council. There was also further discussion about the ongoing concerns over the service provisions of West Midlands Ambulance Service.

Lafarge Update: The chairman attended the recent public information session. He reported that there had been a large amount of information provided, but a low attendance by the residents. The council may receive some free aggregate for the track to the allotments and the play area.
Pavilion: The heating system was now operative again after the plumbing problem last month. The boiler was reported as being of an age where parts may be more difficult to obtain in future.

Sports Field: A pest control expert would be asked to remove a mole to prevent further damage to the area in between the bowling club and the senior football pitch.

Playing Fields: The sub-committee had recently received some initial costings for new equipment and further details would now be sort. The clerk is to attend a forum being held by Support Staffordshire on November 28th – to gather more information on possible grant funding. Cllr Turner shared an overview of potential costs which may arise, depending upon the scale of the project. A parishioner is to join the committee.

Grazing fields: Cllr Turner had produced a draft document for consideration by the council in relation to the request for access through the North Field for the supply of Water. The contents would form the basis of the proposed terms and conditions of a potential agreement to allow such access. Cllr Carr excluded himself from the discussion due to a related interest. The council accepted the draft document and the land advisor would be asked to adopt these in his letter to the applicant, before access can ultimately be authourised.

Allotments: The fees for the tenancies of the plots for 2024 were discussed.

Lengthsman: The lengthsman would be asked to attend to the bus shelter in Calton.

4. Correspondence received; A notice from SMDC/SCC regarding possible grants for heating and insulation upgrades for residents had been shared and added to the council’s website.

5, Planning Matters;
• Ref: EP-AI–3-08: Consultation on the application for the grant of an environmental permit – Aggregate Industries Limited. No objections were recorded.
• Ref: NP/SM/1023/1273: Slade House Farm, Farwall Lane, Calton – Proposal to install solar panels to provide electricity for Slade House, Slade Cottage, Slade Tops and the Great Barn. Cllr Goldstraw declared an interest and took no part in the discussion. Cllr Turner duly oversaw the matter. No objections were recorded.
• Ref: 017-3524 2023: Felling Licence Consultation – Hamps Valley & Manifold Valley. The council accepted the program planned and had no comments to make in the process.
• It was agreed that, if the local planning departments persist with their decision to discontinue advising of their decisions on which the parish council had been invited to comment, the clerk would create a diary system to track such outcomes and advise the council accordingly.

6. Financial Matters:
The following cheques were requested:
• Clerk, for his work & expenses in November – plus extraordinary purchases of equipment – for the pavilion and the playground, (totalling £633.86); £1177.45
• Caretaker, for his work in November: £45.00
• Lengthsman, for his work & expenses in November & December; £492.00
• JW Howson, for materials supplied; £6.19
• Andy Amson for repairs to electrical items: £185.00
• Marco Pezzato Plumbing & Heating for repair of water leak; £80.00
• David Rhodes for treatment of the football pitches: £744.00
• HMRC for the PAYE on the clerk’s salary; £133.40
Payment for the above was approved, en bloc. Prop: Cllr Turner; Seconded: Cllr Stanmore

7. Highways:
• The council discussed an S.53 application to upgrade Footpath 55 to a Public Bridleway.
Cllr Turner declared an interest in this matter and took no part in the discussion.
The council determined that the route in question, if approved, would cease at a point where it met a footpath and therefore, any riders using the route would have to turn back.
The council therefore agreed to recommend that this application be refused.
• In relation to the council’s pursuit of improved speeding controls within the parish, the clerk shared a somewhat disappointing response from the Deputy Police Commissioner. The clerk was duly asked to write to our local MP seeking her support in this matter. (No response had been received from a previous request for her support).
• Recent flooding events were discussed. The area next to the War Memorial was of particular concern. Reports would be sent to the Highways Authorities and River Authorities in the hope of preventing repetition.
• Cllr Carr raised concerns regarding parking on pavements by the Old Beams.

8. Any other business:
• The clerk advised that more information had been received regarding the various defibrillators in the parish. The number of units listed currently is 10 units. He informed that the charity Aedonate was close to agreement with SMDC for a ‘blanket’ monitoring scheme and that they would check those within our parish as soon as the list was complete.
• The clerk reported that SCC had advised that the seat for the bus shelter in Waterhouses had now been ordered and it should be installed in the near future.
• Cllr Stone reported that the shelter in Calton requires attention.
• Two of the three telephone boxes within the parish were also listed for improvement.

9. Date of next meeting: Thursday, January 18th 2024 at 7.30 pm.