THE ANNUAL MEETING OF NORTH NIBLEY PARISH COUNCIL WAS HELD ON MONDAY, 13 MAY 2013 IN THE VILLAGE HALL, NORTH NIBLEY AT 7.30PM.

Present: Mr. D Purnell (Chairman).

Mr K Brown; Mrs K Glancy; Mr S Hale; & Mr D Palmer.

The Clerk: Mr R Symons.

Two members of the public were present.

1. To Receive and Accept Apologies for absence.

Apologies were received and accepted from: Mr K Larkin; & Mr L Smitherman; County Councillor Dr J Cordwell; & District Councillors Mrs J Cordwell; & Mr P Smith.

2. The Election of a Chairman of the Parish Council for year 2013/14.

Mr Purnell was nominated by Mr Brown and seconded by Mr Palmer. All the Council agreed to his election.

3. The Election of the Vice-Chairman of the Parish Council for year 2013/14. Mr Brown was nominated by Mr Purnell and seconded by Mrs Glancy. All the Council agreed to his election.

4. To elect Councillors to Committees & Groups at which the Parish Council will be represented in 2013/14.

Following discussion it was unanimously agreed that the following Parish Councillors should represent North Nibley Parish Council on Committees & Meetings:

• Stinchcombe Hill Trust (Mr Purnell);

  • North Nibley Recreation Field Trust Committee: (Mr Larkin);

• Village Hall Management Committee: (Mr Hale);

• Parish Footpaths: (Mr Palmer);

• William Purnell Educational Charity: (Mr Purnell);

• Tyndale Monument Trust: (Mr Palmer);

• Stroud South Cluster Group Meeting: (Mr Smitherman);

• Police Community Coordinating Committee: (Mr Brown)

The Council was reminded that Mrs Glancy is a School Governor at the Village School for a period of 3 further years.

3. Declaration of Interests. The Chairman invited members to declare any Interests relating to this Meeting. There were none.

4. To approve and sign the Minutes of the Meeting held on 8 April 2013, as a true and accurate record. The Minutes of the April Meeting had previously been distributed to all members and displayed on the public notice boards and the website. All members agreed the Minutes should be signed, as a true and accurate record. The Minutes were duly signed.

5. The Council noted matters arising from the Minutes that were not covered by agenda items.

The Clerk referred to his Update Note, which had been issued prior to the Meeting and he provided additional verbal information. The Clerk :

• had received no response from Mr Walsh regarding the land adjoining Wood Lane;

• reported that the Parish Clean-Up Day went ahead on 20 April, with 13 volunteers in total. Several bags of rubbish were collected. It was suggested that next year’s event should be in March;

• had received further complaints about the motocross at Nibley House held on 21 April. Parishioners had requested that these complaints should be brought to the Council’s attention. The Clerk acknowledged that Stroud DC Environmental Health had taken action to minimise problems for local people. He added that a further event was scheduled for Saturday 25 May. The Clerk was asked to ascertain whether practice days counted towards the permitted days for 2013;

• had met with the Chairman and Vice-Chairman on 26 April to review his performance during 2012/13;

• had written to Gloucestershire County Council to ask the County Council to include the Council in any consultation on replacement for the 311 ‘bus service. He has subsequently been advised by Mr Carr “that First Bus the current operator of service 311 have been successful in our recent tendering exercise. They will be contracted to operate the service from the 28^th May 2013 on the current timetable”.

• had obtained a short extension on the Stroud DC consultation period for the Stroud Local Plan.

3. The Chairman closed the Meeting and invited members of the public to raise issues and ask questions.

A parishioner advised the Council of his intention to submit a Planning Application to Stroud DC. It was his intention to develop a number of dilapidated farm buildings at Binley Farm to create group tourist accommodation, for the purposes of providing 3/5/7 day residential accommodation for people who wanted to experience being on the land and using the facilities for meditation and mindfulness training. The Council were shown draft plans and a draft letter to Stroud DC Planning. Councillors raised some concerns that in the longer term the buildings could be converted into residential accommodation; the project would create additional vehicular movements in Waterley Bottom; and that in the longer term would there be a question about the financial viability of the project.

The Council were generally re-assured by the answers received and agreed that the project could help support local businesses. The Chairman thanked the parishioner for sharing his plans with the Council.

There being no further matters, the Chairman re-opened the Council meeting.

3. The Council were presented with the Draft Stroud Local Plan and invited to submit their comments. The primary concern of the Council was that the Settlement Boundary, as presently described, does not include the hamlets (Forthay, Millend & Pittcourt) within the Parish. As a result these areas would be excluded for further housing development. There was a full discussion about the present drafting of Policies CP3 (Hierarchy for growth and development cross the District’s settlements); HC1 (Meeting small scale housing need within defined settlements) and CP9 (Affordable Housing). The Council agreed that the Policies, as presently drafted, did not enable development within the hamlets. The Council also agreed the minor changes to the settlement boundary for North Nibley as set out on page 68 of the Document were accepable.

3. The Council was shown details of the following Planning Application & Application for Listed Building Consent:

• S.13/0796/HHOLD. The Round House, Whiteway Hill, Dursley, Gloucestershire, GL11 6AD. Removal of south glazed bay and lower ground floor plant room and construction of balcony in glazed balustrade and brushed steel frame.

Following discussion the Council agreed to make “No Comments” on this application.

• S.13/0577/LBC. The Round House Whiteway Hill, Dursley, Gloucestershire, GL11 6AD. Remove south glazed bay and lower ground floor plant room and construction of balcony in glazed balustrade and brushed steel frame.

Following discussion the Council agreed to make “No Comments” on this application.

11. The Council received and discussed a District Councillor’s Report submitted in her absence by District Councillor Mrs J Cordwell. (Filed aside).

12. The Council received and discussed a Report from County Councillor Dr J Cordwell, submitted in his absence. (Filed aside).

12. The Chairman invited Councillors to report on any Committees and Meetings which they have attended since the last Meeting.

• Mr Brown reported on a number of developments. He said that he had supported the contractor who is working on repairing the Monument, by transporting him and his equipment up Wood Lane. He offered to remove the soil which had fallen onto Wood Lane. The Clerk agreed to clear this with the Rights of Way team at Gloucestershire CC.

• Mr Brown reported that on 14 May he was due to meet with Natural England to discuss the future of the ESA agreement on The Knoll, including the land owned by the Parish Council.

• Mr Brown reported that the Council’s tenant at Breakheart Hill had now ended the agreement and removed her horses. Mr Brown has recently reseeded the land. It was agreed that a group of Councillors and the Clerk would meet on 17 May to carry out repairs to fencing and remove the black plastic from the land. The land is now available for letting.

• Mr Brown informed the Council that he had been approached by the organisers of a local Charity Bike ride who intend to go through Waterley Bottom. Following discussion and at the suggestion of Mr Brown, the organisers have agreed to give a small donation towards the Village Shop;

• Mr Palmer reported he had attended a meeting on gipsies and travellers but that little information had been forthcoming.

• Mr Brown suggested that the Council need to meet with representatives of bike riders who use the Knoll, to discuss the impact their use was having and to discuss the effect on fencing of the Knoll. It was agreed that this matter should be on the Council Agenda for September or October.

• The Clerk reported that he had represented the Council at a meeting hosted by the County Police & Crime Commissioner. The session had been in format of Q & A and had been reasonably informative.

• The Clerk reported that he had attended the Stroud DC Planning Team coffee morning with other representatives from the Wotton area of the District. This had enabled the Clerk to raise the issue of Enforcement of Planning decisions. The Chairman requested that the Clerk should contact Stroud DC Enforcement regarding the enforcement of the Bird Farm decision.

12. To approve the current Parish Council Standing Orders. The Clerk informed the Council that the Parish Council Standing Orders were last updated in July 2010 and reapproved at the May 2012 Annual Meeting. The Clerk assured the Council that the Standing Orders were still in line with current requirements. Mrs Glancy brought to the Council’s attention that the Standing Orders, as currently written, are not gender neutral with several references to male Councillors etc. The Clerk advised the Council that the current Standing Orders were drawn up from a nationally produced document (Standing Orders for Local Councils published by The National Association of Local Councils). Upon his advice the Council agreed they should be retained unchanged. The Clerk agreed that when the Standing Orders are next redrafted he would ensure that terms used are gender neutral.

12. To consider and approve amendments to the Parish Council’s Financial Regulations.

The Clerk advised the Council that, as a result of advice received at a Financial Management Update Event, he was recommending to the Council that minor changes should be made to the Council Financial Regulations. Following discussion amendments were agreed to Section 11 Contracts Para.11.1 (b), (g) & (i) to increase the limits requiring a full tendering exercise, from £500 to £60,000. The Revised Financial Regulations were approved and signed by the Chairman.

12. The Council were asked to make decisions on the Finance Report:

1. The Council noted that the first half of the Precept has been credited to the Council’s Current Bank A/C. (£6,750.00)

2. The Council noted that Parish Council’s End of Year Accounts have been submitted for internal audit. The Clerk reported that the Accounts should return to the Council for sign-off at the June Meeting.

3. The Council received and noted the Bank Reconciliation for the year ending 31 March 2013. The Clerk advised the Council that their financial reserves were sufficient to enable the Cemetery project to progress. There were no questions.

4. The Council approved the Invoices and drew up cheques for the items on the enclosed Payments Schedule.

5. The Council noted that North Nibley Village Hall Trustees have increased the hire costs of the Meeting Room for the Council from £6 per hour to £7 per hour.

17. Update on the plans to install an Information Board. The Council agreed that in the absence of Mr Smitherman that this item should be deferred until the June Meeting.

17. The Council received a report from the Burial Clerk, read out by the Clerk in her absence.

The Clerk reported that recently two burials had taken place:

1. Mr Jack Turner & Mr Ronald Keyton. The appropriate fees have been paid in both cases.

2. The Clerk reported that an enquiry had been received from a former parishioner and after discussion the Council agreed that the parish rate should apply in this case.

19. The Council received, for information, the Correspondence and Messages written Report (attached).

There being no further business the Meeting closed at 9.35pm.

The next Meeting of the Parish Council will be held in the Village Hall on Monday 3 June 2013 at 7.30 pm.