Minutes of meeting held October 18th 2018
MINUTES OF THE MEETING THURSDAY, 18 th OCTOBER 2018 AT RANTON VILLAGE
HALL
PRESENT:
Cllr. M. Russell (Chair) Public: 1 person
Cllr. J. Forrester (Vice-chair)
Cllr. N. MacLeod
18/100 Apologies
Cllr M. Winnington, Cllr R. Edwards, G. Whelan (Clerk)
18/101 Declarations of interest in the following agenda:
None
18/102 Previous minutes:
Minutes were agreed as a true record.
18/103 Public questions:
Replacement of bollards
Mrs D Lloyd has completed the required permit to dig form. The chosen contractor,
Campion, will need to be NWSRA accredited. SCC Highways department will need to
provide supervision for the work. The start date for the work will need to be confirmed to the
Highways department.
Action: Mrs D Lloyd agreed to continue to pursue this matter on behalf of the council.
Flagpole
The flagpole has still not had the Union flag fitted.
Action: Cllr. Councillors will meet at 10:30 on Saturday 20 th October to replace the flag.
Grass cutting
On the last cut, Streetscene did not cut the verges by Church Close. This was the last cut of
the year.
Action: Parish clerk to write to Streetscene to confirm that we want cutting to continue for
next year and that the verges by Church Close need to be included in their work order.
18/104 Finance matters
No monthly statement was available at the meeting. A query was raised in relation to the
refund on VAT; when is this received by the Parish Council.
Action: Clerk to advise the Council on the status of the submission for the refund on VAT.
18/105 Accounts to date:
No accounts were available for the meeting.
18/106 Reports:
a) Mowing: The last cut of the year has been carried out. The Streetscene contract is
to be renewed for next year.
b) Highways: Replacement of bollards discussed under public questions.
A letter from a parishioner (Mr D Bourne) had been received by Cllr. MacLeod about
an accident which had occurred in February at the junction of Butt Lane and Moorend
Lane. This had resulted in Mr. Bourne's vehicle being written-off by the insurance
company. Mr Bourne is concerned that visibility for vehicles turning into Moorend
Lane is poor and the junction should be improved to reduce the danger. Cllr.
Forrester expressed concern that if the Council expressed a view on this matter we
may be seen to be supporting an insurance claim, when we had no first-hand
knowledge of the incident. The council agreed to contact the Highways department
and ask them to review the visibility at this junction and whether they consider it to be
dangerous.
Action: Clerk to write to the Highways department requesting a review of this junction
be undertaken.
c) Footpaths: There was no up-date on the condition of footpaths.
d) Gullies and weeding: Concern was raised again on the blocked gullies and drains
through the parish.
Action: Mark Keeling of the Highways department to be contacted to seek action on
this.
18/107 Clerk's reports
There was no update on the parish web site
18/108 Planning updates
There were no planning applications before the council.
18/109 Chairman's Questions/Items for Information/Next Agenda
Cllrs. Russell and MacLeod attended a presentation by a security company called Smart
Water. They sell a water based liquid which can be painted onto property items. In the
event that the police recover stolen property they can view this liquid under ultra-violet light
and trace the property back to the registered owner. This is claimed to be a significant
deterrent to burglars. Smart Water offer this product at £10 per bottle, if 80% of a community
take up the offer. Otherwise the cost is £25 per bottle.
Action: it was agreed to discuss this further at the next meeting, when the full council was
available.
A Christmas tree needs to be bought and be available for the parish fayre on 8 th December.
It was suggested that a company at Bishop's Offley (BOCT.CO.UK) should be contacted for
prices of a suitable tree.
Action: Cllr. Russell agreed to contact BOCT.
It was not known who had the lights for the Christmas tree from last year.
Action: Cllr MacLeod and Cllr. Edwards to confirm who has the lights.
18/110 Date of next meeting
The next parish council meeting will be held on Thursday 18 th October, 2018 in Ranton
Village Hall at 7.30pm.
Signed.................................................. Date...........................