Launton Parish Council Meeting held on Thursday 2 November 2023 at 7:30pm in Launton Parish Hall

Councillors present Mr Andrew Briant, Mrs Abigail Dowman, Mr Ed Sanders (Chairman of the Meeting), Mrs Lesley Thompson, Mr Richard Walker, Mrs Jaqueline Webber

Apologies Mr Simon Turner (Chairman of the Council)

In attendance The Clerk, Mrs Jane Olds; District Councillor Gemma Coton; 4 members of the public

East West Rail

Ms Sa’id was unable to attend due to the inclement weather. Road closures were scheduled around Stratton Audley and Godington, but we hope that the work will have been completed by the time Launton Lines is published.

If anyone has any queries, please contact East West Rail directly at publicinformation@ewralliance.co.ukor at the 24 hour helpline at 03457 11 41 41

Reports from District and County Councillors

Councillor Coton reported that the recruitment of the new Chief Executive was moving forward; the interviews would take place towards the end of November. Proposals to move the District Council offices from Bodicote House to Castle Quay in Banbury were ongoing.

The Oxford Christmas Lunch event will be taking place again this year - more information is available at https://www.facebook.com/oxfordchristmaslunch/

No report had been received from Councillor Corkin(OCC).

Governance

The Parish’s fixed assets, including the dog bins, benches, rubbish bins and bus shelters have been inspected by the Councillors. We will be looking at the provision of the dog waste bins, particularly on the Playing Field, in due course.

Finance

The Finance Report is available on the Parish Council website.

Planning

All planning applications, which include the links to Cherwell’s Planning Portal, are put on the Parish Council website when received (www.launton-pc.gov.ukin the Agenda and Minutes section).

If a villager has concerns or comments about a planning application, they are welcome to come along to Parish Council meetings to bring them to the attention of the meeting. Villagers are also welcome to contact Councillors or the Clerk to make comments.

Guidance on how the Parish Council can respond is on the Parish Council website: www.launton-pc.gov.uk/planning-applications

Parish Hall

The Parish Council’s solicitors had confirmed that the engrossed Lease would be despatched shortly ready for signing.

The application to the CDC Village and Rural Community Halls Rural England Prosperity Fund was submitted on 6 November.

Gigaclear had made an appointment to install broadband in the Hall on 24 October, but it had to be cancelled because the engineering team hadn’t been able to complete the pre-checks required. We are waiting for a new date.

Climate Emergency

The Parish Council recognises that it must play its part in acknowledging the climate crisis and has started to develop a Biodiversity Policy and Action Plan about what can be done at a local level. This plan is a working document and if anyone would like to help the Council with ideas, we would be glad to hear them. The plan is available in the Policies and Governance section of the website https://www.launton-pc.gov.uk/policies-and-governance/

Highway and Traffic Issues

The locations for new speed indicator devices are being considered. The proposed sites are:

** at the entrance to the village on Bicester Road (where the EWR portable sign was placed earlier in the summer),

** on Blackthorn Road outside the Mulberry / Timbers development, and

** on Station Road near the Hummingbird Centre.

It has been very difficult to find appropriate locations, but we hope that the signs will help remind drivers of the speed through the village.

Speedwatch

Unfortunately it had not been possible to have any sessions this month. However, our Speedwatch Co-ordinator would love to hear from you if you are able to help - don’t complain about the speed come and join the team!

Contact speedwatch@launton-pc.gov.ukfor more information.

Agenda items and dates of the next meetings

The next meeting will be on Thursday 7 December in the Parish Hall, starting at 7.30pm. If you’d like to chat with a Councillor, do come along after 7.15pm.

We are trying to reduce our printing and paper use, so if you would like hard copies of the agenda or any of the meeting papers, please let the Clerk know well before the meeting. The agenda and papers will be available to view via the data projector during the meeting.

Suggestions for agenda items for the 4 January 2024 meeting need to be with the Clerk by 19 December 2023, and items for the 1 February 2024 meeting by 18 January 2024.

If you’re not signed up to our mailing list to receive news from the Parish Council, you can find a signup form at the bottom left hand menu of the Parish Council website at www.launton-pc.gov.uk/