MPC-Monthly-meeting-May-2020

Motcombe Parish Council Minutes of the Annual General meeting and Subsequent Monthly Meeting of the Parish Council held virtually via Zoom On Tuesday 12th May 2020 at 6.30pm Present: Cllr Rogers, Cllr Taylor, Cllr Mouncey, Cllr Stacey, Cllr Hood and Cllr Mauleverer In attendance: Mrs N Phillips (Parish Clerk) There were 3 members attended and Dorset Councillor Val Pothecary At this point the Clerk confirmed that Cllr Worlock officially resigned from the Parish Council as from the 12th May 2020 1/20. Election of Chairman and signing of Declaration of Office Cllr Taylor nominated Cllr Stacey for Chairman for Motcombe Parish Council for 2020-2021, this was seconded by Cllr Mouncey, all member in favour. Cllr Stacey agreed and will be sent the acceptance of office form to sign.

RESOLVED: for Cllr Stacey for Chairman for Motcombe Parish Council 2020-2021 (1/20 – no budgetary allocation required).

2/20. To receive and accept apologies of absence Dorset Councillors, Cllr B Ridout and Cllr D Walsh.

3/20. Election of Vice Chairman Cllr Taylor nominated Cllr Mouncey for Vice-Chairman for Motcombe Parish Council for 20202021, this was seconded by Cllr Rogers, all members in favour. Cllr Mouncey agreed and will be send an acceptance of office form for signing.

RESOLVED: for Cllr Mouncey for Vice-Chairman for Motcombe Parish Council for 2020-2021 (2/20, not budgetary allocation required) 4/20. To confirm that having met the conditions of eligibility as defined in the Localism Act 2011 and SI 965 The Parish Councils (General Power of Competence) (Prescribed Conditions) Order 2012 will be agreed. The Clerk confirmed that the Parish Council have met the conditions of eligibility.

To confirm there have been no changes to the adopted policies and procedures for 2020. The Clerk confirmed that the adopted policies and procedures have been checked and no changes required from the last 12 months.

Both items above were proposed by Cllr Mauleverer and seconded by Cllr Mouncey, all members in favour.

RESOLVED: that the Parish Council met the conditions of eligibility and there have been no updates on the policies and procedures adopted 2019/20. (4/20 not budgetary allocations required).

5/20 Approve minutes from AGM dated the 14th May 2019 Cllr Taylor proposed the minutes from the AGM dated the 14th May 2019, this was seconded

by Cllr Stacey, all members in favour. The minutes were duly signed by the Clerk on behalf of the Chairman.

RESOLVED to approve the minutes from AGM 14th May 2019 (7/20 – no budgetary provision required) 6/20. Approval of annual accounts and governance statement The Clerk tabled the following: • The annual governance statement 2019/20 • The end of year accounting statements 2019/20 • The Asset Register 2019/20 • The Bank reconciliation 2019/20 It was proposed by Cllr Stacey to agree the governance statement, this was seconded by Cllr Rogers, all member agreed. The Chairman will be sent the document to sign.

RESOLVED: for the Chairman to be sent the governance statement for signing and to agree the other above items in 6/20 for the year ending 2019/20 (20/7 – accounts) At this point the Chairman closed the AGM and opened the Monthly Meeting There was a 3-minute public consultation period at the beginning of the meeting where the public can raise issues and concerns to the attention of the Council. The Chairman asked if anyone present wished to record the meeting, please let themselves known.

Mr Phillipson asked if there has been any further progress on renewing the white lines down the Hollow. It was confirmed that it is on the work schedule for the Highways Department at Dorset Council.

Mrs Roberts thanked Cllr Dee Worlock for all the great work she achieved whilst serving on the Council as a Councillor and as the Chairman, she will be missed. The members also forwarded their thanks to Cllr Dee Worlock for all the hard work she had contributed whilst serving on the Council as a Councillor Fran Bridgewater had sent the following report: In terms of Community Road Safety, Janice Beck has confirmed that she is ready to do a Trucam enforcement session again, straight away once all released from lockdown. A report to Dorset Police ensuring they are fully aware that speeds at times in the village are quite shocking. In terms of the team, 11 of us are fully operational (and will be back out again as soon as we are permitted) and we have four new volunteers awaiting final vetting clearance and training by PCSO Chris Mullens.

7/20. Declaration of interest and dispensations There were none.

8/20. Approve minutes from 10th March 2020 and notes from April 2020. The minutes were proposed by Cllr Mauleverer, seconded by Cllr Taylor and all members agreed that the minutes were a true and accurate record of the meeting, these were duly signed by the Clerk on behalf of the Chairman.

RESOLVED: to approve the minutes from the 10th March 2020 and the notes raised April 2020. (8/20 – no budgetary provision required)

9/20. Officers reports and Chairman’s report.

The retiring Chairman circulated the following report: At the time of writing this report the country is still suffering the effects of a worldwide pandemic in the form of the Covid-19 variant of Corona virus. The effects of action needed to control this virus has reached even our own quiet village. Residents are under strict controls on their freedom, with the over 70s asked to isolate in their homes to protect both themselves and their impact on the NHS should they be taken ill. All schools and businesses are closed.

The past year has been one of challenges and achievements for the Parish Council. The Motcombe Neighbourhood Plan was completed, submitted and passed, setting out a way forward for Motcombe until 2027. There was a challenge to the Councillors who had worked on the Plan alleging malpractice and collusion; this was totally disproved and the Parish Council record of integrity remains unblemished.

Plans for a development put forward by Wyatt Homes at Bittles Green are with Dorset Council and await decisions; housing development is under completion on part of the old Cases’s site and should be completed by the end of the year – current restrictions permitting.

Long discussed plans for the Play Area to be updated and new equipment purchased have reached fruition due to grants and gifts; although completed and ready for use at the time of writing, it remains closed due to Covid-19. A credit to those who pushed this project forward.

The Village Hall Committee and Trustees opened the third Village Hall, now named the Clock Hall.

Street lighting replacement is also due to start soon and a programme of work will begin when the current crisis is over.

There are plans to plant trees both behind the Hall and at The Meadows where there is now a planned programme of works including the installation of new owl boxes.

A grass cutting programme has also been implemented to meet resident’s needs and ensure footpaths are kept clear. The last directional finger post will be complete once the person making the letters are back to work and the Vice Chairman, who has personally completed their refurbishment and also the local milestones – including the less usual metal on stone milestone on the way to the Coppleridge, will finish putting in place the final finger on the post.

The White Hart Link was completed last August with the support of a Parish Councillor and new directional signing is being steadily installed. The Gillingham Forest project has been revived and we hope to see new ideas benefitting local residents in the future.

Increasing concern and some worrying incidents at School drop off and pick up times led to a new partnership between the School and local community addressing the inherent problems of having a busy School site in the centre of a traditional Dorset village. The Parish Council has been involved with, and supportive of, this Action Group. An active Speed Watch Group carries out a valuable role in highlighting and following up speeding issues in the village.

Motcombe is a very an active village with many groups - as a look in the magazine The Villager will testify. The Parish Council seeks to offer support where it can and gives annual grants to organisations that benefit residents of the Village During this year we had to say goodbye to long serving Councillor John Phillipson whose knowledge and experience is much missed; also to Councillor Arnold Coffer who made a valuable contribution to the preparation of the Neighbourhood Plan. I too have to offer my resignation due to an impending house move that will take me outside the radius needed to remain on the Parish Council.

I am pleased that as a Parish Council we maintain good relations with the other local organisations including the School, the Church and Chapel, the Village Hall Committee and the voluntary groups that operate locally. Inevitably, it is not possible to please everyone but the Parish Council seeks to provide the service needed to keep Motcombe a safe and pleasant place to live.

I would like to thank the Councillors for their hard work, in many instances actually carrying out tasks themselves, and to thank our Parish Clerk whose experience and enhanced qualifications, for which she worked so hard, keeps the Council on track and financially well controlled.

Cllr Mouncey had circulated the following report: School road safety group: The last meeting was held on March 9th, at which the list of actions was updated, screening out further ones that were considered costly or impractical.

Pam Rink attended for the first time and informed us that the proposal to use the entrance to the school from the churchyard required diocesan approval. Liam provided initial costings for a bus from Shaftesbury, and Matt was to canvass parents to gauge likely usage. Finally, a member of Dorset Highways team had agreed to attend the next meeting to provide a definitive view on all relevant suggestions on the list. Finally, the new Code of Practice was to be discussed, and hopefully approved, at the next governors meeting. Obviously, this is all now on hold.

Rights of Way: The DWT funded project to replace 8 stiles with gates has gone on hold, but Nicky Hoar (DWT) had started discussions with landowners before she was furloughed.

Despite the lockdown, Dorset Rangers will still be undertaking the 106 funded projects to improve drainage on the Motcombe-Gillingham bridleway at Kingscourt Wood, funding for which was approved by Dorset Council in early March.

The stiles around the parish on the most popular footpaths are showing the strain of increased pedestrian traffic under lockdown. The very wet autumn/winter followed by the very dry spell from mid-March has loosened many of the foundations, exacerbating the problem. Liam & I removed the whole stile at Corner Lane two weeks ago as so much of it had become loose or rotten, luckily one of the very few sites where the need for a stile (or gate) is questionable. One gate/stile, leading up to Kingsettle Wood shows signs of malicious damage sometime last Saturday, and is now in a very weak state, as are the two up by the Wood (both scheduled to be replaced by gates as part of the DWT project). We can only undertake minor repairs, due to insurance issues, these have been reported to Dorset Council along with others who have been reporting, in the gap of one week between two reports by me, the number of RoW issues reported across Dorset had increased by 169. Whilst the Rangers are working, they must maintain social distancing making the types of jobs they have to do much more difficult.

Finally, due to the increased use of local footpaths, we need to remind users to keep as close to the RoW as possible across fields, and encourage dog owners to act responsibly where there is livestock (especially as it is lambing season).

Motcombe Meadows: Cllr Hood and I completed an initial site survey a few weeks ago, and updated Cllr Rogers list of prioritised projects (which have been circulated for comment). Bob Messer who runs the Gillingham Action for Nature Group (GANG) will shortly be making a site visit to offer his views on what we should be focussing on, based on his in-depth experience in Gillingham. I have also been in contact with Alan Masterton (helping us decide locations for the new barn owl boxes) and Sheila Dyason (reptile survey), both projects now being

postponed for now. Stuart Caldwell of the Rangers has also agreed to meet with us to discuss the need to improve the bridleway across the bottom of the Meadows, but this is also currently on hold. However, my neighbour, Pete Cuff a passionate birdwatcher, has enthusiastically agreed to start logging bird species at the Meadows for us. Otherwise, it is likely that the main activities this spring/summer will be checking the dog poo bag holders , great to see no more rolls taken as yet! mowing some of the paths (thank you Liam); the annual grass cut & regular mowing of the front field; pruning back overhanging greenery. We assume there will still be a butterfly count in some form later in the summer. Finally, Jason has removed the interpretation board by The Street entrance as the posts had rotted way, and MPC need to decide on whether we simply re-erect it with new posts, or produce a new board (in due course there will also be a board for the White Hart Link in the car park area, but that will focus on a broader view of Motcombe). Once some form of ‘normality’ returns, we can start costing and actioning priorities.

Cllr Hood reported the following:  Have been working with Cllr Mouncey on the Meadows Project. The tree planting project was unfortunately cancelled due to the lockdown. Cllr Hood thanked the Gardening Club for supply soil to keep the tree alive until next spring, when hopefully the project can go ahead.  The Village Hall remains closed but work on improving the drainage and patio has started.  Has spoken to the owner of the house behind the Tap House, to confirm that she is happy for maintenance work on the Top House is done, she confirmed she is happy for the maintenance to be done.

Cllr Mauleverer reported the following: The volunteer group of about 88 people, have been helping many of the resident in the village through these hard times. Andy Johnson is continuing to raise money by doing his wheelchair marathon, he has raised a massive £10750.00 for local charities. What a great community Motcombe are.

Cllr Taylor reported the following: The following planning applications have been received by the Parish Council.  2/2020/0121/FUL – Turnpike Showground – extension to existing show store – no objection.  2/2020/0304/HOUSE – Meadowside – single storey extension – no objection.  2/2020/0434/VARIA – Coppleridge Farm Cottages – removal of condition – no objection.  2/2020/0483/HOUSE – Martlets – erect two storey rear extension – no objection.

The Transport Forum Group meeting was cancelled due to lock down. Cllr Taylor is waiting for the new bus timetable for the X2 bus, where it will confirm the reduction of services.

The Chairman reported the following:  It is a great loss to have Cllr Worlock resign from the Council, she will be greatly missed. In the last 12 months, the Parish Council have had two other valued members resign, Mr J Phillipson and Mr A Coffer and would like to thank all three retired members for their service to the Village.  The Play Area looks great and is ready for when the lockdown is released on play areas.  The Village is looking great with the additional grass cutting of the verges and other areas around the Village.

   



Congratulations to Cllr Mauleverer and the volunteer group, for helping the residents in the village through these difficult times.

The Owl boxes are being stored until next the Autumn, when the Parish Council will arrange for them to be put in place with the guidance of Cllr Mouncey and Cllr Hood.

The project to replace of some of the Street Lights along the main street has begun.

Concerns have been expressed about people walking their dogs on public footpaths, through farmers’ fields, where livestock is present. PLEASE PLEASE KEEP YOU DOG ON LEADS WHILST WALKING THROUGH AREAS WITH LIVESTOCK AND FOLLOW THE COUNTRY CODE. Notices will be put up on gates and in the villager as a reminder to dog walkers.

The Parish Council have vacancies for Councillors. There will be notices and more information on this in the Villager and social media in the coming month.

10/20. To receive report from Dorset Council representative Cllr B Ridout COVID-19 confirmed cases - The number of confirmed cases in the Dorset Council now stands at 291, an increase of 4 on the previous day’s figure. The number of confirmed cases in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area has also increased by 4 to 389.

Community Shield – to support the most vulnerable people who are shielding, has now made over 2800 proactive calls and e-assessments. Between Dorset Council and Age UK Dorset, received over 8000 in-bound calls from people who need help with food deliveries, medicine collection, befriending and more.

Youth – Youth workers are working with Dorset Police and other partners to provide targeted outreach support for young people who are finding it hard to do social distancing.

Foster care - A significant number of Dorset foster carers are shielding which affects fostering capacity. There is a campaign live now to recruit more foster carers. For more information visit: FosterinDorset.com.

Schools – over the past week Dorset Council has been working closely with schools to bring more vulnerable children back into schools. Also working on arranging IT support for vulnerable children. Over 1000 laptops on order for year 10 students and those with social care needs from the national scheme, with the hope to secure more in time.

Homeless – the housing team has accommodated more than 75 people since the COVID-19 outbreak began, mostly resulting from relationship breakdown and people not having formal tenancy agreements.

Domestic Abuse - While there has been an increase in calls to domestic abuse helplines nationally, Dorset still has not seen this increase. There is capacity in refuges ready for any increase that may come.

Business Grants - Dorset Council has processed 5,127 grants to local businesses, totalling 61.32million. Of the claims received to date, 67% of these have now been paid. The rebilling of business rates to take account of the 12-month business rates holiday for certain businesses has now been done.

Unnecessary journeys - LA’s have noticed a worrying tend of some people attempting to bend or break lockdown rules as the pandemic continues. Dorset Police and Dorset Highways have recently reported more cars on the road. Dorset Council employees are only making the journey to work if essential, wherever possible employees who can work from home do so.

Dorset Police are actively deterring visitors to Dorset.

Dorset Finance - Dorset Council is facing financial challenges because of the current pandemic and there have been stories circulating within the press. When Dorset Council’s budget was set in February this year, a balanced budget 304m was approved by councillors.

Little did we know about the size and scale of the COVID-19 pandemic to come. Since March, Dorset Council has been responding to the COVID-19 pandemic as a category 1 responder under Civil Contingencies Act responsibilities, supporting Dorset’s people and businesses through this crisis. Monthly updates on the Council’s financial position are provided to the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government. The decision for form a unitary council in 2019 was a good move in respect of managing the pandemic. There is an official Finance news release on the Dorset Newsroom.

Virtual Meetings I am pleased to say that virtual meetings are happening from next month. Cabinet will hold its first virtual meeting on 5th May. The Northern Area Planning Committee Live Event will take place on 14th May 2020. We are having a practise session the week before, so fingers crossed! Resident’s letters of support/complaint will be read out by our legal member, so I am to understand, to make everything as transparent as possible. It will be interesting.

The Climate and Ecological Emergency Executive Advisory Panel (EAP) and Dorset Local Plan EAP, both reporting to Cabinet, are the only EAP’s to continue during this time. Panel members are currently commenting on two draft documents: The Forward Plan for the CC EAP and Vision and Strategic Priorities for the Local Plan. Virtual meetings are to be announced for May. Household Recycling Centres are now open with strict rules to follow, details can be found on Dorset For You website.

COVID-19 Testing - at present there are limited testing facilities within hospitals. Dorset CCG collates all tests that have been done in local labs connected with our hospitals. As of Tuesday, 21 April, 586 positive cases have been identified from a total of 2,816 tests carried out in the Dorset system. This does not include tests carried out by Public Health England as part of their work responding to outbreaks, so the total for the Dorset system will be closer to 3,200. On Wed 22nd April it was announced that a new mass testing site for Dorset will be based at Creekmoor Park and Ride site, aiming to go live by April 29th. A mobile testing site is now available in Blandford, this will help cover west Dorset. This should increase access to testing for key works from a whole range of roles not just health.

PPE is available for care providers through their normal supply channels to provide the appropriate equipment to care workers. Dorset Council is supporting care homes with PPE and with new testing arrangements for staff. For the purpose of the current crises the council has developed a PPE Hub to manage the stock controls and logistics for the Dorset Council footprint. The council has established an approach which aims to ensure that is maintains adequate stock of PPE to provide support to providers when their own stock levels drop below 2 days’ predicted usage. Suppliers continue to place their own orders as per national guidance. No care provider in the Dorset council area should now be without PPE. Recovery – work is underway on ‘recovery’ for Dorset Council, working with public sector partners as part of the Local Resilience Forum (LRF), looking at the humanitarian, economic, environmental and infrastructure impacts of COVID-19.

The Dorset Council website is an invaluable tool for finding out the latest information and about essential services affecting the public. For those residents not online, who have

important questions or concerns, call Dorset Council on 01305 221000, 8am to 8pm, 7 days a week or email: communityresponse@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk.

Parents and carers worried about how their child is coping during the Coronavirus pandemic: new helpline: 01305 228300, open Monday to Friday, 9am to 4.45pm.

Dorset Council website:

https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk

11/20. Finance To agree: Payment Schedule The Clerk asked for a late invoice payable to Chris Berwick Ltd, for grass cutting, for the sum of £510.85 to be added to April’s payment schedule to make the new sum of £4795.19, details listed below: N Phillips wages March s/o

Clerk wages

£

1,062.88

T Signs play area

Play area signs

£

72.00

Nest

Clerk Pension

£

55.55

N Phillips wages April s/o

Clerk wages

£

1,062.88

Viking Direct

Printer and ink

£

327.73

N Phillips exp

Annual phone bill

£

246.73

Motcombe Memorial Hall

Hall Hire

£

36.00

SSE contracting

SSE contracting

£

180.95

SSE supply

SSE supply

£

485.02

Cllr Peter Mouncey

dog poo bags

£

12.49

Zurich insurance

PC insurance

£

680.11

N Phillips exp

Clerk expenses April

£

62.00

Chris Berwick Ltd

Grass cutting

£ £

510.85 4,795.19

It was proposed by Cllr Mouncey and seconded by Cllr Rogers that the bills on the schedule be paid, all in favour.

RESOLVED: to pay the bills on the schedule above (11/20 – accounts) 12/20. Clerk Report – Correspondence – Matters of interest The Clerk asked permission to purchase the speed gun, on behalf of the Speed Watch team, for the sum of £121.10. This was agreed by all members.

13/20. Items for next agenda and date of next meeting Co-option.

The next Parish Council meeting will be held on TUESDAY at 6.30pm via Zoom Virtual Meeting, there being no further business, the Chairman closed the meeting at 19.32 Signed by the Chairman…………………….............................................

Website - www.motcombeparishcouncil.org.uk Email - motcombe@dorset-aptc.gov.