Parish Council of Langton Matravers
www.langtonmatravers-pc.org

Minutes of a Meeting of the Council held in the Village Hall on Thursday 13th September 2012 at 7.00pm
Present: Cllr P White in the Chair, H Tizard, M Turner, W Knight, J Bradford.

There was 1 member of the public present.

1.	Apologies: Cllrs Drayson, Loudoun, Kirby.
2.	Declarations of interest.  Cllrs Tizard and Turner each declared a personal interest as allotment tenants. Cllr Knight declared an interest in Item 6 as a governor of St George’s School.
3.	Reports. a) Ian Vaughan-Arbuckle, PC Rights of Way Liaison officer updated the Council on progress with the bid to ‘Paths for Communities’ for funding to repair the Priest’s Way. There is a further form to fill in, and DCC will be the official applicant, with Ian V-A as chief point of contact to liaise with Worth and Swanage Councils and the NT as necessary. The application must be submitted soon, as all work has to be completed by February 2014. The Chairman thanked Mr V-A for his hard work and report.
b) David Hodd  reported on behalf of the National Trust. He is arranging a meeting with local residents and an engineer to try to sort out the flooding problems at Durnford Drove. Volunteers had been doing fencing work at Belle Vue over the holidays. Following a question from Cllr Bradford about policing climbing after the fatality on the cliffs in the summer, he said the NT remains keen to encourage climbers in the area, that he thinks it better that climbers self-police, with regard for nesting-bird policies etc. already in place; the NT are reviewing use of the area by Coasteering groups, where there have been some problems.  The Trust has supported Phil Samways and Paul Loudoun in applications for grants for conservation work at their farms. There will be a walking festival in the area over the Autumn half term holiday, with activities advertised on the Trust’s website. The gate post at Crack Lane cemetery is to be removed and repaired. Cllr Tizard noted that the Council had received a letter from a resident of Acton Field, concerning a large ‘pond’ in the access road, which he drew to Mr Hodd’s attention ACTION: Clerk to copy letter to NT. Cllr White thanked Mr Hodd for his report.
4. Public Discussion. There were no comments from the public.
5.  Matters Arising from the Public Discussion.  None.
6.  Planning Matters. 
       2) To make comments concerning the following plans:-
       (a) 6/2012/0475 St George’s School – Part demolition and replacement entrance and teaching accommodation and associated works. Observation: having studied the plans further, the Council decided that they had no additional comment to that already made at the August meeting. 
3) The Council received planning decisions by PDC since the last meeting: 
     a) 6/2012/0356, 0357,0358, Works at Windward, Old Malthouse Lane – Approved.
     b) 6/2012/0320, Quarry Cottage, Acton, extension - Approved.
     c) 6/2012/0318, 12 Capstan Field, L.M., extension - Approved.
     d) 6/2010/0757  Acton Quarries, L.M. To vary conditions 1 and 3 of permission 6/2007/0779 to allow the extraction of stone to continue in plot 18 and the continued use of Keates's service area until 31/12/2012 with the restoration of both areas by 31/10/2013.- Approved.      
   4) Other planning matters: - There were none.
7.  Minutes of  the Meeting held 9th August 2012. The Minutes, having been circulated previously, were agreed as a correct record and signed.
8.  Matters Arising from the Minutes.
a) Item 10b. Acton Sign. ACTION: Clerk to ask signwriter to add ‘Sea View’ instead of ‘Sea Spray’ and contact owners of ‘Sea View’ to note alteration.  
b) Item 16c. Acton verge. The Clerk had been in touch with DCC highways, and will follow this up again. ACTION: Clerk.
9.  The Clerk’s Report for the period 3.8.2012 to 7.9.2012.  Report received.
10.  Matters arising from the Clerk’s Report. 
a) Item 3. Letter from J.Edmonds regarding state of grave in Crack Lane cemetery. Cllr Bradford had sorted out the problem. 
b) Item 16. Winter Snow Plans. The Clerk had been to a meeting at DCC Highways at Charminster. The Council are now formally registered on DCC’s Snow Clearance scheme and will receive a snow blade, and  get £200 to pay to a nominated farmer to clear the roads they have indicated on their snow plan each time there is a ‘snow event’. The Council needs to write a ‘snow plan’ by the end of September, to a template supplied by DCC. Cllrs White, Loudoun and Turner agreed to form a ‘snow committee’ to discuss the content of the plan. DCC will now only supply free salt to ‘strategic’ grit bins, and is surveying all bins to decide which are ‘strategic’ and which ‘community’. They will be charging £55 per dumpy bag for salt deliveries.
c) Item 23. Cllr Bradford asked if he could send a hard copy of the Highways satisfaction survey to the parish office, to be sent on. ACTION: Clerk.
d) Item 32. No Councillors expressed interest in attending PDC planning training.
e) Item 33. Acton Fields ‘pond’. Clerk to write saying that the matter has been referred to the National Trust.
11.  Chairman’s Announcements. 
After several complaints, Cllr White had joined a senior staff member from SITA on an inspection of the Council’s public toilets at Putlake; the standard of cleaning had improved considerably since. He had been telephoned by an anonymous caller asking his opinions on the proposed Navitus Bay wind farm. 
12.  Financial Matters.
(1)   Note the following additions to Council funds since the last Council Meeting:
       £ 420.00   Purchase of Burial plot N17 and interment fee for the late Geoffrey Burrow.
       £ 40.00     Gavin Curtis – 2nd and 3rd Instalments on burial Plot T12.
       £ 100.00   Memorial fee for the late Jayne Trinder, Plot CR 7.
       £ 6,600.00 Precept, 2nd Instalment 2012-13.
(2)   Note the following Payments by cheque since last Meeting:
       £ 150.00   Mr I. Bugler – Grounds Maintenance (August). 
       £ 498.57   Clerk’s salary (August).
       £ 162.00   BDO (Annual External Audit)
       £ 18.00     Scott Estate: Rent for Putlake toilet land 09/09/2012-08/09/2012.
       £ 75.02     Office supplies. (Ink cartridges – cheque to A.Burnett).
 (3) 	Payments by Direct Debit:
       £ 35.29      XLN Telecom for phone and broadband 
 (4) 	Other Financial Matters.
 a) There had been no formal response to the letter to the Village Hall Management Committee requesting that payments be made annually rather monthly.
b) The annual external audit was complete, and BDO have been re-appointed as external auditors for next year. 

13.  Cemetery Matters:
(1) Council’s Cemetery. a) Purchase of land. The Land Registry were not happy with the final plan necessary for completion of the purchase, and the vendor’s solicitors now need to re-present the plan for signature and registration. 
b) RESOLVED: That the cemetery regulations be altered to say that in future all cremation memorials must be in tablet form, with a maximum incline from ground level of c.4 inches. 
c) Following expression of concern from relatives, Cllr White has re-fixed the Jantke memorial bench into the concrete under the shed canopy.
d) Cllr Bradford noted that the bins had not been emptied. He further noted that the gates and canopy supports on the shed needed remedial work. It was agreed to ask the caretaker if he would be interested in undertaking the work. ACTION: Clerk to follow up with caretaker.
(2) Closed Cemetery. a) Cllr Bradford reported that several trees in the Old Rectory garden were now overhanging the cemetery. ACTION: Clerk to contact PDC/DCC Tree Officer again.
14.  Allotments.  Mr Edward Cassidy is now on the Waiting List for an allotment. 
15.  Minerals Core Strategy. Mr Treleven Haysom, a local quarry owner had written to the Council expressing his concerns about aspects of the strategy. RESOLVED: That the Council agrees with concerns expressed by Mr Haysom, and wish to highlight these key issues in their response to DCC. 
16. Traffic Management: update. a) There has been no progress with the Speed watch project.
b) Following a meeting with DCC Highways in August, Mr and Mrs Purver have now agreed that a part of their wall be moved to widen the footway on the South Side of the B3069 outside their house. The Scott estate have not yet responded to a request to contact DCC to discuss widening the Putlake footway. 
c) The new bus cage is now painted on the road opposite the entrance to Durnford Drove. Cllr Turner asked if it would be possible to extend the yellow lines on the E side of the junction of Durnford Drove with the High Street round the corner for c. 2 cars’ length, in order to improve visibility for drivers exiting the Drove. ACTION: Cllr Bradford to discuss suggestion with Mr J Modley, who lives there; Clerk to follow up with DCC if appropriate. 
17. Public Toilets; PDC decision. At their August meeting PDC had agreed to relinquish responsibility for the cleaning and maintenance of the LMPC toilets as from October 2013, with staged payments thereafter which would cease within 4 years. Cllrs felt that it was important to explore cleaning costs as soon as possible, with a view to launching a tender process in June 2013 and appointment made next August/September ready for the October deadline. Cllr Knight suggested that a copy of the existing PDC cleaning contract might be helpful. ACTION: Clerk.
18. Community Infrastructure Levy.  Cllrs commented that such a levy is inappropriate in an area which needs more housing and small business development, and condemned the fact that money levied in the Swanage area, which has the highest rates of CIL, would not necessarily be spent in the same area. RESOLVED: that the Council objects to the CIL in principle, on the grounds that it will have a negative impact on economic and community development in the area; to the comparatively high rate of levy for the Swanage area; to the fact that money raised in Swanage will not necessarily be spent there. ACTION: Clerk to make formal response on behalf of the Council.
19. Play Area Replacement Swings. 
The Clerk had received feedback from school-age children and others suggesting that replacement of swings was a popular decision: the Council decided to look at other suggestions for adult equipment at a later date. In conjunction with a previous Play Area project, the Council currently has c.£3.800.00 available towards replacement of swings. This is not sufficient for like-for-like replacement, based on quotations received to supply and fit. The Clerk was instructed to look for grant funding from local supermarkets, and explore other possible sources of funding. 
20. PDC Tenancy Strategy. PDC are asking local Councils to help them to review their tenancy strategy for social housing. As some Cllrs had not yet had a chance to look at the relevant material, it was decided to defer the Council’s response. The Clerk will collate comments received and send later in the month.
20.	The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 7pm on Thursday 11th October 2012. The November monthly meeting will be on 8th November 2012.
21.	Additional items for the Agenda of the next Council meeting: Swings / Traffic management.

Closed 8.43pm 

Signed………………………………………  (Chairman)    Date…………………………