RIBBLE BANKS PARISH COUNCIL

 

MINUTES OF A MEETING OF THE COUNCIL,

HELD IN RATHMELL READING ROOM ON TUESDAY 6th, JANUARY 2009

 

 

Present:

 

Councillors                   D Clarke          Chairman

                                    R Crabtree

                                    F Higginson

                                    I Wright

 

and 18 members of the public

 

Prior to the formal start of the meeting, a presentation was made to the Council and the public by Mr Colin Iveson, Head of Democratic Services, Craven District Council, on the possibility of Ribble Banks Parish Council being disestablished and replaced by individual Parish Councils for Rathmell and Wigglesworth and a Parish Meeting for Halton West. A report of this presentation is attached to these minutes as Annex A and has also been posted on village web sites .

 

6/1/1.  Apologies.  Apologies were received from Councillor Mrs B Houghton.

 

6/1/2. Declarations of Interest.  There were no declarations of interest relevant to the agenda.

 

Following these two opening Agenda items, a presentation, with subsequent public discussion, was made by Sgt Les Moorhouse from North Yorks Traffic Police on the traffic survey which had been conducted in Rathmell in October 2008.  A summary of his presentation is at Annex B to these Minutes.

 

6/1/3.1 Public Participation.  Subsequent to the discussion with Sgt Moorhouse, Mr D Rawsthorne raised the possibility of reducing the speed limit in Hesley Lane adjacent to the school to 20mph.  The Chairman responded that he had asked for a site visit with the Highways Authority and he would discuss this issue with them at the time. 

 

6/1/3.2 Mr R Stone had tabled a letter at the beginning of the meeting, which made a number of suggestions which Mr Stone requested that councillors consider in relation to the setting of the precept. Mr Stone briefly outlined the content of his letter to councillors and members of the public present at the meeting.  The Chairman agreed this letter should be considered more fully at the next Council meeting.

 

ACTION on both items: CHAIRMAN

 

6/1/4. Minutes of the Last Meeting.  It was proposed by Councillor Higginson and seconded by Councillor Crabtree that the Minutes were a true record of the meeting held on 15 December.  The Motion was carried and the Minutes were signed by the Chairman.

 

6/1/5. Matters Arising.  There were no matters arising not covered by the subsequent agenda.

 

6/1/6. Public Meeting - Requirements for Establishing a Parish Council.  This agenda item had been covered by Mr Iveson’s presentation.  For the details of the presentation please see the report attached to these minutes at Annex A.

6/1/7.  Finance.

 

            6/1/7.1.  Current Balances.

 

Deposit account                                    £8331.02,

Current account                                    £2137.86

Total                                                   £10468.88

 

Less sundry creditors                            £1907.00

Balance                                               £8561.88

                       

The Chairman explained that, to some extent, the high level of reserves resulted from the need to accumulate funds for payments to a Parish Clerk but much of this expenditure had not been incurred due to unforeseen circumstances.

           

6/1/7.2.  End of Year Accounts.

 

The end of year accounts had been delayed by staffing problems; however they had now been completed and approved by the internal auditor, Mr K Gerrard, to whom the Chairman expressed his thanks.  The accounts had been forwarded to MAZARS, the external auditors, with an explanatory letter outlining the reasons for delay.

 

6/1/7.3.  Precept 2009/10.

 

The Chairman tabled a discussion paper (Annex C) outlining a range of options for the 2009/10 Precept.  The paper included four possibilities, an increase in the precept by 20% to £6000, remain the same as 2008/9 at £5000, or reductions by 20% or 40% to £4000 or £3000 respectively.  He mentioned that, in addition to the expenditure listed in the paper, there was a need for a reserve of £1500-£2000 to cover the cost of a potential Parish Council election in 2010. Councillor Higginson requested an allocation of additional funds to Halton West for refurbishment of the village green, repairs to its boundary wall and the production of a new village notice board.  He agreed to provide detailed estimates for this work at the next Council meeting. ACTION: COUNCILLOR HIGGINSON

 

Councillor Crabtree expressed concern at the item of £1255 for Rathmell Reading Room.  There are three village halls within the Parish and were similar and continuing sums allocated to each, then a significant rise in Council Tax throughout the Parishes would ensue.  This issue was the subject of some debate between councillors.  The Chairman noted that Craven District Council had recently indicated that Parish councils would be expected to support local community buildings where it was considered that those buildings contributed to community coherence and well-being, and when it was appropriate to do so.

 

Councillors Crabtree and Higginson also expressed concern at the high level of reserves held by the Council.  Following discussion, it was proposed by Councillor Higginson and seconded by Councillor Crabtree that the Precept be reduced by 20% and set at £4000.  Motion carried.

 

6/1/7.4.  Asset Register.  It was agreed that the Asset Register would be reviewed at the next meeting of the Council. ACTION: CHAIRMAN

 

6/1/8. Askew’s Barn.  Some months previously it was understood the Clerk had written to CDC on this matter but with no reply.  It was agreed that the Chairman should write once again to CDC in order that progress could be made on the subject.  ACTION: CHAIRMAN

 

6/1/9.  Report by Councillors and Council Representatives.

 

Clerk.  The Chairman reported that the current clerk’s employment had been terminated and that a replacement was to be sought.

 

Halton West.  Councillor Higginson reported that the War Memorial had been inspected by specialists and contractors had been appointed to carry out the necessary remedial work.

 

Rathmell.

Mr D Pemberton reported that, in the past, Rathmell Parish Meeting had appointed a Trustee to the Thomas Foster Charity.  This Charity generated an income of approximately £100 per annum to the benefit of Rathmell.  Councillors requested Mr Pemberton to stand as a Trustee of the charity, a task which he accepted.

 

Councillor Wright reported that he had not yet had the opportunity to talk to the new residents at The Green concerning partial obstruction of the footpath on their land. ACTION: COUNCILLOR WRIGHT

 

Councillor Crabtree mentioned that a number of major potholes were appearing in the road at the top of Rathmell Brow.  The Chairman agreed to raise this with the Highways Authority.  ACTION: CHAIRMAN

 

Wigglesworth. The Chairman reported there was to be a Wigglesworth Parish Meeting on 21 January.

 

6/1/10.  Village Environment, Rights of Way and Highways Matters

 

            6/1/10.1.  Halton West War Memorial. See 6/1/9 above

 

6/1/10.2. Trees Encroaching the Road at Cappleside.  The Chairman reported he had written to Mr Weston on the subject and received a most helpful reply outlining what, in Mr Weston’s view, were his and the Highway Department's responsibility in the matter.  The Chairman had requested a site visit by the Highways Authority to review the situation.  Mr Weston would be invited to attend this site visit.  ACTION: CHAIRMAN

 

6/1/10.3 & 6/1/10.4. Gritting of Hesley Lane and Flooding at the Long Preston Wigglesworth Road at the Wigglesworth Junction.   The Chairman had written to North Yorkshire county council highways department in relation to both of these matters, and would raise these matters at the site meeting with the Highways Authority as covered by 1/6/10.2 above.

 

6/1/11. Correspondence. 

            See 6/1/10.2 above.

            There were no other urgent items of correspondence for councillors to consider.

 

6/1/12.  Any Other Matters of Local Concern.  No matters were raised under this item.

 

6/1/13.  Date of Next Meeting.  The next meeting will be at 1930 in Rathmell Reading Room on 24 March 2009

 

There being no further business the meeting closed at 2145

 

Annexes:

 

A. summary of the presentation by Colin Iveson of Craven District Council

B. Summary of Presentation by Sgt Les Moorhouse of North Yorkshire Traffic police.

C.  Discussion paper on the Precept 2009/10

 

Annex A

Ribble Banks Parish Council

 

Report of a meeting held on Tuesday 6 January 2009 with Mr Colin Iveson, Head of Democratic Services at Craven District Council.

 

Background:

In response to request from parishioners in Rathmell and Wigglesworth to explore what would be required to establish separate parish councils in the villages of Wigglesworth and Rathmell, Mr Iveson was invited to speak to parishioners from both villages.

 

Main issues:

Mr Iveson provided a brief overview of the principles of local community governance, and then outlined to the specific responsibilities of Craven District Councils should a petition be made by parishioners to establish separate parish councils. In addition, Mr Iveson noted that the village of Halton West currently did not have sufficient electors to request a separate parish council and therefore would either revert to a Parish Meeting or may opt to join together with Wigglesworth, Rathmell or Hellifield should the existing grouped parish council cease to exist.  The main points of the meeting are listed below:

 

-The petition to Craven District Council from one or both villages would require the signatures of 50% of the electorate; provided that this figure was achieved, then Craven District Council would be required to undertake a Community Local Governance Review

-The Community Local Governance Review is a formal process which can take up to 12 months to complete (the period is likely to be shorter within a small parish, such as Ribble Banks)

-The review involves consultation with the electorate as well as the local council and other interested parties, for example, Settle Town Council and neighbouring parish councils.

-The consultation and review process would focus on ensuring effective and viable local government, the promotion of community coherence and community well-being. These areas are determined by national government and must be addressed by Craven District Council in any review.

-The outcome and recommendations of the review would be presented to Craven District Council. The decision on whether to maintain the existing group to parish council or establish separate parish councils would be made by Craven District Council.

-If the decision of Craven District Council were to support separate parish councils, then each separate parish council would have to elect five parish councillors and appoint a clerk to each council.

 

Various questions were directed to Mr Iveson by individuals present at the meeting. Mr Iveson concluded the meeting by indicating that in his personal opinion, the existing grouped parish council was an effective means to maintain community involvement in local government.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Annex B.

 

SUMMARY OF PRESENTATION BY SGT MOORHOUSE OF NORTH YORKS POLICE ON TRAFFIC SURVEY CARRIED OUT AT RATHMELL, OCTOBER 2008

 

At the request of the Rathmell Traffic Action Group and in conjunction with the Fire Service North Yorks police had carried out a traffic survey and enforcement operation in Rathmell in the second half of October 2008.

 

During the period a covert speed camera and monitor had been installed for a period of one week and traffic officers had attended on two days.

 

The traffic monitor showed that density was higher than expected particularly in the periods 08-0900 and 16-1800 when peak flow was 60 vehicles per hour. 80% of the traffic largely obeyed the 30mph limit but 15% were in the bracket 35-38mph.  37 vehicles had been stopped by the traffic police the majority (23) of which were local drivers.  One prosecution had resulted.  The police had been unaware of the problem of HGVs disregarding the weight limit and thus no data had been collected on this issue.

 

In conjunction with the Fire Service, two new portable matrix signs had been purchased.  Sgt Moorhouse intended to position one of these signs in Rathmell for a period of one week to follow by one week of the covert speed camera operation. The intention would be to determine if the matrix sign resulted in a reduction of speeding offences.  In the event that it did not, then enforcement officers would be deployed to the village.

 

North Yorks Traffic police were well aware of the hazards caused by motor cyclists throughout the area and treated the matter with great attention. However, the cyclists’ routes were constantly changing which, with the limited police resources available, presented a major difficulty.

 

Sgt Moorhouse did not recommend speed bumps, or the introduction of chicanes but suggested larger 30mph signs and white painted signs on the road surface may be beneficial. Any requests for such measures must reach the Highways Authority before 1 April if funding was to be allocated in the next financial year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Annex C.

 

RBPC Precept 2009/10

 

Approximate current balances:

Deposit account                        £ 8,331.02

Current account                        £ 2,137.86

Total                             £10,468.88

 

Amounts outstanding 2008-9                 

Clerks Salary

February 2008 to December 2008

83 hours at £9.00                                                           £747.00

Clerks Expenses (estimated)

February 2008 to December 2008                                   £250.00

Insurance (due end February 2009*)                               £450.00

War memorial repairs    (Halton West)                           £300.00

Internal Auditor                                                             £  60.00

External Auditor (+late penalty)                                      £100.00

 

Subtotal                                                                       £1907.00

 

Current account                                                                        £2,137.86

Balance after amounts outstanding                                 £  230.86

 

Current balances after amounts outstanding     2008-9  

Savings account                                                                        £ 8,331.02

Current account                                                                        £   230.86

Total                                                                            £ 8,561.881

 

 

 

Notes:

1)      This figure does not include amounts currently held by Parish Meetings (Approximate figures =Wigglesworth, £500.00; Halton West, £160.00; Rathmell, £250.00)

 

*Date amended post meeting following confirmation of the date from AON Insurers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Notes prepared for discussion by:

David Clarke, chairman

Ribble Banks Parish Council

6th January 2009

 

 

RBPC Precept 2009/10

 

Anticipated expenditure 2009-10

Room Rental  x 6 meetings                                            £   90.00

YLCA Subscription                                                       £ 175.00

Insurance                                                                      £ 475.00

Clerk’s salary

18 hours per months x 12 @£9.00                                  £1944.00

Clerk’s expenses                                                           £  500.00

Internal Audit                                                                £    70.00

External Audit                                                               £    60.00

 

Village projects or discretionary grants requested

Wigglesworth                                                                £  170.00 (Web site hosting £120, Mower                                                                                                                                         repair £50.00)

Rathmell (Reading Room)                                              £1255.002 (Recommended-See notes                                                                                                                                       below)

Rathmell (Web site hosting)                                           £  120.00

Halton West                                                                  £    00.003

 

Discretionary Grants  (Requested)

Settle Swimming Pool                                                    £  400.00 (suggested increase from  300)

 

Craven Citizens Advice Bureau                                      £  100.00 (suggested increase from 40.00)

 

Total                                                                            £5359.004

 

If the Parish Council has to pay for the administration of elections in 2009/10 this is likely to incur a cost of approximately £1500-1800 and so some reserves should be retained to pay for this and also for any unforeseen expenditure which may be required.

 

Options:

1) Precept same amount as for 2008-9                =          £5000.00

This option covers the 2009-10 shortfall from reserves and maintains the reserves (approximately £8,000) for projected future requests to support the two main community facilities i.e. Clark’s Old School in Wigglesworth and the Reading Room in Rathmell. These buildings are used for the benefit of many residents in all three villages.

2) Increase the precepted amount by 20% to add to the reserves for the above (precept =£6000). This would lead to reserves of £9,000.

Options 1 & 2 should only occur if specific projects are identified for the next financial year

3) Reduce the precept by 20% and reduce reserves by £1359 (therefore precept =£4000). This would result in reserves of £7,000

4) Reduce the precept by 40% and reduce reserves by £2359 (therefore precept =£3000). This would result in reserves of £6,000 which would cover the elections and unforeseen events not covered by the insurance.

Notes

2)      Rathmell reading Room Full request includes  

                  £249.00 for fire safety improvements (responsibility of the Landlord)

                  £3147.00 for long term projects for this community venue (though this figure                        has not been requested from the Parish Council).

3) The council has agreed to ring fences monies previously held by Parish Meetings (see page 1) for use against projects identified but not yet costed in full e.g. Landscaping Jack Lane Lay-by at Wigglesworth, Back Lane works and Reading Room curtains and blinds in Rathmell and similar works and ongoing lawnmower maintenance in Halton West. Therefore these funds should be included in calculations of current balances but not be used to reduce the precept for 2009-10.