Pakenham Parish Council : Minutes - 17th April 2000

PAKENHAM PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the meeting held on MONDAY 17th APRIL 2000
AT THE PAVILION AT 7.30p.m.

Present: Cllr. D. Dorling; Cllr. J. Mangnall; Cllr. B. Chester; Cllr. A. Cox; Cllr. H. Painter; Cllr. P. Smith; Mrs V. White, Borough Councillor; P.C. J. Kidd; Mrs. P. Griffiths, Clerk.

1 - APOLOGIES: There were no apologies.

2 - MINUTES:-
The minutes of the meeting held on 6th March 2000 were signed as a true record

3 - BOROUGH COUNCILLOR’S REPORT:-
As Mrs. White had to leave to attend another meeting, her report was received first. She said that she had approached both St. Edmundsbury Borough Council and Suffolk County Council requesting a grant towards the cost of inserting boundry posts at Church Green, but neither would make any contribution. St. Edmundsbury were, however, sending an inspector to the site on 28th April to ascertain the ownership of a car which was causing an obstruction at the entrance to the land. With regard to dog fouling in Pakenham, Mr. Boutell of the environmental health department had said that there were no funds allocated for the provision of extra bins this year. However, if a specific request was made, the dog warden would visit the area and was able to issue a fixed penalty notice to the owner of any dog caught in the act of fouling.

Following recent accidents at the Bury Road crossroads, Mrs. White had again written to Mr. D. Watson, Rural Traffic Manager, Suffolk County Council, emphasising the need for urgent action to be taken to make the junction safer.

4 - POLICE REPORT:-
P.C. Kidd said that he had persuaded Max Bacon at the post office to be the Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator for the village. He hoped to have a meeting shortly to get the scheme organised. Investigations were still continuing into a recent burglary, car theft and break-in at the Agri-Centre in Fen Road. On 16th May a police forum was being held at Fornham Golf Club, to which members of the public were invited.

5 - MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES:-

i) Councillor Chester said that the work to insert the boundary posts at Church Green had been completed in one day. The whole of the area belongs to St. Edmundsbury Borough Council and the houses have vehicular access rights only.

ii) The Bowls and Buggy Clubs both now had planning permission to use the allotment land. Councillor Chester said that although he had had no communication from the Buggy Club regarding the rent agreement, they brought benefits to the village by welcoming local members, keeping the land clear and making a voluntary donation. The Bowls Club was under new leadership and negotiations on a rent agreement were continuing. A long debate then ensued on the restrictive practices and membership of the bowls club and the fact that they had not paid any rent whatsoever since the previous year. At Councillors Dorling’s suggestion, it was agreed that a representative of the bowls club be invited to the next parish council meeting to explain their intentions for the future of the club.

iii) Councillors inspected a proof copy of the Mills Trail information board, which was to be commercially produced by Windmill Prints. Slight amendments to the drawings were suggested to protect copyright.

iv) The churchyard burial ground had been mown in error by the contractor. Councillor Chester had contacted Mr. Wales, the contractor, concerning this but had not yet received a reply.

v) Mr. A. Hoskens had been appointed as the new village street cleaner on a three-month trial basis.

6. OPEN SESSION:-
Mr. J. Culley, a village resident in attendance at the meeting, asked whether a copy of the minutes could be displayed in the post office. He felt that this might encourage villagers to take an interest in what was happening. It was agreed that this should be done.

7 - St. EDMUNDSBURY LOCAL PLAN:-
The plan had been circulated to councillors and comments made. These would be passed on to the council by the clerk in the form of a letter.

8 - DOG FOULING:-
Councillors were not aware of a particular problem in the village, but in view of a letter received the previous month from Mr. Culley, the matter had been pursued by Mrs. White, the Borough Councillor. Following further discussion on the matter, Councillor Mangnall said that she would put a letter in the church magazine and Councillor Dorling said he would put notices up in the areas popular with dog-walkers.

9 - PLANNING APPLICATIONS:-

Past Applications:-

Planning had been granted for the errection of a singly-storey extension at Meadow Garth, Mill Road, Pakenham.

New Aapplications:- 

(i) Application had been made to erect a single-storey sun lounge at the rear of 4 The Greenwoods. No objections were made. 

(ii) Application had been made to add first floor accommodation and roof lights at the Old School House, Pakenham. It was felt that further details of the application were needed in order to make judgement of the effect it would have on the building.

10 - FINANCE:-

11 - CORRESPONDENCE:-

i) FLOOD WARNING MEETING:-
The Environment Agency were organising a flood warning meeting in September 2000. Councillor Phil Smith said that he would attend.

ii) PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT LICENCE:-
Application had been made for an occasional public entertainment licence fir The Barn, Manor Farm, Pakenham, on 8th July 2000. There were no objections.

iii) LOCAL HERITAGE:-
A letter regarding a local heritage initiative was passed to Councillor Tony Cox to ascertain the possibility of including The Whitings, Chalk Works.

iv) PARKING IN THE STREET:-
A letter had been received from a village resident regarding obstructive parking in The Street. Following discussion, it was agreed that this matter be brought to the attention of Suffolk County Council who were responsible for the implementation of parking restrictions.

v) TOURIST INFORMATION DATABASE:-
The Borough Council Tourist Information centre now provides an events database to which information can be added. It was suggested that the Millennium Barn Dance on 8th July and the Open Gardens Day on September 10th were suitable items for inclusion.

12 - ANY OTHER BUSINESS:-
The subject of village web sites was raised and Councillor Smith agreed to find out further details.

13 - DATES OF NEXT MEETINGS:-
It was agreed that the Annual Parish Meeting and the Annual Parish Council Meeting be held on 15th May in the Village Hall. A further date of 26th June was agreed for the following parish council meeting.