March 2020
Minutes of Parish Council Meeting
Held at 7.30pm on 05/03/2020 in Little Bytham Village Hall
Present: Mrs S Fraser (Chair), Mrs E Inskip (Clerk), Mr G Lohmann-Bond, Mrs S Mcfarland, Mr S Smith, County Councillor Mr B Adams, District Councillor Mr C Benn
Apologies: Mr F Hughes, Mr P Inskip, Mr J Sharpe
Chair’s Introduction: Cllr Fraser welcomed everyone to the meeting.
Public Forum: Several members of the public were present at the meeting. The following items were discussed:
1. A representative from the Bythams Woodland Trust informed the PC about the fly tipping that is occurring at the Spinney. Next catalogues are being disposed of by a courier and set alight. The Chair of the trust informed the PC that they are in constant contact with Hermes and also Next and measures have been taken to try and combat this. Cllr Lohmann-Bond will keep the PC informed of the situation. As the land is private land the PC are unable to get involved in any prosecution, however Cllr Fraser stated that the PC will try and help if the situation happens again. The Chair was also able to provide to the PC an update of the refurbishments taking place this year at the Spinney. (GL)
2. Castle Bytham Midsummer Festival committee have very kindly offered to repair the Parish Room gate as their contribution and thanks to LB. It was agreed by all Cllr’s that this would be very gratefully received and agreement was given for this work to be done.
3. A parishioner mentioned the huge increase in traffic on LB roads. This traffic is starting before 6am. He noted that within 1 hour, 18 trucks passed his home. County Cllr Adams stated that he needs the names of trucks, not necessarily the times now and he will speak to the managers of the haulage companies. Evidence is needed. County Cllr Adams will follow up with the parishioner. (BA)
4. The appalling state of the roads and blocked drains in LB was also mentioned. The parishioner has continually reported these and will continue to do so. It was stated that the pot holes will only get worse over the next 18 months due to the weather. County Cllr Adams informed the parishioner that even with an increase in the repair budget there is still not enough to sort all roads. LB is on the list but this may not be a quick fix.
5. Sheep Dyke Lane was mentioned as it is not in a good state due to the Anglian Water lorries that are continually there. Cllr Fraser will approach AW and the land owner to see if this can be sorted by AW by putting some aggregate down. (SF)
6. A parishioner stated the problems that they have been having with Network Rail workers. All track works are now actioned at night. The problem is continual noise between 10pm and 4am and the mud that is ruining the area. Litter is also a problem by the Willoughby access. Some affected parishioners are not even receiving any notification to inform them that works are to take place. Parishioner to supply more detailed info to Cllr Fraser who will then write to Network Rail. (SF)
Cllr Fraser thanked the parishioner for attending and the public forum was brought to a close.
Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on the 09/01/2020 were presented and approved.
Actions from Matters arising from previous minutes:
• Slip hazard of footbridges: Cllr Adams will continue to look into this and therefore it is carried forward. (BA)
• Vehicle issues: Cllr Adams has agreed to speak with highways again to see where we are with this. (BA)
• Lorries in the village: As Cllr Hughes could not be present at the meeting, he had emailed an update to Cllrs with some very early data from the SIDs (information available if required). Cllr Hughes will continue to obtain data and it was agreed that this should then be shared with parishioners. County Cllr Adams continues to need the names of any lorries seen speeding. (FH & BA)
• Anglian Water: Cllr Fraser will meet with the Operations Manager of AW. Cllr Fraser now has a copy of the missing AW report in the Quarry Application and has discovered that the developer needed to have spoken to AW before they started construction. As work has already commenced this process is not being followed therefore AW need to speak to the developer immediately. County Cllr Adams will also attend the meeting with Cllr Fraser. It was also mentioned that AW need to apply for a permit every time to pump any effluent into the river. Cllr Lohmann Bond informed the PC that AW’s second application for over pumping was refused. This information was received from an operative of AW, therefore, Cllr Fraser will confirm if this is indeed the case. Cllr Fraser will send another letter to AW. (SF).
• Pathway to Spinney: District Cllr Benn informed the Cllr’s that there was no further work in progress on this by District. The parts of the pathway that are in the 60mph section cannot be actioned, therefore this has to now be dealt with by County Council. Clerk Inskip will email all details to County Cllr Adams to see if they can help. (EI & BA)
• Health and Safety: Cllr Fraser has written the first draft of this. Cllr Fraser and Clerk Inskip will get together to discuss. (SF &EI)
• Bank update: Cllr Sharpe and Cllr Hughes were not present at the meeting; therefore, this is carried forward. (JS, FH, SF)
• Parking issues on New Estate: An email has been sent by Clerk Inskip to the parishioner after speaking with both County and District Cllrs. In terms of the parking County Cllr Adams has referred it to Highways, however as with all Highways issues, this will not be a quick process.
Finance (as of 12/02/2019):
Current Account Balance: £7404.05
Savings Account Balance: £254.69
Planning:
1. Update on Castle Bytham Quarry Development: No response received from Planning on this issue. District Cllr Benn stated that this is still a work in progress. (Ongoing)
Other Matters: .
1. Speed Limits in the Village: Clerk Inskip shared an email regarding changing the speed limits in the village. Unfortunately, all applications have been refused for varying reasons. Clerk Inskip stated that she will not give up on this and hopefully utilising the data obtained from the SIDs and other information we can appeal this decision. (EI)
2. Clarification on the legalities of election and presence of the Chair at the APCM and APM: It was confirmed that LB only needs to hold an Annual Parish Council Meeting and an Annual Parish Meeting in May. In terms of the presence of the Chair, Clerk Inskip will write to Julie Edwards to get clarification on this. (EI)
3. Condition of roads in Little Bytham: As discussed in the public part of the meeting the roads in Little Bytham are in a bad state of repair. County Cllr Adams confirmed again that we are on the list for a re surface but it is unlikely to be any time in the near future. In the meantime, keep reporting all issues on the Fix my street app. Clerk Inskip also stated that she had reported the street furniture that was knocked over in Summer for the last 6 months and this still was not fixed despite it being on the list to be completed by December and then February. Cllr Lohmann-Bond also raised the concern of the lack of pavement between school and the houses on Creeton Road. Clerk Inskip will email County Cllr Adams to follow this up. (EI & BA)
4. Website: Cllr Inskip has been in contact with the Programme Officer at LCC regarding trying to get a Skype session for the website. (PI)
5. Neighbourhood Plan: County Cllr Adams and District Cllr Benn reiterated the need for Little Bytham to have a neighbourhood plan. As Cllr Fraser stated the problem is getting a group together to sort this, as ideally it needs to be non-PC members. (Ongoing)
6. Section 19 reports: Cllr Benn stated that he had recently attended a Flood Risk Management meeting. It would appear that there is a need when any sewage comes into a property that LCC is also informed. When it is reported a section 19 is applied and it has to be investigated. County Cllr Adams will send the details of whom to inform to Clerk Inskip. LB’s system is antiquated. District Cllr Benn stated that the overflow is being caused by excessive rainwater in the sewage pipes, from ground water leaking into the pipes and some houses whose rainwater pipe was put into the sewage drain. AW’s solutions are to re seal the old pipe or increase the wall of the pipe. As presently it is too dangerous to use the drill, LB has to wait until the ground dries out for this solution to happen. (BA & EI)
Cheques signed:
1. £450 cheque to Clerk for work done in the previous 6 months.
2. £118.77 cheque to LALC for annual subscription.
Cheques signed prior to meeting:
1. £108 cheque to Chubb Fire & Security for the maintenance of the Parish Room Extinguishers.
Date of Next Meeting: Thursday May 7th at 7.30pm in the Village Hall.
This will be the Annual Parish Meeting followed immediately by the Annual Parish Council Meeting.