Odstock Parish Council

An Ordinary meeting of Odstock Parish Council was held on 10 February 2010 in The Barker Room, Nunton.

Present: Rod Poynting (Chairman), Stephen Stapley, Nigel Start (from 7:45pm), David Williamson-Jones, Ray Martin, Richard Parsons (Clerk) and six members of the public.
Apologies: Cliff Whitley (Vice-Chairman), Colin Berry, and Wiltshire Cllr Julian Johnson.

1/10 Open Public Forum: No issues were raised by those members of the public present.

2/10 Declaration of Interest: None.

3/10 Minutes of the PC meeting held on 9 December were agreed as a true record and signed by the Chairman. 

4/10 Matters Arising:
a) Pavilion Project: In December, invitations to tender for the agreed improvements to the Pavilion had been delivered to a short list of six local building contractors. This resulted in five fixed-price quotes being received. The Community Grant application to Wiltshire Council was successful, yielding £3,000 towards the cost. The five quotations were examined individually and it was agreed to award the contract to the contractor who had submitted the lowest price quote. The winning quote was also accompanied by the most detailed schedule.
b) Play Area Maintenance: Four of the five building contractors who had tendered for the Pavilion project also tendered for the refurbishment of the safety surface in the play area. Separate quotes will be obtained for the supply of the safety surface material. Again, the contractor who had successfully quoted for the Pavilion Project delivered the lowest quote for relaying the safety surface and fitting the play equipment spares from Playdale. 

5/10 Nunton and Odstock Playing Fields:
a) Grass Cutting: Two quotations had been received. 1. A firm at Codford had quoted £88 per cut for the Nunton Field and £54 per cut for the Odstock Field. 2. A firm from Amesbury had quoted £1,872 to cut both fields a total number of 18 times during the year. The current contractor had indicated that they were unable to quote a rate which was less than the previous year. It was agreed to award the contract to the Amesbury firm. 
b) Mole Infestation: Quotations will be obtained for the removal of the moles which will have a detrimental impact on the ability of the grass cutting machines to effectively keep the grass short.

6/10 Community Initiatives:
a) Radnor Hall Committee: It was reported that the Radnor Hall has achieved an operating profit for the first time. A set of audited accounts will provided in due course.
b) Odstock Telephone Kiosk: It was agreed to accept the British Telecom offer to adopt the King George V Jubilee Telephone Kiosk at Odstock for £1 rather than agree to contribute to its running costs. 
c) Nunton Church PCC: It was agreed to award a grant of £400 towards refurbishment of the Nunton Churchyard wall.
d) Rectory Garden Wall: A quotation for repairs has yet to be obtained.

7/10 Transport, Roads and Footpaths:
a) WC Parish Steward Report: Numerous potholes are to be repaired and grips and gullies cleared.
b) Change of Priorities on Odstock Road: Wiltshire Council has agreed to a proposal for a change to the traffic priorities at Odstock Bridges. This is likely to be carried out during the 2010/11 financial year.
c) Footpath at Jubilee Gardens: This item is to be carried forward to a future OPC meeting.
d) Parking on the Odstock Road: There is no anticipated resolution to this perceived problem. 

8/10 Planning: There were no planning applications to consider.

9/10 Reports and Correspondence:
a) Environment Agency: There is thought to be no requirement for a Community Flood Plan.
b) Wiltshire Council Grit Bin: Wiltshire Council is reviewing its inventory of Grit Bins. There is at least one Grit Bin in the Parish and this is at the Orchard in Nunton.
c) South Wiltshire Area Board: The Chairman had attended the meeting at Downton School on 4 February where the Community Grant for the Nunton Pavilion had been approved. The next meeting is on 15 March.

10/10 Finance:
a) Risk Assessment: Odstock Parish Council's Risk Assessment statement is current and adequate.
b) PCC Grass Cutting for 2010-2011: No decision was reached as to the amount of the current year's grant. 
c) Payments: The following were approved:
        Sodexo Land Technology Ltd - Grass Cutting -- 319 - £648.95p
        R Parsons - Clerk's fee on account ------------- 320 - £462.72p
        Wessex Water - Nunton Field Water Supply --- DD -- £17.53p
        Southern Electric - Nunton Field Electricity ----- DD -- £31.89p
        Playdale Playgrounds Ltd - Spare parts -------- 322 -- £32.78p
        Society of Local Council Clerks - Subscription - 323 -- £61.00p

11/10 Any Other Business (for information only): 
a) The Chairman drew attention to the dilapidated nature of the fence around the car park adjacent to the Odstock Recreation Field in Shepherds Close. OPC will seek to establish who is responsible for this fence.
b) There was a discussion about the practicality of establishing a Community Speed Watch Scheme. 

12/10 The next Parish Council meeting is the Annual meeting scheduled to be held on Wednesday, 12 May 2010 following the Annual Parish Meeting scheduled to start at 7:00pm.

The meeting closed at 8:54pm

Signed without amendment by the PC Chairman, Cllr Rod Poynting, on 12 May 2010.
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