Odstock Parish Council
An Ordinary meeting of Odstock Parish Council was held
on 5 February 2015 in the Radnor Hall, Bodenham.
Present: Rod
Poynting (Chairman), Stephen Stapley (Vice-Chairman), Nigel Start,
Richard Parsons (Clerk) and five members of the public.
Apologies:
Colin Berry, Gavin Simmonite, David Williamson-Jones and Wiltshire Cllr
Julian Johnson.
Absent: Sally Nelson.
1/15 Open Public Forum:
1. The recently appointed land agent for the Longford estate addressed
the meeting explaining that he wanted to encourage a thriving community
spirit. He expressed concern about the high level of litter along the
sides of the parish’s road and pledged to engage the estate’s staff
during March to collect and remove as much as possible.
2. The
Chairman of the Radnor Hall Committee explained the vital need for OPC’s
annual grant towards the cost of the Hall Lease. Although the committee
expect to carry forward about £8,000 at the end of the current financial
year, most is already allocated to facility improvements. They are also
losing several of their most regular customer due to retirement and
distance from the Hall. They plan to do some marketing to attract more,
local, regular, users.
2/15 Declaration of Interest:
None.
3/15 Minutes of the Ordinary OPC meeting held on 11 December were
approved and signed by the Chairman.
4/15 Nunton Recreation
Field: Play Safety (ref min no.42/14b): It was agreed that a 20 cu m
load of bark chippings was likely to be sufficient to bring the safety
surface up to the standard suggested by the RoSPA safety inspection
report.
5/15 Community Initiatives:
a)Radnor Hall Committee
Grant: Cllr Start queried whether the annual grant was necessary when
substantial funds were being carried forward. A member of the Hall
committee pointed out that attracting new users would likely incur a
significant cost. It was unanimously resolved to award the grant of £750
for the current financial year.
b)Shepherds Close Car Parking:
It
was agreed to keep this issue under review and carry it forward to a
future meeting.
c)Requests for Funding: It was unanimously agreed to
decline requests from 1. Citizen’s Advice Bureau; 2. Victim Support; and
3. A parishioner seeking financial support for an ecological expedition
to Honduras.
6/15 Transport, Roads and Footpaths:
a)Wiltshire
Council Highways: Maintenance had been carried out as requested by the
Chairman.
b)Community Area Transport Group: In Cllr Berry absence,
there was no report.
7/15 Planning: The Chairman had reviewed two
recent planning applications and did not consider that an OPC response
was warranted. There were no new planning applications to be considered.
8/15 Reports and Correspondence: The next Area Board meeting is
in Winterslow Village Hall on 28 May.
9/15 Finance:
a)Risk
Assessment: It was agreed that OPC's Risk Assessment Policy is adequate,
however, the Chairman was concerned that play-area maintenance records
needed to be more regular.
b)Receipts:
Lloyds Bank plc – Interest
(year to date) £5.03p
c)Payments: The following were approved:
Bawden Contracting Services Ltd – Grass Cutting 531 £403.12p
Society
of Local Council Clerks – Subscription 532 £77.00p
Radnor Hall –
Contribution towards Annual Lease 533 £750.00p
R Parsons – Clerk's
salary and expenses, on account 534 £474.00p
Bawden Contracting
Services Ltd – Grass Cutting 535 £403.12p
Wessex Water – Nunton Field
Water DD £21.39p
Southern Electric – Nunton Field Electricity DD
£20.87p
10/15 Any Other Business (for information only): None
11/15 The Annual OPC meeting is scheduled for 7 May, following the
Annual Parish meeting.
The meeting closed at 9:25pm
Signed without amendment by the PC Chairman, Cllr Rod Poynting, on 14 May 2015.
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