Minutes of the Meeting of Denby Dale Parish Council held on Tuesday 3 March 2009 in the Civic Chamber, Council Offices, Skelmanthorpe
Members Present: Cllrs E I Shaw (Chair), R Allen, R Brook, G Horton, C Rimmer, T Sigsworth, A Stimson, A Tribe, G Turner, K Waites, S Wild, N Wilson
In Attendance: Hazel Chowcat (Clerk to the Council)
1009 Public Session
No members of the public raised any issues.
1010 Police Report
In the absence of the police, there was no report. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1011 Apologies for Absence
Reasons for absence from the meeting were submitted from Cllrs J A Barlow, M Barlow, P Calpin, M Mills and S Simpson. It was RESOLVED that the reasons for absence submitted by these councillors be accepted as valid.
1012 Declaration of Councillors’ Interests
Cllr Tribe declared a personal interest in Item 24.1 regarding the request from the Birdsedge & District Village Hall for additional funds.
1013 Admission of the Public
It was RESOLVED that there were no items requiring the exclusion of the press and public.
1014 Minutes of Council Meeting
It was RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 10 February 2009 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
1015 Plans Scrutiny Committee Meeting
It was RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting held on 24 February 2009 be confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chair of the Council.
1016 Brighter Future for Schools
The Clerk submitted correspondence from the Department for Children, Schools and Families in response to the Council’s letter to Ed Balls MP, the Secretary of State in relation to Kirklees proposals for schools in South Kirklees under the BFS project. The letter confirmed that an Expression of Interest for South Kirklees schools had been submitted at the end of November and it was hoped that an announcement on the future prioritisation of the BFS programme would be made shortly and that it was anticipated that the proposals would be subject to full consultation of the local community. It was RESOLVED that the correspondence be noted.
1017 Allotments/Tree Planting
The Clerk reported that David Hosley of Kirklees Culture and Leisure Services had written to confirm that he had asked Legal Services to investigate the situation of allotments within Parish Councils to clarify the current position. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted and that the Clerk should ensure that the council maintains a waiting list for allotments.
1018 Provision of Large Display Boards
The Clerk reported she had not yet received a response from Kirklees Council concerning the proposed display board in Denby Dale, but that it was likely that such a display board would be provided under the improvement scheme for Denby Dale. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1019 Skelmanthorpe Notice Board
The Clerk reported that Kirklees officers were currently discussing a solution to the problem of the positioning of the notice in the Co-op car park. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1020 Station Road Cleansing Depot
The Clerk reported that there was no progress to report on this matter and it was RESOLVED that the matter be pursued.
1021 Promotion of Countryside Project
The Clerk reported that the request for decals being fixed onto the sides of the Countryside Officer’s lorry to advertise that the project is jointly sponsored by the Parish Council and Kirklees Council was being progressed. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1022 Lighting outside Scout Hut, Clayton West
The Clerk reported that there was no progress to report on this matter and it was RESOLVED that the matter be pursued.
1023 SCAG Speeding Survey
The Clerk submitted correspondence from Kirklees Council responding to the analysis of the Skelmanthorpe Community Action Group speeding survey which the Parish Council had supported. The letter contained detailed responses to all issues raised in the survey but contained some comments about the attitude of ward councillors to the Parish Council which members found disconcerting. It was RESOLVED that the Clerk write to thank Kirklees Council for the detailed response and clarify that the Parish Council has powers and duties conferred upon it by statute to take action to represent the interests of local residents.
1024 Dog Fouling Signs Clayton West
The Clerk reported that in response to the letter from Ben Sigsworth, she had arranged to meet with one of the Dog Wardens to discuss the matter further. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1025 Councillor Vacancies
The Clerk reported that she had advised Kirklees Council of the two vacancies and that they would be advertised in the normal way. It was RESOLVED that exit questionnaires be sent to the two ex-councillors.
1026 Election of Vice Chair of Plans Scrutiny Committee
The Clerk invited members to elect a Vice Chair of the Plans Scrutiny Committee to replace Cllr Thursby who was no longer a member of the Council. Cllr Waites was nominated by Cllr Sigsworth and seconded by Cllr Horton and it was RESOLVED that Cllr Waites be appointed Vice Chair.
1027 Broadband Steering Group
Cllr Brook gave a progress report on the work of the Broadband Steering Group. Two meetings had been held, the first an introductory meeting in January and the second in February when Graham Mitchell, the founder/project champion of the Colne Valley community owned fibre network project addressed the group. It was further reported that following the meeting with BT and Yorkshire Forward, the Clerk had submitted a draft bid letter to BT to apply to become a pilot area in BT’s implementation of the superfast broadband. Despite a number of reminders, there had been no response. The Group was now planning to invite a representative of the Community Broadband Network to address a future meeting. It was RESOLVED that Cllr Tribe join the Steering Group.
1028 Power of Well Being for Local Councils
The Clerk submitted correspondence from YLCA outlining the new Power of Well Being and asking if the Council wished to undertake training offered by the YLCA in the new power. It was RESOLVED that the Council agree to participate in the training.
1029 Closure of Chemist in Denby Dale
The Clerk submitted correspondence from a local resident who was concerned about the proposed closure of the pharmacy in Denby Dale and wanted to know if a pharmacy service would be available direct from the Health Centre. It was RESOLVED that the Clerk raise the matter with the PCT.
1030 Wood Street/Huddersfield Road Junction Proposal
The Clerk submitted correspondence from the Skelmanthorpe Community Action Group to Joe Malik of Kirklees Council Highways Department concerning the proposal agreed between the Parish Council and Kirklees Council for changes to be made to the Wood Street/Huddersfield Road junction. It was RESOLVED that matter be dealt with through a site visit with represntatives from the Parish Council, Kirklees Council and SCAG. It was further RESOLVED that Cllrs Waite and Horton attend on behalf o the Parish Council.
1031 Newsletter
The Clerk submitted the draft Newsletter and sought approval for costs to be incurred to distribute the newsletter to the whole parish. It was RESOLVED that the decision to distribute be agreed and that the Finance & General Purposes Committee take the decision on costs.
1032 Local Development Framework
The Clerk submitted copies of Kirklees Council’s LDF consultation document Local Development: Land Use where you live. Members did not feel that the document provided sufficient detail to enable a detailed response to be made and it was RESOLVED that the Clerk obtain copies of the fuller document and invite a Council representative to a special meeting of the Council on 24 March to discuss the document with a view to a submission being agreed at the Plans Scrutiny Committee meeting on 31 March 2009.
1033 Working Party on Public Transport
Cllr Brook told the meeting that there were no new developments to report. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1034 Denby Dale/Kirkburton LIG
The Clerk invited members to elect a replacement for Cllr Tribe to represent the Parish Council. It was RESOLVED that Cllr Allen represent the Parish Council on the LIG.
1035 Parish Plan Update
Cllr Allen reported that correspondence had now been received about the role of the lengthsman and licensing laws. He proposed that a sub group be set up to pursue the work on conducting a review of building for community use. It was RESOLVED that it had already been agreed to appoint a sub group to pursues the parish plan update and that it made sense for this sub group to take responsibility for both issues. It was further RESOLVED that the new sub group comprise Cllrs Allen, Brook and Shaw.
1036 NALC Conference
Cllr Shaw submitted a written report of the NALC Conference held in York on 21 February 2009. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1037 Denby Dale Area Committee Meeting
Cllr Brook gave a verbal report of the Area Committee meeting held on 26 February 2009. The main issues discussed were the Local Development Framework and the report on the future of the Sovereign crossroads. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1038 West Yorkshire Rural Transport Conference
It was RESOLVED that Cllr Waites attend the West Yorkshire Rural Transport Conference to be held on 18 March.
1039 SLCC Training Day
It was RESOLVED that Cllr Horton and the Clerk attend the SLCC West Yorkshire Branch training day on 13 March 2009.
1040 Walkers are Welcome
Cllr Brook circulated copies of ‘Walkers are Welcome’. It was RESOLVED that this matter be discussed at the April Council meeting.
1041 Website
The Clerk reported that there had been 3091 unique visitors to the website in February 2009. It was RESOLVED that the report be noted.
1042 Grant Application
The Clerk drew members attention to Minute 839 Finance & General Purposes Committee “It was FURTHER RESOLVED in accordance with its powers under S.19 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976 to make a grant of £5000 to the Birdsedge & District Village Hall towards renovation works and that if the council still has funds in its community grant budget at the end of the financial year and if the Birdsedge & District Village Hall still requires funds, then a further grant would be considered by the council”. The clerk explained that the balance in the Community Grant Aid budget was £1270 and the Council had three options: to make no grant; to make a grant of £1270; or to make a grant of £1270 plus an amount which may be vired from an underspent budget heading. It was RESOLVED that the balance of £1270 be awarded to the Birdsedge & District Village Hall and that the Finance & General Purposes Committee meeting to be held on 17 March give consideration to providing further funds.
1043 Orders for Payment
It was RESOLVED that Orders for Payment Nos. 488 totalling £4,131.80 and 489 totalling £1,964.05 be approved.
1044 April Council Meeting
It was RESOLVED that the following items be included on the agenda of the April council meeting: privatisation of Royal Mail (Cllr Turner) Road Safety Carr Hill Lane (Cllr Tribe); CCTV Cameras (Cllr Turner)
1045 Dates of Next Meetings
17 March – Finance & General Purposes Committee starting at 7.30pm
31 March 2009 - Plans Scrutiny Committee starting at 7.30pm
7 April 2009 – Council starting at 7pm
Signed: ……………………………………………
Chair
