CHATTERIS TOWN COUNCIL
Minutes Dated 2nd March 2010
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Minutes of a meeting of Chatteris Town Council held on Tuesday 2nd March 2010 at the Council Chambers, 14 Church Lane, Chatteris.
Present: Mr P Murphy (Mayor), Mrs F Newell (Deputy Mayor), Ms C Colbert, Mr C Howes, Mr M Petrou, Mrs S Rigby, Mrs R Stimson and Mr I Taylor.
215) To Approve Apologies for Absence
Apologies for absence had been received from Cllr Ashley, who was unwell, and Cllr Elam, who was working.
216) Open Forum
Ten members of the public were welcomed to the meeting. They were all residents of Rosemary Lane, Linden Drive, Huntingdon Road and West Street and all wished to speak about the on-street parking proposals for Huntingdon Road. The Mayor warned them they had just 15 minutes to speak and Councillors would merely listen and then discuss the matter later in the meeting.
The first resident began by asking why the double yellow lines were to be re-instated on Huntingdon Road. She said the residents of Rosemary Lane had never favoured the pedestrian crossing because they felt it was in the wrong place and took away some of the parking. However, they were told they would be given extra space for parking but the latest plans would axe seven or eight parking spaces and this would push the traffic further and further into residential areas, such as Linden Drive. She also pointed out since the parking had been allowed there had been no accidents in the area while previously there had been a number of accidents.
A resident of Huntingdon Road showed Councillors photographs of the time her home was hit by a car, spoke of her fears for her children’s safety, particularly in icy weather, and invited Councillors to have a cup of tea is her front room as the traffic shot past. She argued preventing the park would create more accidents and would mean drivers were even less inclined to stop at the crossing.
A resident of Rosemary Lane argued there would be nowhere for delivery vans to park when they wished to deliver to properties in the Lane and it would be difficult for those with shopping if they parked too far away. It was also pointed out the residents of Linden Drive complained about people parking outside their homes.
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One resident could see the justification for no-parking on the bend outside Salem Court but argued parking should be allowed on the straight sections of the road. However, most felt the parked cars reduced the speed of passing motorists and made the road safer.
Another resident pointed out HCVs had to use Huntingdon Road when they left London Road and suggested traffic controls on both would be needed. The residents gave examples of other roads in the town where parked cars controlled the speed of traffic.
Sgt Steve Atkin said the issue had arisen because he wished to know where the double yellow lines were still operational. He said that parking on the bend restricted the view from both directions.
It was pointed out the original traffic order had never been changed so there was actually no parking along the length of Huntingdon Road to the crossing.
The Mayor thanked the residents for attending and assured them that the matter would be discussed by Councillors later in the meeting.
217) Minutes of the Previous Meeting
The minutes of the meeting held on 2nd February 2010 were agreed and signed by the Mayor as a correct record.
218) Matters Arising from the Minutes
Tuesday Market: The Clerk had been copied into to e-mail correspondence between
Highways and the Markets Manager at Fenland District Council, Mr Mike Chapman. Mr
Chapman was concerned because Highways were refusing to agree to an extension of the
Tuesday market agreement as street trading was up for review. Mr Chapman had pointed out
the trial period had ended and the Traders were now unconsented. He suggested there should
be an interim ‘open ended’ extension of the current three stalls agreement approved by
Highways and possibly reviewed every six months pending the outcome of the street trading
policy. The Mayor said Highways had originally said the market could carry on after the trial
period if everything was okay. It was agreed that Mr Chapman was fighting the cause but to
inform him that the Town Council was 100% behind the Tuesday market.
Wedding: Cllr Howes thanked members for the wedding gifts for himself and Cllr Colbert.
219) Declarations of Interest
Cllrs Newell and Murphy declared personal interests on all planning matters as members of Fenland’s Planning Committee.
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220) Police Matters
Sgt Atkin was welcomed to the meeting. He began by stating the Mayor had agreed to chair a police panel meeting at the FDC-led Neighbourhood Community Fair on 17th March. Sgt Atkin encouraged all members to attend the community fair and the panel meeting since this set the local policing team’s priorities for the next three months.
The Mayor asked about the frequency of the panel meetings and Sgt Atkin explained that twice a year they would be held during the community fair in between the fairs there would be another panel meeting (at a three monthly interval).
Sgt Atkin reported the problem of cars parking too near the junction appeared to have reduced. He had sent the Clerk a copy of a letter which had been put on offending cars pointing out the dangers of parking too close to the junction with Station Stret and that it was an offence under the Road Traffic Act 1968. The letter warned that in future vehicles might be issued with parking tickets.
Sgt Atkin issued an invitation to four members to visit the 999 control room to show how the police prioritised call handling and deployed resources. The visit would take place on Saturday 3rd April and those wishing to attend were asked to pass their names to the Clerk, who would then pass them on.
On Shopwatch, Sgt Atkin said he had received an extremely lukewarm response to the idea. Cllr Newell had passed on a list of shops interested and explained that funding for the March venture had come from shopkeepers or the Chamber of Trade, not the Council. Sgt Atkin suggested there was not a significant shoplifting issue in Chatteris and in response to a suggestion that there might be Home Office money available for a scheme, suggested the lack of a Chamber of Commerce in the town might prove to be an obstacle. It was suggested Rotary might be able to encourage shops to form a Chamber of Commerce.
E-cops reports for the month included an assurance from the Chief Constable that the police would respond to all 999 calls if there was a genuine emergency. She had been misquoted in the press and there had been a suggestion the police would not respond to all calls.
Sgt Atkin spoke about the importance of CCTV cameras and reported that a mobile camera was to be stationed at Wenny Road Recreation Ground.
Cllr Newell was concerned by the amount of youths congregating on the streets and playing football in the street. Sgt Atkin assured her that most of the time the youths were not breaking the law. Cllr Howes suggested the police could point out to the youths that there were dry, tarmaced areas where they could play football at Huntingdon Road and Larham Way and an area was soon to be installed at Wenny. Sgt Atkin was thanked for attending.
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221) FDC Update
The latest update from Fenland District Council had just been received and Councillors had a copy.
a) Planning Enforcement. The Clerk informed members this would be discussed under planning.
b) New lighting scheme for Curf & Willey Terrace. Councillors had asked to see the costs of the scheme. The cost of bringing the Terrace and Doddington Road up to the required standard was £40,495 (the replacement of the existing 7 street lights would cost £21,158 and a total of 16 lighting columns were required). There was a potential to have three of the columns funded by the developer of the land opposite no. 3 Doddington Road which would reduce the cost to £35,084 but this still exceeded the District Council’s capital provision of £25,000 for the replacement of existing defective street lighting assets across the District. In addition the County Council confirmed they would not be able to make a contribution to the scheme. Members agreed to request that Fenland District Council included sufficient financial provision to improve the street lighting at Curf and Willey Terraces and in Wood Street, Chatteris, in the next financial year. (It was pointed out the budget for 2010/2011 had just been set).
c) There was no information on a number of issues raised by the Town Council because Mr Bob Ollier was on leave.
d) The Town Council had suggested the field at The Elms might be blocked again as the playing field was waterlogged. Members were assured in January (the last inspection) there was no visible sign of any blockages but a further inspection had been programmed. Members pointed out there used to be a number of ponds in the area and they asked if it would be possible to create a new pond to replace those lost since this might help with the waterlogging/flooding.
e) On the poor state of the fencing between Furrowfields car park and Slade Way, Fenland stated the problem had been picked up and enquiries had been made to confirm ownership and address its repair. The chain link fence would be removed as a priority as it was causing a hazard and the issue of ponding from a potentially blocked gully in front of the fence would also be addressed.
f) Fens Adventurer. The Town Council had asked if Fenland had a representative on Fens Adventurer or EEDA. They were informed Mr Steve Drew, Business and Community Development Support Officer, was the representative on the Local Action Group for Fens Adventurers and there were contacts within the various departments of EEDA but no-one to oversee EEDA’s operation. Members agreed to ask if there was any member representation on either body.
g) The update on the opening of the Empress pool to the public was due in April, Cllr Colbert commented this would be too late to open the pool for Easter.
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222) Financial Review
Members considered a report from the Financial Officer on matters relating to the Council’s financial activities, as required under the Council’s Financial Regulations, in preparation for the audit of accounts for the year to 31st March 2010. A full copy of the report is appended to these minutes. Members noted that the Financial Regulations, introduced in August 2002, would be reviewed in 2010 or 2011 to coincide with a review of Standing Orders. Included in the Financial Officer’s report were appendices containing the Council’s Risk Management Strategy, Assets Register, internal controls and Investment Register. Insurance renewal proposals from Zurich Municipal for 2010/2011 would be considered later in the Agenda. The Financial Officer reminded members that at the meeting held on the 5th January 2010 (Minute 180), the Council had reviewed the effectiveness of its internal audit arrangements, approved terms for engagement of the internal auditor, in relation to the required scope and nature of the internal audit function, and had offered the current internal auditor, Mark Saunders, re-engagement for the 2009/2010 audit. Risk assessments in respect of health and safety and fire risk had been approved by members at the December 2009 meeting (Min 161) and February 2010 meeting (Min 202) respectively.
It was RESOLVED that:-
[ i ] the Council’s Risk Management Policy, as set out in Appendix A of the Financial Officer’s report, be approved;
[ ii ] the Assets Register, as set out in Appendix B of the report, be approved;
[ iii ] the internal controls, as set out in Appendix C of the report, be approved;
[ iv ] the Investment Register, as set out in Appendix D of the report, be approved and the Financial Officer, in consultation with the Mayor where necessary, be authorised to determine investment renewals with Abbey.
223 Accounts for Payment
The following accounts were approved for payment:
£
Viking Direct – Stationery 69.86
CPALC – Model Standing Orders 25.00
CommuniCorp – Local Council update subscription 70.00
Clerk – Pay March 2010 1,005.25
Financial Officer – Pay March 2010 998.00
Gardener – Pay March 2010 306.65
H M Revenue & Customs – PAYE March 2010 998.20
Cambs County Pension Fund – Pension contributions March 2010 294.21
HSSP Architects – All weather pitch consultancy 3,105.00
Petty cash reimbursement 79.48
Financial Officer – Admin Expenses 11.07
Chatteris Centre Association – newsletter space for year 800.00
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CPALC – Clerk’s training 70.00
SJB Grounds Care – New mower 479.00
E-on – Electricity council offices 228.90
224) Provision of Leisure Facilities in Chatteris
The Financial Officer reminded members that, at Minute 34 of the 2nd June 2009, the Council
resolved that : “This Council calls on Fenland District Council to commit sufficient
capital funds to build a Chatteris Leisure Centre to equal or better facilities currently
enjoyed by all the other Fenland Market Towns” This resolution had been formally
conveyed to Fenland District Council’s Chief Executive. Tim Pilsbury, in a letter from the
Financial Officer dated the 9th June 2009, followed by an exchange of correspondence
between the 26th June and 3rd Sept 2009. On the 21st September 2009 a letter had been
received from Tim Pilsbury which included the paragraph “ . . I do not expect the Cabinet
to formally consider a revised capital programme before December 2009. It will
therefore only be following this that the (Fenland) Council can provide a definitive
answer to your June 2009 resolution.
At Minute 175 of the 5th January 2010, Councillor Howes reminded members that the Council had passed the June 2009 motion (as set out above) and said that a letter from Mr Pilsbury in September (2009) had stated that the matter would be brought up at the December Fenland District Council Cabinet and Council meetings. Councillor Howes reported that he had attended those meetings and it had not been mentioned, neither was there any reference to a leisure centre in the paperwork for the full council meeting. Further, he stated that Tim Pilsbury had given a speech to the full council in which he stated that no proposals had been put to him for funding leisure provision in Chatteris. Resulting from this, members resolved that Chatteris Town Council should complain to Fenland District Council that Tim Pilsbury had not carried out the promises he made in the September letter and a 3C’s complaint should be raised.
Councillor Howes had been allowed to raise the matter referred to above under ‘Matters Arising’ but officers and members did not have the relevant copy correspondence before them at the time. Having examined the wording of Tim Pilsbury’s letter dated the 21st September 2009, officers were of the view that the paragraph referred to above did not constitute a firm commitment or promise, sufficient to warrant action in respect of Minute 175 at that time. Instead, the Financial Officer had written a further letter to Tim Pilsbury on the 7th January 2010 which asked for confirmation as to whether or not the provision of leisure facilities in Chatteris had in fact been included in Fenland District Council’s revised capital programme in December 2009 and, if not, was this because of a lack of proposals from officers or through omission of a directive from members.
On the 4th February 2010, a reply to the 7th January 2010 letter had been received from Councillor Steve Garratt, Fenland District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Young People and Health, referring to approval by the Cabinet of a draft leisure strategy, together with a copy of
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the relevant agenda item. Also enclosed had been a 13-page strategy document entitled ‘Delivering Active Leisure in Fenland‘ January 2010, which had not been circulated but was available for examination by members if any should wish.
Neither of the two supporting documents mentioned Chatteris specifically and it was Councillor Garratt’s claim that officers would be carrying out further work to consider the delivery of the future leisure facility requirements for Fenland, including Chatteris. It would be easy to conclude that at that moment in time there were no firm plans for provision of a leisure centre in Chatteris.
The Financial Officer re-affirmed the view of officers that to proceed with the January 2010 resolution at minute 175 would be unsafe, as the premise on which it was approved was factually incorrect and members were invited to decide whether they wished to approve any alternative course of action or not.
Members noted that recent statements had been made by Councillor Melton as leader of Fenland District Council regarding a programme of capital spending, including leisure facilities in Chatteris. It was however unclear as to what the effect would be on the current proposals for development of leisure facilities on the Cromwell Community College site, phase 1 of which (the all weather pitch and changing facilities) was well advanced. The approved aim of the Town Council was to pursue phase 2, a fitness suite (which Fenland District Council had agreed to undertake a feasibility study for) and phase 3, a swimming pool subject to funding. As regards the sequence of correspondence with the Tim Pilsbury, members noted that he had announced his retirement from employment as Chief Executive with Fenland District Council
It was RESOLVED that:
[ i ] in the light of recent statements made by the leader of Fenland District Council regarding leisure facilities in Chatteris and the impending retirement of the Chief Executive, no further action be taken in relation to latest correspondence from Fenland District Council;
[ ii ] Councillor Melton be invited to the Annual Meeting of the Council in May 2010 to detail his plans for leisure facilities in Chatteris and explain the effect on current proposals for facilities on the Cromwell Community College site.
225) Insurance Renewal
The Financial Officer circulated details of the proposals received from Zurich Municipal for renewal of the Town Council’s combined policy at the 1st April 2010. Index-linked values showed increases of 2% for buildings and 1% for contents. The renewal premium of £2,124.75 (including IPT) was approximately 6.26% more than for 2009/2010, compared with an approved budget of £2,100.
Members noted that since 2006 there has been no blanket cover under the Personal Accident section of the policy for volunteers. Proposals for the use of volunteers for any Council activity had to be cleared with Zurich through the Financial Officer.
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As regards the Historic Festival, the Financial Officer reminded members that whilst Fenland District Council provided insurance for the field activities, the street parade was an additional activity, the insurance for which was the responsibility of the Town Council. In previous years Zurich Municipal had provided cover for the street parade on the basis that it was a walking parade with an approved traffic management plan. For 2010, the festival organising committee had indicated that motorised and horse-drawn vehicles might be included in the parade and the Financial Officer had sought advice from Zurich accordingly. The insurers were quite clear that they would not cover the liabilities of persons driving such vehicles during the parade. It would therefore be for the owners and drivers of vehicles to cover their own insurance liabilities. In order to safeguard the Council’s position it would be necessary for the Financial Officer to [a] write to the organising committee conveying Zurich’s response and [b] prepare a disclaimer to be forwarded to each owner/driver intending to use a vehicle on the parade for their signature before joining the parade. The Financial Officer was in discussion with Fenland District Council officers over the details.
The possibility of including organisations such as the Xmas Lights Committee and Chatteris in Bloom in the Council’s combined insurance policy was raised. The Financial Officer pointed out that the organisations referred to were separate entities over which the Council had no control and that the annual grants made by the Council were intended to contribute towards their running expenses including insurance. Increases in insurance costs had been taken into account when significant increases in grant to the two organisations had been made a few years ago. No written requests had in fact been made from the organisations mentioned and the Financial Officer had not experienced similar arrangements elsewhere.
It was RESOLVED that: -
[ i ] insurance renewal terms for 2010/11, as circulated, be approved;
[ ii ] proposed action by the Financial Officer, as set out above regarding insurance liabilities for vehicles taking part in the street parade, be approved.
226) Replacement of CCTV Cameras
Councillor Stimson reported that at a recent Safer Fenland CCTV Liaison Group meeting she had attended, the question of upgrading CCTV cameras had been discussed and she had advised Fenland District Council officers to write formally to the Town Council with detailed proposals and costs. The Financial Officer pointed out that not all the cameras in Chatteris were owned by the Town Council and it was only two years ago that the Council had paid £6,270 for its cameras to be ungraded with tilt and swivel lenses.
It was RESOLVED that replacement of cameras owned by the Town Council be considered if and when detailed proposals are received from Fenland District Council.
Cllr Stimson also reported that the mobile CCTV camera was to be deployed at Wenny Road Recreation Ground and possibly at Cromwell Community College dependent upon the results of a meeting with the Principal.
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227) King Edward Centre
Minutes of a meeting of the King Edward Centre Project Group held on the 28th January 2010 (attended by Councillors Newell and Howes) had been circulated to members.
It was RESOLVED that the minutes of the project group be received.
It was reported that the Leader of FDC had noted that the project to refurbish the King Edward Centre might be a little short of money and had pledged that FDC would give up to another £50,000 for the project if necessary.
228) Leisure and General Purposes Group
Councillor Howes presented a report on the meeting of the group held on the 9th February 2010 and was pleased to report that significant progress was now being made with provision of additional play facilities. There were no recommendations requiring Council approval. It was RESOLVED that the report be approved.
229) Planning
Cllr Stimson presented the notes of the Planning Working Group meeting held on 23rd February 2010 (copy attached). The group made recommendations on planning applications a) to e) (as shown on the appended list). These recommendations were agreed by the Council and it was agreed to return planning applications a) to h) to Fenland District Council and Cambridgeshire County Council marked as follows:
a) Raise No Objections, changes noted
b) Raise No Objections
c) Raise No Objections
d) Councillors can confirm a car washing/valeting service has been carried out at the site for at least 15 years.
e) Recommend Refusal, firmly opposed to the proposal that more HCV traffic should be directed towards Chatteris. The roads will not take the lorries, in particular London Road and Huntingdon Road (which is a school route). Grave concerns about the application.
f) Raise No Objections
g) Raise No Objections
h) Raise No Objections
Matters Arising from the notes of the Working Group meeting: Mrs Callaby had, as
promised, supplied details of all the trees covered by Tree Preservation Orders in Fenland,
given Cllr Newell the history of the TPO tree in London Road which was felled and supplied
guidance to making tree preservation orders. She had also given an update on the Local
Development Framework timetable, basically it was due to go out to public consultation in
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January 2010 with a view to adoption in spring/summer 2012. Cllr Newell explained the
process was behind its original schedule because the Government had stepped in with
additional requirements.
Enforcement & Decisions: The Clerk updated members on planning decisions made by
Fenland District Council and said just one enforcement case had been reported in January, a
steel framed building and wood storage in Byall Fen Drove.
Hallam: Members had received information from Hallam Land Management Ltd about a
planned major development to the south of the town. Unfortunately they had not supplied a
copy to the Council. However, Mr Nigel Brown from Fenland was willing to attend to
discuss the proposals but could not make the next planning meeting. It was agreed to invite
him to attend either a leisure or full council meeting. A public exhibition on the plans was
due to be held at the King Edward Centre on 11th and 12th March.
The next part of this item (the Judicial Review) was held In Committee after members agreed ‘that in view of the
confidential nature of the business about to be transacted, it was advisable in the public
interest that the press and public be temporarily excluded .’ (There were no members of the
public or the press present as they left after item 216).
230) Section 106 Agreements Update
The Section 106 position had not changed since the previous month so there was no update. On the question of the interest due on the Persimmon Homes late payment of £16,000, Ms Emma Grima said the matter had been passed to Sundry Debtors to deal with. Ms Grima said there were now firm procedures in place to ensure similar problems did not occur in the future and all necessary interest was applied.
231) Parking Restrictions Huntingdon Road
Members had received a report from the Clerk on the meeting held on 11th February to discuss the double yellow lines and parking restrictions in Huntingdon Road (copy attached).
They had also received a copy of all the correspondence from local residents on the issue. The views held were reflected in the comments made in the Open Forum. Mr Matthew Pickering had also e-mailed to say the double yellow lines would be refreshed as per the existing traffic order leaving a gap from no’s 1 to 15 (as agreed at the meeting to allow parking) and not touching the area opposite York Road which had parking restrictions as there was no money to fund changes to the current Traffic Regulation Order.
Members discussed the matter raising points in favour and against allowing parking on the bend. They agreed to request Highways look again at the scheme with a view to extending the parking provision but still maintaining safety. However, they also wished to add that they remained concerned about parking on the bend before the crossing.
232) Traffic Issues
Carriageway Repairs: Notification had been received that carriageway repairs to Railway Lane would be carried out on 22nd and 23rd March and the road would closed to traffic from 8am to 4pm each day. Notification had also been received that resurfacing of the Huntingdon Road/West Park Street junction would take place on 10th to 12th March and traffic signals would control traffic through the site.
Bus Timetable Changes: A resident of Drake Avenue had submitted a copy of a letter she had sent to the Stagecoach Bus Company complaining that there were now no direct journeys between Chatteris and Huntingdon with the exception of the commuter express. Members
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were concerned the number of buses had been reduced. The Financial Officer stated that the timetables were due to change again in April.
233) Neighbourhood Forum Community Fair
Members were reminded the next fair would take place on Wednesday 17th March from 5pm to 8pm at Cromwell Community College.
234) Business Lunches
It was agreed to defer the item since Cllr Elam, who had asked for its inclusion, was not present.
235) Employment of Security Officer
Cllr Howes asked for the item to be deferred as he had still to look into the issue.
236) Correspondence
Councillors noted the list of correspondence received since the last meeting (copy attached).
237) Reports
There were no reports.
238) Items for the Next Agenda
No items were put forward for the next agenda.
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