MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL SHIPTON GORGE PARISH MEETING HELD AT THE VILLAGE HALL ON 28 APRIL 2010
Present: Cllr David Smith (Chairman of the Parish Council), Cllr Richard Cunningham (Vice-chairman of the Parish Council), Cllr Peter Gates, Cllr Robert Langran, Cllr Mrs Jane Mallett, Cllr Mrs Amy Steele, Cllr Peter Varney, Cllr Robert White, PC Sarah Corrin and PCSO Poppy Wheeler (both for part of the meeting) and 26 members of the public.
25 Chairman’s Opening Address
The Chairman welcomed everybody to the Annual Parish Meeting. Although convened by the Chairman of the Parish Council, it was not a meeting of the Parish Council but there was a legal requirement to hold the meeting. In the absence on holiday of the Parish Clerk, Tom Grace, the minutes would be taken by Ernie Thomas.
26 Apologies for Absence
Apologies for absence had been received from Cllr Mrs Jean Ayers, Cllr Mark Parsons, Peter Bates, Simon Cleveland and Tom Grace.
27 Signing of Minutes of Meeting 22nd April 2009
The draft minutes of the 2009 Parish Meeting had been displayed prior to the meeting. The Chairman said that the Parish Council resolved at its meeting in May 2009 to recommend their agreement to the 2010 Parish Meeting. He asked that the minutes be taken as read and it was proposed by Cllr Richard Cunningham, seconded by Cllr Peter Gates and agreed by the meeting that the minutes be approved and signed.
28 Report from Village Beat Officer PC Sarah Corrin
Community Beat Officer PC Sarah Corrin said that Shipton Gorge had had very little crime, the main incident being a distraction burglary by a caller claiming to be from the Water Board. Homewatch was strong in the village and the police would like to be notified of any suspicious individuals circulating in Shipton Gorge. There had been some thefts of heating oil in her area and alarms for oil tanks were available from Beaminster NFU office. There had also been shed break-ins, but good locks and alarms could prevent these. PC Corrin left some crime prevention leaflets. Cllr Richard Cunningham thanked the police team for their increased presence in the village and mentioned that they would be at his home the following afternoon to meet the public as part of the PACT initiative. PC Corrin dealt with questions from the floor and undertook to consider holding evening meetings for those with daytime work commitments. Following thanks from the Chairman, PC Corrin and PCSO Wheeler left the meeting.
29 Burton Bradstock School Claire Staple (Head)
Mrs Staple reported that there were 98 pupils on the roll, of which 14 came from Shipton Gorge. There were four classes, each with a class teacher and a full-time teaching assistant, plus a further teaching assistant dealing with special needs as well as ancillary staff. She had taken up her post as Headteacher in January 2010. There was a strong PTA which had raised nearly £1,400 since January. There were strong links with Burton Bradstock Church, which was used for major celebrations, Friday prayers and bible study. On Wednesdays, parents and members of the community were welcome to join in the school assembly. As well as following the National Curriculum and Literary and Numeracy Strategies, the school had many out of school clubs as well as trips and visits to places of interest. There were vacancies for new pupils and publicity would be welcome. Mrs Staple answered questions and left the meeting following thanks from the Chairman.
30 Address from Councillor Ron Coatsworth Dorset CC
In the absence of Councillor Coatsworth there was no address.
31 Chairman’s Report David Smith Shipton Gorge PC
The Chairman said there were currently nine Parish Councillors. He welcomed the three new members co-opted over the past 12 months, namely Peter Varney who dealt with highways, Peter Gates who dealt with the Parish Plan and Village Appraisal and Jane Mallett who assisted with footpaths. The Parish Council had dealt with a range of issues and he would only summarise the points of note. A major change resulted from the retirement of the Parish Clerk, Ernie Thomas, at the end of 2009. He had served the Council for four years and brought a high level of dedication, knowledge and expertise to his duties. The Chairman said he had been of great assistance to him and had left the Parish Council in an excellent state of organisation and administration. He expressed thanks to Ernie for a job well done and also for agreeing to act as the Parish Council’s webmaster. The Council was fortunate to have found a new Parish Clerk, Tom Grace, who took over this role at the November meeting. Security measures at the Playing Field had been enhanced following an attempted shed break-in. The high level of maintenance and presentation continued thanks to the efforts of Grayham Rosamond and his assistant, Slim, as well as help provided by working parties of villagers. Plans had been agreed to erect a shelter and also provide a picnic table. The Chairman expressed thanks to Amy Steele, Bob White and the other members of the Playing Field Committee for their ongoing efforts. Planning was led by the Vice-Chairman, Cllr Richard Cunningham, and a number of planning applications were considered by the Parish Council. There had been close involvement with the Magna development at Peas Hill and the Chairman welcomed the new residents to the village. Several issues had arisen during the works, including road closure and parking. The proposed road closure had been averted by the efforts of the Parish Council who were not consulted in advance. Dorset County Council had acknowledged they had not handled the planned closure well and had now reviewed and improved their procedures. Parking had been difficult and this matter remained under review. Thanks were expressed to Sally Parker and Graham Cowland for acting as lay members of the Planning Committee. As regards finance, the precept for the current year increased by 7.5% to a figure of £4,700. The increase arose mainly from the need to upgrade the software for the village web site, as the old operating system had become obsolete and increasingly costly to maintain. The Council took the view that the web site was important and agreed to incur a one-off cost of £1,200 on the upgrade, to be funded over three years. The Chairman thanked Ernie Thomas for acting as web master and also Victoria Maxfield for her assistance. As reported last year, the land in front of Brook Cottage had been leased to the Parish Council. It had been cleared up and arrangements made to maintain it as a village green. The 2009 Village Appraisal had taken place and the results had recently been published. The data would be used to assist in drawing up the Parish Plan. Thanks were expressed to Peter Gates for his efforts and to all residents who completed the survey forms. Residents who came to the presentation at the Village Hall the previous Saturday would be aware of the main elements of the Parish Plan and the reasons for its production. The Parish Plan would support local organisations in applying for funding. It would be presented in its final form to the Parish Council in the summer and there would be another public meeting. The Plan had been completed well under budget and surplus funding would be repaid. The Chairman thanked Simon Cleveland for leading the task and Richard Cunningham, Peter Gates and Charles Errington for their support. The issue of dog fouling in the village had been addressed with help from the Dog Warden and warning signs had been erected. The Village Society had arranged for several new notice boards in the village and these were now the responsibility of the Parish Council. Thanks were expressed to Simon Cleveland for acting as the Parish Council’s Internal Auditor. The Chairman said that after three years as Chairman of the Parish Council he would not be standing for this office at the start of the next year in May. He thanked Richard Cunningham for being a very supportive Vice-chairman and also the other Parish Councillors for their support and confirmed he would continue as a Parish Councillor for the final year of his four year term. He urged residents to support the Parish Council and to attend its meetings. The Chairman dealt with questions from the floor about notice boards, road degradation and publication of the 1989 Village Appraisal on the web site. Peter Gates agreed to provide a copy of that document to the webmaster for that purpose.
32 Reports from Village Organisations
John Kent reported on the work of Shipton Gorge Village Society, the purpose of which was to provide opportunities for village folk to interact. Some 20 events were organised each year. The Society’s marquee had much use, including external hirings, the fees for which had paid for the marquee and its trailer and would contribute to a replacement. In 2009 the Society worked on the village’s entry for the Southern Region of the Best Community Village Competition which won the £500 prize for the Business Category. The display for the judges was repeated at the Melplash Show, followed by an open day at the Village Hall which turned out to be a reunion for many villagers past and present. Peter Gates was congratulated on leading the entry into the Best Kept Village Competition, resulting in the Runners Up Award, Best New Entrant and highest score in West Dorset. This success earned £250 in prize money and a wooden bench which was in store awaiting a decision as to its location. The total prize money of £750 was being used to fund the new notice boards. Other activities included quiz suppers, coach outings and the Picnic in the Park, which benefited from good weather this time, its raffle proceeds being donated to the Church and the New Inn towards their window replacement costs. Attendance at Bingo evenings was falling but they would continue while there was still some support. New events included a Dad’s Army evening, a concert with Dave Allen and a dance planned for October.
Eddy Buck reported on the work of the Shipton Gorge Village Hall Trust and thanked the Trustees for working hard to maintain high standards. A new electric heating system had been installed at a cost of £4,000, with one serviceable gas heater being retained. The Hall was well supported by its own events and a fairly full diary of bookings. The 100 Club also continued as a valuable source of funding. Artsreach presentations continued to be well supported and he thanked Jo Warren for all her work in arranging these. A grant had been applied for to install a broadband connection in the hall to enable training courses to be run. Eddy said he would shortly be organising a working party to clear intrusive vegetation from the wall of the hall.
Robert Cornish reported on behalf of Shipton Gorge Limited. This had been set up in 2006 to manage and protect assets in Shipton Gorge for the benefit of residents and in accordance with their wishes. It became a registered charity in 2007. Its sole asset was The Orchard which was looking good, especially thanks to Colin Chambers. Further apple trees would be planted and a trellis erected at the foot of the site, with climbing plants to give privacy to adjacent bungalows. A display board would be erected near the entrance. The charity was solvent and fund raising events were held. Shipton Gorge Ltd had entered a B & Q Greener Streets competition which had a first prize of £3,000 with two runners up prizes of £500. Hilary Cunningham had become a director to replace Charles Errington who was thanked for his work for the charity.
David Curtis, Homewatch Co-ordinator, said that there was not much crime in the village, apart from that mentioned by PC Corrin. He urged residents to keep a look out for anything suspicious. In answer to a question from the floor, he said the reason the Ringmaster information system seemed to report mainly crimes from outside the village was no doubt because of the lack of criminal activity within Shipton Gorge.
Speaking on behalf of St Martin’s Church PCC, Vicky Thomas said they were delighted to welcome the Rector, Bob Thorn, back to resume his duties in August. He had expressed grateful thanks to all within the Team Ministry, Churchwardens, and many others who helped to keep the churches within the Bride Valley going during his illness. Fundraising events over the year had included the summer fete, historic church cycle ride and the harvest supper, which was a popular village event. The main fundraising effort over the past year had been the West Window Appeal to raise £6,000 for essential repairs. Vicky was pleased to say that this target had almost been reached. The money had been raised through donations, coffee mornings, afternoon teas, a bridge afternoon, lunches and a raffle at the Picnic in the Park. Many thanks were expressed to everyone who had supported the Appeal. Work had begun and the window had been removed for restoration. Due to the scaffolding there would be no bell ringing, as entry to the bell ringing chamber was restricted on health and safety grounds. An innovation during the year had been the introduction of an 11.00 a.m. Family Service on the last Sunday of the month in addition to the 6.30 p.m. evensong on that Sunday. During the winter months evensong had been at 3.30 p.m. but had now reverted to 6.30 p.m. with the lighter evenings. As part of the Church Fete on Saturday 26th June, a Feast of Flowers for the Family would be held. Vicky invited everyone in the village –children and adults – to place a flower arrangement in the Church from Friday 25th June, so that over the Fete weekend there would be a feast of flowers for everyone to enjoy within St Martin’s. The Church had many jobs to be performed in order to keep it running and thus many volunteers were needed. Thanks were expressed to all those who helped with flowers, bell ringing, cleaning, churchyard maintenance and flag flying. Another important job was the daily locking and unlocking of the Church. It was important that access should be available to all who wished to visit St Martin’s. There were many who came to admire its beauty, both inside and outside; those who came for interest in family history; members of families who might have worshipped in the Church or who had relatives buried within the churchyard; people who wanted to find peace and quiet within a religious setting. In order to allow all this to happen, volunteers were needed to join the rota for unlocking and locking the Church. Anyone able to help in this way was asked to enter their name on the list in the Church porch or to contact Vicky or Gillian. In conclusion, Vicky thanked Gillian Maxfield, our Churchwarden, for her tireless efforts on behalf of the Church, which were greatly appreciated. She also expressed grateful thanks to all members of the Parochial Church Council for their help and support.
Reporting on New Inn Support Limited, Eddy Buck said this was set up as a not for profit company with the support of the Village Society and the Parish Council. Its directors were himself, Ann Hunt, Sally Parker and John Kent with Liz Gates as Secretary. The pub had been managed profitably in its first three years of operation, in two of those its profit being sufficient to trigger a clause giving money back to NISL to use on improvements. The pub had been given the top five star rating by the Food and Hygiene Inspectorate, a rating which few pubs and restaurants in West Dorset had achieved. To comply with legislation, about £12,000 had to be found to improve kitchen ventilation. Fund raising to date and a contribution from the brewery left only a further £3,000 to be raised. Good support for the Summer Ball and the Village Society Raffle should help to reach that target. Two years remained on the current agreement with Palmers brewery. The partnership with the brewery had worked to mutual benefit and NISL felt reasonably confident that a second six year term could be negotiated. Eddy mentioned that it would soon be necessary to consider identifying replacements for long-serving directors and that process needed to start now. Eddy then responded to questions from the floor, indicating that continued support for the New Inn by NISL and its village fund raising efforts was desirable and would reflect in a lower rental under the lease from the brewery.
Gillian Maxfield reported on the work of the Lilian Stone Trust. Lilian Stone lived in the village in the 1920s and 1930s and set up charitable trusts in Litton Cheney and in Shipton Gorge to help the poor of the parish. The Shipton Gorge charity was run by the Rector and Churchwarden as trustees. When she had taken over in 2006, no grants had been made since 1998. In 2006 grants totalled £250, in 2007 £662, in 2008 £1,011, in 2009 £380 and in the current year to the beginning of March, £450. Only the interest on the original trust fund was to be used for grants and with current interest rates the annual addition to the charity’s funds was very small. Anyone needing help would not be turned away, but with reduced income the level of assistance would be smaller. A notice publicising the work of the charity would appear in BVN. In response to questions from the floor, Gillian said the total trust fund at 31 December 2008 was £10,320. Grants were made towards such costs as higher education, schooling, transport, school trips and equipment for the elderly. It was thought the original trust fund was some £1,000, so the balance of current funds represented accumulated interest which could be spent by the trustees.
33 Any other business
There being no other business, the Chairman thanked all who had attended and spoken at the meeting, which he declared closed.
