Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on Tuesday 21st March 2017 at Cranage Village Hall.
Declaration of Interest
Councillor D Madden – declared a personal interest in the at land at Middlewich Road, adult fitness area and 17/1090C Councillor M Hodge declared a personal interest in 16/4724W
The Chairman presented a gift to Mr G Yarwood and thanked him for his services to the Parish.
Public Forum
8 members of the public present.
The comments from the public were summarised as follows –
- An Oak Tree Lane resident requested some tree/fence screening nearby to his house due to the M6 noise; he also went on to query the current highway activities that were happening nearby.
- A resident wished to challenge the decision previously made by the Parish Council to submit No Objection to 16/4724W. He requested a parish poll / referendum was held to gauge the opposition/ support to the application. He wished the Parish Council to object to the new application and represent the community
- A resident was a keen walker within the Parish and wished CPC to try and promote walking for their parishioners and make some of the footpaths more accessible. She not only walked alone but with buggies and wheelchairs and it was very difficult.
Part 1
Present Councillor R Hurst (who chaired the meeting),Councillor M Hodge, Councillor D Madden, Councillor R Hocknell , Mr T Sheldon ( arrived at 8.15pm) ,Councillor A Kolker (Cheshire East) and the Clerk.
Apologies – Councillor G Morgan due to ill health.
33/17 Minutes
Resolved that the minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday 21st February 2017 be approved and signed as a true and accurate record.
34/17 Parish Council Vacancies.
There had been no applications received to date. The Clerk suggested an extra leaflet to be distributed to Needham estate residents as there was no representation from this area.
35/17 Annual Parish meeting
It was agreed the Annual Parish Newsletter would be printed and distributed by the 3rd April. The Clerk would organise.
The topics on the agenda would be a small presentation by Ms C Hewson in relation to the adult fitness area followed by a presentation from the Village Hall and the Chairman’s summary.
36/17 The Land at Middlewich Road
The Standing Order additions were –
- VOTING on the Land at Middlewich Road
The grazing land situated at the junction of Middlewich Road and the A50 Knutsford Road (registration CH552902 ), in the ownership of the Parish Council on behalf of the residents cannot be disposed of by the Parish Council without the Parish Council holding a Parish Referendum.
- Amending Article 93
Article 93 cannot be set aside by the Parish Council without the supporting vote at a Parish Meeting.
Cllr RGH proposed the Parish Council accepted the proposals. Cllr MH seconded
Vote FOR – MH, RJH, RH. AGAINST – Nil. ABSTAIN – DM
Resolved Cranage Parish Council accepted the additions to the Standing Orders.
Councillor D Madden wished an addition was included to ensure at least 51% return of the parish votes.
Resolved the Parish Council would endeavour to ensure the return rate of not less than 50%, if a Parish referendum was held to sell the land at Middlewich Road.
Resolved the Standing Orders were accepted by full Council.
37/17 Footpaths and Tree Report
- Tim Sheldon reported the footpath standards within the parish were poor and requested a highways visit to try and get a plan of improved maintenance. There were areas which needed cutting back as the verges were at least a foot over grown onto the pavement. The clerk would organise a site visit.
- PROW behind Deans Row– due to the absence of Cllr G Morgan this would be deferred to the next meeting.
- New tree saplings on Needham estate planted for the celebration of the Jubilee – Cllr R Hurst had visited site and was organising a working party to improve the maintenance
- Kissing Gates – Cllr RJH would make some enquires with the land owners to site the gates on FP12 or alternatively FP2.
38/17 Land behind Deans Row Cottages
The Clerk had written to the solicitor representing the Secretary of Health reemphasising the points from Knights Solicitors to take ownership of the land. The response to date was positive.
39/17 Land adjacent to the Village Hall
The proposal to improve the land by the Village Hall needed a solicitor to be instructed to represent the Parish Council. The Clerk had circulated three quotes for approval.
Resolved the Parish Council would instruct Dixon, Rigby and Keogh Solicitors at a cost of £500.00 plus VAT.
40/17 Laptop/projector/white screen
The Parish Council agreed that the introduction of a projector/screen to assist members make decisions within meetings would be of great benefit. The Art Club had an accessible white screen that Cllr R Hurst would enquire about usage. Cllr R Hocknell would provide the projector and the laptop to trial at the next meeting in May.
41/17 Highways
Manhole cover 3276384 A50 by Village Hall – not actioned.
Letter from Highways England M6 Smart Motorway Project – letter was circulated to members.
Northwich Road speed reduction – Cllr A Kolker updated the reduction will be implemented soon.
Works on the west side of the M6 north of the Middlewich Road – hard-core material has been tipped and some porta cabins are present on site. The Clerk was requested to investigate with Highways England and Cllr A Kolker would request a report from CE planning.
Hermitage Lane – drivers utilising Sat navs were being diverted down Hermitage Lane where there is no through access. This was especially prevalent when the M6 was blocked. The solution would be to put some signage at its junction of Twemlow Lane to warn the drivers. Cllr A Kolker would report to highways.
42/17 Planning Applications
- 17/1327C Orchard House New Platt Lane, Cranage CW4 8HS Proposed single story extension to rear of garage.
Resolved No Objection
- 17/1090C Cranage Hall, Byley Lane, Cranage CW4 8EW. Variation of condition 1 on 16/3922C
Resolved No Objection
- 17/1407C Mill Run, Twemlow Lane, Cranage CW4 8EX. The remodelling of an existing house with a minor increase in the building footprint area to increase the overall useable floor space.
Resolved No Objection
- 17/1361C Land adjacent to Padgate, Twemlow Lane, Cranage. Variation of condition 2 of existing permission 16/0604C:8 dwellings.
| Resolved No Objection |
43/17 Accounts
To note the balance of account = Leek United £29,911.85 + Natwest £37,646.86 =
| £67,558.71 |
Payments
- £100.00 CHALC ( RH training 23.02.17)
- £35.90 Colbourne Trophies Ltd
- £3,266.02 Ms J Mason (salary Jan to March)
- £69.62 Ms J Mason (expenses from Jan to March)
- £1,132.62 HMRC
Receipts
£1,993.64 HMRC (VAT Claim)
Resolved the above payments are approved and signed for as a true and accurate record.
44/17 Risk Assessment 2016/17
Resolved to accept the Risk Assessment circulated.
45/17 Cheshire East
Resolved to suspend standing orders to receive a report from Cllr Kolker
Cllr A Kolker reported on the proposal of devolution to elect a Mayor to represent Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Warrington. The responsibilities would include the infrastructure funding allocation. CW and Chester were pushing for this position to be elected in 2018 but CE thought this was too soon.
He then brought the ‘Fairer Funding to Educate Cheshire East Children’ to the attention of members .Under proposals currently under consultation, schools in Cheshire East will become the worst funded in England and will not have enough money to fund a basic education for all their children, including for children with special educational needs.
The current proposals will leave us with insufficient funds to maintain adequate provision in our schools. If implemented as proposed, this will lead to many consequences. AK asked members to sign the petition on the schools website.
46/17 Chairman and Members report
Cllr R Hurst reported on the course that she had attended ‘Self Presentation and Media Skills’.
47/17 Clerks Report
Training for Cllr G Morgan and Cllr R Hocknell had been confirmed for 3.4.17.
JDH Services had been appointed as the Internal Auditor.
Information had been circulated from Holmes Chapel Parish Council about the success of their referendum for the Neighbourhood Plan.
48/17 The Annual Parish Meeting would be on the 18th April 2017 @ 7.30pm in Cranage Village Hall.
Meeting closed at 9.30pm.