Minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council held on Monday 3rd July 2017 in the Village Hall at 7.30 pm.

1. Apologies: Cllrs. Ray Triggol, Terry Oxman and David Hall (SCC)

Present: Cllrs. Martin Allen (Chairman), Martin Baker, Brian Gale, Patricia Lennard and Katrina Maxwell.

Also: Ms Esther Carter, Housing Project Development Officer and Duncan Harvey, Affordable Housing Policy and Development Manager, Strategy and Development Services at Sedgemoor District Council.

Members of the public: fifty-seven members of the public.

2. Minutes of the previous meeting of 22nd May 2017 were taken as read, approved and signed.

3. Matters arising from the minutes.

• Affordable Housing Presentation. Duncan Harvey outlined the Affordable Housing Project. Chedzoy has recently been redesignated from being an “Unsustainable” settlement under which new housing development was highly unlikely to be approved, to a “Tier 4 settlement” – under which a degree of housing development could be approved by the Planning Authority.
  
  To justify any provision of housing development in Chedzoy, the first step is to look at the housing needs of the Parish. The Sedgemoor District Council’s Affordable Housing Development Team (AFHDT) is a small dedicated team with specific responsibility to oversee the delivery of new affordable housing. As part of the wider SDC Strategy and Development Service, one of whose aims is to promote Rural Affordable Housing where there is a significant demand generated from the local residents through their Parish Council. There are currently two sites identified in the 2017 Strategic Housing Local Availability Assessment (SHLAA) for Chedzoy, one along Chedzoy Lane on the right hand side leaving the village around where the stables are sited, and the other behind the Church.
  
  Duncan went to great lengths to emphasise that any proposal would only be carried forward if the local residents wished it so. The aim is to supply affordable homes to people with strong connections to the village. Any such affordable home purchased would have to reflect this strong local link in any future transaction or sale of the property, with appropriate registration at the Land Registry.
  
  At present, the Chedzoy housing picture (as of March 2011) is a population of 404, with a total of 162 homes in the village. Of these, 133 are owner occupied (82% against the SDC average of 71.3%). The private rented sector is just thirteen properties, with a high level of demand whenever vacancies are advertised, with the rents being higher than the District average. There are just ten affordable rented homes in Chedzoy (6% against the SDC average of 20%). These homes do not have any form of local priority allocation plan attached to them.
  
  The first step is to carry out a comprehensive survey and this was agreed. All the “donkey work” will be carried out by the AFHDT and Martin Allen (Chairman) suggested that the project information sheet be sent with the survey form to each house in the village, and is anticipated to happen in the next few months, with a further Public meeting probably being necessary thereafter when the survey results have been assessed.
  
  The prevailing high cost of buying a home means that Chedzoy propertied remain unaffordable and out of the reach of a significant number of local people.

4. Somerset County Council report. None.

5. Sedgemoor District Council report. None.

6. Planning. 

Reference: 18/17/00003/DT
Proposal: Temporary siting of a mobile home to be used as an agricultural worker’s dwelling.
Location: Land to the south of West Moor House, Ward Lane, Chedzoy Bridgwater Somerset TA7 8RW.
Applicant: Miss V. Osborne.

The applicant, Miss Osborne, was present at the meeting and outlined her proposal. She farms a piece of land on the right hand side of Ward Lane when approaching the King Sedgemoor Drain close to the river bridge (the land where Herbie Baker used to rear his pigs). She keeps sheep and a couple of horses and has established the business over three years or so. She is seeking temporary (3 year) approval to site a residential caravan there as her dwelling and intends, if approved, to install main services to it.

Following a discussion, the Chairman (Martin Allen) called for a vote among the five councillors present and the result was:-

For the proposal: 5
Against: 0.

The Chairman is drawing up an appropriate comment for the Clerk to forward to the SDC planning department.

7. Correspondence.

• Road closure Front Street. The Clerk read an e-mail from Somerset County Council's (SCC) Road Closure Team advising that Front Street would be closed for a five day period from 24th July to enable drainage works to be carried out.
• 'Transforming Ageing'. The Clerk read an e-mail stating that SCC is holding a “Let’s Transform Ageing Together” event at East Huntspill Village Hall on Monday 17th July from 10.00am until 12 noon.
• 'Fly the Red Ensign'. The Clerk read from a letter received Seafarers’ UK advising that Merchant Navy Day is to be held on the 3rd September 2017. The Red Ensign is the official flag of the British Merchant Navy and the profile of the Merchant Navy Day, first commemorated in 2000, is being raised to a nationwide campaign recognising the fact that we all rely on the Merchant Navy to keep the Nation supplied with food, fuel and other imports. It was suggested that the Clerk draw the matter to the attention of John Weeks, who has a flag pole.

8. Matters arising from the correspondence. None.

9. Finance.

Balances after allowing for all payments made:

Lloyds Bank Current Account	£5121.87
Lloyds Bank Deposit Account	£2.48
Cambridge Building Society Easy Access account	£12300.08

3 cheques issued and signed by 2 councillors as follows:

Number	Amount	Payee	For
556	£51.63	C N Fry	Expenses
557	£152.47	C N Fry	June net salary
558	£114.40	HMRC	PAYE for clerk’s salary, Jan - Mar 2017

Direct debits due:

Amount	Payee	For
£57.20	Wessex Water	Allotment water supply
£35.00	Information Commissioners Office	Website

The Clerk advised that he had been approached about - and had accepted - the post of Clerk to Stawell Parish Council, as from 15th July 2017. This appointment would bring a bonus to Chedzoy Parish Council,  in that the two councils would share the £200.00 per annum computer/printer and the £104 p.a office heating allowances currently paid to him. This represents an annual saving of £152.00.


10. Any Other Business including the date of the next meeting.

• Dog-fouling poster (and bin). The Clerk read an e-mail from SDC Dog Warden/Animal Welfare Officer requesting we put up posters reminding dog walkers to clean up after their dogs, or face a possible £75.00 fine. The merits of a designated dog-fouling bin in the village were discussed. However, due to current pressures on the Parish Council's finances, the matter will be reconsidered later in the year, at the time of the meeting to set next year’s Precept.
• West Mendip Orchestra. The Clerk read an e mail about the next concert which will be held at The Friends’ Meeting House, Sidcot, BS25 1LT on Friday 14th July 2017 at 7.45 pm and featuring Rosini’s Barber of Seville Overture, Tchaikovski’s Swan Lake Suite and Beethoven’s Symphony no 5.
• Community Council for Somerset. The Clerk read from an information sheet about the work of CCS in supporting Parish Councils, Community groups and individuals in Somerset, helping Somerset to thrive. Alongside the successful Village Agent scheme and the Community Building Advisory Service, they have developed a consultancy arm offering a bespoke and affordable service that gives community projects the best chance of success.
• Telephone Box and Post Box. Pat Lennard brought up the issue of vandalism to the Kiosk and poor state of the Post Box. Following a discussion, the Clerk was asked to raise these issues with BT.
• Footpath blocked at Parchey. This matter was raised (again) and the Clerk was asked to raise the issue again with the SCC Footpath Officer, George Montague.

There being no other business, the Chairman declared the meeting closed at 9.30 pm.

Date of next meeting: Monday 14th August 2017 in the Village Hall, Front Street, at 7.30 pm.