WIVETON PARISH COUNCIL

Chairman:  Mr Godfrey Sayers

 

                                                                                                                                    Clerk’s Address:                                                                                                                                 Morning Flight

                                                                                                                        42 High Street

Blakeney

                                                                                                                        NR25 7AL

                                                                                                                        Tel:  01263 741576

E-mail: wiveton@glavenvalleycouncils.co.uk

12th March 2007

 

The next Parish Council Meeting will be held on Tuesday 20th March 2007 in the Parish Room at 7.30pm

 

A G E N D A

1          Reports for information:

            Councillor Bernard Crowe

Councillor Derek Baxter (if present)

 

            PC Ken Durrant (if present)

2          Declarations of interest relating to items on the agenda

3          Minutes of the last Meeting

 

4          Matters arising for information

 

            4:1       Code of Conduct – Standards Board

5          Correspondence

 

6          Finance

 

7          Planning

 

8          Parish Land

 

9          Parish Council Elections

 

10        A O B

 

11        Parishioners Question Time

 

12        The next Parish Council meeting will be TUESDAY 17th APRIL 2007 AT 7.30PM  

 

                                                          Tricia Temple-Crowe         

Clerk to the Parish Council

Minutes of Wiveton Parish Council Meeting held on Tuesday 20th February 2007 at 7.30pm

 

Present:                      G Sayers, J Ratcliff, G Mears, M Wakelin, P Adcock, S Beal and J Ramm

 

In attendance:           Councillor Bernard Crowe OBE, Councillor Derek Baxter, the Clerk and 1 parishioner

 

Declarations of Interest   The Chairman,  Steve Beal and Gary Mears declared an interest in item 8:1 unauthorised use of the allotments.

 

1            Minutes  

 

The Minutes of the last meeting held on the 16th January 2007 having been distributed in advance were approved and signed as a true record by the Vice Chairman John Ramm


2          Matters Arising

 

Signage

The Chairman informed the meeting that the new village entry signs have been erected, but having expressed his concern over the amount of the bill for the provision of the bolts which totalled £161.35 which he felt this was excessive, the Clerk had written to Wensum Foundry to query the charge.

 

Wiveton Stone Bridge 

The Chairman had no further progress report regarding the work on the bridge which is to be re-done.

 

Reflector Posts

The Chairman was very disappointed to report that all but one of the temporary posts put in along the verge on the north side of the A149 have been broken.  The Clerk will inform Quinton Barker at the NCC Highways Department to ask for some replacements.

 

Joint Annual Meeting   At the last meeting the Parish Council unanimously approved the suggestion

put forward by the Chairman to hold a joint annual meeting between the three principle village

organisations i.e. the Parish Council the Parochial Church Council and the Raulf Greenaway Trust to

examine ways in which these groups can work together.  This initiative had also been welcomed by

the Parochial Church Council and the Raulf Greenway Trust and it has been suggested that a Tuesday

evening in April would be the most suitable.

 

Village Party  -  The Councillors agreed that this event would be organised by the Parish Council on Friday 31st August.  Although the village party would be organised by the Parish Council they felt this would be an ideal opportunity for those who wished to support the village by making a donation towards the cost of the party.   A separate bank account which had been used for the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Party could be renamed the ‘Wiveton Amenity Fund’ and used for any future village events.  A note will be distributed to every house in the village inviting people to make a donation towards the party if they wished.  

 

Land to the Rear of the Parish Room 

John Ramm informed the Parish Council that this area of land and the request by Mr and Mrs Woodhouse to either acquire or rent the area had been discussed at length by the Parish Room Committee at their recent meeting and it had been unanimously agreed that the land should not be sold or made available for rent but that it should be retained by the Parish Room and a working party would be formed to carry out some landscaping.

 

The Parish Council formally accepted the recommendations of the Parish Room Committee to retain the area of land to the rear of the Parish Room.

 

Code of Conduct 

 

Following discussion at the January meeting and the approved article produced for the Glaven Valley News for the March issue it was agreed the Code of Conduct should be included on the agenda for the next meeting.

 

4          Correspondence

 

Tracey Bayfield, Blakeney Parish Council   Re Chairman’s Planning Meeting – Notification that this will be held on 28th February at the Council Office in Blakeney – The Chairman will attend.

 

N N D C:

 

NCC

 

5          Finance

 

The following invoice was approved for payment:

 

Stephen Beal Landscapes - £133.95

 

6          A O B 

 

Affordable Housing 

Mary Wakelin informed the Councillors that despite her best efforts she was still waiting for a response from the NNDC. 

 

Councillor Bernard Crowe OBE informed the Parish Council that the Local Development Plan does not allow for any further development other than those areas already designated in the Plan, but this policy is going to go to appeal.

 

7          Parish Land  - Godfrey Sayers, Steve Beal and Gary Mears declared an interest.                                                                                                                                                                                               

 

Due to concerns raised by the Chairman of the unauthorised storage of boats on the Parish Land it was agreed that a meeting would be held on the 6th March at 5.00pm to look at the whole area. 

 

John Ramm informed the Councillors that the Allotment Committee has given permission for a parishioner to have this area available a for ‘one off’’ car park for people attending a party in June.

 

The Chairman suggested that perhaps a new draft Tenancy Agreement should be drawn up which would include a schedule of particular usage.

 

The Councillors felt that provided the tenants and the Allotment Committee were in agreement, the Parish Land could be used as a temporary storage area.

 

 

 

Future Meeting dates for 2007

Tuesday 20th March

Tuesday 17th April

Tuesday 15th May                   Annual Report to Parishioners

Tuesday 19th June

No meeting in July

No meeting in August

Tuesday 18th September

Tuesday 16th October

Tuesday 20th November

No meeting in December

 

8    Reports

 

Report from Councillor Derek Baxter

 

Improvements to bus stops throughout the county will be carried out to comply with the Disability Discrimination Act which will include the dropping of kerbs etc.

Recycling -  Figures have just been issued regarding the amount of recycling carried out in the various Counties and Norfolk has come top of the Eastern Region and are second in the entire country.

Budget  -  The N C C has set their budget increase at 4.5% for next year.

Flood Warning Sirens   -  A considerable amount of concern has been expressed regarding the proposal to scrap the flood warning siren system and a meeting is to be held on 22nd February to enable the relevant organisations to express their views.

 

Report from Councillor Bernard Crowe OBE 

 

Before giving his report Councillor Bernard Crowe OBE introduced Lyndsay Brettlle who if successful at the Council Elections in may will be his replacement following his retirement.

 

Housing

In this edition, I am going to concentrate on housing issues. This is always the top item of concern by those who contact me.

 

Affordable Housing includes social rented and intermediate housing provided to specified eligible households whose needs are not met by the market. Affordable housing should meet the needs of eligible households including availability at a cost low enough for them to afford. This is determined with regard to local incomes and local house prices. The home should remain at an affordable price for future eligible households.

 

Social rented housing is rented housing owned and managed by local authorities and registered social landlords (RSL) for which guideline target rents are determined through the national rent regime.

 

Intermediate Affordable Housing is housing at prices and rents above those of social rent but below market price or rents, and which meet the criteria set out above. These can include shared equity schemes, other low cost homes for sale, and intermediate rent.

 

Those homes that do not meet these definitions are not considered, for planning purposes, as affordable housing.

 

Government Policy in broad terms is to:

 

-Achieve wide choices of high quality homes, both affordable housing and market housing, to address the requirements of the community.

 

-Widen opportunities for home ownership and ensure high quality housing for those who cannot afford market housing, in particular those who are vulnerable or in need.

-Improve affordability across the housing market by increasing the supply of housing.

-Create sustainable, inclusive mixed communities in all areas, both urban and rural.

Local Development Framework

 

The proposed changes to the Government’s East of England plan have been published for consultation. The main points of relevance to North Norfolk include:

 

·      The Region’s allocation of dwellings is increased by 27,500 to 508,000.

·      The allocation of 8000 houses for North Norfolk is confirmed.

·      All housing figures are to be treated as floors and not ceilings. Local Authorities are asked to seek to exceed their targets if more can be delivered through the use of brownfield sites and, where appropriate, by increased densities.

·      An aspirational target of 35% for affordable homes is recommended.

·      Land banking in 5-year blocs by Local Authorities is required to achieve these targets. This is land is suitable for development, is available, and is deliverable. This 5-year supply should be maintained throughout the 15-year period.

·      On-site renewable energy to serve new developments is required. A minimum of 10% is recommended.

·      Provision of sites/pitches to meet the needs of Gypsies and Travellors living within or resorting to North Norfolk is now a government policy. (NNDC has identified two transit sites).

·      A target of 4000 new jobs to be created in the district is recommended.

 

The impact of this revised guidance may affect the Site Specific proposals that have been put out for earlier consultation.  The Working Party has now examined all responses. I have suggested that we should have further consultation on aspects of the site-specific proposals, as the new guidance is a significant change. This is likely to occur. We will await the response from government to our Core Strategy Document first.  The East of England Assembly has, I understand, rejected the new housing figure because the infrastructure will not support these numbers.

 

General comments on planning issues

 

Development in the Countryside

Some representations have been made that development should be allowed in many of the smaller villages and in the Countryside. It is claimed this may restrict development in these locations will lead to stagnation, and not address the need for housing in these locations. I suggest that with a slightly more flexible approach to housing numbers the scope for infill development in a wider selection of villages could be reconsidered. However, others argue those infill developments, probably of single and non-affordable dwellings would not meet the Council’s aims.  Readers’ views are welcome.

 

Second Homes

There is a widely held view that the numbers of second homes has an adverse impact on the local housing market with equity rich purchasers from outside the district acquiring properties which might otherwise be available for local people.  The purchase of a second home does not require planning permission. Consequently, planning policies are unable to exercise control over this type of use of existing dwellings. The Council is seeking to ensure that the type of housing that is provided on new developments is targeted towards meeting local needs. Second homeowners are required to assist the funding of affordable homes via their Council Tax. If you have views on second homes, please be in touch.

 

Drive to Recruit Women Councillors

This year marks the centenary of women gaining the right to stand for local elections. Latest figures show that just 28% of the UK’s councillors are women. This month the government is launching a new commission that will review the barriers and incentives to serving on local councils. I am pleased that the Glaven Valley Ward is moving ahead of the game. Lindsay Brettle, candidate for the Ward, welcomes the opportunity to serve our community as a front line councillor.