Chairman's Report 2007 - 2008

Introduction

 All Parish and Town Councils throughout England are required by law to hold an annual parish meeting between 1 March and 1 June every year. The purpose of the meeting is for the Parish Council to explain what it has been doing over the last year and it also enables the electors to have a say on anything that they consider is important to the people of Stanton on the Wolds Parish. Anyone may attend but only registered electors may speak and vote. Any resolutions of this meeting are persuasive only and although this parish council will endeavour to take heed it has no legal obligation to do so.

The Parish Council is the first rung on the democratic ladder and makes representation on behalf of the parish to both Rushcliffe Borough Council and the County Council. 

Rushcliffe Borough Council administers vital services, some of which are control of development and planning, collection and recycling of waste, road cleaning and maintaining the register of electors. Our Borough Council representative is Councillor Fiona Mason. We are grateful for her active involvement in representing us, especially on the planning committee. She takes time to visit every site and keep us informed of decisions.

The County Council has responsibility for traffic management, education, social care, libraries and much more. Councillor John Cottee is our County Councillor. He supported our application to the Building Better Communities fund that paid for the improvements to the drainage and barrier at the site of the village sign. Thank you to him for the interest he takes in Stanton.

At the time of the election in 2007 there were 7 nominations for 7 councillors on the Parish Council.  The present councillors are eligible to serve potentially until 2011.

(Councillors were introduced. They were thanked for their involvement)

There is a statutory Code of Conduct for Councillors. In July 2007 the acceptance of the new code by this Parish Council was confirmed in The Nottingham Evening Post. This code ensures, for example, that councillors declare personal or prejudicial interest in a matter under consideration and that they register various items of information about themselves.

The Parish Council relies on the knowledge and experience of the clerk, Mike Elliott, to guide it through the plethora of legislation governing its activities. To name but one rule-The parish council cannot meet in premises serving alcohol, hence we have to drink up before the Council meeting tonight.

Planning

The consideration of planning applications is perhaps the most important aspect of the work of the Parish Council. Rushcliffe Borough Council produces a local plan, setting out planning policy and proposals for the area. The Parish Council is a statutory consultee for planning applications relating to Stanton on the Wolds. In the past year, 31 planning applications were considered. Of these 5 were rejected by RBC. The plans submitted ranged from a conservatory to the establishment of a new farmhouse. It is the policy of this council to visit near neighbours and as far as reasonable in the interests of the village as a whole to reflect and support their views in the comments made to Rushcliffe Borough Council.

It is worth noting that some of the issues that the parish council may comment on are:

Scale

Loss of open space

Noise

Local knowledge of drainage

Impact on surroundings

The Council cannot comment on:

Possible future development not on the application

The morals or motives of the developer 

One planning applications is going through the appeal procedure at present and one has recently had the refusal upheld by appeal inspector.

 Environment

After planning, maintaining a pleasant environment in which to live is of great importance to residents. Unfortunately vandalism and litter affect Stanton too. To this end, in the past year the Parish Council has:

Asked owners to trim hedges overhanging the pavement

Ensured a Tree Preservation Order has been honoured

Had Telephone boxes and road signs repaired

Called out Streetwise to deal with rubbish and install litter bins

Alerted the County Council to drainage problems

Allocated funds to sponsor an owl box and for some planting around the seat at the site of the village sign 

Footpaths

Stanton on the Wolds does not have a pub or even a village centre but we do have lovely open spaces accessed by footpaths and bridleways. Each year a report on the condition of the footpaths and requests for repairs is sent to the County Council. Thank you to Councillors Goodman & Sheriston for walking the paths and compiling the report. Current issues are signposting and the condition of the footpath opposite Golf Course Road. The County Council has issued a Rights of Way Improvement Plan and we shall endeavour to use this initiative as a means for enhancing routes in the parish especially to bridleways which are not connected in any meaningful way.

A606 & Brown’s Lane Speed Restriction

I am assured that the long awaited speed restriction on Melton Road and Brown’s Lane will come in to effect in the first week in June. The Parish Council has taken note of and carried forward the concerns of residents about the dangers of speeding on the Melton Road. It is to be hoped that the speed restriction will reduce noise, make access to houses easier and reduce accidents.  

Rev.Thomas Ousley’s Charity

The Parish Council appoints 4 trustees for the Rev Thomas Ousley’s Charity. There is a separate report to this meeting by the Chair, Mr John Stockbridge.

"Parish News"

The first edition of the Parish News hit the streets in Dec 2003. This has been a popular and well-received means of communication although rather one-way. All residents are encouraged to make contributions. However we are fortunate that Alan & Val Hunt do write articles that add interest and substance. Distribution of the Parish News relies on the good will of current councillors and Alan Jackson who was a councillor until 2006.

Web Site

We are again indebted to Alan & Val Hunt who created and maintain our web site and Councillor Hackett who continues to liaise with them. The site went live in May 2007.  Alan & Val report that ” the total number of hits in the first year was 80,000 from the UK and 63 other countries, mostly Australia, Canada and Germany. The complete set of censuses from 1841 to 1901 is now available on line as are the parish registers of All Saints from 1627 to 1904. These records of marriages, baptisms and interments are of interest to historians and genealogists.” They also say that their request for photographs and cine film of the village has had a disappointing response. That is - nil. They would very much like to include photos of past village life on the web site.

History Book

The Parish Council published the History of Stanton on the Wolds by Alan & Val Hunt in Aug 2006. Councillors continue to deliver a copy and welcome letter to every new resident. To date 218 copies have been sold, contributing to the off set of the original costs. Councillor Hackett ensures that the sales momentum is maintained, as well as storing unsold copies. Don’t forget that he would be very happy to sell copies or have some ideas for new sales opportunities.

Community involvement

The clerk and councillors have been busy on your behalf in the community. The clerk attended the Soc of Local Councils Conference at Quorn as well as other events that keep him up to date with what is new and relevant.

The Chairman represented the Parish at the Mayor of Rushcliffe’s reception. And also attended consultation events organised by Rushcliffe Borough Council on Homes for the Future, Corporate Strategy and Glass Recycling.

Our thanks go to Councillor Butler who laid a wreath on behalf of the village at the war memorial on Remembrance Sunday and Councillor Baines who played the bugle at the act of remembrance.

The Parish Council has taken an interest in the future of Keyworth Leisure Centre, supporting its continuation and importance to the community.

 

Although not directly connected to or reporting to the Parish Council, councillors are active in the village in many ways according to their talents and interests:

Volunteer classroom helpers in the local school

Street Co-ordinators for Neighbourhood Watch

Member of the Patient Participation Group at Keyworth Health Centre

Willing distributors of local magazines

 

Thank you to them all for their support during the past year.

 

Our concern for the future is that green open spaces will be valued, while acknowledging the need for new houses in the Borough. We wait for the outcome of the recommendation that the green belt around Rushcliffe should be abolished with some trepidation and hope that any plans will be by consultation.

 Stanton on the Wolds is a good place to live.