Ascott-under-Wychwood Parish Council Meeting held on Monday 12 November 2018 in the Tiddy Hall at 7.30pm

Parish Councillors

• Philippa Carter
• Sandy Timms
• Peter Rance
• Brian Leach

Parish Clerk

• Angela Barnes

Members of the Public

• No members of the public

1. Apologies

Received from CClllr Liz Leffman, DCllr Jake Acock and Cllr Ranson (on Paternity Leave).

2. Minutes of the Last Meeting

The Minutes recorded from the meeting held on Monday 8 October 2018 were approved as a true record, duly signed, dated and filed.

3. Declarations of interest

There were no declarations of interest to record.

4. Financial Report

This was circulated prior to the meeting to all councillors.

Income

No income.

Costs:

Financial Regulations

These are to be discussed at the Financial Meeting to be held on Wednesday 28 November.

Precept Planning

The Budget for 2019/20 will be discussed at the Financial Meeting. The Precept figure will be confirmed and set at the December meeting.

Cllr Sandy Timms proposed to accept Bannor Electrical’s quotations for the following electrical works, seconded by Cllr Rance:

• installation of a defibrillator at the shop – £181.77 + VAT
• installation of a defibrillator at Tiddy Hall – £204.32 + VAT
• installation of 3 vandal proof lights – £100 + VAT
• installation of tamper-proof connections for the Xmas Tree lights – £70.60 + VAT

Cllr Sandy Timms proposed to accept Nicholson’s quotation to carry out the Village tree survey at a cost of £460 + VAT, seconded by Cllr Leach. Date to be arranged by Cllr Carter.

Cllr Carter proposed a £500 donation in response to the Wychwood Day Centre’s request, seconded by Cllr Rance.

5. Reports from County and District Councillors

County Cllr Liz Leffman

The Clerk presented CCllr Leffman’s report;

Local issues

I recently reported blocked gulleys at Melplash Farm and the corner of Heritage Lane. The one at Melplash Farm has been unblocked but I am not sure about the one at Heritage Lane as Gigaclear are doing work there at the moment.

I also reported potholes on Shipton Road which I believe have been sorted, but I am also aware of a lot of potholes on London Lane, which are scheduled to be fixed.
Unfortunately the signpost at the top of London Lane has still not been fixed – I will remind officers again that it needs sorting

County issues

At the recent County Council meeting I asked about the resources that were available for the process DMMO applications for the registration of unregistered footpaths. The Cabinet Member for Environment admitted that resources were extremely thin and that applications in the pipeline would take literally years to clear. She has committed to increasing the available resource, as she recognises that the deadline for registration is looming, and that there is likely to be an increased number of applications.

I was alerted recently by an elderly resident that the library service is not going to be communicating by post with users in future, which means that anyone who uses the library and wants to reserve a book will have to have either a smart phone or a computer. For many older residents this could mean limited access to library services. As a result of my question the Cabinet member will be looking at whether notifications by post can be retained for people who have not got access to other means.

District Cllr Jake Acock

DCllr sent the following report;

Planning –It was reported that there were no major planning issues as of yet and DCllr will be attending on Thursday. DCllr had no update regarding London Lane development.

It was reported that at the full council meeting, many issues were debated including a People’s vote motion, which was defeated- however, all Liberal Democrat’s votes in favour of the motion (proposed by DCllr Acock).

It was reported that DCllr Acock had been dealing with casework as when it came in and there were no major issues currently.

6. Public Time

There were no members of public and so no public time recorded.

7. Planning

Appeal Ref: APP/D3125/W/17/3179654 12-18 London Lane, Development of 5 dwellings – Allowed 15 December 2017: (Original Application Ref 17/01067/FUL, dated 30 March 2017 – Developers have withdrawn their offer and the land is on the market again.

18/02921/FUL PROPOSAL: Change of use of land from agricultural to domestic garden. (Retrospective).
LOCATION: 1 The Green Ascott Under Wychwood Chipping Norton APPLICANT: Mr And Mrs John And Debra Cull REGISTERED: 16th October 2018 – Ongoing

Cow Shed development

Cllr Carter reported that the developers acting for Cornbury have advised on their intention to hold a full community consultation in November. DCllr Acock asked to be copied in on the final date agreed in order that he could plan to attend.

8. Matters Arising

(a) Wychwoods Working Together – nothing to report

(b) OCC Grasscutting contract – Ongoing

(c) Sign at the Ascott Earl Sheepwash – completed.

(d) Footpaths –update from CCllr Leffman, corrective action to the signage posted by Kingstanding Farm on fences and public footpaths. Ongoing

(e) Defibrillator – Cllr Timms reported that this had been ordered and that the Tiddy Hall had confirmed a £500 donation, a £1000 grant from Ascott Village Charity and £500 from the Parish Council, this would cover all costs. Ongoing

(f) GDPR – nothing to report

(g) Christmas Tree sheath & electricity on the Green – completed

(h) Heritage Lane; parishioner’s request for Dog Poo Bin (additional) – has been requested

(i) Allotments – parishioner Jacob Davies will remove all debris from the demolition of a shed etc. – Cllr Carter proposed the PC accept his quotation of £125. This was seconded by Cllr Timms. Ongoing

(j) Martyrs Seats – regular cleaning / contract – Ongoing

(k) Replacement Waste/Litter bin at the end of Dawls Close – completed

(l) Hedgecutting – this has been done, with the exception of the top corner (£35 + vat to revisit). Ongoing

(m) Cllr Tony Merry Charlbury TC – England’s National Parks and Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONBs) Ongoing

(n) Dr Nina Brown – demise of Wychwood Walkers –Dr Brown asked if there were organisations/activities in Ascott-u-W which could be advertised at the Wychwood Surgery with the same goal as the Wychwood Walkers i.e. bringing people together for the benefit of their physical and mental health. Cllr Carter passed the information on to Kate Gidman and Ann Braithwaite.

9. Risk Assessment & Ground Maintenance

Playing Field /Pavilion – Rabbit Control will take place on Saturday morning 17 November at Sports Club expense. The playground and field will be closed for the morning. Cllr Carter reported on vandalism to the pavilion outside lights, utility meter cupboards and picnic benches in the playground. Cllr Carter proposed replacing the lights and utility cupboards as soon as possible. A supplier of Vandal Proof lights – Vandalite – was recommended by Bannor Electrical. Cllr Carter proposed £489 inc VAT for these lights, this was seconded by Cllr Timms. Cllr Carter will investigate a vandal proof way of replacing the utility cupboards. Cllr Carter recommended budgeting for vandal proof picnic benches for the year 2019/20. Cllr Carter met with Police Constable Wesley Smith who stated that he is now the only policeman covering the Chipping Norton catchment. PCSO Kirsten Tyrer has left the force and has not been replaced. PC Smith cannot give much time to petty vandalism cases and recommended installing CCTV. He suggested investing in a robust system with good recording. To be considered for the 2019/20 budget. Cllr Carter proposed that the annual transfer to the Pavilion Fund be increased to £1,000. The Milena window replacements will already spend more than the budget holds at present.

Pound and Churchyard Wall – The party wall between the churchyard and the Pound has been completed and the cost of stone shared between the Church and the Parish Council. Many thanks to Brian Mitchell for organising everything and to the Wychwood Project Volunteers for undertaking the building work. They have also repaired a bulging section of the perimeter wall at Church View. Brian Mitchell invited the Cotswold Warden Volunteers to undertake the cutting back of ivy on the churchyard wall. Many thanks are due to an extremely hard working team which completed the whole perimeter in a morning.

Thank you also to Shane Barnes for setting in a new Pound gatepost and re-hanging the gate.

The Green -Thank you to Shane Barnes for concreting in the Xmas Tree sheath. This will hopefully keep the Xmas tree more stable and upright.

Tree Surgery –A date to be arranged for a village-wide tree inspection by Nicholsons.

Notice Boards – Cllr Carter has not been able to find a material (such as cork) which is fully weatherproof and which can take drawing pins easily. She recommends the PC returns to using marine plywood as before and that this be budgeted for financial year 2019/20.

10. Community Emergency Plan

Flood Relief Works -Cllr Carter attended a meeting organised by the Evenlode Catchment Partnership (ECP) on 7 November 2018. The ECP is a partnership of a range of organisations and present at this particular meeting were representatives of Wild Oxfordshire, the Wychwood Project, the Environment Agency, Thames Water, WODC, Selva and the Forestry Commsision as well as the owner of Bruern Estate, David Astor, and several Parish Councillors and residents from the Wychwoods.

The meeting was held at Milton Village Hall and then on site at Bruern Estate. Mr Astor introduced the project which the ECP had facilitated on his land. A series of earth bunds and ‘catchpools’ have been constructed to hold back the flow of water in a tributary of the Evenlode in order to reduce the risk of flooding to Littlestock Brook in Milton-u-W. In addition, streams have been encouraged to return to their natural courses, meandering over the land rather than rushing through straight man-made ditches. Large numbers of trees have been planted. This is an experiment which has attracted sizeable grants and regular measurements are taken to determine whether these methods will be successful as more natural forms of flood risk management. More information can be found on the ECP website.

The work of the ECP is of great interest to Ascott-under-Wychwood and its own flood risk management. The Partnership has already completed the reshaping of river banks at Pudlicote/Chilson with the support of the landowners. This has enabled more high water to flow onto the surrounding fields. During the very snowy and subsequently wet conditions in the winter/spring of 2018 Ascott-u-W did not flood and it is likely that this was partly due to high water escaping more quickly downstream and onto the flood plain at Chilson. Now, with some water being encouraged to slow down and flood land at Bruern before even reaching Shipton and Ascott, we hope that this second project will improve flood risk management at Ascott even more.
The village is indebted to the ECP, Mr & Mrs Wickson and Mr Astor for committing so much time, effort, enthusiasm and money to these projects.

Flood Signs – Cllr Carter is in discussion with Robin Walker of College Farm about the best location for storing signs which are used at the top of the Chipping Norton Road.

11. Transport

Trains

From Ascott station, the timings and services originally posted were either erroneous or unviable, e.g. no return train! Cllr Rance was advised of this by a parishioner who has a large group wishing to use the service, and having advised CLPG, he awaits corrections being made.

Buses

Nothing to report.

12. Roads

Parking in Dawls Close – Cllr Carter reported on the continuing saga of parking space and dropped kerbs in Dawls Close. A meeting took place between a Cottsway officer, D Cllr Acock and P Cllr Carter. D Cllr Acock stated that it was the responsibility of the owner, Cottsway, to pay for dropped kerbs where there were none (4 houses of Cottsway tenants). Cottsway refused to take that responsibility. OCC quoted £2,000 per dropped kerb. P Cllr Carter asked that all parties looked for compromises as parking and access for Emergency Vehicles is now a serious issue in Dawls Close. Subsequently some tenants have been told to remove vehicles from their forecourts where there is no dropped kerb. Cllr Carter is asking again for all parties to come together and agree a solution for the sake of neighbourliness, improvement to outlook and appearance and maximising on-street parking for visitors while still maintaining Emergency Access.

Blocked drain at Heritage Lane and Melplash Farm – C Cllr Leffman will investigate these and P Cllr will send her the photographs.

Chipping Norton Road Bridge over the Evenlode:
Following the PC resolution at the September meeting to seek an OCC consultation on a potential priority system to the approach to the Chippy Norton road bridge, Cllr Rance received the OCC prospective signage diagram and layout. This was approved by the PC, ex committee. At this October meeting Cllr Rance proposed the expenditure of £800 to pay for the consultation and this proposal was seconded by Cllr Carter. Cllr Rance has informed OCC of the decision and awaits notification of the consultation commencing.

13. Reports from Organisations

(a) Ascott-under-Wychwood Sports Club
Ascott United Football club is well established now with a team playing at home most Saturday afternoons and a junior section training on Sunday mornings. It is traditional for the home team to entertain the visitors with something hot to eat after a match and normally they would de-camp to the Swan. However, the current owners have not been at all welcoming and so the Football Manager, Mike Ody, has asked if they could organise catering at the Pavilion. This has been trialled for a month and seems to be very successful. There has been a convivial finish to the game and everyone is off-site between 5 and 6pm. The caterers have cleared up very well and the Sports Club Management has made it clear to the Football Manager that any extra electricity, gas or cleaning should be paid for by the Ascott United. All would like to continue with the arrangement. However, the Pavilion cooker has not been working and the caterers have had to bring temporary alternatives. Cllr Carter arranged for an appliance engineer to inspect the cooker and it has been condemned. Given that this is a publicly used kitchen Cllr Carter recommends that we do not rely on another 2nd hand but purchase a new cooker. Cllr Carter recommended purchasing a cooker from Corbetts of Chipping Norton – cost £350 plus £75 installation (both inc VAT), free removal, as this was the best local price for that size of electric cooker. Cllr Carter asked that the budget for re-decorating the kitchen (agreed Dec 17 meeting) be spent on a cooker and the re-decoration undertaken by volunteers. This was proposed by Cllr Rance and seconded by Cllr Timms.

(b) Wychwood Library – nothing to report

(c) Helpers of Ascott-under-Wychwood – nothing to report

14. Correspondence

Email

Cllr Tony Merry Charlbury Town Council – refer to Matters Arising
Dr Nina Brown – refer to matters arising

Post

Clerks and Councils Direct

15. Carols round the Christmas Tree

The checklist had been circulated prior to the meeting. The beneficiary from the collection was yet to be decided, this would be confirmed to enable the Clerk to get the posters printed.

16. Any Other Business

There being no further business, Cllr Carter declared the meeting closed at 9.55pm and confirmed the next meeting will be held on Monday 10 December 2018.

Cllr Philippa Carter (Chairman)
Date: 10 December 2018