Sidlesham Parish Council.

Minutes of the Bi-monthly Parish Council Meeting
25 July 2007 Church Hall 8:20pm (after planning meeting)

Present: Mr A Harland (Chairman), Mr C Field, Mrs T Tull, Mrs D Pound, Mrs E Smart, Mrs C Ranjbar, Mrs D Kennedy, Mr C Bond, Mr D Pound.
Clerk (Mr J Paul) and one member of the public.

1 Apologies for absence. None as all present
2 Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held 16 May 2007. Noted that it should read
Mrs Pound in item 5.7, after alteration Mrs Tull proposed and Mr Field seconded that the minutes should be signed as a correct record.
3 Declarations by Councillors of personal interests in items on this agenda. None
4 Matters arising from the above minutes not dealt with in separate items below. None
5 Register of Interests. To comply with statutory instructions each Councillor was issued with a copy of their own statements as sent by the Clerk to the District Solicitor.
6 School House. No definitive decision or proposals were received by the school or the Parish Council, the dialogue to be continued with Ms Dina Pink at WSCC.
7 Highways, footpaths and cycleways.
The Clerk reported on a conversation held with Highways Department:- 7.1 to 7.3
7.1 Rumble strips on B2145 south of Mill Lane. They would be examined to see if a reduction in height and therefore noise could be made. Possible curbing of the section north of the Anchor would be suggested when budgets are next considered.
7.2 Footway edges, removal of overgrowth was made at long intervals. The section in Sidlesham to be examined.
7.3 Overgrown hedges and hazardous trees, WSCC would be taking a firmer line with landowners, warning letters to be sent out and if no response resulting in WSCC having to cut growth costs would be charged. The Clerk to obtain information on who is responsible for the new cycle track verges maintenance.
7.4 Fly-posting and illegal advertisement signs on highways of the Parish. These were proliferating. Where possible to be removed immediately by the Clerk and Councillors. The Clerk to write a paragraph for the Church Magazine and the website requesting compliance. The Clerk also to write to Selsey TC about the Save Our Selsey sign at the ferry.
7.5 Organised litter picking. Details of legal requirements were obtained by the Clerk and given to Councillors for information.
8 Amenities and Assets.
8.1 Amenities sub committee. A tour of parish ponds took place on 26 June with Sarah Hughes and Joanna Brooks, Monica Lucas, Mr Pound and the Clerk. Sarah Hughes was highly enthusiastic about study possibilities. Mr Pound will consider the organisation of a volunteer work group.
8.2 Fence at Bird Pond. A cleft oak fence to indicate the edge of the track and ditch is on order.
8.3 Pagham Harbour Local Nature Reserve. Mrs Kennedy attended a field visit and meeting of the Advisory Board. After a walk to Norton Spit the Board re-convened in Selsey. Main items of discussion were;- erosion of shingle from Pagham and deposition of the shingle on the other side of the harbour entrance at Church Norton. Also the government proposed access to the entire UK coast. This access is not seen as a problem for PHLNR. An important item for the next meeting to be a review of permits.
8.4 Bus Shelter seat opposite Anchor. Cut and shaped material for this bench was ordered some months ago but has not yet been completed.

9 Web site. (www.sidlesham.org). The Clerk reported that the first two months on line had gone well. The section of the software for uploading the gallery had proved less robust to interference and was to be replaced. Use of the site was approximately 1000 ‘hits’ per month.
10 Finance
10.1 Audit and approval of accounts. The Clerk presented the accounts 1 April 2006 to 31 March 2007 as audited and signed off by the internal / internal auditor (Mr Harland as a PC member) and internal / external auditor (Mrs K Cutting independent of the PC). Mrs Tull proposed that the Annual Return based on these accounts should be accepted, seconded by Mr Field, this was agreed unanimously by the Councillors. The Annual Return was signed by Mr Harland as Chairman and Mr Paul as Responsible Financial Officer and Clerk, to be sent to Mazars for external auditing.
The Exercise of Electors’ Rights notice for these accounts was subsequently posted on notice boards and the website (27 July 2007) detailing rights and period / times when they can be inspected.

10.2 Payments. The Clerk requested approval and recording of the following transactions.
10.2.1 Payments to be made: -
Action in rural Sussex subscription 40.00
J A Paul expenses (details on separate sheets) 131.64
SPCC Hall hire 26.00
M Brown Grass cutting, bus shelter hedge cut and wood staining, Paddock Straight dead tree cut, tree staking of regrowing trees, Bird Pond nettles strimming 250.00
10.2.2 Payments made since last meeting: -
CDC grass cut Paddock Straight 82.07
M Brown, grass cutting 40.00
C Hubbard (new comers event) 60.00
Bosham PC (councillor training) 100.00
K Cutting (audit fee) 50.00
CDC Parish Council Election costs 820.00

Mrs Tull proposed, Mr Field seconded that the transactions should be accepted ‘en bloc’; this was agreed by all Councillors.

11 Local Development Framework. Copies of Update 5 from Chichester District Council were circulated. This detailed the finding of ‘Unsound’ by the Government Inspector of the CDC Strategy mainly due to lack of ‘Greenfield’ housing details.
12 Parish Plan. Does Sidlesham need one? If so what are the objectives? Mr Pound proposed that due to the late hour discussion of this item should be deferred to a subsequent bi-monthly meeting. The Councillors agreed.
13 Parish Council meetings. Mr Pound suggested that the day of Parish Council Meetings should be altered to a more convenient one. Discussion indicated that no day was convenient for everyone but that Councillors had presented themselves for election knowing that Sidlesham Parish Council met on Wednesday evenings. Mrs Tull proposed that the meeting day and time should stay the same, Mrs Kennedy seconded. Mrs Pound proposed Tuesdays, Mr Pound seconded. The Councillors voted six for Wednesdays, two for Tuesdays and one Councillor abstained.
(Mrs Ranjbar apologised and left the meeting at this point due to the time and family commitments)

14 Mill Lane Chapel Plaque. In 1988 the Chapel was converted into houses. At the suggestion of the PC, the plaque commemorating the founding of the chapel was placed outside in a visible position rather than being disposed of. The black lettering on the plaque is now in need of some restoration. The Clerk agreed to make enquiries on methods and costs.
15 Correspondence.
15.1 Coastal Access. The government document to be circulated.
15.2 South Downs proposed National Park. The Clerk to reply to the defra letter concerning the restart of the process and changes to proposed boundaries using references from the CDC response.
(Mrs Kennedy apologised and left the meeting at this point due to the time)

15.3 West Sussex sustainability forum. Proposed meeting date cancelled.
15.4 Polling station review. No changes for Sidlesham.
15.5 Standards Committee Ombudsman complaints against CDC down to 11 from 25, non upheld. Report to be circulated.
15.6 Cheap bus fares for those ages 5 to 19. Details from WSCC posted on Notice Boards and website.
16 Reports.
16.1 Peninsula Community Forum. Minutes of last meeting are on CDC website www.chichester.gov.uk hard copy to be circulated in PC general folder. Next meeting will have light pollution as a topic
16.2 CALC Mr Field attended the AGM. New officers were appointed. Copies of presentations made on Code of Conduct etc to be circulated.
17 AOB
17.1 Vehicle Activated Signs. Copy of a letter from WSCC to Mrs R C Bowyer stated that that the B2145 / B2201 roads in Sidlesham would be added to the list for consideration in the next VAS programme.
17.2 Manhood Parishes’ Road Safety Group, Mrs Smart reported that this was close to establishment and a meeting is proposed in October with two representatives from each parish council. Notes on proposals to be copied to Councillors.
17.3 St Richard’s Hospital support campaign. It was agreed that the Clerk should write to the Primary Care Trust on behalf of the PC supporting option B ie St Richard’s to be Major General Hospital, Worthing and Princess Royal to be Local General Hospitals.
17.4 Next bi-monthly PC meeting 19 September 2007

The meeting closed at 10.25pm
John Paul (Clerk to Sidlesham Parish Council)