DRAYTON (ABINGDON)
Minutes of the Meeting of the Finance and Personnel Committee of Drayton Parish Council held on Tuesday 26th January 2021 remotely, at 7pm.
Present: Cllrs Pat Athawes (Chairman), Shane McAleavey, Graham Webb, Tamsin Crane and Richard Wade.
Also in attendance: Lorraine Watling (Clerk/RFO).
Public: None
| Minute No. | |
| 30/20 | Apologies for absence: Cllr Claire Woollard. |
| 31/20 | (a) Declarations of Interest: Cllr Wade declared a general interest in the allotment rents, and did not take part in the vote on this matter. (b) Dispensations received by the Clerk: None |
| 31/20 | The Minutes of the Meeting of 16th November 2021: were Approved as a true record. Proposed: Cllr Webb Seconded: Cllr McAleavey Resolved (unanimous by those in attendance) |
| 32/20 | Budget Update as at 31st December 2020: The Committee noted the ‘alpha’ accounting reports detailing income and expenditure as at 31st December 2020. The Clerk explained how she was managing the s106 income and expenditure within the accounts using the earmarked projects reserve. |
| 33/20 | S137 Grant Application: The Committee received and considered a s137 grant application for £1,100 from the Citizens Advice Bureau. The Committee RESOLVED to approve this s137 grant application Proposed: Cllr Athawes Seconded: Cllr Crane Resolved (unanimous) Action: The Clerk will notify CAB that their grant has been approved, and ask for someone to contact Cllr Wade to discuss ways in which the PC and CAB might work together. |
| 34/20 | S106 Update: The Committee noted the s106 contributions received or recently approved. The District Council had recently sent out a communication advising that, due to the pandemic, they would not be accepting any new s106 applications at present unless there was less than 1 year left before the funds had to be spent. The Clerk spoke to the Officer who administers these grants. He confirmed that the Walnuts application would be processed as it was already in the system, and that he would ask the committee to sympathetically consider the application for further allotment s106 to pay for the unexpected chainsaw work which was required at the allotment site before the deer fencing could be installed. It is understood that the situation with regards to new s106 applications will be reviewed after Easter. The committee discussed the s106 allocation to Drayton for traffic calming measures. There were concerns that OCC might try to use this funding for traffic calming measures that OCC wanted, rather than those wanted by the parish. OCC have recently discussed the installation of a new crossing somewhere on the High Street. Although this would be welcomed to address current health and safety issues, Cllrs agreed that should be funded by OCC as a safety measure, and not from the Drayton s106 traffic calming allocations. Discussion followed about the various groups of people who could benefit from the proposed crossing. The current and potential vehicular exits onto the High Street were also discussed. It was suggested that these should be considered when reviewing planning applications for this area of the village. Action: Cllr McAleavey will talk to Cllr Garin Schoonhoven and then liaise with OCC to learn more about what OCC are suggesting. It was noted that when the Neighbourhood Plan was produced, a design had been produced for traffic calming in the village as part of this. OCC has confirmed this. It was thought that Richard Williams had led on this. Action: The Clerk will look for possible reports and contact Richard Williams to discuss. An approach about speculative development received will be considered by the Planning Committee. |
| 35/20 | Hedge Cutting Quotation: The majority of Committee members had approved (by email) a quotation from The Landscape Group Oxford to cut back the beech hedge at the allotment site. The Village Caretaker had cut the hedge back as far as he was able with hedge clippers, but it needed someone with a chain saw licence to complete the job and remove the resulting waste. This job had to be done as a matter of urgency to enable the deer fence to be installed at the beginning of February 2021. This decision taken by email was ratified at the Committee meeting. The Committee RESOLVED to approve a maximum budget of £1,000 for this work (excluding VAT). Proposed: Cllr Athawes Seconded: Cllr McAleavey Resolved (Cllr Wade abstained as he has a general interest in the allotment site). Action: The Clerk will ask the District Council whether this work can be funded from s106. |
| 36/20 | LPGS Funding Strategy Statement Consultation: The Committee received and considered the LGPS Funding Strategy Consultation which was open until 12th Feb 2021. Action: Cllr Wade agreed to review the consultation documentation and confirm to the Committee Chair whether there are any matters that Drayton PC may wish to comment upon. |
| 37/20 | Annual Review of the Asset Register: It was noted that the 2020-21 annual review of the asset register had been completed and approved by Council. |
| 38/20 | Risk Assessments: The Pond risk assessment was discussed. Cllrs Wade and G Schoonhoven have spent a lot of time considering this, but more work is required as this is not straightforward or a risk that can be assessed using the PC’s standard risk assessment forms. |
| Reserved Business: Exclusion of the Public and Press. In view of the nature of the business to be transacted any members of the public and press were temporarily excluded from the meeting (Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960 s.1). | |
| 39/20 | Project Manager Vacancy: The Committee reviewed the response to the vacancy advert and agreed the next steps that will be taken. The Committee RESOLVED to proceed with interviews, followed by a follow-up phase for the submission of financial information. Proposed: Cllr Crane Seconded: Cllr Athawes Resolved (unanimous) Actions: The Clerk will send out the invitations to interview, and the Deputy Clerk will set up the remote meetings. |
| 40/20 | Any Other Business: The burial covenant was discussed. Action: The Clerk will contact the other party to try and progress this matter. |
| The Council then went back into public session. | |
| A fence that has been installed around the play area on the Bloor Home development was discussed. It was felt that this had changed the feel of the open space. Action: Cllr McAleavey had concerns about the gate opening inwards and latch heights so will liaise with the Residents Association about this. A recent email from the deer fencing installer about the timing of the installation was discussed. Action: The Clerk will speak to the contractor to confirm that the work should be undertaken this financial year. There appears to be a lot of clippings along the southern boundary of the burial ground. The Deputy Clerk will check whether these have arisen from the Village Caretaker doing some tidying up or if they are fly tipping. | |
| The date of the next meeting. The next Finance and Personnel Committee meeting is scheduled for 27th April 2021. |
The meeting concluded at 9.40pm
Signed: Pat Athawes (Chairman, Finance and Personnel Committee)