Parish Council AGM 2023

Item No.

Action

2023/023

Apologies

Cllr Bee Barber, Martyn Gillingham (River Warden), PCSO Bishop

2023/024

Approval of Minutes from 2022 AGM

TThe minutes of the 2022 AGM were approved and signed by the Chairman. Proposed by Cllr Scott Malden and seconded by Cllr Denny.

2023/025

Chairman’s Report for the year 2022/23

I would like to welcome you all to the 2023 Annual General Meeting of South Perrott Parish Council.

It has been a fairly busy year, one jubilee, one state funeral & a coronation, 3 prime ministers (Boris, Liz Truss & Rishi, 3 home secretaries (Priti Patel, Suella Braverman, Grant Shapps (6 days) & Suella again), 4 Chancellors of the exchequer (Rishi, Nadhim Zahawi, Kwasi Kwartand and Jeremy Hunt) and we have had one resignation and one co-opting on to the Parish Council and I think we have achieved quite a lot.

Village gates
In June last year, we had the village gates at either entrance to the village painted white and subsequently the vegetation around them was cut back. I hope this has contributed to people slowing down driving through the village.

Bins
The bin in Manor close was moved and because it and the one opposite School Hill were filling up we increased the number of collections to every 2 weeks.

Bank account
We resolved a long-standing issue with signatories on the bank account which had the potential for us to not be able to make payments if one person was unavailable.

The Pound
The Pound underwent a major overhaul, mostly financed by a generous commitment from Mr Michael Stevenette. We were able to get the hedges significantly cut back, the trees overhanging the pound were significantly reduced, a new bench was bought and the old one refurbished and a new plaque was obtained. The notice board & bin was moved to a better location away from the benches and a lectern-style map of the walks and bridleways of South Perrott was installed. A longer-term commitment to maintain the Pound is continuing and it was great to see the pound springing to life this year and I am excited to see further developments as the season progresses. Thanks also go to Terence Wybrow for his continued help with this.

Manor Close Wall
We were informed of an issue in Manor Close regarding a large and potentially dangerous hole in the wall. Efforts to determine who was responsible failed and Dorset Council (DC) were invited to give advice and they did a site visit but determined it wasn’t their problem to fix. Discussions continue on the way forward to make it safe and less of an eyesore.

Bailys Lane
In June of last year, DC agreed with us that the building of an agricultural building on the field in Baily’s Lane was inappropriate and planning permission was refused. The land was then promptly sold.

Coach and Horses
Whilst on the subject of planning, the Coach and Horses saga continued with the retrospective planning application being refused back in December 2021 and there being a 6-month period in which to make an appeal. An appeal was made at the last minute with the Planning Inspectorate and that appeal was refused. DC planning enforcement issued a Planning contravention Notice on the 17th March 23 and the owners had 28 days to appeal that notice. They have appealed it and so it now goes to the Bristol Planning inspectorate where we will have to wait for the process.

Millennium Green
We’ve been approached by the remaining Millennium Green Trustees to see if the parish council would want to take on the running of the MG. Part of the process to making a decision about that is initially we will be having an open meeting to discuss the pros/cons with interested members of the public, followed up with a consultation period. In the meantime, 2 councillors have offered to be trustees but that offer remains open.

Pipplepen Solar farm
The Pipplepen Solar farm was approved but there is no update on when that work will begin.

And finally, we had a visit from Chris Loader, the MP for West Dorset.

Thank You
I would like to take this opportunity to thank our footpaths officer who continues to battle adversity to ensure we can all enjoy the paths and bridleways around the village.

I would also like to thank our River Warden who not only kept the village flood free but has kept us all up to date on the reservoir.

My thanks also go to my fellow councillors who have supported me and look forward to the next year working together.

And I’d like to thank the members of this parish to come to these meetings and offer some great advice and some of the history on why the village is the way it is and why certain past decisions were made which helps a relatively newbee like myself make sense of everything.

Finally, I would like to thank the Parish’s Clerk, Jane, who without her outstanding support, guidance and wisdom I could not do this job!

Thank you.

2023/026

Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairman

2022/027

Financial Report for the Year 2022/23

Approval of 2022/23 Annual Accounts

a. The Clerk, having previously circulated the documents, presented the Annual Governance Statement to the Parish Council. They were considered and approved by the Council. Proposed by Cllr Baker, seconded by Cllr Scott-Malden and unanimously approved.

b. The Annual Accounting Statements were accepted and approved by the Parish Council. Proposed by Cllr Baker, seconded by Cllr Scott-Malden and unanimously approved.

The annual accounts for the year 1 April 2022 – 31 March 2023 were reported as follows:

Total Income for the year                             £5,673.76

Total Expenditure for the year                     £4,874.47

Balance in hand as at 31 March 2023        £4461.20

Full details will be available on the website shortly.  The Clerk recorded her thanks to Mrs Angela Gillingham who carried out the internal audit. The accounts will now be sent for external audit.