Westleigh Parish Council Meeting Minutes
Tuesday 23rd May 2023 – following Parish AGM
Held at Westleigh Village Hall
Attendees – Cllrs David Fairbrother (Chair), Chris Heard (Vice-
1. Min 17 23/24 – Opening of the meeting at 7.20pm following the Parish AGM
2. Min 18 23/24 – Apologies received – DCCllr Frank Biederman
3. Min 19 23/24 – Declarations of Interest – none
4. Min 20 23/24 – To confirm and agree the signing of the Minutes of the meeting held on the 5th April. Agreed unanimously
5. Min 21 23/24 – Matters arising. A letter had been received from Christie Estates Manager Andrew Woollacott in response to a letter sent on behalf of the Council expressing their concern at the perceived use of pesticides in the field to the right of the Village Hall. His response was copied and delivered to all Councillors by the Clerk. The fete committee has yet to be formed, but was agreed to include Tapeley (Nigel Mann), Cllrs Heard, Frajbis, and Gear. It was also felt that there should be representation from the Village, with the Westleigh Inn, and the Village Hall Committee mentioned. It was also agreed that a meeting should be set up within the next 2 weeks, as time is moving on. A reply had been received from Lovacott Parish Clerk, saying that she was still chasing up the formation of a Board of Trustees who would be looking at the distribution of Section 106 monies from the Solar Farm (NDCllr Renshaw promised to keep a focus on the formation of the Board). The formation of a working party for the CEG grant is covered in the environmental update. NDCllr Renshaw also informed the meeting that she had heard that following a period of 10 years after permission had been granted for solar farms, that building planning permission would be automatically agreed for the site. She promised to find out the detail of this, and report back
6. Min 22 23/24 – Correspondence & Communications. Verbal communication to the Clerk had enquired as to who is responsible for the upkeep of the 2 bus shelters at the Westleigh junction. There was no clear answer known, apart from the fact that the Council is responsible for their maintenance as they are one of the Council’s assets. The Clerk was tasked with finding out and reporting back
7. Min 23 23/24 – No members of the public attended
8. Min 24 23/24 – County & Ward reports. There was no report from County, and NDCllr Renshaw explained that because of her short time in post, that there was nothing particular to report on. Cllr Fairbrother asked if she was responsible for overseeing waste collection in the village, and on being informed that she was, he asked why the Green Bin collection vehicle could not reverse down the lane leading to St Peter’s to collect the Green Bins that Villagers had to haul up to the Village Hall. Many other lorries easily reverse down the lane en route for Westleigh Inn deliveries, and bearing in mind that many Villagers are elderly, and struggle with hauling their Green Bins up the hill, it would benefit the population enormously. There is plenty of room to place the bins in the ‘dip’ of the lane. NDCllr Renshaw promised to investigate this, and report back!
9. Min 25 23/24 – Finance. The Clerk detailed the cheques requiring signatures, those being the annual Council insurance premium (£256.93), Harris Garden Services (£100), Website domain hosting (£37), and the Clerk’s expenses (£68.40 for ink cartridges). All agreed. The Council also agreed to approve the grant to St Peter’s PCC for £250, which had been allowed for in the budget. The Clerk also explained that payment for the Village Hall hire was no longer possible by cheque, so with the permission of the Chairman, he had BAC’d £60 to the Village Hall bank account, and had been reimbursed by a cheque for the same amount. It is a matter of some urgency now, to implement on-
10. Min 25 23/24 – Environment. Cllrs Fairbrother & Heard have both volunteered to help with the management of ‘Investment in Nature’, with Cllrs Burgess & Frajbis in support -
11. Min 26 23/24 – TTEF update. Cllr Frajbis reported that the next meeting was in 6 weeks’ time, but wanted it noted that he felt the Forum was more about talking, rather than any tangible actions taking shape. After some discussion, he agreed to carry on attending, with the proviso that he may withdraw if he felt it was still unproductive over the next few months.
12. Min 27 23/24 – Planning. No adverse comments had been forthcoming regarding planning application 77083 at Eastleigh Barton.
13. Min 28 23/24 – Next meeting. Because of the delayed AGM and May meeting, it was felt that the June meeting planned for the 7th of June was unnecessary, and the next meeting should be in July on the 5th. All agreed.
14. Min 29 23/24 – the meeting closed at 8.35pm
