Westleigh Parish Council Meeting Minutes
Wednesday 17thof January 2024, 7pm at Westleigh Village Hall
Attendees – Cllrs Dave Fairbrother, Chris Heard, Lyn Gear, Colin Frajbis & Lesley Burgess
Min 65 23/24 – Apologies received – DCCllr Frank Biederman, & NDCllr Lucinda Renshaw.
Min 66 23/24 – Declarations of Interest – none declared
Min 67 23/24 – Minutes – confirmation that the minutes of the November meeting had been agreed. A frank and open discussion took place (not minuted), and the Council amicably agreed to move on from any perceived misunderstandings!
Min 68 23/24 – Matters outstanding – Cllr Heard updated the meeting on the Solar Farm position, and confirmed that all interested Parishes had rejected the 3/2 split of monies suggested, and were in favour of the original agreement from September 2020 that it should be shared equally between the 5.
Min 69 23/24 – Correspondence and Communication – a complaint in November had been raised by Natalie Fairbrother who as an early morning swimmer at Westward Ho! Beach, wanted to know what was being done about the amount of raw sewage on the beach. Clerk referred the complaint to Torridge District Council. TDC replied to the effect that SW Water was monitoring the situation. Selaine Saxby (MP) also commented, adding that there had not been any other complaints to date, however SW Water issued an apology late in December, saying that ‘inadvertant’ sewage outflows had occurred within the North Devon area, including Westward Ho! and were working to improve conditions. The North Devon Community Lottery was being launched on the 24th January, and wanted ‘interested’ parties to attend the launch. The Parish Clerk is attending on behalf of WPC to ensure that we are seen as one of the ‘interested’ parties when distributions take place (50%). Parking has always been at a premium in Westleigh, and due to its’ narrow streets, every available space is taken on occasions. Some of our elderly residents have over time used various small spaces as their own, and this has been tacitly recognised, however there are some no-
Min 70 23/24 – Public session – no members of the public attended
Min 71 23/24 – District & County reports – NDCllr Renshaw confirmed her support for the grant of £262.50 additional costs of the Investment in Nature project (removal of Alexander roots at the site by the Westleigh sign), and owing to personal circumstances was unable to attend. She assured me (The Clerk), that she had Westleigh interests at heart, and was always open to contact via email. DCCllr Biederman had to attend a full Council meeting at NDC, and assured WPC of his continued interest in ensuring that the Solar Farm monies adhered to the original agreement in September 2020. He also asked that the Council promote the ‘ask’ from DCC that all pothole complaints are registered on www.devon.gov.uk/roads-
Min 72 23/24 – Finance – agreement had already been given (November’s meeting) that payment could be made for invoices arising between that meeting and January’s meeting. The 2 involved were a payment for J Harris for £262.50 (additional work on the Investment in Nature project) and £1378.72 for Clerk’s 3 monthly salary, holiday pay, and back pay following NALC pay negotiations. These were agreed at a meeting of the Finance Committee on the 18th December. The Clerk had sent out the current accounts, the proposed Precept for 2024/25, and the budget proposals for the next financial year. He had also sent out the revised ‘risk register’ for approval. All documents were considered, and the Precept was agreed, the Budget was agreed with some cutbacks from the previous year, including some voluntary reductions in the Clerk’s hours to save money, the Risk Register was also agreed. A full breakdown of all income/expenditure would be available at the AGM in May, for discussion, but the Council confirmed the accounts to date as accurate.
Min 73 23/24 – Environment – Cllr Burgess’s report is attached as Appendix 1
Min 74 23/24 – Planning – no progress to report from Christie Estates regarding the proposed development below the Village Hall. NDC are holding a Planning Forum for Chairmen and Parish Clerks on the 31st January, which the Chair & Clerk will attend. It will cover 1. An overview of the planning system, 2. How planning is handled by NDC, 3. Implications of the Code of Conduct, 4. The role of Parish Councils in the planning system, and 5. Parish Councils’ role in practice
Min 75 23/24 – TTEP (Cllr Frajbis) -
The January meeting and AGM (15th) was dominated by a very informative talk by Adrian Dowding of the West Country Rivers Trust. Especial attention was given to the impact of agricultural run offs along the length of the Estuary. Whilst fully accepting the importance of farming and food production, the Trust continues to take steps to constantly measure and monitor the ongoing health of the waters. New technologies and an impressive number of concerned volunteers are increasingly employed in this task. Mr Dowding also stressed the negative impact that pollution, over-
Min 76 23/24 – Summer Fete (Cllr Frajbis) -
Min 77 23/24 – Next meeting – as the January meeting had been delayed, it was felt appropriate to delay the next Council meeting to Wednesday the 6th March. Agreed
Appendix 1 – Environment (with updates on the Investment in Nature Project)
Nature Surveys at Westleigh and Tapeley with David Paull/ Lesley Burgess. David and I continue to meet and survey each month. He will report on his findings in due course. We visited Tapeley Park on 24th November 2023,and were truly astonished by the abundance of fungi on the front lawn in front of the house. A validation for Hector’s non-
Investment in Nature Phase 1-
Phase 2/ Planting Trees, bulbs and pollinators Jez Harris – is planting 2,750 bulbs in Westleigh and Eastleigh. He tells me he has a nice plan for the church and has already started planting on the verges and at the church. He is planting 3 crab apple saplings. Trees -
To do *Arrange new date with Billie for round 2-
**Decision to hold back on purchase of some trees and pollinators to ensure no overspend.
