Author: Miles

Bobservation 39: New Year Resolutions

Stylised balloons, tinsel and trumped things

  1. For some innate reason it seems unBritish to get a better deal via websites like Go-Compare but I was horrified to have my motor insurer offer me a renewal at 425%, yes 425%, of the previous year’s premium. Comparative offers from other insurers via the aforementioned website brought about a REDUCTION in premium of 20% !!. In a similar vein and having been with the same supplier of LPG for many years, I contacted ‘enquiries@lpgcompare.co.uk’ who make no charge and were very helpful in advising me where I could get a better deal.  After some elementary calculations I made a substantial saving on the litre price I was paying Accordingly, I advise you all to make a New Year’s resolution to take the trouble to use these and other similar websites when renewing contracts of any sort.
  2. We got quite a good turnout for the village Christmas Party on Friday December 8th and  had a very good evening thanks to everyone who helped with mulling, serving, bringing, pouring, washing, sweeping and putting away. Some new faces who we were delighted to see. Let us resolve to make next year’s party bigger and better.
  3. I have only recently heard that Mick Gaule had been in intensive care for several days. In wishing him a speedy recovery please resolve to notice how your neighbours are faring with health and other social matters. A helping hand is always appreciated in times of stress, illness  and misfortune.

I WISH YOU ALL A VERY HEALTHY AND HAPPY NEW YEAR

Minutes of Extraordinary Parish Council Meeting – 12th December, 6:30pm

Minutes of the Fulking Parish Council Co-option Meeting
Held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Tuesday 12th December 2017 at 6.30pm

Present: Miles Firth (Chairman), Councillors Mark Hind, Linda Dyos, Michael Trist, and Clerk to the Council, Derek Blackhall
1 member of the public was present

Apologies for Absence: None.
Declarations of interest: None

The Chairman announced that this was a normal type of meeting with an open vote on whether to Co-opt to the current Councillor vacancy or not at this time.

Prior to the meeting, there had been one request by a member of the public to speak, having already established the candidate’s eligibility to apply for the vacancy via local business interests.

Karen Healy explained that she was fairly new to Fulking but keen to contribute to the community; recognised that some decisions are not always popular; has sat on children’s charities which was ultimately rewarding; along with PTA and committees experience; always endeavours to be proactive; has got time to be a councillor as working part-time; and offers a long-term commitment to the village.

The panel of Councillors explored a variety of topics:

  • Views on representing parts or all of the village
  • How the Parish Council operates
  • Attitude to training courses
  • Examples of being a team player
  • Attitude to possible disagreements over tricky issues
  • Attitude to established Council policies as they must be paramount for a
  • Councillor over and above being a resident
  • Attitude towards playground inspections
  • A view on some known forthcoming possible village hall issues and alternative strategies if it becomes difficult to resolve overall

After listening carefully to the responses to the above scenarios, the Chairman asked the panel for a vote.
There was a unanimous agreement to appoint Karen as a co-opted Councillor.
Karen signed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office, and agreed to return the Register of Interests to the Clerk within the necessary 28 days.

The meeting closed at 7.05pm

Signed ……………………         Date………………………

Parish Council Meeting – 4th January, 7:30pm – Village Hall

Fulking Parish Council will hold their quarterly meeting at 7.30pm on Thursday 4th January 2017 at the Village Hall
Members of the Press & Public are welcome to attend.

A G E N D A

Public Participation There will be a period of 15 minutes set aside at the beginning of the meeting for the public to ask questions or make comments on items on the Agenda. Comments on items not appearing on the agenda can be made at the chairman’s discretion. Once the meeting is in session there will be no further public participation.

  1. Chairman’s Welcome.
  2. Apologies.
  3. Declarations of Interest.
  4. Approval of minutes of 12th October and 12th December
  5. Reports from MSDC Councillors & WSCC Councillor Joy Dennis

Matters arising from the above minutes not on the agenda:
HGV sign update-Miles; Proposed parking measures West of Lady Brook Spring update-Mark.

  1. Planning

6.1 Erection of dwelling on land at Cannonberries, Poynings Road, Fulking, Henfield, West Sussex. BN5 9NB. Proposal: SDNP/17/06019/FUL

6.2 Extension to and re-modelling of existing house. Barn Cottage, Poynings Road Fulking BN5 9NB.  SDNP/17/06007/FUL

  1. Village Hall status-Miles
  2. Freedom of Information/Transparency-All
  3. Operation Watershed update-Miles
  4. Yellow lines proposal(s) full discussion-All
  5. Financial Matters (including Cheque List & Stubbs, Income & Expenditure to date, Budget v’s actual, quarterly bank reconciliation.
  6. 2018/19 Precept approval for submission to MSDC.

Date of next meeting: Thursday, 12th April.

Derek Blackhall
Clerk to Fulking Parish Council
01273 846186, 22 Kymer Gardens, Hassocks, West Sussex, BN6 8QZ
parishclerk@fulking.net

Extraordinary Meeting of Parish Council

To be held in Fulking Village Hall
Tuesday 12th December 2017 at 6.30pm

Agenda

Public Participation There will be a period of 10 minutes set aside at the beginning of the meeting for the public to ask questions or make comments on items on the Agenda. Comments on items not appearing on the agenda can be made at the chairman’s discretion. Once the meeting is in session there will be no further public participation.

  1. Chairman’s Welcome.
  2. Apologies.
  3. Declarations of Interest.
  4. To consider the applications for the current Councillor vacancy and decide whether to appoint at this time.

The public and press are cordially invited to attend.

Derek Blackhall
Clerk to Fulking Parish Council
01273 846186 parishclerk@fulking.net
22 Kymer Gardens, Hassocks, W Sussex BN6 8QZ

Bobservation 38: Christmas

As Christmas approaches, our thoughts could be on those unfortunates who lack a roof over their heads, it is disturbing that at least three properties in the village are permanently unoccupied as well as one other that is used as a holiday home. The villagers concerned will know which houses I am referring to and I plead with them, in the spirit of Christmas, to rent or put their properties up for sale on the open market as soon as possible. If all the empty properties in Britain were occupied the housing crisis would be largely solved.

By now you will have received an invitation to the annual Fulking Village Christmas Party which is being held in the village hall on Friday 8th December from 6 till 8pm. The Social Committee puts a lot of work into this event believing it to be for the benefit of the village as a whole, giving newcomers the chance to meet longer established villagers and the latter to meet up with old friends and acquaintances. Entrance is free, as are the mulled wine, beers, soft drinks and a variety of other wines. All that you are asked to do is arrive with a plate, small or large, of savoury nibbles. Children are very welcome. Bring plenty of cash for the raffle!

Looking in BN5 magazine, I see a 2 page spread of a calendar of activities at the Shepherd & Dog during December which is, as I would expect, very exciting. In particular there is a kids’ party on 23 December from 4 till 6pm and activities for the young ones on several other dates. What a good way for parents to get a bit of peace! Look on the pub’s web-site.

Many thanks to Chris, Jen and Pam for resurrecting Pigeon Post on a quarterly (?) basis.  They follow in the tradition of Nick and Jill, Richard, Aidan, John and Miles; the previous editors. My own opinion is that it is essential to have a medium including a hard copy by which the village can be kept informed of relevant local news.

Lastly I wish you all a very Happy Christmas and many thanks to my good friends on the Social Committee who generously give up their time to make this a really special village to live in. Fulking Fair will be on Sunday 29th July 2018. Please put it in your diary.

Bobservation 37: Migration, Dogs & Maps

Banner with estate agents logosMigration
At the risk of being corrected over omissions I think that over the last seven years, the number of properties sold, for sale or for letting in Fulking has been interesting. A little research shows that the properties involved in migration of any sort were:

Arcadia, Badger Brook, Badgerwood House, Barn Cottage, The Cabbage Patch, 15,21,29 & 41 Clappers Lane, Customary Cottage, Downside, Four Acres, Furzefield, Hillbrook, Hillside, Kent Cottage, Little Down, The Old Bakehouse, Oldwood, The Paddock, Perching Barn, Perching Manor, Pippins, 2 Septima Cottages, 1 & 2 Southview Cottages, 3 Teapot Row, Thatchly,  Timbers, West Dean, West Orchard, Yew Tree Cottage.

That is 32 out of 137 or 23% of properties either sold, let or offered for sale! I find this interesting because in a parish like Fulking there is an old world feeling of permanence of residence which obviously is incorrect. As for Furzefield I think the impossibility of finding a suitable property in Henfield  to move to may scupper any hopes you may have of stopping future Bobservations!
Most recent emigrants are Clive and Kate both of whom  we shall miss. Kate was a very good Chair of the Parish Council at a difficult time. Parking will be easier in the Street!

Fun Dog Show
It has been agreed to hold a fun dog show in the North Town Field as part of the fair on Sunday July 29th 2018. Is there someone who would like to take on the organisation of this lighthearted event with full support from the Social Committee? If you would like to discuss it give me call on 857271 or email bob.pamrowland@btinternet.com

House Map
If you have not already looked at the magnificent Fulking Village web-site I suggest you  take the trouble to look at  ‘About our village’ and scroll down to ‘House Map’. Every residence in the parish has been marked on the map and indeed so have properties adjacent to Fulking. What a lot of amazing information has been put at everyone’s disposal.  Many thanks to Gerald, John and Miles for putting all this together.

Planning Meeting Minutes 25th October 2017

FULKING PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of the Fulking Parish Council Planning Meeting

Held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Wednesday 25th October 2017 at 6.30pm

 

Present: Miles Firth (Chairman), Councillors Mark Hind, Linda Dyos, and Clerk to the Council, Derek Blackhall

3 members of the public were present

Apologies for Absence: Michael Trist, Kate Watson.

Declarations of interest: None

The Chairman announced that Kate Watson had resigned from the Parish Council and was moving out of the area, and there is as a result a vacancy for a Parish Councillor. The Clerk had informed the MS District Council Returning officer, who in turn had provided the necessary details to publicise the vacancy. The notice was to be placed on the website and notice board on 26th October, 2017 notifying the public that in the event of no formal request to have a by-election within 14 working days, the Parish Council may fill the vacancy by co-option.

Prior to the meeting, there had been one request by a member of the public to speak.

The following matters were discussed:-

SDNP/17/05246/HOUS Hillbrook Clappers Lane Fulking BN5 9NH
Demolition of the existing garage and attached lean-to storage outbuilding. Construction of a detached garage building with associated hard and soft landscaping works (Option 1)

SDNP/17/05247/HOUS Hillbrook Clappers Lane Fulking BN5 9NH
Demolition of the existing garage and attached lean-to storage outbuilding. Construction of a detached garage building with associated hard and soft landscaping works (Option 2)

The applicant explained that both applications were to demolish the existing garage, which was in the flood risk area, and build a replacement garage elsewhere on the site using either of the two preferred approaches applied for. Option 1 was on higher ground; and option 2 involved ’90 degree spinning’ the garage away from Clappers Lane on lower ground thereby reducing the visible height whilst using materials which result in a barn-type effect. There had been pre-application discussions. In response to a question, it was noted that whilst the overall height was unknown, it was a single- storey build.

The Parish Council noted:

  • The same design for both options
  • A neighbour has concerns over the potential garage height
  • The issue in both cases appears to be in respect of an SD7 safeguarded view, and so the lower option is preferred; although option 2 is not yet confirmed as a lower topographical height-a lower roof would help
  • The old garage was an eyesore, and it made sense to move away from the flood risk area
  • The new design is good.

In respect of option one, the vote was a unanimous neutral result.

The option 2 result was one neutral and two votes in support of the application.

The meeting closed at 6.51pm

Signed …………………………………………….            Date…………………………………………..

Minute 18/2017 25/10/2017

Co-Opting Criteria/Guidance

FULKING PARISH COUNCIL

wish to fill a vacancy arising from the resignation of Cllr. Kate Watson for the period up to the next Election in the Spring of 2019.

If no By-Election is called, FPC will exercise its power to Co-Opt and applicants may apply using the following criteria/guidance: –

The eligibility criteria to be a Councillor –

  1. Be aged 18 years or over and included in the Electoral Register
  2. A British subject or a Euro national
  3. Resides in the Parish or within 3 miles of its boundary or
  4. Occupies land or property within the Parish or
  5. Has his/her principal place of work within the Parish

and

Prospective candidates are advised to familiarise themselves with the disqualification restrictions under Section 80 of the Local Government Act 1972 relating to Bankruptcy Restrictions Orders and Criminal Convictions carrying a sentence of more than 3 months imprisonment, without the option of a fine.

Please supply a 2-sided A4 application letter to be returned to the Parish Clerk no later than the 30th November 2017 to:

parishclerk@fulking.net
or
Derek Blackhall, 22 Kymer Gardens, Keymer, Hassocks, West Sussex, BN6 8QZ

Signed:………………………..Proper Officer

This post is about team-building to ensure that the Council works cohesively in pursuit of its aims and objectives.

RELEVANT COMPETENCIES

  • Sound knowledge and understanding of local affairs and the local community.
  • Solid interest in local matters.
  • Ability and willingness to represent the Council and their community.
  • Good interpersonal skills.
  • Ability to communicate succinctly and clearly both orally and in writing.
  • Ability and willingness to work closely with other members and to maintain good working relationships with all members and staff.
  • Good reading and analytic skills.
  • Ability and willingness to work with the council’s partners (e.g. voluntary groups, other parish councils, principal authority, charities).
  • Ability and willingness to undertake relevant training.
  • Experience of working or being a member in a local authority or other public body.
  • Basic knowledge of legal issues relating to town and parish councils or local authorities.
  • Good standard of computer literacy.
  • Experience of delivering presentations.
  • Experience in financial control/ budgeting.
  • HR experience.
  • Ability and willingness to attend meetings of the council (or the meetings of other local authorities and local bodies) in the evening and events in the evening and at weekends.
  • Flexible and committed to the Council
  • Enthusiastic.

26th October 2017