Category Archives: Public Footpath

2011 01 13 PC Minutes

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Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Fulking Parish Council held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Thursday 13 January 2011 at 8.00pm

Present: Chairman Mr Tony Brooks, Councillors Mr Richard Corner, Ms Jo Hudek and Clerk to the Council Mrs Paula Hazard.

Apologies for Absence: Vice Chairman Mrs Pamela Rowland, Councillor Mrs Jennifer Parmar

Declarations of Interest by Members (if any) are shown against the relevant items in the minutes.

County Council update — County Councillor Peter Griffiths addressed the meeting. He talked about Highways covering Fulking’s Local Winter Management Plan and local flooding problems. He gave an update on the implications of the reduced budget for West Sussex. He was asked if there was something that could be done about a kissing gate that had been very badly damaged by a vehicle. This was outside 45 Clappers Lane. He agreed to report this to the Head of the Rights of Way team.

Minutes — The minutes of the meeting held on 14 October 2010, as previously circulated, were approved, accepted and signed by the Chairman.

Highways: Flooding problem by the Shepherd and Dog stream culvert — The PC had agreed at the previous PC meeting to monitor how badly this part of the road flooded in the winter. As suspected, there was still a flooding problem caused by water flowing down the hill on to the northern side of the road. The drain still blocked easily during heavy rain. The PC planned to request that WSCC clear the drain more frequently and press again for a more permanent solution such as a gully.

Flooding by The Sands in Clappers Lane — The stream was running over the road again by The Sands. This was proving lethal when the temperature dropped and the water iced over. WSCC had been notified that the pipe needed to be unblocked. Rubbish that had been dumped in the ditch was also aggravating the problem. This had been reported as fly tipping to Mid Sussex District Council in early November but it had still not been removed.

Flooding by the junction of Clappers Lane and Holmbush Lane — This has been reported to WSCC with photographs to illustrate the issue particularly the problem that one of the ditches does not get cleared.

Flooding by Four Acres on Poynings Road — This flooded badly with the recent heavy rain. It had been reported to WSCC stressing that the flooding on a blind bend caused a danger to traffic. The drain needed to be blasted through.

The Chairman said that he would compile a summary of all the recurring flooding problems in the area and submit this to WSCC Highways and enlist the support of CC Peter Griffiths.

North Town Field Play Area Surface — The PC s grant application to Viridor had been successful. 5000 had been awarded to the cost of the new play surface. The new wetpour surface to replace the old barkpit had been put in. The surrounding area needed to be turfed which was planned to be done soon.

Public Liability Insurance — NTF Trust had advised that the new lease contract had been completed and it would now be circulated to the PC for signature.

Rights of Way: Diverted Footpath 4dF — There was no further news from the Rights of Way Way Committee.

Reopening of Bridleway 11F — There was no further news from West Sussex Rights of Way.

Permissive Path near Paythorne Farm — It was planned that this path would be opened by 31 January.

Bridleway 5/3F — This path runs alongside West Dean to Cabbage Patch and suffers from very poor drainage. It was discussed whether this problem could be addressed. Previously the South Downs Joint Committee had carried out some work to improve the drainage. However only a small part of the path had been worked on. The Chairman said that he would contact the South Downs Joint Committee to see if they improve drainage on the rest of the path.

Local Winter Management Plan: WSCC had approved the arrangement for the local farmer, David Ellin, to clear snow from local lanes. To support this, WSCC had lent the farm a snow plough attachment which required some modification for it to work.

The PC had looked into ordering bulk bags of salt but had decided to go for a permanent solution so five grit bins had been purchased. Three of these had been installed in Clappers Lane and two in The Street. All the bins had been filled by WSCC with a salt mix. Each bin has a nominated keyholder. It was agreed that details about the grit bins should be posted to the village website.

Village Plan: A draft Village Action Plan had been circulated to all households in December. Following a consultation period due to end on 15 January, a revised draft would be presented to the village at a meeting on 10 February.

Ram House: The National Trust had carried out the repair work to the Ram House. This involved removing branches from the nearby trees which were damaging the roof tiles and fitting the replacement roof tiles. The work was carried out at no cost to the PC.

Lower Kents: The PC had written to MSDC Development Control at the end of October stressing local concerns about the sheer length of time it was taking for the landowner to submit a retrospective planning application. The PC had proposed that a time limit be set by which plans must be submitted with the alternative being that the half finished unapproved building be taken down. No response had been received. It was decided that the PC should contact Susanna Kemp (District Councillor) about this matter as well as writing a follow up letter to Development Control.

Powered Microlights: The South Downs National Park Authority (SDNPA) had not responded about their view on policy on powered microlights/hang gliders/paragliders etc. in the National Park area. It was agreed that the Chairman and Councillor Corner would raise this issue at the upcoming SDNPA meeting.

Offshore Wind Farm: A planning application was expected to be submitted to the Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) on 2 January 2012. The IPC has 28 days from the day after submission to review the application and decide whether or not to accept it. If the application was accepted, IPC will advise the timescales when interested parties can register to make a representation .

Information had been received which indicated that it was likely that the cables would be laid underground at Truleigh Hill. This would require very large trenches to be dug over the Downs. The PC planned to contact the South Downs National Park Authority to assess their view.

Electricity Power Cuts: An article had been put in November Pigeon Post to make residents aware that in order to get power cuts fixed, it was necessary for residents to phone EDF. There had been a long power cut on Christmas eve for part of village which had proved again that action was only taken by EDF if enough people rung them. A reminder would be put in PP again as some residents said that they still didn’t know that they had to ring EDF. The larger issue of improving the electricity service to the village was discussed and it was agreed that this issue should be added to the Village Plan.

Market Garden Site: MSDC had made little progress with setting up a new site due to widespread objections to any proposed new sites that had been identified. At the last PC meeting the query was raised as to whether a site in another District Council area within in West Sussex could be offered. The Clerk had discussed this issue with District Councillor Susanna Kemp who had confirmed that the family could be offered a site in another District Council within West Sussex. It was noted that the family had previously lived in Horsham and before that in Adur District Council. The PC had now raised this issue at a senior level by writing to Claire Tester, Head of Planning.

Private Airstrip: The PC had been made aware that a local resident had written to the Directorate of Airspace Policy about a private airstrip that has been set up at Folly Farm. The matter was discussed in terms of the nuisance caused to local residents by the very frequent use of the airstrip.

Parish Council Elections: It was announced that the current Parish Council was coming to the end of its four year term at the beginning of May. The public was advised that any prospective candidates should get in touch with the current Parish Councillors to find out more details. The Clerk to put an article about this in the next edition of Pigeon Post.

Financial Matters: The Chairman signed off the interim audit, cheque list and cheque stubs. The precept for 2011/12 had been set at 6144, an increase of 2.7%.

AOB: The Chairman advised that the PC had successfully applied for a grant from West Sussex County Council to repair the fingerpost at the junction of The Street and Clappers Lane. The repair work was planned to be carried out soon.

Councillor Corner talked about problem with rats getting close to or actually into houses. He advised the meeting that Mid Sussex District Councill offered a free service to treat rat problems. It was agreed that Councillor Hudek would put an article in Pigeon Post about things that can be done to deter rats from residences.

The Chairman said that he had been asked if PC meetings could start half an hour earlier at 7.30. The PC agreed that this would not be a problem and the next meeting will start at 7.30.

The meeting was then opened up for local residents to raise any issues.

There was a discussion about the selection and prominence of articles in Pigeon Post. Also the issue of keeping the village website up to date was raised. The point was made that both these village resources relied solely on volunteers who did a good job and fitted this work around their own jobs.

The issue of the purchase by Preston Nomads of the ground that the garages are on was raised. The process was still ongoing.

The issue of whether the village needed an emergency contact was raised. This followed on from part of the village having no electricity for over 18 hours and whether there was a need for coordination of support services. Apparently there had been an emergency contact in the past. It was agreed that this would be added to the Village Action Plan.

Date of Next Meeting: 14 April 2011.

The meeting closed at 9.45

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2010 07 08 PC Minutes

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Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Fulking Parish Council held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Thursday 8 July 2010 at 8.00pm

Present: Chairman Mr Tony Brook, Vice Chairman Mrs Pamela Rowland, Councillors Mr Richard Corner, Ms Jo Hudek, Mrs Jennifer Parmar and Clerk to the Council Mrs Paula Hazard.

Apologies for Absence: None

Declarations of Interest by Members (if any) are shown against the relevant items in the minutes.

Minutes — The minutes of the meeting held on 8 April 2010, as previously circulated, were approved, accepted and signed by the Chairman.

The Chairman introduced Jo Hudek who had been co-opted to the Parish Council at an Extraordinary Parish Council meeting held on 1 July, 2010. This was following the resignation of Jenny Vaughan at the Annual Parish Meeting.

Highways: Non-skid surface Clappers Lane — The recent re-surfacing work of Clappers Lane had included adjusting the gradient of the northern entrance. This had meant that the problem of wheel-spin had been cured. Therefore there was no longer such a pressing need for a non-skid surface.

Flooding problem by the Shepherd and Dog stream culvert — The PC had sent County Councillor Peter Griffith a copy of the correspondence between the PC and WSCC Highways concerning the PC’s request for a more permanent solution. Clerk to follow up with Peter Griffiths.

Tree problem at Stammers Hill — Jamie Thompson, a local Tree Surgeon, had taken down the potentially dangerous sycamore tree that had been identified earlier on in the year. He had saved the village a lot of money by asking that his fee be donated to the Playground Appeal. The PC expressed their thanks to him and his team.

North Town: New Play Equipment — The new play equipment had been installed and the project had now been completed. The Chairman expressed his thanks to everyone involved with the project, particularly Councillor Pam Rowland. Thanks were also given to everyone that donated to the Playground Appeal.

Play Area Surface — The merits of four costed options were debated. The options ranged from upgrading the current barkpit to three other types of surface. It was agreed that the best option would be to replace the current surface with the wet pour surface. This would require a grant. Councillor Hudek to investigate the possibility of obtaining a grant from Viridor. If it was not possible to obtain a grant then the current bark surface would need to be topped up and maintained.

Mowing and Maintenance of field — The field was being maintained by a new person, Mark Stepney, who was doing an excellent job.

Public Liability Insurance — No further update from the NTF Trust.

Diverted Footpath 4dF: There was no further news from the Rights of Way Committee.

Reopening of Bridleway 11F: There was no further news from West Sussex Rights of Way.

Local provision of grit: Jenny Vaughan had kindly donated the money for the village to buy a grit bin for the Clappers Lane/The Street junction. The grit bin had been ordered and grit delivered. The Chairman was working on agreeing a precise location with householders.

Village Plan: Action in Rural Sussex (AirS) had given a talk about the Village Action Plan process at the Annual Parish Meeting. The last two issues of Pigeon Post contained articles requesting volunteers to come forward to join the Village Action Plan team. Several villagers had expressed an interest in joining the team. The Chairman reiterated the request for volunteers at the meeting. AirS had recommended that ideally two members of the PC would be represented on the Village Action Plan team. It was agreed that the two members would be Tony Brooks and Jo Hudek. The next step was for a kick-off Village Plan team meeting to be arranged.

Ram House: The PC had formally written to CC Peter Griffiths, as requested at the previous PC meeting. The letter detailed the need for the roof repair and asked whether a grant would be possible. The PC had also written to the National Trust asking if they would consider taking over ownership. This was on the basis that the National Trust would have the resources to look after this historical structure for future generations. Clerk to follow up.

Lower Kents: The Chairman had spoken to the landowner who had given an assurance that a planning application would be submitted by the end of July. The Clerk had also spoken to MSDC Development Control asking them to chase up the landowner.

Henfield Medical Centre Link: The PC had decided to donate 100 to the Henfield Medical Centre Link. The service provides transport to hospital, dental and medical centre appointments Centre for people in the Henfield area, including Fulking, who do not have other transport available to them. A significant number of clients are Fulking residents. Users of this service pay a small fee but there is a small shortfall. The PC had agreed that they hoped to make this an annual donation.

Motorbikes on South Downs: Motorbikes had been reported riding on the top of the Downs and across Fulking Escarpment. The problem had been reported to the South Downs Joint Downs Committee who advised that they had set up an initiative called Sussex Pathwatch to address this problem. People could either ring the non-emergency Police telephone number quoting Sussex Pathwatch or report it via the on-line Sussex Pathwatch website. In order to give weight to the problem and support the police in prioritising it, they recommended that as many people as possible registered incidents using this method. The problem was also reported to the National Trust who also advised that more people needed to report the problem in order for the police to give it sufficient priority. Councillor Parmar to alert Farm Manager of issue which could affect the herd of cows on the Escarpment.

Powered Microlights: The issue of the growing number of powered microlights flying over Fulking was discussed. The South Downs Joint Committee had advised that they were not aware of any specific policy on this. Chairman to speak to Mid Sussex District Council about its policy concerning the private use of runways.

Financial Matters: The Chairman and Vice Chairman signed off the interim audit, cheque list and Matters cheque stubs. The Annual Accounts for 2009/2010 had been signed off by the PC and Responsible Financial Officer. The internal audit was being carried out.

AOB: The Chairman and Councillor Corner paid tribute to Gina Field who had sadly died recently. They both spoke of her service and commitment to the village in her role as District Councillor.

Mr Goodridge had raised a concern before the meeting about dog fouling and dogs being out of control along The Backway and asked whether signs could be installed there to address these issues. The Chairman felt that as this was private land it was a private matter that needed to be dealt with by the parties involved and did not fall under the remit of the PC. It was also noted that there was a desire to keep signs in the village to a minimum. However, the PC did understand the general issues raised and agreed to post an article in the Pigeon Post.

The meeting was opened up for local residents to raise any issues.

The location of the sound stage in Small Acres during Fulking Fair was raised as a concern because it had caused a noise nuisance to residents who lived directly next to the stage last year. The Chairman said that he would see if it could be sited in a different position but he thought that the location could be constrained by the wiring.

It was queried as to why the issue of parking in Clappers Lane was not on the Agenda. The Chairman explained that as the purchase of the garages by Preston Nomads was still not complete, it was not possible to progress further with the creation and allocation of parking spaces for residents of Clappers Lane. It was discussed that other solutions to the parking problem had been explored. This had included the involvement of Peter Griffiths, particularly looking at using the banked area on the west side of Clappers Lane which had been viewed as prohibitively expensive.

The issue of external lighting at the Market Garden site was raised. The PC reiterated that they can pursue this as soon as they are provided with photographic evidence by residents which they can then supply to MSDC Development Control

Date of Next Meeting: 14 October.

The meeting closed at 8.55

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2010 04 08 PC Minutes

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Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Fulking Parish Council held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Thursday 8 April 2010 at 8.00pm

Present: Chairman Mrs Jenny Vaughan, Vice Chairman Mr Tony Brooks, Councillors Mr Richard Corner, Mrs Jennifer Parmar, Mrs Pamela Rowland and Clerk to the Council Mrs Paula Hazard.

Apologies for Absence: None

Declarations of Interest by Members (if any) are shown against the relevant items in the minutes.

Minutes — The minutes of the meeting held on 14 January 2010, as previously circulated, were approved, accepted and signed by the Chairman.

County Council Update — County Councillor Peter Griffiths gave an update to the meeting on Highways, Schools and the National Park. The issue of whether the Planning Authority will lie with the District Council or the National Parks Authority had not been resolved yet. In response to Councillor Brooks query about returning to the method of the County Council paying local farmers to clear the snow, he advised the PC to write to Derek Whittington who is Cabinet Member for Strategic Planning and Transport. The PC had already requested a return to this method to the recent WSCC snow summit by writing to WSCC and SALC. Clerk to write to Derek Whittington reiterating this view.

Highways: Flooding problem near The Sands the stream had been cleared out and water was flowing through the pipes.

There was no further information about the request for a non-skid surface at the northern entrance to Clappers Lane. County Councillor Peter Griffiths said that he was chasing up this issue.

Flooding problem by the Shepherd and Dog stream culvert: The owner of the Shepherd and Dog, Geoff Moseley, had had a meeting with WSCC Highways and it was understood that the outcome was that he was going to fit a larger overflow pipe. He expressed at the meeting that there was a problem with clearing the gulley and felt that not enough maintenance had been carried out by Highways in the past. It was agreed that the PC should send CC Peter Griffiths the correspondence between the PC and Highways about this issue so that he could look into the matter.

Tree problem at Stammers Hill: A tree surgeon who had carried out previous work in the North Town Field had identified a potentially dangerous sycamore tree. The local tree warden, Barry Leppard, also agreed there was a problem and had reported this to WSCC Highways. The Arboriculturalist Southern Area WSCC had inspected the tree in March and had concluded that it was not a health and safety risk. He also stated that the tree was not on Highways land. An independent tree surgeon was asked to quote for the required work as the PC would have to pay the bill. The quote was around 700 which was not an immediately manageable sum. As the WSCC Inspector had judged it not to be of any immediate danger, the PC had decided to monitor the situation and ask for another assessment by WSCC at the end of the summer. It was agreed that the PC should ask for the opinion of another tree surgeon as soon as possible.

North Town Field: Cost of Maintaining Play Area — It was noted that the costs of maintaining the Field play area were escalating and were becoming beyond the budget of the PC. The costs included maintenance of the play equipment, tree work around the playground and a replacement surface for the barkpit. A quote for wetpour rubber had been received of 8500. Geoff Moseley was able to recommend a company that could provide a better value rubber surface that would comply with Health and Safety Guidelines as he had experience in this area.

New Play Equipment — The PC had submitted an application for a grant from WSCC County Local Committee who would be meeting on 27 April. Fund raising was under way in the village. An appeal flyer had been sent to every household in the village. The PC had also approached local businesses and applied for a grant from West Sussex Community Chest (run by Hall and Woodhouse) with a decision due before July.

Play Area Surface — quotes were being obtained for replacing the barkpit as a surface. The PC has looked at an ecomulch and wetpour rubber surface. It would be necessary to apply for a further grant to cover these costs.

Mowing and Maintenance of field — The first mow of the year had been done. Some tree work had also been carried out.

Public Liability Insurance: No further update from the NTF Trust.

Fly-Tipping at the Bostal: There was no further update about the ownership of the entrance area.

Phone Box: The Clerk had written to BT and they had confirmed that they did not currently have any plans to remove the telephone service.

Diverted Footpath 4dF: There was no further news from the Rights of Way Committee.

Reopening of Bridleway 11F: There was no further news from West Sussex Rights of Way.

Local provision of grit: The PC discussed the problem of where to locate grit bins. The eastern bank of Clappers Lane near The Street junction had been looked at but it was agreed that it would mean the grit bin would be placed too high and be difficult to access. Other suggestions were by the bus stop. Precise locations for the bins remain to be decided.

Village Plan: There had been a good response to Councillor Brooks’s discussion document in the Pigeon Post. All the replies would be kept and used to formulate the Village Action Plan. A talk would be given at the APM by a representative from Action in Rural Sussex about the process. The next stage would be to form a committee of representatives from the village to produce the Village Action Plan.

Market Garden Site: The PC had not been able to write to MSDC Enforcement as no evidence had been forthcoming that there was another family living on the site.

Ram House: The PC had asked the National Trust to carry out the repairs to the roof of the Ram House. However they had responded that they did not own it and therefore did not bear any responsibility for it. It appeared that this was borne out by historical documents and that ownership did rest with the Parish Council. The previous PC had asked the National Trust to take over ownership of the Ram House but they had not responded. As it is a historical structure the PC agreed that ownership of the Ram House by the National Trust fell within their remit. It was agreed that the PC should write to the National Trust again asking that they take over ownership.

The fountain had been repaired in 1995 with the aid of grants from West Sussex County Council, Mid Sussex District Council and Sussex Rural Community Council. The Chairman asked CC Peter Griffiths if there was a possibility of grant aid for the Ram House.. He advised that the PC should put this request in writing explaining the problems caused by the damaged roof.

Financial Matters: The Chairman and Vice Chairman signed off the interim audit, cheque list and cheque stubs.

AOB: Councillor Brooks updated the meeting about the goal of improving broadband access with a fibre optic system. Whereas previously it was envisaged that this would cause huge disruption with road digging and replacing the telegraph poles, it appeared that there were now new methods of installing fibre optic cables involving the use of existing sewer networks which would greatly reduce disruption.

The meeting was opened up for local residents to raise any issues.

The issue of affordable housing was raised. It was discussed that Mid Sussex District Council had in the past identified the need for 4 houses but this had not been followed up in detail and there were no concrete plans.

Date of Next Meeting: 8 July 2010, 14 October. APM 13 May.

The meeting closed at 8.50.

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2010 01 14 PC Minutes

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Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Fulking Parish Council held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Thursday 14 January 2010 at 8.00pm

Present: Chairman Mrs Jenny Vaughan, Vice Chairman Mr Tony Brooks, Councillors Mr Richard Corner, Mrs Jennifer Parmar, Mrs Pamela Rowland and Clerk to the Council Mrs Paula Hazard.

Apologies for Absence: None

Declarations of Interest by Members (if any) are shown against the relevant items in the minutes.

Minutes — The minutes of the meeting held on 8 October 2010, as previously circulated, were approved, accepted and signed by the Chairman.

Highways: Various problems in Clappers Lane had been reported. The large potholes had been fixed. However there was still a flooding problem near The Sands. Low overhanging trees had been reported and removed.

There was no further information about the request for a non-skid surface at the northern entrance to Clappers Lane.

WSCC Highways had responded to the report about the flooding on Poynings Road at Four Acres by cleaning out the gully. The situation there had improved but Highways also proposed to investigate why surface water is draining away slower than it should be.

With regards to the flooding problem by the Shepherd and Dog stream culvert, WSCC Highways had reported that they have previously removed silt from gullies on the north side of bend and jetted the pipe connection. However, the serious flooding problem remains. Highways believed that the northern ditch needed digging out and proposed to investigate ownership. However as the flooding problem occurs every year, the PC thought that a more permanent solution was needed and had written to WSCC explaining why they believed that the ditch was owned by WSCC and proposed a permanent solution by building a wide brick and concrete gully on the northern road side. The proposed solution was also an improvement on the current underground pipe as it had the advantage that the blockage could be easily identified and easily cleared. A letter from WSCC responding to this request had just been received and the Chairman read it out. Highways had rejected the request. It was agreed that the PC should write again to argue the case for the permanent solution.

Preston Nomads: Linda Dyos had canvassed local opinion about the proposed parking spaces. There had not been a huge response and some people expressed concerns about the distance and security. Currently only one person was definitely interested in taking up the parking spaces.

The garages were no longer owned by the Downlands Housing Association but were now owned by a new Housing Association called Affinity. The change had resulted in the area needing to be surveyed again which meant that PNCC could not go ahead with their plans until this was done. Six parking places were still definitely allocated on their plans.

North Town Field: Mowing and Maintenance — The PC had found someone (David Marshall) who could do the maintenance of the play area equipment and could also do the mowing of the field. Clerk to write to David Marshall to confirm contract for this year.

Work was required on the steps to the climbing frame in the playground. Foster Playscapes had quoted 101 (+ VAT) to do this work. Councillor Brooks suggested that it would be worth looking at doing this repair with David Marshall. A meeting will be arranged so that he can quote for this work

New Play Equipment — The PC had looked at the suppliers for the play equipment for Buckingham Park, however it was very expensive. Following further discussions with Hollie Trist, a piece of equipment had been identified which suited a wide range of ages. The cost was roughly about 3000 but there were no extra costs for the surface as it could stand on grass and did not require a special surface. The PC is waiting for a precise quotation.

New Play Surface — Cut-up tyres will be used in future for topping up the bark pit instead of bark as although the tyre surface was dearer it was believed that it lasted a great deal longer.

Public Liability Insurance — The NTF Trust had found a lawyer who was working on this.

Councillor Rowland had received a quote of 100 from Francis Mnich for tree work that needed to be done. It was agreed that this work should proceed as soon as possible. Councillor Rowland to arrange.

Fly-Tipping at the Bostal: There was no further update about the ownership of the entrance area believed to be owned by the National Trust

Phone Box: The Clerk had looked further into the issue of the removal of the phone service and had contacted OFCOM. They had advised that as there is only one phone box in the village, BT could not remove the phone service without applying to the Local Planning Authority and consulting with the local residents. There may be a good case for retaining it where there is a poor mobile phone signal or overhead cables are vulnerable. MSDC had advised that they do not currently have an application by BT to remove the service. The invitation to buy the box implied that the phone service would be removed imminently. However it appeared that currently it would only be removed if the PC were to buy the box, as this was a condition imposed by BT. It was agreed that the Clerk should write a formal letter to confirm that BT does not currently have any plans to remove the phone service.

Diverted Footpath 4dF: There was no further news from the Rights of Way Committee.

Reopening of Bridleway 11F: The Joint Committee had been originally hopeful that the Bridleway landowner would open up the bridleway or apply for a diversion order. However the landowner had now decided to continue holding out against the reopening of the bridleway. Therefore the case had now been passed to West Sussex Rights of Way as an enforcement issue.

Development opposite 45 Clappers Lane (Lower Kents): The PC had not received a retrospective planning application for this work. No at land further development activity had been seen at the site.

South Downs National Park Authority: The election for parish members for the West Sussex area was due to be held at the end of January. Thirteen members had been nominated and each Parish Council could vote for two members. The PC agreed to vote for Mark Lee from Poynings and Rodney Jackson from Hurstpierpoint

Local provision of grit: In the past Fulking used to have two grit bins. One in the Street outside Fulking Cottage and the other in Clappers Lane near Sunnyacres. Because of the recent severe snow the PC had investigated the possibility of the village having grit bins again. WSCC do not pay for grit bins so the PC would have to buy and maintain them. However, WSCC would fill the bins with rock salt free of charge provided it was used on the public highway. WSCC have said they will contact the PC about range and cost of grit bins.

The PC agreed that it would be a good idea to have two grit bins and discussed where they could be located. It was agreed that it would be a good idea to have one located on the junction of The Street and Clappers Lane. However, the bank outside Fulking Cottage, where it was previously located, may not be possible as this is now privately owned. It was agreed that a good location would be on the eastern bank of Clappers Lane as near to the junction with The Street as possible. It would be necessary to find out where the boundary of Yew Cottage was in relation to this bank. It was agreed that the other grit bin should be located further down in Clappers Lane with the precise location to be discussed further.

The general issue of clearing the snow from the roads was discussed. In the past the County Council had paid local farmers to clear the snow. It was agreed that it would be worthwhile exploring this issue further to see if it was possible to reinstate this arrangement.

Village Plan: It was planned that the next Pigeon Post would contain a questionnaire regarding the village plan and what people would like to see happening in the future in the village. If there were enough responses, a speaker from Action in Rural Sussex would be invited to speak at one of the next meetings.

Financial Matters: The Chairman and Vice Chairman signed off the interim audit, cheque list and cheque stubs.

AOB: County Council Update — The Chairman read out a report from County Councillor Peter Griffiths who was unable to attend due to the severe weather. The report covered the impact of the recent heavy snow on the County Council’s stock of grit and Highway’s ability to be able to continue gritting of the roads.

Councillor Brooks raised the subject of a current planning application to install a mobile telephone mast in Bramlands Lane. It was agreed that the PC should write to Horsham District Council to request that the location be changed to north of the Henfield Road.

The meeting was opened up for local residents to raise any issues.

The PC was given an update about the dog at the Market Garden site. The Dog Warden had visited but as the dog was in a kennel it could not be impounded.

The issue of another family living on the Market Garden site was raised. It was agreed that MSDC Enforcement should be advised of this matter as temporary planning permission had only been given for one family to live on the site.

Date of Next Meeting: 8 April 2010, 8 July 2010.

The meeting closed at 9.

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2009 10 08 PC Minutes

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Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of Fulking Parish Council held in the Village Hall, Fulking on Thursday 8 October 2009 at 8.00pm

Present: Chairman Mrs Jenny Vaughan, Vice Chairman Mr Tony Brooks, Councillors Mr Richard Corner, Mrs Jennifer Parmar, Mrs Pamela Rowland and Clerk to the Council Mrs Paula Hazard.

Apologies for Absence: None

Declarations of Interest by Members (if any) are shown against the relevant items in the minutes.

Minutes — The minutes of the meeting held on 9 July 2009, as previously circulated, were approved, accepted and signed by the Chairman.

Highways: An update on the status on outstanding issues previously reported to WSCC Highways was given. These were:-

Blocked stream pipe near The Sands – Works completed.

Blocked gullies at Old Wood/Holmbush Lane junction Works completed.

There was no further information about the request for a non-skid surface at the northern entrance to Clappers Lane.

The recurring flooding problems at the Shepherd and Dog stream culvert and at the bend opposite Four Acres had been reported to WSCC Highways.

The street light at Stammers Hill had often been on during the day due to overhanging branches. This had been reported to EDF but they had advised that they were no longer responsible for street lighting maintenance. Therefore tree work would need to be arranged. It was agreed to find out when NTF have any tree work planned and try to do all this work at the same time to save on costs.

Preston Nomads: The PC had received a response to their letter about speeding and the large size of coaches being used. The letter from PNCC was read out which Cricket Club acknowledged these concerns and agreed to advise drivers to adhere to the speed limit. The club also said it would also raise the issue of large coaches but thought that resolving this may be constrained by economic factors.

PNCC had announced that they were planning to provide six parking spaces for residents of Clappers Lane. Councillor Brooks explained the details of the proposed plans which were still under negotiation and were seen as providing a solution to the parking problem there. It was discussed how it was envisaged that the parking spaces would be charged for but the exact details remained to be finalised. The PC took questions from the floor and Councillor Brooks said that it was important to gauge the number of residents interested in using the parking spaces. Linda Dyos offered to canvass local opinion.

North Town Field: Ongoing maintenance The possibility of being given help by the Hurstpierpoint maintenance team had been explored but it transpired that they were overstretched. Therefore it was still hoped that somebody could be found to do this work at a reasonable cost. A working party took place in September to clear the sprayed nettles, brambles and to carry out general gardening and tidying work.

Permanent play surface and play equipment: Chairman Jenny Vaughan and Councillor Pam Rowland had met with Hollie Trist and Anna and Lily Frost to discuss the type of play equipment that their age group would like. The equipment that they are interested in can be found at Buckingham Park and the Clerk will contact Adur District Council to find out who the suppliers are and the issue will be researched further. A new type of surface to replace the barkpit will also be looked into. It was suggested that it would be worth contacting Slaugham Parish Council as they had recently had a new play surface installed. It had become clear from discussions that fund raising would be necessary as the cost would be quite substantial.

Mowing: The mowing had now been carried out on a more regular basis by Danny Flynn. He had also sprayed the nettles around the edges of the field in time for the working party to clear the nettles.

Public Liability Insurance: The NTF Trust were now looking at this and were trying to find a property solicitor who could give both bodies legal advice about the insurance position.

Fly-Tipping at the Bostal: The farm manager had established that the land at the entrance area to the Bostal was not part of the private farm land and would now be speaking to the National Trust about ownership of the land.

Phone Box: BT planned to remove the telephone connection unless the village was prepared to pay 300 per annum to keep it going. The Parish Council could buy the phone box itself for the nominal sum of 1 but that would mean that the telephone connection would be removed with no possibility of reinstatement and the PC would be responsible for maintaining and insuring it. The PC canvassed opinion as to whether the PC should fund the annual telephone costs and how this could be achieved. This was in light of the fact that mobile phone coverage is poor in parts of the village and the village is often subject to power cuts. There was support from the meeting but subject to the view that the village did not think they should fund it. County Councillor Peter Griffiths recommended that the PC contact Action in Rural Sussex to see if they knew of any funding initiatives.

Diverted Footpath 4dF: It had been brought to the PC’s attention that footpath 4dF had been diverted. It was reported to WSCC Rights of Way and they were now handling the situation with the owner of the land. WSCC had advised the PC that there was an outstanding diversion application in Fulking but said that they could not confirm whether it related to this footpath until the application came up before the Rights of Way Committee at which time the PC would be consulted.

Reopening of Bridleway 11F: The PC had been asked if it could help with getting this bridleway reopened as it had been blocked for some time. The PC had contacted WSCC Rights of Way and the South Downs Joint Committee. SDJC had now formally advised the landowner that he had two options. These were to either allow SDJC to install 2 hunt gates and appropriate way marking on the line of the legal right of way or to apply to WSCC Rights of Way for a diversion order.

Development at land opposite 45 Clappers Lane (Lower Kents): The PC had been in touch with MSDC Enforcement Officer John Arnold about the ongoing and obvious development at this site. The latest letter from John was read out which stated that the owner had been invited to either cease the breach of planning control or make a retrospective planning application.

South Downs National Park: Councillor Corner talked about proposals for how the South Downs National Park Authority membership will be organised with a particular focus on representation by Parish Councillors. He had attended a recent meeting which had discussed this. It currently looked like there would be between 6-8 Parish Councillors that would be elected to serve as part of the board to represent the entire Park area. DEFRA had asked for submissions on how representation should be set up at the Parish Council level. Councillor Corner had detailed his submission and sent this to DEFRA. The PC supported this view and it was agreed that the Clerk should write to DEFRA to formally support this view on behalf of the PC.

Overhead Power Lines: Councillor Brooks had been in contact with EDF who had clarified the issue of putting power lines underground. It was very unlikely that power lines on the pylons in Fulking would be buried underground as it would be prohibitively expensive. Councillor Corner said that he had been advised a couple of years ago by the South Downs Joint Committee that it would cost EDF at least 500,000 per kilometre. The power lines in the Cuckmere Valley that had been buried underground were not the lines on pylons but the lines on the wooden poles.

Crimestoppers: Carolyn Randall, Area Manager of Sussex Crimestoppers, gave a talk about its background and operations. She gave examples of cases that had been helped by Crimestoppers and stressed that one of the key features of the service is the guarantee of anonymity for callers.

Financial Matters: The Chairman and Vice Chairman signed off the interim audit, cheque list and cheque stubs.

AOB: County Council Update – County Councillor Peter Griffiths gave an update to the meeting about Highways, the recent County Local Committee meeting and his work on the organisation of special schools in Mid Sussex. He said that he would follow up the PC’s request for a non-skid surface at the northern entrance to Clappers Lane.

District Council Update District Councillor Gina Field talked about her work on the Better Lives initiative with a focus on demonstrating that current licensing legislation is inappropriate for large outdoor events. The Better Lives committee has agreed to go to Full Council with the proposal that they put a request to the Secretary of State for separate legislation. She also talked about Core Strategy, Heritage Planning Policy, and Community Hub initiative.

The meeting was opened up for local residents to raise any issues.

The PC was advised that the dog at the Market Garden site had been continually reported to the Dog Warden who had advised that as there were outstanding fines, they had the powers to impound the dog.

The PC was asked what it was doing about the damage to the tiles of the Pump House which had previously been reported to the PC. Councillor Brooks thought that this should be the responsibility of the National Trust. Clerk to follow up with Charlie Cain of the National Trust

The problem of dog fouling along the footpath alongside 45 Clappers Lane was reported. CC Peter Griffiths said that he would investigate whether it was possible to have an official sign installed to try to address this problem.

Date of Next Meeting: 14 January 2010, 8 April 2010, 8 July 2010.

The meeting closed at 9.30

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