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Gilling West Parish Council Meeting –Village Hall - on Thurs. 1^st November 07

Present: Councillors D. Allison, P. Metcalfe, M. Gauntlett, B. Metcalfe, M. Howarth.

District Councillor. W. Heslop, County Councillor M. Heseltine.

The meeting was held in the new John Ross Suite of the village hall and the Chairman, Coun. Brian Metcalfe opened by congratulating everyone concerned in the provision of this excellent new facility for the village.

Minutes: Confirmation of the previous minutes was deferred to the next meeting.

Correspondence:

Decisions on recent planning applications were discussed.

Integrated Passenger Transport: Coun Maureen Howarth referred to recent amendments being made to the no. 29 bus service from Richmond to Darlington. Two changes in bus route have been undertaken by the operator and NYCC, to take into account the upgrade of the A66 to dual carriageway. Coun Howarth questioned the justification for these changes, which involve journeys from Gilling West to Darlington operating via Forcett Lane with no pick-ups, rather than via Gilling Bank where there are properties and a caravan site, which may wish to use the service. Coun Howarth requested clarification of the new timetable, with Dianne Pottage, NYCC Public Transport Officer. Meantime, Ms Pottage promised an explanation from an Area Transport Officer involved in the decision to reroute this service. Presently, no contact from Area Transport has been forthcoming. Co Coun Michael Hesletine agreed to follow this up with County Hall.

GP Out of Hours Monitoring Review. It is 3 years now since this service was first looked at and comments were invited by the Richmondshire Scrutiny Committee on the public perception and experience of the service. Coun Paul Metcalfe commented on a very effective service experience and District Coun William Heslop mentioned that villagers and the wider community would be invited to respond via a survey in the next copy of the Curlew newsletter. 

Swaledale Mountain Rescue Team: To assist their fundraising it was agreed to advertise their lecture programme on the Parish Council notice board.

Damage to Village sign: A letter of apology from Skelton and Gilling Estates referred to recent damage by an estate vehicle, to the village sign. The post, made in oak, is by ‘Mouseman’ Robert Thompson in Kilburn and the Clerk is to request the Estate to make good and reinstate the sign as before.

Yorkshire Rural Community Council: A short presentation is requested to assist the village in undertaking a community led parish plan.

Proposed new footpath - High Street.B6274 :  A site meeting has taken place to discuss the benefits, especially to the residents of Oswin Grove, of such a footpath. Funds are now available to carry out this work. The questions to consider are the effect on nearby residents and the opinion of the Warden of Oswin Grove. The Clerk to report to the Chairman on the outcome of this, though the Parish Council overall, are minded to go ahead with the footpath, including dropped kerbs, from the Angel Pub to the corner of Anteforth Way.

County Fire and Rescue Authority : Co Coun M. Heseltine attended a recent meeting of the authority and took the opportunity to praise and thank the work of the Fire Service during the summer floods in the village.

North Yorkshire Police Neighbourhood Watch: A newsletter introducing Sue Hucknall and her role with the Ringmaster system were discussed.

Best Kept Village Competition 2007: The Rotary Club of Richmond wrote to inform us that we did not win the competition this year, achieving a score of 67.4% though the judges were impressed with the absence of litter in the village. However, they felt it was let down by ‘the condition of some outbuildings and sheds’. It was agreed that Gilling West would enter the competition again in 2008.

Richmondshire Area Committee funding: Small grants are available and Co Coun Heseltine commented that small community projects would be considered. Coun Michael Gauntlet commented that Gilling West roadside entry signs need refurbishing, as does the old milestone beside the telephone box. Coun Heslop noted that seats in the village need refurbishing and Coun B. Metcalfe mentioned that new lettering is needed on the War Memorial. The clerk to urgently obtain a grant  application form.

Local Government in Richmondshire: The Government has recently announced that it is not to establish a single Unitary Authority and assurances have been given that Richmondshire District Council will ensure the delivery of enhanced two tier working for residents in accordance with the wishes of the majority of Parishes. Coun W. Heslop confirmed that is hoped to achieve further improvements in service particularly in relation to value for money and efficiency. Parish engagement events will be organised in the coming months to provide increased opportunities for dialogue with Parishes.

Closure of Post Offices: The impact of closure, the forthcoming closure plan and the consultation process were discussed at length. Coun David Allison has prepared a justification to fight and retain the village post office. He agreed to await the publication of the plan in February 08 and respond accordingly, early within the 6-week consultation and closure process.

Update on July Flooding:

1. Coun B. Metcalfe listed a summary of the flood responses of respective authorities involved. A geology and land layout survey will be arranged and there are still concerns regarding the A66 in relation to the amount of ‘black top’ surface and the corrective benefits of balancing ponds.

2. North Yorkshire Highways department have met immediate priorities in the village and this work is appreciated and welcomed. Coun Howarth hoped that the  Highways department might clarify their future responsibilities in relation to drain and gully clearing and draw up a regular, visible, ongoing maintenance plan, capable of being monitored by the village. Co. Coun Heseltine suggested a possible future framework might be drawn up Countywide as a flood reaction and defence scheme and offered to make representation for this to the Executive Member for the Environment, at County Council.

3. Road closure signs during flooding - still to be discussed with NYCC.

4. Environment Agency: Coun D. Allison has provided all information requested by them and confirmed a schedule of maintenance. An Environment Agency routine maintenance gang is presently working on beck clearance and the village is being fully surveyed. Monitoring is ongoing and a two way process of improvements is planned. The earth moving team will be working in conjunction with North Yorkshire Highways Agency in November.

5. Farmers: Coun P. Metcalfe reported that he had had extensive discussions with farmers in the village and the parish council fully recognised and appreciated the efforts and hard work already undertaken in flood response, coordinated by farmers and landowners. Certain other vegetation works and tree removal remained to be completed. Coun M. Howarth stated that farmer Paul Bradley had carried out considerable field drain and gully clearance. It is hoped that with the financial support of Skelton and Gilling Estates, a large new drain will be installed across the cricket field, passing through other landowner’s fields, in order to reduce the impact of flooding in the High Street. Quotes are presently being sought for this work, which will represent a major capital investment by the Estate. The new main drain is planned to be four times the dimensions of the previous one.
6. Two large stone drain covers in Forcett Lane will be replaced with mesh covers to aid drainage and trenches will be cut across the verges at these points, so as not to obstruct or hamper the flow of water into the drains.
7. New Stile and groundwork’s/ Millennium Field/ Beckside: Paul Bradley in conjunction with NYCC Footpaths Authority have made good the offending stile and river bank which had been washed away along the beck side. The substantial new stile and ground works are much appreciated on this popular footpath. The farmer is to be reimbursed for his efforts and the costs borne by NYCC.
8. Gavin  White Funding: £4000 has been applied for to support the village in its efforts to offset the floods. A flood defence door may soon be made available.

The new Code of Conduct- May 2007 : Members were made aware of the new code, which it was agreed had now been adopted. However, more clarification of certain wording and procedures meant a short delay in returning forms, but in principle, the parish council is already operating under the strict obligations of the code.

Any Other Business:

Coun M. Howarth requested that, in time, the wild bush roses be replaced in the Millennium Field with attractive shrubs instead. This requires a major investment of both time and effort by the governing committee. Coun P. Metcalfe offered help in this and Coun D. Allison, the Millennium Green Chairman, agreed that, when weather and conditions were appropriate, this unpleasant and difficult task would be carried out. Some bushes have already been heavily pruned. Limited funding is available to purchase replacement shrubs.

A66 Three Lane Section interchange: Coun D. Allison expressed concern over bollards placed as an impediment within the slip road on joining the A66 westbound from Hartforth. He is to discuss the rationale for this with the Highways Agency.

20 mph speed limit in Anteforth Way: A request from a resident had been made to Co Coun M. Hesltine for speed restriction of this road to be considered. It was resolved that the clerk investigates the feasibility of this with NYCC Highways Authority.

The meeting concluded at 10.20pm and the next meeting will take place in January 2008.