Surlingham

SURLINGHAM PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of the virtual meeting held on Tuesday 15 September 2020 at 7:30p.m

Attending: Councillors John Broom, Richard Atkins, Pat Scowen, Mike Stiff, Phil Reeve. Norfolk county and South Norfolk District Councillor Vic Thomson, Clerk Janet Rogers and one member of the public.

1. Welcome by the Chairman – Due to an issue with Zoom the start of the meeting was delayed and Councillor Atkins took the chair
2. Apologies and approval of absences – Councillors Mack and Swinborne sent their apologies
3. Declarations of Interest – There were none
4. To approve as accurate the minutes of the meeting on 21 July 2020 – Approved
5. Matters arising from those minutes – Item 6 positioning of the SAMs machine – JB responded due to work commitments this was delayed. Item 12 Removal of tree and dyke clearance – JB equipment is currently unavailable. Item 13 Disposal of old Parish Mower – JB to speak to Mr & Mrs Rix.
6. Progress reports Councillors/Clerk – Refund of VAT received £516. Email from Wheatfen Forest School thanking councillors for the reduction in hire fee. Also, thanks from the resident who asked for dog poo signs. Clerk thanked residents from Padmaloka who agreed to tidy the corner of the Covey. The cost of covid-19 PPE and cleaning products to enable the Parish hall to reopen amounted to £261 net. The application for SNDC Facilities Grant £250 to cover this expense was successful and paid on 7 August 2020. Parish hall risk assessment, special conditions of hire and hall booking form sent to all regular hirers these must be signed and returned prior to hire. The academy has a risk assessment specific for the school use of the hall. A copy has been provided to the clerk with a signed hall booking form. Hall Hire – The school will begin to use the hall from Monday 21 September 2020. Also Karate classes and Norfolk Hedge. The Extend gentle exercise class will not be returning and no longer wish their slot to be held for them. Clerk liaised with Sapientia to discuss lunch club use of kitchen – Sapientia agreed if training is completed access can be maintained. Confirmation sent to Lunch Club committee. Treasurer asked for advice re the insurance renewal. Clerk advised her to defer renewal of insurance until the club resumes. Due to issues with the new lawn mower a replacement was sourced from Ben Burgess and is proving satisfactory.

7. To receive reports from the County and District Councillor – Councillor Thomson reminded parishioners of the new covid-19 instruction of the rule of restricting groups of no more than 6. Update on the covid-19 outbreak at Banham Poultry 127 of 735 staff were found to be positive, through track and trace 2000 people were tested. 108 staff have returned to work with the remainder due to return shortly. E scooters are due to arrive in Norwich shortly like the Beryl bikes already being used in the city. Hazardous Waste dates for Ketteringham recycling Centre are 25/26/27 September 2020. Kettering recycling centre will relocate to Harford Bridges in 2021. Both councils will shortly be looking at their budgets for 2021/22. NCC is looking at an overspend of £40milliion and South Norfolk £8million. Clerk offered her thanks to Councillor Thomson on behalf of the 5 businesses in the village who had benefited from the installation of foot operated hand sanitisers.
8. Footpath1 – Councillor Atkins reported that a meeting was arranged with NCC for 17 September to discuss Footpath 1. Councillor Atkins asked for the Parish Council’s support to request NCC to release the details of their investigations, mapping etc to enable the details to be considered by an independent third-party organisation. Agreed
9. Public Question Time not exceeding 15 minutes – None
10. Decisions Approved via email – Councillor Scowen asked that when decisions are necessary outside of the monthly meetings councillors should respond to ‘all’ so individual councillors can share their comments as would happen in the meeting. It was also mentioned that when the clerk requires a quick response, a reply by date is added in the subject field of the email. Agreed
11. Cyclists using footpaths – Councillor Scowen asked what action the council could take to deter cyclists using the footpaths around the RSPB reserve. Councillor Atkins to check if signage is in place and report back.
12. Planning – 2020/1560 Manor House, Bramerton Road, Surlingham, NR14 7DE.
    Proposal: Erection of entrance gates/boundary wall to existing access. Councillors agreed to Object to the new plans. Having previously supported the original application for wooden gates and hedging to 1.2mtrs. Councillors agreed that the 1.825 brick wall was too high and would be neither in keeping with the rural environment or improve the street view. Agreed.
13. Finance – a) Projected September Quarterly Statement – Agreed. b) Small Business Grant £10k. Discuss managing funds. The parish council had covered running costs of £2k for the hall this can be repaid from the grant and the balance moved to the reserve account making a total of £15k to use as a contingency fund. Agreed c) Authorise Payments – R Hardingham £125, Expenses 16.85, J Rogers £295.95, Household expenses £15.15 Travel £39.15. HMRC £222, AWA £508. Via Debit Card invoices for numerous purchases for covid-19 totalling £290.75, dog bin and signs £133.63 – Authorised
14. Play Park – Next steps? A picnic table made from recycled plastic to be purchased using the remainder of the funds donated by Surlingham Combined Charities. The play park safety check delayed due to the pandemic to be arranged. Agreed
15. Correspondence: Number of emails processed by the clerk 155 of those 51 circulated to councillors to 8 September 2020
16. To note items for inclusion on the next council agenda – New village sign, footpath 1
17. To confirm the date of the next meeting 20 October 2020
18. A resolution to exclude the public and press from item 19 because their presence would be prejudicial to the public interest due to the confidential nature (Public Bodies Admission to meetings Act 1960) – the member of the public left the meeting
19. HR – Clerks Annual Appraisal and Salary Review (2018) – Clerks appraisal had been completed and circulated to all councillors by Councillors, Broom, Reeve and Scowen with contributions from Councillors Atkins and Swinborne. Councillors thanked the clerk for all her hard work over the past two years. Clerk’s salary increase, with effect from 1 April 2020 Agreed

Community Action Norfolk Thinking Fuel: collective heating oil buying and combating fuel poverty

Community Action Norfolk want to raise awareness of ThinkingFuel, the collective heating oil buying service that combats fuel poverty across the county.

Heating oil – helping the community

Because heating oil is not a price-regulated commodity like electricity and gas, consumers are vulnerable to the fluctuations of market prices.  Thinking Fuel has long supplied low-priced heating oil to thousands of Norfolk residents who know and trust that we are able to supply oil at competitively and consistently low prices. And that’s an important factor in combating fuel poverty and economic deprivation across the county.

People who buy oil from us also know they are helping CAN support community development and local projects across the county.
The CAN Team

This week’s zoom cafe is being led for us by Revd Kate Belcher, who’s introducing us to two works, among others, by Matisse. These are ‘The Dinner Table’ and ‘Harmonie en Rouge’ (see below)

Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84153883367?pwd=K3BBODdrRGlLOTkwZnVwVzVwOXdydz09

or use meeting ID: 841 5388 3367 Passcode: 328738

We look forward to seeing you then.
Best wishes, Rev Nick Garrard

Deep Talk presents the opportunity to explore life and beyond through storytelling. We invite you to join this introductory session (via Zoom) hosted by The Barn, Rockland St Mary

For further information and bookings please contact
The Revds Nick and Helen Garrard
Tel 01508 538014 or broadsidecurate@aol.com

No charge is made for this event, however donations towards the Ministry of the Barn gratefully received.

Dear All,

Since the Covid-19 lockdown commenced earlier this year, local BBC radio stations have taken it in turn to produce and broadcast ‘The Sunday Service’, which is then simultaneously broadcast across all the local BBC radio stations nationwide.

The ‘Sunday Service’ tomorrow morning at 8am will be coming from Norwich Cathedral and can be listened to on Radio Norfolk…… and ALL other local BBC Radio Stations 😊

Information received from Rev Mandy Ansell

Norfolk’s Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), Lorne Green, is encouraging the county’s residents to share their views on road safety in order to help inform a Government review.

The Home Office and Department for Transport are currently reviewing roads policing and what the future of traffic law enforcement may look like.

PCC Lorne Green is urging Norfolk residents to take the opportunity to have their say and help inform national policy aimed at making roads safer.

“The safety of our roads is something which affects everyone; for those whose lives have been impacted by dangerous or reckless driving the effect could be truly devastating.

“When speaking with Norfolk residents, road safety regularly comes up as a key concern and, as such, is one of the priorities in my Police and Crime Plan for our county.

“From supporting enforcement and awareness activity by police and community-led Speedwatch schemes, to collaborating with partners on best use of tools such as safety cameras and educating young drivers on the dangers of the road, I have been committed to doing all I can to make our roads safer for all who use them.

“But some changes, such as the powers and penalties the police can use in enforcing the law and the flexibility local areas have to deal with the issues affecting them, need to come from the top. This is an important opportunity for Norfolk residents’ views to be heard and taken into account by this Government review.

“I’d urge all Norfolk residents to take the time to complete this short survey and ensure their views are understood and voices heard.”

The Association of Police and Crime Commissioners’ survey can be found  here  and will run until 30 September 2020.