Minutes for the Holcombe Burnell Parish Meeting held via Zoom on Monday January 11th, 2021 at 7.30pm. 

Locum Parish Clerk: Lynne Ogden, Moorview, Longdown, Exeter EX6 7SB [email protected] 

Present: Chairman Cllr B Shipley,Cllrs C Eden (vice chairman), C Bickley, M Bulley, J Betney, L Brind, H Studholme, K Morley, District Cllr Andy Swain, J Roberts (applicant for Clerk/RFO post) and the Locum Clerk Lynne Ogden. 0 Members of the Public attended. 

1. Open Forum & AOB – Vice Cllr Eden took the Chair as requested by Cllr Shipley. He began the meeting by welcoming Jim Roberts to the meeting. No AOB 

2. Apologies – Cllrs Ludlam, Wood and County Cllr Connett 

3. Declaration of Interests & changes to Registers –Cllr Studholme needs to update his Declaration and the Clerk will resend him the form to complete. Action Clerk 

4. Minutes of Previous meeting held November 9th 2020 –The minutes had been sent to all Cllrs and were accepted as a true & correct record and were formally approved. Proposed Cllr Bulley Seconded Cllr Betney. Vote UNANIMOUS. Actual minutes to be signed as soon as is convenient. 

5. Village Concerns- Cllr Morley explained her role as Nature Warden had enabled her to talk to several residents who had asked her to raise their comments with the Council. These were: – a) that several residents don’t engage with social media so appreciate the Newsletter. They also like the Tedburn Times but would like more information about Holcombe Burnell and Longdown in there. b) The speed limit along the B3212 remains a concern c) even those who do use Social media, liked a change with the Newsletter d) One person wanted to thank the Cllrs for being on the Council as it was a ‘thankless job’. She also wanted to thank everyone on the Covid Rapid Response team as she felt reassured that someone would look out for her, if needed, as she has no family locally. e) Parking on the road in the centre of the Village is still a problem. The Clerk will attempt to approach the people concerned f) Cllr Morley reported that signs about litter are available, if we still want them, from Teignbridge. g) Cllr Brind raised the matter of the telephone box being removed at some point and that this would take away the only light in that area – put on next agenda h) The Cat’s eyes and white lines in the road between the centre of the Village and the road going towards Dunsford are a problem. White lines have not been replaced, in some parts of the road, when work was done on the road. Also, some of the cat’s eyes that were replaced are sitting too high on the surface and make a lot of noise when cars pass over them. This is affecting the sleep of a child who lives in one of the cottages on the side of the road. Action Clerk 

6. Litter bin for layby on Longdown Straight – The Litter bin has been purchased by the Clerk and installed promptly by Steve Ramage of the Cleansing Dept. Teignbridge. He will also organise for it to be emptied once a week. If more emptying is required, this can be arranged. This needs to be added to the Asset Register. Action Clerk 

At this point, Cllr Eden suspended Standing Orders so that Jim Roberts could be formally invited to accept the post of Clerk/RFO to Holcombe Burnell. He was very pleased to accept. (A formal interview was not possible because of the Lockdown but all Cllrs had been involved in agreeing to employ him.) It was agreed that the Locum Clerk would complete the admin and the majority of tasks for this meeting and prepare an agenda for February. This would then be handed to the new Clerk for his first meeting as Clerk for Holcombe Burnell. The Locum Clerk will work with All concerned to put in place a contract and job description and arrange a handover to the new Clerk. The Locum Clerk was thanked for her work in bringing this about. Action Locum Clerk/ Cllrs Shipley and Eden Telephone 01392 811236 [email protected] All information held is for the purpose of making decisions within the Parish Council framework and is not shared with any other bodies, authorities or companies. We draw your attention to our Privacy Notice displayed on the website www.longdownvillage.com 

7. Reports from the Clerk, County and District Cllrs, Nature Warden, Defibrillator Guardian and Play Area 

7.1 The Clerk updated the Council on the recent admin completed and agreed to work with the incoming Clerk 

7.2 Cllr Morley (Nature warden) reported that the bridlepath to Cutteridge Wood is impassable as it goes through the Farmyard. She has informed Mike Long as Footpath coordinator. A discussion took place about involving the Woodland Trust as they manage the Wood and the poor access is preventing people accessing it from Longdown. Cllr Bickley commented that a lot of residents are not aware of the Wood and it would be good to have a map of local footpaths available. (this can be made possible by Parish Online see item 9). Cllr Betney commented that a resident had donated a piece of land to enable access to the Village – A triangle of land and a path through the woods up to Vicarage Lane. It is being used but is wired off – this will be put on the agenda for the next meeting. Action Cllr Morley, Clerk 

7.3 Defibrillator – Cllr Betney reported that she had checked the Defibrillator and all was well. She has completed the necessary report. During her December check, Cllr Betney had noticed that the pads had expired and she, with the Clerk, organised the purchase and replacement of the pads, which will last for two years. Cllr Eden thanked her for doing this. 

7.4 Play Area report – The Locum Clerk had checked the play area and reported that the Covid notice needed replacing. All equipment was in a safe condition but the bench and climbing frame was in need of a bit of TLC. Cllr Eden asked for a Councillor to volunteer to take on the regular check of the play area and report at each Council meeting. Cllr L Brind kindly offered. The Locum Clerk will liaise with Cllr Morley to laminate a new notice for Covid instructions to be put on the gate. A bin has been placed in this area, but it is uncertain who empties it. Action Cllrs Morley/Brind/Clerk 

7.5 District Cllr Andy Swain reported that the item of lowering the voting age to 16 is going to full Council this week. He said that the budget is only in draft as things are changing rapidly and have been made much worse by Covid. They are keen to protect services and therefore there will be an increase in Council tax. This will be up to the cap of £5 per household. The cost of green bins will also rise. Losses of 75% have been covered by Central Government and grants for businesses and self-employed have been given. He then took questions a) Has there been any further news on lorries turning at the T junction on the Ide bypass? And b) Is this more topical now that planning for Lower Hare Farm has been passed as this will be an alternative route if the junction at Pathfinder is not available, causing an increase in lorries. Cllr Swain will pass these on to Cllr Connett. 

8. Planning – Applications 8.1 – None 

Decisions – 8.2 Teignbridge – 20/02002/HOU – Kingsford Lodge, Two storey extension and single extension with terrace to the rear – Grant of conditional planning. 8.3 Teignbridge – 20/01825 Ley Close Longdown – Construct three bay garage, relocate oil tank and new greenhouse – grant of conditional planning permission 8.4 Teignbridge 20/02122/HOU – Sycamores Longdown – Single Storey Rear Extension and Two Storey Side Extension – Grant of conditional planning permission. 

Cllr Eden queried if there had been any news on the planning application for College Lane. No one had heard anything so the Clerk will contact the residents’ group to get an update. Action Clerk 

9. Parish Online – Cllr Morley had been using this during the free trial and gave a brief report on the advantages of its use. The Council discussed if it would be useful to Holcombe Burnell and Cllr Eden proposed that a subscription be taken out. This was seconded by Cllr Studholme. Vote unanimous. The Council resolved to take out an annual subscription for this and Cllr Eden asked it to be added to the payments below. Action Clerk 

Telephone 01392 811236 [email protected] All information held is for the purpose of making decisions within the Parish Council framework and is not shared with any other bodies, authorities or companies. We draw your attention to our Privacy Notice displayed on the website www.longdownvillage.com 

10. Finance Balances – Treasure’s Account £14,164.26 as at 01/12/2020 (includes CIL receipt of £7738.49) Bus. Bank Account – £3425.10 as at 09/12/2020 

Accounts for payment: – The Council resolved to pay the following invoices: – 

10.1 Lynne Ogden – Locum Clerk payment and expenses for November and December – £547.50 (chq 821) 

10.2 Mr J Bush For clearing all areas in December – £70 (chq 822) 

10.3 Lynne Ogden – reimbursement for purchase of Vouchers (£50) and Defib. pads (£116.40) – £166.40 (chq 823) 

10.4 Glasdon Ul Ltd for litter bin for Longdown Straight – £156 (chq824) 

10.5 Budget – The Council resolved to Approve the proposed budget. Proposed by Cllr Studholme and seconded by Cllr Bulley. This will be signed by the Chairman 

10.6 Precept – After much discussion, the Council resolved to keep the precept at the same level as last year. 

However, this will result in a small increase as Teignbridge have lowered their tax base. This increase will be 80 pence to each household for the year. This is 4.2% increase. 

10.7 Cil Payment –Cllr Eden proposed to postpone this discussion till the next meeting as it was getting late. He asked that all Cllrs use the coming month to think about how this money can be spent to the advantage of the Community. Action All Cllrs 

10.8 Additional invoice for Cllr Morley – reimbursement of printing costs of Autumn Newsletter – £40.04 chq 825 

10.9 Additional Invoice (item 9) Parish Online – Annual Subscription – £64.80 

Payment of invoices – Proposed Cllr Brind Seconded Cllr Betney Vote – UNANIMOUS 

The Meeting closed – 21.42 

All information held is for the purpose of making decisions within the Parish Council framework and is not shared with any other bodies, authorities, or companies. We draw your attention to our Privacy Notice displayed on our website.