EAST and WEST ROUNTON PARISH COUNCIL      (DRAFT)     

Minutes of the meeting held on the 9 March 2009 at 7.30pm.  

Present:  Cllr A Simpson: Vice chairman Cllr C Spencer, Cllr M Brown, Cllr M Brook, Clerk Mr G March.   County Cllr T Swales, District Cllr S Dickins and eight members of the public.  

44. Apologies for absence.        None.  

45. Chairman’s Announcements and Declarations of interest.
  It was announced that the Vice chairman  Cllr A Simpson would  Chair the meeting and there were no declarations of interest.   Due to the later than anticipated circulation  of the Parish Gazette it was confirmed that  co -option  to fill the vacancy of Parish Councillor at West Rounton  would be delayed until Monday 16 March to allow further time for any interested residents to  contact the Clerk.  

46. Minutes of the last meeting held on the 8 December 2008
.   The Minutes of the meeting held on the 8 December, copies of which had been previously circulated to members were confirmed as a true record and signed by the Chairman.  

47. Matters Arising.
  Item 33. Chairman’s  Retirement:  In recognition of his twenty years service to the local community an invitation  to plant a tree in the grounds of the East Rounton  Village Hall, had been accepted by former Councillor D Lawton. It was suggested that the planting ceremony should  take place at the Annual General Meeting of the Parish Council in May 2009.  
Item 35. East Rounton War Memorial: Lady Bell had responded positively to the Councils letter of concern about the poor condition of some of the script on the  war memorial  and permission had been granted for the Parish Council to  obtain  appropriate  costs for the restoration works. Research by the Clerk had confirmed  that repairs to the memorial in 1985 had been  at least part funded by the Parish  Council at  that  time. No provision for  any repair works to the memorial had been  included within the 2009/10  revenue budget and therefore other sources of funding would  need to be identified.  

48.   Planning Matters  
The Council confirmed the position with  regards to the planning applications and appeals listed in annex `A` which had been previously circulated and dealt with by members.   Permission was given for two members of the public present to speak to the meeting concerning  the Scoping exercise for a wind farm at Appleton Wiske/ Welbury and  about the pro`s and con`s  of wind farm technology in general.                                                                                      1

49.  Final Accounts 2007/8.  
Mazars Llp had completed the external audit of the Parish Councils Annual Return for 2007/8 and there were no matters  of  major  concern to report . The Council had , however ,been advised to undertake a periodic assessment  of all operational and financial risks and to define a strategy to mitigate  the risks  so identified. In addition, a number of administrative errors in the completion of the Annual Return needed to be improved on for next financial year.   The Council Received the External Audit Report for 2007/8 and authorised the Clerk to commence the necessary risk assessments  and administrative improvements advised within the report.    

5 0. Correspondence Received  
Council noted the correspondence  received since the last meeting as detailed in `Annex` B   Some discussions  took place concerning  the  correspondence  received in relation to  new road signs proposed  for East Rounton by the County Council and a mid -term review of the County Transport Plan.  

51. Adjournment  for members of the public to raise matters.  
Members of the public raised concerns about the effectiveness of the road maintenance works carried out by the County Council , in particular recent works to the main road from Appleton Wiske  and  past  the Villages. Most of the surfacing materials applied to the road had not adhered  and the resulting loose chippings had presented a hazard to vehicles and  also blocked the road gullies. The road surface was now more irregular than prior to the repairs.   County Councillor T Swales who was present at the meeting ,suggested that a representative of the County Council Road Maintenance Service  be invited to a future meeting to address this and other road maintenance matters.  

52. Any other business.
  Councillor M Brown would like to organise a litter pick of the hedgerows  around East Rounton and leading to the A 19. Assistance with  loan of litter picking tools and with the disposal of the collected rubbish had been offered by Hambleton District Council. It was suggested that a suitable date for the exercise  be set and notified to local residents in the Parish Gazette.  

Date and Time of next meeting.   Monday 25 May 2009 in the Village Hall East Rounton at 7.30pm.
A tree planting ceremony  in the grounds of the  Village Hall will precede the meeting at 7.00 pm                                                                                                              Signed--------------------------------------