Minutes of the Full Council Meeting
held on Thursday 10 May 2007 at the Parish Rooms
Commenced: 7:30pm — Concluded: 9:10pm
Present
Cllr. Caroline Jones (Chairman)
Cllr. Sylvia Tilford (Vice Chairman)
Cllr. Keith Dale
Cllr. Kath Forrest
Cllr. John Horton
Cllr. Peter Jenkins
Cllr. Matt Palmer
Cllr. Peter Riley
Cllr. Mike Walker
Clerk:
Mrs Jo Griffiths
1/0708 Election of Chairman for the year 2007-08
Proposed by Cllr Tilford
Seconded by Cllr Riley
RESOLVED that Cllr Caroline Jones is elected Chairman of Burley Parish Council for the year 2007-2008.
2/0708 Declaration of acceptance and Chairman's address
Cllr Jones read and signed the declaration of acceptance of office as Chairman of Burley Parish Council for the year 2007-2008.
Cllr Jones said that she was honoured to be elected Chairman for a second year but would serve as Chairman for this one further year only. She thanked fellow councillors for their support over the last year which had been a busy one and noted that the council had a lot to be proud of in its first year in office. It seemed likely that the next year would be busy also but if the council continued to work together as it had for the previous year then she was confident a great deal could be accomplished.
3/0708 Appointment of Vice Chairman
Proposed by Cllr Jones
Seconded by Cllr Riley
RESOLVED that Cllr Sylvia Tilford is elected Vice Chairman of Burley Parish Council for the year 2007-2008.
4/0708 To receive any apologies for absence
None
5/0708 To receive any disclosures of interest
None
6/0708 Public Participation
The council were asked what the objective was in determining ownership of The Grange and what additional pressure could be brought to bear with this knowledge. Cllr Jones explained that to date definitive ownership of the Grange had not been established by Bradford College. Without proof of ownership the building could not be sold. The property was not registered with the Land Registry but this was not in itself unusual. The Parish Council is continuing efforts in this area.
An update on the Lawn was requested. At the current time the Parish Council had received no additional information from BCHT. Any update would be provided in the next newsletter and at the Neighbourhood Forum on 21st June.
7/0708 Minutes of previous meeting
Proposed by Cllr Riley
Seconded by Cllr Walker
RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of 12th April be accepted as a true and accurate record with the following amendment: 349/0607 Parish Plan - to note that "the loss of the Grange had left the village with virtually no adult education provision".
8/0708 Matters arising from the minutes
336/0607 - The Lawn - No further information had been received.
336/0607 - Parking Review - it is hoped that Simon D'Vali will report back at the Neighbourhood Forum. Cllr Palmer reported that officers were still unsure about the proposed changes to West Terrace. The Parish Council were in favour of the parking bays and had made this clear to Mr D'Vali. A further letter to be sent emphasising this point.
336/0607 - Roads and Drainage Cllr Jenkins was completing his survey of the gullies along Station Road and when completed would pass the information to the Parish Clerk for liaison with BMDC.
340/0607 - The Grange A pack of information had been sent to the solicitor for an opinion on ownership of the Grange. A reply had not yet been received.
349/0607 - Parish Plan A meeting with Mike Bell from Asset Management has been scheduled for 24th May to discuss Burley House Field.
349/0607 - Parish Plan. Cllr Palmer requested and it was agreed that a letter be sent to BMDC by the Parish Council urging that the verge hardening work scheduled for Manse and Midgley Roads be carried out as soon as possible.
353/0607 - Any Other Business Cllr Jenkins passed the Parish Clerk further information regarding the problem at Iron Row.
9/0708 Minutes of the Planning Committee
A copy of the minutes from the meeting on 5th April 2007 was received.
10/0708 Minutes received from other organisations
Copies of the minutes listed were received and are available from the Parish Clerk:
· Parish Council Liaison Meeting - 21st February 2007
· Burley in Wharfedale Community Trust (unapproved) - 18th April 2007
· South Pennine Branch of Yorkshire Local Councils - 7th March 2007
11/0708 Clerk's Report
Parking questionnaire information had been summarised and circulated to councillors. There were no comments at this time.
A request had been received from the committee that run the Burley in Wharfedale website that unapproved parish council minutes be published on the website rather than waiting until after approval at the next meeting. After discussion the council agreed to retain the current procedure of formally ratifying minutes before publishing. All council meetings are open to the public and press and any member of the community with questions is able to contact the Parish Clerk.
Councillors were asked for their views on publishing email addresses on the website. It was agreed that those in favour would have their addresses added to the contacts page. Those without an email address or who preferred not to publish this information would have their email forwarded via the parish clerk.
12/0708 Appointment of members to serve on undermentioned committees
Planning - Cllr Dale, Cllr Forrest, Cllr Horton, Cllr Jenkins, Cllr Jones, Cllr Riley, Cllr Tilford, Cllr Walker.
Maintenance & Allotments - Cllr Dale, Cllr Forrest, Cllr Horton, Cllr Jones, Cllr Palmer, Cllr Riley, Cllr Tilford, Cllr Walker.
Staffing - Cllr Forrest, Cllr Jones, Cllr Tilford, Cllr Riley.
RESOLVED that the members listed above serve on the committees of Burley Parish Council for the year 2007-2008.
13/0708 Appointment of members to serve on the undermentioned bodies
§ Shipley Area Committee and Shipley Advisory Group (SCAPAG) - Cllrs Jones & Tilford
§ Police Ward Tasking Committee - Cllr Dale & Riley
§ Chamber of Trade - Cllr Walker
§ Wharfedale Rail Users Group (WRUG) - Cllr Tilford
§ Road Safety - Cllr Walker
§ West Yorkshire Rural Transport Partnership (WYRTP) - Cllr Forrest
§ Council for the Preservation of Rural England (CPRE) - Cllr Forrest
§ Burley and Menston Charities - Cllrs Forrest & Riley
§ Yorkshire Local Councils Association (South Pennine Branch) - Cllrs Jones & Tilford
§ Parish Council Liaison - Cllrs Jones & Tilford & Parish Clerk
§ Bradford College Community Liaison - Cllr Tilford
§ Bradford Primary Care Trust - Cllr Tilford
RESOLVED that the members listed above serve as representatives of Burley Parish Council on the bodies listed for the year 2007-2008.
14/0708 Register of attendance for the year 2006-2007
Proposed by Cllr Riley
Seconded by Cllr Walker
RESOLVED that the register of attendance for 2006-2007 as shown on the attached list be accepted.
15/0708 Meeting Dates for 2007-2008
Proposed by Cllr Walker
Seconded by Cllr Jenkins
RESOLVED that the meeting dates as listed on the attached sheet be adopted for the year 2007-2008.
It was noted that the Parish Council would continue to meet in the Parish Room until the end of May. Meetings for June, July and August would be held at the Round House. A decision on the venue for meetings beyond that date had not yet been made.
Subject to confirmation Neighbourhood Forums were to be held on the third Thursday of January, June and October. Councillors agreed that the Queens Hall was the most appropriate venue but a different layout would be tried for the next forum in an effort to make the meeting more inclusive.
16/0708 Newsletter
Cllr Tilford confirmed that she would continue working with the Parish Clerk on the content of the newsletter. Greater assistance was required in counting and distributing the newsletters to the volunteer distributors. Cllrs Walker, Jenkins and Horton would take responsibility for counting out, checking availability of distributors and increasing the number of distributors for the year 2007-2008. A copy of the newsletter timetable had been circulated - anyone not available around the times of distribution was requested to ensure that they notified fellow members ahead of time so that alternative plans could be made.
17/0708 The Grange
Mike Bell from Asset Management at BMDC had replied to the request under the Freedom of Information Act. No hard evidence of ownership had been provided but the map of the site enclosed confirmed that BMDC considered the car park was owned by the Grange and there was a right of way up the drive for BMDC.
A reply to the letter sent to Ruth Kelly MP had been sent from the Government Office for Yorkshire and the Humber and offered little additional help.
Cllr Jones had still not received a response from BCHT in regard to affordable housing at the Grange. This would continue to be pursued.
Cllr Palmer proposed that the Parish Council also pursue potential partnerships with private developers. Private development on the upper floors would be proposed whilst retaining some/all of the ground floor for community use. This was unanimously agreed.
18/0708 Remit for Maintenance and Allotments Committee
Proposed by Cllr Palmer
Seconded by Cllr Walker
RESOLVED that the remit for the Maintenance and Allotments Committee as circulated be adopted.
19/0708 Maintenance and Allotments
The monthly working group had held another successful morning's work and would meet again at the end of the month. The money had been received from Bradford Vision and was available to spend.
Details were confirmed for the Litter Pick, the Scouts and Round Table would be offering assistance on Friday evening.
Officers from BMDC had tested the water quality at the water feature. Their recommendation as a result of the tests was to add a "Not for drinking" sign, this was agreed by councillors.
Cllr Dale had received a complaint about overgrown hedges. It was confirmed that householders were responsible and that they if did not attend to the maintenance then BMDC had the authority to carry out the work and then re-charge the cost to the householder.
20/0708 Adoption of a new Code of Conduct
Councillors had received copies of the two codes of conduct and a briefing note. It was unanimously agreed to adopt the Standards Board's parish specific code, this would be brought forward as a resolution at the June meeting.
21/0708 Reports from Councillors on other meetings attended
Cllr Tilford reported from SCAPAG:
The bus shelters consultation had been completed and the proposals made and adopted.
Three people from the Keighley & Bradford Youth Parliament had spoken at the meeting identifying key issues for young people in the district.
A playpod for the Shipley Area had been installed at Ashlands school in Ilkley (Keighley Area) as nowhere had been found for it in the Shipley area.
Cllr Tilford reported from WRUG:
Cleanliness at Burley station had improved but was still unsatisfactory.
Service and punctuality were good at this time.
Some complaints had been received in regard to the engineering work over Easter - notification had been late and information had been incomplete.
A review of the decision to withdraw the ticket machine at Burley had been made by Northern Rail and it was not going to be re-installed on cost grounds. Cllr Tilford proposed and it was agreed that the Parish Council should write to Northern Rail and urge them to re-install the machine. The loss of ticket sales would harm their revenue and also distorted passenger numbers.
Tom Wesley the chairman of WRUG for the last 20 years was retiring and it was agreed that a letter thanking him for his service be sent to him by Burley Parish Council.
Cllr Walker reported from the Road Safety Group:
New members had joined the group, particularly representatives from schools in Ilkley and it was now thought likely that the group would not close. Great emphasis was being put on safer routes to schools.
Cllr Jones and Cllr Dale had attended the opening of the Police Contact Point at Queens Hall.
The parish council had been represented at the Lord Mayor's Civic Reception by several councillors.
22/0708 Correspondence
· Bradford District Local Development Framework - Draft Planning for Crime Prevention Supplementary Planning Document, passed to Cllr Jones.
· Yorkshire Rural Community Council - invitation to attend annual rural community buildings conference, any members interested in attending should contact the Parish Clerk.
· Bradford District Local Development Framework - Core Strategy Issues and Options Consultation Event. Cllrs Jones and Jenkins would be attending the event in Ilkley on 16th June.
· Airedale NHS Trust - Consultation on plans to become a NHS Foundation Trust. This would be discussed at the Neighbourhood Forum. Information passed to Cllr Tilford for a draft response on behalf of Burley Parish Council.
· Community Network Bradford & District - funding opportunities. This would be advertised in the library and to anyone making enquiries for funding.
· Philip Davies MP - thank you for his welcome at the last meeting.
· Request from Steve Rhodes of Wharfedale Community Radio for support and funding towards application to Ofcom for a Community Radio License. After discussion councillors agreed to ask for more detailed information.
· Certificates of attendance for Cllrs Jones, Tilford and Walker for attending Chairmanship Training Course. These were distributed.
· Request from SELRAP (Skipton-East Lancashire Rail Action Partnership) requesting the Parish Council's support for their campaign to re-open the Skipton-Colne railway. Support for this initiative was agreed, Parish Clerk to write a letter in support.
· Briefing note from Parish Council Liaison Group on Local Government White Paper published 2006 had been circulated to all councillors.
23/0708 Schedule of Payments
Proposed by Cllr Jenkins
Seconded by Cllr Riley
RESOLVED that the schedule of payments be approved for payment.
24/0708 Any Other Business
Cllr Palmer had received a letter regarding a consultation that was to take place with regard to primary school places in the village. Cllr Palmer to forward this to the offices of Burley Oaks and Burley Woodhead schools. The Parish Council had received notification of the Chamber of Trade's AGM on 24th May. Cllr Walker to attend on behalf of the Parish Council.
25/0708 Date and time of next meetings
Planning Meeting - 24th May 2007
Full Council & Planning - 14th June 2007