LITTON CHENEY PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of the meeting of Litton Cheney Parish Council
held on Tuesday

 

Present: Bill Orchard (Chairman); Quentin Blacke; John Firrell; Andy King; Diana Maston; Bella Spurrier, Maggie Walsh (Clerk).   Also in attendance Cllr Mark Roberts, Mr Edward Dyke (agent) and Mr A Romans (applicant) for White Thorne Cottage planning application, and 6 others.

 

1.    Apologies Cllr Andrew Price

2.    Declarations of interest Cllr Blacke expressed an interest in the White Thorne Cottage planning application (item 3 on the agenda) as he lives opposite the site.

3.    Planning application: White Thorne Cottage, Main Street. Outline application for 9 dwellings, White Thorne Cottage (Ref: P/OUT/2021/03262).

Mr Edward Dyke provided updated information about the application. Since the last meeting, an indicative layout plan, Design and Access Statement and Flood Risk Strategy had been submitted.  Nine dwellings were originally proposed but had been reduced to 7 in light of comments made at the Extraordinary Meeting of 12 October and the size of the site when preparing the indicative layout plan. The application was for market houses of modest size.

There was a demand for affordable houses and two of the seven were proposed to be affordable following discussions with DC’s Housing Enabling Officer: a 1 bedroom flat and a 2 bedroom house. Predominant views of the site were from the SSW.

The proposed development would normally be precluded by Local Plan Policy but the shortfall in 5 year housing land supply figure meant local plan policies were open to challenge.  The land may not be available for a housing exception scheme.

AONB and Conservation Officer had commented that fewer houses might be acceptable: however fewer houses would likely be larger and so out of reach of most local people.

Surfaces would be water permeable and any subsequent full planning application would require a Sustainable Drainage Scheme.

The affordable housing would remain affordable in perpetuity.

The precise nature of affordable housing was not yet known and would be determined in consultation with DC’s Housing Enabling Officer.

In planning terms, Litton Cheney had more than 3 of the factors (school, community hall, Public House, recreation ground) required to be considered a sustainable location.

 

The Chairman asked those present if they wished to say anything about the application.  Comments are summarised as follows:

·         The application was supported by those looking to live or buy within the village.

·         Personal interest in/support for affordable housing.

·         Affordable housing was only economically viable when proposals included market housing

·         Presumption that a detailed application would adequately deal with drainage as the land sometimes became waterlogged.

·         Local house prices were high and there were very few on the market for young people. The proposed dwellings would provide an opportunity for young people to be able to live in the village.

·         Concern that the price of the proposed houses would not be affordable for local people.


 

Parish Councillors discussed the application

·         The application was contrary to Local Plan and draft Local Plan policies which stated that development should be strictly controlled and restricted to a limited range of categories.

·         The site was located on a greenfield site at the edge of the village, adjacent to the Conservation Area and within the AONB. 

·         The site would usually only be considered as an exception site for all affordable housing.

·         Although the proposal had reduced from 9 to 7 dwellings, this would be a dense development, as highlighted by consultees, not in keeping with the traditional village layout, on a gateway site widely visible from the open countryside.

·         Development of the site would be restricted by access to Charity Farmhouse and the 7 proposed dwellings for which there is extant permission.

·         The applicant’s case was presented in light of a small shortfall in housing land availability across the whole of Dorset, yet there was extant permission for 8 new dwellings within the village, representing a significant expansion of the village and DC should be asked to rigorously uphold their existing and intended planning policy. The PC understood DC’s current land supply was 4.93 years, which was only marginally below the 5 year government target.

·         Other than the school bus, which could be used by villagers during term times subject to space, there was no regular bus service, villagers must rely on cars and therefore the village was not felt to be a sustainable location for new dwellings.

·         The need for affordable housing was recognised and there was considerable support for this, but 2 dwellings were felt to be insufficient on this site.

·         A well designed and screened development could be acceptable.

·         The proposed one bedroom flat was felt inappropriate, with 2+ bed house preferred for use by families.

Cllr Maston proposed the Parish Council support the application for the following reasons:

 

Notwithstanding Local Plan Policy SUS2 which precludes new dwellings in villages without a development boundary, such as Litton Cheney, unless affordable or under other specific circumstances, the need for and benefits of affordable housing outweighed the disadvantages of a development of up to 7 houses on this edge of village site, providing the proposed scheme were of a sympathetic design.  The PC would prefer to see more than two affordable dwellings and larger than the proposed 1 bed flat.  This proposal was seconded by Cllr King and carried with 3 in favour and 2 against.    MW

 

4.    Democratic time No further issues raised.

5.    Approval of minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 9 November 2021 It was proposed by Cllr King, seconded by Cllr Orchard and carried unanimously that these be approved.

6.    Matters arising since the previous meeting not part of this agenda DC had adjusted its timetable for the Local Governance Review. Final recommendations were due to be agreed in July 2022.

7.    Dorset Council overview – Cllr Mark Roberts highlighted some of the financial challenges facing DC. Nevertheless, DC had agreed a balanced budget, helped by a better than anticipated government settlement.  Council tax would rise by just under 2% plus an additional 1% for adult social care.  More land charges staff had been taken on to help meet high demand.  The planning validation backlog had been resolved but determination of planning applications was still behind.  South Walks House had been leased to the NHS.

8.    Finance report and invoices for approval (Clerk and RFO) At the time of publishing the agenda, Parish funds stood at £23,497.49. Spend since the previous meeting was £2,221.03, comprising £1,067.56 (inc. VAT) to Dorset Council for grass cutting, £594.72 salaries, £500 donation towards upkeep of the churchyard and £58.75 to LATCH for hall hire.  Income since last meeting was £400.04 comprising £350 proceeds from the wine tasting event for the Community Bench Fund, £50 donation to Community Bench Fund and .04p interest. The RFO wished to highlight a projected year end underspend against maintenance budgets of around £2,100. The Community Bench Fund currently held £425: the Parish Council thanked those who had donated.

       The following payments/invoices were for approval:

Vision ICT website fee (covered for this year by contribution from LATCH)

£60.00

A King expenses for refurbishment of noticeboard

£28.44

Clerk’s expenses

£4.50

 

£92.94

       It was proposed by Cllr Maston, seconded by Cllr Spurrier and carried unanimously that these be approved.                                                                                                                MW

      

       Review of reserves and approval of precept for 2022-23

 

       The RFO presented the report (appended to these minutes).  Cllr Firrell proposed that RFO’s recommendations be accepted and the precept for 2022-23 be set at £9,900.  This was seconded by Cllr Orchard and carried unanimously.                                            MW

       Parish Councillors noted that the Reserves Policy was adopted in January 2021 and that no amendments were needed. Parish Councillors also noted the review of reserves (appended to these minutes) and Cllr Firrell proposed that the RFOs recommendations with regard to the reserves be accepted.  This was seconded by Cllr Maston and carried unanimously. MW

       Cllr King and the Clerk had sought 3 quotes for grass cutting for the 3 years commencing March 2022.  DC had provided the cheapest quote and had provided a good service for the previous 3 years.  Cllr King proposed that the PC therefore continue to use DC. This was seconded by Cllr Maston and carried unanimously.                                                                            MW

 

8.    Nomination of Trustees to The Litton Cheney Trust Cllr Orchard proposed that Richard Jones and Lyn Lacey be reappointed as the two nominated trustees of The Litton Cheney Trust following the end of their current term on 13 March 2022.  This was seconded by Cllr Firrell and carried unanimously.                                                                                                 

      

8.    Councillors’ portfolios:

Planning (Bill Orchard, Chairman): Cllr Orchard understood a meeting had been scheduled to resolve planning breaches at Parks Farm. The application for solar panels at Thorners Primary School had been approved, although the number of panels had been reduced.  The application for 2 dwellings at Barges Close was still undecided and no update was available.

Highways/Transport (Andrew Price): Cllr Price provided a written report.  He had been unable to obtain an update from the Community Highways Officer.  The closure of Whiteway remained in abeyance whilst the sub-contractor attempted to resolve matters relating to services to be installed and the route to be taken. Wessex Water had restarted its reservoir project, due for completion end of March and would require 24/7 access from Whiteway.  The CHO had been asked for an opinion about the possibility of siting a bench on Chalk Pit Lane.  Chris Loder, MP had sought improvements to signage on the A35 to stop HGVs using Whiteway and DC may consider a weight limit: Cllr Mark Roberts reported that National Highways seemed to understand the difficulty and had agreed to discussions. Cllr Orchard reported an issue with surface water in Hines Mead Lane.

Agricultural Liaison/Footpaths/Rights of Way/ (Bella Spurrier/Quentin Blacke): the PC thanked Mr Romans for reinstating the bridge on the footpath between Whitecross and Puncknowle which had been washed away. Cllr Spurrier had been in contact with DC regarding several footpath gates.

The PC held £425 in the Community Bench Fund on behalf of the village. Cllr Blacke would bring back a proposal for a bench.                                                                          QB

Playground/Playing Field/Allotments (Andy King): The allotments required a new shed and allotmenteers aimed to make provision for water storage. Little maintenance had been undertaken at the Playground since it was refurbished and various repairs were now required.  Indicative costs had been obtained and some funds were available as there was a predicted year end underspend.  Priority repairs included replacing the large slide and the climbing net.  However, the climbing net did not appear to be much used and Parish Councillors discussed the possibility of replacing it with other equipment: the PC would receive Community Infrastructure Levy funds from the Charity Farm development, which might be spent on new equipment (but not repairs). He hoped that volunteers could repair footings of the small slide.  Cllr King proposed that he and the Clerk obtain 2 additional quotes and proceed with repairs.  This was seconded by Cllr Firrell and carried unanimously.                                                AK/MW

Instances of dog mess had increased and Cllr King intended to buy some agricultural paint to highlight the problem as other parish councils had suggested this could be an effective strategy for reducing the problem

Village Fabric/Maintenance/BLAP/DAPTC/ Administration & Probity (John Firrell) A team of volunteers from the village were making plans to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.  Cllr Firrell proposed that the PC contribute up to a maximum of £500 (net of any VAT) from general reserves towards the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations in the village.  The nature of the donation would be agreed by full Council nearer the time and would comply with spending powers.  This proposal was seconded by Cllr Blacke and carried unanimously. 

The Premier Crew would be able to undertake more maintenance as the weather improved.

DAPTC and BLAP formed effective bridges between Local Councils and DC.  Thirteen of the fourteen BLAP member councils had agreed to pay a subscription so it could continue to operate.

BLAP had suggested that the Bride Valley Parish Councils work together to create a flood relief plan after recent flooding. Cllr Roberts recommended appointing a Village Flood Warden and suggested the PC contact Brian Richards.

Climate Emergency and Environment (Diana Maston) More hedging had been laid at the school.  Two trees had been planted as part of the Jubilee Celebrations.  Another Eco Café was being considered for the spring.

9.    Planning matters no other planning matters for consideration

10.  Correspondence not dealt with as part of the agenda none

11.  Date of next meeting Tuesday 8 March 20212

Meeting closed

Maggie Walsh
Parish Clerk


Litton Cheney Parish Council Precept Report 2022-23

Summary and Recommendation

A number of costs will increase during 2022-23.  However, the village fabric/maintenance budget has consistently been underspent for several years: the RFO therefore recommends that this budget be significantly reduced, offsetting increases elsewhere.

Reserves are healthy but the RFO recommends minor changes to contributions to named reserves, resulting in a net increase of £200 (details below).

The Precept was reduced to £10,400 for 2021-22.  The net outcome of all these proposed changes would further reduce the precept from £10,400 to £9,900.

Based on current commitments, the Parish Clerk and Responsible Finance Officer (RFO) recommends that the PRECEPT be set at £9,900 for 2022-2023.

Impact of precept on Band D properties

If approved by the Parish Council, the tax base for Litton Cheney would decrease by 4.81% from £50.68 in the current year (2021-22) to £47.64 for the year 2022-23 for a Band D house.

Detailed consideration – review of receipts and payments

The Parish Council has estimated costs for the next 3 financial years. Table 1 below sets out actual outturn for last year, budgets and estimated outturn for the current year, and forecast budget for 2022-23.  VAT is excluded from projections as the Parish Council reclaims this. 

In preparing these figures, the RFO has allowed for estimated and known inflationary increases.  Insurance costs are estimated to rise substantially once the current 3 year fixed term agreement ends.  Since the lengthsman’s contract with Bridport Town Council ended in March 2021, maintenance/repair costs have continued to be lower than budgeted, partly because of the effect of the pandemic and also due to kind donations from The Litton Cheney Trust.  Whilst significant maintenance and repair costs do intermittently arise, an earmarked reserve is held for this purpose and the RFO proposes increasing the annual contribution to this reserve by £100 to compensate for the significant reduction in the revenue maintenance budget.

Review of Reserves

Reserves are held to cushion the impact of uneven cash flow or irregular/unexpected events. Contributions to reserves are calculated based on past experience, life span of assets and estimated replacement costs. 

Going forward, reserve balances are healthy, with appropriate annual contributions to most earmarked reserves.  The RFO recommends the following changes:

·         Increase the annual contribution to the playground reserve by £100 to £850 in light of anticipated repair and maintenance costs and input sought from similar sized Parish Councils.

·         Increase contributions to the village fabric/maintenance reserve by £100 for reasons set out above.

·         Increase contribution to equipment reserve by £100 to reflect current replacement costs and equipment lifespan.

·         Reduce the contribution to the elections reserve by £100.  It is anticipated this reserve will hold £900 at the current year’s end and, whilst the cost of an election can be significant, the likelihood of a contested election is considered low.

·         Any underspend at the year end, over and above the budgeted £1,550, contribution to earmarked reserves be transferred to the Playground Reserve rather than the General Reserve.

Table 1

Outturn

2020- 2021 actual

2021-2022 budget

2021-22 estimated

2022-23 estimated

 

 

 

 

 

Income

 

 

 

 

Precept & grant

£10,600

£10,400

£10,400

£9,900

Allotment fees

 

£95

£210

£95

Website

 

 

£50

£50

Misc. income including costs below funded by LCTrust)

£2,208

 

£250

 

Donations to community bench fund

 

 

£425

 

VAT

£303

 

£708

 

Total income

£13,111

£10,495

£12,043

£10,045

 

 

 

 

 

Payments

 

 

 

 

Employee costs

£3,567

£3,611

£3,631

£4,010

ROOM HIRE/zoom fees

£101

£54

£97

£72

ADMIN

£819

£821

£813

£1,318

Village fabric /maintenance

£3,745

£3,455

£1,286

£2,000

donations/grants

£725

£1,000

£800

£1,000

Telephone kiosk

 

 

£250

 

laptop

 

 

£850

 

VAT

£708

 

£197

 

Total Payments

£9,665

£8,941

£7,924

£8,400

 

 

 

 

 

Balance of Income over payments*

£3,446

£1,554

£4,119

£1,645

* of which donations to ringfenced reserves

£100

 

£375

 

contribution to earmarked reserves

£1,200

£1,550

£1,550

£1,650

Surplus of income after contributions to reserves

£2,146

£4

£2,194

-£5

 

Parish Councillors should also note the agenda items relating to the playground repairs and the proposal to contribute up to £500 of general reserves towards the Village’s Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Celebration.

Contributions to reserves are undertaken at the year end, when the outturn is known.  Assuming sufficient funds are available at year end, the proposed changes would represent a net increase of £200 to £1,750 per annum.  Reserves are reviewed on an annual basis at which point contributions to earmarked reserves may increase, decrease, or be frozen.

Table 2 below details the existing level of reserves, the estimated level at the end of the current financial year and the RFO’s recommended contribution for 2022/23.

 


 

Table 2

2020/21 Y/E

2021/22 Y/E

2022/23 Y/E

Actual

estimated

estimated

estimated

estimated

RESERVES

contribution

Y/E balance

contribution

Y/E balance

Contribution

Balance

Year end balance

 

£16,855

 

£20,954

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Named reserves

 

 

 

 

 

 

Local government reorg/devolution

£0

£2,000

£0

£2,000

£0

£2,000

Playground equipment

£400

£1,000

£750

£1,750

£850

£2,600

Village fabric/maintenance

£400

£1,400

£400

£1,800

£500

£2,300

Equipment (e.g., Defibrillator, I.T.)

£200

£1,100

£200

£1,300

£300

£1,600

Election costs

£200

£700

£200

£900

£100

£1,000

EARMARKED RESERVES TOTAL

£1,200

£6,200

£1,550

£7,750

£1,750

£9,500

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ring-fenced reserves

 

 

 

 

 

 

Community Bench fund

 

 

£425

£425

 

 

Playground donation

£100

£100

 

£100

 

 

RING FENCED RESERVES TOTAL

£100

£100

 

£525

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

General funds

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

£10,555

 

£12,679