The Chairman asked Cllr Coleman why he had not been able to attend the last meeting. He duly apologised as he had had a bereavement, but would endeavour to send apologies another time.

Cllr Weeks, Borough Councillor for the Exbourne Ward, was present. There was also a member of the public in attendance (a second member of the public came in later).

The minutes of the last meeting were signed as a true record.

PLANNING

The following applications have been received:-
Rowden Manor, S.C. Conservatory extension. Cllr Coleman expressed reservations regarding the removal of part of a wall. It was resolved to support the application, but request that the approval of the Conservation Officer is sought for the removal of part of the wall.

Rowden Manor, S.C. Removal of existing porch area and rebuild in new location. Addition of conservatory. Cllr Coleman expressed reservations regarding the removal of part of a wall. It was resolved to support the application, but request that the approval of the Conservation Officer is sought for the removal of part of the wall.

The following application has been WITHDRAWN: -
Wellsprings, S.C. Retention of structure for agricultural workers dwelling.
Cllrs asked Cllr Weeks what will happen now. Cllr Weeks stated he would find out.

The following applications have been granted consent: -
Fernhills Moor, S.C. Alterations including new chimney, new windows and doors, and solar panels. Erection of verandah and improvements to driveway.
Higher Trecott, Wellsprings Lane, S.C. Erection of extensions comprising first floor bedroom and rear porch.
East Rowden Farm, S.C. Four experimental woodchip corrals/pads.

The second member of the public arrived.

Changes to permitted development rights for households the clerk read out a letter from WDBC. The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Amendment) (No.2) (England) Order 2008 replaces Schedule 2 part 1 of the Statutory Instrument 1995 No. 418 The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) Order 1995, 'Development within the curtilage of a dwelling house'.
Cllr Weeks explained that removing the permitted development rights would mean that all building works would now require planning. Those with the email facility will be sent the website details.

West Devon Local Development Framework - Preferred option for Tavistock and Okehampton a response has been sent and an email acknowledgement has been received.

Planning application consultations - new procedure a further letter has been received. Responses can still be sent by email. Ticking the 'neutral view' box will not automatically mean that the application will be determined by officers since a Councillor may wish to call it to Committee for determination for other reasons. The letter asks if the Council wishes to receive the weekly list by e-mail (the council responded 'yes') and also whether they wish to receive copies of the decision notices so they can comment on conditions and refusal reasons (the council responded 'yes'). The clerk has printed off the decision notices issued in the intervening period.

Stonewold, Sampford Chapple Cllr Weeks stated he had looked into this application. The roof level of the extension is a mistake and is unacceptable. The builder is in contact with the planning department. The builders have until January 2009 to lower the roof level.

MATTERS ARISING
Parish Plan a continuation of the third examination of the parish plan. Shopping - the village Post Office has now closed. The car parking in North Tawton has improved. The improved rail link to Exeter is still ongoing. The new owners of the Dartmoor Railway are concentrating on the freight side of the business at the moment. Cllr Weeks stated there were plans for a park and ride near the industrial estate in Okehampton.
Cllr Coleman was asked to draft a letter to the railway company encouraging improved rail links into Okehampton. He can then email it to the clerk to send to them.
The parish council to keep in mind the viability of a community shop. Cllr Weeks stated the proposed village shop in Exbourne has acquired some grants, but is still £300,000 short.

Parish Paths Partnership the footpath lengthsman, Hilary Tonge, has emailed to confirm she is happy with the way in which the £25 extra is being paid. An invitation to the Christmas workshop has been received. A response has been sent stating that Cllrs Squire and Askew and Mrs. Tonge would like to attend.

The clerk has received a letter from Belstone Farm and Garden Services have confirming their hourly rate for strimming is £12.50. It was decided that in future it should be specified that the council wishes to receive detailed hours and times of work done. Cllr Squire can be asked how many hours he feels has been carried out. There is no further work required until the spring. Cllr Askew stated he could speak with Tim Freeman at the Christmas workshop.

Owing to other commitments Cllr Weeks left the meeting.

Public Toilets the clerk stated she had spoken to Les Beer, who had informed her ordinary bulbs were now in use in the toilet lights. It was decided to acquire some energy saving bulbs and ask if Les can change them.

Playground Equipment Inspection Cllr Squire has carried out the inspection and had returned the book prior to the meeting.
The shackles have been greased. The grass was being cut on November 3rd. The cobbled path is in need of burning off. The fence at the bottom of the green between the cob wall and the beech hedge requires attention. The Chairman will carry out the next inspection and she reminded Councillors that the inspections are supposed to be carried out once a week

Highway Matters letters have been sent to DCC regarding the issues raised at the last meeting. An email acknowledgement has been received stating a full response will be sent by 18th November.
Cllr Forrest stated the road between Honeychurch and Sampford Courtenay had been closed on Friday. DCC had been and done the drainage work at the top of Frankland Hill. The weather has been wet so it is too soon to see if it has remedied the problem.

Removal of BT payphones Cllr Coleman stated he had been informed by Ofcom that they have no powers to stop BT removing telephone kiosks as long as the consultation process has been carried out. The clerk was asked to write to BT again and express the parish council's concern that BT were given a monopoly to run the payphone service and are now pulling out without giving other companies the opportunity to utilise the payphones - it seems a gross abuse of power.
The clerk to write to DCC and ask for their strategic view of the situation and send a question to Eastern Link. It is known that the police have objected to the kiosks being removed.

The clerk has acquired maps for the village centre and Belstone Corner and has sent these off to Land Registry marking the locations of the telephone kiosks. The one at Belstone Corner is registered, but the one in the village has not been registered. The clerk to find out details of the owner (this will involve a further fee of at least £6) and apply for the parish council to register ownership of the land under the telephone box in the village. It was suggested that the Crown Estates plan could be checked to see if they own the land underneath the payphone.

Station Commander Twiggy Lake was present at the meeting and he stated that the fire service does find the telephone boxes a useful aid for communication.

Eastern Link Committee the next meeting is being held at North Tawton on Thursday November 20th. It is understood that Cllr Mardon will be attending. The clerk to contact her and advise her about the question being submitted concerning the telephone boxes.

Land Registration the clerk has met with the solicitor, who is drawing up a draft statutory declaration. The clerk is currently checking old minutes for references and dates of things that have been done down on the village green.

Flooding in the village the sandbags have been filled and distributed. The clerk has written to Tracy Windermer informing her of the households that have received sandbags and where the spare ones are being stored.
A lady from Beacon Cross contacted the clerk this morning. She has a problem with water coming off the road, under their gate and flowing past their house. The clerk gave her Cllr Cartwright's telephone number so she can obtain some sandbags.
The Chairman stated that Heavitree Brewery have cleared their piece of the river.

Bus Shelters the clerk has photos and measurements of the bus shelter at Exbourne. She had spoken to the clerk in North Tawton and they are thinking about selling one of theirs. He has also written stating the new price of this design is £2000 (the parish council to consider whether it is of use and how much they would like to pay) and the Town Council have a contractor who could remove it and deliver it for around £150. The new shelter erected by the entrance to the rugby club cost around £3000.
Cllr Weeks had suggested the clerk contact Rob Sekula at WDBC, which she has done. He stated they would accept an application and they do like projects involving young people and something a little different (perhaps using sustainable wood).
The clerk has also contacted Cllr McInnes. He has suggested contacting highways first, but he would be able to make a contribution.
Some Councillors felt it was a lot of money to spend for the number of people who will use it. The clerk to find out from highways what level of funding would be available. Discuss again at the next meeting.

Questions from the public Station Commander Twiggy Lake was present at the meeting and wanted to bring Cllrs up to date on what is happening at North Tawton station. Devon joined with Somerset recently to become the second largest brigade in the country. A new communication centre is being opened in
Taunton (the Devon control centre is being kept open so it can be used if there are problems at Taunton). The Tetra communication system will soon be operational.

He urged home owners to know their postcode when making an emergency call and also for farms to have their farm name clearly marked at the farm entrance (usually a long lane). In the event of a fire at a thatched property 8 vehicles would attend and it would be advantageous to be able to use the village hall as a base.
He stated it is important for home owners to check drains etc. on their property and make sure they are clear. Highways are only responsible when the flooding occurs on the roads.
He also promoted a free home safety visit (up to 45 minutes duration) where a firefighter will visit a person's home and provide advice on home safety needs and an escape plan (you may qualify to have a free smoke alarm fitted). The clerk to promote this in the Roundabout parish magazine.

He was asked about the fire hydrant at Honeychurch as it has recently been moved and is not currently marked. He stated that high risk hydrants are tested annually, but low risk ones (i.e. rural areas) are tested every three years so it should be marked then, but the fire brigade will be aware of its new location.

The other member of the public asked if it would be possible for the outreach service to provide Post Office service in the village once a week. The Chairman informed her it would be discussed at the next meeting.

Some Councillors queried the best way to deal with questions from members of the public. The Standing Orders have to be looked at again. The clerk will forward copies of the Standing Orders (found on the DAPC website) to Cllrs and see if it is any clearer as to what extent members of the public should participate at meetings. Cllrs to discuss this again at the next meeting.

FINANCE

The following has been received: -
Interest on Reserve Account £25.59

Prior to the meeting cheques were signed for the following:-
Post Office Ltd (eDF - electricity used in public toilets) £34.14
Post Office Ltd (SWW - water used in public toilets) £37.11

Cheques were signed for the following: -
Mr. L. Beer (Toilet cleaning 13/10/08 - 9/11/08) £45.84
Mrs. M. Weeks (reimbursement*) £51.00
S.C. Village Hall Committee (Hire of hall for footpath fun day) £15.00
S.C. Village Hall Committee (Hire of hall for meetings) £108.00

The clerk had contacted Latitude Mapping Ltd to acquire maps to a scale of 1:1250 of Belstone Corner and the village. The company supplies 6 A4 copies of each map costing £25 each. There was a post and packing charge of £1. The clerk had used her credit card to pay the £51 over the phone as she needed the map of the village green to let the solicitor have. She offered to supply a copy of her credit card bill, but Cllrs present decided this was not necessary.

The transfer of £1000 authorised at the last meeting has been done.

Amount in bank is £308.97 and total in Reserve Account is £6097.58 TOTAL - £6406.55
Represented thus P3 - £60.77 Precept, toilets + other £6001.29 Interest £297.58 Countryside Agency - £46.91

Cllr Coleman requested another new signatory form as the bank has lost the other one.

Setting the precept a copy of last years budget was sent to all Cllrs and the items were discussed. The main alteration was to increase the number of cuts carried out on the village green to 16 and precept £800. The clerk took notes of the amounts to be precepted and will produce a draft budget for 2009/10 showing these. The budget will be finalised at the next meeting.

It was noted that the PCC did not require any grants from the Parish Council for the re-hanging of the bells, but they would like a letter supporting the project. The clerk to arrange this.

CORRESPONDENCE
Wicksteed Playscapes, Communities and Local Government - Communities in control: Real People, real power: Codes of Conduct for local authority members and employees - A consultation, The Playing Field, Clerks and Councils Direct, NALC - 2008/09 National Interim Salary award for Local Council Clerks, DAPC Newsletter, DAPC - Freedom of Information Act - updated publication scheme.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS
There was no any other business.

The dates for the next few meetings are: -

Tuesday 9th December 2008 at 7.30 p.m., Tuesday 6th January 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 3rd February 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,Tuesday 3rd March 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 31st March 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,Tuesday 28th April 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 26th May 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,Tuesday 23rd June 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 21st July 2009 at 7.30 p.m., Tuesday 18th August 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 15th September 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,Tuesday 13th October 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 10th November 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,Tuesday 8th December 2009 at 7.30 p.m.,
Tuesday 5th January 2010 at 7.30 p.m.,

There being no further business the meeting closed at 10.15 p.m.

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