MINUTES
Minutes of a meeting of the FULL COUNCIL held on Wednesday 27th July 2022 at 7.30pm in The Mountfitchet Exchange, Crafton Green, 72 Chapel Hill, Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex
PRESENT
Cllr M Caton (Chair), Cllrs A Barnes, G Braeckman, A Guney, J Hogg,
J Hudson, M Jessup, P Jones, J Kavanagh, A Khan, L Prior, G Sell and T Smith
ATTENDING
Mrs Ruth Clifford – Parish Clerk
Mrs Emma Philbrick – Deputy Clerk
Laila Azure-Marxen – Projects Officer – Via Zoom
District Cllr M Caton
County Councillor R Gooding
1 member of the public – Via Zoom
127 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs O’Brien and Richards as they are both on holiday. Having been proposed by Cllr Smith and seconded by Cllr Sell it was unanimously:
RESOLVED To accept the apologies from Cllrs O’Brien and Richards
_____________PUBLIC PARTICIPATION – None
128 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
Cllr Kavanagh – Planning application 1 as they are her neighbour
Cllrs Hudson and Sell – Agenda item 9 – They are members of U3A
129 TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE FULL COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 15TH JUNE 2022
RESOLVED To approve the minutes of the Full Council meeting held on 15th June 2022 as a true and accurate account.
130 TO RECEIVE A REPORT FROM THE CHAIR, CLLR MAUREEN CATON
– attached
131 TO RECEIVE THE DISTRICT COUNCILLORS’ REPORT
District Cllrs Khan and Sell reported on the recently published report on the findings of the Stansted Airport planning application.
The Task & Finish Group appointed an external expert to look into the process and its findings. The essence of the report attacks the Planning Committee, who have to be impartial, and states that they made the decision in a politically charged environment and were being politically led. These findings were without evidence and it also states that the Committee were under the influence of SSE.
The report has been published on the website so is in the public domain, but they have requested that this be sent back and for more information to be added as this is only a partial report and doesn’t give the full picture.
Lessons need to be learned as the report is damming of previous officers in the previous regime. Meetings had previously taken place between Stansted Airport, political leaderships and managerial leaderships prior to R4U but these meetings were undocumented. No-one knows what was going on and what messages were being given by political and managerial leaderships. It highlights failures and the need to ensure all meetings are documented and put on file.
Cllr Khan advised that they were working well with Stansted Airport in Stansted getting the No Airport Parking signs installed and there were also now signs in Dairy Lane.
Cllr Sell reported that in regard to the Local Plan, they have received the timetable and the draft will be going out for Consultation on 2nd November 2022. This Parish Council will be keen to participate as it is likely to have some impact on Stansted.
Cllr Sell also commented that Walpole Meadows is a mess with regards to Allotments, Play Areas, Open Spaces etc so be believes this cannot be signed over to the Parish Council any time in the near future as it is in no fit state. He suggested the Clerk and Chair invite Dean Hermitage, the new Director of Planning, to attend a meeting regarding this.
Cllr Braeckman asked regarding the Call for Sites and rumours of a mystery site which was put forward after the closing date. How likely are Uttlesford to get sued over this mystery site when surely one set of legal costs is enough? Cllr Sell confirmed that there is a mystery site and district members had also asked this question. They had been assured by the Chief Executive that this will not be the case.
Cllr Hogg asked how they can have a secret site when the process surely had to be transparent? Cllr Sell advised that the Chief Executive had informed them that it was a significant site and it would backfire on them if it was not taken into account. Although the site became available after the closing date, they want the best local plan possible so it should still be considered.
Cllr Braeckman commented that the process should be fair, and it should be made public as with all the other sites out in the public domain.
132 TO RECEIVE THE COUNTY COUNCILLOR’S REPORT
Cty Cllr Gooding reported the following:
The Parish Council has been unfairly criticised recently regarding Grove Hill issues and he would like to meet with Cllr Caton to draft a joint statement.
Church Road – Essex Highways had been hoping to do work on Church Road whilst it was closed by Affinity to carry out their work. Affinity used a sub-contractor who did not close the complete stretch of road which had been granted. The section where Highways needed to work was still open so their work could not go ahead.
NHS changes have seen the dissolution of clinical systems into integrated care systems. Scrutiny Committee met with the Chief Executives of the parties involved and at face value it looks good. However, the three west Essex CCGs (Harlow, Uttlesford and Epping Forest) are now joined with the whole of Hertfordshire and concerns remain that the various processes will not align.
Essex have announced their support for Holiday Hunger, and they are distributing £75 vouchers which can be used in supermarkets for essential items.
133 FINANCE
A TO APPROVE THE LIST OF PAYMENTS
The Clerk advised that the payments and invoices had been checked by Cllrs Hogg and Jessup before the start of the meeting.
The list of payments was approved.
B TO RECEIVE THE SUMMARY INCOME & EXPENDITURE STATEMENT TO 30TH JUNE 2022
This document was tabled and the Clerk advised that herself and Cllr O’Brien had held a review meeting of the budget the week before and they could see no issues ¼ way through the financial year.
C TO RECEIVE THE VAT RETURN TO 30TH JUNE 2022
This was noted by members.
134 TO CONSIDER A GRANT REQUEST FROM THE U3A
Discussions took place between members and with 3 abstentions and 10 votes in favour, it was unanimously:
RESOLVED Not to award a grant to the U3A on this occasion.
135 TO CONSIDER THE LIST OF PLANNING APPLICATIONS
1 UTT/22/1856/HHF – 69 BROOK ROAD
Existing garage to be demolished and replaced with a detached outbuilding
No objection as long as it meets parking standards.
2 UTT/22/1851/LB – 2 BAKERY COURT
Proposed replacement timber window to the rear bedroom and installation of secondary glazing to front lounge and front bedroom windows.
No objection – We have a duty to ensure that homes are energy efficient and remain habitable whilst preserving them. These works are not cosmetic, they make the property more energy efficient and therefore protect it.
3 UTT/22/1850/HHF – 2 BAKERY COURT
Proposed replacement timber window to rear bedroom and installation of secondary glazing to front lounge and front bedroom windows.
No objection – We have a duty to ensure that homes are energy efficient and remain habitable whilst preserving them. These works are not cosmetic, they make the property more energy efficient and therefore protect it.
4 UTT/22/1885/FUL – SWORDERS FINE ARTS AUCTIONEERS, CAMBRIDGE ROAD
New lobby to provide covered access and dry waiting space for collections and deliveries of goods
No Comment other than to date, a marquee has been used for this so it will ibe an improvement.
5 UTT/22/1345/LB – 40 LOWER STREET
Proposed brickwork pointing, replace blown render and replacement of 2 no. ground floor and 1 no. first floor sash windows
No objection – These works are not cosmetic; they make the property more energy efficient/habitable and therefore protect it.
6 UTT/22/1912/HHF – THE NOOK AND CRANNY, 51 BENTFIELD GREEN
Detached timber garden room
No Comment.
7 UTT/22/1971/HHF – 52 WETHERFIELD
Single storey rear extension to replace existing conservatory. First floor front extension with new gable
No Comment.
8 UTT/22/1981/HHF – West Winds, Norman’s Way
Detached double car garage
No Comment.
9 UTT/22/2004/HHF – 37 Bentfield Road
Removal of existing garage and conservatory. Part two storey part single storey side/rear extension
The Parish Council objects on the following grounds:
- Over Development
- Loss of amenity
- They have not addressed the Heritage issues in the previous refusal
- Out of keeping in the Conservation area
136 JUBILEE EVENTS – TO RECEIVE A RECOMMENDATION FROM THE EVENTS WORKING GROUP FOR DISTRIBUTION OF THE FUNDS RAISED
Cllr Caton advised that after discussions, the Events Working Group recommends that the surplus funds of £3320.78 from the Jubilee Events should be given to the Stansted Trust Funds. They use the money to award grants locally meaning organisations such as Touchpoint and the CAB could signpost people to them. Having been proposed by Cllr Braeckman and seconded by Cllr Guney, it was unanimously:
RESOLVED To give the surplus sum of £3320.78 from the Jubilee Events to the Stansted Trust Funds.
Cllr Prior asked if the Stansted Trust Funds could be publicised through the Council’s Social Media channels. Cty Cllr Gooding expressed his interest in supporting them with his Community Initiative Funds and will speak to Cllr Caton about this outside of the meeting.
137 TO RECEIVE A PRESENTATION RELATING TO CLIMATE CHANGE
Cllr Jones and the Projects Officer, Laila, gave a presentation to members outlining why supporting Climate Change is urgently needed, what can be done by residents
and the Council, what potential costs would be involved and what the next steps forward could be. It was outlined that this would need to be a residents’ initiative with support from the Parish Council. The next step would be to use the council’s Social Media channel to ask for anyone wishing to be involved to put their names forward for a working group. Once established, the group would then set out long-term and short-term goals.
Members were all in agreement that this is important, and the Council should be setting an example and showing leadership. They fully support Cllr Jones and Laila on the next steps.
Cllr Sell advised that UDC has a Climate Change Fund with £920,000 still unallocated. Once the Working Group is set up and there are ideas on the table, the Parish Council should apply for some of this before it is allocated to other Councils. The Chairman stated that an application for a grant towards switching our street-lighting stock over to LED is already under discussion with UDC.
138 TO DELEGATE AUTHORITY TO THE CLERK, CHAIR AND CHAIR OF F&GP COMMITTEE TO COMMISSION:
A THE OF UPGRADE OF THE COUNCIL’S WEBSITE
After receiving a written report on this before the meeting and having been proposed by Cllr Kavanagh and seconded by Cllr Khan it was unanimously:
RESOLVED to delegate authority to the Clerk, Chair and Chair of the F&GP Committee to commission the upgrade of the Council’s website.
B THE PROVISION OF THE YOUTH CLUB SERVICE W.E.F SEPTEMBER 2022
The Chair spoke of this in her Chair report at the start of the meeting and a report was also circulated by the Clerk prior to the meeting. Having been proposed by Cllr Guney and seconded by Cllr Jones, it was unanimously:
RESOLVED to delegate authority to the Clerk, Chair and Chair of the F&GP Committee to commission the provision of the Youth Club service w.e.f September 2022.
C THE ADDITIONS/IMPROVEMENTS TO THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS PROGRAMME IN LINE WITH THE RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE WORKING GROUP
Having been proposed by Cllr Jessup and seconded by Cllr Prior, it was unanimously:
RESOLVED to delegate authority to the Clerk, Chair and Chair of the F&GP Committee to go ahead with any additions/improvements to the Christmas lights programme in line with the recommendations from the Working Group.
Cllr Khan asked if members could be given updates of any decisions made just for information purposes.
139 F&GP CTTEE – TO RECEIVE THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 29TH JUNE 2022
Received.
140 OPEN SPACES CTTEE – TO RECEIVE THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 13TH JULY 2022
Received.
141 HIGHWAYS SUB-CTTEE – TO RECEIVE THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 20TH JULY 2022
Received.
Meeting closed at 9.23pm
ACTION POINTS
131 Office to arrange meeting with Dean Hermitage, UDC Planning Director
132 Cty Cllr Gooding and Cllr Caton to meet to draft a joint statement regarding Grove Hill
137 Publicity for members of the community to form a Working Group for Climate Change
REPORTS
Chair Maureen Caton
- The planned repairs to the outside of Crafton Green House have been started and include roof and soffit board repairs/replacements. Work inside the house will also start over the summer and will include the widening of doorways for improved access.
- The success of Touchpoint has been amazing – with the food share now queuing out to the car park . Touchpoint are also supporting Elsenham to have their own scheme. I hope Paul Chambers will be available to address us on the future of the project when we return after the break.
- The pharmacy consultation ends on August 5th – please respond before the deadline to promote our need for a second dispensing pharmacy in the south of Stansted.
I have attempted to meet with our MP to discuss the issues arising from the analysis of the first consultation- but we have had no response to our request. I will be finalising my analysis – which will be sent out to you before the deadline, it will include a section on the viability of two dispensing pharmacies.
- You have received the criteria for this year’s Community Achievement Awards – nominations for those in our community who have made a huge impact on the lives of others through their voluntary work need to be emailed to the Clerk over the summer break (by Tuesday 30th August please). Ruth and I will then collate the responses and discuss with you via email any proposals. The deadline for our decision on an entry is midday September 16th.
- We are in the process of seeking applications to continue to provide the Youth Club service in Stansted. The current providers were aware of the need to undertake this process to comply with the current agreements and procurement regulation; they have been sent the appropriate paperwork to complete for the process. We are seeking at least 2 alternative proposals to ensure we provide a quality service that is cost effective with good recorded outcomes for the you.ng people. The Chair of Finance, myself and the Clerk will work with our co-funders to evaluate the proposals we receive.
- Grove Hill – at last week’s Highways sub-committee meeting, it was explained that Essex Highways have the powers to introduce an HGV ban across the village, including Grove Hill, but the legislation to permit enforcement by camera – either static or mobile – is still to be approved by Parliament. The Uttlesford Local Highway Panel has granted £25,000 for the feasibility study to be undertaken. Part of this work will be to consult with neighbouring communities to ensure that the problem is not just pushed elsewhere. I have asked County Cllr Gooding to obtain a timeline and process for delivery of this project. REPORT ENDS.
AGENDA
You are summoned to attend a meeting of the FULL COUNCIL which will be held on Wednesday 27th July 2022 at 7.30pm in The Mountfitchet Exchange, Crafton Green, 72 Chapel Hill, Stansted, Essex where the following business will be transacted:
1 To receive and approve apologies for absence
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Adjourn for public participation
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2 To receive declarations of interest
3 To approve the minutes of the Full Council meeting held on 15th June 2022
4 To receive an update on action points from the last meeting
5 To receive a report from the Chair, Cllr Maureen Caton
6 To receive the District Councillors’ Report
7 To receive the County Councillor’s Report
8 Finance – All documents to be tabled at the meeting
a) To approve the list of payments
b) To receive the summary Income & Expenditure Statement to 30th June ‘22
c) To receive the VAT Return to 30th June ‘22
9 To consider a grant request from the U3A – see attached
10 To consider the list of planning applications received– see attached
11 Jubilee Events – To receive a recommendation from the Events Working Group for distribution of the funds raised.
12 To receive a presentation relating to Climate Change – see attached
13 To delegate authority to the Clerk, Chair and Chair of F&GP Committee to commission:
- a) the upgrade of the Council’s website – see attached
- b) the provision of the Youth Club service w.e.f. September 2022 – report to follow
- c) the additions/improvements to the Christmas Lights programme in line with the recommendations from the working group
14 F&GP Cttee – To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 29th June ‘22
15 Open Spaces Cttee – To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 13th July ‘22
16 Highways Sub-Cttee – To receive the minutes of the meeting held on 20th July ‘22
Ruth Clifford, Parish Clerk – 21 July 2022