HORTON
KIRBY AND
MINUTES
of the MEETING of the PARISH COUNCIL held on
Present: Cllr P
Bradley (Chairman),
Cllrs A Burchmore, D Payne, G Piller,
M Powsey, D Snape, G Tripp,
R Valentine and I Wescombe
T Searles, District
Councillor,
P McGarvey, District Councillor
D Brazier,
3 members of the
public
In attendance: C
Allart, Parish Clerk
Apologies for
absence: None
Declarations of
Interest: None
RESOLVED
that the Minutes of the meeting held on
RESOLVED
that the Minutes of the meeting held on
There was
discussion on the pavilion pipe work.
Only 1 estimate had been received so far and it was agreed that a
special meeting would be held when 2 or 3 quotes had been received.
RESOLVED
that the Minutes of the Westminster Field Advisory Committee held on 14 August
be approved and adopted.
There was
discussion on the village hall drain work which had yet to be completed. Cllr Burchmore
thought that the remaining short runs of pipe that needed lining would be done
at half term. Cllr Wescombe
was still waiting for the requested video showing the the
situation before the relining work started.
It was agreed that no more would be paid until the matter was resolved.
The clerk
reported that she had bought 4 vinyl-slatted blinds for £21 and asked whether
these should be put up instead of the paper blinds.
RESOLVED that,
subject to the agreement of putting up vinyl blinds instead of paper ones in
the kitchen, the Minutes of the Village Hall Advisory Committee held on 11
September be approved and adopted.
The clerk
reported that it would be necessary to consider how to deal with grant
applications. It was also deemed
necessary to extend the membership of the Welfare Working Group so that at
least 3 members would be able to decide each application, taking into account
affiliations with local organisations and declarations of interests.
RESOLVED that
1.
this year, applications should be received by the
end of November for a decision at the January council meeting; and
2.
in future years,
applications be requested by the end of September for a decision at the December
Parish Council meeting.
Report
Mrs Potts of
Paddock Cottage next to the Lower Paddock has reported a poplar tree near her
boundary that she considers needs pollarding.
Advice from the Sevenoaks tree officer has
been given that the tree is in good health and is no problem at the
moment. However, it will grow
substantially and will need work to keep it under control. It might be better to replace it with a smaller
tree.
Perhaps some
thought should be given to all the trees on this council’s land that might
interfere with neighbouring properties and decide whether some smaller trees
should be planted this winter that wouldn’t need future maintenance. Then provision could be made in future estimates
for taking down or pollarding the trees that need it.
Discussion
Members were
firmly against removing any mature trees but agreed to keep it under
observation for when pollarding will be necessary in the future. Members agreed that they will survey all
trees on parish council land.
Otford Parish Council
has written to invite this parish council to be involved with them, Eynsford and Shoreham in a promotional booklet encouraging
visitors to use the railway rather than their cars.
RESOLVED that the
offer to take a half page in the booklet and contribute to the cost be
declined.
Members discussed
the various aspects of how this proposed event would impact on the village and
residents. The route suggested was
RESOLVED that in
order to obtain more information, a meeting with the cycle club and
representatives from the Village Societies be held.
Report
An application
for the transfer of licence from Nigel and Jenny Archer to Jacqueline Port and
Louise Emma Selby will take place on
Report
The Boundary
Committee for
Report
RPC is holding a
public meeting in Gillingham during the day on 11 November. It will allow discussion and questions on
performance and customer expectations.
If anyone is interested in going, the programme for the day is
available.
No one was
available to attend.
The clerk
reported that she had recently received inspection reports for the
playgrounds. As no one had had time to
study them, and there were no high risk items, it was agreed to defer
consideration until the next meeting.
A questionnaire
received from Kent RCC asking for views on local concerns and trends was
considered in detail and completed.
A copy has been
received for consultation which ends on 10 November. Reported for information.
Report
West Kent
(Housing) has plans to develop wasteland at Saxon Place with approximately 10
new houses and a small community building.
A planning application will be made shortly. Janette Nye of West Kent wants to come to a
Parish Council meeting to explain the proposal and may therefore be present at
this meeting.
Ms Nye did not
attend the meeting but Members were interested to know who would be living in
the new houses ie would it be local people.
88 PLANNING
SE/03/02026/FUL
Spinneys, Kirby Hall, The
Street
Demolition of
Existing Conservatory and Erection of Replacement Single Storey Rear Extension
The Parish
Council has no comments on this application.
SE/03/02100/FUL
Meadow View, The
Street
Erection of New 2
Storey 3 Bedroom House
The Parish
Council objects most strongly to this proposal.
It will form a cramped development in a spacious part of the Horton
Kirby Conservation Area and will spoil the openness and setting of the existing
houses. The fact that the new house abuts
the extension of the house next door will tend to give terraced effect and
spoil the street scene.
The Parish
Council also has concerns about building on the flood plain of the River Darent which is known to flood in this area. It considers that no further “soft” areas
should be built upon in order to help reduce the risk of flooding.
SE/03/02168/FUL
Traffic Island
North of The Lodge, Franks Lane
Change of Use to
Residential and Stationing of One Caravan / Mobile Home for a Gypsy Family
The Parish Council
objects in the strongest possible terms to this application.
The land is in
Green Belt and a Special Landscape Area with a nil use classification so all
development should be refused. A change of use to residential is completely
unacceptable. It is important to keep
this area as unspoilt wooded area for the reasons given in response to the
recent TPO namely the pleasant rural aspect at the entrance to our parish, a
sound barrier and pollution reducer for residents from the busy A225, a
wildlife refuge and an important setting to Franks Hall a Grade I Listed
Building.
The Parish
Council notes that the application is for the stationing of a caravan for a
gypsy family. Since Mr Carter appears to
live in Orpington and has stated in public that he bought the land to build a
house for himself, we urge close investigation into whether this caravan would
be for persons of nomadic habit of life or whether it is simply a means of
trying to get round the system
SE/03/02115/FUL
2 Beeches Farm
Cottages, Canada Farm Road
Relocation of
Existing Track to side of 1 and 2 Beeches Farm Cottages
The Parish
Council has no comments on this application.
The following
decision notice has been received:
SE/03/01618/FUL
82 School Lane
First Floor Rear
Extension and Pitched Roofs
GRANTED
New Works in Lower Paddock (fencing) and at Village
Hall (gate)
Cllr Valentine
submitted his written report that both items were well constructed.
Cllr Tripp
reported that volunteers had successfully completed the clearance work for this
footpath on 24 October.
Cllr Searles reported that the Police have said that if enough
residents write in about speeding, they will get out on the roads with their
speed guns. Cllr McGarvey
said that Farningham PC were still pursuing a 50 mph
limit on the A225 and that talks with SDC’s Carol
Reynolds were in hand.
Cllr Searles was sure that everyone knew that the chimney had
been listed on 13 August which was great news but he felt that locals still
needed to be vigilant. Cllr Wescombe reported that he was meeting the site owners on 30
September to discuss possibilities.
Cty Cllr Brazier
referred tot he housing provision and distribution part of the newly published
Deposit Plan of the Kent and Medway Structure Plan. It showed that the Sevenoaks
District had the smallest housing provision (2,400 between 2001 and 2016 out of
the Kent total of 90,000). He urged
vigilance to make sure that the north of the District was defended because of
the proximity of Thames Gateway.
RESOLVED that the
schedule of accounts and the budget update, as submitted, be approved and
payments made accordingly.
Malcolm Dunn gave
a brief report on the river. He also
told Members that porous paving stones were being used in certain developments
to let the rainwater through and thus
help prevent flooding.
The meeting ended
at 9.50 pm
Chairman
Date