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Fetemanagement Two members of the public raised the matter of the village fete and asked that the parish council take the lead by forming a fete sub-committee. This was agreed. The parish council’s insurance would cover the fete and all activities relating to it. An appeal would be made for volunteers, emphasising that this was the village’s one main fundraising event of the year. Village hall soakaway Bill Piper reported that several tennis balls had been removed from the drain and it was now cleared. However, water was starting to accumulate outside the fire doors and a gulley heremight help. The guttering on the neighbouring building was damaged, causing further flooding and the householder had been asked to deal with this.A report was awaited from the contractor before deciding the next step. Police matters There had been one burglary (non-dwelling) and a theft from a house. Road accidents There had been three traffic incidents on Seven Mile Lane at the bend by Orchard Place and one fatality. KCC Cllr Matthew Balfour said there was no engineering solution to the accidents. There was a 50mph restriction and the policemust enforce this. The PCSOs said they had undertaken several speed checks recently. The chairman said the parish council expected the police and KCC to continue to look for a solution to this dire situation. Kent Street Cllr Matthew Balfour said that the plans for Kent Street were still ongoing and the parish council would be consulted. There was no money for major roadworks though a solution could be development (section 106) which was not wanted by residents. Precept The precept for 2016/17 was set at £11,947.22, an increase of 10% on the previous year. It was generally felt that as the parish council had been running at a deficit for some years and had used up the revenue from land sale some years ago, it was not prudent to allow this situation to continue. There had been no increase for several years and the workload required of the parish council had increased. Cllr Jenny Thorogood wished it to be recorded that she did not agree with the small increase, but felt it should be 25%, as she felt that parishioners wanted tree pruning, grass cutting and verges to continue to be done to a high standard.


Offham


Crash It was reported that the police, Kent Highway Services and Tonbridge and Malling Council were investigating the circumstances of the recent fatal crash on Seven Mile Lane to try to prevent a similar accident happening. Aldon Lane A lorry recently got stuck on Aldon Lane and caused damage trying to turn around. Kent Highway Services was looking at ways of preventing vehicles taking short cuts along this narrow road. Phone box Following the parish council’s successful application for a defibrillator and case from the British Heart Foundation, plans were discussed for installing it in the old phone box on Teston Road. The box was to be called the “Book


Box” and would include shelves of books which could be read and replaced or swapped by residents. SpeedWatch Volunteers would be taking part in training for the programme which should restart in the village soon. Quiz night Tickets for the quiz night being held in the village hall on February 27 cost £7.50 each and include a glass of wine and hot food. They can be purchased from CllrWendyWilliams on 01832 841501.


Noticeboard The parish council had paid for and installed a new noticeboard outside the village hall. Precept Councillors discussed the budget for 2016/17 and agreed to keep the amount per band D household the same as last year.


Ryarsh


Signs Kent Highway Services had looked at the “slow” signs and white lines in the village and considered the centre line was adequate. Of the seven “slow” signs, two were worn and did not warrant action yet. White lines were not marked in winter but possible work would be investigated again in April. Phone box The contractor suggested by BT for maintenance of the phone box was not interested in such a small job.A local resident, who was a painter and decorator, would be contacted. PotholeA pothole in The Street had been reported to Kent Highway Services. Grass The KCC Landscape Service quote for cutting the recreation ground grass had been accepted. DefibrillatorA local electrician would be contacted to provide a light for the phone box which would be on a timer or operate when the door is opened, and for the defibrillator. It was agreed to keep the box red on the outside and white on the inside. Pub The Duke ofWellington pub would be 500 years old this year and celebrations were planned throughout the year. It was hoped that the parish council could join in with the celebrations with something at the village fete suggested. Highways The bank opposite Moonfield was eroding and had been especially bad in the past few weeks.A couple of trees had come out of the bank and appeared to have been holding it together. The bank was breaking down and soil was washed down the road and blocked the drains on The Street. It was presumed that Redrow was now responsible for the bank but it was not known if repairing and maintaining it was built into the terms of the planning permission for the site. Bus stop The bus stop on London Road, opposite Roughetts Road, heading in the Wrotham direction, had no shelter. Waiting passengers were getting soaked when it rained. The clerk was asked to write to Tonbridge andMalling Council to request a shelter. Play area The roundabout was beyond economic repair. The play area was still popular with children from school, hall hirers and users of the recreation ground. It was anticipated that it would continue to be popular even when the new play area was installed in the Brickworks site. It was agreed that the parish council should look into replacing the roundabout. Precept It was agreed to reduce the


amount paid for 2016/17 by a band D household to £50.48, which is £3.61 less than the previous year. The final precept request was for £14,289.


Wateringbury


Co-option John Evans was co-opted to serve on the parish council. Allotments Theminor repairs to the gate had been done. Budget Councillors voted to set the precept for 2016/17 at £109,516.32 which included the £40,000 one-off requirement for a new wet pour surface at the play area.


Community assets TheMill Pond had been placed on the list held by Tonbridge and Malling Council. Planning The council had no objections to the following applications: South View House, 226 Tonbridge Road, single storey extension; 5 Phoenix Yard Cottages, removal of mobile home and domestic outbuildings and erection of new annex. Play equipment Negotiations were still progressing with Playdale about the replacement of some wooden supports. The existing surface would be replaced with wet pour once these had been replaced. Sports and Recreation Association Mike Witts reported that the wetness of the ground had delayed the work to refurbish part of the playing fields. Cllr Dennis Stones agreed to represent the parish council on the association’s management committee. Village warden John Ibbs reported that the only problem currently was dog fouling. Dog owners were reminded to pick up after their pets. Public discussion Topics raised were: councillors’ meetings with Siemans about use of Drayhorse Meadow car park for work to be carried out to install a temporary switchgear module; village plans for Clean for the Queen; Croudace plans for housing at a site in the village.


West Peckham


Deer shooting Concern was expressed that deer shooting was taking place in Hazel Wood in the locality of a public footpath. The landowner would be contacted to see if permission had been given for this. FundingA request had been received for financial assistance forWest Peckham Cricket Club. The council agreed a one-off donation of £500 to secure the future of the cricket club and ensure its financial security. Roads Iron work was missing outside the church. This had been reported to SouthernWater. Concerns were expressed about the crossing at Seven Mile Lane and Mereworth Road at school time with the way cars were being parked particularly around The Octagon, often forcing cars into the middle of the road. The clerk would write to the school asking if parents could please be considerate about parking. Dog bin This had now been installed. Budget The precept for 2016/17 was set at £2,998, meaning £17.30 for a band D property – a slight increase of 6p or 0.35% over last year because the tax base reduced from £173.93 to £173.32.


Malling February 2016 33


Parish Councils


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