SINGLETON PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Meeting of the Parish Council
Held at Singleton Village Hall on 17 August 2023
Present: – Cllrs Ibbotson (Chair), Cllr Cholmondeley (Vice-Chair), Bailey, Clifford and Lee and the Parish Clerk, Verena Henderson, who took the Minutes. County Councillor Singleton also attended.
| 1. | Apologies for Absence – None |
| 2. | Police Matters The Chairperson had contacted Inspector Harper regarding having a Police representative at a future Parish Council Meeting. The two main concerns the Parish Council wished to bring to the attention of the Police were speeding traffic and drug related activities. Reports have been made about strong smells of cannabis near to the church and a driver who stopped just off Mains Lane was found to be under the influence of drugs. |
| 3. | Open Forum – None |
| 4. | Minutes of previous meeting held on 20 July 2023 and any matters arising – The Minutes of the previous meeting, having been previously circulated and agreed, were signed as a true and correct record by the Chairperson. Matters arising Milestone. Advice sought from Fylde BC but the Chairperson was told it was nothing to do with them. A very helpful officer at LCC advised how to restore it and, as it had not been recorded, added this to their records. The Chairperson was then redirected to Fylde BC for their attention. Kier is now in touch with Fylde BC about it.New pole for locating the SpID. LCC has quoted £400 per pole, and we would start with 2 poles, both on Lodge Lane – just north of North Lodge and at the entry to the village. The other poles would be purchased out of future years’ budgets. The representative from LCC would meet with The Chairperson and Cllr Clifford on 22nd August. Cllr Ibbotson proposed that the sum of £800 be paid for both poles, this was seconded by Cllr Lee and Agreed. |
| 5. | Declarations of Interest – None |
| 6. | Planning matters and decisions 23/0527 – Greenways, 77 Mains Lane FY6 7LD – Two storey rear extension. The Parish Council has no specific observations to make. 23/0521 – Normandy, 178 Mains Lane FY6 7LB – Erection of replacement dwelling and detached garage – The Parish Council has no specific observations to make. Decisions 23/0453 – Orchard Nurseries, 166 Mains Lane FY6 7LB – Granted 23/0440 – Rose Cottage, The Village, FY6 8LL – Refused |
| 7. | Traffic and Highways issues Overgrown hedges obstructing pathways continue to be a problem in the parish and the Chairperson has identified eight places which need attention – Mile Road – north side footpathFire Station to Miller ArmsLodge lane between Village and Singleton LodgeSingleton Lodge (West side) to farm gate opposite BarnfieldGarstang Road to Windy HarbourMains Lane – Koi Pool to Skippool – both sidesShard Road towards bridge (west side)North Lodge to Shell Garage (east side) County Cllr Singleton undertook to find out who owned these areas if the hedges had not been cut by the next meeting. Andy Pawson, who cuts the grass on behalf of the Parish Council, would be retiring in April and a new person will be taking over from him. It was considered a good opportunity to think again about what areas should be cut and possibly extending this. LCC pays an annual fee to the Parish Council to cut the grass in some areas on their behalf. Any change in this would have to have the agreement of LCC and this would need to be put to them well before the next financial year. It was agreed to put this item on the next agenda. County Cllr Singleton submitted his monthly report as follows: – Pool Foot Lane – The public footpath is a public right of way and LCC will undertake remedial work as soon as possible. They have also identified a pothole which they will repair. With regards to the damaged bollards, Highways have inspected the area and raised an order to replace the missing bollards.Station Road – Unfortunately this is not considered as a priority. They will reassess Station Road as part of their work to create a draft 2024-25 highways programme.Mains Lane – Cutting of the verges and hedges has been escalated to the National Highways maintenance team. Still complaints coming in about this, however.Metal plates in the carriageway. LCC has reported concerns to Network Rail and asked them to remove them.Lodge Lane footway – LCC has inspected the area and agrees there are signs of deterioration which they believe is due to vehicles working on the new by-pass. LCC is currently liaising with Development Control team in order to review the agreements in place before taking any appropriate action. They will arrange a full inspection of the surrounding area once the project is complete. |
| 8. | New By-Pass Cllrs Ibbotson and Bailey attended a meeting with Kier on 26 July 2023. It is extremely unlikely that they will move equipment back into the area once their work has been completed and therefore if the plans for the Village Green are delayed, their help cannot be counted on. As regards the by-pass, Kier says that cars should be driving on it by Christmas, although there will still be work on-going. A footpath from Barnfield Manor to Singleton Hall has been ruled out as the traffic calming island is not designed as a pedestrian refuge. LCC would have to be consulted to see if a safe width can be accommodated in the space. Seventeen trees of a decent height are to be planted between Singleton Hall and Barnfield Manor. A five-year maintenance contract for the trees is in place between National Highways and LCC which covers all trees against damage, theft or just dying. The Parish Council will need to keep an eye on this. |
| 9. | Correspondence A weighty bundle of booklets and literature concerning the proposed Morecambe Bay Wind Farm which will see wind turbines installed west of Blackpool, was passed initially to the Chairperson for perusal. |
| 10. | Update from Fylde Borough Council Cllr Lee reported that Andy Pratt, the Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner, had agreed to have a meeting with the 5 parishes concerning monitoring speeding traffic. In Elswick people have been trained and are now authorised to use a speed gun on their own. All information is passed on to the Police for action. If a driver gets caught twice, their car could be impounded.Kirkham Baths is to close. Unfortunately, the YMCA who run the pool are unable to fund the total value of the money needed to modernise this old building, which was badly damaged by a falling tree in a recent storm. The insurance payout did not cover the amount of work needed to bring the pool up to standard. The building is being put up for sale and any monies raised will be ring-fenced for finding future facilities.Riverside Mobile Home site – Planning went through for a holiday license. However, complaints already received regarding them advertising for permanent dwellings. |
| 11. | Village Green Fylde BC is still trying to recruit a new designer for their architect’s department, who is needed to help with the design of the Village Green. The former designer left some months ago. Tourism and Leisure are putting this through for funding however, but progress cannot be made until this designer is appointed. A meeting with members of the Trust has not taken place yet, due to members being on holiday, but it is hoped that this will happen after the holiday period. Cllr Lee will suggest some more dates to the Trust. |
| 12. | Accounts and Any Invoices to pay The Clerk had written to the Trust to request their contribution towards the annual cost of litter-picking in the parish. This year the amount was much higher due to the hiring of a Eurobin from Fylde BC and the increase in hours for the litter-picker. The half-payment up to 31 March 2023 was £2,808. Litter-picker – 4 weeks – £411.00. Proposed Cllr Ibbotson, Seconded Cllr Cholmondeley. Agreed.Clerk – Salary and expenses for July/August – £372.69 – Proposed Cllr Lee, Seconded Cllr Clifford. Agreed. |
| 13 | Any Other Business Looking for areas for possible siting of benches – still on-going.Possibility of getting a sponsor to maintain an area in the parish, with planting, seating etc was discussed and will be investigated. |
| 14. | Date and time of next meeting The next meeting will take place on Tuesday 26 September at 7.15pm. As there was no further business, the meeting closed at 8.45pm. |
Signed ……………………………………………… Dated ………………………………
Verena Henderson, Clerk to Singleton Parish Council,
Tel: 01995 670455: email: Clerk@SingletonParishCouncil.org