SINGLETON PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Meeting of the Parish Council
Held at Singleton Village Hall on 19 March 2024
Present: – Cllrs Ibbotson (Chair), Bailey, Clifford and Lee and the Parish Clerk, Verena Henderson, who took the Minutes. Borough Councillor Paul Hayhurst also attended.
| 1. | Apologies for Absence were received and accepted from Cllr Cholmondeley and County Cllr Singleton. |
| 2. | Police Matters Information received that a new Chief Constable has been appointed for Lancashire – Sacha Hatchett. She feels very strongly about community policing and her three priorities are: – 1) anti-social behaviour; 2) drugs; 3) anti-social speeding. There will be a speeding clampdown – 3 times every month in every borough. The Police did attend at the school in February, following a request from the Clerk relating to concerns about parking and the dangers posed to pupils because of the volume of traffic going through Singleton at the time. Recorded crimes for Elswick, Little Eccleston, Singleton & Greenalgh for January 2024 show that 8 crimes were reported for violence and sexual offences, 4 for anti-social behaviour, 3 for criminal damage and arson and 3 public order offences for the 4 villages. |
| 3. | Open Forum – None |
| 4. | Minutes of previous meeting held on 20 February 2024 and any matters arising The Minutes from the previous meeting, having been previously circulated and agreed, were proposed to be accepted by Cllr Lee, this was seconded by Cllr Clifford and signed as a true and correct copy by the Chairperson. Matters arising Response received from the Trust stating its vision for Singleton fits in with the Local Plan, identifying a requirement for houses in Great Singleton. A Housing Needs Survey had shown that 1 house was needed. Since this time 11 have been built and outline planning permission granted for more. Cllr Lee will be attending the Planning meeting on the Parish Council’s behalf. As regards the possibility of a car park being made on Church Road, the Trust is in agreement with this idea, but this is subject to funding and future priorities.Cllr Lee has purchased a speed gun and case, and this has been used several times already.Community Payback Projects – Cllr Clifford is to meet with the organiser on 26 March regarding clearing litter from the de-commissioned stretch of Garstang Road.The framed portrait of HM The King has been ordered.Footbridge over new by-pass – Kier has put down the 25 metres of tarmac as promised to improve the footpath on the other side of the bridge. |
| 5. | Declarations of Interest – None |
| 6. | Planning matters and decisions – None A very full and extensive report had been received from a Planning Enforcement Officer at Fylde following complaints received about the number of advertising hoardings and general chaos currently being caused to residents of Mains Lane by the many contractors in the area. Every one of the properties identified had been visited by this officer and some building control issues were identified as well as planning issues. The officer undertook to keep an eye on the various locations and already some improvement has been witnessed. The Clerk was asked to write and bring the officer’s help to the attention of his superiors. |
| 7. | Traffic and Highways issues New SpIDs on Lodge Lane – Still in abeyance until the 60mph speed limit is reviewed. LCC is to hold a meeting with Kier regarding this on 20 March. The Chairperson will attend.Two new SpIDs have been given to the Parish Council by Kier for Mains Lane. These will be put in place when the speed limit is reduced from 40mph to 30mph.Overgrown grass/vegetation areas – work has started on these by contractors to LCC.Footway on Lodge Lane from the property `Brierfield’ to the new bridge will be reinstated to a satisfactory condition by Kier.Barnfield footway – The splitter island outside North Lodge has been altered. Work is still needed to the one outside Barnfield Manor.New speed gun – Cllr Lee reported that this has been used by himself and volunteers on several occasions. The data from the SpID had also made interesting reading showing that traffic coming down Church Road had increased 2.86 times since the partial opening of the by-pass. It was noted that drivers immediately slowed down when they saw the speed gun. The Parish Council was very pleased with the volunteers who had helped with this process. Volunteers had also come forward to do a `lollypop’ duty outside the school at opening and closing times. |
| 8. | New By-Pass With reference to the bridge over the bypass at Barnfield Manor, LCC had asked Kier to change some of the kerbs. This has resulted in an uneven surface and Kier is to sort it out.It was agreed that traffic flow on the by-pass had improved considerably since it had been fully opened. Some drivers still needed encouragement to use the by-pass, however. Suggestions for the new road’s name had been forwarded to both Kier and Fylde BC. |
| 9. | Correspondence Information received that residents should now subscribe to the 2024/25 green bin collection service. The price for the service is £36 per green wheeled bin. Posters regarding this have been put on the 3 noticeboards and the website. |
| 10. | Update from Fylde Borough Council Proposed Windfarm – Fylde BC is objecting to the short consultation process.The Heritage Officer will be getting in touch with Kier regarding replacing the milestone.Village Green – Fylde’s officers are to start working on the initial stages in April. |
| 11. | Election of new Councillors Once a parish councillor has retired, the Clerk will notify Fylde BC who will then provide a notice to display for 14 days. On day 14, Fylde will advise if they have received a request for an election. If no request is received, they will then advise the parish council to co-opt at the next meeting. The vacancy needs to be official before anything can happen and so written confirmation is needed that the councillor/s will not be attending any more meetings. This item will be put on the Agenda for the April meeting. |
| 12. | National Living Wage from 1 April 2024 The Clerk advised the meeting that minimum wage rate from 1 April 2024 for workers aged 21 and over will rise to £11.44 per hour. This should be considered when reviewing contractors’ pay in the Annual Parish Meeting. |
| 13. | Accounts and Any Invoices to pay – Rent payable to the Village Hall from October 2023 – March 2024 – £113. Proposed Cllr Ibbotson, Seconded Cllr Bailey. Agreed.Litter-picker – 3 weeks – £308.25 – Proposed Cllr Lee, Seconded Cllr Bailey. Agreed.Clerk – Salary and Expenses, including new stationery for 2024/25 financial year – £477.53. Proposed Cllr Ibbotson, Seconded Cllr Clifford. Agreed.Cllr Lee – Reimbursement for purchase of Speed Gun and case – £192.36. Proposed Cllr Clifford, Seconded Cllr Bailey. Agreed. |
| 14. | Any Other Business Cllr Clifford reported that 5 ducks had been killed outside his home, having been run over. He wondered if appropriate signage could be obtained warning motorists of ducks visiting the area at this time of year. The Clerk will ask Cty Cllr Singleton.Potholes – More to be reported on the “Love Clean Streets” app. Church Road in particular was bad at the moment. It was agreed that more people should be encouraged to report these by using this app.School signs – There are two school signs with warning lights on the main road through Singleton Village which have not been used for many years. The Clerk was asked to look into getting these working again. |
| 15. | Date and time of next meetings – Tuesday 16 April – Monthly meeting at 7.15pm, and Tuesday 21 May – Annual Parish Meeting at 7pm, Monthly meeting at 7.30pm. As there was no further business, the meeting closed at 8.45pm. |
Signed ……………………………………………… Dated ………………………………
Verena Henderson, Clerk to Singleton Parish Council,
Tel: 07530 605 291: email: Clerk@SingletonParishCouncil.org