NORTON CANES PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of Council Meeting
held on 27th January 2021
Virtual meeting held via Zoom at 7 p.m.
Present: Cllrs J.Preece
J Bernard
Mrs.A. Bernard
J.Beddows
J.Newbury
Mrs.S.Harding
M.,Holder
K.Fereday
Mrs.Z.Stretton
.M.Stretton
.D.Bilbie
Mrs.D.Todd
Also In Attendance: Mrs.L.Florence (Clerk)
3 members of the Public
Public Participation:
Minutes of meeting held on16th December – Mrs.J.Woodman referred to the minutes of the meeting relating to the issue of ‘A’Boards displayed on Norton Green Lane/Walsall Road. She felt that the minute was not correctly recorded and that Cllr.Holder had told the meeting that the ’A’ boards were more about attracting passing trade and so the concept of having a formal business sign on that area is not relevant. The issue of the ‘A’ boards is about how this impacts on the presentation of the village. Mrs.Woodman said the existing matrix board is so badly sited and poorly visible due to it being in overhang of hedge. Suggestion that the matrix board may be resited as a compromise. Mr.Sanders asked whether there would be a benefit if a residents working group was set up to try and look at this problem.
Cllr.Mrs.Z.Stretton said that she felt that planning permission would be required for these type of Boards and agreed to contact the District Council to look into this issue and report back to full Council. Cllr Holder stated that it depends where the ‘A’boards are located and if they are on highways then they have power to remove them.
Pothole car park Burntwood Road – Mr.R.Knowles asked if any action had been taken relating to the pothole on the junction of the car park and Burntwood Road. The Chairman informed the meeting that he had been in discussion with the Highways Dept requesting an immediate repair to this as from next week there will be a COVID-19 Vaccination Centre opening at what was the old dentist and will have to accommodate emergency vehicles who will need to park there.. The Liaison officer was coming out that day to look at the problem and clarification needed as to whether this is County or District responsibility. Cllr.M.Holder said that if this pothole is not reported then it is not classed as an official job. The Clerk reminded the meeting that it is important that all highways issues are reported via the County Council highways portal or let the Clerk know so that this can be logged.
Fly tipping on Norton Lane – Mr.Knowles reported fly tipping in this area which is constant and felt that nothing is being done to stop this. The Chairman reported that the District Council have 2 Court cases relating to fly tipping so that the District do take action when they have proof. The Clerk said that she regularly reports fly tipping issues to the District Council particularly along Washbrook Lane/ Norton Lane and has suggested that the District Council do a weekly sweep of this area.
Public Participation closed at: 19.50 pm
001/2021 Apologies
No apologies were received.
002/2021 Declarations of Interest were receive from:
| Member | Interest | Reason |
| Cllr Mrs.Z.Stretton | Planning applications
Agenda Item 9(a) |
Member of District Council Planning Committee |
| Cllr Mrs.D.Todd | Planning applications
Agenda Item 9(a) |
Member of District Council Planning Committee |
| Cllr Mrs.S.Harding | Miner’s Plaque
Agenda item 5 |
Member of CHAPS |
003/2021 Minutes of Meeting held on 16th December 2020
The Minutes of the Council meeting on the 16th December 2020 were agreed as a true and
accurate record to include the following amendment:
Page 2 – ‘A’Boards – item discussed under public participation refers.
Proposed: Cllr. J.Bernard
Seconded: Cllr. Mrs.D.Todd
Matters Arising from the Minutes
There were no matters arising.
004/2021 Police Report
A written report from PCSO Ashton had been circulated prior to the meeting. The report was concise and gave information relating to incidents occurring in the village since the last Council meeting. Councillors said that the report in its current format was welcome and that we should ask for this to be continued for the future. Cllr.Bilbie raised a query relating to an incident reported on the 29th December re cars speeding on the Orbital and asked for further clarification on this incident.
Cllr.J.Newbury told the meeting that he had received reports of off road bikes on Railway Street and the number plates of those involved have been passed on to the Police.
Action: Clerk to contact the PCSO re any queries raised from the report.
005/2021 Miner’s Plaque
A report had been circulated to Councillors prior to the meeting with a draft quotation to
be included in the book of remembrance. Some discussion ensued on the wording and some
disparity about the inclusion of the word Cannock being included in the quote. Cllr.J.Newbury
felt that the word Cannock should be omitted as he considered Norton Canes was not part of
Cannock. There was some disagreement amongst Councillors regarding this and the geography of
the village was debated.
Cllr.M.holder said that in his view we were talking about a quotation that is relevant to a plaque
that has been purchased with the money from the parishioners of the village and refers to the
mining heritage of the village. This has no bearing on postal areas or where we as a village are
positioned within a District
Cllr.Mrs.A.Bernard suggested as a compromise that the wording should be Norton Canes in the
In the District of Cannock Chase. Following discussion a vote was taken and it was unanimously
agreed that the words should be Norton Canes, Staffordshire.
Cllr.Holder asked for clarification as to how many words could be included and some suggestion
put forward of either 250 or 400. Cllr.Holder said that he felt it was important the perhaps the
names of the mines be included and also an estimate of how much the population of the
village relied on this industry for their livelihood.
Cllr Mrs.Z.Stretton suggested that the words pits be omitted from the quotation and that this
should be replaced with the word coalmines.
It was resolved:
That the suggested amendments be made to the narrative for the content of the book and
that the amendments be authorised by the Chairman and the Clerk before submitting to
CHAPS.
006/2021 Cema Upgrade
The meeting was informed that the consultation had now closed and there had been a
Favourable response. The next stage is to analyse the comments from the consultation and review
the plan for the upgrade which will then be taken forward by a working group consisting of Officers
of the District Council, Ward Councillors and representative from CHAPS. Cllr Newbury gave
detail of the timescales for the project which is still looking to commence the work in early
Summer.
007/2021 Grove Colliery
There is nothing to report regarding this item but will remain on agendas for the future.
Cllr.Mrs.S.Harding told the meeting the Chisholm Wallace from Little Wyrley Estates is now back
residing in the village and has expressed interest in the progress of this site.
008/2021 Reports from Councillors
There were no reports from Councillors.
009/2021 Reports from Committees
- Planning
| No of Planning Application | Address of proposed application
|
Proposal | Comments by Parish Planning Committee |
| CH/21/0019 | 24 Castlecroft
Norton Canes Cannock |
First Floor side extension, two storey rear extension and new porch | To be considered by Planning Committee |
| CH/21/0013 | 38 Lingfield Road
Norton Canes |
Demolishing existing conservatory and replacing with rear extension. | To be considered by Planning Committee |
| DECISIONS BY CCDC/SCC | |||
| No decisions reported |
A summary of planning applications had been circulated prior to the meeting. The Planning
Committee had now had the opportunity to review the applications listed and there were no
objections. Cllr.Mrs.S.Harding said that she had been approached as to what was happening with
the erecting of fences on the site for a bungalow on Bridges Road as it was felt to be that this had
been installed to hide something. There has been no reports regarding this matter and suggestion
that it may have been done for security reasons by the developer if they were storing materials on
site.
It was reported that there are problems with flooding on the pathway leading from Jackson Close to
the new estate on Norton Hall Meadow. The site manager has been asked to look into this.
Cllr.J.Newbury told the meeting that he has been liaising with the developers regarding the paths
and roads on the estate following complaints from residents. He is in communication with the
Technical Dept and has had a good response to questions raised. He would raise the problems with
the flooding on the pathway with this Dept to see if some resolution can be found.
ACTION: Cllr.J.Newbury to follow up issue with flooding on pathway from Jackson Close to new
estate with the Technical Dept of Persimmon Homes.
- Projects
Cllr.Mrs.A.Bernard told the meeting that the Projects Committee had not met but a meeting is
being scheduled for early February. Some of the project work has been going forward as follows:
Summer plants have been ordered and the lengthsman is planning the plants for the hanging
Baskets.
Welcome signs -The new style welcome signs have been authorised and agreed the locations
that we have put forward. We are awaiting confirmation from Highways Dept that we can locate
the signs as suggested. There has been some delay in this due to the Christmas break and Covid,
BKV – it is not clear at this time whether the BKV competition will be taking place this year. We
continue to plan some of the work that contributes to BKV as this is for the benefit of the village.
We will await the outcome of the organisers regarding this and then if it is proceeding the
Projects Committee will meet to put an action plan together.
Lectern Board for the Old Manor House to be located on Norton Hall Meadow estate has been
ordered and we are awaiting a date for installation.
Community Speedwatch signs – this is something that the Projects Committee will be looking to
discuss at its meeting. It is agreed that it is important to display these signs as we do regularly
carry out speedwatch sessions during normal circumstances.
The Projects Committee will also be looking at additional pieces of land around the village that we
could consider for taking over to enhance those areas of the village.
Cllr.Mrs.Bernard suggested that if any Councillor has any ideas/suggestions that they wish to put
orward for consideration they should let the Clerk know.
Audit and Governance
Cllr. J.Bernard said that there were no financial matters for discussion. The Audit and Governance Committee had met on the 26th January and following that meeting the Committee will be putting forward GDPR Policies and item relating to staff pension scheme to the February Council meeting
for discussion.
010/2021 Neighbourhood Plan
A brief update was given relating to the Plan. The meeting was told that a letter has been sent to the District Council from the Steering Group regarding housing allocations and ‘asks’ as discussions were taking place at District level with regard to the Local Plan review and it was important that they had our views that linked into our Neighbourhood Plan. A copy of the letter and report is circulated to all Councillor information. Some discussion ensued relating to the future housing and how this could impact on the village. Cllr.Holder commented that the Planning Consultants had done an excellent job in relation to the report.
It was suggested that an extra-ordinary meeting with the only agenda item being the Neighbourhood Plan be arranged. The Consultants will be asked to attend to enable them to provide a formal update on the work of the Plan and the next steps. This would also provide an opportunity for Councillors to ask any questions.
Action: Clerk to arrange a Zoom Council meeting for the Neighbourhood Plan.
011/2021 Highways
Traffic Island on Norton Hall Lane – whilst it has been agreed by Highways Dept to take up the remaining artificial turf on the island and replace this with grey shale, this has still not happened. The Clerk is chasing Highways Dept on a regular basis for a timescale for this work to be carried out.
Norton Hall Meadow Estate – Cllr.J.Newbury said that he had been contacted from a number of residents from the new estate regarding issues relating to the roads and paths which are not yet adopted. Some of the issues are about give way and marking signs and Cllr.Newbury said that he had been liaising with Persimmon who have been very positive in sorting issues out.
012/2021 New Cemetery
The meeting was informed of the current position relating to the new cemetery which is that we are still waiting for the legal process of the Deed of Easement to be concluded. The Consultants are now preparing a draft loan application for approval to get an in principle decision to enable us to go forward to construct the new cemetery.
013/2021 Chairman’s Announcements & Correspondence
To note the correspondence that was circulated prior to the meeting.
The Chairman referred to a letter that had been received from the District Council asking the Parish Council for any preference/suggestions in terms of street naming for the new houses under construction on the Old Sycamore site. Discussion ensued on this and Councillors felt that it would be appropriate to put forward perhaps the name Rose either Rose Gardens or Rose Court in recognition of Brenda Rose. This would have to be with the approval of the family. The Chairman said his view was that it may not be appropriate, particularly in the eyes of the public who have lost a Club and Bowling green facility, to include street names that reflect these. One suggestion put forward by the developer s Fair Lady but Councillors felt that if this was reference to Fair Lady Coalmine, then this was not appropriate as this coalmine was more in Heath Hayes than Norton Canes. It was also considered that Fair Lady is also used in other areas in close proximity to Norton Canes and to avoid any confusion re postal address we should comment that Fair Lady may not be appropriate for use. It is acknowledged that not all the suggestions put forward are accepted by the developers.
Action: Clerk to contact the Rose family to put forward a suggestion of a street being named after Brenda Rose and if they are in agreement then this should be put forward to the District for consideration.
014/2021 Authorisation of Accounts
A schedule of payments for January was circulated to Councillors prior to the meeting. The
Clerk that there was additional payment made following circulation of papers. This relates to
HMRC in the sum of £1,175.01 which relates to tax and ni contributions for the months of
Oct/Nov/Dec.
Proposed: Cllr J.Bernard
Seconded: Cllr. M.Stretton
015/2021 Date of next meeting: Wednesday 17th February 2021 at 7 p.m. Meeting will be held via Zoom.
016/2021 Items for Information and Future Agenda
The meeting closed at 20.30 p.m.
SIGNED……………………………………………………….……… DATED……………………………………….…………………..……