Draft Mintes of Denstone Parish Council Meeting 14^th July 2025 at 7.00pm

1. Attendees: Cllr Turner (Chair), Cllr E Edmonds, Cllr M Flower, Cllr K Stratton, Cllr Ratcliffe, Cllr Wright, Cllr M Shermer, Cllr Mountney, Borough Cllr Steve Sankey and J Sadler (Clerk)

  Apologies – Cllr Oldroyd–Clarke

7 members of the village present.

2. To receive declarations of interest – None.
3. To approve the minutes of the 9^th June 2025 – The minutes were approved and agreed by all as a true record of the meeting. These were signed and dated by Cllr Turner (Chair).
4. Adjournment for public participation

No issues were raised.

5. Signing of Declaration of Acceptance of Office – Cllr Mountney signed the declaration of acceptance of office as the Vice Chair and this was witnessed by the clerk.
6. Matters Arising/Clerk’s report
   1. Correspondence Received – the clerk informed the meeting that she had received a quote for the benches on the railway line from Cllr Mountney, this would be discussed later in the agenda.
   2. School Fence – Cllr Turner informed the meeting that she had attended a meeting with the head of All Saints School and members of the trust along with Cllr Shermer and Cllr Oldroyd-Clarke on the 11^th The meeting was to establish the facts about what was being proposed and at what stage in the process the school were. The meeting revealed that the fence is not going to be as dramatic as was first thought and there will be no removal of any hedges, in fact the plan is to plant more hedges to obscure the fence. Cllr Turner passed out a document to all councillors that she received during the meeting with the school and it was agreed that Cllr Turner would go back to the head of the school and ask if she was happy for the document to be put on the website and Denstone Matters Facebook page. This is the link to the document https://denstonevillage.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Fencing-All-Saints-CE-Academy-Denstone.pdf After further discussion it was unanimously agreed by the councillors that, sad that is, felt to be necessary the Parish Council were happy to support the school with their plans as long as the plans are implemented as per the meeting with the school. Action Cllr Turner and the clerk.
   3. Railway Line Leak – the clerk informed the meeting that she had heard from SCC who confirmed that the drain had been reported and an engineer would be looking into it.
   4. Church Contribution – it was unanimously agreed to make a contribution of £800 to the church for the cutting of the grass in the graveyard.
   5. Microsoft 365 renewal – the clerk informed the meeting that the renewal was up, however it had increased to £35.00. This was unanimously agreed.
   6. ICO renewal – the clerk informed the meeting that this was also up for renewal and had been increased to £52.00 This was unanimously agreed.
   7. Carved Tree update – The clerk informed the meeting that she had heard back from Dave Green and he was meeting with David Boden in August to look at the tree. Any work that is needed he will do free of charge. Thank you to Mr Green.
   8. Railway line Fence – The clerk was happy to report that the new fence was now in situ. However it was noticed that there was no horse latch on it, so the clerk had already contacted the ranger requesting this. Cllr Flower had volunteered to put the old signs back on the new gate. Clerk to order a new lock and chain. Clerk to create a new laminated sign stating a list of names to contact in an emergency. These would include Cllr Shermer, The Tavern, Cllr Wright and Cllr Stratton. The number of the padlock would also be given to the ranger. Action Clerk
   9. Fibre internet access – This was raised by a member of the village, Borough Cllr Sankey stated that the boxes were in situ but not out yet to properties. Cllr Sankey stated that he advises as many people to register on the website even if not wanted, as the more people registered the better. Cllr Sankey agreed again to write to Openreach and Cllr Turner agreed to write to Cllr Hales. Action Cllr Sankey, Cllr Turner and the Clerk
   10. Extra Defibrillator – This was raised by a member of the village, it was agreed that the clerk would contact British Heart Foundation regarding Funding and AEDdonate to establish having it put on a post. Possible site visit. Action Clerk
   11. Grit Bin and Street Sign – Marlpit Lane – the clerk informed the meeting that the street sign would be replaced in 8 weeks. With regards to the Grit Bin, this was not broken just pushed in so it could not be opened. Cllr Flower agreed to have a look. Action Cllr Flower
   12. Lady Meadow Bridge – Clerk informed the meeting that this had been reported but nothing heard yet. Will chase if no response. Action Clerk
   13. Drains outside the church – the clerk informed the meeting that this was scheduled for the end of July.
7. Planning (Permitted & Refused are decisions by ESBC) – Cllr Turner
   1. P/2025/00573 – Erection of a single storey rear and side extensions and formation of porches, erection of detached triple garage and formation of new driveway and access – Denstone Hall, Main Road, Denstone, Staffordshire, ST14 5HF – This was unanimously agreed that there were no objections to the application but it was requested that the clerk would comment on the access issue with regards to traffic on the road. Action Clerk
   2. NP Review – Cllr Turner informed the meeting that this had now been agreed. There will be a 6-week consultation commencing Friday (18^th July) which would close on 29^th Due to the lead-in times for Committee Reports at the Borough Council, the Examiner’s Report would be considered by the Cabinet on 20^th October, with a referendum potentially being held on either Thursday 4th or 11th December. Either way it should be completed by the end of the year.
   3. CRBT – Roberts Green – Cllr Turner informed the meeting that sadly there was nothing further that the Parish Council could do regarding this.
8. Highways – Cllr Shermer
   1. Potholes – Sunk hole outside the Tavern, still nothing done with this. Clerk to contact Cllr Oldroyd-Clarke for the reference to chase. Action Clerk
   2. Feasibility Report – Cllr Shermer informed the meeting that there was still no update despite numerous emails.
   3. Data B5032 – no update for the suggested date for the 31st August had been received. It was agreed that the clerk would contact Cllr Hales regarding a meeting with Cllr Turner and Cllr Shermer before the next meeting. Action Clerk
9. Playground – Cllr Flower
   1. No update but Cllr Flower asked for it to stay on the agenda. Action Clerk
10. Village Hall – Cllr Stratton
    1. Cllr Stratton informed the meeting about the following
       1. the chairs in the hall had been cleaned.
       2. The Tavern had raised £192.22 for the village hall.

• In future all invoices will be sent out every 3 months.

1. There would be a Sunday Lunch on the 3rd August, raffle prizes are required please.
2. Solar Panels are being looked into for the Village Hall.
3. The carpark is being patched as required.

• The carpark will be closed on the 19th, 25th and 26th July.

11. Finance
    1. Accounts – the clerk informed the meeting that the documents had been sent off to the external Auditors.
12. Miscellaneous
    700. Benches on the Railway Line – Cllr Mountney sent a quote for £700.00 plus VAT for the 2 metal benches to be sand blasted. It was agreed that the Parish Council would look at purchasing some recycled plastic benches instead. Clerk to send pictures to councillors. Cllr Mountney agreed to look at removing the metal ones for scrap. Action Clerk and Cllr Mountney.
    701. Stubwood Notice board – the clerk informed the meeting that the notice board had been removed and taken for repair.
    702. Defib Stubwood – The clerk informed the meeting that we had loaned a defib whilst the other one was still away. Clerk to chase where it is. Thank you to AEDdonate for the loan of the defibrillator free of charge. Action Clerk
13. Payments – To approve the following payments:

The clerk went through the payments individually. The payments were Proposed by Cllr Ratcliffe  and seconded by Cllr Edmonds. All payments would be processed online by Cllr Shermer and Cllr Flower. All invoices would be signed and would be returned to the clerk once actioned

25. Carolyn Hinton – Website – pay for June 2025 = £25.00 [LGA 1972 s142 & 144]
26. Clerk’s pay for June 2025 (Made by Standing Order) = Net Pay  £550.63 [LGA 1972 s112]
27. Julie Sadler – Travel June 2025 – £10.80
28. HMRC – Clerk – Tax – June 2025 – £137.60
29. HMRC – Clerk Employee National Insurance – June 2025 – £40.69
30. Stuart Smith – Lengthsman – June 2025 – £170.58
31. Contribution to the church – £800
32. ICO renewal – £52.00
33. Microsoft 365 renewal – £35.00
34. AEDdonate – replacement defibrillator pads – Stubwood – £163.19
35. Village Hall – Hire of the Hall and cleaning outside toilet – £100.00
36. items for Future Agenda
37. War Memorial – Fountain and gardens
38. Best Kept Village
39. Keep clear signs
40. Lengthsman Duties
41. Royal British Legion
42. Cleaning the stream in the village

Date of next meeting – 8^th September 2025 at 7.00pm Village Hall Denstone