Minutes of Gosforth Parish Council meeting held on 9th March 2022 at 7pm at Gosforth Public Hall.
Present: Mark Fussell (Chairman), Rachel Unsworth (Vice Chair), Graham Hutson, Tyson Norman, Paul Turner and Jacqueline Williams (Clerk)
A minutes silence was held to remember Mike McKinley who passed away on 1st March 2022.
247/22 Apologies for Absence
Apologies have been received from Cllr. Gray due to illness.
RESOLVED that apologies be approved, and the reasons noted.
248/22 Declarations of Interest – none received
249/22 Minutes of the meeting held on 9th February 2022.
Two actions are still outstanding, contacting other parishes regarding public toilet management and chasing Eskdale regarding the Fred Whitton Challenge meeting.
RESOLVED that the minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on 9th February 2022, pages 139 to 141 be accepted as a true record and signed by the Chairman.
250/22 Public Participation – No members of the public were present.
251/22 County Councillor and District Councillors’ Reports
Cllr. Turner reported that he would no longer be our County Councillor from 1st April 2023 and confirmed that his request for double-yellow lines on Petton Place/A595 has been granted.
252/22 Planning Applications:
Applications:
RESOLVED that the following applications are received and the Planning Authority be advised of the Council’s observations as follows: no objections
7/2022/4015 Mill House Farm, Wellington – general purpose agricultural building
7/2022/4017 Long Acre, Gosforth – alteration and extension for bedrooms over garage
4/21/2542 Land to North of High House Farm (Squeezy Barn) – Amendment to previous application
4/21/2531 Land to North of High House Farm (Squeezy Barn) – Amendment to previous application
4/22/2052 Sellafield – Enabling works to facilitate the re-opening of existing access
Decisions:
7/2021/4126 High Boonwood – siting of 5 touring caravans – Granted
Other Planning matters:
Councillors discussed the proposed woodland works at Bolton Hall which involve the felling of a strip of roadside trees which have become unstable and will be replanted with native trees. Additionally, they have applied for a woodland creation grant to plant 1.85 ha of new native trees.
RESOLVED that the Parish Council fully support the proposal.
253/22 Financial Reports
RESOLVED that the Bank Reconciliation to 28th February 2022 be received and noted.
RESOLVED that the schedule of payments be approved for payment.
254/22 Traffic & Roads
Cllr. Hutson reported that the parking at the entrance to Denton Park by teachers and parents is getting worse and is now a safety issue. Cllrs. discussed the situation and possible solutions. Cllr. Fussell said he would try to organise a meeting to broker a resolution.
A local resident had written to the Parish Council suggesting a one-way system. It was noted that this suggestion had been made previously and was fully investigated by Area Highways Engineers and the Police. They concluded that the negatives outweighed the positives and there will be no further considerations to investigate a one-way system in Gosforth. The Clerk will send a response to the local resident.
Cllr. Norman said that Calderbridge and Ponsonby are writing to CCC to ask what plans are in place for a diversion should the A595 be blocked as it was recently when a large tree came down. They have an alternative plan which they are working through. Cllr. Fussell said that if it goes ahead, Gosforth Parish Council would support it.
Cllr. Unsworth asked about the ‘No Entry’ sign requested for Hardingill. Cllr. Turner said he would check on progress.
Cllr. Fussell said that the sign for Meadowfield is being delivered to Moresby and will need to be installed.
255/22 Public Toilets & Car Park
Cllr. Turner said there was no moratorium on asset transfers. Cllrs. agreed that there is insufficient time to complete a transfer before the unitary authority takes over in April 2023. The Clerk wrote to Barbara Vernon on 28th February requesting assistance on getting a quote for the work and regarding the cessation of the annual payments. No response has been received to date.
RESOLVED that the Clerk request an update.
256/22 Playground
Cllr. Unsworth reported that they had received a negative response from the National Lottery and were now looking at GDF funding. Cllrs. Fussell and Unsworth had met with GDF funders who advised splitting the project into three phases. Cllrs. Unsworth said they were a long way off submitting a bid as they need to acquire quotes and commence community consultation. Cllr. Norman remarked that Copeland Community Fund was another source of funding.
Cllr. Unsworth had received an approximate estimate for a stock fence of not more than £1,000. The Clerk was asked to email Anthony Millard and get back to Cllr. Unsworth.
257/22 Platinum Jubilee
Cllr. Unsworth has written an article for Tethera Magazine encouraging residents to have their own garden parties with neighbours as they did for VE day.
258/22 Geological Disposal Facility
Cllr. Fussell said there was not a long to report at this stage. Community engagement events will be taking place in the near future and some funding applications have already been approved.
259/22 War Memorial
No progress was reported, possibly due to poor weather.
260/22 Defibrillator
The Clerk had contacted an electrician and the move is in progress.
261/22 Tree Survey/Gravel Pit
A Tree Survey had been completed (in error) on behalf of CCC which identified some remedial works which had been prioritised. Cllr. Norman questioned whether we need to engage a company to do the work and suggested sending the Tree Survey to John Slater.
262/22 Grounds Maintenance
The Clerk had received a quotation from Copeland with a small increase in cost. The Clerk raised concerns over the lack of communication as they had not responded to two emails requesting repairs. Cllr. Unsworth confirmed that the boulder had been replaced.
RESOLVED that the quotation be accepted.
263/22 Trees at Entrance to Denton Park
The Clerk had written to Copeland, sending the documents supplied by Cllr. Gray but no response has been received.
RESOLVED that the Clerk request an update.
264/22 Meetings
No meetings were reported.
265/22 Councillor Administration
The Clerk noted that we have four vacancies. Cllr. Fussell said we need to recruit more Councillors and added that, due to the pandemic, we had been unable to have the community consultation events for the Community-led plan which may have been an opportunity to recruit new members and committee members for the Public Hall.
266/22 Councillor Matters
No matters were raised.
267/22 Items in Camera – none
268/22 Date of Next Meeting
The date of the next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday 13th April 2022 at 7pm.
Meeting closed at 9pm.