Rona welcomed everyone, in particular Sue Patterson the new Head of Burton Green School. Sue said she was passionate about communities and small schools and was working hard to establish the relationship between Burton Green and All Saints, Leek Wootton, of which she had been head for many years. She looked forward to getting to know people in Burton Green.
Rona also welcomed Cllrs. Ann Blacklock, John Whitehouse, Ian Cox, Adrian Hickinbottom and Ian de Worringham as well as PC Peter King.
Apologies
Apologies had been received from Cllrs. George Illingworth and Archie Taylor. (Cllr. Taylor joined at the end of the meeting.)
Minutes of the last meeting and Matters Arising:
The minutes of the last Annual General Meeting of October 1st 2012 were accepted.
Proposed: Andy Gibbs
Seconded: Mary Webb
Matters arising
All matters arising were to be covered by agenda points.
Chair’s Report
A report had been circulated in advance via the Bugle so that time could be made available for questions.
The Chair, Rona Taylor, explained the focal points for 2013 had been as follows:
Initiatives
Installation of the defibrillator. Thanks were extended to Mary Webb and the team trained to use the equipment.
Lunches for the retired. These had been a huge success, were amazing value and an important addition to the social life of the retired residents.
Oddsocks. Thanks were again given to Mary Webb and the Jubilee Group for organising this excellent event. As a result, £750 ad been donated to the Vilage Hall and the same amount to the Greenway Trust.
Responses to concerns
Pavements, verges and road matters were ongoing. Jean Thompson had submitted a letter regarding the problems of pushing a wheelchair round cars parked on the pavements. Rona said there was a need to be aware as a community and that residents should have the courage to speak to those parking on the pavements and explain the predicament.
Bus services to Kenilworth had been less successful. The Monday bus caused no problems but the Thursday bus had capacity issues. John Whitehouse had helped with this so a flexible bus was now to be added. This was a very important service, especially for people of Red Lane.
HS2. The Residents’ Association had worked closely with the Burton Green HS2 Opposition Group. Rona had represented BGRA at HS2 fora and at a meeting with HS2 Ltd organised by Jeremy Wright. She had particularly emphasised the devastating effect HS2 would have on community sustainability in Burton Green.
Treasurer’s Report
The Income & Expenditure Account and Balance Sheet are attached separately and Terry went through the figures.
Terry thanked Peter and Lesley Tacon for helping with insurance matters and Peter in particular for inspecting the accounts.
A question was asked about how many residents paid the subscription and the conclusion was a large proportion. Mary explained that the collection team called at houses several times but sometimes failed to make contact. The significant funds raised were a tribute to the collectors, it was agreed.
Thanks were expressed to Terry.
Election of Independent Examiner
Peter Tacon again agreed to act as Independent Examiner.
Proposed: John Levett
Seconded: Jerry Marshall
Unanimously agreed.
Election of Committee members
Janet Hickinbottom, as Joint Secretary, conducted this agenda item.
The constitution required that the officers and three committee members should stand down. All the officers Rona Taylor, Mary Webb, Terry Heyes, Janet Hickinbottom and Judi Hibberd, were re-elected.
Proposed: Barbara Noronha
Seconded: Deirdre Vernon
Unanimously agreed.
Faith Ward was prepared to stand again as a committee member.
Proposed: Eileen Nisbet
Seconded: Peter Tacon
Unanimously agreed.
John Nisbet and Marlene Hills would be leaving the committee. They were thanked for their valued contribution.
Others remaining on the committee were Hilary Cox, Andy Gibbs, Bron Putnam, and Faith Ward.
Alice Hawkins had agreed to join the committee.
Proposed: Bron Putnam
Seconded: Shirley Howes
Diane Swindells was also nominated.
Proposed: Faith Ward
Seconded: Judi Hibberd
Update from Police
PC Pete King thanked Rona for sharing Jean Thompson's letter about parking on the pavement. This was something the police needed to re-evaluate. PC King would speak to Jean.
Action: PC King
Residents pointed out the problem also occurred in Red Lane and especially in Hodgett’s Lane when events took place in the Village Hall.
It was suggested that a sign was erected at the Village Hall asking users to park sensibly.
Action: Village Hall committee
PC King said the new alliance with West Mercia meant PCSOs had increased powers including the issuing of tickets.
PC King thanked Tery for his help and support with parking at the Oddsocks event.
One resident asked about noise problems at a party and reported that the police could not come out. PC King was surprised but said it must have been a resource issue on the night. Another resident said Environmental Health Officers would be of assistance if it was a regular problem.
PC King reminded everyone of the Kenilworth Update done in conjunction with Crown Watch (a well established NHW group in Kenilworth). Residents would receive an electronic copy if they signed up for community alerts. A hard copy was also to be left at the Village Hall.
The last reported burglary in Burton Green was on January 13th so PC King said Burton Green was one of the safest places in the area. He still warned about leaving valuables on view in vehicles.
One resident expressed concern about cars passing cyclists e.g. on the bend in Red Lane. It was asked if more signs could be made available but John Whitehouse said he felt they would not be read. Again, behaviour of drivers was down to personal responsibility. There were still issues regarding the Cromwell Lane Bridge and people not giving way.
Rona wondered if it would be appropriate to invite anyone from the County Council to speak about highways. Cllr. Whitehouse said the potential change of speed limits might help. Do the white lines need repainting?
PC King mentioned The Police Surgeries in the Village Hall were not well attended. It was suggested that their frequency shold be reduced. Residents were reminded that if they had a specific issue to discuss the police were available everyThursday at the clock tower in Kenilworth during market opening hours. Mary would add this information to the Bugle.
Action: Mary
Rona thanked PC King for providing a friendly, visible face of policing in the village.
The Village Hall
Kathryn Stewart thanked everyone for supporting the Hall in the last twelve months at events including a murder mystery night, a curry evening, the produce show and BBQ. The number of regular hirers was stable and income had done well.
A meeting with HS2 Ltd had revealed an intention to replace the Village Hall but there was no detail and nothing in writing. A further meeting was to be held shortly to discuss the Hall's future and the continued provision of this vital community resource.
Peter added the Village Hall accounts showed what an incredible span of ages and interests the Hall served.
The Village Hall AGM was to be held on November 22nd. A craft fayre was scheduled for November 24th and on December 6th there would be a lunch for older residents.
Thanks were given to the Village Hall committee for all their hard work.
Neighbourhood Watch
John Levett said residents still needed to be vigilant. Mainly in Kenilworth car keys were often stolen from porches or hallways. There were now only 2 PCSOs operating so residents' help was appreciated. John reminded everyone of the 101 non emergency number.
Information distributed by the police that was relevant to the village was circulated on the village email list. Requests to receive this information should be made to John and could be sent directly rather than by email if required.
Household security items were still available at Town & Country Furniture in Kenilworth.
Trading standards information, particularly concerning internet fraudsters, was also circulated on the village list. Residents were warned never to divulge their PIN number.
Occasionally pedlars were selling door to door and PC King said they were not lawful without pedlars' certificates. The police station had signs saying "We don't buy from door to door salesman."
Terry mentioned You cash vouchers and a scam going around regarding PPI claims. Similarly Western Union scams took place because transfers of cash in this way were not traceable.
Thanks were given to John.
Burton Green Councillors’ Report
Cllr.George Illingworth was unable to attend but had sent a report as follows:
During the year I was given increased responsibilities at the District council regarding HS2. This involves both outright objection as an attendee at the joint local government 51m opposition meetings and also discussing mitigation at a more local level. I have made sure that the Officers of the Council are increasingly involved in the latter so that should the scheme go ahead we do not suffer more than is necessary. I even managed to attend one afternoon in the High Court to hear the appeal to the judicial review when I happened to be in London. Sadly that saga continues to the Supreme Court. Let us hope we receive justice there.
Involvement in the wider picture confirms my view that Burton Green is one of the hardest hit communities on the route. I am pleased that in the meeting with Jeremy Wright MP HS2 at last conceded that the Village Hall could not continue to function during any potential construction phase. We are all aware, and have the evidence to show, that the Hall is crucial to the vibrancy of your community. Should that dreadful day arrive a new one must be built before the current one is abandoned.
Of course any new location for the Hall depends on the future structure of the village which will be influenced by the Local Plan. We will all watch with interest and no doubt some concern as that develops, but the opportunity is there for the community to help shape the future.
Finally, during my year as Mayor of Kenilworth I had the privilege of twice being invited officially to functions in Burton Green. I greatly appreciated that honour and Joanna and I thank you all for your welcome and hospitality.
Cllr. John Whitehouse had a submitted report the highlights of which he went through:
In May I was delighted and honoured to be re-elected as your county councillor for a third term. I am very grateful for the support I received from across the Burton Green community.
Warwickshire County Council
The political make-up of the Council changed considerably in the May elections, and WCC is now a ‘hung’ council, with a minority Conservative administration. This means that at least two of the political groups on the Council need to reach agreement on major policy decisions, especially the budget. WCC needs to make £92 million p.a. savings over the next 4 years, a budget 26% reduction. Having already made £66 million p.a. savings over the last 3 years, these future cuts will involve very difficult choices, and inevitably loss of services and facilities. The Council will set its 4-year budget in Feb 2014.
HS2
WCC reaffirmed its total opposition to HS2 at the last Full Council meeting in September. It is continuing to give financial support to the 51M judicial review appeal to the Supreme Court, which is scheduled for 15th/16th October. The impact of HS2 on WCC is substantial and growing, with a dedicated team of officers and a £400,000 p.a. budget to ensure the best possible outcome for Warwickshire residents if the project goes ahead.
Speed Limits
Residents will recall two previous village consultations on reducing speed limits, both of which failed because of resistance to the traffic calming measures identified as necessary at the time. However, policies have now changed, and WCC will shortly be launching a formal consultation on proposals to reduce speed limits to 30 mph in both Cromwell Lane and Hodgetts Lane, without the imposition of traffic calming measures.
In Hob Lane, extra funding has been secured to establish a ‘school zone’ 20 mph speed limit in the vicinity of the school, with warning flashing lights similar to those at manned school crossings. The initiative has the support of both WCC and Warwickshire Police, and will be the first rural installation of such a scheme in the county.
Community Speedwatch
I was pleased to be able to help the new Community Speedwatch team to get established, working closely with Terry Heyes and then Patrick Hehir. The enthusiasm of the team is exemplary, while the numbers of volunteers involved is in marked contrast to the much larger community of Kenilworth, where the Speedwatch team has been struggling to find new recruits.
The Greenway
With the completion of the University section of the route, the work of the Connect2 Kenilworth Steering Group came to an end earlier this year, although I continue to work with the Greenway Trust, Solihull MBC, WCC and Sustrans on pursuing options for cycling and equestrian access at the Berkswell end of the Greenway.
Thursday bus service to Kenilworth
I continue to work hard with Rona Taylor to secure a reliable Thursday bus service to/from Kenilworth, one which Burton Green residents can have confidence in again. After months of pressure we finally got agreement to a larger vehicle being used on the route, but Burton Green residents are still being left stranded at the bus stop, which is unacceptable. The bus operator has agree to write a letter of apology to affected residents, but I shall not stop pressing until the service is providing sufficient capacity for all those wishing to use it from Burton Green.
Cllr. Ann Blacklock of WDC reported on a very busy year. WDC continued to fight HS2. WDC had also been working on the Local Plan which would come out soon. It needed validating and then would hopefully come into effect in 2015. (The previous Local Plan had more or less expired.) Cllr Illingworth was part of the group reviewing the policies going into the plan.
Cllr. Blacklock said the "bedroom tax" was withdrawing the subsidy from those in receipt of housing benefit if they had more bedrooms than they needed. Some disabled people were affected by this change even though they needed extra space. Councils had some funds to offset this but these were quickly running out.
Sexual entertainment venues had become a controversial issue in Leamington.
Ann concluded by listing the wide variety of committees to which she belonged.
Thanks were expressed to Ann.
Cllr Ian Cox, Chair of the Parish Council also reported a busy year.The Parish Council had been active in responding to HS2 consultations. He thanked Cllrs. Marlene Hills and Marcus Stewart for their work. The Council was now working on the new consultation on compensation. A new notice board in Red Lane was to be installed.
The Neighbourhood Plan was placing emphasis on shaping the vision for the future of the village and its infrastructure. Where should development take place? How would areas be protected? How should buildings be designed? Problems arose because there was no knowledge of what the village would look like after HS2. HS2 had said they would help with this. In the near future the community would be ale to make their views known.
The Parish Council would add weight to concerns about parking, road markings etc.
One resident said there were difficulties in reading notices posted within the board on Cromwell Lane. Cllr. Cox replied that this would be addressed. He also agreed to facilitate Parish Council agendas and minutes being circulated on the village email system.
Action: Cllr. Cox
Cllr. Cox and the Parish Council were thanked for their work.
The Bugle
Mary Webb explained how the Bugle was funded and said she was always looking for articles. Residents were requested to submit these.
Rona thanked Mary who was an invaluable member of the community.
Parish Plan
Kathryn Stewart reported that the Parish Plan survey had produced fantastic results: there had been 374 returns. This was a massive effort by everyone. The responses had been collated and the report was now available. The small steering group had been allocated parts of the resultant activity involving a summary of each section and key action points. The group wanted to make sure all views were captured.
Kathryn asked if residents would be interested in an evening event at which to present results and the response was affirmative. Some residents requested circulation of the results on the email system prior to any meeting.
Action: Kathryn
Faith said Rona and Mary had been to visit local secondary schools to capture the views of younger people and she and Eileen Nisbet were to consult pupils in Burton Green to include their views.
HS2 News
Andy Gibbs spoke of the consultations, raising of money, meetings, forums, and a meeting with Jeremy Wright. He highlighted the Safeguarding directive for those living within 60m of the proposed line. These residents could serve a blight notice so they could bring forward the purchase of their property at the full market price plus expenses.
The consultation on compensation was to close on December 4th. It was proposed to set up a Rural Protection Zone instead of the VPZ and maybe introduce a property bond. Residents were requested to respond to the consultation.
Going forward, there were to be Judicial Reviews on 15th and 16th October. This might result in going to the European court.
The government was still saying it would deposit the hybrid bill by the end of January 2014. The final environmental statement would be included. 150 changes had been made along the route but residents were unaware what they would be. There would be 56 days to petition against the bill if residents could prove they were affected.
Community forums had now finished for the Birmingham to London section.
Andy felt the politics of HS2 were moving in the right direction, towards being a vote loser. However, HS2 was still supported by all three parties and so would still happen if the situation remained as at present.
Further donations were still needed to fight the plans.
A compensation roadshow was to be held in Kenilworth on November 1st.
Rona thanked Andy
Speedwatch
Pat Hehir explained that the Speedwatch initiative had been running for about a year. Eleven volunteers had been trained and started monitoring speeds in April. Terry had now handed over responsibility to Pat who had been very grateful for Terry’s excellent co-ordination with comprehensive notes. A speedgun calibration point had also been established at Terry’s home.
Pat gave an outline of the number of sessions held and said that in total 15 vehicles had been exceeding the speed limit. Speedwatch was acting as a deterrent on a regular basis.
The volunteers would like to continue to be out on a weekly basis and when the speed limit reduced their activity would be even more important. They might also look at doing some early morning sessions.
Thanks were extended to all volunteers and to John Whitehouse and Pete King for their support.
A query was raised about whether speeders were prosecuted and the response was that they received a letter from the police reminding them of the speed limit.
AOB
Rona thanked Janet for her tireless work taking the minutes.
She also thanked everyone for coming and to contributing during the evening and ended by saying what a special community Burton Green is.
Deirdre announcded an "Octobash" event on October 10th in aid of the air ambulance.
Faith thanked Rona for all her work.
Date of Next Annual General Meeting
The next Annual General Meeting would be held on Monday October 6th 2014 at the Village Hall.
Showing posts with label AGM. Show all posts
Showing posts with label AGM. Show all posts
Sunday, 20 October 2013
Saturday, 6 October 2012
Minutes of Residents' Association AGM 1st October 2012
Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Burton Green Residents’ Association held on October 1st 2012 at the Village Hall.
Rona welcomed everyone and, in particular Cllrs. Ann Blacklock, Michael Coker, John Whitehouse, Nick Hillard and PC Peter King.
Apologies
Apologies had been received from Cllr Ian de Worringham, Cllr Archie Taylor, Cllr George Illingworth, Cllr Vaughan Owen, Mike and Deirdre Vernon, Diane Swindells, Caryll Green and Liz Saxon.
Martyn Stacey of WDC sent his apologies: he had been scheduled to make a presentation about keeping our village tidy.
Minutes of the last meeting and Matters Arising
The minutes of the last Annual General Meeting of October 3rd 2011 were accepted.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Judi Hibberd
Rona queried whether in future it would be sufficient to circulate the previous AGM minutes via the Burton Green website and the village email system to save printing costs. This was agreed. Anyone needing a hard copy should contact Rona.
Matters arising were to be covered by agenda points.
Chair’s Report
A report had been circulated in advance via the Bugle so that time could be made available for questions.
The Chair, Rona Taylor, explained the focal points for 2012 had been:
Treasurer’s Report/Election of Independent Examiner
The Income & Expenditure Account and Balance Sheet are attached separately.
Marlene reported that BGRA had had a busy year. Subscriptions had been increased this year to £3 per house and Mary Webb and the collection team, who did sterling work, collected £713 to 31 August 2012. Thanks were extended to Mary and the team.
Mary Webb had redesigned the Bugle and had been able to sell £272 of advertising space to assist with production costs. In addition, the Parish Council donated £250 thus making the Bugle almost self financing.
The Parish Council had initially voted to give £250 to BGRA towards the Jubilee weekend but as funds were not necessary, Marlene had requested that this sum be earmarked towards fund raising for the defibrillator unit which, with the kind agreement of the Village Hall committee, would be located at the Village Hall. This sum, along with the Jubilee surplus and Parish Plan surplus, was held in the savings accounts specific to the causes for which these donations were made.
Marlene had been offered £885 of funds towards Burton Green’s Jubilee celebrations, which she gratefully accepted on our Community’s behalf. These funds went towards the many activities organised over that weekend, including paying for public liability insurance for the public event held at the school (thanks to Lesley Tacon for organising this)
Burton Green Jubilee events started with special funds raised from the “Live and Local Arts on the Doorstep.”Regarding the Jubilee weekend, the Residents’ Association and the Greenway Trust held a successful Art on the Greenway and thanks were expressed to David and Jill Lines and Diane Swindells. A number of works of art were sold generating 10 per cent commission on the sales. The total of funds raised that day were split three ways between the Residents’ Association, Burton Green Village Hall and the Greenway Trust (Kenilworth to Berkswell). Each of those good causes received £98.93 and letters of thanks had been received. Thanks were due to the Stanworths for allowing the jubilee beacon on their land to conclude the weekend’s celebrations.
The Residents’ Association held a remaining sum of £278.24 from the special Jubilee donation funds received. This was held specifically for the Residents’ Association’s next major Parish event.
The joint Parish Councils - before Burton Green Parish Council became independent - had awarded £200 towards the Burton Green Parish Plan survey. A small portion of this had been spent leaving a remainder of £157.75 to be allocated in due course specifically towards the Parish Plan.
Total income for the year including the above was £3,429.12 and expenditure was £3,415.34. Expenditure included costs incurred towards the Parish Plan £155.25, AGM expenditure and room hire to the Village Hall and the printing of the Bugle.
A donation of £250 was voted by the BGRA towards Deirdre Vernon’s successful “Made in Burton Green” exhibition for specific purchase of item/items which were not be to be sold for profit purposes and with the knowledge that the residue from this donation would be earmarked towards the 2014 exhibition.
The sum of £350 held for Greenway Trust had now been paid across.
Marlene reminded everyone that most money was either thanks to donations or subscriptions and as such were classed as public monies.
BGRA’s current account assets were £695.04 less creditors of £364.19. However, one of these creditors, WEAVE, who presented an invoice of £300.00 for Jubilee supplies, would now have this invoice paid by Live and Local Arts on the Doorstep and so this sum would not now be paid by the Residents’ Association.
There remained £685.99 especially in the deposit account for funding given for an exact purpose. The total left in the deposit account after this was £814.18.
The accounts presented (attached) had been independently inspected by Peter Tacon who was thanked for his work.
Thanks were given to Marlene as she was now stepping down from the role of treasurer.
Election of Independent Examiner
Peter Tacon again agreed to act as Independent Examiner.
Proposed: Eileen Nisbet
Seconded: Jerry Marshall
Unanimously agreed.
Election of Committee members
Janet Hickinbottom, as Joint Secretary, conducted this agenda item.
The constitution required that the officers and three committee members should stand down. Rona Taylor, Mary Webb, Marlene Hills, Janet Hickinbottom and Judi Hibberd, were re-elected.
Proposed: Andy Jones
Seconded: Faith Ward
Unanimously agreed
Marlene Hills stood down as Treasurer. Terry Heyes had agreed to stand. He would be free to take up this position at the end of December until which time Rona and Mary would manage the finances.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Helen Hehir
Unanimously agreed
Others remaining on the committee were Andy Gibbs, Bron Putnam, John Nisbet and Faith Ward.
John Levett was standing down after 15 years’ service on the BGRA committee. He was thanked for his outstanding service to the community which would continue in other roles, such as Neighbourhood Watch.
Parish Plan
Kathryn Stewart explained the Parish Plan was an idea representing a shared vision. It was to be an aspirational plan owned and written by the community. It would centre on a questionnaire. Residents would be asked to respond about such matters as what they valued; what needed changing/retaining; what they wished to see in the next 10 years. Community feedback would be vital.
A public meeting had already offered a wealth of ideas. A steering group had been formed but more volunteers would be very welcome. The challenge was to create a short but comprehensive questionnaire.
The questionnaire would cover issues of transport; environment; business and retail; activities and leisure; school and youth; crime; services; information and communities.
It would be important to obtain a response rate of over 70% so assistance would be needed in collecting in questionnaires.
HS2 Overview and Update
Andy Gibbs explained that two themes were underway:
Stopping HS2. This involved getting information out into the wider world via press articles and by influencing politicians. Much of this work was not visible but there was plenty going on. Judicial reviews of the process were underway with hearings in December and reports at the start of January 2013. All matters such as the consultation on compensation and announcement of the Y route were being deferred until after the judicial reviews. The ongoing matter of Heathrow and the decision on the third runway would impact on HS2 and the ultimate chosen route.
If the line went ahead, it would be necessary to obtain the best solution for Burton Green and work on this was underway especially regarding a bored tunnel. One bi-lateral meeting had been held with HS2 Ltd and a second was scheduled for the end of November. It had been agreed such a tunnel was technically possible but it had to be evaluated against other possibilities and other actions along the proposed route. A further forum meeting was to be held in November. It had been stated that there was no longer a design freeze but Andy was sceptical that many changes would be made after that time. He explained the process of applying for a judicial review if the tunnel idea was rejected to challenge the fairness of the application of the criteria. There would be only two months available to do this and the estimated cost was £20k.
In the short term, fund raising activities were continuing and an HS2 Information Day was to be held at Kenilworth School on October 20th. Andy thanked everyone who had contributed in any way to supporting the opposition to HS2.
The next Action Group meeting was scheduled for October 15th.
Rona thanked Andy and the action group. The Residents’ Association wrote in January to Justine Greening inviting her to Burton Green and only after the letter was re-submitted in March was a reply received in May. A second letter had been sent in July raising concern about the lack of bi-lateral talks. A reply was a reply received explaining bi-lateral talks had been set up and reassuring us that they would continue until the hybrid bill was presented to parliament.. On behalf of residents Rona had again written to the new Secretary of State inviting him to the village and a response was awaited.
Village Hall
Kathryn said it had been a great year for users and hirers: although there had been a drop in the overall number of user groups, there remained 29 regular user groups. In a report to HS2 Ltd, the committee had been able to say that 14346 people had used the hall over the previous year. The Village Hall website had received over 10000 hits. The hall had recently celebrated its 30th birthday in its current premises.
Kathryn was pleased that the hall received so much community use with 29% of booking being from the locality and 53% of users being from the village. An increase in community related bookings and shared events had resulted in a drop in income and running costs had also increased significantly.
HS2 Ltd wanted to know why users chose the hall and so a survey was to be carried out.
Rona thanked the village hall committee who played vital part in the community.
Police Matters/Neighbourhood Watch
PC King reported that all crime was down in Kenilworth, including Burton Green. Burglary and vehicle crime was down significantly.
He publicised Foodie Fortnight in Kenilworth from September 30th to October 13th as a local celebration of food.
Nov 3rd: Rotary Club fireworks.
Nov 11th: Remembrance Sunday.
Residents were reminded of the 101 non emergency number 24 hours a day.
PC King had joined the Board of Governors of Burton Green School. He thanked Andy Jones for offering to sell crime prevention materials in his shop, Town & Country Furniture Ltd.
PC King referred to the community alert system which had broadcast information regarding suspicious incidents around the county of the “Nottingham door knockers” who were ex offenders. He reminded residents that door to door salesmen should have a pedlars' certificate. Some door knockers were linked to distraction burglaries. People should report any suspicions on 101 number unless they felt in immediate danger in which case they should dial 999. It was worth getting on the community alert system relating to burglary, house burglary and vehicle crime locally.
He reported that a small team of 5 “Specials” had helped boost the man hours of the local force.
Residents should remain vigilant. Scrap metal dealers remained a problem but there was to be a force initiative soon.
John Levett thanked Peter and his team for their attention to Burton Green. The police were reliant on the eyes of residents for what was going on.
Community alerts were forwarded by John via the village email system. A newsletter produced in Kenilworth about Neighbourhood Watch matters was also circulated.
A trading standards lecture had been arranged and residents had been warned to be very wary when using Internet shopping and banking.
County Councillors’ Report
Cllr. John Whitehouse WCC said the Council was coming to the end of its four year term and things were beginning to wind up. A large savings programme had been undertaken and the council was now awaiting its December financial settlement, which was not expected to be good.
It was likely that a decision would be taken to turn off most lights in Warwickshire for part of the night time to save money and energy. The creation of clear skies as a result was to be welcomed by many. Burton Green lights were to remain on during the night.
The Council was working as part of 51m group to stop HS2 but still trying to liaise with HS2 Ltd. The County Council had made an official complaint about the way HS2 Ltd was handling matters at the fora.
The Monday and Thursday bus services through Burton Green had been greatly welcomed but problems had occurred recently because of the Thursday bus being full by the time it reached the village. It was planned that a larger bus or a second bus was to be provided. Cllr. Whitehouse would welcome feedback.
The footway in Red Lane had been cleared by community offenders. Peter Hallam said he had received good feedback from residents.
He was pleased that funding had been made available for the Community Speedwatch initiative in Burton Green and speed surveys would be carried out on all approach roads. Cllr. Whitehouse hoped these would show a reduction in speeds since the last survey. It was excellent that so many residents had offered to support the initiative.
The route of the Greenway to the university was soon to be officially opened. Stoning of the surface from Berkswell back towards Burton Green was underway and it was planned to add a hard surface from Coventry Road to Cromwell Lane. Volunteers and rangers had started work on clearing the footpath from the bend in Red Lane to the Greenway.
The Community Forum had money still available and the next round of applications was open till October 25th.
Kenilworth Centre AT Abbey End was now an independent charity. Radio Abbey broadband radio station was soon to be relaunched as a community radio station and would be accessed via www.kenilworthcentre.com
District Councillors’ Report
Ann Blacklock WDC declared it a pleasure to work with Burton Green residents who were always so positive. She referred to savings that were being made at the council and the fact there were still more to be made.
Cllr. Blacklock’s particular roles were with planning and young people. She had helped in the setting up of the Greenway Trust.
Any problems regarding waste collection and street cleaning would be dealt with by Martyn Stacey who could be contacted via contactus@warwickdc.gov.uk
WDC was considering a mass of responses to formulate the draft Local Plan and this would then go out for consultation. The final plan would go government for inspection and if approved would be adopted in 2014.
Next year’s challenges included the reduction of the allocation of council tax benefit and this would put pressure on to local authorities.
Waste management contracts had been reviewed. Sita was to continue waste collections. Other companies were to do street cleansing and grounds maintenance.
Cllr. Michael Coker, WDC reiterated the importance of getting the Local Plan right and that much hard work was involved. The waste contracts had been reviewed to save £600.000 per year and he did not envisage that the lower expenditure would result in a decline in services.
Car parking charges were to be frozen again in a bid to encourage more people to use the car parks.
Cllr. Coker was also a parish councillor in Kenilworth and he distributed brochures about Foodie Fortnight.
As independent chair of the HS2 Forum for Burton Green, Stoneleigh and Kenilworth, he had asked twice if residents wished to split the forum and have a separate one for Burton Green. This had been declined but he continued to receive requests to split and so was circulating a letter to all groups involved to obtain their views.
Parish Councillors’ Reports
Ian Cox, Vice Chairman of the Parish Council explained that Archie Taylor, Chairman, was unable to be present because of another commitment. He said that the new council was still bedding in but that a permanent clerk had been appointed and a website was being constructed. They had submitted a response to the Local Plan.
Bugle/Residents’ Subscriptions
Mary Webb explained that four editions of the Bugle were produced each year with Bugle Bulletins issued if any urgent matters arose. Thanks were extended to those who advertised in the Bugle, helping to support publication costs. Mention was made of residents who had achieved the ages of 90 and 100.
Mary said as editor she was always looking for articles of interest, old photos etc.
She explained the process of collecting the subscriptions and was happy to receive any outstanding contributions.
She had been pleased to be granted money from the Community Forum towards the defibrillator equipment.
Mary was thanked for her hard work.
Village School
Faith Ward, a resident and member of the school’s governing body, presented the head teacher’s apologies. She outlined some of the school’s recent activities and encouraged residents to look for information on the school’s website www.burtongreenschool.org.uk
A clothing bank was to be placed in the school playground and money raised would be donated to the school.
Greenway Trust
Nick Hillard, chairman of the Greenway Trust explained the development of the Connect2 project. The Trust was now promoting the Greenway to all users including walkers, horse riders and cyclists.
All steering group members were present at the AGM.
An educational programme had taken place on the Greenway and photos were on display. Trees from the Woodland Trust had been planted, Burton Green had organized a scarecrow trail and a bat walk had been held. A further fundraising evening was to take place at the Marsala Club on October 15th. All were welcome.
The Trust was trying to collate diaries of all who were using and promoting the Greenway.
Dog waste remained a problem and it was not viable to place dog waste bins along the Greenway.
Any Other Business and Date of Next Annual General Meeting
The community mosaic was to be officially “launched “on Saturday October 13th at 3p.m. with children from the school. This would be followed by afternoon tea in the Village Hall.
Residents were urged to join in activities and that they could contribute at any time without joining the committee.
Marlene mentioned her history and archaeology group. She had applied for funding to carry out a community event with “geophys” centring on 13th archaeology in the village. It was hoped to involve residents in drawing, photography and writing up. Anyone interested should get in touch with Marlene.
Thanks were extended to the residents who had attended. The next Annual General Meeting would be held on Monday October 7th 2013 at the Village Hall.
Rona welcomed everyone and, in particular Cllrs. Ann Blacklock, Michael Coker, John Whitehouse, Nick Hillard and PC Peter King.
Apologies
Apologies had been received from Cllr Ian de Worringham, Cllr Archie Taylor, Cllr George Illingworth, Cllr Vaughan Owen, Mike and Deirdre Vernon, Diane Swindells, Caryll Green and Liz Saxon.
Martyn Stacey of WDC sent his apologies: he had been scheduled to make a presentation about keeping our village tidy.
Minutes of the last meeting and Matters Arising
The minutes of the last Annual General Meeting of October 3rd 2011 were accepted.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Judi Hibberd
Rona queried whether in future it would be sufficient to circulate the previous AGM minutes via the Burton Green website and the village email system to save printing costs. This was agreed. Anyone needing a hard copy should contact Rona.
Matters arising were to be covered by agenda points.
Chair’s Report
A report had been circulated in advance via the Bugle so that time could be made available for questions.
The Chair, Rona Taylor, explained the focal points for 2012 had been:
- Continued opposition to HS2 (this was to be covered later)
- Creation of a separate Burton Green Parish Council
Now Burton Green had its own Parish Council following a petition organised by the Residents’ Association over a year ago. There had been some uncertainty about the role of the Residents’ Association and Rona outlined the different responsibilities.
Rona was keen to highlight Burton Green’s vibrant community and individuals’ community activities. She pointed out articles in the previous week’s edition of the Kenilworth Weekly News which detailed community involvement in Speedwatch scheme and the community defibrillator.
- Parish Plan
Following a mandate from last year’s AGM, a Parish Plan was to be drawn up. This was to be explained by Kathryn Stewart later in the meeting.
- Jubilee Celebrations
The celebrations organised by the Jubilee Committee had included something for everyone and the whole weekend had been deemed a success.
- Communication
The Bugle was the main means of communication and Mary Webb would be taking this as an agenda item.
Public meetings regarding HS2 had also been held. Questionnaires had been collated concerning the perceived impact of HS2 on Burton Green. A Public Meeting had also been organised by the residents’ Association at which the Parish Plan had been launched.
- The Association had also been active in taking up issues of concern (either to individuals or residents as a whole) with regard to transport, potholes, verges, water supply, speeding and security. Terry Heyes had given a talk on the latter and demonstrated various equipment available
- Cycle Forum
John Whitehouse had sought Burton Green representation on the newly established Cycle Forum. Nick and Sue Hogue of Cromwell Lane had joined the forum. They were unable to attend the AGM but Nick had sent a report as follows:
“Our remit is to consider all matters relating to cycling that may benefit residents in the area.
- We have concluded 4 of 6 meetings and ultimately will putting forward our recommendations to the WDD for their consideration in December. Our final recommendations to them will be determined in November
- Topics discussed so far include:
a) Abbey Fields: possible cycle route through AF while protecting its multi-use nature.
b) Greenway: Cycling education (signage, bells, giving way); completion of the resurfacing.
c) Built Environment: dangerous junctions; contraflow cycling, off-road cycle paths repair; cycle parking in the town centre; identification of town cycling routes.
d) Shared Space: identification and guidelines for areas used by cyclists, pedestrians, disabled et al.
e) Education: formal training sessions; cycling safety issues (what is mandatory, recommended and other options ); maps and literature; consider input from Sustrans and other countries' approach to cycling issues.
NOTES:
1) The government has pledged to implement any innovative measures on cycle safety made by a cross party inquiry into cycling launched on the 20th Sept.
2) £15 million has been made available to councils to improve cyclist safety at road junctions. Councils may apply for a share but on a quid pro quo basis, i.e. government will only match each pound spent by a council up to their approved limit.”
Treasurer’s Report/Election of Independent Examiner
The Income & Expenditure Account and Balance Sheet are attached separately.
Marlene reported that BGRA had had a busy year. Subscriptions had been increased this year to £3 per house and Mary Webb and the collection team, who did sterling work, collected £713 to 31 August 2012. Thanks were extended to Mary and the team.
Mary Webb had redesigned the Bugle and had been able to sell £272 of advertising space to assist with production costs. In addition, the Parish Council donated £250 thus making the Bugle almost self financing.
The Parish Council had initially voted to give £250 to BGRA towards the Jubilee weekend but as funds were not necessary, Marlene had requested that this sum be earmarked towards fund raising for the defibrillator unit which, with the kind agreement of the Village Hall committee, would be located at the Village Hall. This sum, along with the Jubilee surplus and Parish Plan surplus, was held in the savings accounts specific to the causes for which these donations were made.
Marlene had been offered £885 of funds towards Burton Green’s Jubilee celebrations, which she gratefully accepted on our Community’s behalf. These funds went towards the many activities organised over that weekend, including paying for public liability insurance for the public event held at the school (thanks to Lesley Tacon for organising this)
Burton Green Jubilee events started with special funds raised from the “Live and Local Arts on the Doorstep.”Regarding the Jubilee weekend, the Residents’ Association and the Greenway Trust held a successful Art on the Greenway and thanks were expressed to David and Jill Lines and Diane Swindells. A number of works of art were sold generating 10 per cent commission on the sales. The total of funds raised that day were split three ways between the Residents’ Association, Burton Green Village Hall and the Greenway Trust (Kenilworth to Berkswell). Each of those good causes received £98.93 and letters of thanks had been received. Thanks were due to the Stanworths for allowing the jubilee beacon on their land to conclude the weekend’s celebrations.
The Residents’ Association held a remaining sum of £278.24 from the special Jubilee donation funds received. This was held specifically for the Residents’ Association’s next major Parish event.
The joint Parish Councils - before Burton Green Parish Council became independent - had awarded £200 towards the Burton Green Parish Plan survey. A small portion of this had been spent leaving a remainder of £157.75 to be allocated in due course specifically towards the Parish Plan.
Total income for the year including the above was £3,429.12 and expenditure was £3,415.34. Expenditure included costs incurred towards the Parish Plan £155.25, AGM expenditure and room hire to the Village Hall and the printing of the Bugle.
A donation of £250 was voted by the BGRA towards Deirdre Vernon’s successful “Made in Burton Green” exhibition for specific purchase of item/items which were not be to be sold for profit purposes and with the knowledge that the residue from this donation would be earmarked towards the 2014 exhibition.
The sum of £350 held for Greenway Trust had now been paid across.
Marlene reminded everyone that most money was either thanks to donations or subscriptions and as such were classed as public monies.
BGRA’s current account assets were £695.04 less creditors of £364.19. However, one of these creditors, WEAVE, who presented an invoice of £300.00 for Jubilee supplies, would now have this invoice paid by Live and Local Arts on the Doorstep and so this sum would not now be paid by the Residents’ Association.
There remained £685.99 especially in the deposit account for funding given for an exact purpose. The total left in the deposit account after this was £814.18.
The accounts presented (attached) had been independently inspected by Peter Tacon who was thanked for his work.
Thanks were given to Marlene as she was now stepping down from the role of treasurer.
Election of Independent Examiner
Peter Tacon again agreed to act as Independent Examiner.
Proposed: Eileen Nisbet
Seconded: Jerry Marshall
Unanimously agreed.
Election of Committee members
Janet Hickinbottom, as Joint Secretary, conducted this agenda item.
The constitution required that the officers and three committee members should stand down. Rona Taylor, Mary Webb, Marlene Hills, Janet Hickinbottom and Judi Hibberd, were re-elected.
Proposed: Andy Jones
Seconded: Faith Ward
Unanimously agreed
Marlene Hills stood down as Treasurer. Terry Heyes had agreed to stand. He would be free to take up this position at the end of December until which time Rona and Mary would manage the finances.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Helen Hehir
Unanimously agreed
Others remaining on the committee were Andy Gibbs, Bron Putnam, John Nisbet and Faith Ward.
John Levett was standing down after 15 years’ service on the BGRA committee. He was thanked for his outstanding service to the community which would continue in other roles, such as Neighbourhood Watch.
Parish Plan
Kathryn Stewart explained the Parish Plan was an idea representing a shared vision. It was to be an aspirational plan owned and written by the community. It would centre on a questionnaire. Residents would be asked to respond about such matters as what they valued; what needed changing/retaining; what they wished to see in the next 10 years. Community feedback would be vital.
A public meeting had already offered a wealth of ideas. A steering group had been formed but more volunteers would be very welcome. The challenge was to create a short but comprehensive questionnaire.
The questionnaire would cover issues of transport; environment; business and retail; activities and leisure; school and youth; crime; services; information and communities.
It would be important to obtain a response rate of over 70% so assistance would be needed in collecting in questionnaires.
HS2 Overview and Update
Andy Gibbs explained that two themes were underway:
Stopping HS2. This involved getting information out into the wider world via press articles and by influencing politicians. Much of this work was not visible but there was plenty going on. Judicial reviews of the process were underway with hearings in December and reports at the start of January 2013. All matters such as the consultation on compensation and announcement of the Y route were being deferred until after the judicial reviews. The ongoing matter of Heathrow and the decision on the third runway would impact on HS2 and the ultimate chosen route.
If the line went ahead, it would be necessary to obtain the best solution for Burton Green and work on this was underway especially regarding a bored tunnel. One bi-lateral meeting had been held with HS2 Ltd and a second was scheduled for the end of November. It had been agreed such a tunnel was technically possible but it had to be evaluated against other possibilities and other actions along the proposed route. A further forum meeting was to be held in November. It had been stated that there was no longer a design freeze but Andy was sceptical that many changes would be made after that time. He explained the process of applying for a judicial review if the tunnel idea was rejected to challenge the fairness of the application of the criteria. There would be only two months available to do this and the estimated cost was £20k.
In the short term, fund raising activities were continuing and an HS2 Information Day was to be held at Kenilworth School on October 20th. Andy thanked everyone who had contributed in any way to supporting the opposition to HS2.
The next Action Group meeting was scheduled for October 15th.
Rona thanked Andy and the action group. The Residents’ Association wrote in January to Justine Greening inviting her to Burton Green and only after the letter was re-submitted in March was a reply received in May. A second letter had been sent in July raising concern about the lack of bi-lateral talks. A reply was a reply received explaining bi-lateral talks had been set up and reassuring us that they would continue until the hybrid bill was presented to parliament.. On behalf of residents Rona had again written to the new Secretary of State inviting him to the village and a response was awaited.
Village Hall
Kathryn said it had been a great year for users and hirers: although there had been a drop in the overall number of user groups, there remained 29 regular user groups. In a report to HS2 Ltd, the committee had been able to say that 14346 people had used the hall over the previous year. The Village Hall website had received over 10000 hits. The hall had recently celebrated its 30th birthday in its current premises.
Kathryn was pleased that the hall received so much community use with 29% of booking being from the locality and 53% of users being from the village. An increase in community related bookings and shared events had resulted in a drop in income and running costs had also increased significantly.
HS2 Ltd wanted to know why users chose the hall and so a survey was to be carried out.
Rona thanked the village hall committee who played vital part in the community.
Police Matters/Neighbourhood Watch
PC King reported that all crime was down in Kenilworth, including Burton Green. Burglary and vehicle crime was down significantly.
He publicised Foodie Fortnight in Kenilworth from September 30th to October 13th as a local celebration of food.
Nov 3rd: Rotary Club fireworks.
Nov 11th: Remembrance Sunday.
Residents were reminded of the 101 non emergency number 24 hours a day.
PC King had joined the Board of Governors of Burton Green School. He thanked Andy Jones for offering to sell crime prevention materials in his shop, Town & Country Furniture Ltd.
PC King referred to the community alert system which had broadcast information regarding suspicious incidents around the county of the “Nottingham door knockers” who were ex offenders. He reminded residents that door to door salesmen should have a pedlars' certificate. Some door knockers were linked to distraction burglaries. People should report any suspicions on 101 number unless they felt in immediate danger in which case they should dial 999. It was worth getting on the community alert system relating to burglary, house burglary and vehicle crime locally.
He reported that a small team of 5 “Specials” had helped boost the man hours of the local force.
Residents should remain vigilant. Scrap metal dealers remained a problem but there was to be a force initiative soon.
John Levett thanked Peter and his team for their attention to Burton Green. The police were reliant on the eyes of residents for what was going on.
Community alerts were forwarded by John via the village email system. A newsletter produced in Kenilworth about Neighbourhood Watch matters was also circulated.
A trading standards lecture had been arranged and residents had been warned to be very wary when using Internet shopping and banking.
County Councillors’ Report
Cllr. John Whitehouse WCC said the Council was coming to the end of its four year term and things were beginning to wind up. A large savings programme had been undertaken and the council was now awaiting its December financial settlement, which was not expected to be good.
It was likely that a decision would be taken to turn off most lights in Warwickshire for part of the night time to save money and energy. The creation of clear skies as a result was to be welcomed by many. Burton Green lights were to remain on during the night.
The Council was working as part of 51m group to stop HS2 but still trying to liaise with HS2 Ltd. The County Council had made an official complaint about the way HS2 Ltd was handling matters at the fora.
The Monday and Thursday bus services through Burton Green had been greatly welcomed but problems had occurred recently because of the Thursday bus being full by the time it reached the village. It was planned that a larger bus or a second bus was to be provided. Cllr. Whitehouse would welcome feedback.
The footway in Red Lane had been cleared by community offenders. Peter Hallam said he had received good feedback from residents.
He was pleased that funding had been made available for the Community Speedwatch initiative in Burton Green and speed surveys would be carried out on all approach roads. Cllr. Whitehouse hoped these would show a reduction in speeds since the last survey. It was excellent that so many residents had offered to support the initiative.
The route of the Greenway to the university was soon to be officially opened. Stoning of the surface from Berkswell back towards Burton Green was underway and it was planned to add a hard surface from Coventry Road to Cromwell Lane. Volunteers and rangers had started work on clearing the footpath from the bend in Red Lane to the Greenway.
The Community Forum had money still available and the next round of applications was open till October 25th.
Kenilworth Centre AT Abbey End was now an independent charity. Radio Abbey broadband radio station was soon to be relaunched as a community radio station and would be accessed via www.kenilworthcentre.com
District Councillors’ Report
Ann Blacklock WDC declared it a pleasure to work with Burton Green residents who were always so positive. She referred to savings that were being made at the council and the fact there were still more to be made.
Cllr. Blacklock’s particular roles were with planning and young people. She had helped in the setting up of the Greenway Trust.
Any problems regarding waste collection and street cleaning would be dealt with by Martyn Stacey who could be contacted via contactus@warwickdc.gov.uk
WDC was considering a mass of responses to formulate the draft Local Plan and this would then go out for consultation. The final plan would go government for inspection and if approved would be adopted in 2014.
Next year’s challenges included the reduction of the allocation of council tax benefit and this would put pressure on to local authorities.
Waste management contracts had been reviewed. Sita was to continue waste collections. Other companies were to do street cleansing and grounds maintenance.
Cllr. Michael Coker, WDC reiterated the importance of getting the Local Plan right and that much hard work was involved. The waste contracts had been reviewed to save £600.000 per year and he did not envisage that the lower expenditure would result in a decline in services.
Car parking charges were to be frozen again in a bid to encourage more people to use the car parks.
Cllr. Coker was also a parish councillor in Kenilworth and he distributed brochures about Foodie Fortnight.
As independent chair of the HS2 Forum for Burton Green, Stoneleigh and Kenilworth, he had asked twice if residents wished to split the forum and have a separate one for Burton Green. This had been declined but he continued to receive requests to split and so was circulating a letter to all groups involved to obtain their views.
Parish Councillors’ Reports
Ian Cox, Vice Chairman of the Parish Council explained that Archie Taylor, Chairman, was unable to be present because of another commitment. He said that the new council was still bedding in but that a permanent clerk had been appointed and a website was being constructed. They had submitted a response to the Local Plan.
Bugle/Residents’ Subscriptions
Mary Webb explained that four editions of the Bugle were produced each year with Bugle Bulletins issued if any urgent matters arose. Thanks were extended to those who advertised in the Bugle, helping to support publication costs. Mention was made of residents who had achieved the ages of 90 and 100.
Mary said as editor she was always looking for articles of interest, old photos etc.
She explained the process of collecting the subscriptions and was happy to receive any outstanding contributions.
She had been pleased to be granted money from the Community Forum towards the defibrillator equipment.
Mary was thanked for her hard work.
Village School
Faith Ward, a resident and member of the school’s governing body, presented the head teacher’s apologies. She outlined some of the school’s recent activities and encouraged residents to look for information on the school’s website www.burtongreenschool.org.uk
A clothing bank was to be placed in the school playground and money raised would be donated to the school.
Greenway Trust
Nick Hillard, chairman of the Greenway Trust explained the development of the Connect2 project. The Trust was now promoting the Greenway to all users including walkers, horse riders and cyclists.
All steering group members were present at the AGM.
An educational programme had taken place on the Greenway and photos were on display. Trees from the Woodland Trust had been planted, Burton Green had organized a scarecrow trail and a bat walk had been held. A further fundraising evening was to take place at the Marsala Club on October 15th. All were welcome.
The Trust was trying to collate diaries of all who were using and promoting the Greenway.
Dog waste remained a problem and it was not viable to place dog waste bins along the Greenway.
Any Other Business and Date of Next Annual General Meeting
The community mosaic was to be officially “launched “on Saturday October 13th at 3p.m. with children from the school. This would be followed by afternoon tea in the Village Hall.
Residents were urged to join in activities and that they could contribute at any time without joining the committee.
Marlene mentioned her history and archaeology group. She had applied for funding to carry out a community event with “geophys” centring on 13th archaeology in the village. It was hoped to involve residents in drawing, photography and writing up. Anyone interested should get in touch with Marlene.
Thanks were extended to the residents who had attended. The next Annual General Meeting would be held on Monday October 7th 2013 at the Village Hall.
Sunday, 9 October 2011
Minutes of AGM - October 3rd 2011
Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Burton Green Residents’ Association held on October 3rd 2011 at the Village Hall.
Rona welcomed everyone and, in particular Marcus Bridger, the new Head Teacher of Burton Green School; Gordon Gatward, Acting Chair of the Parish Council; Pat Maddison, Clerk to the Parish Council; P.C. Peter King; and all the councillors.
Regret was expressed regarding the recent death of Howard Baker, formerly Chairman of the Parish Council.
Apologies
Apologies had been received from Paddy Deeley, Carol Green, Adrian Hickinbottom and Jerry Marshall.
Minutes of the last meeting and Matters Arising
The minutes of the last Annual General Meeting of October 2010 were accepted.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Judi Hibberd
Chair’s Report
The Chair, Rona Taylor, explained the focal points for 2011 had been:
HS2 – opposition continuing to dominate the local situation. An Extraordinary Meeting had updated residents on progress. Burton Green was still leading the field in its opposition to HS2 and representatives had recently been amongst those attending the Labour and Conservative conferences.
Independent Parish Council – following support at the 2010 AGM, a petition had been raised before the end of March 2011 with the aim of implementing a separate PC by April 2012. Although consultation had taken place about the wording of the petition, Warwick District Councillor lawyers decided that it needed to be amended and hence a delay had been caused. They agreed that they would not create further delays with regard to a second, re-worded petition, which had now been raised and signed by 308 people and had been submitted by the end of July 2011. A period of consultation was now taking place. The overall decision would be taken on the strength of the argument.
Once a decision had been reached by the regulatory committee, the BGRA committee would decide if it was necessary to call an Extraordinary Meeting. A note was made that 25 people who had signed the petition were not found on the Electoral Roll and residents were asked to check this for themselves.
Rona went on to explain why it was felt a separate independent Parish Council would better serve the needs of local residents:
Burton Green was a talented and proactive community which she felt could easily run its own Parish Council and become the democratic voice of the community.
As a ward of the current Parish Council, Burton Green affairs were not currently well served as Stoneleigh village matters tended to dominate the meetings. This was partly because Stoneleigh did not have a Residents’ Association which could filter” matters before they reached the Parish Council meetings.
Burton Green was faced with the enormous challenge of HS2 which would cut straight through the community and threaten both housing and the Village Hall. A separate Parish Council could concentrate on this.
Rona felt the formation of a separate Parish Council was the next step in forging Burton Green’s identity. She envisaged it would integrate with the BGRA committee, the Village Hall committee, the school and other local groups.
A map of the area was displayed and the amount of Green Belt around the village was highlighted as another area to be protected by the work of a Parish Council.
Transport – There had been cutbacks regarding the bus service. Cuts had meant that the village had previously had three buses a day to Kenilworth for six days and now had one bus a week on a Monday only. Investigations were taking place to see if a bus service could be operated on Thursday (market day).Investigations were taking place regarding the setting up of a service like the Solihull taxi bus service operated by Centro.
Planning Issues – Earlier in the year, a group of residents had attended an appeal meeting regarding the number of mobile homes allowed on the site of Le Van in Red Lane. Thanks to residents’ comments, the appeal had been turned down.
The site of a demolished house in Cromwell Lane had caused some concern to neighbours with regard to its future. Permission had been granted to build a substantial house and BGRA committee was keeping a watching brief.
Following consultation, a response had been submitted to WDC’s Plans for the Future of Warwickshire. Residents wished development to remain linear; to support the local school; and to retain a Village Hall. It was suggested a Neighbourhood Plan be developed and this was to be covered later in the agenda.
Bugle – Mary Webb was thanked for taking over the editing and production of the Bugle. The most recent edition had been funded through local advertisers and Mary asked for ideas for future funding to be sent to her. Thanks were extended to the team of distributors.
Roads and pavements – Problems with the pavement at the top of Red Lane had been reported to WCC and this was to be addressed. The condition of Hob Lane road surface was also a concern of a number of residents and the meeting agreed that BGRA committee should seek agreement from the Local Authority to settle this issue.
Election of Committee members
Janet Hickinbottom, as Joint Secretary, conducted this agenda item.
The constitution required that the officers and three committee members should stand down. Rona Taylor, Marlene Hills, Janet Hickinbottom and Judi Hibberd, were re-elected.
Proposed: Martin Beckett
Seconded: Sylvia Clifford
Mike Holt stood down as Vice Chair. Mary Webb had agreed to stand.
Proposed: Andy Gibbs
Seconded: Archie Taylor
Others remaining on the committee were Bron Putnam, John Levett, John Nisbet and Faith Ward.
Andy Gibbs had been a co-opted member because of his Chairmanship of the HS2 Action Group. He had now agreed to stand as a full committee member.
Proposed: Betty Woodward
Seconded: Steve Webb
HS2 Overview
Andy Gibb said that six months ago preparations had been taking place for the consultation. He extended thanks to John and Diana Levett who had worked so hard on that score. He explained that the battle had become a PR one. Arguments against HS2 had been very well made (HS2 would at best be carbon neutral; transfer of jobs to the North unlikely; cost benefits argument flawed etc). Vast subsidies would be required in the future to pay for HS2. The current problem was getting the general public, especially those not living near the proposed route, to be aware of and to understand the situation.
An upcoming event was a debate in the House of Commons and Andy urged residents to pass on to friends and relatives a website address http://www.highspeedrail.org.uk which explains MPs’ constituencies and asks for your support in writing to your MP to encourage him/her to attend the debate.
Andy also mentioned the government e-petition 353 called Stop HS2.
In November 2011 the Transport Select Committee would be publishing its findings and in December Philip Hammond would announce his decision. Dependent upon the outcome, there would then be much to do in 2012.
Andy gave sincere thanks to all who had contributed in whatever way to the struggle against HS2.
Cllr Archie Taylor reiterated that it was important to contact MPs in time for the debate. He felt that if a judicial review was held following an announcement in favour of HS2, it would be possible to show that the consultation was flawed and this should lead to a public inquiry. He also felt there were many communities who would be missed out by the introduction of HS2 including Coventry, Stoke and Liverpool.
Archie added that if the line was approved, there would be a need to work on mitigation.
Costing of separate Parish Council for Burton Green
Marlene said if the proposal for a separate Parish Council proved successful, a decision would have to be taken whether to increase the precept which is paid via the council tax.
She had drawn up a draft document having referred to the WCC Finance Department, and the West Midlands and Warwickshire Association of Local Councils. She had compared figures to those of the existing Parish Council as completed and submitted by Pat Maddison, the Parish Clerk, whose book keeping was exemplary. Marlene had based salary scale and number of hours on discussions with the WCC and had included costs for home working and travel. An additional amount of £509 was added for contingencies. In addition there would be costs for the statutory audit and a provisional figure for room hire at the Village Hall.
The total expected income from the precept (729 individuals at the last census) would show £6775 and expected costs were £6958 resulting in a deficit of £183. There would be no money to fund the Bugle or for any grants.
Marlene’s draft figures showed that the proposal would be just about workable but with no room for manoeuvre.
It had been suggested that the percentage for the precept could be increased. The precept is based on the number of D band houses in a parish and is pro rata upwards depending upon the band category. A deduction is then made for the number of single people living in a house with a 25% reduction (or empty houses) etc
Neighbourhood Plan and Community Plan
A small group had been formed at the time of the consultation submission to focus on what would happen if the Village Hall was threatened with demolition. The group members had spoken to the County planners who had recommended drawing up a Neighbourhood Plan in order to find out people’s views on all aspects of the village future. A final Plan has to be completed by a Parish Council (or a Forum such as Kenilworth Community Forum).
Cllr George Illingworth explained this was part of the proposed Localism Bill. He said the community could produce the Plan but the Parish Council, as the legal body, should be consulted.
It was unanimously agreed that BGRA committee should ask the Parish Council to proceed with a Neighbourhood Plan.
Action: Rona
Rona explained that a Community Plan was quite separate and contained the hopes and aspirations of all sections of the village community. She showed an example from Offchurch.
A comment was made that matters affecting those just over the boundaries should be included and it was agreed, as Offchurch had also done this,
Costing and funding needed to be researched and Marlene agreed to do this.
Action: Marlene
In response to another question asking if relevant information was available from the councils, Cllr. Blacklock said they would be happy to help and all information was available via the Freedom of Information Act.
It was generally felt that a lot was going on at present to take on another project, but anyone interested in forming a steering group should see Rona.
Jubilee Celebrations
Mary Webb reported on behalf of a small group from the BGRA committee and the Village Hall committee. They had ambitious plans for a number of events during the weekend of June 2nd-5th 2012. These included:
A further planning meeting was to be held on Monday November 14th to which all were welcome.
Village Hall
Diane Swindells welcomed everyone to the hall and thanked residents for their support over the past year. Much time had been taken up with opposition to HS2 and the Village Hall committee was pleased the Hall was the focal point of the struggle. The committee wished to thank the Action Group and Jerry Marshall in particular for their brilliant work. Following a lengthy meeting at the Roadshow, a letter had been sent to HS2 with no response except an acknowledgement.
As trustees of the Village Hall, the committee would join with some members of the BGRA committee to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan. Vic Stuthridge would be the Village Hall representative. Vic had also taken over the bookings of the Hall (which could now be made through the website) and thanks were extended to Maxine Viney who had been Bookings Secretary for 17 years.
The Produce Show had been a great success. Jill Lines was thanked for her work and everyone was pleased to hear that David Lines was making progress following his bad accident.
The Village Hall AGM would be held on November 2nd at 7.30p.m. and all were welcome.
The final event of the year would be the Senior Citizens’ Christmas lunch and residents were urged to bring this to the attention of any neighbours who might be interested.
Police Matters and Neighbourhood Watch:
P.C. Peter King introduced himself as the beat manager for Kenilworth. He explained that there had been significant restructure in the force in May 2010 and Kenilworth had lost its Safer Neighbourhoods team. Now P.C.King and two community support officers were in post.
Burton Green’s isolation had come to his attention and he suggested holding community surgeries at the Village Hall where residents could raise issues of concern. This was generally deemed a good idea and he agreed to liaise with Diane regarding available times.
He was also looking at a pilot Junior Neighbourhood Watch scheme to help local children learn to trust and communicate with the police. Marcus Bridger of Burton Green School had welcomed the idea.
P.C.King was asked about levels of crime in the area. He said it was generally low but throughout the county had risen by 4.3% since the new model of working had been introduced. He said that most crime was opportunistic and urged residents not to leave valuables on display in the home or in vehicles.
Residents at the meeting commended the force for speedy responses to individual incidents.
P.C. King concluded by saying he was overwhelmed to see so many residents in attendance with such an interest in their community and he thanked everyone for making him welcome.
John Levett spoke on behalf of Neighbourhood Watch to encourage everyone to remain vigilant in the light of reduced police budgets. He reminded everyone to be alert to telephone and internet scams.
He referred residents to his article in the recent edition of the Bugle which explained how to receive messages direct from the Warwickshire Police Watch Co-ordinator. He urged everyone with an email address to register on the successful village email distribution list managed by Paddy Deeley.
County Councillor’s Report:
Cllr. Whitehouse commended Burton Green as a fantastic community which he was proud to represent.
In discussing the opening of the cycle bridge on the Greenway, he said the National Director of Sustrans had declared the Greenway was now part of the National Cycle Network and Cllr. Whitehouse made sure HS2 was aware of this fact.
He was considering again what opportunities there were to look at the speed limits within Burton Green. In the recent past, residents had decided they did not want road cushions or chicanes but in the light of Solihull’s proposals to review speed limits on roads including some entering the village, he wondered if residents would like him to make enquiries. It was agreed he should do so.
Action: Cllr. Whitehouse
Consultations had taken place about the future of the county’s libraries. It was proposed to cut the opening hours of Kenilworth Library from 51-35 per week. Discussions were taking place with WDC and Cllr. Whitehouse was aiming to find out why a decision was delayed. He said provision of mobile libraries was being discussed with Solihull MBC with the intention of enhancing the service.
The future of the Youth Service lay in the possibility of it being established as charity following withdrawal of council funding. An Open Day was to be held on October 29th from 2-6p.m. He urged residents to vote on http://communityforce.natwest.com in support of the project in the hope of winning funding.
Residents expressed dissatisfaction about the surface of the Greenway in the Burton Green area. This had been removed in readiness for new surfacing but this was not scheduled until 2012. Cllr. Whitehouse agreed to make enquiries about when this might take place and to convey residents’ concerns.
Action: Cllr. Whitehouse
District Councillors’ Reports
Cllr. Blacklock said it was a depressing time with so many cutbacks and many projects had been shelved because of loss of funding from central government.
She explained a review of district wards was taking place and there would be an opportunity to comment.
Grant funding was being reviewed to ensure best value for money.
Cllr. Coker gave further insight into the library situation where its employees were those of WCC but those of the One Stop Shop within the library were employed by WDC; and so the two councils were trying to collaborate to reach a satisfactory conclusion for all.
He condemned the decision by WCC to withdraw funding from the Youth Centre and said this was a central facility next to the new Senior Citizens ‘Club which was a very valuable asset. Kenilworth Town Council would be in support of the Youth Centre and the District Council did not intend to see it closed.
The past year had been taken up with HS2. WDC played a major part in the founding of 51m: eighteen councils which had come together to challenge the evidence base about the HS2 project.
He closed by saying the rates would not be going up the next year.
Cllr. Illingworth said his particular interest was planning matters. He referred again to the Le Van planning appeal and how intervention by residents had played a crucial part in overturning this.
With reference to planning at the national strategic level, he said the Localism Bill would bring power to a local level and he commended the Neighbourhood Plan proposal. He said Burton Green should take an interest in the strategy framework and gave examples of likely revisions. He added that residents should be pleased that the government had said the Green Belt was to be protected.
Rona thanked all the councillors for their continued support.
Parish Councillor’s Report
Cllr. Taylor said many issues raised at the Parish Council were only relevant to Stoneleigh. For Burton Green, the issue of prime importance was HS2 and it was a tribute to the late Howard Baker that he had been responsible for increasing the precept to have funds to fight HS2.
He knew representatives of Stoneleigh and of the university would be disappointed if Burton Green formed its own Parish Council, but he felt strongly that the village needed its own representation but it needed to get it right. He reiterated that it would work in partnership with BGRA.
Treasurer’s Report
Marlene presented the accounts which were a collaborative effort between herself and Archie Taylor (who had managed the accounts until March 2011). She explained income (£991.59) was down on the previous year (£1031.47). £350 of the income was being held for the Kenilworth to Berkswell Charity, the formation of which was to be finalised. Hence the actual income was £641.59. There had been a significant reduction in subscriptions collected (down from £531 to £297.83) and residents who had not contributed £2 were urged to do so.
The Parish Council had kindly donated £250 to cover the cost of printing the Bugle.
The Royal Wedding event had made a loss of £39.76 but everyone attending, especially the children, had enjoyed it.
A donation of £250 had been made earlier in the year to the Action Group.
The brought forward figure from last year was £280.02. Expenditure for the year (£705.59) was greater than income and so a small portion of the brought forward amount was used to cover expenses.
The bank account had been moved from Santander to Lloyds TSB, Kenilworth. At the yearend BGRA bank account held £1817.24 of which £350 was kept for the Greenway Charity making the true figure £1,467.24.
Peter Tacon had received the accounts at very short notice but had independently examined them.
Marlene suggested setting up a system of collecting subscriptions by standing order and of increasing the amount top £3p.a. There was a general consensus of agreement.
Finally, Marlene suggested setting up BGRA as a charity in order to benefit from Gift Aid. A resident commented that BGRA would also be able to use online donating as a charity. Marlene felt BGRA’s work was closely allied to that of a charity. Marlene would make further enquiries and this would be discussed at the next committee meeting.
Rona thanked Marlene for all her work.
Any Other Business and Date of Next Annual General Meeting
The parliamentary boundaries review consultation would need a BGRA response.
Action: Rona
Rona said funding was being sought to provide a notice board for Red Lane residents.
The next meeting of the newly-formed History Group would take place on November 7th.
Residents were again urged to sign up for the village email distribution list.
Election of Independent Examiner
Peter Tacon again agreed to act as Independent Examiner.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Deirdre Vernon.
Unanimously agreed.
Thanks were extended to the residents who had attended.
The next Annual General Meeting would be held on Monday October 1st 2012 at the Village Hall.
Rona welcomed everyone and, in particular Marcus Bridger, the new Head Teacher of Burton Green School; Gordon Gatward, Acting Chair of the Parish Council; Pat Maddison, Clerk to the Parish Council; P.C. Peter King; and all the councillors.
Regret was expressed regarding the recent death of Howard Baker, formerly Chairman of the Parish Council.
Apologies
Apologies had been received from Paddy Deeley, Carol Green, Adrian Hickinbottom and Jerry Marshall.
Minutes of the last meeting and Matters Arising
The minutes of the last Annual General Meeting of October 2010 were accepted.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Judi Hibberd
Chair’s Report
The Chair, Rona Taylor, explained the focal points for 2011 had been:
HS2 – opposition continuing to dominate the local situation. An Extraordinary Meeting had updated residents on progress. Burton Green was still leading the field in its opposition to HS2 and representatives had recently been amongst those attending the Labour and Conservative conferences.
Independent Parish Council – following support at the 2010 AGM, a petition had been raised before the end of March 2011 with the aim of implementing a separate PC by April 2012. Although consultation had taken place about the wording of the petition, Warwick District Councillor lawyers decided that it needed to be amended and hence a delay had been caused. They agreed that they would not create further delays with regard to a second, re-worded petition, which had now been raised and signed by 308 people and had been submitted by the end of July 2011. A period of consultation was now taking place. The overall decision would be taken on the strength of the argument.
Once a decision had been reached by the regulatory committee, the BGRA committee would decide if it was necessary to call an Extraordinary Meeting. A note was made that 25 people who had signed the petition were not found on the Electoral Roll and residents were asked to check this for themselves.
Rona went on to explain why it was felt a separate independent Parish Council would better serve the needs of local residents:
Burton Green was a talented and proactive community which she felt could easily run its own Parish Council and become the democratic voice of the community.
As a ward of the current Parish Council, Burton Green affairs were not currently well served as Stoneleigh village matters tended to dominate the meetings. This was partly because Stoneleigh did not have a Residents’ Association which could filter” matters before they reached the Parish Council meetings.
Burton Green was faced with the enormous challenge of HS2 which would cut straight through the community and threaten both housing and the Village Hall. A separate Parish Council could concentrate on this.
Rona felt the formation of a separate Parish Council was the next step in forging Burton Green’s identity. She envisaged it would integrate with the BGRA committee, the Village Hall committee, the school and other local groups.
A map of the area was displayed and the amount of Green Belt around the village was highlighted as another area to be protected by the work of a Parish Council.
Transport – There had been cutbacks regarding the bus service. Cuts had meant that the village had previously had three buses a day to Kenilworth for six days and now had one bus a week on a Monday only. Investigations were taking place to see if a bus service could be operated on Thursday (market day).Investigations were taking place regarding the setting up of a service like the Solihull taxi bus service operated by Centro.
Planning Issues – Earlier in the year, a group of residents had attended an appeal meeting regarding the number of mobile homes allowed on the site of Le Van in Red Lane. Thanks to residents’ comments, the appeal had been turned down.
The site of a demolished house in Cromwell Lane had caused some concern to neighbours with regard to its future. Permission had been granted to build a substantial house and BGRA committee was keeping a watching brief.
Following consultation, a response had been submitted to WDC’s Plans for the Future of Warwickshire. Residents wished development to remain linear; to support the local school; and to retain a Village Hall. It was suggested a Neighbourhood Plan be developed and this was to be covered later in the agenda.
Bugle – Mary Webb was thanked for taking over the editing and production of the Bugle. The most recent edition had been funded through local advertisers and Mary asked for ideas for future funding to be sent to her. Thanks were extended to the team of distributors.
Roads and pavements – Problems with the pavement at the top of Red Lane had been reported to WCC and this was to be addressed. The condition of Hob Lane road surface was also a concern of a number of residents and the meeting agreed that BGRA committee should seek agreement from the Local Authority to settle this issue.
Election of Committee members
Janet Hickinbottom, as Joint Secretary, conducted this agenda item.
The constitution required that the officers and three committee members should stand down. Rona Taylor, Marlene Hills, Janet Hickinbottom and Judi Hibberd, were re-elected.
Proposed: Martin Beckett
Seconded: Sylvia Clifford
Mike Holt stood down as Vice Chair. Mary Webb had agreed to stand.
Proposed: Andy Gibbs
Seconded: Archie Taylor
Others remaining on the committee were Bron Putnam, John Levett, John Nisbet and Faith Ward.
Andy Gibbs had been a co-opted member because of his Chairmanship of the HS2 Action Group. He had now agreed to stand as a full committee member.
Proposed: Betty Woodward
Seconded: Steve Webb
HS2 Overview
Andy Gibb said that six months ago preparations had been taking place for the consultation. He extended thanks to John and Diana Levett who had worked so hard on that score. He explained that the battle had become a PR one. Arguments against HS2 had been very well made (HS2 would at best be carbon neutral; transfer of jobs to the North unlikely; cost benefits argument flawed etc). Vast subsidies would be required in the future to pay for HS2. The current problem was getting the general public, especially those not living near the proposed route, to be aware of and to understand the situation.
An upcoming event was a debate in the House of Commons and Andy urged residents to pass on to friends and relatives a website address http://www.highspeedrail.org.uk which explains MPs’ constituencies and asks for your support in writing to your MP to encourage him/her to attend the debate.
Andy also mentioned the government e-petition 353 called Stop HS2.
In November 2011 the Transport Select Committee would be publishing its findings and in December Philip Hammond would announce his decision. Dependent upon the outcome, there would then be much to do in 2012.
Andy gave sincere thanks to all who had contributed in whatever way to the struggle against HS2.
Cllr Archie Taylor reiterated that it was important to contact MPs in time for the debate. He felt that if a judicial review was held following an announcement in favour of HS2, it would be possible to show that the consultation was flawed and this should lead to a public inquiry. He also felt there were many communities who would be missed out by the introduction of HS2 including Coventry, Stoke and Liverpool.
Archie added that if the line was approved, there would be a need to work on mitigation.
Costing of separate Parish Council for Burton Green
Marlene said if the proposal for a separate Parish Council proved successful, a decision would have to be taken whether to increase the precept which is paid via the council tax.
She had drawn up a draft document having referred to the WCC Finance Department, and the West Midlands and Warwickshire Association of Local Councils. She had compared figures to those of the existing Parish Council as completed and submitted by Pat Maddison, the Parish Clerk, whose book keeping was exemplary. Marlene had based salary scale and number of hours on discussions with the WCC and had included costs for home working and travel. An additional amount of £509 was added for contingencies. In addition there would be costs for the statutory audit and a provisional figure for room hire at the Village Hall.
The total expected income from the precept (729 individuals at the last census) would show £6775 and expected costs were £6958 resulting in a deficit of £183. There would be no money to fund the Bugle or for any grants.
Marlene’s draft figures showed that the proposal would be just about workable but with no room for manoeuvre.
It had been suggested that the percentage for the precept could be increased. The precept is based on the number of D band houses in a parish and is pro rata upwards depending upon the band category. A deduction is then made for the number of single people living in a house with a 25% reduction (or empty houses) etc
Neighbourhood Plan and Community Plan
A small group had been formed at the time of the consultation submission to focus on what would happen if the Village Hall was threatened with demolition. The group members had spoken to the County planners who had recommended drawing up a Neighbourhood Plan in order to find out people’s views on all aspects of the village future. A final Plan has to be completed by a Parish Council (or a Forum such as Kenilworth Community Forum).
Cllr George Illingworth explained this was part of the proposed Localism Bill. He said the community could produce the Plan but the Parish Council, as the legal body, should be consulted.
It was unanimously agreed that BGRA committee should ask the Parish Council to proceed with a Neighbourhood Plan.
Action: Rona
Rona explained that a Community Plan was quite separate and contained the hopes and aspirations of all sections of the village community. She showed an example from Offchurch.
A comment was made that matters affecting those just over the boundaries should be included and it was agreed, as Offchurch had also done this,
Costing and funding needed to be researched and Marlene agreed to do this.
Action: Marlene
In response to another question asking if relevant information was available from the councils, Cllr. Blacklock said they would be happy to help and all information was available via the Freedom of Information Act.
It was generally felt that a lot was going on at present to take on another project, but anyone interested in forming a steering group should see Rona.
Jubilee Celebrations
Mary Webb reported on behalf of a small group from the BGRA committee and the Village Hall committee. They had ambitious plans for a number of events during the weekend of June 2nd-5th 2012. These included:
- Village Hall supper and sing song
- Art display involving local schools and groups
- Photography exhibition with images of Burton Green over the past 60 years
- Oral and visual newsreel featuring a number of older properties with Living History participation
- A memory tree
- A community mosaic to be made by villagers and sited within the village
- A series of living sculptures on the Greenway
- A beacon to be lighted on a high point
- A picnic on the school field with music and entertainment
A further planning meeting was to be held on Monday November 14th to which all were welcome.
Village Hall
Diane Swindells welcomed everyone to the hall and thanked residents for their support over the past year. Much time had been taken up with opposition to HS2 and the Village Hall committee was pleased the Hall was the focal point of the struggle. The committee wished to thank the Action Group and Jerry Marshall in particular for their brilliant work. Following a lengthy meeting at the Roadshow, a letter had been sent to HS2 with no response except an acknowledgement.
As trustees of the Village Hall, the committee would join with some members of the BGRA committee to prepare a Neighbourhood Plan. Vic Stuthridge would be the Village Hall representative. Vic had also taken over the bookings of the Hall (which could now be made through the website) and thanks were extended to Maxine Viney who had been Bookings Secretary for 17 years.
The Produce Show had been a great success. Jill Lines was thanked for her work and everyone was pleased to hear that David Lines was making progress following his bad accident.
The Village Hall AGM would be held on November 2nd at 7.30p.m. and all were welcome.
The final event of the year would be the Senior Citizens’ Christmas lunch and residents were urged to bring this to the attention of any neighbours who might be interested.
Police Matters and Neighbourhood Watch:
P.C. Peter King introduced himself as the beat manager for Kenilworth. He explained that there had been significant restructure in the force in May 2010 and Kenilworth had lost its Safer Neighbourhoods team. Now P.C.King and two community support officers were in post.
Burton Green’s isolation had come to his attention and he suggested holding community surgeries at the Village Hall where residents could raise issues of concern. This was generally deemed a good idea and he agreed to liaise with Diane regarding available times.
He was also looking at a pilot Junior Neighbourhood Watch scheme to help local children learn to trust and communicate with the police. Marcus Bridger of Burton Green School had welcomed the idea.
P.C.King was asked about levels of crime in the area. He said it was generally low but throughout the county had risen by 4.3% since the new model of working had been introduced. He said that most crime was opportunistic and urged residents not to leave valuables on display in the home or in vehicles.
Residents at the meeting commended the force for speedy responses to individual incidents.
P.C. King concluded by saying he was overwhelmed to see so many residents in attendance with such an interest in their community and he thanked everyone for making him welcome.
John Levett spoke on behalf of Neighbourhood Watch to encourage everyone to remain vigilant in the light of reduced police budgets. He reminded everyone to be alert to telephone and internet scams.
He referred residents to his article in the recent edition of the Bugle which explained how to receive messages direct from the Warwickshire Police Watch Co-ordinator. He urged everyone with an email address to register on the successful village email distribution list managed by Paddy Deeley.
County Councillor’s Report:
Cllr. Whitehouse commended Burton Green as a fantastic community which he was proud to represent.
In discussing the opening of the cycle bridge on the Greenway, he said the National Director of Sustrans had declared the Greenway was now part of the National Cycle Network and Cllr. Whitehouse made sure HS2 was aware of this fact.
He was considering again what opportunities there were to look at the speed limits within Burton Green. In the recent past, residents had decided they did not want road cushions or chicanes but in the light of Solihull’s proposals to review speed limits on roads including some entering the village, he wondered if residents would like him to make enquiries. It was agreed he should do so.
Action: Cllr. Whitehouse
Consultations had taken place about the future of the county’s libraries. It was proposed to cut the opening hours of Kenilworth Library from 51-35 per week. Discussions were taking place with WDC and Cllr. Whitehouse was aiming to find out why a decision was delayed. He said provision of mobile libraries was being discussed with Solihull MBC with the intention of enhancing the service.
The future of the Youth Service lay in the possibility of it being established as charity following withdrawal of council funding. An Open Day was to be held on October 29th from 2-6p.m. He urged residents to vote on http://communityforce.natwest.com in support of the project in the hope of winning funding.
Residents expressed dissatisfaction about the surface of the Greenway in the Burton Green area. This had been removed in readiness for new surfacing but this was not scheduled until 2012. Cllr. Whitehouse agreed to make enquiries about when this might take place and to convey residents’ concerns.
Action: Cllr. Whitehouse
District Councillors’ Reports
Cllr. Blacklock said it was a depressing time with so many cutbacks and many projects had been shelved because of loss of funding from central government.
She explained a review of district wards was taking place and there would be an opportunity to comment.
Grant funding was being reviewed to ensure best value for money.
Cllr. Coker gave further insight into the library situation where its employees were those of WCC but those of the One Stop Shop within the library were employed by WDC; and so the two councils were trying to collaborate to reach a satisfactory conclusion for all.
He condemned the decision by WCC to withdraw funding from the Youth Centre and said this was a central facility next to the new Senior Citizens ‘Club which was a very valuable asset. Kenilworth Town Council would be in support of the Youth Centre and the District Council did not intend to see it closed.
The past year had been taken up with HS2. WDC played a major part in the founding of 51m: eighteen councils which had come together to challenge the evidence base about the HS2 project.
He closed by saying the rates would not be going up the next year.
Cllr. Illingworth said his particular interest was planning matters. He referred again to the Le Van planning appeal and how intervention by residents had played a crucial part in overturning this.
With reference to planning at the national strategic level, he said the Localism Bill would bring power to a local level and he commended the Neighbourhood Plan proposal. He said Burton Green should take an interest in the strategy framework and gave examples of likely revisions. He added that residents should be pleased that the government had said the Green Belt was to be protected.
Rona thanked all the councillors for their continued support.
Parish Councillor’s Report
Cllr. Taylor said many issues raised at the Parish Council were only relevant to Stoneleigh. For Burton Green, the issue of prime importance was HS2 and it was a tribute to the late Howard Baker that he had been responsible for increasing the precept to have funds to fight HS2.
He knew representatives of Stoneleigh and of the university would be disappointed if Burton Green formed its own Parish Council, but he felt strongly that the village needed its own representation but it needed to get it right. He reiterated that it would work in partnership with BGRA.
Treasurer’s Report
Marlene presented the accounts which were a collaborative effort between herself and Archie Taylor (who had managed the accounts until March 2011). She explained income (£991.59) was down on the previous year (£1031.47). £350 of the income was being held for the Kenilworth to Berkswell Charity, the formation of which was to be finalised. Hence the actual income was £641.59. There had been a significant reduction in subscriptions collected (down from £531 to £297.83) and residents who had not contributed £2 were urged to do so.
The Parish Council had kindly donated £250 to cover the cost of printing the Bugle.
The Royal Wedding event had made a loss of £39.76 but everyone attending, especially the children, had enjoyed it.
A donation of £250 had been made earlier in the year to the Action Group.
The brought forward figure from last year was £280.02. Expenditure for the year (£705.59) was greater than income and so a small portion of the brought forward amount was used to cover expenses.
The bank account had been moved from Santander to Lloyds TSB, Kenilworth. At the yearend BGRA bank account held £1817.24 of which £350 was kept for the Greenway Charity making the true figure £1,467.24.
Peter Tacon had received the accounts at very short notice but had independently examined them.
Marlene suggested setting up a system of collecting subscriptions by standing order and of increasing the amount top £3p.a. There was a general consensus of agreement.
Finally, Marlene suggested setting up BGRA as a charity in order to benefit from Gift Aid. A resident commented that BGRA would also be able to use online donating as a charity. Marlene felt BGRA’s work was closely allied to that of a charity. Marlene would make further enquiries and this would be discussed at the next committee meeting.
Rona thanked Marlene for all her work.
Any Other Business and Date of Next Annual General Meeting
The parliamentary boundaries review consultation would need a BGRA response.
Action: Rona
Rona said funding was being sought to provide a notice board for Red Lane residents.
The next meeting of the newly-formed History Group would take place on November 7th.
Residents were again urged to sign up for the village email distribution list.
Election of Independent Examiner
Peter Tacon again agreed to act as Independent Examiner.
Proposed: Marlene Hills
Seconded: Deirdre Vernon.
Unanimously agreed.
Thanks were extended to the residents who had attended.
The next Annual General Meeting would be held on Monday October 1st 2012 at the Village Hall.
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