DURLEY PARISH COUNCIL MEETING REPORT
ANNUAL PARISH ASSEMBLY
Durley Parish Council held its Annual Parish Assembly on Tuesday 10th April, 2018 at Durley Memorial Hall, Durley. 5 Parish Councillors, County/District Councillor Humby, District Councillor Miller, the Clerk – Mrs Anne Collins, PCSO Slater, a police representative and 3 parishioners were present.
Apologies were received from District Councillor Mclean.
Cllr Charles (Chairman) commenced the Meeting by introducing members of the Parish Council and other Officers to the residents attending.
Cllr Charles gave a Chairman’s Report summarising the work the Parish Council has been working on during the year. He said that the drainage work which was carried out at The Sawmills appears to be working effectively, the Parish Council part of the village website is now live, the Footpaths around Durley are kept clear by the Parish Lengthsman, the play areas have been renovated and new safer surfacing has been put down in places. We have been working closely with the School to try and slow the traffic down through Durley, especially past the School. A new SID sign has been ordered and will be placed in 5 different locations on a rotation basis. It is hoped that the information this sign records will be useful to verify speeds of traffic and volume of traffic through Durley. The Chairman, Clerk and Councillors attend many Meetings outside the Parish Council throughout the year. At the end of his Report the Chairman thanked all his Officers and the Clerk for all their hard work over the year.
The Clerk gave a Financial Report for the End 2017-18. Details of the Income and Expenditure were given out and the Clerk explained that £16,000 was given to the Parish Council for the future maintenance of the road which was adopted at The Sawmills from Persimmon Homes. This money will be put aside for these future costs. The Internal Audit Report was satisfactory and Councillors thanked the Clerk for all her hard work with the accounts of the Parish.
Cllr Pitter gave a Highways Report saying that he has reported many pot holes throughout the year by photographing the pot hole and sending the picture to HCC Highways via the on-line system. This works well. However, at the present time, due to the bad winter weather there are many pot holes which need attention as they are filled with water. The double yellow lines at the end of Manor Road junction and Beech Corner are marked out ready to be completed. This has been after many years of persuing from Durley Parish Council. It is hoped that this will stop parking in these unsafe areas.
Cllr Smith gave a Hall Report and started by thanking all the Hall hirers for the support over the year. She also thanked the Hall Caretaker John, who is unfortunately unwell at the moment. Councillors all wished John a speedy recovery. Donna Shorney was thanked for helping with the Hall in John’s absence. Both textile bins in the Hall car park are well used by residents and raise funds for the First Responders, Breast Cancer and the Hall. The new tables and trollies are well used and the new sound system has been installed. It is hoped that the Hall floor will be replaced, a window put into the downstairs Committee Room and replace the strip lights in the Hall with more energy efficient LED lighting. Cllr Smith then thanked Cllr Charles, Cllr Pitter, Shawn and Peter for all their support in the Hall and Anne Collins for taking the bookings.
County/District Councillor Humby gave a County Councillor’s Report outlining the work that HCC is doing to keep our road network safe, especially during the bad winter weather which we have had this winter. CC Humby attends many Meetings which could involve going to the House of Commons, visiting local residents and everything in between. Taking responsibility for the highways and environment in Hampshire is a vast amount of work and deciding on the budget for these issues is a big responsibility. Adult and child social care takes up a large amount of the budget so juggling the figures to accommodate all that is required is not easy. CC Humby informed residents about the work that Skanska are doing on our highways and the new machines that they use, e.g. the Dragon Patcher to fix pot holes more efficiently. CC Humby was thanked for all his hard work in Durley over the year.
District Councillor Miller gave a District Council Report and he outlined the work that the 3 District Councillors carry out over the year at WCC. DC Miller spoke about the various Grants that are available, facilities that have been purchased recently by WCC, including hopefully having a sports facility in the southern parishes. High class offices are also needed in Winchester. DC Miller was thanked for all his work over the past year for Durley.
PCSO Stephanie Slater was present representing the Police along with a colleague. She stated that the overall crime statistics for Durley was down this year. She has visited Durley Lunch Club with Trading Standards Officers to talk to elderly residents about scams etc. The Police might have a stand at the Church Fete this year.
General questions were then asked by residents attending and the Chairman then thanked everyone for attending and closed the Meeting.
Anne Collins
Clerk to Durley Parish Council
durleypc@homecall.co.uk
