SINGLETON PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Meeting of the Parish Council
Held at Singleton Village Hall on 16 July 2024
Present: – Cllrs Lee (Chair), Bailey and Clifford and the Parish Clerk, Verena Henderson, who took the Minutes. Two members of the public also attended.
| 1. | Apologies for Absence – Cllr Cholmondeley, County Cllr Singleton and new councillor Rushworth |
| . | Police Matters Crimes reported in the Elswick, Little Eccleston, Singleton & Greenhalgh parishes in May 2024 were as follows: – Violence and sexual offences – 15; Anti-social behaviour – 9; Theft – 5 and vehicle crime -4. According to an “In the Know” Police bulletin, a total of 2,600 people have been arrested in the last 12 months for impaired driving offences caused by drink or drug offences across Lancashire. This is being targeted by Police under Operation Virage. The new Police and Crime Commissioner, Clive Grunshaw, has launched a Police and Crime Plan Public Consultation. This survey is an opportunity for everyone who lives, works and travels in Lancashire to share feedback on crime and policing as well as the proposed priorities in the PCC’s draft Police and Crime Plan 2024 – 2029. The deadline for responses is 30 September 2024. |
| 3. | Open Forum Complaint made that the work on the footpath on Lodge Lane has still not been done. It is now considered extremely dangerous to walk down there as the problem has been exacerbated by overgrown hedges forcing pedestrians to walk in the road. This is particularly bad in three separate places, opposite the entrance to Singleton Lodge. The Clerk was asked to write to advise Cllr Singleton of the continuing problem and to LCC requesting enforcement for the cutting of these hedges. Fylde Borough Council is also to be contacted regarding the state of the overgrowth on the footpaths from Singleton Hall to the village. A complaint had earlier been made on behalf of residents of Occupation Lane about the removal of the ‘Keep Clear’ sign on the road surface of Mains Lane, just before the Singleton traffic lights. There are 60 homes down Occupation Lane and following resurfacing of Mains Lane and the inclusion of a new cycle lane, the ‘Keep Clear’ box has not been reinstated. This has led to a lot of anxiety for residents of Occupation Lane as this box was put there so vehicles entering and exiting the lane could do so safely whilst traffic was queuing at the traffic lights. There had also previously been a pull-in area for cars turning, which has disappeared since resurfacing too. The Clerk had followed this up with Kier who had responded that the Keep Clear signage would not be repainted as they considered it was no longer required due to the reduction in traffic on this section of Mains Lane and the improved traffic lights at Singleton junction. This was disputed by the Parish Council as it had been put there as a safety precaution and the question was put as to are Kier legally entitled to take away this safety feature? Occupation Lane is a very narrow lane and motorists who do not know the area would not necessarily be aware of its existence, and especially how many homes there are down there. The Clerk was asked to respond to Kier asking who had the right to make this decision? The Parish Council was certainly of the view that the signage should remain. Windy Harbour – A question raised about work currently taking place at the Windy Harbour site with soil being moved and marking out taking place. Several planning applications have gone through for enlarging the Windy Harbour site, which must be done in stages. Cllr Lee will be keeping an eye on developments. |
| 4. | Minutes of previous meeting held on 20 June 2024 and any matters arising – The Minutes of the previous meeting, having been previously circulated and agreed, were signed as a true and correct record by the Chairman. There were no matters arising. |
| 5. | Declarations of Interest – None |
| 6. | Planning matters and decisions 24/0222 – Little Green Acres, 24 Mains Lane, Singleton FY6 7LF – Erection of Detached Garage and stables. The Parish Council had no specific observations to make on the proposal other than it was a retrospective application. Planning Decisions 24/0228 – Ridgefield, 22 Mains Lane, Singleton FY6 7LF – Granted. |
| 7. | Traffic and Highways issues County Cllr Singleton had submitted his monthly report on the issues raised regarding the highways. He is keeping an eye on all matters raised and will only remove these items from his list once they have been satisfactorily dealt with. This list includes the footway deterioration on Lodge Lane, highlighted this evening in item 3, and many pot-holes, blocked gulleys and noisy manhole covers. He has had the disabled parking space outside the school inspected and a works order has been raised for LCC’s lining team to visit the area as soon as they are able to carry out the necessary refresh of the bay. The Chairman asked the Clerk to pass on the Parish Council’s thanks to Cllr Singleton for his continued support and diligence. Notification received of a road closure on Grange Road from 30 September 2024 – 1st October 2024 to enable telecom pole replacement works to be carried out by BT Openreach. |
| 8. | New By-Pass There are still a lot of things to be finished off and there are still quite a few people working on the site. They are hoping to be finishing off and leaving soon. Cllr Clifford raised his concerns about the mess that is still visible – stones and bits of tarmac at junctions and on pathways. The whole area needs a good sweep before they leave. |
| 9. | Update from Fylde Borough Council Fylde BC will be redoing their local plan, concentrating on housing needs and where houses can go.The new Police and Crime Commissioner, Clive Grunshaw, will be attending the AGM next week.The next Planning Parish Forum for Parish Clerks will be held on 30 September at Fylde BC and the Clerk will attend. |
| 10. | Village Green – Nothing to report this month |
| 11. | Correspondence Email received regarding the flower tubs at Little Singleton. These had been moved temporarily from the area around the noticeboard as Kier had been working in that area. The work was now completed, and the grassed area re-seeded by Kier. The resident offered to put the tubs back to their original place and possibly adding more tubs if that was agreeable to the Parish Council. The Parish Council would be happy with this, and the Clerk will express thanks to the resident for this suggestion.As the grassed area has been re-seeded, it cannot be mowed for at least a month. The groundsman is therefore spending extra time across from the Shell Garage area to tidy things up there.Email received on behalf of the Dumbreck Trust in response to the Clerk’s letter setting out the cost of litter-picking in the parish for the year up to 31 March 2024. The Trust had previously agreed to contribute half of the costs, which they had done for the past couple of years. The Trust has again agreed to pay half of these costs, the sum of £2,935, which will be paid into the bank account. The Parish Council expressed its thanks to the Trust for its continued support. The Litter-picker continues to work hard for the parish and his efforts have been very much appreciated.Community Energy Fund – Round 3. Information received regarding funding for community and eligible third sector organisations to develop energy project proposals. Deadline – 1st September 2024. Noted. |
| 12. | Accounts and Any Invoices to pay First Cut Grounds Maintenance – £517.68 – Proposed Cllr Lee, Seconded Cllr Clifford. Agreed.Litter-picker – 4 weeks – £427.00. Proposed Cllr Lee, Seconded Cllr Clifford. Agreed.Clerk, Salary and expenses – £367.03. Proposed Cllr Lee, Seconded Cllr Bailey. Agreed. |
| 13. | Any Other Business Flowers in the parish – Cllr Clifford is continuing with his quest to get together a group of volunteers to form a committee to brighten up the parish with flowers and perhaps getting organisations such as the Rotary involved. He has many ideas and is looking at a long-term plan rather than just a short season. He hopes to update the Parish Council on progress soon.The Clerk would like a token of thanks to be given to the internal auditor for his work in regard to the annual accounts. In previous years, this had been in the form of purchasing some bottles of wine. This was unanimously agreed. |
| 14. | Date and time of next meeting – Tuesday 13 August 2024 at 7.15pm. As there was no further business, the meeting closed at 8.30pm. |
Signed ……………………………………………… Dated ………………………………
Verena Henderson, Clerk to Singleton Parish Council,
Tel: 07530 605 291: email: Clerk@SingletonParishCouncil.org