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MINUTES FOR THE MEETING OF THE AMENITIES COMMITTEE HELD ON MONDAY 4th MAY 2020 AT 7PM VIA ZOOM.

Present: Cllrs R Watts, E Jones, P Arnott, C Denny, C Pady, A Parr, K Clifford, J Hay, J Gardiner and S Real. Also present S Haines (clerk)
Members of the public: 1

A20/05/01 To receive and accept apologies for absence:

A20/05/02 The Minutes of the Meeting held on 28th May 2019 (Appendix E) to be agreed. Minutes agreed by all. Cllr Watts abstained from voting.

A20/05/03 Matters arising from the Minutes. None

A20/05/04 Declarations of interest. None

A20/05/05 Democratic Period - opportunity for public questions & comments. A member of public wished to speak on a few items. He questioned when the works would be done to put river gravel along the footpaths which have been severely affected by the wet weather, in particular the footpath which runs along the river from Colyton to the White Hart and the footpath from Shells Lane. He stated that April has been dry and we have a big budget so recommended getting a contractor to get the works completed now. Cllr Pady commented that we would take these suggestions on board, he knows a number of farmers who have river gravel so would approach them and the Council would need to decide if a contractor was needed or if the works could be done by volunteers.
The member of public then went on to congratulate the Parish Council on the works done on digging out the ditches, although some of the spoil has now been driven back into them!
He asked about a date for the verges in Colyford to be cut, especially around where the buses drop off school children, if the kids go back to school in June then the verges will need to be done by the.
The member of the public is concerned about bins, he stated that there are 5 around the PMPF and tennis courts but not one at the other end of Coly Road. Pear Tree Hill used to have a bin opposite Kingsholme but this seems to have been removed.
His final point is the plans for Millfield, the CVRA would support the idea of a carpark for the allotments and the rest of the area being planted with trees. If more allotments would be put in then the Environmental Agency should be contacted.
Cllr Pady stated that a volunteer is very kindly cutting the verges down at the Colyford gateways.

A20/05/06 Playground Inspection Report.
There is some welding work that needs doing, Cllr Jones very kindly offered up his welder for John to use.
The fence at Road Green playpark is rotten and in need to repair. Once John has sourced all his materials needed then he will do the job. The inspection company have recommended a sign be put up in the Colyford and Road Green playparks, identifying the Parish Council as being responsible for the land and also emergency contact details.
Cllr Watts proposed we use the sign that is outside the PMPF as a template and Cllr Pady should gather quotes and bring to the next Finance meeting. This was seconded by Cllr Jones and agreed by all. The bin that is outside the Road Green playpark is mainly used for dog waste, as it is near a playground it should have a lid. Again it was agreed that Cllr Pady would find the costs for a new bin with a lid and bring the findings to the next Finance meeting. Whilst on the subject of bins, Cllr Pady stated the bin which was on Pear Tree Hill opposite Kingsholme seems to have disappeared, clerk to contact East Devon to discuss what happened to the bin and to copy in Cllr Arnott.
The skate park needs spray paint bought to remove graffiti, also John needs to purchase a special paint to repaint one of the ramps, this paint needs to be a certain type to allow grip. This was agreed.
There was a concern raised over the large play equipment in the Colyford playpark. It has a fall height of over 2m and so the Parish Council need to ensure that a surfacing certificate is sought and to consider HIC testing to ensure that the surface is performing adequately. Cllr Watts suggested contacting our insurance company to see what exactly the public liability covers and if there is a specific British standard that we need to be following.
All other comments from the play inspection company were minor and will just require monitoring going forward which John is happy to do. Cllr Pady congratulated John on his work and thanked him for being so thorough.

A20/05/07 Report from Cllr West RE Mill Field.
Cllr West stated in his report that the only agreement made in regards to Mill field was to use weed killer in the spring of 2020 to rid the site of the brambles and other weeds. No machinery was agreed. He challenges the idea of putting allotments in due to the amount of soil and top soil that would be needed to cover the land and the potential costs that could rise to. Cllr Parr stated that the proposal from Cllr Pady was to clear the weeds, he stated that the site may not be suitable for allotments and it may be preferable to plant some trees up there and turn it into a wild meadow. Cllr Jones asked what Cllr Pady referred to when he said investigating into the land was opening a can of worms Cllr Pady explained that as the land used to be a dump the digging down far may uncover all sorts of things as it would if you dug down on any old dump.
Cllr Arnott proposed we defer all decisions until full council meeting and also that we contact the Environmental agency, we have a duty to report any concerns we have, they should be able to investigate using samples and until we know what we are dealing with, we cannot make a decision with what to do with the land. This was seconded by Cllr Jones. Cllr Denny is in the process of collecting quotes to bring to council for an Ecologist to perform a site check. Cllr Watts stated that if we wrote to East Devon, voicing our concerns then it is their statutory right to inform the Environmental Agency. Cllr Arnott agreed with this. Cllr Watts proposed that the clerk should write to East Devon expressing our concerns and to ask what their policy would be, this was seconded by Cllr Arnott and agreed.

A20/05/08 Email from Mr & Mrs Croft RE Land North of Mill Close.
This again cannot be a consideration until we have results back from a site survey. The Crofts will be informed of this by the clerk.

A20/05/09 Cemetery Soil Disposal. Cllr West had previously made an offer to the Council that Wiscombe Hill Climb would be willing to pay for the soil to be driven over to them as they are in need of it. Cllr Pady proposed that we gratefully accept this offer but also keep our option of putting the soil next to Heathayne open. This was seconded by Cllr Parr. Cllr Watts suggested that we do a trial run of one load, Cllr Pady agreed and said there was a trailer ready to go now, clerk to contact Cllr West to pass on this information and the padlock number for the gate to the cemetery.

A20/05/10 Annual Parish Inspection normally held in June will be delayed. Cllr Pady explained how important the inspection is and how it highlights any jobs in need of doing and reminds the Council of its responsibilities. Obviously it cannot be done at this moment but Cllr Pady proposed that it be continuously placed on the Full Meeting agenda under Amenities to be constantly reviewed and a date set as soon as it is possible. This was seconded by Cllr Watts and agreed by all.

A20/05/11 Cllr Pady proposal for Lishams Drain, diverting spring water into Allotments. Cllr Pady proposed that we tap the spring which causes consistent flooding and then potholes all up that road and divert the water down to provide free water for the allotments. He has approached Stephen Kelly at highways and he was not against the idea and did say that they had road works planned there in the future. Cllr Jones pointed out that the pipe would need to run an extremely long way, would it not be a possibility to tap into the mains supply at the house next to the field (with the owners permission) Cllr Pady stated that then the water would need to be pumped uphill. Cllr Hay stated that 13 years ago highways were doing works at that point, he stated that the spring should have been tapped to run into the drain at that point. He said that for the water to reach the allotments without any assistance bar gravity then we would need to dig down very far. The project is a non-starter. Cllr Watts stated that it was a very good idea of Cllr Padys and an admirable project but unfortunately didnt sound like it would be financially viable.

A20/05/12 Allotments update all plots taken and a waiting list. One has just become available due to tenant being in isolation. Clerk to contact allotment chair to discuss options.

A20/05/13 Footpaths update. No major issues, a couple trees down but they have been reported. There is now a new gate on bridleway 50 coming out at Gittshayne Farm which is a lot easier to open. Our footpath officer at Devon County Council is in the process of applying to have the path up at Nunsford Dairy put on our patch so we can do works there. Please can the public be reminded to watch their dogs around livestock and always pick up after their dogs.
Cllr Pady is going to check how much river gravel Mr Collier has available to begin works on gravelling the worst areas of the footpaths along the river Coly to The White Hart (fp25) and also the path that goes up from Newbury Close (fp 9) he may also approach Mr Underdown for more gravel if needed. The gravel will be placed in gateways and at stiles only never along the fields. Cllr Real pointed out that we may struggle to find a contractor that will do the work during lock down. Cllr Parr proposed that we approach Tom Palmer for a quote, this was seconded by Cllr Pady and agreed by all that Mr Palmer be contacted for a quote and Mr Collier and Mr Underdown be contacted for gravel. It was noted that the top of FP9 which comes out by Doctors Stone gets very muddy as horses congregate in the gateway, the hardcore will be put by the stile and along the hedge only, not in the gateway. Shells Lane was reported as not being a huge problem at the moment. It is slightly overgrown and does flood as it has a hard surface.
Cllr Hay wanted to give a vote of thanks to Graham Pady for a job extremely well done on the ditches down Cownhayne Lane, during the Coly Road closure the ditches were very badly damaged due to people driving in them, Graham has dug it all out and reduced the risk of flooding at the Colyford end. The clerk is to write a letter of thanks.
Cllr Watts stated that a reminder RE dogs around livestock and picking up after dogs will be in the Parish Newsletter.

A20/05/14 Items bought to the Chairs attention after the agenda was published to be noted. This item was used to insure that all the issued raised by the member of the public was covered.
The clerk stated that Halcyon have the contract for the verges, in the contract it is stated that certain verges will be cut twice a year, late May and September. Shells Lane was reported in a bad state, Cllr Watts stated that he uses this lane regularly, it is slightly over grown but not a huge problem, he stated that as it is a narrow lane with a hard surface then the water does run down it like a gully but it is dry at the moment.
Cllr Hay bought up concerns around potholes and the lack of maintenance that Devon County Council do, he noted that they will only repair holes reported and if there is one next to one they are working on but it has not been reported then they wont do it. He bought up the idea of sharing a lenghtsman with another Council. He also highlighted a plan that another Council have done which was to highlight all the problems on a map and then go around to local businesses and ask for donations to have the works done. Cllr Parr stated that now was not a good time to do that, Cllr Pady suggested this be bought to full council, Cllr Parr agreed but not until August.
Cllr Pady agreed that the roads were in a bad state and he has written to Devon County Council who explained that as there was so much pressure on Social Care they were overloaded and the highways budget has been cut to assist with that.

A20/05/15 Date of next Meetings,
CPC Full Meeting Monday 11th May Finance & Planning Tuesday 26th May.

Meeting Ended 2045.