WADHURST PARISH COUNCIL

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 10th December, 2009

Punctuality
This being our Christmas meeting, members are usually raring to go when the appointed hour arrives in the belief that we shall then finish in good time for later conviviality.  But on this occasion, only 11 councillors were assembled when the Chairman called order, plus one member of the public and our new reporter, Matt Young – his first attendance at our august assembly.  With no apologies for absence, we looked aghast at the empty chairs but were relieved to find that they all found occupants within the next fifteen minutes.  Three of our number having declared interests relating to the agenda item about Wadhurst Institute, Hall & Field, we called for the Police Report.  We had just decided that in the absence of any police representation none of us had anything to contribute, when two yellow-clad figures passed the window, and in burst not one but two PCSOs.  Tamara then gave her usual enthusiastic report of what she had been up to: a street meeting, a bit of ticketing illegally parked vehicles, visiting victims of crime, initiating Farmwatch, and the Neighbourhood Panel meeting.  This had again selected the three top priority targets as speeding, improper parking and anti-social behaviour; in relation to the last, the weather was now on our side.  On the speeding front, speedcheck sites had been selected and temporary signs were being erected to identify them.  None of us wishing to cross-examine her, she was duly thanked for her efforts.

News from On High
The member of the public not wishing to speak, and the minutes of our last meeting approved without comment, we leapt into reports of goings-on in higher forums – except that in the absence of our county councillor the floor was left to Bob Standley, our Parish and District Councillor.  His report was mostly about budget-setting; in spite of a 2.74 per cent increase in the Wealden District precept, it was having to budget for a deficit of £650,000 which would be met from reserves prudently built up in recent years.  The main reason for the deficit was additional expenditure imposed by government action in increasing taxes and similar charges – including an enormous hike in the cost of the compulsory audit intended to ensure increased efficiency!  Over the past year, Wealden District Council had received 101 letters of complaint but 72 of congratulation, the latter being very unusual for a local authority.  The introduction of roadside recycling in Wadhurst in March 2010 meant that letters would be going out to residents in January and a public meeting would be held.

Correspondence and Chairman
Astonishment was the universal reaction to the revelation that Wadhurst College was now a listed building; no consultation had taken place and Wealden District knew that our preference was that it should not be retained as part of any development of the site.  Who had inspired English Heritage to act was a mystery, as was the identity of the current owner who would now presumably be required to restore and maintain it.  Perhaps we should apply for it to be de-listed?  So we moved from an unexpected happening to a controversial possibility: the zebra crossing at the top of the High Street.  The public meeting had been attended by five parish councillors, no district councillors, our county councillor and 25 members of the public, and had been inconclusive, but the consultation would continue until the end of the year and apparently comment forms were flooding in.

Highways and Transport
As part of the process of trying to plan additional car parking in the village, it was agreed that we should spoil the fun of speculating and instead commission a professional survey of existing car park usage so that we would know, for instance, how many cars are parked all day and how many are short-term parkers; the necessary funding was approved.  It was also agreed that we should participate in the Walk Wealden promotion of healthy living, and should organise an event in the Spring – possibly a trek from one side of the parish to the other, with a break somewhere suitable for lunch. 

Cannon Street despair
Our two councillors who attended the conference on railway matters organised by the County Council had disappointing news.  The Department for Transport had declined to attend and neither Charles Hendry nor Greg Barker had attended.  Network Rail had sent several representatives. The consultation exercise had been in effect a charade; the termination of direct services to Cannon Street in four years’ time had been a political, not operational, decision imposed by the DfT as part of its determination to promote Thameslink, which calls at Blackfriars.  Thameslink trains will start from Tunbridge Wells and will be indivisible 12-car units, for which the expensive new sidings are being built.  In consequence, Hastings trains will no longer divide at TW; because of the substandard electrification from there to Hastings, our trains will all have only eight coaches -- all the way to London.  Passengers to the City will have to change at London Bridge, which may be fine in the morning but trying to get into already overcrowded eight-coach trains at London Bridge in the evening will be ghastly.  The consequences on Wadhurst and district will be disastrous.  A political decision can only be overturned by politicians, so our MPs are the only hope, and really must act.

Other Committees
Planning having little to excite us, we moved on to good news on the Recreation Ground.  The funding logjam had at last been eased and we had finally placed the order for the improvements to the play areas; work is due to start in mid-January.  This information helped lift the Cannon Street gloom and restore our usual good humour – in fact, occasional bursts of laughter could be heard from around the table.  So we sailed through the Environment Committee’s problems trying to restore sylvan splendour to, or rather plant one tree in, St James’s Square.  Moving up the High Street, we then battled with the problems of the Institute, Hall & Field Trust who had discovered that the former Social Club extension to the Commemoration Hall needed to be re-roofed before East Sussex could take over responsibility and install a bright new Library there.  The cost would be £14,000, which they do not have spare, so they hoped we would make a grant to cover it.  After much agonising, we decided, if reluctantly, that it was in the interests of our parishioners that they should continue to have a viable Hall in the centre of the village, particularly if it contained a spanking new library, and that we would make an immediate grant of half the amount, to be followed shortly by the second half if certain conditions relating to the Trust had been met.  After that, a little prestidigitation with the budget to cover this, and then its approval, were simple matters.  After nearly two hours’ hard labour, but satisfied with the results, we sallied forth to (in some cases) a suitable festive end-of-term noggin.

Next Meeting
The Council does not meet in January so our next full meeting of will be on Thursday, 11th February, 2010, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 12th November, 2009

Beginning
At 7.30 sharp, our Chairman called us to order, with twelve Councillors present, two apologies and one who was delayed because his fish supper would not cook.  There being no interests to be declared, we looked around in vain for our PCSO; we know she had intended to attend but must have been detained elsewhere.  So we moved on to the fifteen minutes permitted for members of the public to address us.  One did so, on behalf of four of those present.  She expressed their disappointment at the decision by the Finance Committee, at its budget-proposing meeting, to recommend that no grant be given to Transition Wadhurst; it was wrong to think of it as a political organisation – what it aimed to do was foster understanding of and help with environmental issues, particularly amongst the young, from energy-efficiency to growing one’s own vegetables.  Then the Vicar took his turn; he pointed out that the graveyard at the Church is a facility for all parishioners, of whatever persuasion or lack of it, and he felt it was unfair that the small body of churchgoers should have to fund its deficit for the good of the community as a whole.  As always, the speakers were thanked but debate deferred until the relevant agenda item.

News from On High
The minutes, as usual, being approved without comment, we turned to our County and District Councillors for their reports.  Bob Tidy told us that the County Council was now engaged in deciding what savings should be made over the next four years; a £40 million reduction in expenditure was needed, and Sussex Police income was also scheduled to fall by £35 million.  The Police were the most efficient area of County Council responsibility and, with the exception of road safety, crime reduction, particularly in Wealden district, was a success story.  On more local matters, he said they were agonising over how to encourage responsible driving on the dangerous curves on the road to (or particularly from) Frant without imposing an unenforceable speed limit.  This being near to their hearts, several of our lady members gave advice based on their years of negotiating this particular stretch of road, and Bob assured them that their views would be taken into account.  Next, Graham Wells told us that Wealden District Council was trying to encourage all residents to get fit by 2012, and were promoting Wealden Walks as a community activity.  He also gave the welcome news that kerbside recycling would arrive in Wadhurst in March.  It would be introduced not prescriptively but sensitively and with help and encouragement, and we should all find it easy to do the right thing; sale of material for recycling already produced £1 million per annum, so this should increase materially.

Chairman and, eventually, Cannon Street
The Chairman told us he had nothing to announce but did wish to congratulate the organisers on the magnificent bonfire and firework display the previous Saturday; he hoped it would be the first of many, as it was intended to be self-financing.  A few questions were asked about items in the list of correspondence before us, from which we deduced the welcome news that peace seems to have broken out with the management at Bewl Water, at least for the time being.  Highways, Transport & Lighting Matters then followed; apart from the good news that the community bus service was being well used, the report was largely about forthcoming events: the public meeting on the zebra crossing proposal and the meeting organised by the County Council to object to the withdrawal of Cannon Street train services.  One of our number reported that he had handed out slips on a Cannon Street train with information about the proposal and had been surprised how few people had heard anything about it.

Other Committees
An attempt to move on resulted in the realisation that the adoption of the report of the H,T&L Committee had not been proposed and voted upon.  This resulted in a Mexican wave of languid hands as everyone tried to propose, second and approve the motion.  Once that had been sorted, Planning matters promoted a return to somnolence – so we addressed that usually exciting topic, the Recreation Ground.  This too was a disappointment, the only stirring news being that Wealden had released the first half of the grant funding towards the improvement of the play areas, but were still sitting resolutely on the other funds they had now held for three months – but action had been promised for next week.  Next they will tell us that the cheque’s in the post!

Environment and Finance
The Environment Committee not having met since our previous meeting, its chairman made an oral report embracing the upkeep of the War Memorial area, the possible planting of a couple of new trees, and the sad news that our duck seemed to have gone AWOL, reason unknown.  So we moved for consolation to Finance and the difficult issue of grants, November being the meeting at which they are normally allocated.  We had before us eight grant applications, together with the Finance Committee’s proposals in response.  As is our wont, we showed solid support for the committee and then proceeded to change several of its proposals.  After a succession of conflicting votes, we reached unanimity – and within budget.

Metaphysical Mirth
Finally, it was time to look at the budget for 2010/11 in preparation for next month’s meeting when it has to be agreed.  After discussing the proposal that our support for the Institute, Hall & Field and the graveyard should become separate budget items rather than competing for funds within the Grants allocation, we turned to a deep and meaningful discussion of budgeting generally.  A budget is a bit like a quadratic equation: guesswork.  Unfortunately, our grand council chamber, with its square of folding tables and stacking chairs, does not really have aisles.  If it had, some of us might have been rolling in them as the discussion got increasingly wild.  Should we aim to set a budget within which we think we can keep (and risk a surplus) or one which covers only what we know we must inevitably fund (and risk a deficit), and how can we justify an increase in precept at a time of nil inflation?  The last is perhaps the easiest question: although our expected expenditure is down, our expected income from the Recreation Ground (fewer Pavilion lettings and a drop in Tennis Club membership) is down to the same extent; it is loss of investment income with current low interest rates which is the problem, and on the whole we feel this should be funded by the precept rather than a further cut in services.  Then, bear in mind that every new house brings in some more council tax; this means that an increase in precept (the amount we get out of the council tax) may not lead to a proportionate (or even any) increase in the amount any individual household pays towards the precept.  The Chairman finally called order and dismissed us into the deluge at 9.30.

Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Council will be on Thursday, 10th December, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 8th October, 2009

Chair
In the absence of the Chairman, his new Vice-Chairman took the chair, and very well she did too.  Not since the last century have we been presided over and called to order by a lady.  In those days of yore, ruling Wadhurst was a difficult task involving heated discussion and long meetings; frequently, we debated beyond closing time and had to repair to bed unwatered and with our tensions still burning without the soothing effects of a convivial beverage.  Any fears that we might be returning to such torment were soon dispelled by the dispatch with which Jan Pearman attacked our business; in fact, had our PCSO and two absent councillors not arrived as we were contemplating packing up, we were in line for a brevity record.

Police and Public
Our PCSO not yet having arrived, we moved straight into the Public Forum to see what burning issues were on our parishioners’ minds.  There were half a dozen members of the public present, one more elderly than the others, but all smiling.  Age took precedence and this gentleman declared an interest as an ex-fireman, the son of one and the father of two similar.  The others were all current retained firemen at Wadhurst; all had come to raise the same topic: the proposal that there might be a car park at the Fire Station.  They were concerned that it might obstruct their ability to arrive, dump their cars and be off in the fire engine as swiftly as is required when their pagers bleep.  There was also the danger of shoppers or children inadvertently being in the way, and in any case it would be a waste of money as a car park there would not be used: the layby is seldom full except when the Primary School comes out.  They were assured that the proposal was purely embryonic and that their comments had been duly noted.

County and Cannon Street
Nothing having arisen from the minutes of our last meeting, our County Councillor, Bob Tidy, was invited to report.  He said that as it was the party conference season he had little to report except the increasing number of scams, including a caller who purports to be from BT and demands credit card details to settle an unpaid bill.  He told us that the meeting of MPs, County, District and Parish Councillors to discuss with the Department of Transport the proposed withdrawal of Cannon Street services from the Hastings Line would take place on 27th November.  Gentle Reader, bear this deadline in mind if you are interested; it may be our last chance.  To find out full details and to comment, please go to the Parish Council website on www.wadhurstpc.info/trains .

District and HOPE
Next, Graham Wells told us about District Council matters.  In view of the high incidence of homelessness in Wealden, they were setting up an initiative with private landlords to make more housing available to rent – for anyone over 18 with need and a demonstrable local connection.  Next, of the 326 electric blankets tested last year, 40% had failed on safety grounds; he urged that everyone should take advantage of the free testing scheme.  Finally, he reminded us that the Styles Lane development is the first HOPE (House Our PEople) project to reach fruition; the distinguishing features are that it is on an exception site (one where planning permission would not normally be obtained), was built by local builders with locally sourced materials, and was energy efficient.  But there are still 70 families with proven Wadhurst connections on the housing waiting list.

Chairman’s Moment
Chairman’s Announcements & Correspondence for noting is frequently a sort of omnibus, or even railroad, item when an innocent question about an item listed in our papers can lead to fascinating debate about something quite else.  But not this time; questions were few, and the only exciting item was to elect Melissa Gates to the Environment Committee as she seemed to have been overlooked when the jobs were shared out in May.

Traffic
Highways, Transport & Lighting Matters were the next delicacies on our menu and gave rise to the usual litany of complaints about danger and speeding, none of which are matters we can address directly.  East Sussex County Council had told us it had no funds available for any traffic calming measures on Station Hill but was planning to hold a public meeting on 25th November to discuss its proposal for a zebra crossing.  This, as all our avid readers will remember, would be at the top of the shopping area of the High Street, between Columbine and Wealden Wholefoods and would result in considerable loss of parking; the County Council Highways Department is adamant that it cannot be sited anywhere else.  Safety is of course more important than parking but your council was not in favour of the proposal as (apart from the parking problem) it fears that the absence of parked vehicles may lead to increased speeds in this area, where, for instance, elderly people are likely to try to cross from Washwell Lane to the Post Office without making the detour to the zebra.  Parking was also the subject of another problem, that the Thursday market had caused total gridlock earlier that day; perhaps the passage of time and some penalty ticketing would ease the problem in future.  Whether or not there is to be a zebra crossing at the top of the High Street, the stretch of road outside Uplands remains dangerous and we resolved to write again to the County Council to support the College’s plea for a 20mph limit in this area.

Other Committees
Planning matters giving rise to no excitement, we considered Recreation Ground matters and were alarmed to learn that the grant to enable us to improve the play equipment had been jeopardised by the action of one person claiming to live near the Recreation Ground who had complained to Wealden District Council about the proposal to erect a basketball hoop in the furthest corner of the tarmac area, now that we had agreed to move the kicking wall to the far side of the football pitch.  That one (as yet) anonymous complaint can have such dire consequences seems at odds with the spirit of democracy and community benefit by which we are motivated.  So we tut-tutted our way to Environment matters and happier topics such as the planting of more flowers by the Walk and the maintenance of the garden round the War Memorial, which has hitherto kindly been done by the members of the Royal British Legion.  We then decided to decline, at least for the time being, the kind offer of BT to allow us to adopt more red K6 telephone boxes in situ, if only because they were not in imminent danger of being removed.

Finale
As we began to contemplate early release, in swept our cheerful PCSO to report on her doings over the past month, hotly followed by our late Chairman and Vice Chairman, who had been engaged on the affairs of the Institute, Hall and Field, and made a brief report. 

Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Council will be on Thursday, 12th November, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 10th September, 2009

Police and Public
Apart from one who was representing us at the Transition Wadhurst meeting, all councillors were in place in good time, to hear the chairman welcoming us back from the summer break with a cheerful but enigmatic smile.  Since this was our first regular meeting for two months, it was undoubtedly going to be a monster session and the chairman was simply softening the blow with his relaxed style.  How wrong can one be?  No police representative was present to tell us what they had been up to, so Anna Monaghan reported on the recent Neighbourhood Policing Panel meeting which had listed the three priorities for action as speeding and anti-social driving, parking and anti-social behaviour generally.  No-one felt moved to disagree with this assessment of our problems.  We then opened the Public Forum, which is when we allow members of the public to address us and share their woes for a combined total of up to fifteen minutes; it seemed that the public were enjoying a longer break than your councillors, since the only outsider present was the intrepid reporter from the Courier, who we fear is soon to move on.

Minutes and Matters Arising
We quickly approved the minutes of both our last regular meeting and the Extraordinary meeting in August at which we discussed our response to the Core Strategy/Spatial Development Options of the Local Development Framework, and helpfully disagreed with them all.  In human terms this means that the various options for working out where to dump the additional houses Wealden is required to accommodate, and to employ the additional people concerned, seemed to us to need a bit of tweaking.  We thought more attention should be paid to the need for affordable homes and to the infrastructure generally, and that it was inappropriate to deal with all this within the artificial constraints of District or even County boundaries.  Fortunately, none of us wished to raise any matter arising from the minutes, so we moved on.

News from on high
Our poor County Councillor, Bob Tidy, had not expected to be called upon for his report quite so swiftly, but he did not let his surprise cramp his style.  His first item was the proposal by Network Rail to withdraw Cannon Street services from the Hastings Line, which would have devastating consequences for so much of the County.  The County Council was organising a meeting in November of all MPs and Councils covering the affected areas, at which Network Rail and the Department for Transport would also be represented; it would not be in Hastings as it was important to draw attention to the fact that areas to the North, such as Wadhurst, would be the most affected.  He also told us that work was in hand on the next three-year budget, when it was feared that there would be a significant cut in funding from central government – and he added that the County Council had now been passed responsibility for community safety.  Bob Standley had a similar tale to tell but with a District Council slant; the Local Development Framework consultation exercise had now finished, and had led to 1,150 responses.  Local PCTs (NHS Primary Care Trusts) would now be subject to direction by District Councils, which he found an interesting concept.  Income was dropping fast for various reasons including lower public sector funding, and Wealden had to save some £2million over the next three years, starting with £600,000 this year.  Quiet but not depressed, we turned to the Chairman for good news.
Chairman’s Moment
In a swift roundup, the Chairman updated us on Transition Wadhurst, holding a meeting at that very moment on handling climate change, Bewl Water developments, off-street parking, rural grants, and the forthcoming official opening of the Styles Lane development.

Transport and Trains
The Highways, Transport and Lighting committee had met the previous week and added to their report that our PCSO had been issuing some fixed charge tickets for parking infringements in the High Street, the County Council intended to engage in public consultation on the proposed zebra crossing, and drew attention to the completion of the works at the Washwell Lane junction intended to make egress easier and safer.  The Chairman then asked for a quick statement on the Cannon Street proposals.  In a nutshell, it is “assumed” by Network Rail that from the year 2014 all Hastings Line trains will run to Charing Cross and none to Cannon Street; this is a result of the intention to start Thameslink trains at Tunbridge Wells upon completion of the London Bridge Gateway now under construction over Borough Market.  It seems inevitable that trains using the new tracks will run non-stop through London Bridge so there is a good chance that ours will do likewise: the Rail Utilisation Strategy document is silent on this point.  The outcome will be that City commuters using the Hastings line will have to go to Waterloo or Charing Cross, or change at Tunbridge Wells to go to Blackfriars; access to Cannon Street looks likely to be impossible.  This all means that the Hastings Line will be the only line in the South-East whose traditional stopping pattern will not be maintained or improved, but considerably worsened – in order to connect Tunbridge Wells with Blackfriars and stations beyond.

Improved Play Areas
The Planning Committee’s report being accepted without problem, we turned our attention to the report of the Recreation Ground Management Committee.  They reported that following considerable public consultation they had selected the equipment they thought appropriate to improve the facilities for all ages.  A recent committee meeting had been preceded by a meeting of local residents, at which they had explained their proposals.  This had resulted in full support for the proposals, except that the proposed kicking wall (in fact a goalmouth with a rebound net behind it) had given rise to objections that it would be too noisy on the tarmac area and should be resited the far side of the football pitch.  The proposals had included netball markings on the tarmac in front of the goal, and a hoop above it; with the goalmouth now resited on the grass the far side of the ground, the committee had decided to proceed with the netball markings and install a hoop on the tarmac as far as possible away from the road and houses, rather than lay more tarmac to resite this too.  The decision had proved controversial amongst the few local residents who had attended the meeting; they had objected that no-one would use it, or if they did they would be noisy and a danger to smaller children.  The committee had decided to proceed on the basis that it was right to provide a facility which had been specifically and commonly requested during the consultations and that if there was noise it would stop at dusk; the locals could ask for it to be moved if it caused serious inconvenience.  Since the meeting, one of the locals was understood to have complained to the grant-making authority providing half the finance for the scheme. 

Next Meeting
In spite of these two lengthy reports, the meeting finished at 8.15.  The next meeting of the Council will be on Thursday, 8th October, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes in the absence of any meeting in August, 2009

Holiday
As our readers know, the Council does not normally meet in August but the idea that the members go on holiday with their minds in neutral would be doing them an injustice.  Members of Parliament would no doubt say the same thing about their eighty-plus days of recess; not only does it give them a chance to recharge their brain cells but also to catch up on duties long overdue, and for a change to consider that which is important rather than only that which is urgent.  The same applies to your Parish Councillors.  At one point during the year a dissatisfied parishioner told some of your councillors, in effect: “As you are elected by us you are politicians and therefore have a duty to do what we want.”  The August break seems to provide an opportunity to consider this apparently simple summary of your councillors’ position, and how much truth there is in it.

Elected
Your Parish Council is composed entirely of elected members; that is partly why it is a Quality Council, a designation dreamt up by the government to try to encourage local democracy.  There are still many places where parish council places are filled by the co-option of the councillors’ friends and those whose arms they can twist.  In Wadhurst, there are enough people prepared to serve the community to enable proper elections to take place.  But as a general rule, your councillors do it not for the rewards (there being none) nor for personal glory (there isn’t much) but out of a sense of public duty.  Their powers are very limited and they have no great store of manpower to carry out their decisions; in most cases, they have to do it themselves.  But they are elected, and some of the electors seem to have no problem carping when your poor councillors displease them while trying to do what they believe to be in the best interests of parishioners as a whole.

Politicians
Whether or not this word has temporarily become a term of abuse, it presents a challenge to the philologist: what are politics and who or what is a politician?  In days of yore, a politician was a politic person, “sagacious, prudent, shrewd”, but even by 1764 a politician was considered to be a crafty intriguer.  Let us therefore look only at the basic meaning, “one versed in the theory of government or the art of governing.”   On that basis, the perceived insult thrown at us is unduly flattering; we are but poor volunteers who stuck our heads above the parapet and found ourselves charged without reward with trying to decide what is best for our parishioners as a whole, and then finding funds to do it.  Most of us have little idea of the theory or art of government; even the word government implies responsibilities greater than those with which we are burdened.  Furthermore, in dealing with Parish Council matters, those of us who have political party loyalties or beliefs suspend them and simply do what our consciences dictate.  It is difficult to distinguish a left-wing from a right-wing duck on the pond behind the War Memorial, and the same is true of zebras, lamp standards, playground equipment, grassy verges and even reservoir noise.

What We Want
Accepting for a moment (which your scribe does not accept) that your councillors might be politicians, would they have a duty to do what those who elected them want?  Please write neatly and confine your answer to one page of A4.  Or read on.  MPs are representatives, not delegates, and the same is no doubt true of lesser mortals such as Parish Councillors; the distinction is that a delegate is one who is appointed to represent the views of his appointors, whereas a representative is one selected as being likely to typify or have views which coincide with those of his appointors.  It was decided ninety nine years ago that an undertaking by an MP to vote in obedience to the instructions of those who pay him would be void on grounds of public policy, so the railmen’s trade union was getting a bad deal!  MPs may have been elected on the strength of a party or even personal manifesto but this sets out only their intentions and beliefs when written; they are at liberty to change them and under no legal (as opposed to moral) duty to carry them out.  That is why an MP can even “cross the floor of the House” without causing a by-election; they are still the same person, duly elected as representative for their constituency. 

The Truth
So, do your elected councillors have a duty to do what one or more of their electors want?  No – but they do try to do what is best for the general body of electors as fellow parishioners.  Sometimes this is not easy to determine, but those of us lucky enough to be taking a holiday will no doubt be sitting on foreign shores mulling over the many and varied problems we have to try to resolve, and also wondering what can possibly come up next.  For a body with very few powers and limited income, your council finds an amazing variety of problems to occupy it.  Surely there must be a few more parishioners prepared to face the challenge and consider standing at the next election.

Police and Public
It is a well known fact that a reduction in police manpower leads to a reduction in reported crime -- there are fewer officers to report it.  This truism does not, fortunately, apply in our parish, where police presence and profile have both increased recently and crime has dropped, from a very low starting point.  Our PCSO can be seen around Wadhurst both by day and by night and while she cannot (in her own words) be all things to everyone, our local troublemakers and vandals know that she is around.  She has also held a number of street meetings to find out what matters of local concern exist.  But please remember that it is easier to investigate a crime if you know of it – so please report problems to the police on 0845 60 70 999 unless it is urgent, in which case call 999.

Scams
This topic, which defeats your scribe’s 1934 Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, continues to rear its ugly head.  The latest version is a caller who claims that you owe a trifling sum which can be settled without trouble; all he needs are your credit card number and a few security details to make sure it is really you on the phone!  Never give any security information in response to an incoming call, nor press any telephone key to “validate” the call.  If the call is genuine, they should know better; if it is not, you should know better.  Don’t.

Next Meeting
The next regular meeting of Wadhurst Parish Council will be on Thursday, 10th September, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 9th July, 2009

Police and Public
Apart from Bob Standley, who was engaged on Wealden District Council business elsewhere, there were no apologies or absences, nor any interests to be declared, so we launched straight into our PCSO’s report.  She told us that the police were trying to sort out the continuing graffiti problem by identifying the “tags”; also, in response to complaints of rowdy youths at Sparrows Green, she and our constable would be on late-night duty the forthcoming weekend – rumours of police presence usually sort it out!  Our doughty reporter was there too, but no member of the public, in spite of the published agenda (on display outside the Institute) having included several items that could be expected to have been of some interest:  “proposal for crossing in High Street”, “to remove the direct Cannon Street service from Hastings”, “car parking working party”, “sites for gypsies and travellers” and “improvements to the play equipment [at the Recreation Ground]”, but none there were.

News from on high
There being no public present and with nothing serious arising from the minutes of our previous meeting, we heard an enthusiastic report on the work of the Wealden Standards Committee (standards of councillors’ behaviour, not the expected trading standards) and moved on to Bob Tidy’s report on the work of East Sussex County Council, now back in action following the recent elections.  He reported on the considerable reorganisation of Adult Social Care which was being undertaken, with much more care in the home and resultant closure of care homes, in anticipation of a cut in funding combined with a continuing increase in the proportion of over-60s in the County.  Graham Wells then told us of Wealden matters, including urging a further investigation into the safety of 3G mobile phone masts (which had a shorter range and therefore the need for even more masts), an investigation into the funding of social housing, and the Community Payback Scheme whereunder offenders are ordered to carry out tasks such as the removal of graffiti, instead of serving a jail term.

Chairman’s Moment
Next it was the turn of the Chairman to update us on non-committee matters, including the preparation and distribution of our annual newsletter (required of us as a Quality Council) and consultation on the District Council Local Development Framework, intended to forecast how we see Wadhurst in the future; this led to the suggestion that as it dealt with the period after 2025 we should be asking the young, rather than brain-dead councillors.  After that, the decision to appoint four people to the three vacancies on the new Neighbourhood Policing Panel was a doddle.  We also sent congratulations to Uplands on its iWadhurst project winning the national competition.

Zebra Crossing
The first controversial matter in the report of the Highways, Transport & Lighting Committee was the proposed crossing in the High Street.  This is a matter for the County Council, who had drawn up plans for a crossing between Columbine Cleaners and Wealden Wholefoods, which would involve loss of all parking outside L H Hair, Bonds Estate Agents, TVR and Columbine on one side and outside Ashton Burkinshaw, Wadhurst Opticians, Wealden Wholefoods and Jean Marie on the other side of the High Street.  It was reported that the committee had walked the High Street with the ESCC representatives and suggested other positions nearer the centre of the village, outside the Institute for instance, and a raised wheelchair crossing from Crittles to Lloyds Bank -- but had been told these were all impossible, including even the suggested crossing between the Ironmongers and NatWest which had been rejected in favour of traffic calming at a public meeting five years ago.  All were united in thinking that safety was the primary object but many felt that the proposed site would not serve those wishing to visit the Post Office or a bank, while others thought the absence of parked cars would lead to increased traffic speeds, making it less likely that vehicles would stop to let pedestrians cross elsewhere.  The loss of parking was of course a factor but not a deciding one.  Perhaps it might be sufficient to rely on the pinch point being created at the top of Washwell Lane, in place of the first parking bay in the layby.  We then enjoyed every chairman’s nightmare: a succession of irreconcileable proposals, all duly seconded.   Eventually calm was restored with general agreement that we were not in favour of the current proposal but were not rejecting the idea of a crossing somewhere. 

Cannon Street, Car Parking and Gypsies
When order broke out, we moved on to the proposal by Network Rail that from the year 2015 onwards, all Hastings Line trains should run into Charing Cross and none into Cannon Street.  It was not clear even whether rush hour trains would all stop at London Bridge.  The prospect of our City commuters, vital for the health of our local economy, being unable to enjoy direct access to the City was considered devastating and it was agreed that we should protest vigorously.  The third potential controversy did not materialise when we were told that the car park working party was still pursuing its investigations rather than reporting any particular proposal.  So with a collective sigh of relief we lurched into Planning matters and the proposed methodology for assessing sites for gypsies and travellers.  This too proved to be a damp squib, as the assessment was simply a suggested point-scoring system under which the site with the highest accumulated points (AONB?  Nature Conservation area?  Ancient Woodland, etc?  Nil for any of those!) would win approval.  This we decided to be too simplistic and to conflict with recent planning decisions.  Running out of puff on this topic however, and with the clock by now well past our usual release time, we turned to the Recreation Ground.

Improved Play Areas
The Recreation Ground Management Committee, having not met, presented a lengthy report, the first part of which dealt with curing a drainage problem outside the Pavilion so that the Junior Football Club could build a patio.  The second part dealt with the improvements to the play equipment which could be funded partly out of the grant resulting from our successful bid to the Play Pathfinder Scheme, made in consultation with local residents and users, and partly from the payment required of the developer of the Styles Lane housing, and only to a minor extent out of Parish Council precepted funds already approved – so there would be no extra demands on the Council.  On this basis the Committee was given leave to proceed in co-operation with the Play Working Party set up for the purpose.  Well satisfied, we rounded off the evening with one confidential and three boring items of business and broke up shortly after ten.

Next Meeting  The Council does not meet in August, except in case of emergency, so our next regular meeting will be on Thursday, 10th September, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday 11th June 2009

Apologies, Police and Public Forum
Apologies were received from our ex-Chairman, our previous ex-Chairman, our PCSO and one of our District Councillors. Our PCSO having had the forethought to send a report, we learned that a Community Speed Watch team is being set up in the Lower High Street, with local residents operating a speed indicator camera. Our one member of the public alerted us to the dangerous condition of a footpath into the Marlpit.  Unfortunately, as the owner of the area is unknown (there have been several attempts to find one) the Parish Council cannot alert those responsible for its upkeep. Nonetheless further enquiries will be made to try to get to the bottom of the problem and we hope the lady who was injured in the fall is very quickly on the mend.

Annual Parish Meeting, Minutes, Matters Arising
It was a cold and miserable evening for our new Chairman’s first APM but a good number of our parishioners had nevertheless forsaken the warmth of their wood-burners and the like. There was much informal debate over refreshments, and displays on the council’s activities. Uplands Community College staff and students gave an interesting presentation on the school’s activities. It was felt that on the whole we must be doing something right as there were few questions during the allotted ‘question time’! 

News from on High
Our District Councillor provoked lively debate with the question of what your council considers makes a family “local” when deciding its eligibility for social housing. There was general agreement that two years is not long enough, but divergence on what exactly sets a “local” apart from an “incomer”. Is it a question of breeding? Your council thought not, and a general consensus was reached that 4 or 5 years was long enough, but that having family in the village should count and that “key workers” should also be given some advantage.
We also learned that Wealden District Council will be consulting us all on the Local Development Framework during July and August. This important document will regulate the development in our village for 20 years, and your parish council urges you all to respond.

Annual Report
As the Chairman had no announcements to make he moved swiftly on to reviewing the Annual Report, which will shortly be released into the world. Please contact the Clerk for a copy, or find it on our web-page.

Highways Disruption
On to Highways, and Cllr. Monaghan informed us all (again, I’m afraid too late for the reader to have advanced notice) that the Station Hill is going to be hugely disrupted over the next few weeks with (very welcome) work to heighten the pavement and replace curb stones. Next year there will be more disruption resulting in an improved road surface. Drivers should be able to get through on most occasions but there will be a time when the road is closed to all traffic – with the possible exception of buses. 

Affordable Homes
Moving on to Planning, we were advised that the advertisement of the affordable houses in Styles Lane will be delayed until 3rd July but the houses should still be ready for occupation in August. 

Good news from other committees
We were very pleased to hear that the Play Working Party’s application for a grant towards new play equipment has been successful to the tune of £30 000 and so things are moving apace to get plans finalised. The Environment committee is also pleased that the hanging baskets are looking flamboyant and also that Uplands Community College has kindly agreed to place waste paper bins near their steps and also near the Youth Centre. 

Congratulations
There was general admiration of our Clerk who has continued to dazzle academically on her local government course, to the benefit of all. Congratulations.

To the delight of all, the meeting closed at 850 p.m.

Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Council is on Thursday, 9th July 2009, at 7.30pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 14th May, 2009

Annual Meeting
This was the so-called Annual Meeting of the Council – so called not because we meet only once a year (perish the thought!) but because it is the occasion for the annual allocation of duties and responsibilities.  It might be expected therefore that councillors would slip in late with uncatchable eyes, but your Parish Councillors are not as others may be; they were all in their places in good time, eager to fulfil whatever tasks might be put upon them for the benefit of our parishioners.  So we set to dead on time with a full house, plus two members of the public, our County Councillor and our PCSO.  The only unfilled seat was that of our local reporter, who had a better party to go to.

Chairs and things
Our noble Chairman having served the three years laid down by our standing orders, that office was up for grabs, as the saying goes.  Tom Doyle having been duly proposed and seconded was elected by acclaim.  Not only is he a popular choice, but he is approximately half the age of most of his predecessors; we all wish him well.  A chairman must of course have a deputy, and Jan Pearman was elected to that exalted position.  Next followed the election of committees and their chairmen, the latter being as follows:  Environment, Hilary Whatmore; Finance, Tom Doyle; Highways, Transport & Lighting, Anna Monaghan; Planning, Bernard Berger; Recreation Ground Management, John Phipson; and Personnel, Chris Price.  Each of course has a full supporting cast, which may be ascertained from the Parish Council noticeboard at the Institute.  Finally, the Council’s representation on various local bodies was also decided (as may be ascertained from the same board) and the Annual Meeting was over.  Our new Chairman drew himself up to his full height and launched forth.

Police and Public
With no apologies for absence or interests to be recorded, our PCSO was invited to tell us what she had been up to.  And an interesting and varied list it was too, ranging from attending street meetings to find out people’s concerns, to dog fouling, to visiting the primary schools, issuing a few fixed penalty tickets and trying to sort out a dangerously sited kids’ “camp”.  She reminded us of the three police local priorities: speeding, parking, and anti-social behaviour, and the action being taken in relation to each.  After thanking her, we invited the members of the public to address us if they wished; they did.  We were given a brief description of the Wadhurst Warriors organisation, how it came to be set up and what it does for the local community.  The particular matter they wished to mention was the re-institution of an annual bonfire in the village, including a professionally-run firework display; they hoped for a contribution to the start-up costs, any profit from the event being carried forward to ensure that it could continue in future years.

News from on high
Bob Tidy reported on County Council matters, stressing that they were in purdah because of forthcoming elections, with the veiled threat that he would therefore have to be boring.  Far from it; he told us of the Climate Change Strategy which was leading to innovative ways of providing lighting and heating for schools, such as ground-source heating (from deep down towards the centre of the earth) and the use of renewable timber for energy; almost half of all carbon emissions come from the home.  He then explained the Policing Pledge which is being made widely known.  Moving on to our other senior Council, Bob Standley reported on the good Audit Commission report on WDC’s organisation and performance, and spoke of the Local Development Framework on which public consultation would be taking place.  So the next item was our own Chairman’s Announcements and Correspondence, of which there were very few of either, except to finalise the arrangements for the forthcoming Annual Parish Meeting and ensure that someone was in charge of the booze.

Committee Business
The Chairman of the Highways, Transport & Lighting Committee, having told us that she had very little to say, managed to inspire outrage with what she did say; it appeared that local residents (and by that route she herself) had seen plans of what East Sussex Highways intended to do at the top of Washwell Lane, and to do it imminently, even though the Parish Council had been neither informed nor consulted.  For all we knew, it could involve creating a lorry park or even a traffic island.  Eventually we ran out of puff and moved on to Planning matters, the most important of which was the licence granted for various activities at Bewl Water.  A lengthy discussion ensued on what might or might not happen, and what should or could be done about it; the important thing would be to ensure that any problems were recorded so that they could be taken into account if the licence was reviewed.  Noise problems should be reported to WDC and traffic matters to the police on 0845 60 70 999, bearing in mind however that the only vehicular access to the Visitor Centre is through Kent.  After this, Recreation Ground and Environment matters were insignificant, although it was noted that the grass verge opposite Monks Lane appeared to have become a zulu muster (parking area) for scruffy vans.  This brought us to the usual finale, Finance: in a fit of generosity we decided that the idea of an annual bonfire and fireworks display deserved our support, and resolved to make a grant accordingly.

Winding up
As is our wont we approved the Clerk’s good work on our annual return and related matters, revised standing orders and committee responsibilities, with but little debate.  It being only a quarter past nine, the Chairman forgot to bring his first meeting to a formal close, but we dispersed regardless, to debate more serious issues elsewhere.  May all his meetings end as promptly!

Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Council is on Thursday, 11th June, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 9th April, 2009

Police and Public
This may have been Maundy Thursday, when most people’s minds turn to higher things, be they vacational or theological, but for your diligent parish councillors it was a working evening.  When the Chairman called us to order, Councillors seemed a little thin on the ground; we had received and approved just one apology for absence when the two latecomers sneaked in.  Unfortunately the promised police report had failed to arrive so we launched straight into the Public Forum; although there were several members of the public present, only two wished to speak.  The first gave us details of the forthcoming Wadhurst Summer Music Festival (whose brochure accompanied the last issue of this august publication) and then appealed for some contribution towards the cost of getting it up and running.  The second was particularly concerned that the success of the Junior Football Club meant that on a Saturday morning there was little room for all the doting parents’ cars, some of which ended up inappropriately  parked, obstructing access to local residents’ drives or – quite unacceptably – blocking access for emergency vehicles, should one be needed

The Canter
The minutes of our last meeting were approved without comment and there were no matters arising so we turned to the next item on our songsheets, a presentation from the Wealden Standards Committee.  All agog to find out whether the burning issue was to be trading standards or the standards of decency unnecessarily imposed on mere councillors by important MPs who think they are exempt therefrom, our curiosity was dashed by the announcement that it had had to be postponed.  Bravely hiding our disappointment, we looked for our County Councillor for his cheering report, only to find that he too was absent; it was left to Bob Standley, both one of our number and a Wealden District Councillor, to cheer us up with his report.  And cheering it was, on the whole; the corporate plan was out for consultation and the Council was embarking on a wholesale review of its own operations, having sensibly decided to concentrate its activities in Hailsham in an existing building, which would be modified and made more energy-efficient, instead of the projected new one.  As far as the recession was concerned, the main sign of it was empty shops in high streets, and WDC wished to remind shopkeepers that if they are in difficulty they can apply for reduced rates – but the initiative must come from the trader.  When the Chairman then announced that he had no announcements to make, we foolishly thought that our progress through the agenda might even become a gallop.  Silly us!

Annual Parish Meeting
It appears to be one of the best-kept secrets in local government that every year we are required by law to hold a Parish Meeting at which all parishioners can have their say.  After years of haranguing a nearly empty hall (unless an interesting topic arises, such as a new football pitch) we have recently been experimenting with different formats to try to entice more people to attend; last year, we even handed out flyers in the High Street the previous Saturday.  This year, we thought it would be interesting to have a presentation from Uplands: we all know it is one of the best schools in the county, but are we all aware of the success of its rugby teams, and the plaudits the students received on their trip to New York?  Come on the evening of Wednesday 27th May and all may be revealed.

Car Parking
Wherever Wadhurst people gather together, the conversation almost always turns to car parking.  Everyone has their own opinion on the causes and solutions to its shortage.  It was therefore ironic that our debate on the topic should take place during the Easter holidays when the Station car park, as well as that behind the Greyhound, has plenty of space.  Our agenda item was triggered by a favourable response from the authorities to the idea that an additional car park might be created on some of the land by the Fire Station.  There is nothing which throws a proposal into greater confusion than an affirmative response.  How do we make long-term parkers use it?  Should we charge at the other car parks?  Would that not just drive drivers to park in the lanes? Do we need it if Uplands is rebuilt?  What effect will the promised scheme for the Washwell Lane junction have?  What about the effect on the Fire Station?  And on the Jardin d’Aubers?  We were away, with many of us speaking boldly on both sides of the argument.  Eventually, the Chairman, with the most excruciating pun of his three years in office, announced that we had been parked on this topic for too long and must move on.

Committee Business
Like naughty children, we listened in rapt awe as the Chairman of the Highways, Transport & Lighting Committee listed defective lamp standards and verges, and added that the 17-24 age group seemed to be the worst at driving without seatbelts; the Police were hoping to persuade offenders to go on Driving Awareness courses rather than receiving penalty points.  Planning matters passed without comment until the premises licence applications for alcohol and music at Bewl Water, when there was much discussion on the procedure at the hearing on 23rd April and how best to ensure that appropriately strict conditions were imposed; we agreed to do as we understood Ticehurst was doing, to authorise expenditure of £500 on lawyers’ fees so as to become party to the objections with a view to achieving a powerful combined voice, defending a natural facility which is widely enjoyed by many local people in addition to those living nearby.  We then approved several proposals from the Recreation Ground Management Committee, including the idea of a sensory garden beside the Pavilion at Sparrows Green where it could be appreciated not only by disabled children but also the parents of those enjoying the play area.  The Environment Committee reported on further improvements in the High Street, and so we were nearly done.

 Music and Standing Orders
The application for a grant towards the Summer Music Festival was, as the appellant knew, far too late, and our budget had all been allocated, so we decided to ignore our own strictures and make a donation anyway; like central government, we feel we must be entitled to make U-turns when necessary.  In the same vein, having approved last year’s accounts and other financial matters, we debated our own Standing Orders, which we endeavour to hone to perfection whilst feeling free to overrule them if the spirit moves us.  This mischievous spirit was again in evidence as we taxed our minds, and each other, over a suggested amendment relating to the constitution and proceedings of the Planning Committee.  The arguments swirled around the chamber, drawing different views on the meaning of democracy, until the Chairman again imposed his iron wit and we compromised on the middle course in order to be able to debate it more fully in another place.  And so it was fully half past nine before we sallied forth, and thither.

Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Council is on Thursday, 14th May, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground, to be followed by the Annual Parish Meeting on Wednesday 27th, in the Commemoration Hall.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday 12 March 2009

Apologies, Police Report and Public Forum
No less than six Councillors had sent their apologies, amongst them both our Chairman and Deputy Chairman so our first task of the evening was to vote in Bob Standley to take us in hand for the evening.  After a wholehearted and unanimous vote he told us that Bob Tidy, our County Councillor, was also unable to attend on this occasion.  However, happily our Police Constable was there and informed us that our new P.C.S.O. had attended the New Wadhurst Residents Association meeting, had held a ‘street meeting’ in the Pavilion car park and had issued some tickets in the centre of the village.  We moved on to Public Forum and Mrs. Martin reported that the residents of Kingsley Court were delighted with the white lines at the entrance to their drive, that people seemed to be respecting them and so the safety aspect of entering and exiting from the High Street much improved.  We thanked her for her thanks.  Unfortunately some cars – by parking on the pavement – are breaking up the brickwork.

Minutes, Matters Arising and News from on High

The minutes of the previous meeting having been approved in a flash, it was confirmed that with regard to affordable housing, local connection takes precedence over all other requirements.  Although our County Councillor was absent, he had not neglected to keep us posted and had sent a written report.  It seems that ESCC is performing well and getting top marks for the services it provides and making great improvements all the time.  On the same note, Wealden too is doing well, with 85% of tenants happy with the service that is provided – so a pat on the back there then.  A serious side of providing fun attractions for both the youth and the not so young is the keep-fit-factor, and there has been a good turnout for functions.  It was a surprise to learn that in an average family, £400 - £600 of food is thrown away each year, a third of the average dustbin being made up of this.  A youth forum has been held and is proving a useful tool in finding out their needs – their own Communities were their priorities.

Other Committees 

Our Chairman, being on his hols, there were no announcements made nor correspondence remarked upon and we moved  swiftly on to Highways.  The Bus Service will remain much as it has ever been, lights and light switch off times are being dealt with and grafitti trade marks are trying to be traced.  Holes in the road are a huge problem just now but we are endeavouring  to get these sorted.  The Planning minutes were adopted, but there was some lively discussion over the plans for Bewl Water to become a hive of unwelcome activity.  This has now been whittled down to nine days per year but it is widely felt that Bewl should remain a quiet place for country pursuits.  Recreation and Environment were dealt with in the blink of an eye, accounts agreed as payable and as a bit of an afterthought, the redecoration of the interior of St. George’s Hall mentioned, and so the meeting closed.  It was only half past eight, only an  hour had passed, so in something of a shocked daze, we upt and left to go our various ways.

The next meeting will be held on Thursday 9th April, at 7.30pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green.

Notes on the meeting held on Thursday, 12 February, 2009

Arrival
Significantly, of something no doubt, the snow set in again shortly before we were due to meet, so we slid and skated our way down from the car park to the Pavilion, seeing as we did so piles of chairs hurriedly being laid out for the public.  The belief that 2009, this being our first meeting of the year, was to show a resurgence of interest in local democracy was however quickly dispelled.  Although there were some 25 “strangers” in the public gallery, it emerged that one was a reporter, two were policemen and five were from Wealden District Council for the purpose of giving a powerpoint explanation of the system for bidding for and being allocated affordable homes in Wadhurst.  However the niceties of our agenda had of course to be observed so we started by hearing apologies from those councillors unable to attend.

Police and Public
No interests having been declared, we addressed the Police Report which was for a thrilling change delivered viva voce.  PC Steve Etherington introduced our new PCSO, Tamara Bennett, who has already been seen around the parish over the last few weeks.  Steve explained that she ought to be able to spend more time in Wadhurst than her predecessor because Sussex Constabulary is now better recruited, with ten PCSOs (and more in the pipeline), two Constables and a Sergeant to cover the Crowborough area.  He and Tamara should therefore be more in evidence than in the past.  Readers should be aware however that, as Tamara has just worked 15 months without a break, she is now due a month’s holiday, whereafter she will be raring to go; in the meantime Steve will provide cover.  Having taken her bow, Tamara resumed her seat and we moved on to the Public Forum, which as avid readers will know is the fifteen minutes allocated for parishioners to air their concerns.  With over twenty of them present, it was perhaps predictable that none wished to say anything.

Housing
The minutes and matters arising (none) duly disposed of, the team from Wealden gave their presentation on Affordable Housing.  They started with a few statistics which showed that most affordable housing is provided by the Council or a Registered Social Landlord (the zippy new term for Housing Association) and most is available to rent, with a minority available for shared ownership (where the occupier can buy up to 80 per cent so as to benefit from property value increases but cannot sell into the private sector because of the 20 per cent retained by the landlord).  House prices in Wadhurst are twice the Wealden average, which exacerbates the problem for locals.  Unfortunately the “local connection” which needy locals must show is now only two years’ residence, so relative newcomers compete with lifelong residents; however, once the local connection has been proved, it is need which weighs most in the allocation process.  There are 17 new homes becoming available in Wadhurst during the year, in addition to the constant flow of others which become vacant.  The important thing is to get one’s name on the register and then keep one’s eyes open; sometimes bids are invited at very short notice and the bidding period is less than a week: watch the WPC notice boards.  Such short timescales are not policy, but do sometimes occur.  After fielding some difficult questions, the housing team were released and we enjoyed a brief adjournment while they packed up, interested parties collected relevant literature, and police and public stole away.

News from On High
Bob Tidy, our County Councillor, then briefed us on the budget-fixing which had just taken place.  Unfortunately, your scribe found all the information in the local paper as he went to press, so is unable to enjoy his customary “scoop”.  However, we were heartened to hear of the sums set aside for the programme of rebuilding local schools – in the second phase of which Uplands is set to figure.  A bonus, which will certainly not recur this year, was to find that bank interest had amounted to £4million last year.  Not wholly unconnected with the social housing topic, Bob told us that the drive by Age Concern, supported by the County Council, to encourage people to claim any state benefits to which they are entitled, had led to £8million reaching those in need.  Not to be upstaged, Graham Wells then related the Wealden District Council budget process, and added a couple of encouraging snippets of information: there are four fly-tipping enforcement teams who not only clear up but search for evidence of the identity of the tipper and then prosecute them, some from as far away as Hampshire and London.  Also, over a quarter of Wealden residents take the recommended three thirty-minute exercise periods a week, and our residents live three years longer than the national average.  For those in difficulties, the WDC website now has a Credit Crunch Help and Advice section with useful links to relevant advisers.

Chairman’s Announcements and Committee Business
By now conscious of the figurative ticking of the silent clock, the Chairman said he had nothing to announce, so we leapt into committee business.  Fortunately, even those committees which had met had little worthy of discussion.  Unscheduled debate of the parking habits of Cousley Wood Road residents is now virtually inevitable, and those concerned were allowed to fume about the resultant state of the verges.  The appeal over the settlement at Lealands (mentioned at length in previous issues of Focus) had been heard and an unsatisfactory compromise outcome seemed almost inevitable, and the three-storey development in Townlands Road had that morning been approved.  To follow all this gloom we moved to the usually enjoyable and pun-filled debate on the report of the Environment Committee and its ducks.  Sadly, however, damage had been done to the duckhouse and some large logs and rubbish thrown into the pond; worst of all, the ducks had disappeared – eaten by a fox, we hoped, rather than vandalised.  Not to be deterred, the Committee intends to try again.  They also wish to follow up the success of the flower baskets by replacing the concrete litter bins in the High Street with something more compatible with our improved environment.

Finance
Always last but not least, at least in importance, is our review of our finances.  These appeared to be satisfactorily on target, so we considered two grant applications received after our annual consideration of such matters; one did not meet our criteria, and we decided that we must stand firm on timetable in relation to the other, particularly as we had allocated our entire grants budget at the appropriate time.  After agreeing to put one new matter on the agenda for our next meeting, we were finally dismissed, considerably later than usual but with good reason.

Next Meeting
The next meeting of the Council is on Thursday, 12th March, 2009, at 7.30 pm at the Pavilion, Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.

Notes in the absence of any meeting in January 2009

Background
As you, gentle reader, are well aware, as a result of your devoted attention to these reports, the fact that for the last few years the Council has not met in January does not mean that councillors are engaged in slothful bacchanalia – quite the opposite; we still hold committee meetings and devote ourselves to the glorious government of which residents are so proud.  In the first week of January, both the Planning Committee and the Highways, Transport & Lighting Committee held formal meetings, the former attended by no fewer than seven members of the public.  The reason for this mass turnout through fog and ice was the proposed development in Townlands Road, at the junction with Washwell Lane, to which they all took grave exception, as did we.  Having heard the views of one of our number, who said her bit and then left the room for the remainder of this item (because of her “interest”), we turned to the spokesman for those present; not himself a nimby (living several miles away) but speaking on behalf of the entire community, he pointed out that of the five aspects upon which comment is invited on any planning application – whether the proposal is in keeping, whether it unduly overlooks neighbouring property, whether it will give rise to additional noise and disturbance, whether it has safe access and whether it will have a detrimental visual impact – the proposed development failed dismally on each.  So excited had councillors become about it all that we nearly forgot to take a vote to confirm our stance; not amazingly, it was unanimously against the proposal.  After that, the public sallied forth into the night and we were left with the anticlimax of relatively easy decisions, with one exception on which a split vote emerged.

Highways
The HT&L Committee met on what would have been the date for the full council to meet had it not been January, but the only non-member was a councillor who had turned up 24 hours late for the previous day’s meeting.  Having welcomed and dispatched him, we addressed the serious issues on our agenda, noting that work had started that very morning on replacing the concrete lamp standard by the White Hart with a traditional one which would have cross trees for hanging flower baskets to add to those already adorning most of the High Street.  Parking along Cousley Wood Road, where drivers seek to keep  the road clear by blocking the footpath – even moving the posts for the purpose – without overmuch thought for the blind or those with perambulators or pushchairs, gave rise to much discussion but little decision, as did the problems at other locations noted on our agenda.  We did however agree to try to procure the painting of some kerbside white lines in parts of the Lower High Street.  Having decided that we should continue to support the community bus service and after discussing the buses to the station, we eventually came to the issue of the moment: ice, salt and grit – and were surprised to learn that the County Council Highways Department is telling enquirers to refer to the Parish Council.  This gives a good opportunity to develop the theme hinted at in last month’s report that too few of our parishioners seem to be aware of the existence, constitution and activities of the Parish Council and in particular its powers and duties.

Parish Governance
The civil or administrative parish (definitely not to be confused with the ecclesiastical parish, which nowadays covers a different area) is governed at local level by the parish council, effectively the lowest tier of local government.  It has few duties, a variety of powers and certain limited discretions.  The only duties seem to be to meet, and to provide allotments if needed.  The powers have to have been conferred by statute, and include such things as the provision and maintenance of recreation facilities and other amenities, including streetlights (which Burwash for instance does not have), but not highways.  If therefore we are to do anything of the nature of highways maintenance, such as providing salt and grit, it has to be done (and specified as being done) under our discretionary powers; unfortunately, these powers can only be exercised if the council resolves that it is in the interests of the community as a whole – and it is difficult to convince oneself that the provision of salt and grit for use on a small section of a minor residential road will truly benefit the community as a whole.  The County Council on the other hand has a statutory duty to maintain highways (which includes footpaths) but of course has to use its discretion as to how to do so.  So if the Parish Council has so few powers and duties, what does its vast army of administrators, employees and councillors do?

Is anyone there?
Contrary to the impression some people appear to have, this administrative dog-wagging tail consists of the part-time Clerk, a part-time caretaker at the Recreation Ground and a very-part-time litter-picker in the centre of the village.  The Clerk’s remuneration is limited by law and she already spends many more hours on our affairs than we are allowed to pay her for, so if there is untapped labour it is the councillors themselves.  We could of course employ more people if we thought it right, and fund their remuneration through the council tax (the parish council proportion of which – the precept – is uncapped), but we prefer to keep the precept down to roughly the level it has been for years, which gives us an income from that source of some £100,000.  This, together with the income from activities at the Recreation Ground, has to cover all our expenditure, including interest and capital repayments on the remainder of the loan taken out to pay for the Recreation Ground improvement and the construction of the Pavilion.  If anything extra needs to be done, we have either to buy in the requisite service or engage in DIY; that is why our unremunerated and mostly elderly councillors and other community-spirited residents can be seen sticking notices in noticeboards, re-erecting Neighbourhood Watch signs, painting out graffiti, planting trees and spring bulbs, liaising with the police, checking lampposts and so on.  That is why requests for “the council” to do something can appear to fall on deaf ears, particularly if it is something outside our powers like gritting a road.  The only point left to make is that, as you have read so often in this column, our parish councillors have no politics and are all motivated purely by the desire to co-operate with their fellows in doing their best for Wadhurst and its inhabitants.  With this brief explanation of what it would involve, your scribe confidently expects to have to compete for his place on the Council when the next elections are held.

Finale
The customary January grammatical stimulation will, it seems, have to be held over until August, our next meetingless month, but there is just room to remind everyone of the system for contacting the Police.  If the matter is not urgent, dial 0845 60 70 999, but if it is an emergency or really urgent (such as an intruder or undesirable still actually on the premises) dial 999.  The Police can prioritise the call as necessary, but they do wish to be given the opportunity to react in time.

Next Meeting
Normal service resumes in February so the next meeting of the Council is on Thursday, 12th February, 2009, at 7.30 pm in the Pavilion at Sparrows Green Recreation Ground.