COOKHAM PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of a Meeting of the

COOKHAM PARISH COUNCIL

PRESENT:   Cllr H.J. Woodbridge (Chairman); M. Barnes (Vice Chairman)

Cllrs: P. Brockwell, M. Coker, D. Fry, G. Harris, F. Hewer, M-L. Kellaway, R. Piercey, D. Ricardo, Jean Stretton, John Stretton and M.Wellman.

1.                  APOLOGIES AND DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST:

Apologies were received from Cllr M. Innes. There were no Declarations of Interest.

2.                  APPROVAL OF MINUTES: The Minutes of the Full Council Meeting held on the 7^th April 2009 were circulated and duly signed with no amendments.

3.            COMMITTEE REPORTS: The Minutes of the Footpaths and Open Spaces Committee held on 14^th April 2009 were circulated and approved with no amendments. The Minutes of the Finance and General Purposes Committee held on 21^st April 2009 were circulated and approved with no amendments. 

4.            REPORTS FROM OUTSIDE BODIES:

1.         Cllr Hewer attended a meeting of the Cookham Youth Project and mentioned the fitness session on the Alfred Major to be taken next week by Cllr Piercey. 

2.         Cllrs Fry, Brar, Brockwell, Kellaway and Barnes attended the Planning session organised by BALC at the Town Hall. Cllr Fry found it a useful session involving ever more use of computer and the internet in the planning process.

3.         Cllr Kellaway attended another meeting of the Patients Participation Group.

4.         Cllrs Brar and Brockwell attended the DALC meeting where the topics included the Parish Charter (only Bray and Old Windsor have signed up); public telephone boxes that no longer take cash; Borough Cllrs that do not look at plans; and the possibility of the parishes of Cookham, Bisham and Hurley joining forces to fight flooding issues.

5.             QUESTIONS UNDER STANDING ORDERS 24/26:  No questions were received.

6.            FINANCE: The list of cheques raised in the month of April as listed on Page 809 were approved on the proposition of Cllr Brockwell and seconded by Cllr John Stretton. Cllr Coker was advised that the BALC and the RBWM computer bill had not been paid even though the cheques were listed for approval.

7.         BOROUGH COUNCILLORS’ REPORT: Cllr Stretton answered the charge that Borough Councillors do not look at plans. He said that he goes out with 3 other Councillors on a Sunday afternoon to look at the sites of the plans due for discussion at the coming MDC meeting. Sometimes the Cllrs travel as much as fifty or sixty miles. The problem comes with a Councillor standing in as a substitute. It is not always possible for them to look at plans. Cllr Alison Knight also had a message for Cookham Parish Council. She was concerned that the phrase used by the “Cookham Society” of site being “ear-marked” was mis-leading. She said that the SHLAA consultation listed many sites that may be discounted as not suitable.

8.            ADOPTION OF PARISH CHARTER: Copies of the Parish Charter had been distributed to all Councillors. Cllr Hewer felt that the Charter was biased towards the needs of RBWM and felt inclined to not accept. Cllr Fry thought that the Charter made a lot of sense. Cllr Kellaway referred to the recent BALC training session on Planning and was surprised at the importance RBWM attach to the views of the Parish. She felt RBWM wanted the parishes to be even more pro-active. Cllr Wellman said that the Parish Council had looked closely at a Parish Charter years ago and made a list of fifteen amendments. The Council heard no more but this Charter looked very similar. It was AGREED that there was little advantage for the Parish Council in signing up to this Charter but if there were amendments, the Parish would reconsider its decision. VOTE to decline to sign: IN FAVOUR = 12, ABSTENTION = 2.

9.            RENEWAL OF SUBSCRIPTION TO BALC:  This was the first year that BALC had split from Bucks to be run purely for Berkshire Parish Councils. It was felt that the Secretary, Christine Lalley had done a good job and the recent training sessions had been very worthwhile. The Clerk also pointed out that membership of BALC gave the Council access to the legal teams at NALC. It was proposed by Cllr Wellman, seconded by Cllr Brar to renew the subscription.

10.            RENEWAL OF THE COMPUTER CONTRACT WITH RBWM: It was AGREED to renew this contract as the Parish Council’s computer and broadband were linked with the system used by the library. This was proposed by Cllr Barnes and seconded by Cllr Brockwell.

11.             SUMMARY OF MAIN ISSUES ON THE MAIDENHEAD WATERWAYS CONSULTATION: Cookham Parish Council had been consulted on this plan due to the potential effect on some of the current waterways in our parish. The plan is to restore the flow of water in to the centre of Maidenhead. It is planned that boats will be able to navigate across Widbrook Common and through Maidenhead to Bray. The Cllrs compiled their comments for the Clerk to write a response. Cllr Ricardo said that the chapel arches under the A4 must be retained to aid the flow of water. Cllr Wellman queried the opening of the Widbrook to continuous two-way navigation. He was concerned that the Widbrook would have to be made twice as wide and could be detrimental to the wildlife in this area. He felt that any planning permission for this project in the Green Belt must be compulsory – not “may be”. Cllr Coker felt that a lot of work had to take place to make this Waterways a reality. The overall consensus was that the idea was good in principle but the Parish had major concerns over the section on Widbrook Common.

12.            REVIEW OF POLICY ON DONATIONS: It had been agreed in the recent Finance Meeting to make this an agenda item for all Councillors to discuss. Cllr Hewer was in favour of supporting projects in direct benefit to the Community such as the Cookham Youth Project. Cllr Coker felt there should be a general policy amongst parish councils in the Borough. Cllr Harris asked that if we had a policy of not giving donations, what would we do with the monies offered from film companies. It was felt that this should be dealt with separately when the occasion arose. It was proposed by Cllr Barnes, seconded by Cllr John Stretton to approve a policy of no charitable donations. Monies from film companies would be a separate issue. VOTE: IN FAVOUR = 12, ABSTENTION = 2.

13.       DATE TO DISCUSS THE REVISED PARISH PLAN – SCHOOLS SECTION: It was AGREED to discuss this at the next Planning meeting – as long as the Planning meeting was reasonably short.

14.            CHAIRMAN’S SUBMISSIONS: Cllr Woodbridge offered his invitation to any Councillor wishing to attend the Major-making ceremony at the Town Hall. It was agreed that Cllr Hewer and her partner would attend. The offer from Mike Foster, a local taxi company, of £100 towards the repair of the play area as long as their was press coverage – was agreed in principle. The Clerk was asked to accept his kind offer but to reiterate that the Council could not guarantee press coverage.

15.             CORRESPONDENCE:  A list of correspondence and periodicals received during the month of April was circulated with the agenda.  These were available in the Parish Office for Councillors’ perusal.

The Meeting closed at 9.05pm.