Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting 23rd April 2012

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Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting of Bramley Parish

held in the Village Hall on Monday 23^rd April 2012 at 7.30pm.

 

Minutes

 

Present were:

Parish Councillors John Ferguson, Richard Wood, Chris Holland, Phil McCorry, Claire Penfold, Janice Spalding, Alan Douglas, Borough Councillors Ranil Jayawardena, Rhydian Vaughan, 21 members of the public

 

Presentation, why do we see so many Chinooks?

To open the Annual Parish Meeting, Guest Speaker Group Captain D Toriati Obe Ma Raf, The Station Commander at RAF Odiham, offered a fascinating a talk with slides about the Chinooks from Odiham, their work in Afghanistan, and their training regime including the use of Bramley Camp. This was followed by a public Q&A session.

The Clerk will produce an information page which will be put on the parish council website, see appendix.

 

ITEM          COMMENT                                                                                                                                                                   ACTION

 

1.0                    Apologies

County Councillor Keith Chapman

 

2.0                    Minutes of the last meeting

Proposed Cllr. Ferguson, seconded Cllr. Wood

 

3.0          Chairman’s report

              Cllr. Ferguson explained that the situation with the LDF had become complex with the Manydown affair and he was currently standing back to await the next stages so that the parish council could discuss the matter.

 

              He went on to discuss Highways matters and to update the meetings about the ongoing discussions about the Campbell Road roundabout concept which was still planned to go ahead. He also reported that there were some planned double white lines between the level crossing and the one-stop shop, which should prevent vehicles overtaking stationery queues which is a danger on the corner into Bramley Lane.

 

              He also reported on a change to the circumstance regarding the feasibility study into a footbridge over the level crossing, explaining that it appears Network Rail may now contribute half of the cost.

 

              Cllr. Ferguson reported that there will be a feasibility study into new community facilities for Bramley. He explained that Bramley has grown into a very large village since 1969. He explained that the current village hall is used by Little Apples nursery which means it cannot be used by the rest of the community during the day, leaving a shortage of facilities for the growing population. He looked to Hook who have a new village hall, and Sherfield Park who also had a new facility funded by Croudace as part of the development of the area and explained that if Bramley had the will, they could also seek to develop a new facility. He explained that an adviser/architect had been appointed to provide an independent study into suitable sites around the village, if any, and that he would look at the current facilities, its users, and what additional uses people would like. For instance it is known that the scouts and guides would like more space including storage space and have approached the parish council about having purpose built facilities.

 

              He explained that the current village hall was given to the village by the Clift Brothers, local farmers and astute business man, and is managed by Trustees on behalf of the community.

 

              In conclusion Cllr. Ferguson explained that there was a lot for the parish council to do over the coming year, and finds that being Chairman is much a full time job these days. He explained that the parish council is in its’ election year and wished his colleagues who were standing again every success for the elections.

 

4.0                    Village Hall Trust report

              There was a brief report on behalf of the trust, during which it was explained that their finances were in good shape and that they did not require any financial support from the parish council this year by way of grant funding.

              It was reported that issues with the outdoor lighting would be attended to.

 

5.0         Clift Meadow Trust report

It was reported that the pavilions were very busy, being booked every evening and around 50% of the time during the day. They explained that the prices may increase slightly to cover the increased cost of mains services.

 

The Bramley Village Diamond Jubilee Fun Day was progressing with MP James Arbuthnot attending to open the event. Various attractions are planned for the day including ‘Bramley’s Got Talent’, ferret racing, Dog Show, Bands, a Hog Roast and other stalls and attractions. It was noted that the Red Arrows had been contacted in case they could offer a fly-over but is was not going to be possible on the day. It was noted that the Church was also involved in this joint initiative and it was hoped this would set a pattern for the future.

 

6.0          Parish Plan Group report

              Claire Penfold explained that the survey was ready to be printed and that they were also setting up online access. It was noted that there would be 60 questions in total covering all aspects of life. She explained that the outcomes of this village survey would be a good foundation for the Neighbourhood Development Plan.

 

7.0            County Councillor’s report (see appendix)

                The Parish Council chairman offered a brief summary of the report which is attached in full.

 

8.0             Borough Councillor’s reports

                   Cllr. Vaughan spoke about the LDF and the core strategy, which is stalled while there are investigations into the Manydown site leading to the whole issue being re-examined. He explained that the Cufaude Lane Farm site had been downgraded to a reserve site but that the Borough Council representatives are still asking that it be taken out. He explained that Persimmon has an option on the land at Minchen’s Lane.

 

                   He expressed concern that if there was no LDF, there was no Core Strategy for the area, meaning that there is nothing to stop developers putting in applications for any site. He explained that he felt the way forward for Bramley was Neighbourhood Planning, putting the power to make planning decisions back in the hands of the Parish Council.

 

                   There were some other updates including that kerbside glass collections would begin soon, as part of the overall waste contract in partnership with Hart DC, preserving weekly collections while saving the Borough money.

 

                   He also explained that compulsory water metering is on the way and that many homeowners in Bramley are not currently metered.

 

                   Lastly there was a discussion about the travellers who had settled on Bramley Green and he explained that he had been in talks with the Estate Managers who were working together to protect the Green from future illegal encampments.

 

                   Cllr. Jayawardena reported that the Borough had frozen Council Tax charges for the year and explained that it was the 6^th lowest in the Country.

 

                   He also spoke about the enhancements being made at the Malls and explained that there was 95% occupancy of the positions there. It was noted that the Borough had signed into a long term development plan for Basing View, with the expectation of doubling employment there in 15-25 years.

 

                   The leisure park will also see some developments with an indoor skydiving centre planned. It was also noted that the cinema there is quite old and that the Borough Council own the freehold so there may be some development opportunities.

 

9.0             Any Other business

                   Cllr. Ferguson commended the good work carried out by the neighbourhood watch members around Bramley Green, who had collected funds to purchase and plant around 200 bulbs around the Green while the Estate’s equipment were digging the ditches as traveller defences. It was commented that the bulbs coming up in the Spring made the area look good. He went on to suggest that this community action would be possible for residents in all areas in the village and he commended the attitude that people ‘go out and do something’ for their neighbourhood.

 

Lastly there was a reminder of the elections on 3^rd May, where the whole Parish Council would need to be elected, and that there may be a new Council in place by the AGM on 14^th May.

 

                   There being no other business the meeting was closed at 10pm

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chair ................................................................................................Date.................................

 

 

Appendices

 

Website information based on the presentation from RAF Odiham.

Bramley Parish was delighted to welcome Station Commander Group Captain Toriati to the Annual Parish meeting on 23rd April 2012. He gave an excellent and informative presentation about the operations of the Chinooks including information about low flying and the use of Bramley Camp. The public were invited to ask questions and left with a much clearer understanding of why we see so many Chinooks over Bramley. 

Most Bramley residents have grown used to the Chinooks who have been operating out of Odiham for about 20 years. We consider the Chinooks to be ‘our’ force and are proud of the British RAF fleet and their crew and pilots. We know that training over our area is an essential part of training pilots and crew who may then be heading for a tour in dangerous and challenging environments such as Afghanistan, and realise that by choosing to live near Bramley Camp, we will become quite familiar with the air activity from Odiham and other RAF HQs who also use the camp and surrounding areas.

There are complaints about noise from time to time when the flying seems to have increased, particularly over the summer months where people leave their windows open, and it gets dark later so night time exercises have to take place at a later hour, but most people have learned to live quite happily with our noisy but brave and talented neighbours!

The Station Commander gifted a selection of royalty-free aerial photographs to the Parish Council. These will help us to create such things as the Neighbourhood Development Plan. Some of these photos will be put on this website.

The following information was included in the presentation to Bramley but this wording has been taken from RAF Odiham’s own website, which you can access via the following link if you need more information: http://www.raf.mod.uk/RAFodiham/

Low Flying

The ability to operate military aircraft and helicopters at low level is an essential part of ensuring operational success. Low flying training in the UK enables this vital capability.

Low flying remains an essential skill for military aircrew. UK forces have deployed repeatedly to potential trouble spots around the world usually with little or no warning. They have to undertake a variety of roles including reconnaissance, fast-jet or helicopter operations, search and rescue, transporting troops or the delivery of humanitarian aid to remote locations. Whatever missions we ask our Armed Forces to undertake the aircrew must be able to fulfil the task as effectively as possible, often without time for "work-up" training. Current Operations around the world see aircrew of both fixed and rotary wing aircraft undertaking operations at low level. They are only able to do this through specialist training gained through the use of the UK Low Flying System. The UK Military Low Flying System covers the open airspace of the whole of the UK and surrounding overseas areas from the surface to 2,000 feet above the ground or mean sea level.

 

Military fixed wing aircraft are judged to be low flying when they are less than 2000 feet minimum separation distance from the ground. Light propeller driven aircraft and helicopters are judged to be low flying below 500 feet minimum separation distance from the ground.

(minimum separation distance is defined as the distance that must be maintained between any part of an aircraft in flight and the ground, water or any object. It does not apply to separation between aircraft in the same formation).

 

Low Flying The Facts

• Is an essential skill that provides aircrew with one of the best chances of survival
• Is a highly demanding skill which can only be maintained through continuous and realistic training
• Is conducted with the safety of people on the ground, our aircrew, and other airspace users as the overriding concern
• Is rigorously controlled and continuously monitored
• Has reduced since 1988 - the total number of sorties by a third and those by jets by more than half

 

Low Flying over Bramley
Bramley is a part of ‘Low Flying Area 01’ - there are 19 Low Flying Areas across the UK.

LFA 1 is an area of intense helicopter activity for Joint Helicopter Command Units based at RAF Benson and RAF Odiham, together with the School of Army Aviation at Middle Wallop. This Area also contains the Salisbury Plain Defence Training Estate which is the UK's largest military training area. Most low flying traffic is therefore helicopters, usually operating with ground forces. This Area is also used by C-130 Hercules aircraft based at RAF Lyneham to conduct air-dropping and air-landing operations. In addition, the Area is also used by Test and Evaluation aircraft based at Boscombe Down.

 

 

 

COUNCILLOR KEITH CHAPMAN

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL MEMBER FOR

CALLEV A & KINGSCLERE

 

ANNUAL REPORT 2011- 2012

 

Committee Memberships:

 

1.                On Hampshire County Council, I am now Cabinet Member with responsibility for the arts, museums and libraries, parks etc.

 

2.                I am a Member of Hampshire Fire & Rescue Authority, and Chair its Performance Review and Scrutiny Committee County Council Members' Grant Scheme The County Council again allocated £8,000 to each Councillor to distribute to village organizations.

 

Hampshire County Council agreed its budget for 2012/13 on 23rd February and decided not to increase the council tax for this year. Hampshire County Council has made extra provision for the elderly, the young, the disabled and disadvantaged and delivered another council tax freeze in its budget for 2012-13. This is despite having to make cost reductions of £45 million dictated by cuts in government grant.

 

The next three years will also see an unprecedented level of one-off resource invested into capital expenditure, including £30 million for school places and £45 million for Extra Care housing for elderly people.

More than £3 million per year is to be added to the budget to be used solely to ease the plight of those most in need of help and protection, following the agreement of the Full County Council.

 

Ongoing cuts in public sector spending led to Hampshire losing 14.3 per cent of its Government grant last year and 10.4 per cent in 2012113. Further cuts are yet to be confirmed for the next two years. To meet these reductions and other budget pressures, the County Council is in the middle of an ambitious £ 100m cost reduction and modernization programme. This has focused on cutting running costs, restructuring and

modernizing services and seeking opportunities to share services.

 

The County Council froze council tax for 2012/13, which means it will have been at the same level for three years. Band D council tax will be £1,037.88, one of the lowest in the country, which means Hampshire continues to provide services at a lower cost per head than other county councils.

 

Hampshire Music Service hits the right note

Hampshire County Council's Music Service has been awarded a Diploma of Merit by The National Music Council (NMC) for its excellent music provision for children and young people. The award was part of the NMC's annual Local Authority Music Education Awards. The awards have been in existence for over 35 years and this is the sixth time Hampshire Music Service has received one for the quality of music teaching and support it provides to schools and young musicians. Hampshire Music Service teaches around 39,000 pupils, many through the wider opportunities whole class programme, Listen2Me, which aims to bring music tuition to every primary school. Furthermore, over 3,000 pupils take part in one or more of the 70 ensembles that the service runs.

 

20mph limit pilot scheme

A pilot scheme could pave the way for Hampshire County Council to introduce 20mph speed limits on more residential streets to improve the quality of life for residents, as well as their safety. The proposal has been-developed in response to regular requests for 20mph speed restrictions from residents and community groups. A list of potential locations will be prepared.

 

A-Board Policy

High street traders and other businesses could benefit from a proposed change in the way legislation is applied in relation to the placing of A-boards on the street. The County Council, in its role as the Highway Authority, is entering discussions with the local district, borough or city councils to enable them to agree requests for placing an A-boards on pavements, where it is appropriate and safe to do so. The proposed approach suggests that each request to place an A-board on the public highway should be individually assessed at a local level, and permission granted, subject to a range of criteria being met such as there being sufficient footway width available and ensuring that pedestrians and other footway users, such as people with pushchairs, are not disadvantaged.

 

 

 

Operation Resilience

Operation Resilience is a major shift in emphasis from reactive work to planned maintenance, and has meant that resources are directed into a much more effective way of looking after the roads. The result of this is that around 400 sites were identified this year alone for work to make the roads more resilient to the effects of extreme weather and heavy traffic.

 

Jubilee and Olympic celebratory event banners

Hampshire County Council has agreed a Hampshire County Council temporary policy to ensure communities can put up celebratory roadside banners and signs for the forthcoming Diamond Jubilee and Olympics without compromising on safety.

 

Plus ....

Residents planning small scale street parties to celebrate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee will be pleased to hear that Hampshire County Council has made arrangements to ensure they can do so with the minimum of fuss. Provided the street is not a through road and no more than 500 people are attending, the County Council has agreed that the only permission it needs to be asked for is a licence to hang bunting from lamp posts. This is

so that there is a nominated organiser who can be relied on to organise the removal of the bunting after the event

 

Lego Mania

On 21 February 2012 Duncan Titmarsh, the only certified LEGO builder in the UK, began on the mammoth task of creating the great Tudor castle from only LEGO bricks. The final brick of the scaled model, 1/40 of its original size was laid on the 31 March 12 in front of a live audience at Milestones Museum.

Over 20,000 LEGO fans have visited Milestones since the exhibition began in February 2012, a 200% increase in visitor numbers on last year.

 

Changes to library opening hours

The change in Hampshire's library opening hours came about as the County Council aimed to save £2.4 million from its library budget in the fourth phase of the county's library service reviews which have mainly been made from savings from behind the scenes to minimise the impact on library customers. Consultation feedback led to revised proposals being agreed.

 

New direction for Museums and Arts

The future direction of the Museums and Arts service was subject to public, staff and stakeholder consultation during October through to December. The resulting strategic plan meant no closures but asks for help from volunteers, alongside professional paid staff; to help keep community centered museum venues

open. It also identifies five flagship venues which will attract the best of British and international culture into the County on a regular basis. Milestones, in Basingstoke, is being identified as a new centre of excellence and the arts and museum professionals in the team will pool resources and work together to deliver vibrant experiences for people across the county both inside and outside our arts and museum venues.

 

Making Hampshire's rich history more accessible

Hampshire's ancient forts and historic trams are brought into the digital age as the county council takes steps to bring learning and engagement online. These are just two examples of over forty 'Mini Museums' which are being developed as part of a project launched by Hampshire County Council's Arts and Museums Service in partnership with local schools, families and community groups to make Hampshire's rich history more accessible.

 

Runways End opens

Set in nine acres of woodland, Runway's End, Aldershot, with its eco friendly approach, is set to be one the UK' most exciting outdoor centers for young people with a huge range of indoor and outdoor activities for all abilities(this located at Aldershot) Basingstoke Discovery Centre. Basingstoke Discovery Centre celebrated its first birthday on Wednesday 30 November after a very exciting and successful year with over 310,000 visitors through its doors.

 

Excellent: the verdict on Hampshire's Children's Services

A number of inspections were carried out by Ofsted: Overall- The annual performance assessment by Ofsted concerning the County Council's continuing lead responsibility for oversight of all children's services from schools to "social services found Hampshire to be Excellent”.

 

 

 

 

Adoption Service

Hampshire County Council has consistently good and strongly performing adoption services according the report by Government inspectors.

 

Fostering services in Hampshire are good with outstanding features. 'Children and young people live in homes where foster carers provide them with nurturing, stable and safe family environments' and they 'enjoy excellent relationships in their placements' - that was the verdict of Ofsted inspectors.

 

Safeguarding

Hampshire County Council and its partners have achieved 'outstanding' or 'good' judgments for all 22 areas of Ofsted' s inspection of safeguarding and looked after children services. The inspection is a three yearly intensive review of services for the most vulnerable children including a strong focus on child protection.

 

Broadband for Hampshire

Hampshire County Council proposals for faster broadband in Hampshire have been accepted. Hampshire is to get £5 million of the £8.4 million that the Government set aside for the region, including Portsmouth, Southampton and the Isle of Wight. The County Council submitted its revised local broadband plan to Broadband Delivery UK (BDUK) in November last year and the £5 million of government funding is to be

matched by local public and private finance.

 

Adult Services: Good Neighbours

Neighbours who go t1iaiextra mile have been thanked at Hampshire County Council's eighth Good Neighbours Awards.

 

Adult Services: Review of care contributions

The Council's new charging policy - where people pay for social care according to how much they can afford to contribute -left some service users paying 'double-up care' costs, where two careers needed to be present at the same time.

 

The Council has agreed actions that it can take within the confines of national and local policy and legal frameworks to ensure that users who have the means to pay the full or partial cost of their care, and require two careers; see a reduction in their personal contribution.

 

Adult Services: Extra Care

As part of its modernization programme for the way adult social care services are delivered to an ageing population, the Council is looking to invest £45 million over the next decade to stimulate the development of Extra Care housing. This modem residential model provides individual housing units, within a larger development, with support and care available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

 

Jubilee trees

School children across Hampshire will be planting hundreds of trees to commemorate Her Majesty The Queen's Diamond Jubilee. Hampshire County Council is offering schools a young tree to mark 60 years of The Queen's reign. Schools also will be given stakes, fertiliser and information about tree planting and maintenance so that their pupils can celebrate this event and learn about the importance of trees within the ecosystem. The tree offer is also extended to Parish Councils.

 

Voluntary Redundancy

Voluntary redundancy arrangements at Hampshire County Council will result in £46 million net savings by the end of2013, with compulsory job losses kept to a minimum. The combination of the Council's recruitment freeze and redundancy programme has resulted in an overall reduction of 1,469 full time equivalent (fte) posts. Redundancies accounted for 868.54fte of these and only 16.56fte were compulsory. By the end of2013-14 financial year, the County Council will have made a total of more than £46 million net

savings as a result and will be spending £32 million per annum less per year thereafter, than would have been the case had the redundancies not occurred.

 

Transparency

Over 800 people tuned in to watch all, or part of, Hampshire County Council's first web streamed Council meeting live or as archived footage. The budget meeting on 23 February was the first one the County Council has streamed live and made available to watch as archive footage on its website.