Halstead Town Council

Membership:

Also in attendance:   Mr M C Murkin, Town Clerk, 
                                 Mrs J Smith, Minute Clerk
                                 Mr R Moxon and 10 students from Ramsey College
                                 1 member of the public

348.    APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
No apologies for absence

349.   DECLARATION OF INTERESTS
To declare any ‘personal' or ‘personal and prejudicial' interests relating to items on the agenda having regard to paragraphs 7 to 11 inclusive of Part 2 of the Code of Conduct for  Members and having taken appropriate advice (where necessary) before the meeting.
Cllr Mrs B Gage declared a personal interest in planning applications as member of Braintree District Council Planning Committee.
Cllr Mrs J Pell declared a personal interest in a matter in private session.

350.    PUBLIC QUESTION TIME
There were no questions from the members of public present

351.    COUNCIL MINUTES
Minutes of the Council meeting held on 20^th September 2010, having been previously circulated, were unanimously approved and adopted. 

352.    COMMITTEE  MINUTES
(i) The minutes of Amenities Committee, minutes 249-257 of 4^th November  2010, having been previously circulated, were unanimously approved and adopted. 
There were no recommendations from that Committee.

 (ii) The minutes of Finance and General Purposes Committee, minutes 289-300 of 11^th November 2010, having been previously circulated, were unanimously approved and adopted.
The recommendations in minute 298 and 300 were both confirmed and adopted.

Cllr Mrs K Little asked if the sum mentioned at minute 298 for a grant of £500 to Ramsey students was a single sum or if £500 was awarded to each student - it was said that £500 was the total sum awarded.

353.    PLANNING  APPLICATIONS.
Cllr Mrs S Diver, Chair of Planning, took the Chair for this part of the meeting.

10/1514/OUT - Garages, East Mill, Halstead, Essex. Proposed erection of 2no. two bedroom semi-detached properties to replace existing garage.
Members noted one objection regarding the condition of the road - which is a private road.  It was said that if permission is granted a condition could be that the road outside the new build should be metalled.  It was said that consideration should be given to comments on previous applications in this area concerning height of the building - Cllr H Messenger asked if the buildings could be one and half storeys high; Cllr M Gage suggested that the dwellings could be moved to the back of the plot to have less impact against other local dwellings.
Members raised concerns about the height of the buildings that are not in keeping with others in the vicinity.

10/01503/FUL - White Horse Avenue, Halstead, Essex. CO9 1AL Provision of entrance ramp at front of property.
Members raised no objections to this application.

10/01518/FUL - Halstead Sports Centre, Colne Road, Halstead, Essex. CO9 2HR.  Replacement of existing floodlighting system to synthetic pitch.
Members noted that the type of lighting proposed would give a better spread of light and would be more environmentally friendly.
Members raised no objections to this application.

Cllr D Hume resumed Chair of the meeting, and asked for a proposal that Standing Orders be suspended for the next part of the meeting. 
Proposal was made, seconded and unanimously carried.

Councillor David Hume, Mayor of Halstead, welcomed Mr Richard Moxon, who is a teacher at Ramsey College, and the ten students from the College who were in attendance.  He congratulated the College for participating in community life of Halstead by taking part in the Green Heart of Essex Campaign, assisting with Halstead in Bloom, designing and making some Christmas lighting displays that were installed at Weavers' Court in 2009 
and for designing and making some artwork for the display in King's Road and in summer 2010. He also commented on the smart new uniform recently adopted by Ramsey College. Cllr Hume explained that Halstead Town Council is committed to involvement with young people in the Town, specifically with Councillors who are involved with HYPE events but also with a commitment to establish a Youth Council in Halstead within the next few months.  It had been agreed that the Youth Council could begin with Ramsey students, but it was hoped that this would be extended to include other uniformed groups; Guides,     Scouts, ATC, etc.  Cllr Mrs L Hilton, who has been instrumental in trying to set up a Youth Council in Halstead explained that the aim was to ascertain what young people in the Town needed and wanted and Cllr M Fincken who is Chair of         Governors at the College said that it was important to build on the success of the HYPE events and he felt it important that young people take some responsibilities for organising events and a Youth Council would give them an opportunity to see how democracy works.  Cllr Fincken said that a sum of money had been put aside by Halstead Town Council to facilitate inauguration of a Youth Council, but input from young people is vital; he said that there is a possibility that more funds would be available in the future.
Cllr M Gage said that he joined a Youth Council in West Ham in his youth and that had given him a belief in democracy and an insight into the cut and thrust of debate.  He felt it an important lesson that decisions can be made by the group even if individuals have differing views, he felt it an excellent life lesson and hoped that a successful Youth Council could be formed to give young people a pride of place.
Cllr Mrs J Pell emphasised the benefits of friendly debate within a Council and noted that Councils need to be organised and run along specific lines with rules laid down, these are known as Standing Orders.  Cllr Pell felt that a Youth Council in Halstead would be a great step forward.
Mr Moxon said that 30 students at Ramsey College take part in a School Council and the ten students present had volunteered to take the matter of a Youth Council forward.  He said that the HYPE events had been appreciated, but it was felt that more could be done for youth in Halstead and that a Youth Council could be instrumental in remedying this.  He asked if there were current plans for Youth Council that need input from students.
Cllr Fincken said that an initial meeting had been arranged for 6^th January to look at a constitution for a Youth Council and discuss focus points for the group.  It was said that Cllr Mrs Hilton and Cllr Fincken would attend on behalf of the Town Council, although other Councillors could attend if required.  At this meeting it would be important to set up Standing Orders and to decide where funds should be lodged and where they might be spent. 
It was agreed that there would be a necessity for mentoring by Councillors to the Youth Council and it was hoped that there would be dialogue back from the Youth Council to the Town Council to establish good links.  Cllr Fincken said that some secretarial support could be offered from the Town Council, at least in the initial stages.
Questions were asked about what were the perceived needs of young people in the Town and it was agreed that somewhere to congregate with perhaps refreshments being available was the most pressing need.  Town Council suggested that a ‘wish list' be drawn up by the Youth Council  and Cllr Mrs B Gage said that there may need to be some partnership working with private enterprise to fulfil these requirements.
Cllr Mrs L Hilton said that a further HYPE event was under discussion - this to take place on 10^th December at Queen's Hall.
Cllr David Hume said that he felt that this meeting had been valuable and offered to visit Ramsey College to sit in on School Council meetings in order to learn the processes in place.
Brooks Newmark MP, who had joined the meeting during this discussion, also offered to visit the College.

Standing orders were then re-established

354.    Brooks Newmark MP gave a presentation.
Mr. Newmark said that Halstead was a new area for him to represent after recent electoral boundary changes.  He explained that he felt it important to speak to parish and local councils within his constituency and that despite working long hours at the Houses of Parliament he has already visited many villages within the district and had held open surgeries all around the area and closed surgeries in Braintree and Halstead.
He said that there had been positive feed-back about the necessary changes to benefits that had been made and to the workings of the coalition government in power.    Cuts already proposed and made had enabled the
UK to retain the AAA credit rating although it was recognized that the parties in Government may suffer defeats in any by-elections in the near future.
Mr Newmark explained his role as a Government whip and said that in this role he was not allowed to speak in Parliament, but was allowed to write letters to relevant Ministers and that these letters were given priority.  He said that there was a Bill pending to reform voting, but that this was a Lib-Dem policy that had been put through with agreement from the Conservative party.  It is this co-operation that is the benefit of a coalition
Government that engenders more debate and compromise.
Cllr M Gage welcomed the visit from Mr Newmark, the first sitting MP to attend a Halstead Town Council meeting since 1972.  He advised Mr Newmark to consult with the Town Clerk on matters of policy within the 
Town before speaking to the local press as remarks could be taken out of context.   Mr Newmark took this advice on board and said that he would consult but always speak his mind.
Cllr Mrs B Gage asked his opinion about whether a by-pass for Halstead would be scheduled in the near future, and what his opinions were on the subject of traffic congestion within the Town.
Mr Newmark said that it would be for the local community to decide whether they felt a by-pass was required taking in opinions from business people and residents
Cllr M Fincken said that as Chair of Governors at Ramsey College it had been noted that there is a low aspirational level with, therefore, a small take up of higher education.  He asked what could be done to assist, particularly in relation to the education maintenance agreement that differentiates between various fields  of education.
Mr Newmark said that there may be some refinement to Education Policy and for himself he is in favour of the International Baccalaureate that gives a broader range of educational qualifications.
Concerns were raised about the level of unemployment, particularly among young, and Mr. Newmark said that there will be measures implemented to increase the number of private sector jobs with less red tape and better tax breaks for small businesses.
Cllr M Gage made the point that Local Councils collected business rates that were handed to Central Government and a small percentage of this was returned to District Council by way of subsidy.  He said that if more of this money could be retained at local level a great deal could be achieved at local level for local communities.  Mr Newmark said that the large, inherited, budget deficit meant that no changes in subsidy levels in the near future.
Cllr Mrs L Hilton asked about increases in retirement age when so many young people were unemployed; Mr Newmark explained that there is a large public sector pension deficit that has to be managed and that as life
expectancy is increasing it makes sense for retirement ages to be higher.  He again stressed that there will be a push to increase job vacancies, specifically within the private sector.  He said that it was important for the
benefit system to be overhauled to ensure that no-one was financially better off by not working, and also said that there was a need for culture change in ways of working.  He was keen to see everyone capable of working in employment, and this includes some that are seen as ‘disabled' and not able to work.  He stressed that everyone has some ability which must be fully utilised.
Cllr Mrs Hilton then asked about inequalities in the child benefit system and Mr Newmark explained that some bureaucratic anomalies would always lead to an imperfect system, but it was hoped that measures taken would mean fewer imperfections than previously.
Cllr Mrs Hilton then asked why benefits had been cut when taxes had not been increased and was told that some tax thresholds had been increased and all in all the system was now fairer than before.

Chairman Cllr David Hume thanked Brooks Newmark MP for attending the meeting, and invited him to attend again.

Brooks Newmark MP left the meeting

Mr Moxon and students from Ramsey College left the meeting, as did the member of the public.
           

355.    MAYOR'S APPOINTMENT AND ANNOUNCEMENTS.
The report was noted.  Cllr Mrs Pell suggested that the Town Council look at appropriate ways for the town to celebrate the marriage of William Wales and Catherine Middleton and it was said that proposals of events should be put on next Agenda for Amenities committee.
Chairman to write to the Queen to offer congratulations on behalf of Halstead.

356.    SENIOR  CITIZENS' OUTINGS 2011
Prices for sample destinations from six different local coach hire companies as requested by the Amenities committee.
Cllr Mrs B Gage suggested that costs for each outing should be raised by £2.00 in order to eliminate subsidy for these outings, but Cllr M Fincken cautioned that incoming Council for 2011 may wish to continue with subsidy as has always been the case, he said that it was always intended that these outings be subsidised. 
Cllr Mrs J Pell said that she would favour a rise of 50p. per person per outing and that it should be remembered that pensioners from other villages are accepted on a waiting list and pay at full cost if there are sufficient places.   
Cllr D Hume pointed out that if costs had been increased each year then costs would now be covered, but he felt that it was not feasible to increase costs by a large amount in one year.
Cllr H Messenger said he felt that there needed to be more control over these outings and he proposed that there should be only 4 outings per year with a maximum of 4 coaches per outing.
It was said that each senior citizen in Halstead is eligible to apply for a place on outings and now 4 or 5 coaches are required for each outing.  Numbers are known well in advance so that there is no over-ordering of coach places.
Cllr M Fincken Proposed that number of outings be left the same for 2011, and prices be increased to £8.50 per person per outing.  This would mean a subsidy of £1000.  
Motion was seconded by Cllr Mrs J Pell, and was carried by a majority vote.
Cllr M Gage suggested that decisions be made on destinations for outings, and it was agreed that Couriers should decide by early December.      
                      

357.    REVIEW OF STRUCTURE FOR COUNCIL BUSINESS.
In view of the full Agenda for this meeting it was agreed to defer the matter for the time being.  Chairman said that a move to more regular Full Council meetings had been discussed.

358.    INTERNAL  AUDITOR
Report was noted

359.    ST. ANDREW'S CHURCH WALL
Cllr Mrs J Pell asked if in this conservation/heritage area some grants may be available for restoration work.   It was agreed that application be made to Braintree District Council Local Area Committee for funds.
It was AGREED that quotation from Smith & Scillitoe for restoration work to the Church Wall be accepted and that this will be funded from  reserves and/or by grant.
It was further agreed that work should be carried out as soon after the Christmas period as is feasible.
It was queried whether Listed Building Consent would be required - Clerk to Investigate.

360.    EARLS  COLNE AND HALSTEAD EDUCATIONAL CHARITY
Letter had been received from this charity asking for nomination for representation from  Halstead Town Council.
Cllr Mrs B Gage suggested that Cllr M Gage would be interested in taking this post and Cllr M Gage indicated that he would be willing to stand.
AGREED that Cllr M Gage be put forward as representative for the Earls Colne and Halstead Educational Charity.

Cllr M Fincken asked if Cllr Gage would report back to this Council from time to time.
         

361     EXCLUSION OF PUBLIC AND PRESS
The following resolution was proposed and seconded:
RESOLVED:  That pursuant to the provisions of section 1(2) of the Admission to Meetings Act 1960, in view of the next items to be conducted, the press and public to be excluded from the meeting.

Chairman closed the meeting at 10.05 pm