At a meeting of the Parish Council held on Monday 22nd November 2004 there were present, Mr. J. Nichols, Chairman, Mr. S. Perks, Mr. G. Alderton, Mrs. G. Soanes and Mrs. E. Hilton, Police Constables Boggis and Hill and 5 Parishioners also attended.
Apologies were received from Mr. J. Blowers, Mr. P. Offord, Councillor B. Hunter and Mrs. E. Hume. 
The Minutes of the previous meeting held on 25th October were approved and signed.
There were no declarations of interest.
Pc Hill reported that during the period since the last Police report there had been 1 crime related to H.M.P. and one case of criminal damage to a parked vehicle in The Street.
Planning.
The following plans were considered and approved.
	Mr. S. Bunting, South Barn, Flixton Road, - Front Porch Extension.
	Mr. H. Thornton, 48, Lakeside Rise, - Construction of an attached garage.
	Blundeston Bowls Club, - siting of two portable buildings for use as a clubhouse, 
		changing facility and toilets.
	T. A. Vernon, Rosewood, 1 Lound Road, - first floor rear extension.
The application by Mr. & Mrs. King, 54 The Street, to construct a detached double garage was refused on the grounds that the proposal was totally out of keeping with the character of The Street and that the construction was well in front of the building line for the adjacent properties. The siting of the large pitched roof garage at the roadside edge of the property would make exiting the adjacent driveways extremely difficult on an already awkward bend; it would also block light to these properties. The Parish Council had received strong objections from both the neighbours and from numerous other parishioners who feel that the proposed garage would be completely unsuitable in such a prominent position. It was pointed out that the property already had an attached garage, which was not shown on the site drawing submitted to the Planning Office. The Clerk was also asked to include in the comments to the Planning Office the fact that the Chairman would like to attend and speak at the relevant Planning Committee meeting.
Accounts.
		Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal	(two wreaths)		45. 00
		B.M. Shaw Clerks Salary (July Aug Sept)	256. 25
					Plus 1/3 telephone          9. 16		265. 41
		J. Nichols (Chairman’s expenses)				    9. 16
		University of Gloucestershire (Village Appraisal
							Software)		  75. 00
These were proposed for payment by Mr. Alderton and seconded by Mr. Perks.
The Clerk and the Chairman had prepared a budget for the next financial year and it was decided that the Precept should remain the same for the year 2005/06. The Chairman reported that the next Northern Parishes Liaison Meeting would be held on 9th December in Blundeston Village Hall, Mrs. Soanes agreed to help the Clerk with the provision of refreshments on that evening. Information had been received from the Department of Transports Highways Agency on Major Road works in the East of England during the autumn of 2004. The Countryside Agency had forwarded copies of a Guide to Becoming a Quality Council. 
Other Parish Business. Mr. Perks asked for clarification of the reply received from Mr. Beldon from W.D.C. regarding the Highways and flooding problems in the two Villages, as he had been unable to attend the previous meeting. Mr. Perks also asked if it would be possible to have a flashing 30mph sign erected on the road through Flixton, the clerk was asked to find out how much these signs would cost and what the procedure for erecting these would be.  Mr. Alderton reported that work had started on cutting the hedge along the footpath from Market Lane to The Street, and that Mr. Clark from W.D.C. had agreed to get the hedge cut along the footpath from The Pippins to The Street, he would also arrange to sort out the drainage problem in the footpath which runs adjacent to Holly Gardens. A Parishioner had spoken to Mr. Alderton about the fact that there is no footpath from the corner of Short Road to give pedestrians safe access to The Village Hall, the Clerk was asked to contact W.D.C. regarding this matter. The Chairman gave a report on the recent Parish Plans meeting held on Friday 19th November, a trial questionnaire with 74 questions has been prepared and this will be distributed to a selected few individuals who will give comments on the questionnaire and the ease of answering these.  Another meeting has been planned for 14th January in the Village Hall, when the final questionnaires will be ready to be distributed, this may include a housing survey if Louise Wilby can prepare this in time. The completed report from Parishioners could be a powerful tool for the Parish Council and will enable the Council to know what the Parishioners would like to happen for the future of Blundeston and Flixton. There is an enthusiastic group on the Steering Committee and a healthy number of enthusiastic volunteers who have agreed to distribute and collect the relevant papers. The Chairman reported on the recent meeting in the Play Area with Mr. Wood, a representative from W.D.C. and himself. He said that the roundabout was in good mechanical order but that work was needed on the boarding area, the steps and handrail on the slide needed some attention and it was proposed that a board would be placed under the steps once the handrail had been repaired. The old see saw has been removed and Mr. Wood has agreed to provide an estimate and get all the repairs done as soon as possible. It was agreed that the see saw should be replaced and the landing area adjusted by providing a rubber tyre underneath the equipment. Complaints had been received about the state of 4 Orchard Lane, the garden was completely overgrown and vermin had been seen, the clerk was asked to report the situation to W.D.C. as it was considered to be a health risk in this state. 
15 minutes for Parishioner input. Mr. Ffitch said how good the footpath at the back of Barkis Meadow looks now that the hedge had been trimmed and that once all the work is finished it will be a vast improvement. He also suggested that the clerk contact W.D.C. to complain about the standard of the recent road resurfacing in Market Lane, the chippings have completely worn off in certain places and as the work was only done in September it was felt that they should have stayed in place longer than this. Mrs. Wells asked if the Council would request that dog’s mess bins should be erected at each end of the footpath from Market Lane to The Street, and she would be willing to empty these, as when the Parish Council asked W.D.C. for these bins several years ago, they were told that W.D.C. do not empty the bins. Mrs. Wells has been driven to make this request because her severely handicapped daughter is constantly getting dog excreta on the wheels of her motorised chair and bringing it into the house, consequently, Mrs. Wells now goes along the footpath each day clearing up all the dog mess along that route, and she would find it so much more pleasant just to have to empty the bins. Mrs. Mayes complained about the amount of heavy traffic, which now uses Pound Lane on a daily basis, buses and lorries regularly drive along the road, which is totally unsuitable for such traffic. The Clerk was asked to contact the Highways department to see if anything could be done about this problem. The Chairman was amazed one evening recently when he discovered that there were over 35 cars parked near Blundeston School to pick up children being dropped off from Hobart School these children were then driven by their parents to Corton, Oulton and other surrounding villages, he asked the Clerk to contact Hobart School to find out the name of the person who organises the transportation to the school as it has been established that this is a private arrangement between the Parents and the Transport company. The Chairman would like to meet with the organiser to discuss the problem in the hope that a different arrangement for the pick up and drop off can be agreed. 
The Chairman expressed his disgust with the poor turn out of Parish Councillors. An apology had been received from three but three others were absent without explanation. Meeting dates were planned and notified for two months in advance and Councillors receive a reminder via the minutes at least one week before the meeting. The Chairman felt that parishioners deserve better than this from their elected representatives.
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.20p.m.