Minutes of Mettingham Parish Council

 

Village Hall

Rectory Lane

Mettingham

 

 

 

Tuesday 9th January 2024

7pm

 

Mrs Lesley Hand

Chair

Mr Eric Williams

Vice Chair

Mrs M Williams

Clerk

Mr D Raven

 

Mr P Willer

 

Mr T Sprake

 

Mr T Lay

 

Mr K Holmes

 

 

Councillor Toby Hammond attended the meeting:

Councillor Hammond is the East Suffolk cabinet member for Economic Development and Transport and represents the Bungay and Wainford Ward, serving 23 parishes locally. He plans to be present at as many meetings as he can but is also happy to be contacted at any time and will endeavour to solve problems that arise.

Mr Williams mentioned the recent floods which Cllr Hammond confirmed had kept East Suffolk Council’s flood defence team extremely busy. Regarding the flooding on the Low Road, Cllr Hammond urged continual reporting on the Suffolk Highways reporting tool. Mrs Hand mentioned that a meeting with Highways representatives (to be reported on later in the meeting) said that debris like mud and hedge trimmings that exacerbated the flooding problem was a street cleansing problem to be dealt with at district level. Cllr Hammond will make inquiries about this.

 

 

  1. Apologies

None

 

  1. Minutes of Previous Meeting

These were agreed and signed by the Chair as being a true record.

 

  1. Declaration of Interest

None

 

4.  Matters Arising

Mrs Hand, Mr Raven, Mrs Cloke and Mrs Groom met Mark and Hugh from Suffolk Highways on location on Wednesday 22nd November 2023. They flagged up the need to clear the grips and the drain at the bottom of the Muck-ups and at the top where the ditch crosses Mill Hill.

Potholes were noted and funding is available for diverting the ditch.

The meeting also took in Vicarage Lane to highlight the situation there.

The relocation of the grit bin on Tallents Loke still needs to be determined. Mr Raven and Mr Howell will attempt to find a new site for it.

 

  1. Financial Statement

Current balance £2380.43

Expenses to be paid up to 31/03/2024:

Clerk’s Salary £600

Each year, the council donates to Suffolk Air Rescue Service. A proposal was made to increase the amount to £75 which was approved unanimously.

 

  1. Joint Neighbourhood Plan (JNP) Update

The parishes originally interested in a JNP had included Barsham & Shipmeadow, St Andrews, St Johns, Ringsfield with Weston and Mettingham. St Andrews and St Johns have pulled out leaving the three remaining parishes.

Louise Botham has been co-ordinating the plan and made contact to ask if Mettingham is still interested in taking part.

There was some scepticism, but Mr Hammond explained that the plan would be formally adopted at council and become a document used in the planning process, giving greater representation.

Mrs Hand suggested that all councillors look at other adopted plans before making a final decision. Mrs Hand is prepared to be the representative for any working party. Mr Holmes would be willing to support her.

 

  1. Correspondence from an Ellingham Resident

Traffic on Mill Pool Lane between Benstead’s Farm and Ellingham sluice is often too fast at certain times of the day.

Having discussed a similar situation on the Low Road and registering the council’s interest in designating the stretch as a “Quiet Lane”, the council will inquire about including Mill Pool Lane when funding becomes available.

Litter on this stretch of road is also an issue. Locals often carry out “litter-picking” to keep the area tidy. Mrs Hand suggested that we could meet the parishioner for an informal meeting.

 

  1. Suffolk Highways

Mr Howell drew attention to the deteriorating state of Tallents Loke and the quality of the repairs that have taken place. Most of this has been covered during the meeting but it is essential to keep reporting problems as they arise.

There is also fly-tipping on the Muck-ups which needs to be collected. Mrs Hand will follow this up.

 

  1. Date of Next Meeting

Tuesday 12th March

Annual General Meeting at 7pm

followed by scheduled meeting

 

 

The meeting closed at 7.40pm.