MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING HELD 29th MAY 2019

 

 

Present

Cllrs Mrs Jackie Allen (JA), Mr Brian Colley (BC), Mrs Barbara Humphreys (BH), Mr Michael Maxfield (MM),
Mr Frank Hemmings (FH), Ms. Eleanor Burnham (EB), Mr Gareth Baines (GB), Mrs Sarah Williams (SW),
Mr Mark Holmes (MH), Mrs Dot Griffiths (DG), Mr Chris Burgoyne (CB), Mr Terry Evans (TE)
& Mr Mark Roberts (MR),
Mr Shaun Jones (SJ), Clerk to the Council.  Mr. Jack Butler, Press – NWN.

 

Cllr. Chris Burgoyne joins Chirk Town Council as a co-opted member representing Chirk North Ward.  Both JA and BC welcomed Chris and looked forward to working together.

 

1.         TO RECEIVE REPORT FROM RETIRING CHAIR.

Cllr. Jackie Allen thanked all members of the Council and the Clerk for their support during his year as Chairman of the Council.  JA referred members to her report given at last month’s Annual Town Meeting.  Also thanks to the caretaking staff for all their hard work and to Mr Jack Butler of the Border Counties Advertizer throughout her period of office.

 

2.         TO ELECT THE CHAIR OF CHIRK TOWN COUNCIL FOR 2019/20 AND WITNESS THE ACCEPTANCE OF OFFICE.

   

Cllr. Barbara Humphreys proposed Cllr. Brian Colley for the post of Chair.  This was seconded by Cllr. Dot Griffiths.  No other nominations were made and Cllr. Brian Colley was duly elected as Chairman – motion carried - unanimous.

 

Cllr. Colley after signing the Declaration of Office and being presented with the Chain of Office by Cllr Jackie Allen, he took the opportunity to address the meeting and thanked Cllr. Jackie Allen for all her hard work over the last year and hoped it was enjoyable.  He thanked the Councillors on being elected as your Chair and stated it was an honour and privilege to serve.

 

3.         TO ACCEPT APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE THROUGH THE CLERK.

Apologies for absence: Cllr. Miss Lynne Painter & Mr Newman James.

 

4.         TO MAKE DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST IN ITEMS ON THE AGENDA.
 Declarations of Interest: No declarations of interest made at this point.

 

5.         TO ELECT THE VICE-CHAIR OF CHIRK TOWN COUNCIL FOR 2019/20 AND WITNESS THE ACCEPTANCE OF OFFICE.

BC called for proposals for the post of Vice-Chair of Chirk Town Council. 
Cllr. Terry Evans proposed Cllr. Jackie Allen for the post of Vice-Chair.  This was seconded by Cllr. Dot Griffiths. 
No other nominations were brought forward therefore Cllr. Jackie Allen was duly elected as Vice- Chairman – motion carried - unanimous.
Cllr. Jackie Allen signed the Declaration of Office.

 

6.         TO REVIEW AND DETERMINE THE NUMBER OF PLACES ON EACH COUNCIL COMMITTEE.
 SJ referred members to the recently approved Terms of Reference for Committees – all of which have advisory and not delegated powers.  At the time it was stated that for some committees the number of members had increased over the May 2018 AGM allocation, in particular the Planning, Finance and Staff & Policies Committees.  This agenda item was included ahead of making appointments to committees for 2019/20 in order to allow members to make any change to committee membership places.  The decision made was not to cap, but encourage members to join whichever committee that was of particular interest to the member concerned. 

 

 

7.         TO MAKE APPOINTMENTS TO THE FOLLOWING COMMITTEES:

The following committees agreed and members elected thereto: -

General Purposes Committee. The Full Council.

Plans Committee.

Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Mr Michael Maxfield, Mrs Barbara Humphreys, Mr Mark Roberts,
Mrs Sarah Williams, Mr Mark Holmes, Mr Terry Evans, Miss Lynne Painter, Mrs Dorothy Griffiths &
Mr Gareth Baines

Finance Committee.

Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Mr Mark Holmes, Mr Terry Evans, Mrs Sarah Williams, Mr Gareth Baines & Mr Chris Burgoyne.

Special Committee.

Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Mrs Sarah Williams.

Consultations Committee.  Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Mr Mark Roberts.

Parish Hall Sub-Committee. Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Mr Mark Holmes, Mrs Barbara Humphreys,
Mr Michael Maxfield, Mr Newman James, Mrs Dorothy Griffiths, Mr Frank Hemmings &
Miss Lynne Painter.

Staffing & Policies Committee.  Chairman, Vice Chairman, Mr Mark Roberts, Mr Mark Holmes,
Mrs Sarah Williams, Miss Lynne Painter, Mr Frank Hemmings, Mr Gareth Baines &
Mrs Eleanor Burnham.

 SJ will update the Terms of Reference of Committees based on the above membership and present for adoption to the Staffing and Policies Committee in the near future.

 

8.         TO AGREE APPOINTMENTS OF COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES ON THE FOLLOWING OUTSIDE BODIES

School Governors:

Ysgol Y Waun Chirk School Mrs Sarah Williams.

Dee Valley Federation Mrs Barbara Humphreys. 

Chirk Charities   Mrs Jackie Allen, Mr Newman James, Mr Mark Holmes and Mr Frank Hemmings.

Chirk Environmental Liaison Group Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Mrs Sarah Williams,
Ms. Eleanor Burnham, Miss Lynne Painter, Mrs Dorothy Griffiths & Mr Chris Burgoyne.

Black Park Community Centre. Mr Frank Hemmings and Mrs Sarah Williams. 

OneVoice Wales, Wrexham/Flint Area Regional Committee.  Mrs Jackie Allen & Mr Mark Roberts.    

Shrewsbury/Chester Rail Users Association. Mrs Jackie Allen.

Chirk Air Training Corps – Civilian Committee. Mrs Jackie Allen.

North East Wales Play and Playing Fields Association. The Clerk.

Chirk Youth Football Club. Mr Michael Maxfield, Mr Newman James, Mr Mark Holmes and Mr Mark Roberts.

Footpath Liaison. Mr Frank Hemmings and Mr Brian Colley.

Chirk/Ceiriog Valley Partnership. Mrs Jackie Allen (Deputy Mr Frank Hemmings).

Chirk Celebrations and Lights Committee. Mr Frank Hemmings, Mr Newman James, Mr Mark Roberts & Mr Mark Holmes.

Chirk Recreation Ground Trust. All members of the Council.

Chirk Community Forum.  Mr Frank Hemmings

Wrexham CBC Community Council Forum. Chairman, Vice-Chairman and the Clerk.

Glyn Valley Tramway Trust – Mrs Jackie Allen.

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Champion – Mr Frank Hemmings

 

9.         TO AGREE DATES OF MEETINGS OF THE COUNCIL 2019/20
 The suggested dates for Ordinary Meetings in 2019/20 were presented based on the usual last Wednesday in the calendar month apart from December and no meeting scheduled in August.  SJ has highlighted 2 dates that fall at the time of school half term holidays in October and May.  Members also heard that BC has leave planned for the end of June so this date could also be reviewed.  GB proposed, seconded by JA that members adopted the suggested dates without amendment –motion carried.  These will be published on our website.

In addition a list of dates for Key Committee Meetings was also tabled for 2019/20.  Members adopted.

 

 

10.      TO RECEIVE INFORMATION OF ATTENDANCE AT MEETINGS OF THE COUNCIL 2018/19.
 Details of Councillors attendance for 2018/19 presented for information.  FH commended the 3 members with 100% attendance, JA, DG & BH.  EB asked it to be noted that ill health prevented her attendance to two meetings.

 

11.      TO CONFIRM AND SIGN THE MINUTES AS A TRUE RECORD OF THE ORDINARY MEETING HELD ON 24th APRIL 2019.
 The draft minutes for the Council Meeting held 24th April are now put to the Council as an accurate record of proceedings. JA requested 5 minutes to read the minutes.  The motion proposed JA and seconded FH was passed unanimously.

 

12.      TO CONFIRM AND SIGN THE MINUTES AS A TRUE RECORD OF THE SPECIAL MEETING HELD ON 14TH MAY 2019.
 The draft minutes for the Special Meeting held 14th May are now put to the Council as an accurate record of proceedings. The motion proposed FH and seconded BH was passed unanimously.

 

13.      TO CONSIDER ANY MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES RECEIVED ABOVE NOT REPORTED ELSEWHERE.
 Minute 168 – First meeting of Tourism Sub-Group scheduled for June 18th 2019.  Also EB strongly requested the Train Excursion company be asked to consider a scheduled stop in Chirk for future trips. SJ to action.
Minute 171 – Once meeting with Emma Williams has taken place the EV Charging Point will be put on a General Purposes Committee meeting agenda.  Also suggested to look to Cadwyn Clwyd LEADER funding as a source of grant monies. 
Minute 174 – The broken step at the Millennium Gardens has been repaired.
Minute 175 – The Accounts pack has been published.

 

14.      TO CONSIDER NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICING MATTERS.
 No PCSO present this evening however a report has been received covering– 24/4 to 28/5. 

Crimes - 9

2x Criminal damage
5 x Thefts (bank cards, shoplifting, trailer, bench/steel gate, mountain bike)

2x Assault

ASB - 3

3 x neighbour disputes, motor bikes, Facebook

SJ outlined some further information about the 5 thefts that he requested of the PCSO team.  The bank cards were taken from a vehicle, the shoplifting took place at the Co-op store, the trailer was taken from a property, the bench/steel gate stolen from the Old Golf Club/Chirk Marina and the mountain bike theft was reported as part of a family dispute.
A query over why a known theft of a Camper Van in Pentre has not been included in the above report.  SJ to request clarification from the PCSO team.

 

15.      TO RECEIVE REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM STAFFING AND POLICIES COMMITTEE MEETING HELD 9TH MAY 2019.
 The draft report for the Staffing and Policies Committee Meeting held 9th May 2019 is now put to the Council as an accurate record of proceedings. The motion proposed FH and seconded MR was passed.  EB followed up with a concern over access to both paper based and electronic information in case the Clerk/RFO was unavailable.

 

16.      TO RECEIVE REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS FROM FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING HELD 14TH MAY 2019.
 The draft report for the Finance Committee meeting held 14th May 2019 is now put to the Council as an accurate record of proceedings.  The motion proposed JA and seconded TE was passed.

 

 

17.      TO RECEIVE REPORT FROM GENERAL PURPOSES COMMITTEE MEETING HELD 14TH MAY 2019.
 The draft report for the General Purposes Committee meeting held 14th May 2019 is now put to the Council as an accurate record of proceedings.  SJ was asked to revise and represent the draft report.  Updates to item 5 and 6 requested.
Matters arising – Item 3 – SW had earlier raised a concern with BC straight after his election (they both stepped out of the meeting briefly).  The is one of confidentiality as within 2 days of this GPC meeting both MH and SW received a great deal of flack, and what was attributed was inaccurate.  JA stated the Code of Conduct handles this, she added she supports SW.  Matters discussed in confidence should remain in the room.  FH explains that use of hearing some agenda items with no public present is allowed for.  BC commented that SW had made points well.  Council members should work as a team and if there is any repetition then the Code of Conduct will be invoked.

Item 7 – SJ advises there has been no reply to the invitation sent.  (Post meeting an email had been received at 18:03hrs that day.  The invitation was accepted.)
Item 10 – SJ asked to invite the new Police Inspector to hear first-hand concerns over drug use in the area.  DG praised PCSO Gareth Jones for his work since coming to the area, he should also attend.

 

18.      TO RECEIVE ORAL REPORTS FROM COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES.
 JA reported that Chirk Community Forum had topped the Airbus Community Awards 2019 securing a grant of £7,000 to support the installation of a Wheelchair Swing.  The announcement was made on Tuesday 14th May, 2019.  The grant working party is working well and in addition to JA, TE and GB, BH has agreed to join.  GB advises that £10,500 is the running total of funds raised or pledged.
The Shrewsbury Chester Rail Users’ Association (SCRUA) are meeting tomorrow evening and JA is to attend.

SW reported on all the successes Chirk Youth Football have achieved this season.  Mark Evans is the recently appointed Chair of Chirk Youth Football and is proving his worth.  Over 180 youngsters are participating.  The U8’s participated at the Airbus Tournament and won, U11’s picked up a plate at the same tournament and the U14’s secured a league and cup double.   In addition, the U19’s were runners up in a new league.
  

19.      TO RECEIVE ORAL REPORTS FROM LOCAL MEMBERS – WREXHAM CBC.
 FH advised the land West of and adjacent to The Bungalow, Old Black Park Road, Halton given permission to provide residential gypsy/traveller pitches (7 plots) is being developed as planned.  Mention of drainage and sewerage being properly connected is paramount.  Potholes are an increasing problem right across Wrexham County Borough.  Cliff Davenport’s planning application for change of use at the Drill Hall is before the WCBC Planning Committee next Monday.  New security gates have been installed at both Ysgol Y Waun sites, Lloyds Lane and Chapel Lane.

TE advises budget constraint remains for the finances of Wrexham County Borough Council.  A further £12 million is to be cut in the coming 2 years.  Potholes in rural areas will not be repaired unless they are a minimum of 17 mm deep, in the town the minimum is 15 mm.  There was a recent “lost” HGV along Court Lane, Pont-y-Blew.  Now a new road sign warning HGV drivers not to use Sat Nav has been erected on the exit for Black Park.  Butchers Corner (Colliery Road onto B5070) has had a decent road repair completed.  DG did comment it seemed to take far too long and created unnecessary disruption locally.  Shop keepers were hurt because of the road closure.  TE advised that the future of Wrexham Library service is out for consultation.  Looking at other ways of running the service.  LED Lighting for Chirk footway lights is out for tender.  What has been installed in other wards, Trevor, Garth & Cefn, has not been well received.  So more work to ensure a decent LED light level is seen.  In his view, TE sees an increasing need for a handyman in Chirk as WCBC Streetscene continue to cut back.  There are numerous sites in Chirk where weeds and grasses are growing unchecked and look unsightly.  JA seconds this idea and suggest it is put on a future General Purposes Committee agenda.  EB with a point to TE, she queries the ever present problem of littering outside food outlets.  Can more be done to combat ?  TE recently visited the Glyn Valley Tramway Trust working party which are clearing the station site in Chirk.  They have uncovered the foundations of the old ticket office.  Buried bricks have been taken out.  The work is moving on rapidly.  The group have been offered the free loan of track and rolling stock. 

 

 

20.      TO CONSIDER THE REFURBISHMENT OF THE CHAIR’S CHAIN OF OFFICE.
 FH requested this item be considered by Council.  The Chain of Office would benefit from some specialist repair and cleaning.  Perhaps consider replacing the ribbon and name bars with a chain.  SJ asked to bring forward some proposals to be considered at a future General Purposes Committee meeting.  Motion Carried.

 

21.      TO DECIDE UPON APPEALS FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE RECEIVED.

·         Vic Studios, Wrexham – proposed JA, seconded BH to leave on table – motion carried.

·         Chirk AAA Cricket Club – JA advised that she can pass on details of other grant giving bodies for sports funding.  Initially SW suggested sponsoring a game for £120, however, GB proposed 2 games £240, seconded by FH. – motion carried.

 

22.      TO RECEIVE THE ORAL REPORT OF THE CLERK – INCLUDES CORRESPONDENCE.
 SJ has received a request from One Voice Wales for contact details of our Council’s representatives on Area Committee.  Now the appointments have been confirmed, see minute 8 above, details will be provided.
Operation London Bridge – Webinar training.  Preparation for the passing of HM the Queen.  SJ is happy to participate.  Cost is £30 plus VAT and the course will run on June 19th.  Proposed GB, seconded MH for the Clerk to undertake,  - Motion carried.

Correspondence:-

 

·         One Voice Wales – Motions for 2019 Annual General Meeting.  JA will raise with OVW Area Committee – Flintshire/Wrexham in case there is an issue which all member councils can support for debate.

·         Hope House – Letter of thanks for £200 donation. Noted

·         Mr Andrew Shiel, Lodgevale Park – Letter requesting for the goal posts on the playing field at Offa be replaced.  Members are clear this matter is not the responsibility of Chirk Town Council.  FH who is the elected WCBC for Chirk North will take this up with the relevant department at WCBC as this is their asset.

·         Insp. Darren Whibberley – North Wales Police – Invitation to an inaugural meeting on Thursday 4th July 2019 at Eastern Divisional HQ, Llay. BC and JA requested the email to be forwarded to them.

·         Notice of Pre-Hearing Meeting – LDP Independent Examination – Tuesday 25th June at 10:30am.  JA will attend if available.  GB asks for details to be sent through.  SJ can attend.

·         Christine Ashford – Friends of Chirk Station – Email update on their recent activities and upcoming plans. – Noted.

23.      TO APPROVE PAYMENTS TO BE MADE AS ON LIST ATTACHED.
 A list of invoices and payments (to 29.5.19) amounting to £12,739.81 & £308.48 (using pre-paid creditcard) was given to the Council and were passed for payment (see addendum). Proposed JA, seconded SW to approve – motion carried.

 

24.      TO PRESENT ITEMS FOR INCLUSION ON THE NEXT AGENDA.
 1. EB restated the request to invite the new Police Inspector to a future meeting with Councillors.
2. DG would like Council to consider a request for tables and seating on Longfield Recreation Ground.
3. JA is keen for the Chirk Parish Hall committee to meet in June time.  She will take minutes.

4. SW notes the three bollards installed on the road towards Chirk Community Hospital.  They didn’t take long to pop in.  She thinks a look at Colliery Road, which suffers from vehicles parking on the pavement, for similar bollards to be put up.  It was suggested a letter to Wrexham CBC, copied to TE & FH, as the first step.


 

Meeting closed 9:03pm.

 

  

 

Signed                                    Chairman                                                                              26th June 2019