Please note that the following is a draft and has not yet been approved by the Parish Council.

RAVENSTONE PARISH COUNCIL

 Minutes of the Meeting held on Thursday 10th July 2008, at 7.30pm in the Village Hall.

Present:  Cllr Reed (Chair), Cllr Lyford, Cllr Faulkner-Stevens, Cllr Craven, Cllr Brock,
                    Cllr  Geary

1.    Apologies:  Cllr Meades

2.   Declarations of Members Interests:  Cllr Craven concerning The Close.

3.   Minutes of Last Meeting:   It was proposed by Cllr Lyford and seconded by
Cllr Craven that the minutes of the meeting of the Parish Council held on 12th June be signed as true record.

4.    Matters Arising:
Kerbing:  Ian McGregor from Milton Keynes Council attended the meeting to answer questions arising from the kerbing works which had begun in the village. Ian McGregor had walked around the village with the construction manager.  The granite setts are the approved kerbing for a conservation area. As the roads were scheduled to be resurfaced it made sense to start the kerbing at one end of the village and carry on through.  Many residents who attended the meeting were not happy with the kerbing and wanted the grass verges reinstated in front of the playing fields. After much discussion it was agreed that representatives of Parish Council, Cllr Brock & Ian McGregor will walk through the village and produce a road map showing where the kerbing would be put in and where verges were to be left.  This map would then be put in the village hall for all residents to view and make comments. The kerbing that had already been done was to be left as is for the moment until a final decision was made.
There are some loose granite kerbs in the triangle at North End that need repairing.
Drains: The drains all need attention, especially at Manning’s Farm, Long Barn and Smith’s Farm.  The gravel from the drive at Smith’s Farm washes into the drains and they are silted up. It was also noted that when Milton Keynes Council cuts the grass they blow the cut grass into the gullies and that blocks them.  Ian McGregor said that he would arrange for the drains to be jetted.
Weston Underwood Post Office: Mark Covington attended the meeting on behalf of his parents who run the post office. On 8th July they were told that the post had been put on a list for closure.  It is the only local post office left in the area.  He asked that any objections, input or ideas would be most welcome.  Closing date for comments is 26th August. It was agreed that Ravenstone Parish Council would send an objection in.
Bridle paths: Bridle paths need mowing.  Parish Clerk to notify Milton Keynes Council and ask if it could be done before school holidays.
Playing fields: The hedges need cutting and the trees need lifting.  Dave Blunt to be contacted to do a quote.
Mowing of verges:  Milton Keynes Council has not been doing a very good job.  Grass is not being picked up.  In North End the drains were cleaned and 2-3 weeks later the grass was cut and washed into the drains causing them to block up again.
5.    Finance:   Councillors were given details of Bank Balances, including cheques to be signed today, leaves a balance of £2,983.89. 
a)  The following cheques  were approved for signing:
            AH Contracts                Dog Bins                                          £   36.10    Cheque No 100428
            K Braithwaite             Salary                                      £250.00    Cheque No 100429

b) The accounts were to be sent to external auditor next week.  Mark Roland who carried out the internal audit did not raise an invoice for the work done.  Thanks and appreciation were expressed.

6.   Parish Clerk:  Due to time restraints Kathy Braithwaite resigned as parish clerk and Jane Craven volunteered to take up the position.  As she is a councillor’s wife it was agreed that Cllr Craven would have to declare an interest if any issue concerning parish clerk was raised.  Jane was also to provide the council with 2 references.

7.   Planning Matters:

080919           Sunnyside Cottage    No objections

Peter Pacifici presented all councillors with an application he had made for Horseshoe Farm. It was agreed that a letter of support be sent to Richard Sakyi at Milton Keynes Council.

8.  Councillors/Residents Items:

a) The Close – one of the neighbours are wanting to put up a fence around his property and some residents were worried that it would spoil the open plan effect of The Close. Cllr Geary suggested that there might be a covenant on the deeds restricting the erection of fences.  As the village was also in a conservation area there might be special rulings on it.  He would look into it and report back.

9.  Date of Next Meeting: The next Meeting will be held on Thursday 11th September 2008 at 7.30pm in the Village Hall.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 8.50pm