Agenda item

Residents were encouraged to raise any issues or concerns they had in respect of the ward, and the following points were raised:

Q A resident enquired about a rumour that had been heard of a development further out of the village, on the site of the existing allotments.

A Councillors confirmed that there were none which were known of, as that was greenbelt land.

Q Residents asked if there was any information about the fences which had been erected along the border of the existing caravan site.

A It was confirmed that an application had been submitted to increase the number of touring caravans, and that this would be heard by the Planning Committee on 11^th April. It was noted that this increase would be restricted to the summer months only, and that there would be no permission for additional caravans in winter.

It was further confirmed that an additional application had been put in to provide caravan valeting, caravan storage and to erect a log cabin for a warden.

Q Residents asked whether there was a specific reason for leaving such a long gap in the collection of green bins over the winter months.

A Councillor Doughty advised the decision had been made for financial reasons, with a total estimated saving of £360,000 over two years for all the proposed changes to waste services. He further noted that a significant amount of these savings was based on the expected income from charges to households with additional green bins.

Q Residents asked if the council had a record of those households with more than one green bin.

A This was confirmed. It was noted that residents could request the return of any additional bins by contacting Waste Management Services. Councillor Doughty agreed to provide contact details to any resident who needed them.

Q Concerns were raised about an increase in flytipping, particularly in where the responsibility for cleaning this up would lie, if occurring on Parish Council leased land. It was agreed this could potentially become a major issue.

A Councillor Doughty agreed that this would need to be monitored carefully. He requested that residents include him in any correspondence with the council on this issue.

Q A resident asked what the charge would be for households with more than one additional green bin.

A It was advised that the assumption would be a charge of £35 per additional bin.

Q Residents asked if the staff at the Towthorpe site were supposed to offer help to anyone struggling with unloading their cars, or if they were only there to supervise.

A Councillor Doughty confirmed that residents should ask for help if this was not immediately forthcoming, and asked that any future issues be reported to him. He further noted that he had observed them helping other members of the public, and agreed that he would be disappointed if they gave a negative reaction on being asked for help.

Q Residents enquired as to whether there had been an increase in visitors to the Towthorpe site since the closure of the recycling site on Beckfield Lane.

A Councillors reported that there had been evidence of Hazel Court being overloaded, with extensive queues now a regular occurrence. It was noted that this could create a knock-on effect and increase traffic to Towthorpe in the future.

There being no other business, the Chair thanked everyone for coming and closed the meeting at 8.40pm.