Matters Arising from the minutes

Public toilet provision: A meeting had been arranged with Pembrokeshire County Council to discuss further the possible siting of the public toilets at the Village Hall.

Grass and verge maintenance tender: Clrs. Buckmaster and Hughes agreed to photograph all areas of the village to be included in the tender. The clerk would email an electronic map of the village to the two councillors involved.

Replacement cooker: Clr. Buckmaster left the meeting.

The WI had asked if it was appropriate to spend £1,000 of public money on a new cooker when they felt the current cooker was sufficient. A discussion took place and it was noted that on several occasions throughout the year extra hobs were definately needed. It was also felt that some people may be disuaded from booking the hall due to the lack of adequate cooking facilities. Clr. Hughes agreed to look again at costings - bearing in mind that £160 had already been donated from The Sun towards the cost - and report back next month.

Replacement chairs: A brochure giving prices on replacement chairs was circulated to councillors. It was decided that any new chairs should match existing patterns. The clerk would contact the previous suppliers for prices.

It was agreed to sell the 10 unwanted chairs at a cost of £100. The clerk would contact the interested party concerned and arrange same.

Clr. Buckmaster returned to the meeting

Removal of hedge at Longstone: The clerk had received no response from the planning enforcement team. Clr. Evans added that she had studied the plans once again and noted that the hedge should be replaced. This had been completed.

Insurance queries: The clerk confirmed that the Duck Race which was held annually within the village was covered by their current insurance.

A letter had been received from Mr. Richard Bakewell who runs the Karate Club from the Village Hall His comments had been noted in relation to the unpleasant odour that was currently being omitted from the carpet. This had only been apparent since the carpets had been cleaned following a break-in some 12 months ago and it was thought that they had not dried out properly. The clerk contacted the insurers, but they were unwilling to consider replacing the carpet due to the time lapse. She would contact the insurers and inform them that the council was unhappy over this decision. A replacement carpet would cost approximately £2,000. She would obtain an estimate for a wooden floor for comparison.

It was also noted that public liability insurance must be displayed in the hall and that a phone be made available for emergency calls. Although a phone line together with BT broadband would be available in the Village Hall, it was suggested that a 'pay as you go' mobile phone be purchased for this use, to keep costs down.

Restoration of War Memorial: The clerk had submitted a grant pre-application form to the War Memorial Trust in London. They had requested good quality colour photographs of the memorial before consideration could be given. The clerk would supply same.

Planning

Single storey extension and detached garage, Barn West, Old Farm House, Gumfreston. No objections.

Website Update

A one-off £500 grant was available for website development via Pembrokeshire County Council or improvement to existing websites - subject to certain criteria. The clerk would attend a meeting at County Hall, Haverfordwest, to obtain further information.

The minutes of meetings, in the interim, would be forwarded to Mrs. Amanda Davies and uploaded on the Village Association website. All were in favour.

Village Hall Maintenance

Cllr Buckmaster left the meeting.

An advertisement would be placed in the Tenby Observer advertising the vacancy for caretaker, five hours per week at £7.50 per hour.

The tenders for loft insulation and also internal and external painting would be advertised at the same time.

A local company had been approached to carry out the repair to the leaking the roof. They would not repair the ceiling in the meeting room. Another local company had been suggested to carry out same.

Clr. Buckmaster returned to the meeting

Correspondence

Society of Local Council Clerks membership. It was agreed that the council would cover 50 per cent of the cost of the clerk's membership to the SLCC.

The clerk would investigate the cost of the council joining One Voice Wales. She would also contact PALC and express the council's concern over lack of correspondence received.

County Councillor's Report

County Clr. Kidney confirmed that the pavement between The Parsonage and Parklands was owned by the council and that he would ask them to address the uneven surface.

He would also contact the county council's tree surveyor and ask that he provide a report on the village trees.

Items submitted

by councillors

Clr. Evans requested that the chair confirm agenda items with the clerk before being circulated.

Clr. Buckmaster: Practitioners Guide - As all councillors now had a copy of this guide, he reiterated how important it was that this be followed.

Requested that agenda items be more specific to the point raised.

Training course for clerk - Once Voice Wales were offering a distance learning course for new clerks at a cost of £99. He asked that the clerk consider signing up for this course and that the council would cover 50 per cent of the cost.

Event licensing: Following a recent meeting with Pembrokeshire County Council, it became apparent that this needed to be updated. It was agreed that the vlerk would complete the paperwork.