Present:  Councillors: C. Hamilton (Chair), S. Smith, A. Wilson, D. Mole & K. Traill.
Clerk: C. Woodcock.  Members of the Public: None.

 

1. Apologies for absence: Cllr C. Hawman,
2. Code of Conduct (Declaration of Interest): Cllr C. Hamilton in respect of The Gun at Ridsdale & the Corsenside Flood Resilience team. Cllr A. Wilson in respect of The Gun at Ridsdale; The Green Rigg Steering Group & 13 Group. Cllr K Trail in respect of North Tyne Youth. Cllr D Mole in respect of Friends of Corsenside. Cllr S. Smith in respect of Bellingham Middle School Parents, Teachers and Community Association & the Corsenside Flood Resilience team.
3. Opportunities for members of the public to raise issues: None
4. Minutes of Corsenside Parish Council meeting held on Monday the 9^th of January 2023: Signed as a true and accurate record.
5. Matters arising from the minutes: i. The councillor vacancy remains open and interest is welcomed from parishioners. ii. No further correspondence has been received about the slow response to local flooding, CW to enquire with NCC what the correct procedure for reporting flooding events is. Cllr S. Smith volunteered to contact Paul Sinclair, head flood warden locally, for his perspective. iii. The poor condition of the local road surface was raised last meeting, particular areas of concern have since been identified as Armstrong Street in Ridsdale, the lonnen north of west Woodburn leading to the Star Cairn, the lower part of Shaw Lonnen and blocked culverts above Lisles burn at East Woodburn, clerk to report these to NCC and to publicly share how parishioners can report potholes directly. iv. Cllr C, Hawman shared in her absence a response from Revitalising Redesdale’s representative confirming that the interpretation boards and cairns will not become Parish Council property but that a request has been made that CPC clean the boards as needed. It was also agreed that CPC will arrange to have the entrance to the Engine House regularly cleared of weeds to ensure easy access for visitors, CW to action.  v. NCC have clarified that they no longer give litter picking equipment away for indefinite use but that the necessary items would be provided for specific event, plans for a Corsenside Spring Clean are underway. Cllr S. Smith suggested equipment suitable for children may be available to borrow from Bellingham Middle School. vi. It was agreed that a modest noticeboard be erected near the village green, the council can make a saving of several hundred pounds by making their own suitable stand with wood, clerk to action. vii. Several avenues are being explored in efforts to reduce dog fouling. Cllr K. Traill and the clerk have received consent to purchase and erect numerous new signs that have been designed and priced; a new page is live on the parish council website which anyone can visit or direct others to, this contains details about the dangers of dog fouling; NCC operate a Green Dog Walkers Scheme which the clerk has been asked to publicise; some contact had been made with local businesses especially holiday lets so channels of communication can be opened. vii. The Parish Show Committee and Parochial Church Council have made contact and details about their organisations will be uploaded to the Revitalising Redesdale legacy website.
6. Notification of any other business for discussion, at the Chairman’s discretion, under item 17 below: Cllr K. Traill & the clerk each had a point to raise.
7. County Councillor’s Report: None.
8. Ongoing Issues (formally Action Point List): 91. Contact has been made with C Cllr J. Riddle and Ray Wind Farm about funding the repair of Ridsdale’s signs. If a negative response is recieved from JR it was agreed to request £500 towards the cost from RWF rather than incur the wait of up to 8 weeks to apply to Community Funds Tyne and Wear for the full amount. The clerk was asked to chase up the replacement of the West Woodburn signs which was scheduled for this week. 95. Chris Mowatt has removed the old goal posts from the village green, satisfactorily concluding this matter.
9. Play Area: Cllr C. Hamilton performed an inspection, all equipment found to be safe and in good order. Several screwcaps will be replaced in due course. 2 panels on the former school field fence have been repaired. It was noted the entrance to the Play Area is very muddy and placement there of several paving slabs, previously donated to CPC, was agreed upon. 
10. Volunteers and Community Spending: The damaged planter by Foundry Yard has been repaired. The annual asset check revealed several small maintenance matters which have since been completed, including a repair to the bin at Ridsdale bus stop and clearing the path to the Cenotaph.  The defibrillator cabinet on Armstrong Street was found to have a fault affecting the locking mechanism, Cllr C Hamilton will attempt repair and if unsuccessful the clerk is to seek funding sources to cover the cost of a replacement, approximately £470.
11. Wind Power Stations & BANTR: Nothing to report. CW has been asked to publicise that a representative from Corsenside is still being sought to sit on the Ray Wind Farm board.
12. Parish Hall: Cllr Mole has made contact with the committee and hopes to attend their next meeting.
13. Town, Parish & Community Councils Conference 2023: Cllr S. Smith summarised the event attended by herself and the clerk. There were many local parish councils in attendance and several key departments within the county council were represented. The NCC initiative Communities Together was felt to be of great value and information about the services they provide, which are individually tailored and designed to prevent residents from needing to access social care, will be shared with parishioners upon receipt. The neighbourhood services department of NCC described a need to reduce the money spent on grass cutting and are seeking advice from parishes around which areas could be rewilded and therefore cut less frequently. There was general consent among the councillors with this idea in principle but it was noted very few parts of the parish are cut by NCC. Updated contact details and a diagram of the departmental hierarchy of NCC was shared for our information. Glen Sanderson, leader of NCC, lead a productive question and answer session taking comments or complaints as they arose. 
14. Planning Matters: a) For decision- None. b) Decisions from NCC – 22/01630/FUL Twain Cottage, East Woodburn NE48 2SN: GRANTED.
15. Other correspondence: NCC advised of a scheme to install 75 new Electric Vehicle Charge Points however the clerk discovered that the car park by the Play Area is not able to be connected. A viable area was identified by All Saints Church which unfortunately lacks the necessary parking spaces. After discussion it was decided to request an engineer check White Acre to be sure connection is not possible. While the vast majority of the parish had no available connection points there was uncertainty about the area near the Parish Hall, the clerk was asked to explore this option further and if necessary seek co-operation with the committee to work towards acquiring this valuable resource within the parish.
16. Finances –a) a) Invoices for payment – i. Screwfix Padlock - £14.39, ii. NTC Play £510 - iii. Handyman Services Northumberland - £277 iv. Clerk’s Wages, January 24 hours - £300 v. Bellingham County Store, chain - £3.50 b) i. Income Donation Cllr S Smith- £20, ii. Ticket and Refreshment sales - £240 c) Bank Balance - £10,244.12
17. Matters for discussion at the chairman’s discretion: i. The clerk asked how the old CPC laptop should be repurposed and it was decided to completely clear the device of information before donating to a local charity dedicated to sharing technology with young people in need. ii. Cllr K. Traill brought attention to the changes to the 885 bus service, which from this week no longer operates with the same provider. It will now be driven by the charity ADAPT on a Monday. This change of day means residents can no longer visit the Hexham market, and the short notice period meant some have had to cancel appointments. There is concern that the long-term future of the route may not be secure. It was noted that previously a period of consultation preceded any changes to bus routes while in this case CPC were not even notified of the final changes. The clerk was asked to enquire with the other parish councils along the route before taking these concerns to NCC.
18. Next Meeting: Monday 6^th March 2023, 7.30pm – Corsenside Parish Hall.
    Meeting ended 9.30pm.

 

Action Point List (February):

 

• All to seek suitable candidates for parish council vacancy seat.
• CW to check with NCC the current procedure in place to deal with local flooding.
•  CW to report 3 local roads to NCC for poor surface condition, and one area of blocked gullies.
• CW to share how parishioners can report potholes.
• CW to ask C.Mowatt to strim the path to the engine house gate regularly.
• Plans for spring clean to be finalised in coming months.
• CW to purchase wood and noticeboard and arrange for erection by former school field.
• K. Traill and CW to purchase and erect numerous dog fouling signs.
• CW to share info re Green Dog Walkers Scheme.
• CW to upload PCC & Parish show info to RR website.
• CW to chase up WW signs with TWM
• CW to apply for £500 from RWF for Ridsdale signs depending on JR response.
• CH to try to repair defib cabinet Armstrong Street
• CW to seek funding for a new defib cabinet if needed.
• CW to publicise that a representative from Corsenside is needed for the Ray Wind Farm board.
• CW to request NPG send an engineer to confirm the car park cannot accommodate an EVCP and see if a connection is possible at the Parish Hall, if so permission is to be sought to submit and application to NCC.
• CW to wipe laptop and donate to charity.
• CW to contact other parish clerks re the 885, complaint to be made to NCC.

Christine Woodcock, Corsenside Parish Council Clerk,        
07737518867 corsensideparishclerk@hotmail.com