Present:
Mr Senior (Chair), Mrs Adams Mrs Aylott, Mrs Elphick, Mr Hardy, Mrs Hathaway, Mr Lay, Mr Pickering, Mr Sale, and Mrs Williams. District Councillor Keith Baker. Mrs Lancey (Clerk). 7 members of the public. Mrs Sharp - New Clerk.

Public Forum
Mr Hodgson queried whether or not the Parish Council would be contacting the new owners of Alconbury Airfield in order to try and establish the needs and concerns of the village. He was advised that this would be covered under agenda item number 125

121. Apologies for Absence
Apologies received from Mr Watson and County Councillors Peter Brown and Laine Kadic

122. Councillors' Declaration of Interest for items on the Agenda
Mr Senior declared a personal interest in item 113c being a resident of Bramble End.

123. To sign and approve minutes of previous meeting held on 27th October 2009.
Minutes proposed by Mr Sale and seconded by Mr Lay. Minutes duly approved and signed.

To Sign and approve minutes of Precept meeting held on 10th November 2009.
Minutes proposed by Mrs Aylott and seconded by Mrs Williams. Minutes duly approved and signed.

124. Heritage Bridge/Village bus service (Standing orders were relaxed for this item)
Mr Senior raised concerns about the future of the village bus service both whilst the Heritage Bridge was being repaired and after the repairs had been completed. Stagecoach had advised the Parish Council that there would only be one bus stop serviced in the village during the works, which was on the Great North Road and if buses were to be restricted from using the bridge permanently, this stop would be the only one available in the future.

The Parish council had contacted Laine Kadic who tried various methods to solve the problem but unfortunately without success. The Parish Council had also contacted Stagecoach who were unwilling to change their decision and Jonathan Djanogly MP who had not yet been able to get back to the Parish Council. It was agreed that as there was little time left before the works started on 30th November and the bus service was vital to the village, especially for the older and less able people, the Parish Council would send out Press Releases to try and retain the full bus service.

125. Sale of Alconbury Airfield (Standing orders were relaxed for this item)
District Councillor, Keith Baker, advised the Parish Council that there had been a meeting between HDC and the new owners of the Airfield, Urban & Civic. HDC were advised that whilst there were no firm plans in place, the company was considering a combination of housing and industry on the Airfield. Mr Hodgson (public) mentioned that he had seen in the local press that the new owners had been looking for opinions and input from local people. Mr Pickering suggested that The Parish Council contact Urban & Civic and invite them to a Parish Council meeting-Clerk will action.

126. Committee Reports
(a) Clerk's Infrastructure Report
Churchyard: nothing to report
Village Green: Nothing to report
General: Lordsway Park residents had complained of unsafe road along High St. Clerk advised that they may wish to use Frummety Lane as a safer alternative. Tony King from Highways Agency had agreed to patch the potholes along High St and also clear the bank in order to aid drainage. Clerk will look into purchasing 2 grit bins as approved by the Parish Council in order to aid residents during the winter. Unfortunately the request for a footpath was not something The Parish Council could help with at the moment as the cost was around £100 per metre and there was approximately 200 metres. It was agreed that The Parish Council would consider this for the JFMI scheme in 2011/2012. RMS had been contacted to try and clear the land between the last bungalow on High St and the underpass.

There was pollution reported in the brook coming from the direction of Alconbury Weston. It was suggested that this may have started in Upton, however, not much could be done other than waiting for heavy rainfall in order to flush through. It had been reported that the pollution had run all the way to Hinchingbrooke Park.

It was reported that the resurfacing work on the footpath along School Lane had started.

Sue Lancey, outgoing Clerk, had been asked about the possibility of a streetlight outside the hairdressers on Spinney Lane. The Parish Council had received a quote for this of approx £1500. It was suggested that the Parish Council speak to the County Council to find out who would be responsible for full or part payment of the light.

Mrs Elphick asked whether or not there can be some sort of wire or other “slip prevention” on the bridge at the top of Polecat Lane. Clerk to action.

Mr Senior had received complaints regarding conifer trees planted on Highway’s land on School Lane. Clerk to write to occupier of the house and advise to remove.

(b) Planning Applications Received
0901360FUL - Erection of cover structure to existing swimming pool - Casa Mia, Great North Road, Alconbury. No observations noted.

Planning Applications Determined by HDC Planning:
0901234FUL - Amenities building at Truckstop - granted
Appeal APP/H0520/D/09/2112050 - Weybridge Lodge, Great North Road has been dismissed.
Appeal APP/H0520/A/09/2108538 - Dwelling in Vicarage garden has been dismissed.

(c) Bramble End - Monthly inspection: Carried out by Mrs Williams-Nothing to report.
Bramble End - Re-development:
The bid would go before the Board in December and the result would be known around 17th December. As the overall value of the bid had risen, HDC had agreed to match the revised amount (10% of new quote)

127. East of England Plan to 2031
Mr Watson had prepared an excellent response to the EEP consultation on options to 2031. The whole Council agreed that the response should be sent ASAP with no amendments.

128. A14 Issues/Realignment
Mr Watson had written a response to the A14 realignment proposals which Mr Senior outlined in his absence. It was agreed by all that this was a very detailed and well prepared response and the Parish Council were happy for it to be sent as it is with no amendments.

It had been suggested that the Parish Council contacts the owner of the Alconbury Services in order to make him aware of concerns about the A14 realignment and the chosen route for large lories to access the Truckstop. It was suggested that traffic should be diverted at Brampton Hut roundabout towards Spittal’s interchange and then north along the A14 link to the A1 with Truckstop signage to support this. Clerk will contact Mr Hays to see if he would add his support for the proposed route.

Mr Senior made the Council aware of resurfacing works and closures of the A14 due to take place in January 2010 between Spittals roundabout and Girton and also between Spittals roundabout and Alconbury services.

129. Provision of Allotments-Update from Mrs Aylott (Standing orders were relaxed for this item)
Mrs Aylott advised that Mr Watson had completed a detailed and to scale plan of the allotments which had now been sent to the solicitor. The next stage would be for the lease to be sent back to the Parish Council for checking and for the re-routing of the footpath to be finalised. Mr Langridge from the Allotment Association raised concerns about the slow progress but was assured that this was due to the Land Registry needing accurate measurements and scale drawings which had now been completed. He advised that the cost of erecting fencing would be around £10,000. Mr Senior advised that AAGA should be researching for grants and funding ASAP. He also advised that the Parish Council would be happy to help if possible.

130. Christmas Tree and Carol Singing-Maypole Square
Mr Senior reported that the village tree would be delivered on Monday 30th November and erected on the same day. Mr Watson was investigating lights and was awaiting a response from the electrician to confirm the maximum load that the light in Maypole Square could hold. It was noted and appreciated that Neighbourhood Watch had donated £200 for the lights. Clerk to action a note of thanks. There will also be Carol singing around the tree on 21st December.

131. Speeding in the village
Mrs Aylott reported the results of the Speedwatch monitoring that was carried out at various locations around the village between 11th and 17th November. The results wouldl be made available by the Neighbourhood Watch in due course, but it was agreed that the 30mph speed limits in some parts of the village were too high. Suggestions how to voluntarily lower the speed in those area will be passed the Neighbourhood Watch Committee.

Mrs Lancey had received an email from Pytcheley Council advising of its own voluntary 20mph speed limit. Mr Hardy and Mr Lay were going to look into the possibility of getting stickers to show 20mph to put on private properties as it would not be allowed to put them on a public highway.

Mrs Sharp had been in touch with the local school who had requested that the Parish Council produce a small leaflet on speeding to give to parents. Mrs Sharp and Mr Lay will action.

PCSO Gemma Clark was looking into handing out multi lingual leaflets at the Airbase and Truckstop to inform drivers of the weight limit in the village. She was also looking at getting the sign on the roundabout at Rusts Lane changed to divert traffic for Alconbury Weston away from Alconbury Village.

132. Community Orchard
Mr Lay reported that levelling work had been carried out by 2 members of the Parish Council together with Roger Read, however, more work was still to be done as carpeting had been lifted by the wind. Mrs Lancey reported a lot of interest in sponsorship of trees/shrubs. Mrs Sharp will arrange collection of money pledged as soon as possible. The Parish Council wished to thank Roger Read for his help in clearing the area and levelling the ground.

133. Alconbury Services (formerly Truckstop)
District Councillor Keith Baker reported on minutes of the meeting held between the Police, Councillors and Highways Agency in regards to Truckstop. Mr Baker advised that there was an ongoing dispute about who owned the small piece of land between the end of the A14 slip road and the road leading to the Truckstop. This was being investigated by Mr Chatfield from the County Council. Mr Senior had requested that a member of the Parish Council be allowed to attend the next meeting although this is likely to be approx 12 months away.

134. The Youth Group
Mrs Adams reported that she was now responsible for collecting door monies and handing them onto the Clerk. This had become more urgent due to low funds in the account. Mrs Aylott and Mr Senior expressed their concerns at a lack of regular committee meetings. Mr Senior would contact Nigel Murphy as soon as possible in order to call a meeting to establish a formal committee and to set a timescale for regular committee meetings. Mrs Aylott wished to stand down as the Parish Council representative on the Youth Group comittee. Mr Senior suggested putting an article in the Parish Pump and Parish Newsletter asking for more volunteers.

135. Huntingdonshire Flood Forum
Mr Pickering would attend the Huntingdonshire Flood Forum in December on behalf of the Parish Council. He would prepare a list of questions. Other Parish council members should also forward their own questions for inclusion in the list.

136. Request for donation from Citizens Advice Bureau
The Parish Council agreed a donation of £250.

137. Correspondence
- Letter of thanks from victim support
- Letter of complaint with regards to animal fouling. This concerned horse manure between Alconbury and Alconbury Weston. It was agreed that there was little the Parish Council could do to help with the problem.
- Neighbourhood Engagement in Huntingdonshire-Passed to Mr Hardy who agreed to attend

138. Responsible Financial Officer's Report
Agreement of Precept for 2010/2011-It was agreed that the precept for 2010/2011 should remain at £31,000 i.e. no increase from previous year.

Cheques for Signature:
- Pipex Internet Nov 09 (paid by D/D) - £14.67
- Demon - Web Hosting Nov 09 (paid by D/D) - £11.50
- Grafton Projects - Stationary- £155.66
- Grafton Projects - Newsletter Printing - £107.87
- Grafton Projects - Stationary - £13.68
- Clerk‚Äôs Salary - Sue Lancey-November 09 - £518.82
- Clerk‚Äôs Salary - Jo Sharp-November 09 - £308.73
- Poppy Appeal - Section 137 - £100
- Alconbury Community Pre-School - Section 137 - £150
- Petty Cash Top Up - £28.53
- Memorial Hall Rental - Youth Group - £132.75
- Cambridgeshire County Council - Youth Worker - £884.93

Cheques proposed by Mrs Aylott and seconded by Mr Pickering
Cleared Balances
Current Account - £767.46
Deposit Account - £47943.34
Ball Park Fundraising Account - £1796.97
Youth Group Current Account - £153.33

139. Date of next meeting
Tuesday 26th January 2010 at 7.30pm in the Memorial Hall

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