CASSINGTON PARISH COUNCIL
You are summoned to attend Cassington Parish Council Meeting at 7.30pm on Thursday 7th March 2024 in the Village Hall, The Green.
Minutes
- Apologies – Cllr Levy, Cllr Thompson, Cllr Rogers, Cllr Goodwin
- Declarations of interest
(Any pecuniary interests should be declared also a review of current declarations of interests circulated)
- Minutes of the previous meeting held on 1st February 2024 – Approved
- Comments from the Public –
A member of the public has raised the why the Parish Council has risen the precept so much. The council explained that the increase of certain things like trees, grass cutting that that we now have to pay for the emptying of the bins in the Recreational Ground. The Parish Council agreed that the original explanation in CAWN was not good enough to explain to the village the reason for such a big increase.
- Report from Clerk
- Elms Road Ditch – A contractor has been asked to clear the ditches but cannot at the moment as it is too wet. They are hoping to start later on this month.
- Replacement for Adrian – New tenders have been sent out to 6 different contractors. Awaiting for responses.
- VAS on Eynsham Road & Yarnton Road – Have chased OCC. Have completed a form regarding the VAS machines and have also asked for the existing ones to be switched off as it is causing disruption.
- Defib Location Number –
- Replacement Speedwatch Sign – Have messaged the company to check with postage
- PC Burial Ground Update – Cannot find any info on Land Registry. May have to visit Cowley History Centre to have a look in old minutes
- Suckers removed from Trees on The Green – Have asked Ubico to come and remove them
- Stile at field by Bell Lane – OCC have advised that it is the land owner who needs to replace the stile and that they would not help with the cost. They also said that they do not need to give permission but a heads up would be nice.
- Planning
Previous Planning Application Decisions
| APPLICATION
NO: |
LOCATION: |
PROPOSAL: |
APPLICANT: |
DECISION: |
| 20/01734/OUT |
Land North of A40 Section from Barnard Gate To Eynsham Roundabout Eynsham |
|
Grosvenor Developments Ltd |
UNDER
CONSIDERATION |
| 23/01182/FUL |
Churchfields Care Home Pound Lane Cassington |
Erection of a two-storey detached key worker nurses’ accommodation block and
associated works |
Mr R Sideras |
REFUSED |
| 23/03076/LBC |
Lime Cottage Bell Lane Cassington |
Replacement of seven windows and one door
|
Mr I Humphrey |
REFUSED |
| 24/00045/HHD |
Silver Birches Yarnton Road Cassington |
Erection of single storey rear extension, open front entrance porch and raising of
existing flat roof by approx. 150mm together with 3no. rear dormer windows,
rooflight to front elevation, partial re-cladding of front elevation, alterations to
windows and removal of chimney all as confirmed as permitted development under
WODC app ref 23/02957/CLP. |
Mr And Mrs D Henman |
APPROVED |
New Planning Applications
| APPLICATION NO: |
LOCATION |
PROPOSAL |
APPLICANT: |
COMMENT DATE: |
| |
|
|
|
|
Botley Solar Farm – Report from Group
- Correspondence
- Letter with regards to Purwell Farm blocking foot path and right of way – I have contacted WODC and am waiting on a response
- Almshouse Drainage – The Charity of the Almshouses, have contacted the Parish Council as the storm drain is block and they would like to Parish Council to pay for the clearance. The Parish Council do not believe that they are responsible for the clearance and have asked the Clerk to contact Thames Water to see if they are responsible for the drain.
- Reports from County and District & Parish Councillors –
County Councillor
Tuesday 20 Feb was the Full Council meeting of the County Council at which we set a budget for the next financial year. The administration at County Hall, of which I am the Cabinet member with responsibility for finance, does not have an overall majority, after the departure of Labour from the Oxfordshire Fair Deal Alliance. We therefore ended up with a very long meeting, trying to get agreement across the parties. And finally ended up adopting a slightly more expansive budget than I had thought ideal, but still well within the parameters of what is safe.
We agreed above inflation increases in spending on Adult Social Care and Children’s services, and additional money going into flood defences and roads. We are offsetting this with a set of savings in areas such as reducing the layers of management and putting effort into ensuring that our children can be looked after in Oxfordshire rather than elsewhere. The County Council remains financially robust, but there are limits to what can be done within the funding available.
It has been a complex path to get to this point, involving really useful consultation exercises, and grappling with the government producing its “final” settlement, in two parts, so that we only discovered our final expected income earlier this month. It is a ridiculous process, and I hope that any incoming government, at the very least, commits to multiyear settlements so we can plan our spending and delivery and increase our ability to provide the services residents rightly demand, and the end to bidding in competition with other authorities for individual time limited pots of money for specific projects.
Flooding
As we have all noticed, the wet weather has continued for the past few months and demonstrated the vulnerability of many places to flooding. The County Council is the lead flood authority and works closely with the Emergency Services and WODC to respond to floods and try to prevent them. There will be a full cross-agency debriefing in the spring, and I would expect the input of parish councils will be sought.
There has been some flooding in Cassington, and it shows the importance of preparation, and of landowners taking responsibility for their ditches and culverts.
A40 update.
No further progress to report. Discussions with Homes England continue. This is extremely frustrating, but there really isn’t anything that can be done unless Homes England agrees to pay for the A40 work, despite the delays and increased cost. You may recall that the scheme was over ambitious and failed to predict inflation, plus the Homes England funding is linked to the building of West Eynsham and Salt Cross, both of which have taken much longer than the previous administrations of WODC and Oxfordshire CC assumed. Salt Cross of course has been delayed by the successful judicial review of the Planning Inspectorate’s objections to WODC’s AAP net zero aspirations.
I am still confident that A4 improvements will go ahead, and they will include the remodelling of the A40/Eynsham Road junction, so that it works better for Cassington residents.
The public enquiry on the other HIF scheme, based in Didcot, commenced on 20 Feb.
You may have seen that the A40 cycle route is being scraped, to restore it to its original width after decades of neglect. It makes a huge difference.
The section near Cassington and the Barnard Gate to Witney section has now been completed.
As ever, please contact me on dan.levy@oxfordshire.gov.uk
District Councillors – Nature recovery plan has been adopted.
Parish Councillors –
- Ditches, Drainage and Flooding
- Maintenance/ Grants
- Traffic
- Speed Watch
- Speed Indicators
- Traffic Calming
- Play Area & Recreation Ground
- Replacement Playground Equipment
- Finance
Payments to be approved:
| Individual/Company |
Reason |
Amount |
| Tracey Cameron |
Clerk Salary |
£1246.15 |
| Village Hall |
PCM 01/02/24 – 07/03/24 – 04/04/24 |
£48.00 |
| HMRC |
Tax & National Insurance (06 Jan 24 – 05 Feb 24) |
£26.15 |
| WODC |
Emptying Dog Bins/Waste Bins |
£783.43 |
| Community First |
2024-25 Membership |
£70.00 |
| OALC |
2024-25 Membership |
£168.00 |
