Mungrisdale Parish Council
Clerk / RFO: Mrs Suzanne Smith
Troutbeck Camping and Caravanning Club Site, Hutton Moor End, Troutbeck, Penrith, CA11 0SX
Tel: 017687 79149
Minutes of the Mungrisdale Parish Council held on Monday 9th November 2009 in Mungrisdale Village Hall
Present
Chair Lesley Smith
Councillors Adam Beeston, Alan Bird, Mike Bohling, David Huxley, Jennifer Stevenson, Ronnie Wilson
Eden District Council Roy Fisher
09/092 Apologies for absence
Parish Council Bob Watt
Ernie Teasdale
Cumbria Police Andy Holliday
09/093 Minutes
Resolved by unanimous agreement that the minutes of the meeting held on 14th September 2009 be signed by the Chair as a true record
09/094 News from EDC / CCC / Cumbria Police
i.) There have been several thefts from the caravan site at Whitbarrow Hall
ii.) There continue to be thefts of scrap and machinery from farms in the area
iii.) Scrap merchants continue to call around the area
iv.) A full public Eden District Council meeting will be held on 8th December at the North Lakes Hotel at 6.45pm. During this meeting a decision will be made regarding the future of the Penrith New Squares development.
09/095 Public Participation
The Chairman adjourned the meeting to allow electors present an opportunity to raise issues of concern or interest. The following matters were raised:
i.) The Parish Council was informed that the use of the phrase ‘Fell Ponies’ to describe the wild ponies on the fell was misleading as Fell Ponies are a specific rare breed. The Parish Council will refer to the ponies as wild ponies on the fell in future reports.
ii.) The Parish Council was asked to re-emphasise to the Lake District National Park Authority that any proposed planning application for a dwelling to replace the caravan at Eycot Farm in Berrier should be for a location within the hamlet of Berrier itself rather than where the caravan is currently situated.
iii.) Over the past few years the local planning enforcement team has advised residents local to Greystoke Forest to maintain a watching brief on the activities of M Sport within the forest. The usage for motor rallying and testing is restricted to 28 days of activity within a twelve month period has now been accounted for. Theoretically there should be no more rallying or testing for the rest of the year but four additional events have been planned. M Sport is developing a new car for Ford and so many hours and kilometres of testing have to be undertaken during this development. This has been made possible by the development of what were once forest rides into wide, concreted roads. There are concerns that this multi-million pound business is not abiding by regulations. A parishioner asked it to be minuted that Adam McNally and Victor Emerson of Eden District Council have been extremely useful regarding this issue.
iv.) A parishioner stated that the M Sport’s activities in the forest have become so noisy that he is unable to enjoy sitting in his garden whilst they are in progress.
v.) A parishioner reported that Adam McNally, Eden District Council’s planning enforcement officer will be requesting enforcement powers at the Council’s meeting on 19th November. These will be for 2010 onwards as by the time of the meeting only one activity for 2009 will be outstanding.
vi.) The Parish Council has been asked to find out whether the the National Park Ranger Graham Standring’s hours have been cut and if so why. The Chair responded that weekend hours have been dropped but it is unclear whether these hours are made up during the week. Mr Standring is allegedly unhappy with this situation as issues often occur during the weekend and has suggested that the Parish Council writes a letter if it agrees with his concerns.
vii.) The Berrier Hill Wind Farm public inquiry has been adjourned until 26th January 2010. Roy Fisher commented that public inquiries are very costly to Eden District Council.
This was the end of public participation and the Chair reconvened the meeting.
09/096 Declarations of interest
No interests in the remaining agenda items were declared.
09/097 Accounts
Payments
Resolved that the following accounts be paid:
Clerk’s wages and expenses Not declared to the public
Report on income received and current financial position
Income Received:
Monies received from car parks £378.62
Financial Update
An update was given on the financial position of the parish council and the council bank balances –excluding the reported transactions - currently stand at just over £5979.50
09/098 Budget for 2010/2011
Councillors unanimously agreed the budget as set out in the proposal.
09/099 Precept for 2010/2011
Councillors unanimously agreed the precept as set out in the budget at £2,750.
09/100 Planning Applications Received
· 09/0432 – Mr and Mrs R Wilson, application for Scales Plantation – Erection of 2 timber lodges, associated facilities and use of land for the stationing of shepherds huts. There were no objections from the council.
09/101 Planning Applications Decisions
09/101 Planning Decision Notices
09/0432 Mr and Mrs R Wilson, Scales Farm, Berrier – Erection of two timber lodges for holiday accommodation, associated facilities and use of land for the stationing of shepherds. Granted with 10 conditions.
09/102 Eycot Farm Caravan Update
The caravan has been moved from its position within Eden District Council’s boundary to the other side of the road, which falls into the administrational area of the Lake District National Park Authority. Mungrisdale Parish Council raised the matter with Bill Murray, Enforcement Planning Officer for the Lake District National Park. The request for information was passed to Anthea Jones whose response confirmed that discussions were underway between the Park, the Environment Agency and the agent for Mr Millar, the owner of Eycot Farm. Enforcement will not be pursued until such time as the removal of the caravan is not forthcoming. Roy Fisher stated that Eden District Council will resist any move to relocate the caravan back within its jurisdiction. He also commented that any dwelling should be within a certain distance of the farm buildings to facilitate a quick response to any issues with livestock.
The Chair re-emphasised the Parish Council’s objection to a dwelling in the current and former locations of the caravan but that it would be willing to work with the applicant to find a more suitable location, should an application be proposed. There is no permission for the caravan to be sited in its current position and the ground at its previous location has yet to be restored to its former state.
The Parish Council will write a letter to Eden District Council to highlight this fact.
09/103Berrier Hill Wind Farm Public Inquiry Update
The public inquiry will continue in January at Mungrisdale Village Hall, when the evidence of the landscape architect will be presented. The presiding planner will send his recommendation to the Minister of State who has the final decision.
09/104 Pinfold Project
Following the receipt of local knowledge forthcoming from several residents of the parish a letter was sent to Bill Murray at the Lake District National Planning Authority outlining the pinfold’s history. Mr Murray is satisfied that no unconsented change of use has occurred and moreover feels the land is being restored to its former use as a communal recreation ground. The case is now closed.
09/105 BT Phone Boxes
The telephone boxes at Hutton Roof and Mosedale are now on Eden District Council’s list to be contested by the Council, which wants to keep them in full working order.
Councilors unanimously agreed that should the appeal be unsuccessful they will adopt the telephone box at Hutton Roof on behalf of the residents, on the understanding that residents will sponsor the adoption and ongoing maintenance.
09/106 M Sports Activities in Greystoke Forest
Further to the discussion during public participation, three separate letters have been received from residents in the vicinity of Greystoke Forest regarding the nuisance caused by the activities held by M Sport and the work undertaken by their contractors. The intention of the letters is to bring the matter to the attention of the Parish Council. M Sport has applied to Cumbria County Council for retrospective planning permission for the extensive quarrying that has taken place in the forest. Retrospective planning will also be required for the work undertaken to the roads. According to Adam NcNally there will have been 32 days of activity this year, one of which will be outstanding at the time of the next Council planning meeting. M Sport’s activities in the forest is on the agenda for this meeting. Mr McNally feels prosecution would not take place for activities this year but he would look to have the powers in place to prosecute in the future if such a breach occurs. The Environmental Health officer is looking very seriously into the health implications of the noise levels reached during the M Sport activities.
Residents of Hutton Roof were approached by the Parish Council and asked to give their views on the rallying and testing activities. The vast majority of those questioned were indifferent to the noise levels and some actually liked it as they enjoy motor sports. There were concerns however about the issues surrounding parking on rally days and about the amount of litter that ensues. Regarding the roads there was a mixed reception with some people thinking the forest is improved and others thinking it is not. There were also concerns regarding public access as when the area was owned by the Forestry Commission public access was not permitted. Under M Sport management public access is permitted and local residents do not wish to see this situation changed.
Councilors unanimously agreed to write a strongly worded letter to Eden District Council outlining some of the concerns raised here and requesting a copy of the noise abatement report once it has been compiled.
09/107 Wild Ponies on the Fell Update
The clerk read out a letter requesting the Parish Council ceases to refer to these horses as Fell Ponies due to the possibility of misleading the public into thinking these wild ponies are a form of the Cumbrian rare breed Fell Ponies. The letter also highlighted the constraints imposed on true Fell Ponies by the presence of the wild ponies on the fells. For example, Fell Pony breeders who have fell rights cannot let their ponies to the fell unless they are in foal.
The castration exercise is in progress but so far only 16 males have been castrated. Graham Standring has suggested the help of the public would be useful and has requested any unmarked males straying onto parishioners’ land be corralled and either himself or Paragon Vets be contacted. It is understood that the ponies are causing problems for farmers by breaking into farms and poaching silage. Additionally, there is concern about the welfare of these animals as it is alleged they are not looked after properly and the continuous in-breeding is resulting in health problems. The RSPCA have been contacted but have not attended the horses and have not offered any assistance with the problem. The castration exercise has been funded by the Lake District National Park Authority. It is not believed that the ponies’ owner does not have fell rights, although one comment suggested that perhaps eight of the ponies did have fell rights.
09/108 Noticeboard Update
There is no progress on the noticeboard at present but it was unanimously agreed the location for this noticeboard will be Berrier. There was some debate as to the need for a noticeboard to remain at Bowscale as there are noticeboards nearby at Mosdedale and Mungrisdale. This item will be discussed at the next meeting.
09/109 Highways Update
It was unanimously agreed the council will write a letter to Steve Purdham to convey the Parish Council’s dismay that the road repairs have again been treated as a low priority job.
09/110 Set Meeting Dates for 2010
The meeting dates for 2010 were unanimously agreed as follows:
11th January 12th July
8th March including Annual Parish Meeting 13th September
10th May including Annual Parish Council Meeting 8th November
09/111 Correspondence
09/112 Date of Next Meeting Monday 11th January 2010, 7.30pm, Mungrisdale Village Hall