Annual Report April 2010

Chair’s Report

Membership

The nine members of the parish council this year have been:

Ken Smith was co-opted on to the council in December following the resignation of David Hartley.  David’s contributions to the work of the council have been considerable, and I would like to thank him for all his efforts during the time that he served on it.

This year the council has employed Colin Robertshaw as its clerk, following the resignation of Peter Maples last summer, and the two car park administrators, John Hyde and Hilary Firth.  I would also like to thank both Colin and Peter for their work and support during the year, and John and Hilary for the work they have done in maintaining the car park and toilet block to such a high standard.

The work of the Council

Eleven full council meetings were held in 2009-10, usually on the first Monday of each month.  The playing field committee and the parish plan committee both met monthly, and the three councillors on the planning group scrutinised and made recommendations to the full council about all planning applications.

Now that the council has been successfully running the car park for a few years, the council decided that the two car park administrators and the clerk should manage it on a day-to-day basis, while policy matters would be decided by the whole council.  As a result, meetings of the car park committee have been suspended.

As usual, the monthly meetings have been only a part of the council’s work.  In addition to the activities described in later sections of this report, during 2009-10 councillors:

• Organised and ran a public meeting to discuss timber extraction from Littletown
• Negotiated the renewal of the car park lease with YDNPA
• Attended a meeting of the National Park Authority to make representations regarding affordable housing sites
• Met with Cumbria Highways officers on two occasions to discuss the introduction of parking restrictions in Dent and the maintenance of roadside verges
• Organised the distribution of the Housing Needs Survey
• Organised and conducted interviews for the parish clerk’s post

The council’s work has been reported as usual each month in Lookaround, and the Dentdale website has been redesigned in an attempt to make the agendas, minutes and other information more easily accessible.  In response to requests for more information about what the parish council does, the first two editions of the new six-monthly newsletter have been produced and distributed to every household in the Dale.

Representation on Other Bodies

The Parish Council has been represented on the following bodies, either by councillors themselves or by appointees, and reports from all of these can also be found below.

• Dent C of E Primary School Governors
• Dent Combined Charities
• Dent Grammar School Educational Foundation
• Dent Memorial Hall Committee
• Sedbergh and District Community Office
• Sedbergh Health Centre Patients’ Forum
• Upper Dales Health Watch
• Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority (joint representative with Sedbergh and Garsdale parishes)

In addition, Geoffrey Woof has acted as the Highways Steward Liaison Councillor, and Graham Dalton has represented Dent on the Local Area Partnership, the local group of parish, district and county councils.

Council Finance

In 2009-10, it cost £18,031 to run the parish council, excluding the car park.  This exceeded the income it received by £8,355, and as in previous years, the shortfall was met by using the surplus from the car park takings.  The end-of-year figures are as follows:

*Grants included a one off grant to the Playground committee of £5,000

In setting the budget for 2010-2011, the council decided in the current financial circumstances not to increase the amount raised through the council tax.  It also rejected cutting the total amount given in grants to local organisations and decided instead to increase the two-hour car park charge from £1.20 to £1.50 and annual permits from £60 to £65.

Car Park

The car park has continued to generate revenue for the council, and income has increased back close to its former levels.  This is partly as a result of better weather earlier in the year, although takings were affected by the prolonged cold weather this winter.  The total income and expenditure for the year is shown below.

However, there will be an extra charge to be paid in future, as following a series of court cases over the last few years the council has been obliged to register for VAT.  This means that we will be paying VAT arrears of nearly £16,000 out of reserves, and money has been put on one side for this purpose.  We will be also be paying nearly £3,500 VAT each year in future, and this will significantly reduce the car park’s profitability.  Charges for residents’ parking have so far been avoided, against the trend in the rest of the National Park and in Sedbergh, but it is likely that the council will soon have to consider whether this can continue in Dent.

Grants to Local Bodies

There was an 70% increase in grant applications this year, so the council decided to reduce the amounts awarded across the board rather than refuse some organisations a grant altogether.  To prevent the same problem arising again, the whole process of awarding grants is now being reviewed in time for next year’s round.

The following organisations were awarded grants in 2009-10:  

Parish Plan

Last year, nearly 50 people were working with the parish council on the actions identified in the parish plan.  One year on, out of the 62 actions in the five-year plan, work has started on 31 of them and over 70 people have become involved.  As the report below shows, there have been some real achievements this year by these members of the community:

• Thirty allotment plots have been created and 26 are now being cultivated
• The first two editions of the new six-monthly newsletter have been produced and distributed to every household in the Dale
• £43,000 has been raised for new play equipment which will be erected on The Green in the next few months
• A network of second home and holiday home owners has been set up to involve them more closely in the community
• Organised litter-picking has continued on the dale’s roads and verges

Planning

As the report below from the planning group explains, there have been a number of decisions made by the YDNPA’s planning department in the last year which have caused considerable anger in the dale.  Some of these have subsequently been reversed by the planning committee, but only after having caused a lot of distress to those involved.  The council has made representation to the planning department about the situation, but this has not really resolved matters, and so we will be discussing it in the near future with the Authority member who has a particular responsibility for planning.  The negative effect that this has had on the relationship between this community and the National Park is particularly regrettable, since one of the aims of the parish plan was to seek ways of improving it.

Highways

On a more optimistic note, in the last twelve months there have been some signs of an improving relationship with Cumbria Highways.  Following the experience of last winter’s bad weather, the gritting service is being reviewed and we are currently in the middle of suggesting to the County Council ways in which it could be improved in Dentdale.  At the moment, there seems a greater willingness to act on the views of local people than has often been the case in the past, and so we are hopeful that by working with Cumbria Highways they will be able to provide us with a better service in the future. 

Jock Cairns

Chair, Dent Parish Council

Committees and Working Groups

Playing Field Committee

The Playing Field Committee has continued to meet monthly, drawing its members from the Cricket Club, the Football Club and the Parish Council. During the year, David Hartley resigned from the PC and therefore from the Playing Field Committee; I would like to thank him for his input (and for taking the minutes!).

Maintenance of the field has been a high priority this year – especially in moves to combat the regular flooding. Additionally the use of the field at Dent Show demonstrated the need for a more stable surface in the gate area, as well as a wish for greater services in the pavilion. The Show Committee have donated a sum of money to address the surface work needed at the gate, and it is hoped this will be completed for this year’s show. We are currently liaising with United Utilities to see if putting in water and/or electricity in the pavilion is feasible.

Our major costs are in maintaining the field to the high standard throughout the year. The playing field committee is heavily subsidised by the parish council to cover the cost of grass cutting, and we therefore need to develop further usage of the field. Fund raising is always an issue in a small community with many demands on its income.

I would like to thank the representatives of the football club (Keith Burrow and Jill Mitchell); the cricket club (David Hunter and Peter Moorby, and their deputy John Hyde); and Chris Evans from the parish council who has taken over from David Hartley.  They not only attend the meetings, but are also willing to undertake fund raising and maintenance work, and for this the whole community owes them a debt of gratitude. 

Jenny Pilgrim

Chair, Playing Field Committee

Parish Plan Committee

The parish plan committee consists of two parish councillors, Jock Cairns and Peter Knapton, two council appointees, Heather Fraser and Mike Lawton, two co-opted members, John Sibley and Matt Clayton and representatives of Cumbria County Council, South Lakeland District Council, Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority and Action with Communities in Cumbria.  It has held regular monthly meetings throughout the year.

Four action groups made significant progress in the last year:

1.      Allotments. In July 2009, the inaugural AGM of the Dent Allotment Association was held. Thirty plots have been established on rented land at Sunnybanks and there are currently 24 allotment holders and 10 support members. Grants and bequests have been received towards the formation and running of the allotments, and open meetings on gardening related subjects are planned throughout 2010.

2.      Children’s play area. The play area at Dragon’s Croft is to be refurbished and the children have been helping with the design of the area.  £43,000 has now been promised in grants, donations and sponsorship and work is due to start in spring 2010.

3.      Litter pickers. The group is organised through a sub-committee of the parish plan committee, and has been working through regular litter-picking by a network of volunteers with defined routes in the dale as well as through organized events covering litter hotspots. The group’s activities are described in more detail in the Litter Sub-Committee report below.

4.      Second and holiday homes. A network of second home and holiday home owners has been set up with two objectives: i) To develop closer involvement of owners in activities when they are in the Dale ii) To help owners feel more connected with Dentdale when they are away. Two newsletters have been sent out this year with and the first event of the network has been planned for the May bank holiday weekend to look at where the network goes from here.

The 2009 Dentdale Show provided an opportunity to showcase some of the achievements of the Dent Parish Plan and resulted in a number of new volunteers for the action groups as well extra funds for the children’s play area.

The committee also applied for and received a grant from the South Lakeland Strategic Partnership Action Fund towards the publication of a twice-yearly parish council newsletter. Its purpose is to enable residents to understand better the workings and achievements of the council.

November saw the first anniversary of the launch of the ‘Plan for Dentdale’. The committee reviewed what had been achieved in the first year and produced a detailed action plan of what needed to be completed or started in the next 12 months. Examples of projects that are being worked on this year include mobile phone and broadband coverage across the whole of the dale, community transport solutions, addressing the needs of the young people in Dentdale and home care and services for the elderly.

I would like to thank Heather Fraser, the secretary, the other members of the committee and the various action groups for their continued involvement and commitment throughout the year. The parish plan has been community-led from the outset, and its success is down to the involvement of a large number of people.  There are always opportunities to become involved, so if you would like to help with it this year, please let us know.

Jock Cairns

Chair, Parish Plan Committee

Litter Sub-Committee

The dale continues to be covered by a band of 23 litter pickers plus all of those residents who quietly do their bit anyway. Eight more volunteers joined the group this year. There were group litter picks in February and November 2009 which focussed on the main road which, for reasons of safety, requires organised teams with lookouts. Each event was spread over two days with many full bags being collected and further events were held in March and April 2010.

Two major areas of concern have been by the river just above Tommy Bridge and at Ibbeth Peril where large amounts of farm plastic have been dumped. I am pleased to report that the area at Tommy Bridge has been cleared with the help of the Environment Agency. They and Natural England are also working on the problem at Ibbeth Peril which is a geological SSSI.  Elsewhere, the river and its banks are of general concern with much debris, mainly farm plastic, caught up in vegetation. Unfortunately no progress has been made with this due to a lack of volunteers who are sufficiently agile to work in the river.

Plant invasion by Himalayan Balsam and Japanese Knotweed has been drawn to the attention of the parish council and the volunteers have agreed to assist with mapping where this is happening.  When the mapping is completed, the secretary will inform the Lune Rivers Trust who have agreed to assist with herbicide treatment for which a license is required.

Here`s to a litter-free and weed-free Dentdale.

Wendy Pontefract

Chair, Litter Sub-Committee

Planning Group

The planning group consists of three councillors, who examine each planning application in detail and make recommendations to the full council about how it should respond to the National Park planning department – the planning authority for this area.  Throughout the year, I have been very grateful for the comments by Peter Knapton and Chris Evans, the two “planning” councillors, and for the comments from other members of the parish council.

A new system of notifying all parish councillors of planning applications and seeking their comments was introduced just over a year ago.  It is working well, and enables all members to be aware of the current status of planning applications. All planning matters continue to be discussed in public at parish council meetings, but the new procedure enables all members to be more informed about the issues. 

One of the main causes of concern this year has been the attitude and response of the YDNPA planning department. Dent residents had highlighted in the parish plan survey that they found the National Park to be (at the very best) unhelpful in planning matters. That situation could be in no-one’s interest to continue. The parish council therefore invited the Head of Planning, Peter Watson, to meet councillors of Dent, Sedbergh and Garsdale in order to develop a greater mutual understanding. Pertinent issues were raised, particularly regarding the inconsistency of decision making and the intransigence of some of the approaches. Additionally, there appeared to be conflicting advice about energy conservation matters, such as double glazing and solar panels, where the government and common sense were proposing adoption of many ideas, yet the National Park was lacking flexibility.

Regrettably, ,things have not improved since this meeting, although two decisions which the planning officers had recommended for refusal were fortunately overturned by the members of the National Park’s planning committee. Underpinning the planning officers’ whole approach appears to be a very narrow and inflexible focus on the conservation of buildings and the environment which does not take into account the need to maintain the viable community which will be carrying out this conservation.

During the year, an appraisal of the Dent Conservation Area was undertaken by consultants for the National Park, and their draft recommendations, which again are largely about buildings and the environment, are designed to provide a way of managing the Dent conservation area in future. Many of them require funding and external agency involvement, but it is likely National Park will ask the parish council to help with some of the implementation.

Jenny Pilgrim

Co-ordinator, Planning Group

Representation on Other Bodies

Dent C of E Primary School Governors

In most respects, this has been an excellent twelve months in the life of the school. In last year’s report, I said that we seemed well placed to meet the challenge of the next Ofsted Inspection.  The inspection which duly took place on 18^th & 19^th January graded us as a good school with outstanding elements.  The Ofsted inspector also made a number of very encouraging comments, relating, amongst other things, to the pupils’ “excellent attitude to learning” and the strong links between the school and the community. He was particularly impressed with the amount of fund raising for the school which “made a real difference” for the benefit of the pupils.

Hot on the heels of Ofsted came an Anglican Schools Inspection which rated us as good to outstanding. To complete the hat trick, a moderation visit from the School Improvement Team relating to our “Healthy Schools Award” was equally complimentary, highlighting the strengths and positive ethos of the school.

As usual, Governors have been involved in all aspects of school life during the year. There are now a staggering 59 policies that need input and approval from the governors! The Self Evaluation Form and the School Improvement Plan are major documents which only need minor modifications in the light of the Ofsted Report. The school was judged as having good capacity to develop further, with streamlining of assessment procedures a particular priority. Real progress is now being made in the area of global awareness, with the development of links with a school in Bradford and a school in Chile. The school continues to play a central role in the life of the local community. Events and performances such as the Christmas Pantomime remain extremely popular and a showcase for the impressive talents of the pupils. The next major academic challenge for the school is implementation of the new Primary Curriculum, so there is no time to rest on our laurels!

Two major and related aspects of the school continue to be a real concern, namely the number on roll and the budget. The current roll is 28, with the genuine prospect of one more pupil in the near future and it is a figure that we must strenuously try to increase, not least because of its impact on the school budget share. Small schools are seriously disadvantaged when it comes to budget allocation and we must continue to press for more.

The School and Governors remain extremely grateful for the continuing financial help which we receive from local charities, the Dentdale Run Committee, the Music and Beer Festival Committee and the Friends of Dent School. They go a long way towards providing the fine standard of equipment and excellent teaching levels which the pupils enjoy.

Bob Pontefract

Parish Council nominated Governor, Dent C of E Primary School

Dent Combined Charities

 A major aspect of the United Charities activity in the last year was improving its property to make it acceptable for modern living.  Expenditure and time was devoted to Netley Pot Cottage, which has now been happily occupied by a new tenant.  However, expenditure continues with outside decoration.

The Charity has made grants to the primary school, the Over 60’s Club and to some individuals, particularly those with medical needs.

Graham Dalton

Trustee, Dent Combined Charities

Dent Grammar School Educational Foundation

This educational charity dates from 1897 and is administered by twelve trustees, supported by the clerk, Margaret Harrison. The current trustees, known as governors, are Rev. Peter Boyles, Wendy Cooke, Linda Cragg, Graham Dalton, Chris Evans, Heather Fraser, Brian Goad, Bronwen Osborne, Ken Smith, Peter Stephenson, Geoff Woof and David Wright. All these people have been nominated or co-opted from local organisations representing the church, local schools and the parish council.

The aim of the foundation is to give grants to local children and young adults for study at any school, university or institution of further or higher education. The money awarded may go towards, for example, rooms, equipment, reasonable travel expenses, field courses and placements essential to the course of study.

The foundation’s income generating assets are two flats, one house and five parcels of land. During 2009-10 major renovation work has been carried out on one of the properties and owing to the costs of over £17,000 no grants have been given this year.

This work is nearly completed.  The governors have also reviewed their costs and are looking at way of maximising their assets for the future. They will also be looking at ways of increasing the profile of the foundation in Dentdale in the coming months to support its work.

Ken Smith

Chair, Dent Grammar School Educational Foundation

Dent Memorial Hall Committee

The main fund-raising event for the Memorial Hall committee is the annual August bank holiday Gala.  This year it was a busy one and achieved £1,700, despite the weather being poor again. 

Indoor bowling has got underway this winter and with the flourishing table tennis club there are now two new popular activities.  Alice Clegg has arranged two Flicks in the Fells showings, which are good fund raisers.

There have been some changes to the committee this year: Sarah Woof is the new chair and Jean Haygarth has become the secretary, and they have brought new enthusiasm to the management of the hall.  Remarkably, thanks to the efforts of a dedicated team the hall facilities can still be hired at little charge – as little as £2.50 per hour – and given no unreasonable demands, it will remain so to the benefit of all.

Graham Dalton

Member, Dent Memorial Hall Committee

Sedbergh and District Community Office

The parish council contributes a small amount each year to the running of the community office in Sedbergh, and is represented on its management committee.

The office is lucky to have David Ramsbottom as the current administrator.  David also organises the charity shop in Sedbergh and its volunteer staff, and this has proved very successful, producing reliable and significant income – over £16,000 in its first year.  This has enabled the Community Fund to make grants to many local causes including the new playground equipment on The Green in Dent. 

Barnardo’s now rent a room in the building as the centre for the child care service in the area.  In addition, part time employment is now on offer as the charity shop’s manager. 

All the various elements which occupy the building at 72, Main Street interlock so that in effect it is the Town Hall of the area.  The building belongs to the National Park which has decided it must sell it.  Although the layout of the building is not ideal it has good features, its central location being very important.  The view is that it should, if possible, be brought into local collective ownership and the ways and means of achieving that are being investigated.  The window of opportunity is about twelve months.  This will be a real challenge.

Graham Dalton

Member, Community Office Committee

Sedbergh Medical Practice Patients’ Forum

The Sedbergh patients’ forum met in March, June, September and February. The group continues to be representative of the community and involves GPs, the parish councils of Dent, Sedbergh and Garsdale and representatives of other agencies.  The practice feels it is a valuable way of obtaining feedback from the community it serves.  I attend on behalf of Dent Parish Council and have taken soundings from members of this community about the services offered by the practice. Any matters raised by members of the community are put on the agenda at the practice meetings and responses are fed back to them.

Matters for discussion have been:

·         The appointment by the PCT of a long term conditions nurse to care for patients in the community.  This has sometimes alleviated the need for hospital admissions for those with complex needs.

·         Tracking of patients in Westmorland General Hospital or the Ramsey Unit.  When people are moved from A&E to another ward, their family has sometimes been told that they have been discharged.  In addition, the hospital reception holds no record of patients in the Ramsey Unit. A check will be made re the hospital process of sharing information.

·         Changes to staff at the practice.  Ann Orr retired at the end of March, Joanne Orr will join the nursing team and a treatment room nurse will be appointed to work every Friday.

·         Patients being recalled for blood tests when they have already been done. The practice has now set up a new recall service for blood tests and this should settle down.

·         Concerns have been raised about the chemist services in Sedbergh.

·         Some patients experience difficulties getting medication out of blister packs. To help with this patients can be offered a weekly prescription box.

·         Macmillan services are now offering a benefits advice service to cancer patients.

·         Telephone advice can now be given to patients which can result in patients not having to travel to the surgery. There are 30 weekly slots available for discussions with a doctor.

·         Work on the new health centre at the old auction mart site has now started. Because the financing has been difficult the centre will be owned by the PCT and not the local doctors. 

Kate Cairns

Parish Council Representative, Sedbergh Medical Practice Patients’ Forum

Upper Dales Health Watch

The Upper Dales Health Watch group is based on the Hawes practice and meets about every three months; there are not many people who use this practice in Dent, but at the Cowgill end of the dale, there are more.

The Health Watch is chaired by Councillor John Blackie and draws most of its members from the area to the east of Hawes. However many of the issues are common to us all. Specifically this year it has considered the local responses to swine flu, and also the impact of reducing finances within the NHS. One of its main concerns is the seeming “top down” approach of health matters, inevitably with an urban focus, demonstrating a lack of appreciation about the needs of a rural community.

Dent has been seen twice as a promoting good practice – firstly for its First Responder team and specifically the distribution of the laminated address cards to all households, and secondly for our Red Cross training. This training is now being rolled out in Richmondshire, sponsored by the Rural Isolation Project.

Jenny Pilgrim

Member, Upper Dales Health Watch

Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority

The Authority has spent 18 months drafting a new housing development plan, and although the Authority does not provide it, the shortage of reasonably priced accommodation for young people setting up home is well known.

The Authority has opted to try to help this group by revising its planning policies and by seeking and designating sites where affordable homes might be built.  A public appeal was made for interested owners to identify suitable sites, and each had to be visited and considered in relation to location and landscape effect, service facilities available, etc.  Approximately 140 sites across the whole National Park have been volunteered and about 40 of these are about to be submitted for pubic consultation before a final report is produced. Thereafter, amendment and appraisal by a government inspector will be the final stage.

There will be no free market housing in any of these new developments.  Half of them will be available to meet ’local needs’ – not financial, but reasons to need to live here – without control on price, and half will be “affordable”, where price is controlled.  The Ghyllside site, previously advanced, and a small extension to the first houses on the west side of the village are both included in the draft report for public consultation.

The matter of converting barns outside established settlements has been canvassed.  Because they involve residential, employment and holiday trade use, the Authority’s policy for them will be examined and developed separately.

In the planning committee we get few proposals for employment developments.  The auction site in Sedbergh is one which will provide some additional jobs, but it was not straightforward.  Permission has just been granted for a new site near Stainforth for a business with 10 jobs migrating into the Park offering the possibility of apprenticeships in joinery.  These plans were enthusiastically welcomed by the committee.

Members have been able to get some of the Authority’s money allocated for countryside management training.  It will be put into college study/working in the field, and lead to NVQ’s. 

Other new employment possibilities are emerging, with water powered electricity schemes now being promoted.  The installation at Bainbridge will hopefully soon be constructed with Kettlewell following.  The renewal of the old technology of water power is seen as the Park’s important contribution  to reducing dependence on fossil fuel and the drive towards energy self sufficiency.   National Parks do not have any statutory immunity from wind farm developments, and  water power  demonstrates a commitment to contributing, which central government is looking for, which it is hoped will be enough to keep wind farms at bay.  The Authority itself has a ground heat energy system at the Bainbridge office and a renewable wood burning plant has just been put in at the Grassington office.

The proposal to extend the National Park has not involved the Authority in significant work, which has been all done by Natural England, a government department.  The Authority takes a neutral position on the proposal, so as not to influence the debate.  It will welcome the additions should it be decided, but provided extra funding is provided to administer the larger area and the membership is increased to reflect the additional population.  When the subject was debated, Kevin Lancaster and I felt that any extension should depend on the consent of the populations who would be affected.  Our motion to add this point to the Authority’s commentary was defeated, but there was strong sympathy for the position.

I believe if the Park is extended, there will be opportunities for Sedbergh and district, as the town is a focus for an area from Orton to Leck.  As a start, the Chief Executive accepts an agricultural adviser will have to be based here.  If Sedbergh and district can be developed as a northern centre for the Park, there will be work opportunities.

I have strongly opposed the sale of the National Park building in Sedbergh, considering it premature because it could be needed for Authority purposes.  A Secretary of State appointed member made a formal complaint about me for doing so, on the basis that because I am involved with the Sedbergh Community Office, there was a conflict of interest, which does not say much for the right of local representation.  I hope the Standards Committee investigating the complaint will dismiss it.  In my speech on the office, I acknowledged the fact of my involvement, but explained it was in a public capacity, not a private one, which does not prevent someone saying what they believe to be in the interest of their area.

Graham Dalton

YDNPA Member for Sedbergh, Dent and Garsdale Parishes