SHAWBURY PARISH COUNCIL

January 2023

Budget:
At the January Council meeting Members considered and adopted a budget prepared by the Clerk for 2023 -2024, which showed that because of careful control of spending it was not necessary to increase the precept. This means that the Parish Council element of your Council Tax will not be increased next year. Members felt that this was essential bearing in mind the high inflation affecting everyone. Every effort will continue to be made to keep expenditure under control and look for ways of increasing grants from other sources.
Full details of the budget can be found on the Council’s website or obtained from the Parish Clerk.

Highways:
As always there was considerable discussion about problems on the highways, particularly about the ineffective roundabout and the dreadful state of the road close to the traffic lights and more complaints about both of these had been received since the last meeting. In the past, responses had been received from Shropshire Council stating that the roundabout had still to be ‘adopted’ by them which meant improvements were the responsibility of the company who had built it and the adjoining housing estate and that failing underground drains were causing the problems with the break-up of the road. The Clerk was tasked with contacting senior officers at Shropshire Council seeking urgent information about actions they were taking to resolve these issues.

Traffic Lights:
Council Members and the Clerk continue to receive complaints about drivers ignoring red lights at the crossing and at the main lights, with a number of near misses reported. These have been reported to the police who will try and carry out some observations but with the small team they have this will be minimal. Part of the problem is the lack of clear road markings including yellow boxing at the lights and warning signs, all of which have at times been promised by Shropshire Council’s Highways staff. We will continue to put pressure on them to get these in place before there is a serious accident.

Streetlights:
This is another major issue the Council is trying to resolve in parts of Bridgeway and Millbrook. The supply of electricity to all the Council owned lights and the underground cabling is the responsibility of Scottish Power, whilst the provision and maintenance of the lights is contracted to E.ON. The Council has no problems with E.ON, who respond quickly to any reports of breakdowns and have always carried out contracts effectively. However the same cannot be said for Scottish Power and this is what is causing the problem. All that is needed is for a small team from their work force to meet up with Eon and connect the power to the new lights and the Eon can then remove the old posts and complete the work. Letters, emails and‘phone calls to Scottish Power have failed to get a response.  We understand residents’ frustration but can assure you that we are doing all we can to try and get a solution to the problem.

One application has been received from a resident to take up the seat vacated by John Kennedy and he has been invited to come to the next meeting and speak to Members. That meeting is being held one week earlier than normal and will start at 7.00pm on Tuesday, February 7^th.in the Village Hall.

The draft minutes of the January meeting are available on the Councils web site www.shawbury-pc.gov.ukand a reminder that any issues can always be raised with the Clerk at shawburypcclerk@talktalk.net  or by ‘phone on 01743236810.

PARISH COUNCIL NEWS

The latest meeting of the Council took place in the Village Hall on Tuesday September 13^th. when in the absence of the current Chairman, Councillor Adrian Brown the Vice Chairman took responsibility for chairing the meeting.

Before the official meeting began the Chairman read out the following statement:

Members of Shawbury parish Council would wish to extend their sincere and heartfelt

Condolences to the Royal Family following the sad passing of Her Majesty, The Queen.

We are grateful for and humbled by the many decades of unwavering service which she

has given to the Country.

Members then stood for a minutes silence as a mark of respect.

GOD SAVE THE KING

At the start of the full meeting the Chairman welcomed PCSO Lizz Walmsley from Wem Police who reassured Members that incidents of serious crime in the Parish were low and that the small team of officers based at Wem carried out regular visits to deal with any unwelcome activity. Members raised concern about the monthly reports which seemed to indicate a steady increase in incidents of violence. Lizz felt that this was the result of new methods of recording incidents and most of these were probably related to various domestic or family issues which although serious, did not usually impact on the wider population. However she appreciated Members concern and would see if the recording categories could be amended.

Councillor P. Sharp stated that there was a need to ensure that reports to 101 were dealt with appropriately and efficiently. Lizz pointed out that the local police had no control over the system but gave an assurance that appropriate action was taken on all reports received by the local team of officers.

The Chairman thanked her for attending the meeting.

In the full meeting which followed these items were considered:

·       There had been no response from either Scottish Power or E.ON regarding the outstanding issues with the street lights and the cost of electricity to power them.

·       A Community Speed Watch group had been set up and had identified areas in the Parish where speeding traffic was a problem. Training would take place soon and the team could then begin to undertake traffic checks at various locations.

·       All the Floral Gateways in the Parish had been sponsored for a further year and those giving support are - R. A. Allmark and Sons; TC’s Haulage; SMC Operations and Hazels Farm Childcare.

We are always pleased to talk to other organisations about sponsorship deals.

·       Response from the External Auditors based in London indicating that they had no concerns over the financial and overall management of the Council.

 Details of the audit can be found on the Council’s web site or obtained from the Clerk on payment of a fee of £5.00

·       The Mid-Year Statement of Accounts which was adopted and details of the report can also be found on the Council’s web site or obtained from the Clerk.

·       Over forty items of correspondence which had been received by the Clerk since the last meeting and were actioned.

·       Interesting reports from Shropshire Councillor Simon Jones and F/S Matt Lingham at RAF Shawbury.

As always the minutes of the meeting can be found on the Council web site, which is www.shawbury-pc.gov.ukand issues can be raised with the Clerk at www.shawburypcclerk@talktalk.netor by ‘phone at 01743 236810.

The next Council meeting is in the Village Hall on Tuesday October 11^th.

PARISH COUNCIL NEWS: August 2022

At the August meeting, Members expressed concern at the lack of response received to several of the issues that continue to be raised, with companies blaming either lack of staff or problems related to the Covid epidemic 

However there was encouraging news from Shropshire Council, where officers dealt with a number of repairs which had been outstanding for some considerable time, although some important problems remain. Before the on-set of this protracted summer with no rainfall, complaints had been received about standing water at the A53 roundabout but we have been advised that this is not a Shropshire Council problem, which seems to indicate that the new estate and its surrounds have not been adopted yet. One other major problem is the disastrous state of the road at the AS53/Wem Road junction by the traffic lights. It is understood that this is being caused by a breakdown of the drainage system and the repairs will need to be carried out by Severn Trent with a full road closure!

Issues which have stalled include the failure of the Housing Association’s solicitor to respond to the Council’s solicitor, which means the purchase of the allotment is still on hold and Scottish Power failing to deal with a whole range of problems over powering the street lights and working with E.ON to complete the outstanding project in Bridgeway and Millbrook Their response was to simply send an email stating that shortage of staff means that dealing with outstanding issues will be delayed.

The Council finally recruited sufficient volunteers to enable a request to be made for a Community Speed Watch project – this was helped by three residents from Moreton Mill joining the one volunteer from Shawbury and three Council Members. Training will now take place with the hope that the project will be underway by early autumn. The Council will publish further details when it starts and it was interesting to hear that in many other areas a large number of those who are reported for exceeding speed limits are from local residents. There is still a need for additional volunteers to join the team – just contact the Clerk if you are interested in being involved.

The problem of dog fouling has raised its ugly head again with reports of copious amounts of waste being left on or beside the many pathways which are used by walkers and families. It is an offence not to clear up after your dog so please abide by the code for the benefit of everyone.

Members received disturbing news when it was confirmed that Paul Sharp, a dedicated and hard working Member, was having to curtail some of his activities because of a serious sight problem. He has had to resign from representing the Council at area meetings and for the over sight of the Parish Paths Partnership. Councillor Merv Roberts has agreed to attend the meetings and Councillors John Vernon and Chris Kirkup will be looking after the Parish Paths.

Finally, finishing on a positive note Council Members would like to sincerely thank the unknown local resident who took it upon himself to clear away a bush which had fallen and blocked a path in the Glebe area before arrangements could be made by the Council. It is such a pleasure to acknowledge this type of community spirit and hopefully someone can let the Council know who it was.

Parish Council News July 2022

PARISH COUNCIL NEWS - May 2022

On Tuesday May 10^th. two Shawbury Council meetings were held in the Village Hall.  

        
The first was the Annual Parish Meeting which was open to all residents, giving an opportunity to meet with Councillors to discuss Parish issues or raise concerns.  The meeting included interesting and informative reports from the Parish Council Chairman John Kennedy, Shropshire Councillor Simon Jones and Mr. Richard Bailey from the United Charities.

This meeting was followed by the Annual General Meeting of the Council when Councillor Brian Lyon was elected as the new Council Chairman replacing Councillor John Kennedy who was warmly thanked by all the Members for the valued service he had given throughout the past two years which had been a very difficult time.  Councillor Adrian Brown was then elected as the new Vice Chairman.

As usual a wide range of topics were considered including:

Streetlights:                                                                                                                                                     
It was noted that E.ON had converted most of the Councils streetlights so that they automatically switched off at midnight, bringing them into line with the lights managed by Shropshire Council and saving considerable energy costs. E.ON had reported that things were beginning to return to some form of normality and they were intent on getting the work in Bridgeway and Millbrook Drive completed. They had provided a quotation for undertaking work to provide an improved service in Church Street and Members confirmed they were prepared to accept the quote as soon as the other outstanding work had been completed. 
The Council were still having difficulties with Scottish Power who supply the electricity and seem reluctant to enter into discussions with the Council about the very high increase in power costs.

 Highways:

Concerns were raised about the lack of action by Shropshire Council in dealing with the roundabout design at the A53/Oakwood Park location and advertising the new traffic order related to speed limit changes on the A53.

Playing Field Fencing:

It was reported that several more posts were rotting away but this had been anticipated and budgeted for and Councillor P. Sharp agreed to arrange replacements on the same basis as was carried out last year.

Burial Ground:

Councillor K. Pickering reported that he had been spending time working in the area and had identified the need for some extensive work to be carried out on two pathways, which would incur some cost. He indicated that he was prepared to do the work voluntarily but was asked to provide an estimate of the cost of the materials. He was thanked for the work that he was doing.

Planning Applications:

Three new applications were considered and Members supported the revised plans for the development of the proposed sports complex but objected strongly to an application to place advertising signs on the A53 Roundabout and for amendments to the approved plans for land adjacent to 122 Church Street.

The minutes of the meeting which include other items discussed at the meeting can be found on the Council web site – www.shawbury-pc.gov.uk

COUNCIL NEWS – MARCH 2022

The March meeting was held in the Village Hall when as usual a varied programme of business was conducted including:

Streetlights

The main item for consideration was the confirmation from Scottish Power that they were increasing the cost of providing power for the streetlights from 12p to 47p per kWh, which means that the annual account would rise from £2,600.00 to £10,200.00, and have a major effect on the Council’s budget.   

A number of suggestions were considered on ways of reducing the cost but it was finally decided that the most appropriate action was to bring the provision into line with Shropshire Council and many other Parish Councils by operating a dusk to midnight service rather than an all-night one. The cost of converting the lights had been quoted at £3,603.00 but it was anticipated that the annual savings on power would mean this would be paid for in less than twelve months and then give on-going savings. There was a unanimous decision to go ahead with this and to get the conversion of the lights carried out as soon as possible. It was pointed out that the estates in the Parish which are controlled by Shropshire Council are already on the dusk to midnight system.

Community Service Awards

Each year the Council presents awards to residents who have given exceptional service to the Community and in the twelve years it has been running over fifty people have been honoured with the award. A resident in the Parish can nominate anyone who lives or works in the Parish simply by sending details of the person to the Parish Clerk, with the reason they are being nominated. This needs to be done before the next Council meeting on April 12^th. when Members consider and confirm the nominations. We are pleased to acknowledge the support RAF Shawbury continues to give by sponsoring