CHOLMONDELEY & CHORLEY NEIGHBOURHOOD PLAN STEERING GROUP
MINUTES OF A MEETING HELD ON 21 JULY 2020
(HELD REMOTELY VIA ZOOM)
| PRESENT: | Councillor C Farquharson | Chairman |
| Parish Councillors | Councillor A D Fennell Councillor R Keys | Councillor C Nickson |
| Non-Parish Councillors | Stacey Rutter | |
| APOLOGIES: Parish Councillors Non-Parish Councillors | Councillor C Hopley Councillor S Langton James Hall | Councillor P Probin Matthew Robinson |
| ABSENT: | Andy Champion |
31 ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN
Following Andy Latham’s resignation from the Steering Group, Members were invited to elect a Chairman to replace him, to serve until the next Annual Meeting of the Parish Council (May 2021).
RESOLVED: That Councillor Claire Farquharson be elected Chairman of the Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group to serve until the next Annual Meeting of the Parish Council.
32 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST (PARISH COUNCILLORS) AND CONFLICTS OF INTEREST (NON-PARISH COUNCILLORS)
Members were reminded that as the Minutes of the Steering Group meetings were stand-alone documents, it was important that declarations, and conflicts of interest, were declared at each meeting and recorded so that members of the public could be assured that there were no undeclared interests at any meeting.
Parish Councillors were asked to make any declarations of interest (in accordance with the Parish Council’s Code of Conduct) and non-Parish Councillors were asked to declare any potential conflict of interest owing to a connection with the business of the Steering Group or any item on the agenda.
Councillor Roger Keys declared an interest on the basis that he was a tenant of the Cholmondeley Estate.
33 MINUTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 3 MARCH 2020
33.1 Approval of the Minutes
RESOLVED: That the Minutes of the meeting held on 3 March 2020 be approved as a correct record.
33.2 Matters Arising
Ecology Survey: James Hall had been asked to advise if the ecology survey commissioned by the Cholmondeley Estate Office, could be shared with the Steering Group to inform the Neighbourhood Plan.
In the absence of James Hall, there was no further information; however, Members were of the view that even if it were to be made available, it would only cover part of the parish and for the Neighbourhood Plan, such a survey would need to have a more wide-ranging scope.
Stacey Rutter undertook to discuss this further with James Hall and dependent on the outcome, it may be necessary to seek a grant to fund a survey.
The Clerk to the Parish Council was asked to explore the possibility of a grant through Locality UK.
34 REPORT OF THE SUB-GROUPS
Councillor Farquharson and Stacey Rutter reported that they had produced a draft Plan which now only required the inclusion of an ecological survey.
It was noted that Councillors Chris Hopley and Philip Probin were dealing with the history of the parish.
In view of the difficulties experienced recently, it was suggested that instead of working within the sub-groups, the whole membership of the Steering Group should meet as a working group to discuss matters informally.
The following were agreed:
- It was important that both James Hall and Matthew Robinson attend a meeting within the next few weeks to avoid delays in the Neighbourhood Plan process.
- Councillor Farquharson and Stacey Rutter would explore a means of sharing the various documents securely, possibly through Google Drive.
- Councillors Fennell, Keys and Nickson agreed to review their own documentation at a meeting to be held on 23 July 2020 at 5.00 pm (either a physical or Zoom meeting).
35 ANY OTHER ASSOCIATED MATTERS
There were no other matters to be considered.
36 DATE OF NEXT MEETING
It was agreed that James Hall and Matthew Robinson be invited to attend a meeting of the Steering Group within the next four weeks (on a date to be agreed). The Chairman would action this.
The meeting commenced at 5.00 pm and concluded at 5.50 pm