BOX VILLAGE SOCIETY
MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
held on Tuesday 22nd March 2011
in Box Village Hall
These Minutes are subject to approval at the 2012 AGM
Present: Members present 23 including Chris Law (Chairman), Anne Rogers (Hon Treasurer), Sally Moreland (Hon Secretary), Valerie Dowling, Gerlinde Ashmore and Ray Hayward
Apologies: Steve Hemmings, Beris Hanks, Gareth Edwards, Joy and Richard Way, Brian Woosey, Diana Hayward, Una Tyldesley, Anne Chandler and Tom Saul
Minutes of the last AGM – agreed and signed.
Chairman’s Report
Box Wood and Novalis Trust
Some members of the village have submitted their names (email addresses) to Jake Lukas at Novalis Trust in order that they can have access to walk in the woods as well as on the Public Footpaths. Nothing more has been heard about this.
Work has been carried out on felling trees along Pensile Road and Scar Hill and the results have been good. Information was given about this work on the various noticeboards dotted in and around the wood.
The Village Green
Steve Hemmings and Rodney Cripps have filled in the ditch on the Lower Green using appropriate pipes and the area is now covered in top soil. This work was carried out due to the problem of flooding in that area.
It was hoped that by next year bulbs would have been planted and the area will be covered in daffodils.
The Chairman thanked Steve Hemmings and Rodney Cripps for their work on this project.
Telephone Box
The installation of the village map should take place soon.
Roads and Parking
The Chairman confirmed that when an event is taking place in the Village Hall (i.e. pantomime, wedding etc) that parking in the village becomes almost impossible. There is no solution but care does need to be taken as many residents (particularly those living on the Green) have cars blocking access to their houses and gates as well as not being able to find a parking space themselves.
Potholes in the area continue to be a problem and these can be reported by contacting Stroud District Council by phone or email.
The Chairman reminded members present that there is a 20mph speed limit through the village but this is not always adhered to. This is particularly dangerous as children are often playing on the Village Green and the lanes are narrow.
Planning Applications
There have been 7/8 planning applications throughout the year and in most cases these have not caused any concerns. Concern was however raised on the planning application from Box Lane Small Holdings at Hampton Green to put up a hay barn at the entrance to the field. Over 20 households in Hampton Green objected to this but planning permission has been given. However if the barn is not used for agricultural purposes within six months it could be pulled down.
Beaudesert Park School was granted permission for a performing arts centre with temporary access on to the W while work is in progress.
Planning for eventualities
The Chairman and Steve Hemming have put together a list of village wardens who will be responsible for an area of the village in the event of severe snow, or power cuts that last several days for example. Some villagers, particularly the elderly, may not be able to leave their homes and may need someone to do some food shopping for them. A list of village wardens and the area they cover will be sent out in due course.
Neighbourhood Watch
Ray Hayward confirmed that he would be standing down as Neighbourhood Watch warden from 1st May 2011. If anyone would like to take on this role please contact the Chairman or Ray Hayward.
Ray Hayward confirmed that there had been a domestic incident on the Common and the rumour that a dog(s) had been stolen was unfounded. There have been a few garden shed break-ins with one brand new bicycle being stolen. Computer, telephone and email scams are still ongoing.
Chris Ames asked villagers to be on their guard for high pressure salesmen who visit the village.
A policeman/woman regularly walks through the village while other policemen call during Friday morning coffee in the Village Hall.
The Chairman thanked Ray Hayward for his 19 years as Neighbourhood Watch warden in the Village and hoped that someone would come forward and take on this role. Members present applauded.
Website
The Chairman read the following report from Steve Hemmings.
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Record visits during January and February 2011
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Colour Box Village Newsletter can now be read on the site only
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Transfers of data are charged to BVS and this needs monitoring especially when it comes to new issues of the Newsletter (many copies are downloaded)
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The most visited page during February was to the Box Village Hall
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An assistant editor is required to help with the website – if anyone is interested please contact the Chairman or Steve Hemmings.
The Chairman thanked Steve Hemmings for all his hard work in keeping the website up-to-date and hoped that someone would offer to help as assistant editor.
Parish and District Matters
The Parish Council has appointed a Box representative from Minchinhampton and as far as anyone is aware he has not visited the village. There will be an election in May and it is hoped that someone from Box will stand for Box Ward. Steve Hemmings has offered to be put forward but other nominations would also be welcome.
If anyone is interested in standing please contact the Chairman.
Treasurer’s Report
Anne Rogers handed copies of the 2010 accounts to members present and explained the various transactions.
Mark Robinson was thanked for agreeing to audit the accounts.
The Chairman proposed the acceptance of the accounts - agreed by all members present.
Committee Membership
The Chairman confirmed that Gerlinde Ashmore and Ray Hayward wished to stand down from the committee and thanked them for all their help and support over the years.
Valerie Dowling and John Storey both agreed to be nominated, proposed and seconded.
The Chairman welcomed them to the Box Village Society Committee.
(Note: Since the meeting Tom Saul has also stood down from the Box Village Society Committee).
Any other business
Telephone Box – it was suggested that a shelf is put in the telephone box whereby villagers could leave books they have read for others to enjoy, take a copy they haven’t read – a mini library! Any books that remain on the shelf for a period of time will be taken to the charity shop.
Village Green Rota – The Chairman thanked Steve Hemmings and the mowing team for keeping the village green mown throughout the summer.
Royal Wedding – it was suggested that a party be held to celebrate the Royal Wedding. Chris Ames confirmed that the Village Hall had been kept free so if anyone would like to organise a party for the village they would be most welcome. The Chairman confirmed that Box could be a “traffic-free” zone for the day (the same applies all over the country).
Finally the Chairman thanked everyone for coming to the meeting as well as the members of the BVS committee for their help and support over the year.
Date of next AGM – March 2012
There being no other business the meeting closed at 8.50pm.
BOX VILLAGE SOCIETY
Minutes of the committee meeting held on Tuesday 6 September 2011
at Box Corner, Box.
Present: |
Chris Law Steve Hemmings Valerie Dowling Leonie Lockwood Beris Hanks
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Apologies: |
Anne Rogers Sally Moreland Gareth Edwards John Storey
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1. Minutes of the last meeting |
The minutes of the last meeting held on the 10 May 2011 were agreed as a true record and signed.
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2. Matters Arising |
Telephone Box - The use of the telephone box as a library has received much publicity including 3 radio channels, the BBC website and front page of the Stroud Life. BVS has funded a shelf and the Village Map has now also been installed. It was agreed that further expense would not be incurred on the library at this stage by BVS.
Box Wood – The application made by Steve and Sarah Hemmings for two footpaths to be recognised as public footpaths by Gloucestershire County Council is due to go before a meeting of the Council in the middle of October, when they will make a decision based on all the evidence that they have received. The Novalis Trust had responded to the application and a copy of this response was received by the applicants who were invited to comment. Their comments have been received and acknowledged by the County. There is no appeals process for The Novalis Trust if the application is accepted by the County.
Re-seeding of Lower Village Green – it was agreed that a further bag of grass seed would be purchased at a cost of approximately £25 for the re-seeding of Lower Village Green. This has been done once but a hole had reemerged due to a fifth pipe that had not been apparent the first time. The hole will be filled in and the area re-seeded.
Replacement of benches on the Village Green – one of the benches is in a dangerous state of repair and the other bench also needs attention. It was agreed that we would get a second opinion by a carpenter as to whether it could be repaired and if that was not possible we would take it down.
BVS representative on the Box Village Hall Management Committee (BVHMC)– As Steve is a Parish Councillor and therefore automatically on BVHMC, it was proposed that he should no longer represent the BVS on that committee and that instead we should ask John Storey to be our representative.
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3. Minchinhampton Parish Council |
Steve had reviewed all planning applications that had been submitted since the last meeting. He agreed to e-mail all members with any substantial applications in future in order that members could comment to him outside of the committee cycle, as responses by the planning authority are often required before a meeting of BVS is held.
Steve raised concern that the annual funding of £250 received by BVS from Minchinhampton Parish Council for the mowing of the Village Green may, at some point in the future, be affected by the cuts in subsidy being experienced by the Parish, which is resulting in them needing to challenge all of their funding decisions.
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4. Village Website |
An editorial committee has recently been established, chaired by Brendon Clements for both the village website and newsletter. Steve Hemmings and John Storey are both on this committee.
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5. Neighbourhood Watch |
Pauline Temple has agreed to be the nominated Neighbourhood Watch representative for the village. However, it appears that at the moment there is nobody responsible for Neighbourhood Watch within the local police and so Pauline is unable to find a contact to liaise with.
Chris will raise this issue with the Community Liaison Officers when they next attend the coffee morning and meanwhile Pauline will continue to try and make a contact.
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6. Treasurer’s Report |
The current balance is £1,111.65. An invoice has been issued to Minchinhampton Parish Council for £250, which is due for 2011. This will bring the balance to £1,361.65
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7. Any Other Business |
It was agreed that the list of Street Wardens for Planning for Eventualities would be circulated to the village again and that Chris Law would do an article for the Box newsletter informing people of their role.
Chris Law circulated a new list of addresses for the Tom Long distributors.
The state of the roads was raised and Steve stated that the highways specification is to only repair holes of a certain depth but that people could still write into the highways department if they wanted to raise specific issues.
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8. Date of Next Meeting |
Tuesday 10 January 2011 at 8.00pm at Box Corner
Post Meeting Note: The AGM will be held on Tuesday 13 March 2012 at 8.00pm in the Village Hall. |