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What does the Parish Council Do?

Parish Council

This page which is taken from the Chairman’s report to the Annual Village Meeting illustrates the work of the Parish Council during the year from 1 April 2022 to 30 March 2023.

Members of the Parish Council this year were:

Angus Collingwood-Cameron (Vice Chairman)
Susan Collingwood-Cameron
Jerry Dronsfield
John Guiry
John Lang
Andrew McKendrick
Jon Radgick (Chairman)
Susan Rogers
Jonathan Scott Bromly (resigned March 2022)

                   

Early in the year we marked the sad passing of Joe Easton who had been a Parish Councillor as well as a Trustee of the Memorial Hall for more years than any of us could remember

Since August 2022 we have been without a permanent Parish Clerk
Stone bench in Playwell Road
New Planter built by Ronnie Anderson


In the last year the activities of the Parish Council have included:


We replaced the pads in the defibrillator and took over the responsibility for it’s ongoing maintenance from NEAS

We continued to liaise with NCC and the Glanton Heritage Group over the siting of a fingerpost on the corner of West Turnpike

With the help of a new volunteer editor we have restarted the regular village newsletter, now renamed the Glanton Gleaner. There are six issues per year
With the kind permission of John Guiry we organised a beacon to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee on 2nd June

Our Parish Clerk Stephen Rickitt resigned after ten years in post, and Wendy Gains very kindly stepped up to volunteer as honorary temporary Parish Clerk and was still in post at the end of the year despite extensive advertising for a permanent replacement

We undertook a survey of the public footpaths in the parish and liaised with County where there are areas that need improvement, we also undertook some clearing work ourselves where the paths were obstructed by growth of vegetation

We liaised with County over the need for remediation after contractors installing cabling to the St Peter’s Close development dug up the pavements and verge and left it in an unacceptable condition


We liaised with the owners of Northfield Farm and the Shawdon Estate over the revocation of a permissive footpath off Playwell Road. We are currently looking into a possible new permissive path over a separate part of the Shawdon Estate to replace it


We responded to the Boundary Commission Review into the County ward boundaries, making the case for Glanton to remain within the Rothbury ward, which under the new proposals recently published seems to have been accepted

We agreed to fund a new brass plaque to add to the pole on Glanton Hill to commemorate the King’s Coronation

Volunteers were organised and litter picks were done along the Oak Avenue, West Turnpike, Powburn Road and Whittingham Road

      The proposed transfer of the site of the old St Peter’s Church to the Parish Council for use as a children’s playground was regrettably sabotaged by the buyer of the tennis court field who was also the developer of St Peter’s Close. We were told by the vendor that he had agreed to buy the remainder of the field and then said he would only proceed if they included the site of the chapel, which unfortunately they submitted to despite having promised the site to the Parish for a playground. The Parish Council had no legal redress as there was no contract simply an agreement. The vendors have promised the PC the sum of £5,000 in lieu in order to help fund an alternative site but there is no suitable site currently available


Brass plaques on the new pole
New handrail at the shop
Our regular activities which were continued included:

We continue to fund and update the village website

Mowing the footpath from the tennis court field south towards Whittingham (this is paid for by NCC and contracted out)

When necessary we support the many volunteers who maintain the flowers in the various planters around the village

We sourced and erected a Christmas tree donated by a local landowner who we thank for his generosity

We fund the maintenance of the defibrillator machine when necessary
Our regular administrative tasks include:

Commenting on planning applications, (eight this year) and on NCC consultations

We made support grants of £200 each to the Glanton Memorial Hall and to Whittingham Burial Ground.

Glanton is very fortunate in having not only a relatively large and active Parish Council for the size of the parish but also a willing volunteer community, and I would like to pay tribute to all those, both Parish Councillors and others, who give up their time to contribute to village life in such ways as planting & weeding flower displays, maintaining the phone box, signposts & seats, litter picking, working for the Memorial Hall and the Glanton Show, organising village events, and in many other ways.

Jon Radgick

May 2023
Trees lopped behind the flagpole
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