West Stafford Village

Present
Robert Freeman (Chair KPC), Cllr Gordon Shaw, Jen Scarff (Parish Clerk), Ron Smith, Tim Pryce, Jill
Shepherd, Adrian Edwards, Sian Edwards, Richard Foxell, Malcolm Scarff, Sandy Tubby, John
Chittenden, Kate Whitlock
Apologies
Jacquie Walton, Roger Lane, Penelope Lane, Maureen Shaw, Jane Pryce, Kaye Chittenden
Chairman’s Report
In the absence of a Chairman from the village Robert Freeman Kindly chaired the meeting therefore
no report made.
Minutes from Parish Meeting held on Friday 21 st April 2023
The previous minutes were accepted.
Matters Arising
None
Parish Clerk Vacancy
Role now be undertaken by Jen Scarff
Vacancies for three Parish Councillors
Cllr Gordon Shaw stated with sadness that Cllr Hannah Cooke has resigned and he thanked her for
her efforts during her 1 year tenure. He reported the good news that Malcolm Scarff has agreed to
become a member for West Stafford and will be co-opted at the next KPC meeting on 8 th November.
This still leaves two vacancies for Parish Councillor.
Vacancy for Parish Meeting Chair
Until such times as a replacement chair for West Stafford Parish Meetings is found we will request a
KPC chair.
Knightsford Parish Council Report
Gordon Shaw reported that KPC have met monthly at various locations in three of the four villages
under their umbrella. Items discussed at the KPC meetings cover all villages and collectively reports
on the progress of the Neighbourhood Plan which is well on the way to conclusion, prior to
submission to Dorset County Council.
Local issues have covered Planning Applications which have been approved apart from the
Development of Wynd Close, which was rejected by DDC. But an appeal was lodged and further
letters of disapproval were sent. At present no date has been set for the hearing.
Gordon emphasised that we are still need two further members to represent West Stafford, anyone
wishing to join him and Malcolm, please get in touch.

KPC Meeting minutes of meetings can be found on the KPC Website.
West Stafford Village Green
Gordon Shaw reported that he has only just taken back the reins as Chairman of the Village Green
Committee after the resignation of Hannah Cooke and therefore gave a report given to him by
Hannah. As Hannah has stated work to be completed this year is the ongoing maintenance and Tree
Works AG Services, which is due to take place later this month.
Work to the boundary wall and paving was carried out by Tim Pryce and paid for by an agreed CIL
money. Painting of the wall and railing was carried out by Nigel Jones.
The Draw Down from this coming year will be £2585, however, information from the KPC Clerk
stated that no draw down was made for the years 2022/2023, so the final figure would be £5,322,
which gives a remaining Dowry Balance of £29,196 before any interest is added.
Gordon therefore requested a drawdown of £5,322 for the coming year. A vote on this was
unanimously in agreement.
Gordon stated that the work by AG Trees is a one off payment. When the Dowry is exhausted the
cost would be covered by precepts. He hoped that in the future more use of the Green would be
made by the village and he welcomed suggestions as at present it appears to be an underused asset.
Hannah wished to thank Oliver Edwards for the work on the Green carried out since August.  I would
like to take this opportunity also to thank Tim Pryce and Jason Braybrooke for their many years of
dedication in caring for the Green maintenance since KPC took over responsibility.
Playing Fields
A request for a precept of £1,000 was made by Kate Whitlock for the RoSPA, insurance and
maintenance cost of the playing fields. Unanimously voted in favour of this.
Village Website and Oyez newsletter
A request for precept of £75 for the running costs of the West Stafford website was made by Gail
Fenton and £75 by Adrian Edwards for the running costs of Oyez, the West Stafford newsletter.
Unanimously voted in favour of this.
CIL
Ron Smith from the West Stafford Community Speed Watch (CSW) group addressed the meeting
and provided the following transcript:
‘As many residents will be aware the CSW was set up at the tail end of 2022 with a view to be operational in 2023. This has not happened for reasons I will
explain but leaves the issue of CIL funding of £400 awarded to CSW to pay for Hi Vis Jackets and a speed recording device all supplied and invoice by
Dorset Police. I am presenting these facts today for two reasons 1) to confirm that we have not been invoiced by the police and I have asked that Dorset
Police transfer the speed device to a new CSW team and 2) to notify the Parish Council that because in our view CSW is not the best use of CIL Funding in
West Stafford due to the fact that the traffic is minimal and speeds of the vehicles are mainly compliant. As previously stated the CSW was formed and on the first and only training day with Police Personnel, traffic through the village was so infrequent that we had to use a Dorset Police vehicle to test the speed device. Since then two members of the CSW Group have carried out traffic surveys to estimate the speed of vehicles using village roads. (Some residents
may think these surveys should have been carried out before forming the group but the CSW is not responsible for that). The findings of the surveys are that vehicle speeds are low due to the layout of the main road through West Stafford and the speeds are mainly compliant. The main problem encountered especially at weekends is the speed of cyclists, which are sometimes too fast for the prevailing conditions and that is something the CSW would never be
able to deal with. Therefore it is with sadness that the group has decided to disband because monitoring vehicles that are compliant will not enhance road safety and may only produce an average ‘low speed’ of the compliant drivers. Safety concerns on the roads within West Stafford are a major concern for many in the community. Resolving the issues will not be easy or quick and may be costly for the County Council so funding may be needed. It is also
recognised that The Parish Council is limited in what it can directly do but the CSW group believe the Parish Council should put forward a formal 20MPH request to the Dorset County Council or request they provide signage to identify the lack of pavements and the expectation that pedestrians will be in the road as only they have the power to make such changes.’

This will mean that there will be remaining CIL funds to be allocated. An initial application for
consideration is for money towards a commercial dishwasher for the village hall. Jacquie Walton has
estimated this at a cost of £1400+VAT. Once the remaining figure has been established this will be
raised at the Spring Parish Meeting and details published in Oyez and the West Stafford website.

Neighbourhood Plan
Sandy Tubby reported on the Neighbourhood Plan, explaining how the process has developed. There
is a consultation survey open (until 14th November 2023) to all residents of the Parish to complete as
their views are important to form the draft plan, which will be the next main piece of work. All
information regarding the Neighbourhood Plan can be found on Knightsford Parish Council website:
Knightsford-pc.gov.uk
Use tab Neighbourhood Plan.
ABO
Sian Edwards from the Village Hall Committee requested a precept for the installation and running
internet from the village hall at a cost of £360. Unanimously voted in favour of this.