Draft Minutes

VOWCHURCH GROUP PARISH COUNCIL
Michaelchurch Escley, Newton, St Margarets, Turnastone, Vowchurch

Minutes of the Annual Meeting of Vowchurch & District Group Parish Council held
on Thursday 7th May 2026 at 7.30pm in Vowchurch & Turnastone Memorial Hall

PRESENT – Councillors I Chadwick, A Picton, T Smith, K Price, E Williams and S Craddock.
INATTENDANCE – PC Jeff Rouse, J Probert (Lengthsman) and Mrs L Cowles (Clerk).
Councillor May was unable to attend the meeting, in her absence Vice-Chair Councillor Chadwick took the meeting

  1. ELECTION OF CHAIR – Councillor May was proposed by Councillor Picton and seconded by Councillor Williams. Whilst Councillor May was unable to attend the meeting, she had indicated that she was happy to continue as Chair. There were no other nominations and the proposal was carried. It was agreed that Councillor May would sign the Declaration of Acceptance of Office at a meeting with the Clerk next week.
    Vice-Chair Councillor Chadwick continued with the meeting in Councillor May’s absence.
  2. ACCEPT APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE – Councillors, E May, A Mason, R Lloyd and D Cross.
  3. RECEIVE DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST & CONSIDER ANY WRITTEN APPLICATIONS FOR DISPENSATION – There were no declarations of interest or written requests for dispensation.
  4. ELECTION OF VICE-CHAIR – Councillor Chadwick was proposed by Councillor Williams and seconded by Councillor Smith. There were no other nominations and the proposal was carried.
  5. NOTICE OF REGISTRABLE INTERESTS – Councillors were reminded to update their Notice of Registrable Interests when applicable.
  6. PARISH COUNCIL INSURANCE – The Clerk had requested quotes from three suppliers but only two had responded. Clear Insurance indicated that their minimum premium would be £600/£700. Zurich, the current insurance provider had quoted £359.92 and increase of 85p. It was therefore agreed to accept the renewal fee from Zurich.
  7. WORKING GROUP
    7.1 Finance working group members for 2026-27 would be Councillors E May, I Chadwick, E Willaims and S Craddock.
    7.2 Lengthsman working group members for 2026-27 would be Councillors S Craddock, A Picton and D Cross.
    7.3 Neighbourhood Development Plan review group members – It was agreed to defer this until further information was available for reviews of the Neighbourhood plan.
  8. ANNUAL REVIEW OF BANK MANDATE – It was agreed that signatories would include members of the finance working group, therefore Councillor Picton will be removed to be replaced by Councillor Craddock
  9. REVIEW FOLLOWING POLICY AND PROCEDURE DOCUMENTS:
    9.1 Standing orders – Approved with no change.
    9.2 Financial regulations – Approved with no change.
    9.3 Complaints procedure – Approved with no change.
    9.4 Risk assessment – Approved with changes to include iCloud storage of documents.
    9.5 Community Resilience Emergency Plan – Approved with no change.
    9.6 Data protection _ Approved with no change.
    9.7 Model Publication Scheme – Updated and approved with an increase in cost for hard copies.
    9.8 Planning applications between meetings – Approved with no change.
    9.9 Website Accessibility Statement – Approved with no change.

9.10 Scheme of Delegation – Approved with no change.
9.11 Press and Media Policy – Approved with no change.
9.12 Open Noticeboard Policy – Approved with no change.
9.13 IT Policy – Approved with no change.
9.14 Equal Opportunities Policy – Approved with no change.

  1. ASSETS REGISTER – The amended asset register was noted with changes to reflect the purchase of 2 x new noticeboards.
  2. ADOPT MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS ORDINARY MEETING – 16th April 2026 – The minutes were signed as a true and accurate record.
  3. OPEN DISCUSSION – No members of the public attended the meeting therefore no specific points were raised.
  4. RECEIVE REPORTS FROM:
    13.1 Ward Councillor – Ward Councillor Engel was unable to attend the meeting.
    13.2 Local Police – PC Jeff Rouse advised there had been no reports of any crime within the group of parishes. Councillors asked about the complaint received from a local resident regarding Green Laning on Vaga Hill Common. PC Rouse reported that whilst this appeared to be common land it is in fact a designated highway therefore, they are not committing any crime. It is against the law to obstruct this highway.
    PC Rouse left the meeting.
    13.3 Public Footpath Officers – A report from PFO/Councillor May was presented to the meeting by Councillor Chadwick. The report will be included on the parish council website. A report had not been received from PFO Deas.
    13.4 Lengthsman report – The lengthsman reported that he should be out on the May maintenance day within the next two week. He is still familiarising himself with the local roads and has considered the potential proposal for drainage grant funding.
  5. CLERKS UPDATE – The Clerk had received correspondence from a local resident regarding green Laning activity with 4×4 vehicles on Vaga Hill Common and the extent of damage they were doing. This was covered in PC Rouse’s report. The Clerk had also received correspondence from another resident requesting information concerning the verge survey along with their concerns regarding the apparent unwillingness of the Parish Council to engage and keep parties properly informed. The Clerk had responding advising that a survey had never been promised and that both Herefordshire Meadows and Verging on Wild had been unable to conduct a survey as per approved minutes in April 2025. The Parish Council confirmed that when considering verge cutting, road safety will always remain the priority. Many of the lanes are extremely narrow and have no suitable passing places. The Parish Council has limited flexibility regarding the timing of the cutting works. Verges have traditionally been cut twice each year for generations, and many residents within the parish wish for this practice to continue. Any Parish Council funding therefore needs to be carefully prioritised.
    The Clerk will be on annual leave from Wednesday 13th May – Tuesday 26th May 2026.
  6. CONSIDER PLANNING
    15.1 PLANNING CONSULTATION/LISTED BUILDING CONSENT
    Site: Ponty Pinna, Vowchurch, Herefordshire. HR2 0QE
    Description: Rebuilding of collapsed building
    Application No: 260873/260874 Grid Ref: 337440:235603
    SUPPORT – The Parish Council supports this application, as the proposed works will enhance the surrounding area and accord with Policy 1 of the adopted Neighbourhood Development Plan.
  7. FINANCE
    16.1 Confirmation of bank balance – £24,204.18 dated 30th April 2026
    Receipts – £1192.30 PROW funding claim & £9504.03 1st Precept payment
    16.2 Payment to Mrs L Cowles May 2026 Clerk’s hours, £19.90 postage and £40.07 gross (VAT £6.68) ink cartridges – Payment agreed.
    16.3 Payment to JM Probert, invoice no. 1105 for April 2026 maintenance day and meet with Councillors to discuss ditching and grant proposals of £450.00 gross (VAT £75.00) – Payment agreed.
  8. DRAINAGE GRANT FUNDING SCHEME 2026/27 – Councillors noted the Lengthsman’s proposed works. It was agreed to apply for funding for a new drainage asset on U74204 near Brook Cottage to help alleviate flooding. As the remaining works required on existing assets exceed the £4,000 limit, it was agreed that some of these works would be funded through the traditional Lengthsman scheme, together with contingency budget funding. This will include works on C1206 and U75009 in Michaelchurch Escley, and U74205 in Newton. It was agreed that the Clerk would apply for funding accordingly.
  9. C1206 ROADS REPAIRS – The parish council agreed that the recent works on C1206 had been completed to a high standard. The work crew had been very helpful. Although the works had overrun by four days and a few residents had expressed frustration, overall, the project was considered to have been finished to a very high standard.
  10. ANNUAL PARISH MEETING – Tom Oliver has confirmed that he would be able to attend the meeting on 28th May. He has requested help with a PowerPoint presentation as he currently has no access to a laptop. Councillor Craddock agreed to help. The meeting will start at 7pm. The Chair and Clerk would organise refreshments. Councillors took flyers about the meeting, kindly provided by the Clerk, to post where suitable to help publicise the meeting.
  11. JUNE NEWSLETTER – Appointment of Chair, donations, new lengthsman
  12. NOTE THE CORRESPONDENCE SHEET – The correspondence sheet was noted.
  13. RAISE MATTERS FOR THE NEXT ORDINARY PARISH COUNCIL MEETING – Thursday 18th June 2026 at 7.30pm in Escley Sports Pavilion, Michaelchurch Escley – NDP review

The Vice-Chair declared the meeting closed at 8.25pm

Signed………………………………………………………..
Dated…………………………………………………………

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