Rev. Ottley asked if the Parish Council was planning a Civic Service for 2005, as [it] had last been held on 6th October 2002, and it was agreed that this would be given further consideration.

A Declaration of Interest was registered by Cllr. Fallon regarding Agenda Item 16.

Apologies for Absence were received from Boro. Cllr. Furlong and from Cllrs. Henley, Leake & Salmon.

The Minutes of the Meeting of 14th December 2004 were unanimously approved as a true record on a proposal by Cllr. Richardson, seconded by Cllr. Owen, and were taken as read, with the exception of Item 3 in which the proposer was Cllr. Richardson and not Cllr. Robinson.

There were no County Matters reported.

Boro. Cllr. Kolker reported on:

a). His concern of the lack of progress on the proposed traffic calming signage for the A535 which has resulted from Highways not having had any accident reports for the area despite at least nine having occurred.

b). A response from Network Rail, Birmingham, to his letter regarding the pedestrian bridge and to which they will respond.

c). The continuing problems with Boothbed Lane outside Brick Bank Farm and it was agreed that the Clerk would write to the farmer regarding the level of local complaint, requesting that he do whatever he can to alleviate the problem.
 

AMENITIES: There had been no meeting since the last Parish Council.

FINANCE: There had been no meeting since the last Parish Council.

VILLAGE HALL: There had been no meeting since the last Parish Council.
 

In the absence of Cllr. Leake, the Clerk circulated the latest Planning Application Report number 113.
 

Acceptance of Payment Schedule 103 was proposed by Cllr. Owen, seconded by Cllr. Sewell and agreed unanimously.
 

Firstly the Clerk reported on matters requiring his action from the previous Meeting, namely the contact with Highways regarding the refurbishment work, the transmission of the e-mail address to Tony Potts, the letter to Cheshire County Council regarding the Village Hall roof replacement and the single amendment to the reserves section of the 2005/6 budget. The actions regarding the parking space outside the old surgery and the letter to the Post Office were not progressed as events had overtaken both of these.

The Clerk then tabled the following correspondence received:

a). A telephoned notice from the Litter Collector that she no longer wished to carry out this duty and it was agreed that the situation would be monitored for 3 months before considering a replacement.

b). A letter from the Graveyard Maintenance Contractor thanking the Parish Council for awarding him the Contract for 2005 but at the same time commenting on the level of dog fouling in the Graveyard which prompted considerable discussion and it was agreed to place a notice on the gate asking dog owners to keep their pet on a lead and to clear up after it.

c). A letter from Cheshire County Council Youth Service regarding the Congleton Young People's Survey which the Clerk was asked to simply acknowledge.

d). A letter from Congleton Borough Council inviting Councillors to attend the forthcoming Annual Meeting of the Strategic Partnership Forum at which Cllr. Richardson agreed to represent the Parish Council.

e). A letter from Congleton Borough Council regarding the new initiative to prohibit alcohol consumption in designated public places and the Clerk was asked to respond to this.

f). A letter from Cheshire County Council Joint Highways Service regarding the temporary closure of the A535 to which the Clerk was asked to respond including a suggestion to place a "No through road to Holmes Chapel" notice on the Chelford roundabout.

g). A letter from Boro. Cllr. Kolker on behalf of RAP regarding the donation by the Parish Council towards the unsuccessful appeal against the Gas Plant and confirming that the only further action will be to ensure that all planning conditions are fully met.
 

Cllr. Ball reported that he had informed Highways of a faulty street light at Shearbrook steps.
 

Cllr. Owen reported that there was nothing further to add except that the work over Christmas had apparently proceeded without problems to Residents.
 

In the absence of Cllr. Salmon, there was nothing further to report.

This had already been referred to in the Clerk's report and it was agreed that this Item could now be taken off future Agendas.
 

Further to a letter from Bob Hardiker, Head of Community Services, it was agreed that Alistair Cook, Greenscape Development Officer who is now the nominated Lead Officer for the project should be invited to attend the February meeting of the Parish Council to present the plans. This, however, should be on the understanding that the "friends of the playground" had first been consulted so that any plans presented to the Parish Council would have had their approval.
 

The Clerk tabled a letter from Cheshire County Council disagreeing with the Parish Council's interpretation of the Joint Use Agreement in this respect and indicating that the matter had been passed to their legal section in order for them to provide a formal response in time for the next meeting.
 

The Clerk circulated the Minutes of the previous day's meeting of the Parish Council Taskforce with Mr Andy Wright, Rural Transfer Advisor for the Post Office Ltd.

After some lengthy discussion on the whole issue of the closure of the current facility and the possible alternative locations, it was agreed that the Parish Council had done all that it could possibly do to assist in resolving this important issue and that it was now the responsibility of Mr Wright to take matters forward, hopefully to a successful conclusion.
 

a). Cllr. Richardson reported on the failure of Waste Management to empty some of the bins and remove some of the sacks from Bank View in the post Christmas collection but indicated that he had already raised this with the appropriate Department.

b). The Chairman tabled an invitation to attend the Annual Town & Parish Council Conference on Thursday, 3rd February at 7pm at Nantwich Civic Hall as she was otherwise engaged on that evening and Cllr. Kennington kindly undertook to attend in her place, possibly accompanied by Cllr. Ball.

c). Cllr. Ball informed the Meeting that Mr Doug Crowley had agreed to become the new webmaster and also tabled information on a new free website venture from "The Local Channel" which it was agreed the Parish Council should join.

d). Cllr. Ball reported that the Parish Office printer was increasingly showing signs of wear, it now requiring a new roller and attention to the paper feed, and it was agreed that authority for a replacement should be given at the next meeting.
 

The member of the Public reported on an uneven surface at the railway station which had caused her to fall resulting in an injury to her leg which required hospital treatment but the Chairman pointed out that this was not the responsibility of the Parish Council and that the matter must be pursued with the rail company.

The member of the Public again commented on the poor state of the highway at the junction on Bank View and Main Road and the Clerk agreed to contact Highways if this area had not already been marked out for remedial works.

There being no further issues raised by the Public, the Chairman closed the meeting at 9.20pm.