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Home Storrington Sullington Attractions Events Village News Parish Council Community Partnership Local Business Pubs And Food Clubs And Societies Accommodation Child Care and Education Churches Sports, Leisure, and Fitness Local Transport Services Useful Links Fun/Useful Info. Local Search Local Weather Sponsors Village pictures Contact Us	STORRINGTON & SULLINGTON PARISH COUNCIL MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL PARISH MEETING HELD IN THE MAIN HALL, SULLINGTON PARISH HALL, THAKEHAM ROAD, STORRINGTON, ON WEDNESDAY, 29th APRIL, 2009, commencing at 7.00 p.m. Present: Mr. R. Dawe in the Chair. Mr. C. Mason and Mr. J. Sanson (District Councillors) Mr. F. Wilkinson (County Councillor) 8 Members of the Public. 1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE were received from Mr. R. Carter, Mr. E. Gibbons and Mr. A. Aldridge. 2. MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING. These were duly AGREED to be a correct record of the proceedings thereat and were signed by the Chairman. 3. CHAIRMAN’S REPORT. The item that proved the most controversial was the plan brought forward by the Parish Council to double the number of allotments available and bring a considerable cash bonus to the village. The Village Vote took place and although there was every opportunity afforded to people to vote with the innovation of being able to vote on line, the numbers were still only 40%. Of these a majority were against the Council’s allotment plan so it was withdrawn and further discussions then took place with the newly formed allotment holders association to reduce existing plot sizes and thus increase the number of plots available. These have now reached a successful conclusion and we are in the process of trying to make some inroads into the waiting list. Equally at the other allotment site in Ravenscroft we have cleared the site of rubbish, taken action to remove the horse tail and we shall shortly be able to offer more plots there. Although disruptive and frustrating for car user at the time the overwhelming village view seems to be that the new pavements and other improvements to the High Street and West Street have really made a huge improvement to the whole village centre. The Parish Council would like ultimately to be able to extend the new pavements further but this depends on us finding finance to do this. The Cricket Field on the Storrington Recreation Ground is now back in full operational use after the work that the Parish Council undertook in September to remove the potholes and subsidence and level it with better drainage. The Parish Council along with the District Council and Saxon Weald has made particularly big efforts to try and improve the general look of the environment in the Sullington Copse area. We have also been engaged in discussion with the Horsham Crime Reduction Partnership and the Police to try and minimize vandalism and petty crime in the village. This does seem to be having very positive results with the reported level of crime down substantially and the Police claim to have really got on top of the problem for the first time in many years. Our particular thanks go to Andrew Baldwin, the Cabinet Member at Horsham District council and Greg Charman of the Horsham Crime Reduction Partnership. We continue with efforts to clean up the village pond – we have put in reeds and lilies though these need some re-planting to act as filters and we have been working with various agencies to clean it up. I have been representing the Parish Council in discussions with Waitrose and Horsham District Council. Waitrose purchased the site in Old Mill Drive that includes the garage and also to everyone’s surprise the bus stand area. Waitrose will shortly be running a two-day exhibition about their plans in the Parish Hall on the 12th and 13th June. Horsham District Council are now looking at how best to get some updating of Old Mill Square and the area bordering Mill Lane and Old Mill Drive in order to get a harmonized approach. The Council has once again held the Parish part of the Council Tax to a very low level with an overall increase of just 1.45%. The economic downturn means that fewer grants are likely to be available and probably less Hall hirings will be made. There is currently a vacancy on the Council, Horsham District Council had been informed and it should be possible to co-opt someone fairly soon. 4. PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE REPORT. Mrs. Worthington-Leese reported that the planning committee had seen the number of applications fall from 173 last year to 134 this year, perhaps a sign of the effect of the economic crisis. The number of appeals lodged also fell from 15 last year to 13 this year. However the government recently made fairly significant changes to the planning regulations, relaxing what homeowners could do without permission. At the moment, as with most new schemes, this seems to have confused the issue rather than simplified it and we foresee that whilst the number of applications may fall, the number of enquiries for assistance and the number of complaints about unauthorised development will rise. A notable application this year was a scheme approved for land at Strome in Manley’s Hill for 11 sheltered homes as an extension to the RAFA care home which the committee saw as a positive improvement on the original scheme for 3 x 5 bedroom houses and a benefit to the elderly in the village. On the other hand a plan for 40 ‘warden-assisted’ homes by English Courtyards on land at St Joseph’s was withdrawn after considerable time spent on it because the applicant went bankrupt. It remains to be seen what the future will now hold for that land, in a prime position in the village. Lengthy negotiations between the Football Club and the Parish Council resulted in approval for floodlights at the Recreation Ground, a scheme which has yet to come to fruition and caused a certain amount of controversy! Perhaps the application that would have had the most impact on our village came from a neighbouring parish with the Rock Common landfill application by Veolia. The committee supported Washington Parish Council in its fight against this application, not least because of the fact that it would have resulted in approximately 50 lorries per day passing along our High Street. Given the current congestion and pollution in the village this was something we fought to oppose and we are delighted that the application was recently refused by West Sussex County Council and Veolia have announced that they will not be taking it to appeal. We are currently awaiting an application for a landfill site at Laybrook in Thakeham which will again have traffic implications for Storrington & Sullington and which we will again fight to prevent. We also fought plans to build on the car park at Sawyards, plans which have now been refused twice on appeal to the Department of the Environment. The committee will continue its efforts to protect this and other important sites and buildings in the village. To this end it is currently applying to have the Old School opposite St. Mary’s listed in order to protect it in perpetuity and is also busy producing a Village Design Statement which, if adopted by Horsham District Council, will help us to ensure that any development in our parish is not to the detriment of the existing village. We also continue our battle to get improvements to our infrastructure. On that note, perhaps the most significant event is the recent approval of the South Downs National Park, which will include much of Storrington & Sullington. Seen by many as a major victory, others are concerned that planning decisions will be taken out of local, democratic hands and made by non-local, unelected bodies. We shall monitor with interest….! 5. INFRASTRUCTURE, COMMUNICATIONS AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE REPORT. Mr. Sanson reported that the litter picking had been handed back to Horsham District Council which would result in a saving of approximately £7,500 per annum, but the Parish Council will continue to have to pick up the litter from Parish owned land. The Parish Council street lights had now been contracted to West Sussex County Council for supply and maintenance and this would result in a saving of approximately £2,500 per annum. A great deal of time and effort had been expended on the required improvements to the Storrington pond. 6. RECREATION AND PROPERTY COMMITTEE REPORT. Mr. Mason reported that the allotments had created a great deal of work and at times things had been quite fractious. The Cricket outfield had been completed which was the end of a fairly major project that had gone on for more than one year, with the improvements to the Football Field, car park, pathways, storage buildings. The Sullington Play Project was now developing significantly and Mr. Mason thanked Mrs. Wheatley for all her hard work in this respect. There had been mixed feelings about this project from residents, with some wanting the playground (that was removed due to repeated vandalism) reinstated whilst others did not want it back. An accommodation seemed to have been reached and hopefully the area will be ready for youngsters to play on by the summer school holidays. The Chanctonbury Leisure Centre had been virtually self-sufficient since it was built back in 1989, but it had got to the point where it needed to be up-graded to meet health and safety requirements to function and secure its future. In conjunction with the District Council a grant had been obtained of £90,000. There had been one down side, and that was the extension to the Riverside Walk
	© 2010 Storrington & Sullington Community Partnership

STORRINGTON & SULLINGTON PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES OF THE

ANNUAL PARISH MEETING

HELD IN THE

MAIN HALL, SULLINGTON PARISH HALL,

THAKEHAM ROAD, STORRINGTON,

WEDNESDAY, 29th APRIL, 2009,

commencing at 7.00 p.m.

Present: Mr. R. Dawe in the Chair.

Mr. C. Mason and Mr. J. Sanson (District Councillors)

Mr. F. Wilkinson (County Councillor)

8 Members of the Public.

1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE were received from Mr. R. Carter, Mr. E. Gibbons and Mr. A. Aldridge.

2. MINUTES OF THE LAST MEETING. These were duly AGREED to be a correct record of the proceedings thereat and were signed by the Chairman.

3. CHAIRMAN’S REPORT. The item that proved the most controversial was the plan brought forward by the Parish Council to double the number of allotments available and bring a considerable cash bonus to the village.

The Village Vote took place and although there was every opportunity afforded to people to vote with the innovation of being able to vote on line, the numbers were still only 40%. Of these a majority were against the Council’s allotment plan so it was withdrawn and further discussions then took place with the newly formed allotment holders association to reduce existing plot sizes and thus increase the number of plots available. These have now reached a successful conclusion and we are in the process of trying to make some inroads into the waiting list. Equally at the other allotment site in Ravenscroft we have cleared the site of rubbish, taken action to remove the horse tail and we shall shortly be able to offer more plots there.

Although disruptive and frustrating for car user at the time the overwhelming village view seems to be that the new pavements and other improvements to the High Street and West Street have really made a huge improvement to the whole village centre. The Parish Council would like ultimately to be able to extend the new pavements further but this depends on us finding finance to do this.

The Cricket Field on the Storrington Recreation Ground is now back in full operational use after the work that the Parish Council undertook in September to remove the potholes and subsidence and level it with better drainage.

The Parish Council along with the District Council and Saxon Weald has made particularly big efforts to try and improve the general look of the environment in the Sullington Copse area. We have also been engaged in discussion with the Horsham Crime Reduction Partnership and the Police to try and minimize vandalism and petty crime in the village. This does seem to be having very positive results with the reported level of crime down substantially and the Police claim to have really got on top of the problem for the first time in many years. Our particular thanks go to Andrew Baldwin, the Cabinet Member at Horsham District council and Greg Charman of the Horsham Crime Reduction Partnership.

We continue with efforts to clean up the village pond – we have put in reeds and lilies though these need some re-planting to act as filters and we have been working with various agencies to clean it up.

I have been representing the Parish Council in discussions with Waitrose and Horsham District Council. Waitrose purchased the site in Old Mill Drive that includes the garage and also to everyone’s surprise the bus stand area. Waitrose will shortly be running a two-day exhibition about their plans in the Parish Hall on the 12th and 13th June. Horsham District Council are now looking at how best to get some updating of Old Mill Square and the area bordering Mill Lane and Old Mill Drive in order to get a harmonized approach.

The Council has once again held the Parish part of the Council Tax to a very low level with an overall increase of just 1.45%. The economic downturn means that fewer grants are likely to be available and probably less Hall hirings will be made.

There is currently a vacancy on the Council, Horsham District Council had been informed and it should be possible to co-opt someone fairly soon.

4. PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE REPORT. Mrs. Worthington-Leese reported that the planning committee had seen the number of applications fall from 173 last year to 134 this year, perhaps a sign of the effect of the economic crisis. The number of appeals lodged also fell from 15 last year to 13 this year. However the government recently made fairly significant changes to the planning regulations, relaxing what homeowners could do without permission. At the moment, as with most new schemes, this seems to have confused the issue rather than simplified it and we foresee that whilst the number of applications may fall, the number of enquiries for assistance and the number of complaints about unauthorised development will rise.

A notable application this year was a scheme approved for land at Strome in Manley’s Hill for 11 sheltered homes as an extension to the RAFA care home which the committee saw as a positive improvement on the original scheme for 3 x 5 bedroom houses and a benefit to the elderly in the village. On the other hand a plan for 40 ‘warden-assisted’ homes by English Courtyards on land at St Joseph’s was withdrawn after considerable time spent on it because the applicant went bankrupt. It remains to be seen what the future will now hold for that land, in a prime position in the village.

Lengthy negotiations between the Football Club and the Parish Council resulted in approval for floodlights at the Recreation Ground, a scheme which has yet to come to fruition and caused a certain amount of controversy!

Perhaps the application that would have had the most impact on our village came from a neighbouring parish with the Rock Common landfill application by Veolia. The committee supported Washington Parish Council in its fight against this application, not least because of the fact that it would have resulted in approximately 50 lorries per day passing along our High Street. Given the current congestion and pollution in the village this was something we fought to oppose and we are delighted that the application was recently refused by West Sussex County Council and Veolia have announced that they will not be taking it to appeal.

We are currently awaiting an application for a landfill site at Laybrook in Thakeham which will again have traffic implications for Storrington & Sullington and which we will again fight to prevent.

We also fought plans to build on the car park at Sawyards, plans which have now been refused twice on appeal to the Department of the Environment. The committee will continue its efforts to protect this and other important sites and buildings in the village. To this end it is currently applying to have the Old School opposite St. Mary’s listed in order to protect it in perpetuity and is also busy producing a Village Design Statement which, if adopted by Horsham District Council, will help us to ensure that any development in our parish is not to the detriment of the existing village. We also continue our battle to get improvements to our infrastructure.

On that note, perhaps the most significant event is the recent approval of the South Downs National Park, which will include much of Storrington & Sullington. Seen by many as a major victory, others are concerned that planning decisions will be taken out of local, democratic hands and made by non-local, unelected bodies. We shall monitor with interest….!

5. INFRASTRUCTURE, COMMUNICATIONS AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE REPORT. Mr. Sanson reported that the litter picking had been handed back to Horsham District Council which would result in a saving of approximately £7,500 per annum, but the Parish Council will continue to have to pick up the litter from Parish owned land.

The Parish Council street lights had now been contracted to West Sussex County Council for supply and maintenance and this would result in a saving of approximately £2,500 per annum.

A great deal of time and effort had been expended on the required improvements to the Storrington pond.

6. RECREATION AND PROPERTY COMMITTEE REPORT. Mr. Mason reported that the allotments had created a great deal of work and at times things had been quite fractious. The Cricket outfield had been completed which was the end of a fairly major project that had gone on for more than one year, with the improvements to the Football Field, car park, pathways, storage buildings.

The Sullington Play Project was now developing significantly and Mr. Mason thanked Mrs. Wheatley for all her hard work in this respect. There had been mixed feelings about this project from residents, with some wanting the playground (that was removed due to repeated vandalism) reinstated whilst others did not want it back. An accommodation seemed to have been reached and hopefully the area will be ready for youngsters to play on by the summer school holidays.

The Chanctonbury Leisure Centre had been virtually self-sufficient since it was built back in 1989, but it had got to the point where it needed to be up-graded to meet health and safety requirements to function and secure its future. In conjunction with the District Council a grant had been obtained of £90,000.

There had been one down side, and that was the extension to the Riverside Walk