My latest report to St Enoder Parish Council

I normally prepare monthly reports for St Enoder Parish Council, but this did not prove possible in March and April due to other time constraints relating to my candidacy in the St Austell and Newquay seat at the General Election.

My report for tomorrow’s Parish Council meeting therefore covers the time period of 23rd February – 24th May 2015. It will be as follows:

1. Council meetings

I have attended a range of formal meetings over the last three months. These included: Full Council (2) plus an associated briefing, Strategic Planning Committee, Central Planning Committee, Planning Policy Advisory Committee (PAC) and two associated pre-agenda and preparatory meetings, Planning and Development Improvement Group, Constitution and Governance Committee, China Clay Area Network meeting, a group leaders meeting, the working group for the Council’s so-called “Case For Cornwall” (3), and a meeting about the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.

I have also attended a significant number of meetings in relation to the biogas plant and pig farm at Higher Fraddon, and I was present at four days of the Examination into the Cornwall Local Plan. See below for more details.

In addition to the formal meetings listed above, I have had numerous meetings with council officers and others to discuss a range of issues.

2. A tribute to Dennis Harris

At the Cornwall Council meeting on 19th May, I pleased to able to lead the tribute to former Parish Councillor Dennis Harris. Other councillors who spoke were Malcolm Brown and Andrew Mitchell, who served with Dennis on Restormel Borough Council and Cornwall County Council respectively.

As we all know, Dennis was a great stalwart of this Parish for many decades, serving on St Enoder Parish Council for more than 40 years, Restormel Borough Council for 26 years and Cornwall County Council for 16 years. He was the Mayor of Restormel between 1988 and 1989, and when the Council was abolished he was rightly made an Alderman of the Borough.

A warm and gentle man, he also – amongst many, many things – served as a school governor, assisted Age Concern, helped raise funds for the RNLI, helped out with his local youth club, served on committees for Summercourt New Memorial Hall and the nearby Thomas Playing Field.

3. Other meetings

I also attended meetings of the St Austell Bay Economic Forum, the South and East Cornwall Local Action Group, and Governors at Summercourt Academy (3), as well as a number of meetings relating to the eco-town planned for the area between St Austell and Penwithick.

4. Penare Pig Farm, Higher Fraddon & associated biogas plant

I have continued to dedicate a significant amount of time to the issues relating to the development of the biogas plant at Higher Fraddon, and the re-development of the pig farm. In particular, I have chaired three meetings of the Higher Fraddon Community Forum (with members of the Higher Fraddon Residents’ Group and representatives of Cornwall Council, Greener for Life and the pig farm), along with numerous meetings with the Higher Fraddon Residents’ Group and individual residents.

I am becoming increasingly disappointed that Greener for Life fail to follow up on many of the action points from the Forum. Minutes from the meetings are available from the Clerk.

The next meeting has been provisionally arranged for Wednesday 10th June.

Cornwall Council has patched much of the road (from Fraddon Hill to the top corn, through residents are already reporting that the large lorries are damaging the new tarmacced areas.

The situation at the present time is that (i) the “regularising” application for the biogas plant has been submitted by Greener for Life and the consultation period is ongoing, (ii) the part-retrospective application for the pig farm has been submitted but at the time of writing has yet to be validated, and (iii) Greener for Life have given notice that they will be submitting a further application about their traffic movements.

These applications will certainly dominate the coming months and I have given local residents assurances that I will ensure Cornwall Council arranges a meeting for them to meet members of the Strategic Planning Committee.

5. Lack of buses in Summercourt
Since Western Greyhound ceased trading, I have been in regular contact with staff at the Council's “passenger unit,” concerning the fact that First’s service between Truro and Newquay does not stop in Summercourt. I have received numerous representations from local people on this matter and I have brought them to the attention of the unitary authority.

The problem is that east-bound buses need to turn around in Summercourt and to head out on the same road. Turning is no longer an option at the depot, which is in the hands of the receivers. The Council has explored alternative routes with First, such as via Brighton Cross or via St Enoder Churchtown and Narrow Lane to Fraddon, but because of the timings involved and the resultant need to restructure timetables, it has not proved possible to reach agreement.

I can however report that Cornwall Council has worked with Summercourt Travel to slightly increase the number of trips through its 497 service (to Truro via Ladock), which now leave from outside the London Inn.

I publicised the problems at April’s Full Council and I am continuing to put pressure on the Council to identify a separate piece of land within Summercourt, where the buses could turn around when travelling east, so that we can have an improved service through the village.

6. Planning

Planning continues to dominate civic life in St Enoder Parish and I have been actively involved with a large number of ongoing applications. Listed below are a few examples, though this list is by no means exhaustive:

- Solar farm at Burthy (PA13/05983)

Following the completion of the solar farm at Burthy, I have formally asked council officers to follow-up on the unilateral agreement signed by the landowner and applicant which stated that a community payment of £7,000 per MW of installed capacity would be paid within one month of the solar farm becoming operational.

- Land west of Kilburn, Fraddon (PA14/00882)

This application for twenty houses has not yet been signed off. I have complained about the manner in which it has been handled and I will report more at the June meeting.

- Site of the former John Julian Depository (PA14/09266)

The Section 106 agreement for this application is presently being finalised. It will include a payment towards the provision of open spaces / play equipment within St Enoder Parish.

- Phase 4 of Harvenna Heights (PA14/10417)

I have been liaising with Ocean Housing about a slight redesign of their affordable housing scheme to accommodate a safe access point for a potential footpath from the estate to Indian Queens School, as set out in the School’s traffic management plan. I have involved the School and Cornwall Council in this, but I am disappointed that I have made no tangible progress. It is likely that there will be a planning condition to safeguard the possibility of a link, but this has not been specifically designed into the scheme.

- Solar farm at Glebe Farm, Summercourt (PA14/12025)

The “extension” to the existing solar farm on the entrance into Summercourt was approved at the Strategic Planning Committee Meeting on 14th May. The applicant agreed to screening along the A30 and it has been confirmed that the annual Community Payment of £2,000 will come direct to the Parish Council.

- Development of Indian Queens Industrial Estate (PA15/00916)

This application was approved at the Strategic Planning Committee Meeting on 14th May. The vote was unanimous.

- Three turbines on Pines Tip, Fraddon (PA15/00955)

I have been keeping in regular contact with the case officer for this application and I will report the likely timetable for the committee meeting at our meeting.

- Nine new mobile home pitches at Pedna Carne (PA15/02430)

This application has been approved. I had received representations about the proposal but there were no planning policies which would merit a different decision.

- Three dwellings at School Lane, Summercourt (PA15/03068)

This application has been refused under delegated powers. Cornwall Council ruled that the location was inappropriate and no special circumstances to justify a different outcome.

- Large garage / store at Linton Rise, Summercourt (PA14/10939)
- Five dwellings at Cobble Lane, Fraddon (PA15/00763)
- 44 holiday lodges at Carvynick (PA15/01472)

Following objections from St Enoder Parish Council, I have referred the above applications to Cornwall Council’s Central Planning Committee.

- Retail development at Kingsley Village

An application has been submitted for the redevelopment of Kingsley Village, which newspaper reports state involve Marks and Spencer. I understand that this could include a large extension towards the residents of Penhale Cottages.

7. Cornwall Local Plan; Examination in Public

Last week, I spent a number of days at the Atlantic Hotel in Newquay, where key policies in the proposed Cornwall Local Plan were being assessed through a Public Examination.

At the Examination, a single Inspector is checking to see that the document is “sound” or – in others words – compliant with the policies of central government such as the National Planning Policy Framework.

The Local Plan contains a housing target of 47,500 new properties in Cornwall between 2010 and 2030, which is not popular with a growing number of people who are concerned at how their communities are changing beyond recognition.

And yet, at the Examination there was a large array of landowners, developers, planning agents and high-powered legal professionals using every opportunity to push for a significantly higher housing target. They even argued that more housing should be built to compensate for the loss of permanent homes to second homes.

At this stage, it is not possible know how the Inspector will rule and what changes he will insist are made to the document in the coming months.

8. Full Council; 28th April

This meeting agreed Cornwall Council’s Transport Plan, which set out a range of future schemes. I voted against the document as I considered it was not balanced geographically and did not include any schemes relating specifically to St Enoder Parish, such as the measures included in the traffic management plan produced in association with consented new classrooms at Indian Queens School.

9. Highways issues

I have also been in regular contact with officers from Cormac on a range of issues. This includes the partial patching of the road through Higher Fraddon and the problems caused by construction traffic relating to the solar farm at Burthy. It is my intention to give a more detailed update on highway issues in my next monthly report.

10. Newsletter

In March and the early part of April, I distributed a Parish-wide newsletter along with a booklet setting out the key findings of the questionnaire for the St Enoder Neighbourhood Plan. Thank you to everyone who assisted me with the deliveries.

11. Inquiries

Throughout the last three months, I have also helped numerous people and local organisations with advice and guidance on a wide range of issues.

12. My priorities

Along with my ongoing day-to-day work, I have identified three priorities for the next few months. These are as follows:

· The submission of a grant application to fund the ongoing work on the Neighbourhood Plan.

· Preparation of a scheme for the redevelopment of the play area in the Indian Queens Recreation Ground and associated grant applications. Part of the funding for this project could include monies from via the unilateral undertaking from the Burthy Solar Farm and the Section 106 agreement for the site of the former John Julian Depository.

· Submission of grant application for the planned community project which relates to St Enoder Parish and the First World War.