THE September 2 meeting of Newton St Cyres Parish Council, held in the Parish Hall, was attended by nine Councillors, the Parish Clerk, the Mid Devon District Councillor (Graeme Barnell), the County Councillor (Margaret Squires), our Climate Change Officer (Sue Rowell) and three members of the public.

Road Traffic Issues

• First some good news! At long last the pavement alongside the A377 at School Hill has been properly cleared. Secondly, the sunken manhole cover near Newton House has been repaired. It took many months of continuous nagging by the Parish Clerk and Councillors at all levels to achieve both of these.

• Sadly, the pedestrian crossing in the centre of the village, scheduled to be installed in August, never materialised due to administrative issues. This installation is now re-scheduled for autumn half-term or early November.

• Complaints about the levels of traffic through Langford are being passed to Devon County Council.

• Devon Highways is planning a Zoom meeting for Councillors at the Parish and District level to assess our concerns about the local roads. We will certainly attend and make our presence felt. All our other traffic issues were raised with Margaret Squires, but they remain pending.

Climate Change and the Environment

• Possible dates for the training of Councillors in their Climate Change duties and the possibilities in regard to ameliorating Climate Change were given.

• The possibility of installing electric car charging points in the village is being investigated. Funding may be available through Mid Devon District Council or Innovate UK.

• The green spaces managed by the Parish Council are being evaluated to see how biodiversity can be increased.

Planning

• Applications for permission to adapt or replace agricultural buildings at Bidwell Barton Farm and Barn Hill Farm were discussed. Although there were concerns about the developments at both sites, these will need to be examined by Mid Devon District Council rather than at the Parish Council level. It was therefore decided to pass “no comment” on these applications.

• Applications to install photovoltaic panels on the roof of East Holme Farm and to roof over an existing silage clamp at Five Elms Lane were not seen as causing a problem and also received “no comment”.

• An application has been received for the development of the old school site. This has provoked much comment on the planning website, mostly focusing on the environmental impact of the development. Our Climate Change Officer has made a detailed evaluation of the application and Parish Councillors thought this was a useful document and it will be forwarded to Mid Devon District Council.

Graeme Barnell encouraged us to make sure that the environmental and social commitments made by the developer were clear and unambiguous, as it was all too easy for them to be ignored at a later date.

• An appeal made against the refusal to grant permission to change the use of some of the agricultural buildings at Winscott Barton Farm was upheld.

• Councillor Graeme Barnell encouraged the Parish Council to become actively involved in developing a neighbourhood plan for Newton St Cyres and to take part in any consultation with Mid Devon for its long-term vision for the area.

He is still very concerned that although the Greater Exeter Strategic Plan failed, a similar proposal will be put through in the next few years with serious implications for Newton St Cyres and other similar sized villages near Exeter.

• The Parish Council is still actively trying to develop a limited number of affordable homes within the Parish. We have made links with a Housing Association and are currently looking to see if there are any suitable sites available. This is at a very early stage. Should a site be identified then the whole Parish will be consulted before any decision is made by the Parish Council.

Other Council Business

• The Parish Hall car park is to be evaluated to see if re-sealing the surface would usefully prolong the lifetime of the current surface.

• A quote for the removal of asbestos in a shed at the allotments was accepted. The hedges will also be cut, and some self-seeded elm trees taken down. Several more plots have been let.

• The wording for a new sign for the permissive school hill footpath was agreed.

• The bench on School Hill is broken beyond repair. A bench at this site may no longer be necessary as more people will be using the permissive path. The council decided to see if there was still a need for it.

The next meeting of the Parish Council will be held in the Parish Hall on Thursday, October 7 at 7pm. Members of the public are welcome. However, Covid guidelines mean that the number of attendees will be limited.

Alternatively, if members of the public wish issues to be raised in council meetings, they can contact councillors in the usual way.

Liz Ouldridge