FOR at least the next two or three months, Crediton Hamlets Parish Council meetings will be on Zoom.

At its meeting this month the Clerk, Mrs Rachel Hodder, reported that current restrictions on meetings were due to end on May 6. It was not yet known whether the restrictions would be extended to encourage more people to take part in meetings via Zoom.

It was agreed Zoom was a useful way to share information on screen such as planning applications and it was good that all Hamlets’ members could use Zoom.

Chairman, Cllr George Mortimer, was a member of other groups where members who could not Zoom were beginning to feel excluded.

Members joked that it was nice not to have to go out on a cold, wet winter’s evening for a meeting.

Mid Devon District Council member Cllr Derek Coren observed that it had been noticed that attendance had improved with its Zoom meetings but they tended to be longer, probably because people were at home. Cllr Mortimer agreed “it is a different world now”.

ANNUAL MEETINGS

The council’s annual meeting, when a chairman and other appointments are made, is to be held prior to the May 4 meeting.

The annual parish meeting, when residents can raise issues with the council, will be on April 6 followed by the regular parish council meeting. Cllr Mortimer said it would be wrong for the parish council to be promoting people getting together if the meeting was booked for after May 6.

HEART MACHINE

A second defibrillator for Yeoford has been installed on a wall facing the car park at "The Duck" pub. Cllr Nick Yarnold said there would be a formal “opening ceremony” at some time.

Among others, thanks needed to go to the pub owners, to local people for their generosity, to the parish, district and Devon County Councils and to Dave May who instigated fundraising. Courses on using the defibrillator would be organised when possible.

GROWING SPACE

A “dog bin” had been requested at Salmonhutch. However, the Clerk reported that the district council’s survey had shown there was no evidence of excessive dog waste and litter in the area.

If the council still wished to install a bin, it would cost £270 plus £410 a year for it to be emptied once a week.

It was felt that as many people did not bother to pick up after their dog, to the annoyance of many, this was a lot of money. Those who did pick up usually took their bags away, although a few decorated trees with the bags, or left them to collect on their return route.

As for the request for allotments at Yeoford, the Clerk had put an advertisement in the Yeoford village magazine.

She said the parish council had a duty to provide allotments if asked, to make strenuous efforts to do so.

Asked about the possibility of compulsory purchase, Mrs Hodder said this would be for the district council to deal with.

The council agreed she should contact local landowners. Spare land, at present scrub, beside Yeoford Community Hall would not be big enough.

GOOD THINGS

Updating its documents, including the list of Community Assets, members suggested adding the new old-style signpost at the Binneford junction, to ask the owner of Cuckoobush if he would object to that one being added (he restored it last year), and the flood marker put in beside the Chapel to protect them for the future.

Cllr Mortimer reported that the caravan dumped at Fordton had been removed but not the pair of arm chairs near Downes Crediton Golf Club.

There was much discussion about who looks after roadside ditches. Cllr Mortimer said he and his men had spent half a day clearing a ditch that had been filled with planings (scalping from roads) and they managed to clear another at a different time.

Devon County Councillor Nick Way said that so far as he could gather, the county council Highways teams were only looking to do the “bare bones” because it was so squeezed for money.

Things had changed from the days when there was a lot of collaboration between the council and landowners.

It was felt that the county council did not understand the plight of the lanes in Devon where there often was no verge and where it expected farmers to do a lot of the work. The council took some time looking at the county council website on road repairs.

MORE ROADS

The square pothole in the road at Moorlake was discussed, Cllr John Stevens explaining that holes had been dug in various places for a fibre optic cable, this being one, that it had been repaired three times, another place where the repair was getting worse.

Members wondered how many times such things would have to be reported before a proper repair, after all the council was using money contributed by local people.

ALLOWED?

There were queries if what looked like a bungalow built in the field that members knew as Scuffles near Keymelford needed planning permission. This is to be checked.

Cllr Nick Yarnold reported that the collapsed drain in the road at Yeoford had been repaired, that a road sweeper had cleared leaves, and some more drain work was to be done by March 16.

Cllr Edna Beasley reported that a number of drains in the area had been cleared.

Members were not satisfied with the replies from the county council about a poor diversion system during the Fordton road closure that resulted in lorries getting stuck in too many places.

The council was told delays in repairing the partly collapsed wall on Exeter Road were mainly because of legal issues. “Thank goodness for the link road” was the comment of several.

Cllr Way reported that a number of new waiting restrictions for Crediton were to be considered at the next HATOC (Highways and Traffic Orders Committee) this month, as well as a Puffin crossing from the Wellparks estate.

As well as giving a pedestrian way to the supermarket, it was felt this could be useful for getting to the railway station and the health hub being built.

PLANNING

Members voted in favour of a planning application from Mrs Terry Matthews for a variation of the condition of a previous planning permission to allow her to change the external appearance of the building at Marlin Sportscars Engineering Workshop, Trobridge. Mrs Matthews was allowed to explain her plans at the Zoom meeting.

The council also supported an application from Mr Hitt to build a dwelling and access with associated works at 1 Meadow View, Westwood. There had been concerns about persistent flooding there. The council felt precautions needed to be taken to alleviate flooding.

The council also supported an application from Mr D Morgan to build a house following demolition of an existing workshop at Beare Farm.

It supported an application from T Chenore to demolish the conservatory and put up a single storey rear extension at 1 The Oaks, Yeoford.