The council met on Wednesday, October 25 to discuss a variety of topics such as A boards, the One Council Consultation results, drainage, Batson parking, Open Spaces and Remembrance.Due to poor coverage, the first part of the meeting is not included in the recording but details of what was discussed can be found on the website.

Open Forum- Rufus Gilbert-Conference about Highways on Thursday, November 16, at Rattery Village Hall.

Then he discussed some of the issues with the councils budget and that governments are cutting grants, but he doesn’t know where cuts will be made at the moment. He also expressed his desire that the Highways will not be effected.

After which, he informed the council that every child will be receiving another £80 which the schools can spend how they chose to. This is a promising scheme, Cllr. Gilbert explained because all the schools in Devon are already rated as Outstanding or Good.

He encouraged councillors and residents alike to report pot holes online because it is the most direct way to get this issue fixed.

After this, he raised five points on Devon issues that he has received statistics about.

1) 19.5% of the population in Devon have a disability

2) 11.5% of the population in Devon are carers

3) 61.5% of the population in Devon are Christian

4) 2.5% of the population in Devon are from an ethnic minority

5) 6-10% of the population in Devon have a non-metrosexual orientation

The Mayor raised the situation of the A boards that have been blocking access ways on the road which Cllr. Tony Lang seconded. Cllr. Gilbert warned the councillors that fighting this issue could be very contentious, but he assured councillors that Devon County Council will fully support them.

Judy Pearce-Confirmed the details with councillors for their future planning meeting on Tuesday, November 14 and she assured councillors that the scaffolding will be removed by the Remembrance Service.

Simon Wright-Reported back after the Kingsbridge consultation, discussed the deficit issue at South Hams District Council which he fears will be sorted out through cuts and explained that the One Council Consultation results are online.

Councillors also discussed some parking issues that have become evident at half term such as the difficulty with parking at Creeks car park due to some areas having been fenced off for boats.

Some businesses have questioned why the park and ride wasn’t running over half term, which was done due to the lack of profit and sponsorship for the park and ride.

31.00-Minutes-approved

34.00-Planning Applications

01.04.00-Wildlife Resources Map and Species Record-the plans were approved

01.06.02-Drainage- Cllr. Richard Whitfield agreed to do a full map and report on all the drains which can then be sent to County Highways.

01.09.32- Batson Parking-The councillors discussed who should be able to park here-be it walkers, workers or residents.

01.15.03-Open Spaces Sport and Recreation- They discussed how to move forward with the information they have and plan some drafts for some other projects.

01.22.00-Remembrance Sunday-The Councillors discussed who would play the Last Post and the different options for the music system.

01.32.50-Reports-The Mayor discussed the civic lunch, affordable building projects and the neighbourhood Plan.

-Councillors-they discussed benches, the website and the issue of builders who are abusing their parking permits.

-Town Clerk-She discussed the footpath near Shadycombe, the rebuilding of the cliff wall and the resurfacing of Fore Street.