1. Art and Diseño

ENVIRONMENT AND
HERITAGE COMMITTEE
Members of the Environment and Heritage Committee
are summoned to attend a Meeting at 7.45pm on
Wednesday 28 January 2015
at 1 Buckingham Court, Rectory Lane, Loughton
to transact the business shown in the agenda.
Enid K Walsh
Town Clerk
22 January 2015
Councillor C C Pond (Chairman)
Councillor C P Pond (Vice Chairman)
Councillors
P Beales
J Jennings
S Pewsey
C Davies
I Lawrence
T Downing
M Owen
Note to Councillors:
If you are unable to attend the meeting,
please phone your apologies to the office on 020 8508 4200.
Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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AGENDA
1
Apologies
To RECEIVE any apologies for absence.
2
Declarations of Interest
For Councillors to declare any pecuniary or non-pecuniary interest in any items on the
Agenda.
3
Confirmation of Minutes
To CONFIRM the minutes of the meeting held on 19 November 2014.
4
Public Representations
To adjourn the meeting to hear any representations from members of the public who
have registered a request to address the Committee in accordance with no 5,
Appendix C, of the Standing Orders.
5
Matters for Report
To REPORT any further significant information on matters which have been
previously discussed, in addition to those which may already be included on the
agenda.
5.1
Light up a Life – Min no EH73.1
The service held on Kings Green on Saturday 29 November 2014, in
partnership with St Clare Hospice, was well attended. The Loughton Methodist
Church and Morrisons' supermarket, which provided the mince pies, have
been thanked for their support.
In total, the 2014 Light up a Life campaign at St Clare raised over £22,000.
The collection at the Loughton service raised £221.
James Barber, Community Fundraiser for St Clare, thanked the Town Council
for its continued support.
A date for the 2015 event will be arranged shortly.
5.2
Public Right of Way, Borders Lane/Rectory Lane – Min no EH123.1
For information, clearance of the fly tipping along this route has commenced.
The delay resulted from the change of waste contractor for Epping Forest
District Council. On Saturday 24 January 2015 a Community Service Team is
scheduled to undertake clearance of the vegetation on each side of the path,
of a strip approximately one metre wide.
5.3
Community Tree Strategy for Loughton – Min no EH134.3
The launch of the ‘Loughton’s Special Trees’ project will coincide with the
publication of the next edition of Think Loughton on 2 March 2015. Residents
are to be invited to nominate their favourite local trees – those which have a
personal connection for them and to provide the reasons why they matter
particularly to them. These can be special trees in public spaces or private
gardens and include non-native species. No deadline has been set for this
project, which is anticipated to last approximately a year. Opportunities will be
sought to further promote the project during this period.
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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5.4
Allotments – Min no EH134.4
5.4.1 Roding Road
The Committee is asked to confirm that a working party may be formed
to look at the existing Management Appointment, which expires on
31 December 2015, and to confirm the membership of that party.
5.5
Seats and Benches – Min no EH134.5
The Town Clerk is meeting with the Council’s solicitor on 26 January 2015 in
order to progress several outstanding items of business including the transfer
of a piece of land off Church Hill.
5.6
Heritage Plaques – Min no EH134.6
The ceremony for the unveiling of the plaque to commemorate Joan
Littlewood & Margaret Walker, installed at the entrance to the East 15 Acting
School, was held on 15 January 2015.
Plans for a plaque to remember Lady Mary Wroth (1587-1653), the first
recognised female author in England, are in hand.
5.7
Community Speed Watch – Min no EH134.8
The Town Clerk has contacted PC Stableford of Essex Police’s Casualty
Reduction Section to enquire whether they have the capacity to run this
scheme in Loughton this year.
5.8
Christmas Lighting – Min no EH134.11
For 2014 Christmas, the Town Council ran a pilot project to provide 1 metre
tall real trees lit with battery LED bulbs, installed in or above the flower
baskets in The Broadway and the High Road. From the comments received,
the general consensus was that “this was a good solution achieved at short
notice although the bulbs needed to shine more brightly”. Officers are
exploring the practicalities and cost of repeating this scheme but making a
significant improvement by upgrading the lighting to mains power sourced
from the street light columns.
5.9
Neighbourhood Planning – Min no EH138
The application for the designation of the civil parish of Loughton as a
Neighbourhood Area has been submitted to Epping Forest District Council.
Under the Neighbourhood Planning (General) Regulations 2012 EFDC, as the
Local Planning Authority, is required to publicise this application on its website
and invite representations on the proposed Neighbourhood Plan Area for a
period of at least six weeks.
5.10
Christmas Window Competition 2014
See attached report (page 6).
5.11
Committee Priorities – Min no EH139.1
The Resources and General Services Committee has asked this Committee to
review the priorities shown in its list for 2015/16 for flower baskets and town
signs.
*
*
6
*
A copy of the priorities is attached (see page 7).
Financial Position
The current financial report is attached together with details of the Committee’s
earmarked reserves (see pages 8 – 9).
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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7
Loughton War Memorial
At its last meeting the Committee confirmed that the requests for the missing names
of servicemen who lost their lives on active service to be added to the war memorial
should be progressed in 2015/16 as a high priority. It is anticipated that the Roll of
Honour, a list of all the names currently commemorated on the various memorials in
the town, will be available on the Council’s website by early March 2015.
Cllrs Pewsey and Pond are reviewing the records and provide the following report:
The Minutes of the Loughton War Memorial Committee, which planned and built
the memorial on Kings Green in 1918-24, are lost, and we consequently do not
know what criteria were used at the time. If these ever come to light, the Town
Council will wish to revise its policy.
The Town Council will consider adding names to the War Memorial periodically.
The combatant will have been killed whilst in the service of one of the Armed
Forces of the Crown, or have died subsequently as a result of injuries thus
sustained. (Members of the Merchant Navy, police, fire or ambulance services
or civil defence forces may be listed on the Civilian War Memorial)
He or she will also need to fulfil the criteria below:




Resident in the Ancient Parish of Loughton at the time of mobilisation OR
Resident previously for a significant period (e.g. five years in the ten preceding
the war) AND
Not already commemorated on the war memorial of another parish
Resident in a place nearby but active in the civic or institutional life of Loughton
for at least five years in the ten preceding the war AND
Not already commemorated on the war memorial of another parish
The Town Council will require evidence of residence and/or involvement before
considering the names. Publicity will be given to the list of missing names to be
added and the Royal British Legion will also be consulted on the proposals.
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*
9
Local Highway Panel
Essex Highways has invited the Town Council to submit new highway improvement
requests (including traffic management improvements and salt/grit bins) for
consideration by the Panel as it prepares recommendations for works in 2015/16.
Submissions are requested before the end of February 2015.
See attached report (page 10).
Traffic Commissioners and Operator Licensing
The County Secretary of the Kent Association of Local Councils calls on town and
parish councils to respond to the Traffic Commissioners and Operating Licensing
Review, which closes on 31 January 2015.
Last year a number of County Associations and their member councils supported
Wingham Parish Council’s proposal under the Sustainable Communities Act (SCA)
for parish and town councils to be made statutory consultees on vehicle operator
licence applications and renewals.
*
Attached is a copy of the Department for Communities and Local Government's
response to Wingham Parish Council on their SCA proposal (see page 11).
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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The DCLG is inviting the Council to respond to the Department for Transport’s review
of Traffic Commissioners and Operator Licensing which invites views through an
interactive website on the work and role of the Traffic Commissioners and potential
improvements to the operator licensing system. It is not a formal consultation.
The interactive website can be accessed
http://www.dft.gov.uk/traffic-commissioners-review/
10
*
11
using
the
following
link:
Flood Problems in Loughton
Essex County Council, the Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA), is working to prioritise
its available resources and prevent future surface water (storm water) flooding of
homes. The Town Council has been asked to list what it considers to be the top three
priority areas within the local area, which could prevent the flooding of residential
homes.
See attached report (page 12).
Environmental Issues
This agenda item provides an opportunity for the Committee to discuss concerns and
improve the ambience and environment of Loughton by tackling adverse factors and
promoting positive ones.
The methodology agreed is as follows:
Councillors should send to the Town Clerk at least 14 days before the meeting a
statement of what the eyesore is, its exact location, its ownership, if known, and the
desired course of action. Members would discuss the matter, come to a conclusion,
and then the Clerk would write to the responsible body outlining what the Town
Council would like to see done. If no action was taken, the matter could be publicised
and revisited at a subsequent meeting.
No issues have been raised at the current time.
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Future Work of the Committee
The opportunity for members to suggest topics to be considered by the Committee at
a future meeting, subject to the Committee’s agreement.
Note: No substantive discussion may take place under this item as the required
statutory notice of the topics will not have been given.
12.1
The Chairman makes the following suggestion to the Committee:
Sunday, 26 July 2015 marks the 75th anniversary of the falling of the first
bomb (and casualty) in the then Metropolitan Police area, at the public air
raid shelter which is now part of the District Council’s car park adjacent to the
Morrisons approach road off The Drive in Loughton. A Loughton fireman and
76-year old lady resident were killed in this incident.
The Committee may wish to consider at its next meeting whether a memorial
plaque or interpretation panel, should be installed in the car park, or on the
house (14 The Drive) where the casualty occurred.
Enid K Walsh
TOWN CLERK
22 January 2015
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 5.10
Christmas Window Competition 2014
Over a 100 Loughton businesses decorated their windows and joined in the town’s seasonal
celebrations in this year’s Christmas Window Competition. All Christmas-themed shop
windows were automatically eligible for the competition, and were split into three classes of
entry – local/independent businesses, multiples/chain stores and charity shops.
The judges – Cllrs Sharon Weston, the Town Mayor, and Chris and Caroline Pond,
Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Environment and Heritage Committee – had a
challenging time as 15 shops were in contention for the prizes and commendations. The
judges commented that “Christmas trees of various colours and sizes were very popular this
year. The High Road saw most of the increase in entries, possibly because of the efforts of
the Town Centre Partnership in stimulating interest. But it was obvious that shopkeepers all
over the town had exercised their ingenuity and artistic judgement with real enthusiasm”.
The judges expressed their thanks to all concerned as they made Loughton a really festive
place over the Christmas season.
The winners of the Christmas Window Competition 2014 were as follows:
Class
Shop/Business
Local / Independent
Winner
I Am So… Fly, 192 High Road, IG10 1DN
Runner-up
Gems, 233 High Road, IG10 1AD
Runner-up
Tony’s, 61 The Broadway, IG10 3SP
Highly commended
Hype, 190 High Road, IG10 1DN
Highly commended
Lottie Lou, 5A Forest Road, IG10 1DR
Multiple / chain store
Winner
Zee & Co, 221-225 High Road, IG10 1BB
Runner-up
Satori, 8 Forest Road, IG10 1DX
Charity
Winner
St Clare Hospice, 271 High Road, IG10 1AH
The charities that were chosen by the category winners each received a £100 donation from
the town council and this year were:
•
Breast Cancer Care – national charity.
•
Wallace Kennels – a local Essex based charity dog rescue centre that helps find a
home for unwanted, abandoned and strays in the county.
•
Local charity St Clare Hospice.
Each winner also received an engraved cup to keep for eleven months (which is awarded
again the following year) and a framed certificate.
Report by Vivienne Messenger
Planning Committee Clerk
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 5.11
Environment and Heritage Committee – Priorities 2015/16
Current
Main Function
Greater Detail/Current Position
Priority
Current activities
High
Heritage Open Days
Cemetery opening Sept 2015
High
Registration of Village Greens
Applications submitted to ECC
High
War Memorial, Kings Green
Additional names
High
Conservation Areas / areas of local
landscape merit
Monitor proposals submitted to EFDC
High
Oakwood Hill Estate improvements
Partnership with ECC and EFDC
New Estate signage
Medium
Town signs
Awaiting funding opportunities
Medium
Lady Whitaker’s Mead
Development of new cemetery
Medium
Vehicle speed reduction measures
Community speed watch scheme to be
developed
Medium
Flower baskets
Permissions, contract, installation
Medium
Interpretation panels
In preparation
Medium
Seats (new)
Site surveys, permissions, purchase
and installation
Heritage street lights
Awaiting funding
TBC
On-going activities
High
Running the committee
Agenda, reports, research, minutes,
finance, admin
High
Community Lavatory scheme
Awaiting approaches to businesses
High
Cemetery (Church Lane)
Burials, administration, maintenance
High
War memorials
Heritage plaques, drinking fountain,
seats and other street furniture;
Lopping Hall clock
Allotments
Christmas lights (Kings Green, The
Broadway and High Road)
Christmas Window Competition
Inspect and maintain
High
High
Installation and maintenance
High
Winter salt bag partnership
High
Parish Paths Partnership
Lettings, licences, administration
Installation, inspections and
maintenance
Admin and arrangements
Site surveys, permissions, purchase
and installation
Facilitating the ECC scheme
Replacement of existing grit bins
On-going
High
Responding to consultations
Variable
High
Any other matters within the Committee’s terms of reference
High
High
Medium
Alleyway nameplates
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Loughton Town
Counciland
2014/15
Environment
Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 6
Summary Income & Expenditure by Budget Heading 31/12/2014
Environment & Heritage Committee Report
Month No: 9
Actual
Last
Year
Christmas Windows Comp Expenditure
Actual
Year
To Date
Current Variance
Annual Annual
Budget
Total
Funds
Available
% of
Budget
327
330
375
45
45
88.1 %
Cemetery (1)
Expenditure 42,430
Income 21,627
26,851
15,315
55,100
22,000
28,249
-6,685
28,249
48.7 %
69.6 %
Street Furniture
Expenditure 12,187
Income
604
13,314
0
25,400
0
12,087
0
12,087
52.4 %
0.0 %
Allotments (2)
Expenditure
Income
346
358
1,698
2,262
3,000
361
1,302
1,901
1,302
56.6 %
626.6 %
Cemetery (Debden Lane)
Expenditure
490
510
10,600
10,090
10,090
4.8 %
Other services (3)
Expenditure
Income
1,280
400
595
8
7,000
0
6,405
8
6,405
8.5 %
0.0 %
Service Re-charge (4)
Expenditure 78,000
0
74,400
74,400
74,400
0.0 %
43,298 175,875 132,577
17,585 22,361
-4,776
132,577
24.6 %
78.6 %
INCOME - EXPENDITURE TOTALS
Environment and Heritage Expenditure 135,060
Income 22,989
Net Expenditure over Income 112,071
25,713 153,514 127,801
Notes:
1) Cemetery (Church Lane) – the year to date expenditure is shown as £26,851.
Estimated position as at 31/12/14 including the DSO grounds maintenance contract is
£38,256.
2) Allotment income of £2,262 is represented by £361 from licence fees at the Roding
Road site and £1,901 from plot rents at the Willingale Road allotment site.
3) Other Services is the budget heading for a £1,000 contingency, £5,000 towards the
village green legal fees fund and £1,000 for the First World War Centenary events.
4) Service Recharge £74,400. Position as at 31/12/14 is £55,800.
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 6 cont’d
Earmarked Reserves:
A summary of this Committee’s earmarked reserves showing the amounts available in this
current financial year is provided below:
Environment & Heritage Committee
1/04/14
£
Street furniture (inc £1,400 winter contingency)
13,950
Allotments
3,910
Tourist brochures
500
Community toilet scheme
1,000
Cemetery
34,350
Cemetery plot maintenance endowment (restricted fund)
4,414
Village Greens - legal fees
5,000
Lady Whitaker's Mead/new cemetery
84,375
Roding Hub
500
Total
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147,999
Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 8
Local Highway Panel
Each Local Highway Panel should be populating their potential schemes list, from which they
recommend schemes to go into the programme of highway improvement works. New
schemes are only added to the Potential Schemes List where there is clear support from the
relevant Parish/Town Council, the District Councillor, and the local County Councillor. Any
proposed scheme needs to be fully investigated/validated to ensure there is a feasible
solution to the issues raised and these schemes will be shown on the Potential Scheme List
presented to the Panel for approval.
Essex Highways would like to invite you as the County or District Member or Parish/Town
Council representatives to submit highway improvement requests (including traffic
management improvements) that can be considered by the Panel. These should not be
schemes which have been considered previously. To assist in submitting your requests I
have attached a copy of the LHP Scheme Request Form. This form is designed to capture
information on a specific problem or issue and how it impacts on the locality. It is not
necessary to define a solution as this will emerge through the validation stage. This form has
been revised to assist in making the process clearer and only requests submitted on this
form will be considered for validation to ensure that all requests are recorded and tracked
accordingly.
Essex Highways is keen to establish a programme of schemes that can be ready to
implement in the future and make a difference in a particular locality. In previous years the
trend has been to allocate the funding for a scheme as the request is received, this has
resulted in a reactive and inefficient method of working for Essex Highways. As mentioned in
a previous letter to the Local Highway Panel Chairman, Essex Highways would like to find
ways to work more efficiently so we can give a better service and deliver all schemes
identified in each financial year. To assist us in doing this we ask that you submit your new
scheme requests before the end of February 2015 this will enable all requests to be fully
validated and considered by the Panel in their upcoming meetings ready for the 2015/16
budget allocation. In line with proactive programming of the Local Highway Panel schemes
we urge you to be prompt in your application so that the Local Highway Panel can fully
allocate their budget for 15/16 at the March meeting. Any scheme requested after this date
will need to be assessed for deliverability and prioritised to be added to the rolling
programme.
I would also like to take this opportunity to inform you of other schemes which we deliver
through the Local Highway Panel funding. Experts within Safer Roads, Passenger
Transport, Cycling, School Crossing Patrol and Transportation Planning/Major Projects also
put forward schemes to the Local Highway Panel. The Local Highway Panels then make
recommendations on which schemes they would like to take forward to the Cabinet Member
for approval. These schemes can include a multitude of Highway improvements ranging
from schemes to tackle casualty reduction, new cycleways and footways, junction
improvements, improvements at bus stops and upgrades on existing crossing points.
Please can the completed forms be returned to this email address with EPPING FOREST
LHP written in the subject box.
There is no limit on the amount of schemes which can be requested for one area and for
further details on schemes being considered and delivered within your area please see the
latest Local Highway Panel minutes.
http://www.essexhighways.org/transport-and-roads/highway-schemes-anddevelopments/local-highway-panels.aspx.
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 9 - Traffic Commissioners and Operator Licensing
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Environment and Heritage Committee 28 January 2015
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Agenda item 10
Flood Problems in Loughton
Essex County Council
Planning & Environment
E3 County Hall
Chelmsford
Essex CM1 1QH
To Parish/Town Council Chairmen
and Parish Clerks
19 December 2014
Dear Sir/Madam,
RE: WHERE ARE THE FLOOD PROBLEMS IN YOUR AREA
On 4 November Town/Parish Councils received the Essex County Council parish bulletin
which contained an article and explained the role of the Council as the Lead Local Flood
Authority (LLFA). This provided information on the new flood and water management
responsibilities of the Council and also enquired of you if there was any interest in receive
more information about specific areas of our flood and water management activity, to which a
number of councils have already replied.
In addition to the technical studies (Surface Water Management Plan) and flood investigation
reports the flood team undertakes, my team wants to work with Town and Parish Councils to
utilise local knowledge to understand where people feel the flood priority areas are. These
problem areas could be, locations where homes have actually been flooded, have a history
of flooding or areas viewed as presenting a risk of flooding to homes in the future.
As the LLFA the focus for the flood team is about preventing flooding of residential homes.
To this end Essex County Council works collaboratively with partners including the
Environment Agency and Water Companies. In addition this Council is looking to invest
additional resources to prevent rainwater flooding of homes in Essex. This is additional to the
work being undertaken by the Environment Agency who are responsible for river and coastal
flooding which they share with coastal District and Borough Councils. In addition Essex
Highways remain the led organisation responsible for dealing with flooding on the highway.
In order to help this Council prioritise our available resources and prevent future surface
water (storm water) flooding of homes, it would be helpful if you could list what your
Town/Parish Council consider as being the top three priority areas within your parish, which
could prevent the flooding of residential homes.
Please complete the attached form and return this by 31 January 2014 to
[email protected] All schemes will then be assessed to help inform the priorities of the
Essex Flood Partnership Board and in turn the flood and water management flood prevention
work over the next few years.
Yours sincerely
Graham Thomas
Head of Service – Planning & Environment
Essex County Council
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