DRAFT Minutes from the Hope Community Council Meeting
For the purpose of communicating as soon as reasonably possible to our residents, these are the draft minutes taken from the meeting for your information. These have not been passed to the Council for approval and therefore amendments may be made before submitting to the council for approval at our next meeting.
Hope Community Council
Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on Wednesday 5th February 2025
Present: Councillors Mrs T Bowgett (Chair), Mrs L Davies, Mrs M Williams,
Mr B Hughes, Mr A Parsonage, Mr M Taylor, Mrs E Oldham, Dr P Bevan,
Mrs C Sheibani and Mr A Parry
By Phone: Councillor Mr J Mead
Also Present: Mrs S Hughes Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer
287. Apologies for Absence
RESOLVED: Apologies for absence were received and approved from Cllrs C Cunnah and J Arnold.
288. Declarations of Interest
There were no Declarations of Interest received.
289. Chairman’s Announcements
The Chair wished to thank Cllr Mead for his help and assistance with setting up of council email accounts.
290. Minutes of Council
RESOLVED: the Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of the Council held on 4th December 2024 be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
291. Minutes of Committees
RESOLVED: the minutes of the following standing committees be approved and adopted and confirmed as a correct record.
i. Planning and Highways – 4th December 2024
ii. Leisure and Environment – 4th December 2024
iii. Finance – 4th December 2024
292. To Review any Matters Arising from the Minutes
There were no matters arising.
293. To receive any Public Questions/Correspondence
i. An email received congratulating the council on the appointment of Mr Ferrari and to commend the improvements made in the area since his appointment.
ii. Correspondence received from Abermorddu County Primary School regarding on going costs relating to their community defibrillator and to request any financial support from the council.
iii. A local resident commissioned a tree report to be untaken at Caergwrle Castle, a copy of which was shared with all members and Flintshire Countryside Services.
RESOLVED:
ii. In principle members were in support. This will be included on the March agenda for further discussion.
iii. The report was received and noted. Any recommendations within the report will be fully reviewed by Flintshire Countryside Services and appropriate works undertaken.
294. To receive the County Councillor Report from Cllrs David and Gladys Healey
Cty Cllrs David and Gladys Healey provided a report which included information on:
General issues - We dealt with several resident enquiries regarding missed black bin and recycling collections, Social Care issues and have reported instances of Anti Social Behaviour. We have also dealt with planning issues. Gladys, as a member of the Planning Committee, does not form an opinion on applications until she had heard all the evidence submitted to the Committee itself. However, she has asked for a site meeting and for the application to build five houses on the land at the junction of Llwyn Eglwys and Hawarden Road in Hope to be called into Committee
National Park - We were grateful for the support from Hope Community Council for the inclusion of parts of Hope and Caergwrle within the proposed new National Park for Wales. Unfortunately, Flintshire failed to support the idea of a new National Park in its response to the consultation by Natural Resources Wales. A small group of County Councillors are working towards presenting a Notice of Motion to Flintshire’s Council on the subject. Their aim is to ensure that the message going out from the Council is not completely negative and that the door remains open for consideration. It is believed that County Council may be consulted on the final proposals in March 2025.
Council Finances - February is a crunch month for Council decisions regarding the Budget and there are several additional meetings being scheduled to discuss options for producing a balanced budget. We can expect unpleasant proposals to emerge.
20 mph - We received and submitted a petition from residents who wanted to keep the section of the A451 from Caergwrle Petrol Station to Bryn Tirion at 2 0 MPH. We do not yet know the outcome of this consultation.
We expect that there will be consultations proposals to revert to 30 mph on Hawarden Road in Caergwrle and Abermorddu and Fagl Lane in Hope. It is worth noting that one of the criteria for keeping 20 mph which was outlined by the Minister, Ken Skates, was that there should be evidence that people were sticking to 20 mph along the stretch of road under consideration. Therefore if residents want to keep their roads at 20 mph it does not help if they say the rule is not being adhered to!
Hwb Caergwrle - CIO is grateful for the grant received from Hope Community Council and has drawn up a programme or First Friday talks in Hope Community Library from the first Friday in March.
Tourism Report - We know that Hope Community Council commissioned a report on the tourism potential of our area from consultant Inigo Thomas. Mr Thomas did consult Dave prior to writing the report and we are aware that he had some interesting points to make. If possible, we would like to receive a copy of the report from Hope Community Council and permission to share it with other interested bodies, especially Hwb Caergwrle.
RESOLVED: the report was received and noted. The council approved for a copy of the full Tourism Report to be shared with the County Councillors.
295. Delegated Powers
Full Council
i. Photocopier Rental – Change in ownership from Canda Copying to Vision. With the retirement of the Canda management team, new ownership has been sought to continue to support Canda clients.
ii. The clerk arranged with the Flintshire CAB and Hope Weekly Pop In (held at Hope Church Hall)) for the CAB to attend and present on Carbon Monoxide and Energy savings. Thursday 6th February 1.00 pm – 3pm.
iii. Ms H Cunnah previously managed the St David’s Day flag for the cenotaph, however, this will now be managed by the Groundsman.
iv. PSOW Consultation on its practice of not informing an Accused member of a complaint until after it has been assessed – the council’s response: Hope Community Council feel that the PSOW should revert back to its previous practice of notifying the Accused Member of a complaint as soon as it is received.
We believe that this is a fairer procedure as it does not seem right if the accused member’s behaviour is discussed by the PSOW, possibly discussed amongst the complainant’s circle and beyond without the accused member having knowledge of the complaint and thus the opportunity to defend themselves and their character.
There should be transparency in these situations so that all parties are treated with equal respect.
v. Approved for John (Groundsman) to write an article for Hope Church Magazine on his day to day activities, which will highlight the work being undertaken.
Planning & Highways
Planning
i. FUL/001046/24. Proposal of new development for 5 no. two/three bedroom homes to replace vacant site on the corner between Hawarden Road & Llwyn Eglwys. Land at Hawarden Road & Llwyn Eglwys, Hope. Object to the planning application as this would be overdevelopment of the site. However, the council have previously supported the earlier planning application Ref 057537 for three houses to be built on the site.
The increase in traffic and vehicles would exacerbate the existing problem of excessive parking on the estate road and pavements.
Not only does this cause distress for residents, there is concern of access to the estate for emergency vehicles and refuse collections and pedestrian safety. We are aware that refuse collectors have on occasions been unable to access the estate.
The contaminated land needs to be addressed and satisfactorily inspected before any building on the site is commenced,
ii. FUL/001060/24. Application to vary Condition No.1 in relation to previous planning application ref: FUL 477/24. Kariba, Fellows Lane, Caergwrle, Wrexham. Supported
iii. FUL/001100/24. Re-submission of previously approved extension Application Ref: 060651 single storey rear kitchen /living accommodation. 11, Almond Way, Hope. Supported
iv. FUL/000017/25. Extensions to lounge and kitchen. Replacement of existing roof creating bedrooms at first floor. Montrose, Rhyddyn Hill, Caergwrle. Supported
v. FUL/001110/24. Installation of solar panels on the roof. Caergwrle Methodist Church, Castle Street, Caergwrle. Supported
vi. FUL/001102/24. Redevelopment of site, retention of 5 containers and detached building with addition of 25 storage containers. Wrexham Signs Ltd, Pughs Yard, Hawarden Road, Caergwrle. Supported
Installation of Defibs
The Clerk met with the contractor regarding installing the defibs. The Church were excellent and very accommodating. They will even be undertaking some alterations to their pathway to ensure the defib is easily accessible.
The quotes were received and the cost for the church was as expected at £574+vat, however, the community centre entails a lot more work, due to the distance of the defib to the electricity board, the quote was £1242+vat. This meant that we would be £32 over the agreed £4500 budget. The clerk liaised with the Chair of P& H Cllr Davies and although it will be slightly overbudget, she was happy to approve. As this would be overbudget, albeit, only very slightly, the clerk sought approval for all 4x Chairs.
Installation due to completed tomorrow (6th Feb).
Christmas Lighting Contractor
The tender document has been issued and quotes will be received and included for consideration at the March council meeting.
Leisure & Environment
Noticeboards
Delivery of 2x boards – installed in Hope and Caergwrle. The Abermorddu board is due to be delivered mid – late Feb.
RESOLVED: the report was received and ratified. A ‘thank you’ letter will be sent to Caergwrle Evangelical Church for their support with the installation of the defib.
296. Councillor Vacancy
Due to the resignation of Cllr Jane Tilston and the vacancy that has arisen, in accordance with the Local
Government Act, 1972 (Section 87(2)) the council is required to advertise a Casual Vacancy for a period
of 14 days. Should an election not be requested, the council would then be required to advertise for co-option.
RESOLVED: the Notice of Vacancy will be displayed and Flintshire County Council informed. This will be
included on the March agenda.
297. Flintshire Tourism Feasibility Fund
Members had reviewed the report and considered that there were options that could be considered further. It was suggested for a Working Group to be formed to explore these options further.
RESOLVED: the Working Group members will be Cllrs Bevan, Bowgett, Parsonage and Davies (members not present will also be invited). Cllr Bevan and the Clerk will prepare a statement to accompany the Overview which will be published on the council website.
298. Council Calendar of Events
RESOLVED: the calendar of events was approved and will be published on the website and facebook.
299. Clerks Report
The Clerk circulated the updated Issue Log detailing outstanding issues and details of progress. This report
is for information only and should any items require further discussion they will need to be included on a
future agenda (if not already on the current agenda).
It was reported that there is no lighting under the bridge from Hope Station to Sarn Lane.
A report was also submitted by the Groundsman on work undertaken and future works.
RESOLVED: the report was received and noted and will be updated accordingly.
Photographs of some of the Groundsman works will be published on the facebook page.
The issue of street lighting will be reported to FCC. Cllr Parry will also report this to WBRUA.
300. Correspondence
The following correspondence was received and noted:
· OVW & Planning Aid Wales Training Courses and events.
· OPCC North Wales Newsletter
· FCC, LDP - Consultation on Draft Supplementary Guidance
RESOLVED: this will be included on the Planning & Highways agenda fort March.
· OVW – AGM: Tuesday 11 March, 4.00pm – 6.00pm
RESOLVED: members not present will be asked if they wish to attend.
· Quarterly Police Meeting – 13th February, 5.00pm – 7.00pm
RESOLVED: members not present will be asked if they wish to attend.
· Older People’s Commissioner for Wales – Questionnaire
RESOLVED: this will be shared on the website and facebook.
· Ambition North Wales – Public Consultation on the future of transport.
RESOLVED: this will be shared on the website and facebook. Members will respond individually, however, should any member consider that the council should submit a formal response, this will be requested for the March agenda.
301. Future Agenda Items
· Nothing in addition to the above was requested.
Hope Community Council
Minutes of the Finance Committee Meeting
held on Wednesday 5th February 2025
Present: Councillors Mrs T Bowgett (Chair), Mrs L Davies, Mrs M Williams,
Mr B Hughes, Mr A Parsonage, Mr M Taylor, Mrs E Oldham, Dr P Bevan,
Mrs C Sheibani and Mr A Parry
By Phone: Councillor Mr J Mead
Also Present: Mrs S Hughes Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer
302. To Receive Apologies for Absence
RESOLVED: Apologies for absence were received and approved from Cllrs C Cunnah and J Arnold.
303. To Receive any Declarations of Interest
There were no Declarations of Interest received.
304. Minutes
RESOLVED: the minutes of the Committee Meeting held on 4th December 2024, be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
305. To review any Matters Arising from the Minutes
There were no matters arising.
306. Quarterly Budget Review
i. The Clerk provided the Council with copies of the quarterly year summary, budget monitoring report and bank reconciliation (Appendix A). The documents had been reviewed prior to the meeting and no issues were raised.
ii. In order to meet the requirements of the financial regulations and internet banking, it is necessary for a programme of regular checks of standing data with suppliers to be followed.
RESOLVED:
i. The quarterly budget/accounts were approved by the Council and signed by Cllr Davies.
ii. The requirement to undertake regular checks of standing data with suppliers will be completed by Cllr Bevan electronically.
307. Grant Application Form
Members reviewed and considered a revised Grant Application which would allow for more detailed information to be obtained to assist when awarding grants.
RESOLVED: the application form was approved, with the addition of the current criteria to be included.
308. Payments
i. To report and ratify payments made during the winter recess:
Payable to Details Amount
HSBC Monthly Bank Fee £5.40
Timbersource Ltd Wooden slats for bench refurbishment £530.21
Flintshire County Council Street Light - Kiln Lane Cast Iron columns £663.60
Flintshire County Council Street Light Repairs - Rhyddyn Hill £525.60
Penyffordd Council Clerk Training (50% cost) £291.50
Staffing Cost Dec-24 £2,426.24
Mr J Ferrari Equipment, Travel etc £68.74
Mrs S Hughes Stationery, Postage, Equipment, Travel etc £73.13
Mrs S Hughes Tesco Mobile - Monthly data package £10.00
AVOW Payroll - July - Dec £47.85
Mrs S Hughes Christmas Lights Competition Prizes £120.00
Bewcraft Signs 3x Updates to Chairman Board £126.00
ii. To authorise accounts for payment up to and including 5th February 2025.
Payable to Details Amount
HSBC Monthly Bank Fee £5.00
RN Electrical Ltd Biannual CCTV Servicing £1,020.00
Mega Electrical Remove & Store Xmas Lights - Caergwrle £850.20
Mega Electrical Remove & Store Xmas Lights - Hope £1,242.60
Mega Electrical Remove & Store Xmas Lights - Abermorddu £1,373.40
Staffing Cost Jan-25 £2,403.94
Mr J Ferrari Equipment, Travel etc £15.75
Mrs S Hughes Stationery, Postage, Equipment, Travel etc £200.28
Mrs S Hughes Tesco Mobile - Monthly data package £10.00
Barry Hughes Members Allowance £336.00
Christine Cunnah Members Allowance £1,120.00
Jenny Arnold Members Allowance £384.00
Elaine Oldham Members Allowance £304.80
Myra Williams Members Allowance £848.00
Lynn Davies Members Allowance £800.00
Tracey Bowgett Members Allowance £1,544.64
Paul Bevan Members Allowance £340.00
HMRC PAYE & NI - Members Allowances £1,194.80
Mega Electrical Xmas Light Repairs - Abermorddu £240.00
Mega Electrical Install & Remove 5x new xmas lights and
Repairs - Porch Lane £774.00
Mega Electrical Install & Remove 3x new xmas lights Hawarden Rd
and Repairs - Fagl lane £709.20
Mega Electrical Install defib - Heulwen Close Community Centre £1,490.40
Mega Electrical Install defib - Caergwrle Evangelical church £688.80
Canda Copying Photocopier Rental £48.00
RESOLVED:
i. The payments made during the winter recess were received and ratified.
ii. The above payments be approved. In accordance with the Financial Regulations, the schedule for payments was signed by the Chairman of Finance and/or the Chairman of the Council and countersigned by two bank signatories.
Hope Community Council
Minutes of the Planning & Highways Committee Meeting
held on Wednesday 5th February 2025
Present: Councillors Mrs L Davies (Committee Chair), Mrs T Bowgett,
Mrs M Williams, Mr B Hughes, Mr A Parsonage, Mr M Taylor, Mrs E Oldham,
Dr P Bevan, Mrs C Sheibani and Mr A Parry
By Phone: Councillor Mr J Mead
Also Present: Mrs S Hughes Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer
309. To Receive Apologies for Absence
RESOLVED: Apologies for absence were received and approved from Cllrs C Cunnah and J Arnold.
310. To Receive any Declarations of Interest
There were no declarations of interest received.
311. Minutes
RESOLVED: the minutes of the Committee Meeting held on 4th December 2024, be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
312. To review any Matters Arising from the Minutes
Min 239 –TfW have advised that unfortunately, they are not able to install a defib at this moment.
At the point of their defib rollout they excluded Hope station for two reasons: a prevalence of antisocial behaviour and gathering youths, and the upcoming removal of the barrow crossing meant future station access at that point was uncertain – with there being three potential access points to Hope station and no easy route between platforms, should someone turn up on the wrong side panicking for the defib they didn’t want to be potentially putting people at further risk by crossing the track to access it.
Min 277/239 – the Caergwrle Evangelical Church and Heulwen Close Community Centre defibrillators will be completed tomorrow.
313. Planning Applications
i. There were no planning applications received for the Committee to consider.
ii. To report on applications received which have been determined by Flintshire County Council.
a) FUL/001060/24. Application to vary Condition No.1 in relation to previous planning application ref: FUL 477/24. Kariba, Fellows Lane, Caergwrle, Wrexham. Approved
b) FUL/000960/24. New Hand Car Wash & Valet to land to rear of Ocean Bangladeshi Restaurant and associated works. Ocean Bangladeshi Restaurant And Takeaway, Hawarden Road, Hope. Refused
c) FUL/000973/24. Business storage to land to rear of Ocean Bangladeshi Restaurant and associated works. Ocean Bangladeshi Restaurant, Hawarden Road, Hope. Refused
d) LBC/000764/24. Listed building Consent for the construction of a swimming pool with enclosure, pump house and patio. HARTSHEATH, Pontblyddyn. Approved.
314. Highway Matters
· Complaints have been received regarding HGV’s parking outside of the Co-op, which is causing visibility obstruction for both pedestrians and vehicles.
RESOLVED: this will be reported both the PCSO and FCC Enforcement.
· Cllr Parsonage reported a raised telephone inspection grid at the end of Heulwen Close onto Hawarden Road which is a trip hazard. He also reported that the overgrown trees near the bus stop on Hawarden Road have not been cut back.
RESOLVED: both issues will be reported to FCC Streetscene.
Hope Community Council
Minutes of the Leisure & Environment Committee Meeting
held on Wednesday 5th February 2025
Present: Councillors Mrs M Williams (Committee Chari), Mrs T Bowgett, Mrs L Davies,
Mr B Hughes, Mr A Parsonage, Mr M Taylor, Mrs E Oldham, Dr P Bevan,
Mrs C Sheibani and Mr A Parry
By Phone: Councillor Mr J Mead
Also Present: Mrs S Hughes Clerk and Responsible Financial Officer
315. To Receive Apologies for Absence
RESOLVED: Apologies for absence were received and approved from Cllrs C Cunnah and J Arnold.
316. To Receive any Declarations of Interest
There were no declarations of interest received.
317. Minutes
RESOLVED: the minutes of the Committee Meeting held on 4th December 2024, be approved as a correct record and signed by the Chair.
318. To review any Matters Arising from the Minutes
There were no matters arising.
319. Christmas Lights Competition 2024
RESOLVED: The competition was again successful and judging was undertaken by Cllrs Bowgett and Sheibani.
1st place: 1 Alyndale Hope
2nd place: 15 Alyndale Hope
Joint 3rd : 3 Llwyn Eglwys Hope and 30 Bryn Yorkin Caergwrle
320. Caergwrle High Street – Flowerbeds
It has been suggested by the Groundsman that these flowerbeds could be a community project, where we can get the community involved with planting and maintaining the area, with the support of Mr Ferrari.
RESOLVED: the council approved this initiative. Cllrs Oldham and Parsonage will assist Mr Ferrari with managing the project. The clerk will ascertain if any grants are available for the community project.
321. Play Areas
i. Willow – No update regarding the potential sink hole, this has been chased by the Clerk, Richard Roberts and Cty Cllr G Healey.
ii. Queensway – FCC have undertaken a Lease Review and the new annual rent will increase to £97.37 with effect from April 2024. It is unknow whether the variance will backdated to 2024.
Play Area Maintenance Contract – the existing contractor Man Coed has gone into administration, however, effective 1st December 2024, all existing contracts with Man Coed VM Ltd will be transferred to Forest Tree Surgery & Grounds Maintenance Ltd (Forest). This transition has been carefully planned to ensure continuity and minimise disruption to operations.
iii. Replacement dog signs have been purchased and installed at the Willow and Queensway (the original signs have either been damaged or removed). The new signs are now aluminium and installed with metal tie raps which will be much sturdier.
iv. Benches - Delivery received and Richard Roberts will co-ordinate and liaise with the contractor for installation.
RESOLVED:
i. Due to the delays and lack of communication from FCC, the Chair considered that this should not impact the future works on the play area any further.
ii. The Lease Review was approved by council and the paperwork will be signed by the Clerk.
322. Cenotaph – Flag Application
RESOLVED: the council approved the flag application received from Owain Glyndwr Society.
323. Litter Bins
Whilst Mr Ferrari has been doing his litter picking rounds, he has identified two areas that are regularly a problem with litter and no bins:
• Hope Station – Sarn Lane by bridge
• Stryt Isa – footpath/style into school field
The Clerk has contacted FCC to ask if they would be happy for bins to be installed here? Is this something that FCC can fund? If not, what are the cost to purchase 2x new bins? If the community council were required to pay for the bins, could FCC install free of charge? She is waiting to receive a response.
RESOLVED: once the information is received from FCC, this will be included on the agenda for consideration.
324. Caergwrle Castle
i. Cadw and FCS are still reviewing and amending the 2025-26 Draft Management Plan.
ii. FCS reported that following recent high winds there were 5 potentially dangerous broken branches hanging above paths at the castle which have been removed and a full check of the site did not find any more. A couple of trees in poor condition next to the path at the rear of the castle have been felled.
There is also a potentially dangerous dead sycamore on private land next to the castle site at the top of the tarmac path entrance, they will look into ownership and talk to them about its removal at their expense.