Minutes of a meeting of the Town Projects Advisory Committee held in the Council Chamber, Windmill Lane, Northam on Thursday 16th October 2008.

PRESENT: Chairman - Cllr R W A Miller

Members - Cllrs B M Edwards, R H Osborne together with Mr Richard Haste, TDC

Other Councillor in attendance – A J Eastman

Apologies were recorded on behalf of Cllrs Mrs M Cox, P Hames and R J Johnson

1. Minutes of the Town Projects Advisory Committee held 19 th August 2008

The minutes of the Town Projects Committee held on 19 th August 2008 as amended were approved and signed.

(Vote: Unanimous)

2. Dog bins and street cleaning

The Chairman welcomed Mr Richard Haste from the District Council who was responsible for the cleansing service.

With respect to dog bins it was agreed that the twelve to be funded would be allocated on an equal basis to each ward. Mr Haste would order them and once in stock a site meeting would be held with Ward Members in order to identify appropriate locations.

There was then a general discussion on the enforcement with respect to domestic refuse. The District Council were currently appointing Officers with appropriate delegated powers in order to take action against those people who flout the rules. It was agreed to look at this again in the spring of 2009 by which time it was hoped the Officers would be in a position to report back on their endeavours. Mr Haste agreed to produce a small statement for the Council's newsletter.

Mr Haste also advised on the proposals to install, on the street, recycling facilities in the form of litter bin size receptacles for cans, plastic and paper. He advised that these were now installed in Torrington and appeared to be successful. He also advised Members on the credits that the District Council receives for its recycling activities.

On a response to a question on the vegetable matter that can be placed in the green recycling bins he advised that once the new composter was operational at the Deep Moor site it would be possible to take food waste and the end product made available to the public for recycling on their gardens.

The Chairman advised Mr Haste that the Council were wishing to increase the street cleaning in Northam to perhaps 6 – 7 hours per week. However, Mr Haste advised that he was unable to cover this number of hours from his existing work force. He suggested that perhaps the Council look at either employing directly, or through the District Council, a part time cleaner for perhaps 10 hours per week. It was estimated that this could cost £4,800 per year plus set up costs if the service was provided by the District Council. It was agreed that this be put forward to the next Council meeting for consideration. It was also agreed that Martin James, the Cleansing Officer, would walk the streets of Northam with Northam Councillors in order that the concerns of Councillors and the general public could be better understood.

3. Festive Lighting

The Chairman advised that he had spoken to the electrical contractor who installs the Christmas decorations for Bideford Town Council. He now had a bracket for the Christmas trees as a pattern and he was hoping that Councillors would approach local businesses with a view to these being made at reasonable cost. The idea was that the brackets would be fixed to buildings in the main streets and small Christmas trees installed and lit for the Christmas period and it was now for local Councillors to approach the businesses in their area to see if they were willing to sponsor the scheme.

The Chairman also advised that he had carried out an experiment with solar powered lights which was disappointing. The lights failed to maintain an adequate lighting period even after being charged twice over a five-day period from the mains. It was thought that the better option would be a mains lit system using low energy LED bulbs. It was thought that three or four large trees would be needed but the siting needed to be finalised by Councillors for their wards. Cllr Osborne suggested that a tree be planted at Northam Hall. It was thought that for this year it would need to be a cut tree with the permanent tree planted during January/February.

4. Any other business

Cllr Osborne advised that the Prince's Trust details were with the Town Clerk.