Draft Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on Tuesday 10 March 2026 at 7.30 pm at Woodah Farm

 Present: Cllr C Wood (Chairman), Cllr J Sawyer, Cllr H Brook, District Cllr A Swain, Mr T Porter (Parish Council representative at the Teign Valley Community Hall) and A Miller (Clerk)

1         Welcome and Apologies for Absence

Cllrs Newton-Humes, Salter and Crocker sent their apologies.

As Cllr Newton-Humes, Chairman of the Parish Council, was not present at the meeting, Cllr Wood, vice-chairman of the Council, chaired the meeting.

2         Declarations of Interest / Requests for Dispensations

None.

Open Forum

Vacancy on the Parish Council was discussed. Clerk to put co-option on the agenda at the annual meeting.

3         County and District Councillors’ and Police Reports

District Cllr Swain reported that the budget had been set in the District and gave an update about local government reorganization.

County councillor and police reports were forwarded to the Parish Council.

4         Ratification of Minutes of Previous Meeting

Resolved The Minutes of the Ordinary Council meeting of 10 February 2026 were unanimously accepted as a true record.

The Chair signed the Minutes.

5         To Elect a Representative to the Teign Valley Community Hall

Mr Porter, the current representative to the Hall, informed the Council that he was in the process of moving away from the village. He reminded the meeting that the Hall was originally built for five parishes, including Doddiscombsleigh, and the School holds its Art Show there. He also gave a summary of the work involved with the representative position. The Council decided to return to the question at its annual meeting.

6         To Discuss the Community Use of the School Playing Field

The Council agreed to return to the topic at the annual meeting. Cllr Wood agreed to contact the headteacher about the issue.

7         To Discuss Littering in the Village

The Council agreed to look for a suitable date for litter pick in September.

8         To Receive an Update About Installing a Second Defibrillator in the Parish

The Clerk reported that the second defibrillator in the village has been installed. The landowner paid for the installation, and he did not expect the Parish Council to reimburse him.

The Clerk drafted an agreement for installing the defibrillator on private property. There were no objections to the draft.

The Clerk reported that the new defibrillator was insured, free of charge until 1 June 2026. The insurance would cost about £6/year afterwards, if the Parish Council renewed the agreement with the current insurer.

Teign Valley First Responders now have access to update the status of the community defibrillators on Circuit, the online system used by the ambulance services.

Possible dates for defibrillator training were discussed. Cllr Wood to contact the School and ask if the building can be used for the training.

9         To Receive an Update About a Bus Shelter Incident in September 2025

Ruby Heritage expects to start the repair work mid or late March. The work was postponed from the end of February because of the weather.

The invoice for a deposit has been received, which is the third of the total agreed sum. Two remaining invoices will need to be paid before the next meeting in May. The Council agreed to pay the deposit and when they are due, the remaining sums.

The original quote did not include the painting of the whole bus shelter, only the damaged part. The Clerk has asked for a quote for painting the remaining part as well, as it would be due soon. The contractor will give a quote when he starts the repair work. The Council agreed that the undamaged part of the bus shelter needs to be painted as well.

10     To Discuss Highways Issues

10.1   To Receive a Highways Update

• Road sweeping – after the Parish Council reported the accumulation of leaves at the edge of the lanes to Highways, Devon County Council asked the District Council to sweep the roads in the village. Teignbridge did sweep some of the roads.
• Rectory Lane – some potholes have been repaired and South West Water vehicles can go down to the sewage plant now.
• Parking at the Triangle – the Parish Council received an email from a resident drawing the Council’s attention to the problem. The Parish Council agreed that there were occasions when parking vehicles made it difficult to use the road. The authority for putting up new signs is Devon Highways.
• Road warden scheme – there is still some tarmac left that needs to be used up by the end of March. Cllr Wood and Cllr Brook agreed to organize volunteers for pothole filling at the end of March.
• 20 is plenty drawings – grant application was sent to the District Council by a volunteer from Friends of Doddiscombsleigh.

10.2   To Receive a Parish Path Partnership and Footpath Update

None.

11     To Discuss a Possible Response to the Consultation on Proposals for Local Government Reorganization in Devon

No comments were made.

12     To Discuss Finance

12.1   To Receive a Finance Report

The total bank balance on 28 February 2026 was £16,584.05. After deducting the amount of earmarked funds and grants, the general reserve was £6,093.38.

In February the 2025/26 Parish Path Partnership grant of £110 was credited to the bank account.

12.2   To Approve Payments

Venue hire 10 March 2026 £10.00

Card monthly fee Feb 2026 £3.00

Unity Bank account fee Jan 2026 £6.00

Office mobile top up £5.00

Deposit for bus shelter repair £997.99

Resolved The Council unanimously approved the payments.

The Council also noted that there will be two more payments for bus shelter repair and a separate invoice for the painting of the undamaged part before the next meeting.

13     Clerk’s Correspondence

• The Parish Council received an email regarding the upcoming village fete. The Parish Council agreed to provide insurance for the event, as usual.
• The Clerk reported that there was a problem with the Council email – one member of the public could not send an email the Council. The email provider had been notified.

14     Date of Next Meeting

19 May 2026 Annual Parish Meeting followed by the Annual Council Meeting.

15     Chairman’s Remarks

The Chairman thanked everybody for their participation and closed the meeting at 8.49 pm.

Signed…………………………………………………………

Chairman

Date

16     PART B

The Parish Council discussed the lengthsman quotes and agreed to appoint Mr Jake Jackson as parish lengthsman for the next two years.