Clifton Hampden Parish Council Ordinary Meeting – 18th August 2025 – Draft
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF CLIFTON HAMPTON PARISH COUNCIL
HELD ON MONDAY 18th AUGUST 2025
1/020 Present
Councillors: Chair: Dougie Ansombe-Stephen (DAS), Franck Doreau (FD), Kate Lowe (KL), Svea Cheesman (SC).
Clerk: Charlotte Ray
Oxford County Council: Cllr Robin Jones – present
South Oxfordshire District Council: Cllr Sam Casey Rerhaye – Absent
Members of the public – 13
1/021 Apologies for absence:
Rory Maxwell (RM), Alex Seal (AS).
1/022 To elect a Vice-Chair for Clifton Hampden PC and receive their Declaration of Acceptance of Office.
Cllr Lowe was nominated by Cllr Ansombe-Stephen and Cllr Cheesman. The remaining PC agreed.
1/023 To agree and approve the Co-Option of a further CHPC Cllr.
An application had been received from Paul Sanders. The PC unanimously voted for Mr Sanders to join the PC.
Cllr Paul Sanders introduced himself to the members of the public present and the councillors.
1/024 Declaration of any relevant interests
None
1/025 Public questions, comments or representations.
One resident asked if the topic – environment could be a standing point on every agenda going forward. She feels this has been retracted and would like to know why? The chair explained this is item 11 on the agenda and will be discussed later in the meeting.
Another resident raised a concern as to why arranging a parish meeting hasn’t been a priority. She feels strongly that such a meeting should have been arranged already. She also feels speeding traffic is an issue in the village and a lack of continuity seems to be present. A meeting was arranged with traffic officers a while ago? Has this been followed up since? A recent public event occurred with police monitoring speeding motorbikes through the village, and the resident feels this would have been a good opportunity to continue liaising with the police to enforce traffic prevention measures. The resident also shared concerns suggesting that a move against the cricket club is present. She feels it should be remembered the field belongs to the village and not the school. In the cricket season the school should be mindful of the cricket club. Lastly the resident expressed concerns that the status of the village hall car park does not seem to have been mentioned and the Footpath near the bridge is very dangerous and needs repairing.
The PC thanked the resident for the topics raised and reminded the public this is only the second month all Cllrs have been in place and as a council they are still considering the procedures and policies which need to be adhered to. There are no historic documents available for the PC to access and they have not been given access to the website so are limited with resources. The PC are currently engaging with the MP office and OCC with regards to speeding measures and hope to update the public soon. The PC asked the public for some patience please in these early days.
Another resident confirmed work has started today on two luxury homes near their residence and there should be roughly £77,000 due to be given to the council in CIL payments. This resident has asked if the PC can use the money to purchase some land, ideally the village hall car park and some land for allotments. The PC confirmed they have already started this topic of discussion. Regarding allotments there are legislation’s in place that will be considered. The resident also commented that she feels the budget is very inaccurate. Travel expenditure and training is missing. The PC confirmed this is likely due to the council not having that information to hand however they will raise the issue with the clerk.
Another resident mentioned previous councillors did not claim expenses and he feels this parish council should also not claim expenses. The Wharf desperately needs cutting. Its current state has affected trade for the local village shop. The trees need cutting back and there is a dead tree near the bridge. There is also a hole in the bridge which needs repairing as a matter of urgency. The arches underneath need investigating and repairing also. The resident expressed concerns regarding the state of the Roads in the village particularly the pot holes, lots have been marked around the village and he feels it is the PCs responsibility to chase these. The resident asked do they get inspected after being repaired as previously repairs have only lasted 24hrs. Speeding and traffic is the number one issue in the community for as long as can be remembered, this needs to be prioritised as a matter of urgency. The bypass meeting the chair had should have been discussed at the soonest parish council meeting, which to date hasn’t happened. The brambles need cutting back in the Footpaths/woods, and asked if the PC can request the landowner to cut back? The resident also asked for an update on CIL money – the council have a list however there is a gap where there has been work on Culham campus and the PC have not received payment yet. CH domain runs out in September – does the PC want this? The PC confirmed no. Consultation document asks people to log on which means it’s not GDPR compliant, to fix the wording needs changing slightly. The PC replied this needs to be taken away and looked into. Lastly the resident mentioned 10 years ago the Community Led Plan was published, which is now out of date and should be re published.
A representative from the Gibbs estate highlighted the NDO was halted by the previous council which they were in favour of so the estate is currently exploring other options. They have interviewed several private developers and are hoping to propose a much smaller development which includes a new burial ground and medical practice for the village.
Lastly another resident wanted to thank the PC for taking on the roles of councillors and expressed thanks for trying to bring the community together. Thank you for all your hard work.
1/026 SODC and OCC Reports to the Parish Council
- Locum clerk has been chasing OCC Cllr on the Bridge repair and OCC confirmed a highways manager had taken an inspection on foot today and on Wednesday is returning with colleagues to carry out a more thorough inspection. The highways department Director has confirmed repairs will be going ahead in the autumn. Cllr Jones will update OCC on the other issues raised this evening regarding the bridge.
- Climate emergency green party Oxfordshire came top at 64% the average of all councillors was around 44%.
- Drain clearing and flooding – gully clearing is now to be carried out once a year at least to public land only.
- Chief executive is coming to Wallingford and Berinsfield on the 8th September to have a look at the issues of the roads nearby.
1/027 Minutes
Minutes from the Ordinary meeting held on 14th July 2025 were agreed and signed by the Chair.
1/028 To receive a report from the Recreation Ground Committee.
The Committee consists of 7 people and so far, have had two meetings. In both these meetings they have listened and tried to understand the community’s issues. They have launched a survey to the parish to see how people would like to use the land in the future. One priority is the playground, which has been inspected to see if a quick fix can be made which unfortunately is not going to be possible. So, the plan is to see what the community want long term and make small constant changes from there. The playground has an access issue and asked could a path from the Recreation Ground to the Oxford Road which is managed by the Gibbs Trust be used? A tree surgeon is needed as the bushes are touching the swings. If anyone would like to join the committee, they would be very welcome. The chair noted that there is still an outstanding response from the Scouts.
1/029 To discuss the possibility of accessing the recreation ground & playground via Oxford Road, via a public footpath.
For many years, a local resident has been happy to allow people a right of passage through their garden as long as the gate is closed and people are polite. However, the PC noted that it is not possible to get through with a pram. Which creates an accessibility issue. The PC agreed to consider other options and engage with landowners for other possible routes that will be more accessible.
1/030 To approve the adoption of the following policies: Complaints, Grants, Training & Development, safeguarding, Disciplinary & Grievance Policies.
The Chair asked if any of the PC have any issues with the above policies. All councillors agreed they are happy with the above policies.
1/031 To agree to having the Environment as a standing item on each agenda.
The PC confirmed this is part of the amenities working group and will be present on every agenda.
1/032 Planning:
To consider the following planning permissions:
P25/S2003/FUL – For development work at the following location: UKARA, Culham Campus
Clifton Hampden Parish Council appreciate the notification of the proposed planning application for the retention of temporary buildings at Culham Science Centre Campus. We also appreciate that Culham Science Centre Campus borders our parish boundary, and therefore could have an impact on land or residences within our parish boundary. The Parish Council have no objection to the planning application, and appreciate the work Culham Science Centre Campus do to further both opportunities of employment for parishioners, and also to further strengthen the UKs sciences expertise on the global stage.
P25/S2263/HH – For development work at the following location: Beech Cottage, Burcot, OX14 3DJ.
The application is for: New First floor link extension and alterations to existing roof. New first floor extension to southeast.
The PC discussed the application and unanimously Support the application.
1/033 To agree & approve the Terms of Reference for the H.R. Committee and Amenities Working Party.
The PC agreed to approve the HR committee terms and defer the Amenities Working Party terms of reference as it only has two councillors.
1/034 To approve the appointment of a Council representative to the VH Committee.
Defer to next month’s agenda.
1/035 To discuss and agree a response to the South Oxfordshire District Council Community Governance Review 2025/26.
The PC confirmed they have read the material provided by the locum clerk and all agree to be a part of the review.
1/036 To approve the appointment of an Internal Auditor for the year 2025/26.
Deborah O’Brien was unanimously approved by the PC.
1/037 To discuss an increase from £600 to £720 for maintenance of St Michael’s Churchyard.
The PC confirmed this is an annual fee and £720.00 was approved.
1/038 To discuss increasing the number of CH Cllrs from 7 currently to 8.
The Councillors were not all in agreement to increase to 8 Cllrs and suggested could we not have volunteers for the working groups and keep the number of councillors at 7? The chair asked can we just investigate the costs and steps involved etc. The PC agreed to this.
1/039 To approve the purchase of a new Fido Dog Waste Bin at no more than £292 + VAT.
The PC agreed unanimously.
1/040 Finance
- Payments below were approved
| Oliver Bowden Invoices (June £40.50, July £60.75, August £42.75 and repair of strimmer £140.00) | £284.00 |
| Gill Peacock – Expenses (Black Printer Cartridge) | £33.75 |
| Gill Peacock, Locum Clerk for administration of the Parish Council from 14th July – 15th August 2025 | £1,280.00 |
| MTS Cleaning Services Ltd – portable CCTV Unit | £1,406.40 |
| Parish Online – cloud office for 10 users | £420.00 + VAT |
| Charlotte Ray (Minutes Secretary for CHPC Meetings) | £85.90 |
1/041 To pass a resolution in accordance with the Public Bodies (Admission to Meeting) Act 1960, Part 1, Section 1 (2) to exclude the public and press for discussion regarding a staffing matter, where publicity might be prejudicial to the special nature of the business.
The PC resolved to exclude members of the public and press.
1/042 Date of next Meeting.
The PC agreed future meetings will be the third Monday of every month. With the next meeting taking place on Monday 15th September at 7:30pm.
It was agreed the Annual Parish Council Meeting will take place on Monday 6th October – time to be confirmed.
The meeting closed at: 20:40
