HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
To: All Members of the Grounds & Environment Committee (Kate Bailey, Kristian Berggreen, David Bunting, Lesley Cruickshank-Robb, Frances Gaudencio, Bill Hatton, Sue Hatton, Angus Neil, Peter Richardson, Alex Simmons, Paul Shepherd and Ian Weir) with copies to all other Councillors for information.
A meeting of the GROUNDS AND ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE will be held on 30 May 2024 at 7.30pm in the Parish Centre, Adastra Park, Hassocks.
Parish Clerk – 23 May 2024
1. TO ACCEPT APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
2. TO ACCEPT DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
3. ELECTION OF CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR
4. MINUTES. To accept the Minutes of the Grounds and Environment Meeting held on 21 March 2024. (Previously circulated).
5. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
6. OFFICER’S REPORT. (Appendix 1).
7. LIGHT UP HASSOCKS. Members are invited to consider a request from Hassocks Community Organisation for financial support towards the cost of the Light Up Hassocks event. (Appendix 2).
8. ADASTRA TENNIS CLUB MEMBERSHIP FEES. Members are invited to consider a request from the Adastra Tennis Club for a reduction in fees to be applied for new members who join later in the season. (Appendix 3).
9. PARKLIFE COFFEE. Members are invited to consider two requests from the refreshments concessionaire in the park to support the development of the business. (Appendix 4).
10. ADASTRA PARK MASTERPLAN.
10.1 Adastra Park Drainage. Members are invited to note an update on the drainage project for Adastra Park and to approve the proposed actions. (Appendix 5).
10.2 Verbal update (Cllr David Bunting/Parish Clerk).
11. FLOOD ACTION GROUP. Verbal Update (Cllr Frances Gaudencio).
12. 20MPH SPEED LIMIT WORKING GROUP. Verbal Update.
13. PUBLIC RIGHTS OF WAY (PROW). Members are invited to note Public Footpath No. 11K – Temporary Closure Notice. (Appendix 6). To view Appendix 6 please click here.
14. MEMORIAL STONES. Members are invited to note that the memorial stones have been removed from the site of the former Royal British Legion and are currently in storage. Members are therefore invited to consider a suitable position for the re-location of these stones in the Garden of Remembrance. Verbal report (Parish Clerk).
15. URGENT MATTERS at the discretion of the Chairman for noting and/or inclusion on a future agenda.
16. DATE OF NEXT MEETING. Thursday 25 July 2024 at 7.30pm.
Please Note:
All members of the public are welcome to attend meetings of the Parish Council and its Committees. Item 5 – a period of 15 minutes will be set aside for the public statements and questions relating to the published non-confidential business of the Meeting.
It may be necessary to consider particular items in confidential session and where this arises, these items will be considered at the end of the agenda.
FILMING, RECORDING OF COUNCIL MEETINGS AND USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA. During this meeting members of the public may film or record the Committee and officers from the public area only, providing it does not disrupt the meeting. The Confidential section of the meeting may not be filmed or recorded. If a member of the public objects to being recorded, the person(s) filming must stop doing so until that member of the public has finished speaking. The use of social media is permitted but members of the public are requested to switch their mobile devices to silent for the duration of the meeting.
Appendix 1
HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
To: Grounds & Environment Committee
Date: 30 May 2024
Contacts for this report: Deputy Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 6 – Officer Report
The purpose of this report is to update the Committee on (G&E) Matters.
1. ANTI-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR. Members are invited to note that a fire was recently started by youths beside the climbing rock in the South Field. The fire brigade was called and the incident was reported to the Police.
Damage from the fire was caused to the wet pour surface and smoke damage to the rock and skatepark.
A job has been raised to repair the wet pour surface at a cost of £218 plus VAT.
2. PARKLANDS COPSE. Members are requested to note that some of the trees in Parklands Copse have become heavily overgrown with ivy. Whilst this is part of the natural ecosystem and would not usually be removed in the woods, there is a level concern over the ‘sail effect’ this can cause on trees near to properties or the footpath. Therefore advice has been sought on the best way to manage this from a safety perspective whilst at the same time minimising any impact on the ecosystem. Subject to additional advice, it is proposed that some of the ivy will be ringed to reduce the risk in high winds. The cost of this work will be £400 and will be funded from the Parklands Copse Projects budget.
An Alder tree adjacent to the play area in Parklands Copse has been identified as being in poor health. Given its close proximity to the play area, it has been necessary to action essential safety work to the tree. The tree will be monolithed to stabilise it but at the same time maintain its value as a natural habitat. The cost of this work is £750 and will be met by the Parklands Copse Tree Budget.
3. PAVILION CAR PARK/KEYMER & HASSOCKS SOCIAL CLUB – DRAINAGE. Following ongoing problems with collapsed pipework between the KHSSC building and the Pavilion car park causing an overflow of sewage, it has been necessary to employ contractors to carry out remedial work as reported at the Full Council meeting on 14 May 2024.
4. PARKLANDS ALLOTMENTS. Monthly allotment inspections will be resuming and will continue throughout the growing season. Once again this year, the Allotments will be part of the NGS Hassocks Gardens Trail on 23 June 2024.
5. WINDMILLS SCHOOL ENVIRONMENTAL ART PROJECT. Members are invited to note that the S106 award of £5377.23 for public art has now been approved. The artist has now been commissioned and the project is scheduled to commence at Windmills School in June, the competed mosaic artwork will be installed on the Parish Office building over the summer.
Appendix 2
HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
To: Grounds & Environment Committee
Date: 30 May 2024
Contacts for this report: Deputy Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 7 – Light Up Hassocks
Light Up Hassocks (LUH)
Request for Support and Financial Assistance for LUH 2024 and Future Years
Background:
For the 2023 LUH event we received a grant of £1500 from the Parish Council to assist in specific areas of the event. Namely, tower lighting and recycled waste collection.
Request:
This submission is for the same level of financial support to be considered by the Parish and District Councils for 2024 via the G&E committee, and ideally for LUH to be considered in future years at the October budget meetings.
As you know, Light Up Hassocks is a festive community event run by volunteers on the first Friday of December annually for the benefit of residents and local traders. Its traditional key focus is on younger local school children which is shown through the many children’ activities and attractions on offer and school choir performances. LUH is run as a not for profit event and any profits are ring-fenced to help cover costs the following year. A financial overview of income and expenditure for 2023 is provided at Annex A. (Circulated as a background paper.)
After the improvements to the 2023 event (snow machine, professional musicians, more arts and crafts, stalls with free or ‘by donation’ activities) we plan to build on those successes, address lessons learned and respond to feedback, improving the overall festive atmosphere of the event and bringing the community together.
As communicated to you last year we continue to try to attract new sponsorship for 2024 and to return to previous sponsors. Indeed we have already approached several new targets- large local and national companies, but thus far we have been unsuccessful due to catchment areas or differing priorities.
As I’m sure you are aware, prices have risen for services and products and we cannot be sure we can rely on ‘old friends’ to help with funding or indeed kindnesses such as doing our printing for free. We expect to need to bring in generators due to challenges with the power supply to the stage and snow machine last year. We also find ourselves struggling more year on year to recruit volunteer marshals and event team members which may mean we need to increase the number of security staff we employ on the night. These challenges on top of our need to maintain our environmentally responsible approach mean we expect the expenditure in 2024 to be higher, and likely over our expected income. If we are forced to draw down on our contingency fund we risk being unable to continue with the event in 2025 and going forward. At the end of Annex A you will find some anticipated uplifts and changes to forecasted expenditure for 2024.
As we explained previously, in 2022 and 2021 we had substantial donations from large-scale developers building estates in the locale. We cannot rely on such donations and although we are continually seeking new sources of funding to bridge the gap, the ongoing challenging financial situation is making this extremely difficult.
It is for help to secure the future of this important event that we are approaching the Parish and District Councils. If we are successful with this upfront investment we believe that we will improve the event for residents and traders alike, as well as the overall experience of visiting Hassocks in the festive season generally.
We would also like to take this opportunity to thank the councils and committees for their encouragement and the decision to support LUH last year and for the PC’s offer, when we attended the PC meeting) to investigate the feasibility of wrapping key trees with lights as was once done in the past. We would be very happy to help in whatever way we can to facilitate progress on this investigation.
Erika Woodhurst-Trueman, Light Up Hassocks Event Coordinator.
13 May 2024
Appendix 3
HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
To: Grounds & Environment Committee
Date: 30 May 2024
Contacts for this report: Deputy Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 8 – ADASTRA TENNIS CLUB FEES.
1. The purpose of this report is to invite Members to consider a request from the Adastra Tennis Club for the Council to apply a discount for members who join later in the year and won’t benefit from a full 12 month’s access to the courts.
2. Following the implementation of the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) Clubspark booking system, within the membership agreement, registered Tennis Club members are able to access three 2 hour pre-booked club court sessions and two ad hoc additional court sessions per week for twelve months from 1st April each year.
3. The current tennis court fees are as follows:
| Full Rate | Discounted Rate | |
| Tennis – Casual Hire per Court | 7.00 | 3.50 |
| Tennis Club Fees | ||
| Tennis – Club Members | 103.80 | 51.90 |
| Couples | 155.50 | |
| Children of Adult Members | 18.10 |
4. The full rate and discounted fees for single members are equivalent to booking 14 public court sessions a year. Membership currently entitles access for up to 104 sessions per year plus six hours of formal club sessions per week.
5. In real terms the membership offers excellent value for money based on the amount of court time made available to club members, although it is appreciated that there is less opportunity to play over the winter.
6. However during the winter season, October – March, the club still has the option to access 8 hours of court time per week within a membership, which spans across approximately 26 weeks; therefore still offering a generous arrangement right up until the end of January.
7. The current arrangement has been in place for many years, however with the introduction of the LTA Clubspark system, it is understood this a fairly unique arrangement and out of line with most other public tennis courts.
It’s understood that the majority of membership schemes on public tennis courts are administered by the local authority directly. This is a simpler solution which offers one annual season ticket for the courts, that anyone can purchase, and is based on 12 months from the date of purchase. The club could continue to be able to hire courts as a group of individuals as they do now. Therefore, it is suggested that this is explored in consultation with the Tennis Club for future years.
8. Any additional fee discounting will also increase the level of administration required by the office. From reviewing a number of authorities’ fee structures locally, generally they do not appear to offer additional discounts for memberships taken out throughout the year. In part this approach is likely to reflect the value of the season ticket/membership schemes in operation.
9. OFFICER RECOMMENDATION.
9.1. Members are invited to consider whether to apply a discount for Tennis Club members who join late in the season. It is suggested that as the membership cost offers excellent value for money for the majority of the year, no discount should be applied.
9.2. Members are invited to approve reviewing the processes associated with tennis club memberships to provide a more streamlined approach, which aligns more efficiently with the current LTA Clubspark season tickets/membership system.
Appendix 4
HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
To: Grounds & Environment Committee
Date: 30 May 2024
Contacts for this report: Deputy Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 9 – PARKLIFE COFFEE
1. The purpose of this report is to invite Members to consider two requests from Parklife to support the future development of the concession.
2. As an update, Parklife Coffee has been running within the park since August 2023. The Parish Council considers the concession to be a welcome asset to the park and as such has offered its support as much as possible during this first year. The concession has been well received and has built up a regular client base.
To date the council has agreed not to apply a charge for trading from the park.
However, trading over a long wet winter has been challenging. Less visitors to the park, cancelled football matches and extensive mud and flooding have all added to a difficult winter.
Therefore Members supported an initiative proposed by the concessionaire to hold a pop up ‘Hummus Lunch Clubs’ in the pavilion, and it was agreed that the standard community hire charge would be applied for these sessions.
Four ‘hummus lunch club’ sessions were held and were very popular.
The trailer parks in the Pavilion car park facing towards the field. The grassed area between the car park and the main pedestrian path has been worn away and become a mud bath. This needs to be addressed and options to avoid this next winter are being considered as an operational issue.
It has been agreed that a gazebo can be erected in front of the trailer and some additional seating set out on the hard-standing. This will provide more space for food display and offer a dry area for customers.
3. Parklife has requested that the Parish Council consider some further requests to support the future of the concession in Adastra Park. The Committee is asked to consider two of these requests at this meeting as below:
3.1. ELECTRICITY.
The concession currently operates using a gas canister and a battery in the trailer, this is generally sufficient for teas, coffees and a limited amount of ice creams. However the concession would like to offer a greater selection of ice-creams and cold drinks and would therefore need to power a larger fridge/freezer. Additional power is needed to enable this and Parklife has asked whether it would be possible for them to access and pay for electricity from the pavilion building rather than relying on a battery.
The request is to either access a socket within the pavilion or from an external socket. Parklife have indicated that they would be prepared potentially to cover the costs of installation depending on total.
Usage. The pavilion is already heavily subsidised by the Parish Council for community and sports use. It would consequently be necessary to ensure that electricity usage by a concessionaire can be accurately measured to ensure that the cost of usage is adequately covered.
Cost. Advice has been sought and an external socket could be fitted from the main circuit, but connected to a separate digital meter which would be installed in the central boiler room to monitor the electricity usage from the one outlet. This would allow readings to be taken and electricity consumption to be calculated. The estimated cost overall including fitting the external plug, meter and all cabling to a meter in the meter cupboard is going to be in the region of around £700-800 plus VAT.
Security. Any external electricity socket would be at risk of damage or unauthorised abuse and would therefore need to be adequately secured to mitigate this risk.
To install a meter on the inside of the building would require permanent access to the pavilion and be reliant on not interfering with other users; therefore this is not considered a preferred option.
OFFICER’S RECOMMENDATION.
Subject to being able to ensure any source is adequately protected from misuse and accurately monitored and recharged, Members are invited to consider:
i. If they are in agreement with the concept of Parklife connecting to and using electricity from the Pavilion.
ii. If in agreement to the above, who would have responsibility for the cost of the installation.
3.2 ADDITIONAL FOOD EVENTS.
Parklife would like to offer some outside summer events during the day and potentially in the evenings. These could be similar to the hummus lunch clubs.
It is anticipated that this may be extended to offer additional food during the summer months for takeaway during the day, either by pre-order or on-site sales. Parklife have held some pop up takeaway events at the Hassocks Hotel and would be potentially looking to offer a similar set up from the park.
Matters to consider:
OFFICER’S RECOMMENDATION.
Approval is already in place for pre-planned events to provide additional food services during the day from the pavilion.
Members are therefore invited to consider the following:
1. Whether there is support for outside take-away evening events, in addition to the standard agreed café concession within the park.
2. If so, whether the sale of alcohol would be acceptable at any evening events (subject to licensing).
3. Again whether power could be accessed from the pavilion to hold these events.
Appendix 5
HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
To: Grounds & Environment Committee
Date: 30 May 2024
Contacts for this report: Parish Clerk
Subject: Agenda Item 10.1 – ADASTRA PARK DRAINAGE SCHEME.
Adastra Park Drainage scheme (South field)
1. Members previously commissioned a consultant to identify potential options to improve the drainage within the park. The Consultant identified the potential for two phases of work, however due to the costs Members indicated that at this stage they only wished to limit works to phase 1 to assess whether it was successful prior to committing to any wider scheme.
The initial costs have increased significantly since the initial commission, therefore efforts were made to obtain revised estimates before the Council considers committing to the scheme.
The revised costs for phase 1 works are estimated to be £45,000 (excluding fees) which is based on the assumption that there would not be a requirement to install a balancing pond to manage the flow of water, off the field into the stream at the north field boundary as the Council will not be increasing the amount of water being discharged.
The Council already has existing sports drainage in the north field and it’s proposed to install some field drains into the South field (proposal previously considered by Council) to intercept surface water prior to reaching the north field and to connect to the existing system. MSDC planning have indicated that it’s likely the works could be undertaken under permitted development and the drainage team have confirmed that the landowner (HPC) would be permitted to install land drainage on their land.
Based on the revised estimate of £45,000 (plus fees) the Council would be able to fund this within its current Earmarked Reserve allocation for the project, without the need to rely on outside funding.
2. Members are invited to note that:
There is likely to be a window of opportunity to undertake these works between the end of the cricket season and the start of the football season, therefore if this is to be realised works would need to be put in place to go through a tendering process and obtain any necessary permissions (e.g. Environment Agency) as soon as practical.
3. OFFICER’S RECOMMENDATION:
Members are therefore requested to consider approval of the following:
3.1 Approve that phase 1 of the scheme progresses.
3.2 Appoint CDS consultants who designed the proposal to take the project to market and oversee the drafting of the specification/contract document, evaluation of submissions and oversee the implementation of the project.
The cost of this element of service could be funded from within the existing scheme budget or the Professional fees budget.
HASSOCKS PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the meeting of the GROUNDS AND ENVIRONMENT Committee held on Thursday 30 May 2024 at 7.30pm in the Parish Centre, Adastra Park, Hassocks.
Attendees: Councillors Kristian Berggreen, David Bunting (Chair), Lesley Cruickshank-Robb and Paul Shepherd.
In attendance: Tracy Forte (Deputy Clerk). Ian Cumberworth (Parish Clerk).
GE24/01 APOLOGIES. Apologies were received from Cllrs Frances Gaudencio, Cllr Bill Hatton, Sue Hatton, Peter Richardson, Alex Simmons and Ian Weir. Absent without apology – Cllrs Kate Bailey and Angus Neil.
GE24/02 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST. There were no declarations of interest.
GE24/03 ELECTION OF CHAIR Cllr Bunting had indicated that he would be willing to stand as Chair subject to there being no other expressions of interest. Cllr Kristian Berggreen proposed that Cllr Bunting was appointed as Chair of the Grounds and Environment Committee for 2024/25 and this was seconded by Cllr Lesley Cruickshank-Robb. All Members voted in favour.
GE24/03.1 It was RESOLVED that Cllr David Bunting was elected as Chair of the Grounds and Environment Committee for 2024/25.
GE23/04 ELECTION OF VICE CHAIR Due to the absence of several Committee Members it was agreed that the election of a vice chair would be deferred to the next meeting.
GE24/05 MINUTES.
It was RESOLVED that, the minutes of the Grounds & Environment Committee meeting held on 21 March 2024 be signed by the Chair as a true and accurate record of the meeting.
GE24/06 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION. There were no members of the public present.
GE24/07 OFFICER’S REPORT. Members noted the report provided in Appendix 1 of the agenda.
In addition to the matters noted, the Clerk and Deputy Clerk provided a verbal update on the following items.
GE24/07.1 Parklands Copse Lost Woods Project. The Outreach Advisor who is managing the Lost Woods Project for the Woodland Trust, recently made a site visit to Parklands Copse and reported that there are some ongoing matters to resolve around managing contractors. Once these have been agreed he will be able to confirm whether work can be commissioned in the woods for this winter.
In terms of the work that the project can fund, it is likely that a small amount of thinning (including ash) of some trees, to free up others and to help regenerate the ground layer and understorey, could be undertaken. Once this has been done they would be able to coppice a few areas; as the wood is very small, they would not be looking at removing many trees but just enough to create some pockets of light.
GE24/07.2 Pavilion Car Park/Keymer & Hassocks Social Club – Drainage. This is to update Members that the initial repair has been completed & the system will operate for now, however in the medium to longer term, further work will be required.
As part of the repair, further camera survey work was undertaken which identified a section of approximately 48m pitch fibre pipes that are mis-shaped, heavily blistered/deformed which will need to be replaced at some future point, as pitch fibre continues to deteriorate over time.
The only viable solution will be that at some stage this section of pipe will need to be replaced which will entail the excavation of the area and a total replacement of the affected pipes.
On this basis, Members should take this into consideration when setting future budgets by allocating a sum of money over a period of time to cover any future costs. At present we are awaiting some indicative costs for these works if the council were to progress.
It is understood that all drains ultimately go out to Wilmington close.
GE24/07.3 Windmills School Environmental Art Project. The noticeboard on the Parish Office has now been removed; Members had previously agreed it could either be moved further along the wall or completely removed to allow the mosaic to cover a greater area.
The artist is in the process of completing her final template before starting the project and Members were therefore invited to confirm which option was preferred for the noticeboard. Members AGREED that the board should remain removed to provide a larger area to display the mosaic artwork.
GE24/07.4 Fun Village. The children’s fun fair – Fun Village – has confirmed its booking for 8th-22nd July. The fair will be onsite for the full two weeks, but will only be operating on Friday – Sunday each week.
GE24/08 LIGHT UP HASSOCKS (LUH). Members were invited to consider a request from Hassocks Community Organisation for financial support towards the cost of the Light Up Hassocks event based on the same level of support provided by the Council in 2023. The Parish Council donated £1500 in 2023. The report also invited the Council to consider providing for an ongoing annual donation for future LUH events as part of its annual budget setting. Members considered the report (Appendix 2 of the agenda) which gave full details of the organisation of the LUH event and financial reports, and discussed both requests.
GE24/08.1 It was RESOLVED to RECOMMEND to Full Council the release of £1,500 from General Reserves to be granted to Hassocks Community Organisation – Light Up Hassocks Committee towards the costs of running the event.
GE24/08.2 It was AGREED that the provision for an annual donation to be incorporated into future budgets would be considered at the relevant time.
GE24/09 ADASTRA TENNIS CLUB MEMBERSHIP FEES. Members were invited to consider a request from the Adastra Tennis Club for a reduction in fees to the Parish Council to be applied for new members who join later in the season. (Full details included in Appendix 3 of the agenda).
It was noted that the Adastra Tennis Club membership charge allows for the cost of the HPC membership fee plus a small addition to cover insurance and equipment etc. The organisation is not commercial. Members that wish to join later in the year are still required to pay the full annual membership amount to the Parish Council, despite the reduced length of membership, which the Tennis Club feels deters potential members; therefore the club has requested that the Parish Council considers applying for a reduction in fees as the season progresses.
Members considered the request and appreciated the reasons for the Tennis Club raising this matter. Members felt that this was a difficult situation as the current membership fees offer extremely good value for money for the majority of the year. The full rate and discounted fees for single members are equivalent to booking 14 public court sessions a year, therefore Membership currently entitles access for up to 104 sessions per year plus six hours of formal club sessions per week.
It was noted that adjusting fees for late joiners would also create additional administrative work for the Parish Office.
The Clerk and Deputy Clerk informed Members that the current arrangement has been in place for many years, although with the introduction of the LTA Clubspark booking system it is understood this a fairly unique arrangement and out of line with most other public tennis courts. The majority of membership schemes on public tennis courts being administered by the local authority directly through the Clubspark system. This is a simpler solution which offers one annual season ticket for the courts, that anyone can purchase, and is based on 12 months from the date of purchase. This would therefore remove the need to consider any discounts based on time of joining.
Members wished to be supportive of the Tennis Club and to continue to see the club use the courts along with Pay and Play bookings, however it was felt that additional discounts should not be applied based on the already excellent value offered by the current membership fee.
As a member of the Adastra Tennis Club, Cllr Paul Shepherd abstained from voting on this item.
GE24/09.1 It was RESOLVED that the current annual fees charged for Adastra Tennis Club memberships would remain the same and no discounts would be applied for late joiners.
It was AGREED that the processes associated with the tennis club membership should be reviewed for future years to provide a more streamlined approach, which aligns more efficiently with the current LTA Clubspark season tickets/membership system.
GE24/10 PARKLIFE COFFEE. Members were invited to consider two requests from the refreshments concessionaire in the park to support the development of the business. (Full details Appendix 4 of the agenda).
GE24/10.1 ELECTRICITY. The concessionaire made a request for Members to consider enabling the trailer to access electricity from a socket within the pavilion or from an external socket. Parklife have indicated that they would be prepared potentially to cover the costs of installation depending on total costs.
Members agreed that an internal socket would not be an option due to potential conflicts with pavilion hirers and therefore agreed that if any socket were installed this would need to be external with an isolated meter to allow energy usage to be measured and recharged to the concessionaire.
Members noted that an indicative cost for the installation of an external socket, associated wiring/cabling and meter would be in the region of £700-£800 plus VAT.
Whilst Members were not opposed to the proposal in principle, it was agreed that the Council would be unable to cover the costs involved. Therefore it was agreed that, subject to certain conditions, Members would approve the installation of an external socket and isolated meter with adequate security to remove the risk of misuse. However all installation and associated costs would need to be paid for by Parklife Coffee.
GE24/10.2 It was RESOLVED to approve the installation of an external electricity outlet on the Pavilion building with an isolated meter to measure usage for use by Parklife Coffee, subject to certain conditions to be agreed and all costs to be met by Parklife Coffee. All ongoing electricity usage costs to be calculated and recharged to the concessionaire.
GE24/10.3 ADDITIONAL FOOD EVENTS. Parklife Coffee have indicated that they would like to offer some outside summer events during the day and potentially in the evenings. Members have previously supported an initiative proposed by the concessionaire to hold a pop up ‘Hummus Lunch Clubs’ in the pavilion, which have proven to be successful during the winter period.
The Committee continues to extend its support to the concession and is open to reviewing any requests to develop the business further and continue its presence in the park. However the committee was also mindful that the initial concept was for a daytime coffee/refreshments outlet and therefore a proposal to extend this into the evening moves away from this initiative. The Committee discussed this request in depth.
GE24/10.4 Members APPROVED the continuation of the hire of the pavilion during the daytime for ‘Hummus Lunch Clubs’ and for take away food to be offered during the day.
GE24/10.5 It was AGREED that evening events did not fall within the original concept of the concession and therefore Members DID NOT APPROVE the request to trade in the evenings.
GE24/10.6 Members noted that to date the Committee have supported no charge being applied to the concession to trade within the park, and it was AGREED that this would continue over the summer.
GE24/11 ADASTRA PARK MASTERPLAN.
GE24/11.1 Adastra Park Drainage. The Clerk had provided Members with an update on the drainage project for Adastra Park and requested approval for the proposed actions. (Full details Appendix 5 of the agenda).
The Clerk informed the Committee that the paper provided an update of the revised costs to deliver phase 1 of the drainage scheme. The revised costs for phase 1 works are estimated to be £45,000 (excluding fees) which is based on the assumption that there would not be a requirement to install a balancing pond to manage the flow of water off the field into the stream at the north field boundary, as the Council will not be increasing the amount of water being discharged.
The Council’s overall budget earmarked for the scheme in earmarked reserves is £76,000 therefore all costs could be met from budget.
To realistically deliver the project this year, prior to ground conditions deteriorating preventing access to the site, consideration will need to be given to starting to progress the contracting/tendering process.
Therefore Members were requested to
i. Approve the progression of phase 1 drainage scheme in the South Field to intercept surface water with the intention of improving surface conditions in both the North and the South Field.
ii. Appoint CDS consultants to take the project to market and oversee the drafting of the specification/contract document, evaluation of submissions and oversee the implementation of the project.
Members discussed the report and the Clerk provided clarification on various aspects of the proposal which were queried by individual Members. The benefit of the proposed work in comparison to the cost was raised and it was pointed out that this was a significant amount of money which would not necessarily bring a cost benefit to the Council. However the majority of the Committee supported progressing the project based on the community benefit for all park users and the importance of any action which would increase access to the park throughout the year for everyone. Furthermore, Adastra Park is one of the Council’s most important assets and the Council has a duty to maintain it as such.
GE24/11.2 It was RESOLVED to approve the progression of phase 1 drainage scheme in the South Field to intercept surface water.
GE24/11.3 It was RESOLVED to appoint CDS consultants to take the project to market and oversee the drafting of the specification/contract document, evaluation of submissions and oversee the implementation of the project.
GE24/11.4 Cllr Bunting provided Members with a verbal update on the following matters:
Appointment of Grounds person. A Grounds person has now been appointed and it is anticipated that he will be starting towards the end of June. The Council looks forward to welcoming the new member of staff to the team.
Adastra Park Working Group. It is intended that a meeting will be scheduled for the group in the near future.
GE24/12 FLOOD ACTION GROUP. Cllr Frances Gaudencio had provided the following written report to be shared with Members in her absence.
‘Cllr Weir received a reply from Deborah Urquhart (Cabinet Member for Environment and Climate Change at West Sussex CC) in response to his letter asking for what progress was being made on the Surface Water Management Plan.
Deborah has stated that a project plan for a study of the Hassocks catchment area will be commissioned which is likely to take about 6 months, given the need to review previous studies. Engagement will take place with stakeholders to include the Parish Council, the local flood action group and other resident groups.
In addition, the theme of Deborah’s letter was that Hassocks had not been forgotten, that a review of data would take place, and that identification would be made of the best use of any funding available. E.g. from Operation Watershed and the Southern Regional Flood and Coastal Committee
She referred to Mat Jackson as the point of contact for this study.
I have asked the Clerk to arrange a meeting for the Flood Action Group, hopefully for June, to which Mat Jackson will also be invited (he came to the last one) and we can find out more from him then.’
GE24/12.1 The Clerk also informed the Committee that a request had been received from West Sussex County Council for HPC to offer its support to an Operation Watershed project relating to flooding in Downs View Road, Hassocks. The Clerk is awaiting further information and a report will be taken to Full Council in due course.
The Committee noted the updates.
GE24/13 20MPH SPEED LIMIT WORKING GROUP. In Cllr Peter Richardson’s absence, the Deputy Clerk provided a short verbal update to the Committee.
The Deputy Clerk is continuing to try to liaise with County Cllr Kirsty Lord to arrange a meeting between the Working Group and the appropriate WSCC Officer, to establish a clearer understanding of the processes and requirements for progressing a Community Highways Scheme application. Hassocks Community Organisation (HCO) has contacted 171 of its supporters by email to seek preliminary opinions on any proposals to implement a 20mph speed limit and on which areas are considered to be priorities. The responses have now all been received and collated by HCO and will be reviewed by the Working Group at its next meeting.
The Committee noted the update.
GE24/14 PUBLIC RIGHTS OF WAY (PROW). Members note the Temporary Closure Notice for Public Footpath No. 11K commencing on 3rd June 2024.
The Deputy Clerk also passed on a verbal report from Cllr Weir for information and noting. Cllr Weir has been approached by some requests for the Council to explore the possibility of hard core to be laid along certain PROW’s that become inaccessible due to mud in the winter. This was noted by Members.
GE24/15 MEMORIAL STONES. Members were invited to note that the memorial stones have now been removed from the site of the former Royal British Legion and are currently in storage. Members were therefore invited to consider a suitable position for the re-location of these stones in the Garden of Remembrance and how the stones should be presented.
Members were also invited to consider replacing the temporary information boards currently displayed on the boundary of the Garden Of Remembrance with permanent boards at the same time.
After some discussion it was agreed that both matters would be considered by the Adastra Park Working Group. Cllr Bunting indicated that he would schedule a meeting of the Working Group to make a site visit to the Garden of Remembrance to discuss ideas for displaying the stones. The meeting would also be open to all interested Councillors who wished to attend.
GE24/16 URGENT MATTERS at the discretion of the Chairman for noting and/or inclusion on a future agenda. There were no urgent matters.
GE24/17 DATE OF NEXT MEETING. 25 July 2024 at 7.30pm.
There being no other business the meeting closed at 9pm.
See full list of 2024/25 meetings, minutes and agendas here >
26/11/2024
Policy, Resources & Communications
05/12/2024
Grounds & Environment Committee
See full list of 2024/25 meetings, minutes and agendas here >
The Council Office is located at:
Parish Centre, Adastra Park,
Hassocks, West Sussex, BN6 8QH.
Opening Hours:
Monday, Tuesday, Thursday
10.00 a.m. to 2.00 p.m.
Wednesday CLOSED
Friday
10.00 a.m. to 12 noon.
