Parish Council Minutes: March 2026
DRAFT MINUTES
These minutes will be agreed at the Parish Council meeting due to be held on 13th April and might be subject to slight amendment.
The minutes of a meeting of Oakford Parish Council held in the Committee Room at Oakford Village Hal on Monday 9th March 2026 at 7.30pm.
Present:
Cllr’s J Levick (Chair), G Baylis, J Cridland, T Davies, L Gould, J Mayer and V Stevens.
In attendance:
District Cllr’s C Adcock and M Stratton, three members of the public and the Clerk, Mrs J Larcombe.
138/03/26. To receive apologies for absence.
Apologies were received from County Cllr S Lodge.
139/03/26. Declarations of Interest.
Cllr Cridland declared a personal and prejudicial interest as her son is employed by Hampton Maintenance. Cllr Mayer declared a personal and prejudicial interest regarding Spurway Barton as she does some work for the owners.
140/03/26. Public Forum.
A member of the public who owns the field next to the one at Oakfordbridge where lorry loads of earth have been tipped said she was very worried. The field is on a floodplain, next to the River Exe and if it floods earth will be washed into the river and could be washed into the fishery further down the river. The owner of the fishery confirmed that the impact of this would finish the business. It is not known whether the soil has been tested but there is a risk it could be contaminated. The tipping and spreading of the earth started on Friday February 6th and neighbours immediately brought it to the attention of MDDC. MDDC, DCC and the Environment Agency (EA) held an urgent meeting to decide on the best way to deal with the matter. MDDC’s Enforcement Officer immediately worked on a stop notice, working over the weekend, and now a 56 day stop notice has been issued for the site anyone who does anything on the site is at risk of prosecution. Work appears to have stopped. The stop notice gives the agencies time to decide on the best way to deal with the matter. The field is in Bampton parish and a prior notification application had been submitted for the construction of a track across the middle of the field. The owner of the field is believed to have said he wants to build banks with the earth and plans to plant Eucalyptus on them.The members of the public reported that the EA is not worried about the flood plain and are only concerned about the earth washing into the river. It was alleged that the owner of the field is being paid for each load of earth being tipped onto the field and a number of hauliers are involved. The entrance to the field has been wrecked. Cllr Adcock and the Clerk will ask the Enforcement Officer and the EA for an update. Cllr Lodge will be asked what DCC are doing.
Action: Cllr Adcock and the Clerk to ask the MDDC Enforcement Officer and the EA for an update. Cllr Lodge to be asked for an update on what DCC are doing.
The members of the public left the meeting.
141/03/26. To agree the minutes of the meeting held on 9th February 2026 as an accurate record of the meeting.
The minutes were agreed as an accurate record of the meeting and were duly signed by the Chair.
142/03/26. Matters arising from the minutes, not covered elsewhere on the agenda.
None.
143/03/26. Planning
a) To comment on any planning applications received before the meeting.
26/00346/HOUSE Erection of single storey extension. Location: 2 Staples Cottages, Oakford. Comment: no objections.
b) To note any planning decisions made by MDDC.
No decisions received.
c) Update on action being taken regarding the dumping of soil and associated works at Oakfordbridge.
Covered under item 140/03/26.
d) Update on alleged planning breaches.
No update.
e) Reminder of MDDC Planning Training Session on 26th
Cllr Levick, Cllr Cross, Cllr Davies and the Clerk plan to attend either in person or online.
f) Any other planning matters.
None.
144/03/26. Highways:
a) Any matters to note or report.
The chevron warning sign on the sharp bend just before the Oakford turning on the B3227 has been replaced.
b) Update on flooding issues/blocked drains.
Cllr Baylis reported the problem with the cover of the drain opposite the farm gate and Village Hall entrance being lifted up by water during heavy rain. He received an update to say that engineers had attended but couldn’t find any damage. The pipe is partly blocked but the pipe is a big pipe and not a small one as previously thought. There is nothing going down the drain above that one on Rookery Hill so there is thought to be a blockage there.
c) Update on improvements to the fingerpost signs.
Improvements to the sign at Fordmoor Cross are nearly completed. The arm pointing towards Bampton has been painted but new letters need to be purchased.
d) Update on flooding issues at Riverside as reported at the December meeting.
DCC have been to site and assessed the situation. They say that visually there appears to be nothing of concern with the South West Water (SWW) reinstatement. SWW have also been to site and Cllr Lodge has been told they have requested an independent structural survey to be undertaken by the owners. and the results disclosed. At this stage, there is nothing further that DCC can do and the situation resides with the owners and SWW, until these further investigations have been carried out. However, DCC will continue to monitor.
e) Any other footpath matters.
No other highways matters.
145/03/26. Footpaths
a) To report the 2024-25 P3 funding has finally been received. This funding has finally been paid into the Council’s bank account.
b) Update on the collection of signatures to evidence historic use of the line of Footpath 5a.
Signatures are being collected and this is ongoing. Cllr Cross asked for a copy of the form.
Action: Cllr Cridland to supply a copy of the form to Cllr Cross.
c) Any other footpath matters.
At Aldridge Mill a ramp has been added to the bridge where it is very muddy but the wood is now splitting. This will be mentioned to Stoodleigh Parish Council as the path is in Stoodleigh.
Action: The Clerk to inform the Stoodleigh Parish Council Clerk about the wood on the ramp splitting.
The P3 Survey Forms have been completed.
146/03/26. Reports:
a) District Cllr Report.
A written report was circulated by email prior to the meeting. Cllr Adcock referred to an email from MDDC about S106 funding which had been sent out earlier in the day.
b) County Cllr Report.
A written report was circulated by email prior to the meeting.
147/03/26. Community Area:
a) Any points to note from inspections of community area. Cllr Levick’s report has been emailed to the Clerk. There were no points to note.
b) To report the Rospa Play Safety annual inspection of the play equipment has been booked.
The annual inspection has been booked and will be carried out during March. The pinch point on the entrance gate has been checked.
c) To receive quotes for the refurbishment of the pavilion interior.
Cllr Cridland declared a personal and pecuniary interest because her son works for Hampton Maintenance and left the room.
It was agreed to accept the quote from Hampton Maintenance.
- d) To discuss grass cutting quotes and agree contractor for 2026.
It was agreed to accept the quote from Hampton Maintenance.
Cllr Cridland rejoined the meeting.
e) Any matters to note.
It was agreed to look into the cost of installing some fitness equipment on the Community Area if there is S06 funding available. The wooden picnic tables are in need of repair or replacement.
148/03/26. Further discussion on new AGAR Assertion 10 on the 2025-26 Annual Governance.
Agreement of IT Policy and Information Compliance Policy.
It was decided that Cllr Levick, Cllr Baylis, Cllr Cross and the Clerk would meet on Zoom to discuss this further.
The IT Policy was agreed.
149/03/26. Finance
a) To approve any invoices or expense claims presented for payment. It was resolved to approve the following payments:
Mrs J Larcombe - £197.22 salary for February + expenses (Payment ref: 2526/28)
Information Commissioners Office for Data protection Fee - it was agreed to pay this by direct debit which reduces the cost from £52 to £47 (Payment ref: 2526/29).
A service charge of £6.00 was taken from the current account at the end of February. A service charge of £7.00 will be taken from the account at the end of March.
An internal transfer will be made from the Instant Access Account to the Current Account to return the balance to £500.00.
b) To note any receipts since the last meeting and the bank balance. There have been no receipts since the last meeting.
The Current Account cleared balance is £181.56 and the Instant Access Account balance is £12,387.46.
c) Bank reconciliation 28.02.26.
This was checked and signed by Cllr Stevens.
150/03/26. To review:
a) Financial Regulations. The amended Financial Regulations were approved.
b) Standing Orders. The amended Standing Orders were approved.
c) Business Risk Assessment. The Business Risk Assessment was reviewed and approved.
d) Data Protection Policy. Reviewed and approved.
151/03/26. Community Emergency Hubs:
to discuss the information received. The Clerk has booked to attend a training session organised by Community Council of Devon and will report to the next meeting.
152/03/26. Correspondence:
DALC Newsletters
MDDC press releases
Devon Community Resilience Forum – Spring Forum 26th March
A letter of complaint about a councillor was discussed.
It was agreed to acknowledge the letter and explain the Parish Council does not get involved is disputes between neighbours.
A resident has asked why there are yellow markings on the cobbles by the bench in the centre of the village. The markings have been made by Openreach and are in direct line with the pole. They will probably have to dig up the underground conduit.
The person who has put containers on the highway will be asked to remove them.
153/03/26. To confirm the date of the next meeting.
Monday 13th April 2026.
The meeting closed at 8.47pm.