Council Meeting 7th September 2026

 

SLAPTON PARISH COUNCIL AGENDA 

Meeting of the Parish Council 

Monday 7th September 2026 In Slapton Village Hall at 7.00pm 

 

The following Councillors are summoned to attend: 

Cllr J. Abbey, Cllr I. Mitchelmore, Cllr T. Fletcher, Cllr J. Harris, Cllr S. Lange, Cllr P. Osborne, and Cllr J Hallett

Cllr J. Brazil, Cllr L. Lawford and members of the public are invited to attend.  

The next meeting of the Parish Council will be held on Monday 7th September 2026, in Slapton Village Hall (main hall), at 7.00 pm. 

 The public comment section is 15 minutes in duration with 3 minutes allocated per person. If any parishioners wish to speak in relation to a matter on the agenda, please contact the clerk by email clerk@slaptonparishcouncil-devon.gov.uk 48 hours in advance of the meeting. 

AGENDA 

 

1 APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE: Does the PC resolve to accept the reasons for apologies for absence from…? 
 

2 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST: Councillors are invited to declare any disclosable interest they may have in any items to be considered. They are also reminded to consider whether, in the light of recent activities, any items within their Register of Interests should be updated. 

 3 PUBLIC COMMENT 

 4 COUNTY AND DISTRICT COUNCILLOR REPORTS 

a) Cllr J. Brazil 

b) Cllr L. Lawford  

5 MINUTES OF THE MONTHLY PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 6th July 2026, if agreed, to be signed by the Chair as a true and correct record. (See separate document 5)

6 PLANNING   

a) applications (for resolution):  

1941/26/HHO Hillcrest Wood Lane Slapton TQ7 2QX Replacement incidental building 

1853/26/FUL Torr Farm Slapton TQ7 2RD Installation of ground mounted solar with associated infrastructure 

b) Decisions (for information): None 

d) Withdrawn: None 

7 MATTERS FOR DISCUSSION 

a) Slapton Line 

b) Hedge trimming 

c) Signage 

d) Training 

e) Grants 

f) Community cafe 

g) Bus shelter 

h) Civility and respect pledge 

i) Payroll provider 

8 PROPOSALS RESOLUTION  

a) Do the PC wish to approve the clerks salary increase in line with the NJC payscales published in August 2026? (see separate document 8a) 

b) Do the PC wish to approve Devon Auditorsas their internal auditor for 2026/7? 

c) Do the PC wish to continue their member ship of the Slapton Alliance? 

d) PC to appoint road warden and grass cutting contracts  

9 VACANCIES AND CO-OPTION 

 10 CLERK’S REPORT: Update from Clerk 

11 CHAIR’S REPORT: Update from Chair 

 12 COUNCILLOR REPORTS: Update from Cllrs 

 13 REVIEW OF ACTION LOG: Status update (see separate document 13)  

 14 FINANCIAL MATTERS  

 a) Payments to approve: Does the PC approve the payments below, which have been examined, verified and certified by the Clerk and RFO? (see separate document 14a) 

 

INV NO	DETAIL	AMOUNT	PAID
51	Woolston Accounts: June Payroll Invoice: 1234 dated 31st July 2026	20.00	August 2026
52	VC Warehouse: Phone. Invoice: 1017589 dated 1st August 2026	11.94	DD
53	Lloyds: Service Charge	4.25	Automated payment
54	H Iles: Clerk’s salary Aug 2026, plus £26.00 WFH allowance	551.56	August 2026
55	Mathias Property Solutions: Grass cutting for July 2026. Invoice no 2383, dated 8th Aug 2026	481.25	August 2026
56	HMRC: PAYE Income Tax. PAYE reference 120/LA58268	131.40	August 2026
57	Hall Hire: Parish Council Meetings. Invoice no C081228/26, dated 4th Aug 2026	20.00	August 2026
58	Mathias Property Solutions: Road Warden for Jul 2026. Invoice no 2384, dated 8th Aug 2026	367.82	August 2026
59	Tomlinson Solutions: Revoking access. Invoice 13353, dated 28th July 2026	45.00	August 2026
60	VC Warehouse: phone. Invoice: 1017739 dated 1st September 2026	11.94	DD
61	Lloyds: Service Charge	4.25	Automated payment
62	ICO: Data protection renewal fee. Dated 16th August 2026	52.00	DD

*Additional invoices received after the agenda has been issued will be available for review at the meeting 

 

b) Balance at bank 

 

Balance as per bank statements on 26.06.26	Amount GBP
Community Account	10,174.00
Commercial Instant Access Account	14,483.36
Total	24,657.36

 

c) Receipts summary  

 

Receipts as per bank statements on 26.06.26	Amount GBP
Community Account	300.00
Commercial Instant Access Account	12.30
Total	312.30

 The next Parish Council Meeting will be held on Monday 5th October at 7.00 pm at Slapton Village Hall (main hall).  

 Signed: Hannah Iles, Clerk Date: 01.09.26 

 

Meeting of the Parish Council on Monday 7th September 2026 in Slapton Village Hall at 7.00pm 

MINUTES

SEPT:26

 

 Those in attendance: 

Cllr J. Abbey, Cllr I. Mitchelmore, Cllr T. Fletcher, Cllr S. Lange, Cllr P. Osborne, and Cllr J Hallett.

Cllr J. Brazil, Cllr L. Lawford, Tim Hughes (observing) and H Iles (clerk) were also in attendance. 

 

1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE: Cllr Sutton has resigned from the Parish Council. Cllr Harris sent his apologies in advance, and these were sanctioned by the council.

2. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST: Councillors were invited to declare any disclosable interest they may have in any items to be considered. None were declared. 

 3. PUBLIC COMMENT None 

 4. COUNTY AND DISTRICT COUNCILLOR REPORTS 

a) Cllr J. Brazil 

There have been no meetings and no decisions made. The environment agency has commenced the work at Torcross and the bid has gone in for replacing the road and protecting it. The buses will continue. Work is due to start imminently on the north south roads, and the next stage will start on Deer Bridge Road. Cllr Brazil will speak to the flooding people at DCC about funding and responsibilities f for Deer Bridge. Cllr Brazil does not hold out much hope for the mobile library service recommencing, but he will investigate. Cllr Brazil will investigate gritting all of Five Mile Lane. Deer Bridge road is not on the gritters route. 

b) Cllr L. Lawford 

Cllr Lawford read out an email that plans for LGRO are under review, following the government taking legal advice. Cllr Lawford will update the PC after Monday. The Tank Car Park was closed from today. Solar panels have been fitted to the leisure centre to increase sustainability and increase future viability. Devon and Cornwall police have asked people to report heritage crime such as vandalism. 

5. MINUTES OF THE MONTHLY PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 6th July 2026 were signed by the Chair as a true and correct record. 

6. PLANNING   

a) Applications (for resolution):  

i) 1941/26/HHO Hillcrest Wood Lane Slapton TQ7 2QX Replacement incidental building 

ii) 1853/26/FUL Torr Farm Slapton TQ7 2RD Installation of ground mounted solar with associated infrastructure 

Councillors resolved to support both planning applications. 

b) Decisions (for information): None 

c) Withdrawn: None 

7. MATTERS FOR DISCUSSION 

a) Slapton Line – The bus service is continuing. Sat Navs routes have updated. Hedge trimming has greatly improved driver experience. Apple Maps has not updated, Cllr Brazil is aware of the issue. The route for the school bus has changed and the Tally Ho buses will no longer be using Deer Bridge. The routing co-ordinator for Tally Ho has now been replaced. It was noted that as well as keeping the dispensary at Chillington Health Centre viable, the prescription service at the community shop is helping to reduce vehicle numbers on Deer Bridge Road. 

The SLP Inland Working Group meeting took place in August and information has been shared on the PC website. Highways are waiting on the result of the dormouse survey to ascertain where they can place new passing places while not disturbing the protected species. Road surface and drainage will be improved in the existing passing places. Passing places will be two car lengths long to accommodate longer vehicles. Where they can, the verge will be lifted to expose more road, failing that the verges will be shunted back. 

At the SLP Amenities Group meeting another parish suggested relocating the monument to one of the fields behind the Ley. Landowners were approached regarding selling part of a field but they declined. Therefore, the next best option will be moved forward, which is to relocate the monument to Strete Gate. Planning has now lapsed and a new application will need to be submitted. £30,000 was allocated for the previous plan. The costs are expected to be around £100,000. The moment will need to be taken down and stored to protect it from winter storms while plans are put in place for its relocation. There will need to be improvements and preparations for the new site. 

There are no plans to improve the protection of the road between Slapton Turn and Strete Gate. 

Where the coastal road meets the coastal path at Torcross it is not accessible for anyone with mobility issues, wheelchair, mobility scooters and prams. Following a request it has been ascertained that the FSC warden does not have a relevant policy and from their assessment there are no problems with access. 

East Allington stepped back from the Slapton Alliance a couple of months ago. There were some tense email communications requesting the terms of reference for the SLP to be amended to give the parish councils more of a voice. A joint statement was issued by the other parties’ i.e. county, district, EA, Natural England to state that the terms of reference would not be reviewed until a decision had been made about the funding. No name was provided of who the decision had been made by or who was communicating it. Cllr Abbey wishes for more transparency on who does have decision making power. The communication was contested by a member of the alliance as undemocratic and they then, sent a communication to the Environment Agency stating that the funding decision should be stalled until the terms of references were updated. The PC agreed that the action did not align with their wishes. Working groups were cancelled to avoid further discussion on the terms of reference. During the SLP meeting some members raised the terms of reference, which led to Lou Hoskin being pressured. The PC are concerned there has been no backing for LH from more senior people within the member organisations and particularly SHDC. Cllr Abbey noted concern that some alliance actions do not show the alliance in a good light.  

b) Hedge trimming: Hedge trimming has been completed on Blacksmiths Hill. Councillors have thanked the new owners. The PC noted that landowners and residents can be asked to maintain their hedge and failure to do so can be escalated to highways, who will ask again and then complete the work and bill the landowner. Coming down Prospect Hill past Sea View campsite is also dangerously overgrown. 

c) Signage: In the light of an increasing number of requests for signage in the village councillors agree that a procedure is required to ensure that the parish council is meeting their obligations while observing regulations and the law. Cllr Fletcher will work with the clerk to produce a new policy or procedure for approval at the next PC meeting. Councillors noted that the PC does not have authority to place signs on the public highway or on private property and that any signs procured by the PC must serve the wider community or visitors, not the private interests of a single residents or businesses. 

d) Training: Councils agreed to book the defib training on the second or third Wednesday evening in October. Cyber training will be offered at the community cafe if the content is appropriate, with councillors welcome to attend. Cllr Hallet will comment the Good Councillor Training when an online course becomes available. 

e) Grants: councillors will consider possible use of the budgeted grant funding. 

f) Community cafe: the community cafe can only run if there are enough volunteers. An advert will be placed in Slapton Lines and poster will be placed around the village and on the website. 

g) Bus shelter: councillors reviewed the potentioal locations for the bus shelter following the assessment carried out by Devon County Highways. Three locations are potentially viable. The clerk will arrange a meeting with Cllr Osborne, Cllr Abbey and all interested parties in the village hall before the next PC meeting. To ascertain the exact role the PC is to play in the project being moved forward, a proposal form will need to be completed. As this is an ongoing project, the organisers have already carried out significant work and the form was not a requirement at the time the request was made the PC will assist in completing the form as a one-off exception. 

h) Civility and respect pledge: councillors have considered all information of other parties and the decision and comments of the monitoring officer and DALC and in their opinion the pledge has not been breached. All councillors will continue to adhere to the pledge and to display the logo. 

i) Payroll provider: Sandra White at DeebeePay was appointed to take over from Woolston Account in producing the payroll information.  

8. PROPOSALS RESOLUTION 

a) Cllr Abbey proposed and Cllr Mitchelmore seconded and the council unanimously agreed that the clerk’s salary would increase in line with the NJC payscales published in August 2026 and the increase would be backdated to April 2026. The backdated payment will be made in the October payroll run. 

b) Cllr Osborne proposed and Cllr Lange seconded and the council unanimously to nominate Devon Auditors as their internal auditor for 2026/7, if they should accept. 

c) Cllr Osborne proposed and Cllr Hallett seconded and the council unanimously agreed to temporarily revoke their member ship of the Slapton Alliance (to be reviewed in six months, unless there is a significant change). 

d) Cllr Lange proposed and Cllr Fletcher seconded and the council unanimously agreed to appoint Nick Mathias the road warden contract and grass cutting contract for a three year period from 1st October 2026 subject to his acceptance of the terms with of the contract. Clerk to liaise with NM and to thank him. 

9. VACANCIES AND CO-OPTION: No update 

 10. CLERK’S REPORT: The Clerk and Chair suggested that the Parish Council consider adopting a clear but flexible set of objectives in relation to the A379 at Slapton. These could include keeping residents informed through accurate and timely information, communicating the actions of the Parish Council and other relevant organisations, maintaining pressure for long-term solutions and funding, taking a proactive approach to emerging issues, celebrating successes both large and small, and promoting community cohesion. It was also suggested that the Parish Council could provide a platform for local residents, campaign groups, organisations and businesses through the public participation section of Council meetings, encouraging wider engagement and inviting specific individuals or groups to share relevant updates and information where appropriate. 

 (Cllr Osborne left the meeting at 21:11) 

10. CHAIR’S REPORT: Update provided by the chair earlier in the meeting under various agenda points. 

11. COUNCILLOR REPORTS: Councillors noted that some vulnerable villagers did not receive bottled water, councillors to check if people know about the priority service list and the clerk will write an article for the website, 

Cllr Lange shared that Save our Shoreline have arranged for modelling to be carried out in the bay by an international body, who will be holding a symposium in Plymouth, they will carry out the modelling for free and will look at the possible ways of rectifying the removal of shingle. They will also be holding a workshop at the Field Studies Centre. Save Our Shoreline plan to submit a grant application to Slapton Parish Council. 

The hydrant leak has been reported to SWW. 

12. REVIEW OF ACTION LOG: Updates shared 

13. FINANCIAL MATTERS  

a) Payments to approve: Cllr Lange proposed and Cllr Fletcher seconded and the council unanimously approved the payments, which have been examined, verified and certified by the Clerk and RFO. The clerk will ask DeeBeePay to provide a pay and HMRC figures for payment this month. 

 

INV NO	DETAIL	AMOUNT	PAID
51	Woolston Accounts: June Payroll Invoice: 1234 dated 31st July 2026	20.00	August 2026
52	VC Warehouse: Phone. Invoice: 1017589 dated 1st August 2026	11.94	DD
53	Lloyds: Service Charge	4.25	Automated payment
54	H Iles: Clerk’s salary Aug 2026, plus £26.00 WFH allowance	551.56	August 2026
55	Mathias Property Solutions: Grass cutting for July 2026. Invoice no 2383, dated 8th Aug 2026	481.25	August 2026
56	HMRC: PAYE Income Tax. PAYE reference 120/LA58268	131.40	August 2026
57	Hall Hire: Parish Council Meetings. Invoice no C081228/26, dated 4th Aug 2026	20.00	August 2026
58	Mathias Property Solutions: Road Warden for Jul 2026. Invoice no 2384, dated 8th Aug 2026	367.82	August 2026
59	Tomlinson Solutions: Revoking access. Invoice 13353, dated 28th July 2026	45.00	August 2026
60	VC Warehouse: phone. Invoice: 1017739 dated 1st September 2026	11.94	DD
61	Lloyds: Service Charge	4.25	Automated payment
62	ICO: Data protection renewal fee. Dated 16th August 2026	52.00	DD

*Additional invoices received after the agenda has been issued will be available for review at the meeting 

b) Balance at bank: Cllr Lange proposed and Cllr Hallett seconded the council unaminously agreed the balance at bank. 

 

Balance as per bank statements on 01.09.26	Amount GBP
Community Account	10,174.00
Commercial Instant Access Account	14,483.36
Total	24,657.36

c) Receipts summary: Cllr Lange proposed and Cllr Hallett seconded the council unaminously agreed the receipts as per bank statements. 

 

Receipts as per bank statements on 01.09.26	Amount GBP
Community Account	300.00
Commercial Instant Access Account	12.30
Total	312.30

 The next Parish Council Meeting will be held on Monday 5th October at 7.00 pm at Slapton Village Hall (main hall).

The meeting closed at 21.30