DRAFT MINUTES OF COMPTON MARTIN PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

 

MINUTES OF COMPTON MARTIN PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

HELD ON 12th October 2026 AT 7.15pm IN COMPTON MARTIN VILLAGE HALL

 

Present

Cllr Paul Shipman (Chairman)

Cllr Brett Halling-Brown (Vice-Chairman)

Cllr Simon Wood

Cllr Lucy Hamilton

Cllr Peter Windfeld

Cllr Izzy Russell

Clerk: Vesela Ilieva

District Councillor Anna Box

6 members of the public

  1. To receive and accept apologies for absence – none
  1. To receive comments from the public – 4 members of the public made representation regarding Springfield House planning application.
  1. To receive declarations of interest in the agenda – none
  1. To approve and sign the minutes of the previous meeting
  • The minutes of 14th September Parish Council Meeting were unanimously approved as an accurate record of the meetings. The Chairman signed the minutes.
  1. To receive a report from the Planning Working Party and consider their recommendations regarding the following Planning Applications:

5.1. Application Reference: 26/03739/TC5 Springfield House, The Street, Compton Martin, BS40 6JA
Proposal: Cultivar Apple (Malus domestica) T009 – fell. Plum (Prunus domestica) T011 – fell.

This was a retrospective 5-day application for two trees that is assumed the applicant claimed were either dead or a risk to others. The arboculture report submitted with this application does not indicate that.

5.2 Application Reference: 26/03669/FUL Springfield House, The Street, Compton Martin, BS40 6JA

Proposal: Erection of detached dwelling to land at rear of Springfield.

It was proposed and agreed to object to this application with further comments (see response in appendix 1). It was also agreed to bring to the attention of B&NES Highways the visibility splay out of the driveway.

  1. B&NES Draft Local Plan Consultation: https://haveyoursay.bathnes.gov.uk/localplan/ – A response to be prepared and submitted by the deadline 30 October, then ratified at the next meeting. In principle there isn’t much to concern Compton Martin, however it was agreed that in terms of Chew Valley and proposed 400 houses in the neighbouring villages, that will affect us as a parish. Response to support other parishes objecting to the plans.
  1. Accounts and Payments

7.1. The conclusion of External Audit was noted.

7.2. The second quarter finance reports and budget monitoring report were noted.

7.3. The budgeting process for 2027-2028 has commenced and the finance working party to meet before the next meeting to discuss the budget and propose a draft.

7.4. No further quotes for notice board were received. It was proposed to consider quotes for aluminium notice board instead of a timber, as this will need no maintenance and have overall longer live, yet cost considerably less. Examples were shown and accepted. PS to look for quotes for the next meeting.

7.5. The income received was noted:

  • bank interest Jul – Sept 2026- £ 159.13
  • second instalment of the Precept 1st October – £12 000

7.6. It was confirmed that Bank Reconciliations for September 2026 have been checked and signed.

7.7. The following payments for October 2026 were unanimously agreed:

Date Payment Authorised Total

Amount £

 VAT Reclaim Payee and Description
12/10/2026 PS/BHB Total: £3.00

£3.00

  

 

 Multi Pay Card, Direct Debit October 2026, to include:

Card monthly fee October 2026
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £1070.24   Clerk’s Salary October 2026 + arrears due from April 26
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £43.83   Pension contribution October 26 (DD November)
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £10.00   School Room Hire for Footpath Walk (agreed in July – not paid)
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £252.00 £42.00 BDO External Audit (agreed and paid in September)
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £250.00   Citizen Advice grant request – awarded July 26
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £37.50   Village Hall Hire – 14th September PC meeting
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £7.00   Unity Bank – account fee September (DD October)
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £125.00   Branching Out- Grass cutting August
12/10/2026 PS/BHB £200.00   Branching Out – Grass cutting September

 

  1. Update on funding the felling of the Wellingtonia tree – while a decision was made to not make contributions towards the felling of the Wellingtonia from the CIL funds, due to legal constrains, the Parish Council is prepared to make a contribution from its reserves. A response to our letter to the Diocese was received which confirmed the church and churchyard are the responsibility of the PCC, rather than the Diocesan Board of Finance (the PCC and the DBF are separate charities). The Clerk to ask PCC for a new grant application, instead of CIL application.
  1. Housing Needs Survey – the results of the survey to be discussed by the working group and proposal to full council made for the way forward at the next meeting.
  1. Village maintenance
  • Pond update – some new species of weed was discovered during the clearing.
  • Mill Lane/Undertown blocked trough – reported to Bristol Water but resident cleared already. Clerk to follow up with Bristol Water.
  • Highways checks and issues – correspondence received regarding Highfield Lane – forwarded to Highways and The Coombe were reported via FixMyStreet.
  • Coombe View – Cherry Blossom trees to be delivered in November.
  1. Speed checks and road safety update
  • Correspondence received in response to the letter sent regarding the road safety and fatal collisions.
  • Speed traffic analysis undertaken in February 2026 confirmed that there is non-compliance through the village. Road Safety Enforcement site was established on the A368 in Compton Martin in March 2026. A Road Safety Enforcement Officer attending regularly since then.
  • Road safety meeting on 21 October with hierarchical representation from the police and B&NES council to discuss the issues around Chew Valley.
  • Rescheduled multi-agency meeting – this will be represented at the 21 October meeting.
  1. People’s Emergency Briefing – The agreement to host the briefing was ratified and a budget of £20 for refreshments plus the hall hire cost approved.
  1. Compton Martin Emergency Plan – working group LH, BHB and PS.
  1. Bristol Airport – Bristol Airport Reconsultation for Application 26/P/0686/OU2 – https://planning.n-somerset.gov.uk/online-applications/ – a further response to object to the planning application to be submitted before the deadline and ratified at the next meeting.
  1. To note the following B&NES Planning DECISIONS received:

Application Reference: 25/04729/FUL The Stables, Highfield Lane, Compton Martin, BS40 6LA
Proposal: Conversion of stables into a 2-bedroom self-build dwelling. PENDING CONSIDERATION

Application Reference: 26/02987/VAR Greenacres Poultry Farm , Bristol Road, Compton Martin, Bristol, BS40 6NQ Proposal: Variation of conditions 2 (Plans List (Compliance)), 4 (Garage for private use only (Compliance)), 8 (External Lighting (Compliance)), 9 (Sustainable Construction (Pre-occupation)), 10 (Water Efficiency – Rainwater Harvesting (Pre-occupation)) and 1… PENDING CONSIDERATION

Application Reference: 26/02986/FUL Greenacres Poultry Farm, Bristol Road, Compton Martin, Bristol, BS40 6NQ Proposal: Construction of a section of replacement farm track (Retrospective) PENDING CONSIDERATION

Application Reference: 26/02985/FUL Greenacres Poultry Farm, Bristol Road, Compton Martin, Bristol, BS40 6NQ Proposal: Erection of a replacement agricultural poultry building with associated works. PENDING CONSIDERATION

  1. Report from District Councillor
  • Update on the Local Plan – Consultation deadline 30 October
  • Highways
  1. Date of the next Parish Council Meeting and other meetings
  • Friday 16th October- National scheme of planning delegation – training session with Sarah James 2pm
  • Sunday 18th October – People’s Emergency Briefing 2pm – 4pm Compton Martin Village Hall
  • Wednesday 21st October – Public Chew Valley Road Safety meeting – Compton Martin Village Hall
  • Thursday 29th October – PCAA meeting 7.30pm via Zoom
  • Monday 9th November 2026 – Parish Council Meeting 7.15pm – SCHOOL ROOM

 

Apendix 1

Response to Consultation Request regarding Application Reference: 26/03669/FUL, Springfield House, The Street, Compton Martin, Bristol, Bath And North East Somerset, BS40 6JA

Proposal: Erection of detached dwelling to land at rear of Springfield

Compton Martin Parish Council considered the above Planning Application at their Parish Council Meeting on 12th October 2026 and would like to OBJECT to the proposed in the application with the following comments:

In responding to this application we also refer to our previous objection for 24/04201/OUT. We would also like to bring to the Council’s attention that no neighbour has received any notifications as yet, neither, as far as we can gather, has a formal notification been posted at the property.

We have looked at the current application for Springfield House – 26/03669/FUL in conjunction with the consented outline application – 24/04201/OUT and would make the following comments:

1) At the outset we would like to remind both the officers and councillors that prior to this application being submitted tree work has been undertaken. In one case without any permissions and in the second case a retrospective 5-day application for two trees that we assume the applicant claimed were either dead or a risk to

others. The arboculture report submitted with this application does not indicate that and as such is now out of date. In addition, the report also reflects the old footprint of 24/04201/OUT and therefore needs to be resubmitted to reflect the changes.

2) The same can be applied to the Ecological Impact Report dated Oct 2024 as this again relates to 24/04201/OUT and not this application.

3) 26/03669/FUL is a new application for the site, it is not a reserved matters application for the outline consent. However, we could perhaps assume that the principles of development that the LPA established for the outline consent may still apply.

4)  All the conditions on the outline consent – appearance, landscaping, ARB method statement, tree replacement, external and internal lighting, rainwater harvesting – would need to be addressed by the new scheme.  See highlighted decision notice attached. We cannot find any detailed submissions on a number of these and would contest that planning cannot be granted without these matters being addressed and open to scrutiny during the consultation period.

5) The scale and massing of development for the site was established on the outline consent as being single storey with a pitched mansard roof (some accommodation being provided in the mansard roof). The sightlines from surrounding properties were carefully considered to ensure that only the roof could be seen. Please see elevations for the outline consent. The new application has proposed a two-storey building which does not address the above issues. Please see elevations for the proposed full application. The new design would have a direct impact on the privacy of neighbouring properties. The application makes reference to other properties, but it chooses to ignore the bungalows in Undertown, which border this development.

6) The outline consent shows a 3-bedroom scheme on the site. The new application shows a 4-bedroom scheme, an intensification of use on the site.

7) The new scheme suggests in the DAS that its design and materials are in keeping with the character of the area. The historic character of the Compton Martin conservation area is not reflected in the design of the scheme, both in scale, roof massing and pitch, or materiality. The Chew Valley Neighbourhood Plan, policy HDE2 – Characteristics that Reinforce Settlement Character within the Chew Valley Neighbourhood Plan Area, makes specific reference to properties being in character and the character for Compton Martin is ”Important features of existing houses are the height of the roof lines, the size, shape and type of window (former windows not being a feature of the front elevation of houses along The Street). The walls are constructed of local stone, geologically terms dolomitic conglomerate) surface showing or painted white. Stone walls are capped with stones sticking up. The roofs are pitched and tiled with Bridgwater (Double Roman) or pan tiles. There are relatively tall brick chimneys on a number of houses. There is also a variation in height and angle of connecting roof lines.” This application does not meet that requirement at all. 

8) Compton Martin has a dark skies policy (Chew Valley Neighbourhood Plan Policy HDE15)

The current design includes a number of roof lights and lanterns that would increase the light output in this area and is not in keeping with the dark skies policy. 

9) The outline consent includes a response from BANES Transportation and Highways.

“….. The proposed access would be gained via the existing access for Springfield House, no new access onto the highway would therefore be created. The use of this access would however be intensified. It is recommended that the applicant provides evidence that the appropriate visibility splay can be achieved.”

 The new application does not provide this evidence.

N.B. A 4 -bedroom house would require 3 parking spaces, thereby intensifying traffic use even further.

 It is our understanding that the visibility splay for 2 dwellings onto an A-Road, with a maximum speed limit of 20mph, would be 25 Metres in either direction, from a minimum point of 2M back from the highway in the centre of the access. Please see attached sketch. (For your information this driveway will in fact serve 3 houses as Rose Lawn has a right of access as well). In this instance, the visibility splay in the direction of on-coming traffic (coming from the West) does not exist at all, due to an existing property on the back edge of the highway

Accessibility by WAH