The Chairman welcomed Councillor Friend to his first meeting; he will now sit on the following committees: Planning, Housing, Travel & Transport and Amenities.

The Chairman thanked Jane Moffatt for wreath laying.

On the matter of the Post Office closures it was agreed to write to the District Council PO Champion, Councillor Potter, from Newton Poppleford and to copy in our MP.

Grateful thanks were expressed to Mr Masterson for his painting of The Saddlers Bus Shelter and 21 seats around the village. It was agreed to make a donation to Hospiscare of £50 as he requested.

In respect of the Station Adoption Scheme it was noted that positive vibes had been made at the meeting held at the Station with various suggestions being put forward. The Chairman also referred to the works to the iron pedestrian bridge over the rail line at Parsonage Stile and advised that night time working which had taken place was only to put up the scaffolding and protective panels.

The Parish Dinner is to be held in The Swan Inn on the 2^nd February when anyone wishing to join the Council Members would be welcome. Please contact the Chairman.

The Harbour and the signs is to be discussed by the Harbour Authority at a special meeting to be held in January. Some members are of the view that the Harbour area should be registered as Village Green.

It was also noted that the Village School had received its extra classroom thus allowing an increase in pupil numbers.

The matter of the 20mph scheme was again raised and Members wished to remind the County Council of the urgent need to establish it, On the matter of the walking bus scheme, it was noted that not enough parents had been able to help. Safety on Cox’s Hill was still a major concern.

 D G  Atkins, Acting Clerk

Christmas Message from the Chairman of the Parish Council, Cllr Peter Acca.

 This year has seen great changes at the Parish Council.  At the elections, we said goodbye to some members and saw some new faces elected.  It was satisfying to see so many people who were interested in Parish Council matters. 

 You will also read that the Parish Council is to have more discussions by its Committees and these are to be open to the public.  I would urge you to go along to at least one meeting during the year to see what happens.  There is almost always an opportunity for you to speak if you want to. 

 We had the sad and sudden death of Cllr Tony Clark.  Although he was only elected to the Council in May, he was making a very strong contribution to our business and was very active in the village in many ways.  He is sadly missed.

 The greatest success of the year came from being named as the 'Devon Life' Village of the Year.  This is the first year of the competition and it is a great accolade to be the first recipient.  It is an excellent reflection of the quality of

life in our village. There are other competitions that we are being urged to enter and so I ask you to make your New Year's resolution to make sure that you do something to contribute to village life in 2008.

 I wish you all a Happy Christmas and a Prosperous New Year

 Councillor Peter Acca

 COUNCIL COMMITTEE CHANGES

The Parish Council is changing the way it carries out its business.  In the past there have been Committees but they did not meet very often.  Only the Planning Committee has met regularly to consider Planning Applications.

 The Council has now agreed new procedures so that Committees can meet more often and will be able to discuss more items of business.  The Planning Committee will meet regularly, in between Parish Council meetings.  The Amenities Committee will probably meet every month.  Other Committees will meet when there is business to discuss.  All meetings will now be open to the public and details will be posted on the parish notice boards before the meeting. 

The Committees and Chairmen are as listed below