Committees and Working Groups

The Council has the following working groups and Committees:-

Finance & General Purposes (F&GP)

Members: Councillors Cassidy, Flynn, McGuinness & Sutcliffe

The F&GP group has a number of responsibilities centred on finance and the overall policy of the Council. As a committee however all its decisions and recommendations are ratified by the full council. F&GP is responsible for formulating and proposing the annual budget and part of the budgeting process is the scrutiny of all grant applications which are assessed against the criteria of the financial standing of the organisation, value to the village as a whole with a particular emphasis on the youth element.

The group meets in the week prior to main council to review the previous accounts and to approve all accounts payable for the coming payment period.

The group maintains and develops the Councils general policies and procedures making recommendations to full Council as appropriate. The group deals with all other issues not covered by the various working groups and committees.

Highways

Members: Councillors Flynn, Cassidy & McGuinness

The responsibilities of the Highways Working Group are to oversee general road safety within the village. Ensure that Hertfordshire Highways maintain the roads and road markings and keep footpaths and gulleys clear.

Allotments

Members: Councillor Heaphy, TBA

The aim of the group is to ensure that all of the plot holders can get the best from their plots, not only in terms of produce grown but also the enjoyment of doing so.

Recently the Council has increased the number of taps available on the site, improved security, and repaired the road way.

The site is run by the Parish Clerk on a day to day basis, but plot holders are welcome to discuss the site with any members of the group at any time.

Open Spaces

Members: Councillors Heaphy & Hinton

Open Spaces strives to achieve the best possible balance between protecting an area's character and features and supporting its use as a community asset.

Predominantly focused on Chipperfield Common, which is jointly maintained by the Parish Council and the landowners Dacorum Borough Council, the working group aims to represent the views and needs of residents in the management of The Common.

Typical issues that involve the working group include fallen trees, fly-tipping, encroachment, signage, footpaths and bridleways and the group can require liaising with various third parties to resolve.

Open Spaces, our Village Warden and Woodland Ranger, the Friends of Chipperfield Common and Dacorum Borough Council's Trees and Woodlands Officer have all played their part in Chipperfield Common achieving Green Flag status for the last 10 years.

Youth & Education

Members: Councillors Heaphy & Sutcliffe

We aim to help support the youth in Chipperfield by working and engaging with St Paul’s Cof E Primary School and the various other organisations within the village, that provide; care, support and activities for the younger generation. We hope that they continue to have opportunities available to enjoy and develop within their local community.

Planning Committee

Members: Councillors Bryant, Flynn, Cassidy, McGuinness, Hinton & Sutcliffe

The purpose of the Planning Committee is to help preserve and enhance the built environment in the village by assessing proposed developments to ensure that they contribute to this aim. The committee makes due reference to the Village Design Statement in the Parish Council’s role as a statutory consultee to the local planning authority Dacorum Borough Council.

The Committee meets monthly every 3 weeks, see calendar of meetings. Meetings are open to the public and there is an opportunity for members of the public to express their views in support or in opposition to any particular development or issue.

The main matters the committee handles are:

• Planning applications
• Parish boundary
• Conservation area
• Planning policy
• Listed buildings
• Enforcement
• Refuse collection and recycling
• Advertising signs

Personnel Committee

Members: Councillors Sayers, Flynn & Cassidy

Responsibilities of the Committee is to manage and develop the Council’s staff, review salaries and deal with all disciplinary and grievance procedures.

Process applications for new positions and make a recommendation to the full Parish Council on employment.