Annual-Parish-Minutes-26th-April-2023

The Local Government Act
1972
Parish of HELLESDON
Minutes of the ANNUAL PARISH MEETING
held at Diamond Jubilee Lodge, Woodview Road, Hellesdon
on Wednesday 26th April 2023, at 7.00 p.m.

The meeting was chaired by Parish Council Chairman, Cllr Shelagh Gurney.
The voting strength of electorate in attendance was 9.

1) Welcome by Chairman of Hellesdon Parish Council

The Chairman welcomed all those in attendance including Councillors, residents of the Parish and
guest speaker Phil Langley, Operations Director at Norwich Airport.

2) Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on 3rd May 2022
Draft minutes of the previous meeting were circulated. The minutes were agreed as a true and
accurate record.

3) Matters Arising

The following matters arising from the minutes were reported:
• The 20mph speed limit for Meadow Way has been implemented.
• The roofing work for the community centre is now complete and business is picking up.
• Broadland District Council remains the street lighting authority for the estate street lights.
• There are new traffic lights in place opposite the Persimmon development.
• In the plans for the Hellesdon Hospital development, there remains a retention of the oldest
part of the building.

Presentation by Phil Langley – Operations Director at Norwich Airport
The Chairman welcomed Mr Langley to the meeting.

The vision for Norwich Airport was detailed as follows:
The Passenger Airport of choice for Norfolk, Suffolk and adjoining counties; a leading provider of
aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul services; a supplier to the oil and gas industry and a
location for business growth

The airport is part of the Rigby Group, which also includes Exeter, Bournmouth and Coventry
airports.
Pre-covid, the airport had 504K passengers per year. In 2022 there were 345K passengers but is
expected to return to pre-covid levels by 2026. There had been an increase in transport to offshore
sites due to the increase in local gas production as a result of the war in Ukraine.
Income streams are not only from general aviation, but from property, aeronautical business,
concessions and maintenance, repair and overhaul.
The airport’s catchment is Norfolk, Suffolk and the fringes of the adjoining counties.
Slides were displayed of the controlled airspace required for the airport and emphasis was placed on
the strict noise abatement procedures that are in place, for both aeroplanes and helicopters.
The airport has committed to meet net zero carbon emissions from the airport operations it fully
controls by 2050 at the latest.

Following questions from the floor it was established that:
• British Airways aeroplanes were being stored at the airport during covid, but are now back in
circulation. Military aircraft often use the airport for practise approaches. The Red Arrows
use the airport every August.
• The airport sells Sustainable Aviation Fuel, which contributes towards the net zero target.
The airport is looking at a similar fuel for airport vehicles.
• The airport has strict planning conditions to operate from 6am – 11pm. Maintenance of
aircraft is done is a specialist maintenance building made of noise abatement materials.
• Helicopters need to run to temperature prior to take off to ensure they are adequately
warmed up.
• A full noise survey is done every five years by an independent company. The airport has
portable noise monitors that it uses in the local area, including Bush Road. All recordings
have been deemed to be acceptable within government set limits. The airport has a
dedicated complaints line and email address. All are individually addressed and furthermore
anonymised and discussed at the Airport Consultative Committee which consists of
representatives from the airport and local stakeholders.
• Enquiries will be made as to why there has been a report of alarms going off at 5.30am every
morning.
• The airport is part of a social mobility partnership and runs work experience for under
privileged children aged 16-18. Enquiries for Hellesdon High School students wishing to do
work experience should be made to the Airport’s HR department.
• The proposed development plans to the north of the airport are not designed to increase
aircraft activity. The airport is restricted by its operating hours, length of runway and
catchment area. The development plans will enable other aspects of the airport’s business
to grow and secure the business as a whole.

The key message from the airport was the Norwich Airport and the parishioners of Hellesdon are
neighbours and the airport is keen to resolve any matters of concern at the earliest opportunity.

Cllr Gurney thanked Mr Langley for his time.

4) Annual Report of the Parish Council by the Chairman of Hellesdon Parish Council
Cllr Gurney provided her report to the meeting. Key points were:
• The council was still going through a degree of covid recovery.
• The opening of the community centre was delayed due to water ingress. The centre opened
in October 2022.
• The Warm Room was put in place over the winter, to very positive feedback.
• The Community Café opened for two days per week, with plans in place to open on a third
day.
• The Events Committee ran a successful Easter Trail and launched a Summer Fayre. The
Summer Fayre this year is on 24th June.
• The Friday Friends Club for senior citizens started up and runs on the third Friday of every
month. This has been attended by roughly 40 people each time.
• The new Persimmon development remains a complex issue. The planning application for
Phase 3 is being held up by Nutrient Neutrality.
• It is hopeful that there will be more football provision on phases 4 and 5 of the Persimmon
development.
 • Councillors are working with local people over school parking. There is an onsite drop off
point planned for the new Firside School development.
• A balanced budget was set for 2023/2024 with no rise in the parish share of council tax.
• There are elections on 4th May 2023.
• In the future, the Parish Council is going to review the community centre extension and the
Neighbourhood Plan.

Cllr Gurney thanked all councillors and staff.

5) Invitation to the Public to Raise any Matters for Discussion
Parking around schools was further discussed, with specific mention of Arden Grove school. It was
noted that the police had supported a walk to school week and looked at inconsiderate parking in
the area.
Reasons for driving to schools were discussed, including working parents not having the time to walk
and children attending from outside of catchment due to the good reputation of the schools in
Hellesdon. The out of catchment numbers for the schools is what makes a new school on the
Persimmon site uncertain, as local children will be prioritised for places and out of catchment
children can attend their catchment school.
It was noted that most residents are accommodating of the roads being busy at school run times, it
is just the inconsiderate parking that is a cause for concern.
The school crossing patrol at Heather Avenue was discussed and it was established that it would not
be returning, primarily due to the lack of footfall after a feasibility study was conducted. The timing
and weather conditions at the time of the feasibility study were queried.
It was noted that the local Beat Manager was doing day patrols around Arden Grove school and has
been giving words of advice to those parking inconsiderately and taking action against repeat
offenders. A parishioner suggested that Cottinghams Park be opened at school run times, but it was
advised that this would be in breach of the lease for the land.
Clarification on proposed plans for the new school building at Firside was given.

6) Consideration and Decisions on Subjects as Discussed.
No decisions were required on the subjects of discussion.

7) Close

The Chairman thanked all those who had attended the meeting.

The meeting closed at 8.20pm

Approved…………………………………………………

Date…………………………………………………….
Annual Parish Meeting – 26th April 2023