Stinchcombe Parish Council Meeting

13th May 2026

My informal notes and personal commentary from last week's Parish Council meeting and Annual Assembly.

Annual Assembly
Cllr Charlie Macfarlane addressed a packed Annual Assembly held in the new Mezzanine room at the recently refurbished Village Hall. An amazing turnout for a parish of this size! Everyone was thanked for their engagement. Too many groups and projects to remember or list!

Grants were awarded to Tiny Toads and to the Village Hall for their decoration project.

Additionally, a reminder was issued that the use of marked public footpaths by villagers and visitors alike is welcomed, though some issues have recently been reported. Please see the guidance here for more information.

Parish Council Meeting
Cllr Alison Wall was elected as Chair for the next civic year, with Cllr Charlie Macfarlane appointed as Deputy.

A quick update was given on previous action points, and the minutes from the council's previous meeting were approved.

Regarding the GCC Councillor report, the Chair expressed disappointment that the 20mph limit was not included around the play area. There was also comment that GCC did not take the Speedwatch group's data into account relating to Tait's Hill.

(Myself and Cllr Braun spent quite some time at the Tait's Hill Public Inquiry at SDC over the last few weeks, supporting the Parish Council, Cam Parish Council, and Cam Community Action Group. Stroud District Council refused the outline application back in May 2025, but land agent Clifton Homes appealed to the Secretary of State. The final decision now rests with the Inspector, who is expected to announce his ruling in July.)

A question arose regarding my suggestion to 'call in' the Swedish Homes development at the last meeting and what that entails. At the parish level, this means elevating a planning application from an officer decision to one decided by the Development Control Committee. In the case of the Swedish Homes development, I discovered that this was already the case as SDC is submitting the application, so additional scrutiny and transparency need to be demonstrated.

The Clerk gave a verbal report. There was a general feeling that the recent LGR training was not particularly effective, as there are still so many unknowns.

A planning application relating to Church Barn was discussed, and a 'no comment' decision was made.

An update was provided by Kath Hudson's Environment and Biodiversity Group regarding the Nature Nurturing event held the previous Sunday afternoon at St Cyr's. It was chilly but dry, with a steady stream of visitors.

A productive discussion took place regarding welcome packs and the possibility of reprinting footpath leaflets.

Cllrs Braun, Cohen, and myself left early for a quick catch-up.