May 2021 Minutes Annual Parish Council Meeting
KEXBY PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the Annual Parish Council Meeting held on 19th May 2021
Present; Cllr. Ron. Gore, Cllr. Claire Hunt, Cllr. Sue. Farrow, Cllr. David Forrest, Cllr. David Edwardson
Apologies for absence were accepted from Cllr. Clare Cuckson (shielding), Cllr. Lee Hoggarth (Covid vaccination) The Clerk assumed the chair for the first agenda item.
04/21 Election of Chair and Vice Chair for the forthcoming year
Chairman - Ron Gore was proposed by Sue Farrow, seconded by Claire Hunt and agreed unanimously. Vice Chair - Claire Hunt was proposed by Sue Farrow, seconded by David Edwardson and agreed unanimously. Cllr. Gore then resumed the chair for the remainder of the meeting.
05/21 Approval of minutes of previous meetings
The minutes of the last face to face meeting, held on 27th August 2020 and of a remote meeting held on 7th January 2021 had been circulated. These were agreed as a true record and signed off by the Chairman.
06/21 Matters arising
a) Speed Indicator Device – there were still instances of speeding but no fixed pattern of when these were occurring making it difficult to follow up. The clerk would continue to monitor the situation and feedback to the regular Parish Council meetings. The Council expressed their appreciation to Scott Hoggarth and Scott Dunderdale who had taken over responsibility for putting the device up and taking it down each time. The clerk was asked to write to them to express their gratitude.
Action GP
b) Neighbourhood Plan – the council felt that the initial interest from the community in general had waned and that progress should be held in abeyance until the actual level of support could be ascertained. The Clerk, (as Responsible Financial Officer), warned the Council to be aware of committing themselves to additional expense if the consultant’s fees used up the full grant. It was not clear whether expenses such as room hire, publicity and any additional work would be covered. The Chairman said that additional “top-up” grants may be available but the situation was not clear.
c) Banking arrangements – no progress had been made since the meeting with Barclays on 8th January 2020, the Covid pandemic being given as an excuse by the bank. The Chairman agreed to chase this up.
Action RG
d) New website – despite the Clerk having attended two on-line training sessions the development and furnishing of this would not have been possible without the support of Peter Langford who had volunteered to help parishes who were struggling. A donation to two charities nominated by him had been sent via LALC.
The Clerk was asked to write to him and thank him again on behalf of the Parish Council.
Action GP
e) Fibre broadband – representatives of Quickline, LCC and WLDC had agreed to attend the Annual Parish Meeting, scheduled to follow this meeting, to update residents.
f) Parish cottage – the builder had purchased the replacement windows but the tenant had requested that the work was delayed until the pandemic eased as he did not want builders in the house, the Clerk was in dialogue with him to arrange for the work to be completed in the near future.
Action GP
g) Clerk’s pay and expenses – Cllr. Hunt had recommended that the hourly rate should be increased in line with the living wage, the internal auditor had also picked up that this was an anomaly which should be rectified. The increase was unanimously agreed.
07/21 Approval of accounts and Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR)
These had been circulated and had been approved by the internal auditor, they were unanimously approved. The Clerk was asked to complete the Certificate of Exemption and return to the external auditors. He was also asked to ensure that the accounts and AGAR were downloaded onto the website in advance of the 1st July deadline.
Action GP
08/21 Insurance renewal
This was subject to a long-term agreement in place until May 2023, the premium was accepted and the Clerk was authorised to make the payment.
Action GP
09/21 Clerk’s Report on progress since last meeting - This had been circulated and was accepted
10/21 Correspondence
a) Citizens Advice – Had sent a request for funding support, SF proposed £100 as in previous years – seconded by CH and passed unanimously. Clerk to organise cheque.
Action GP
b) Lincolnshire Lowland Search and Rescue – had sent a request for funding, this appeared to be a new organisation in the process of setting up. It was decided to defer funding at this stage.
c) Police – had offered to attend meetings if the Parish Council wished to discuss ways of working with them of if there were specific issues which the needed to discuss. It was agreed that this was an offer which might be appropriate for a future Annual Parish Meeting.
d) Treescapes Fund Survey – WLDC had launched a survey to identify sites owned by Parish Councils that could benefit from tree planting in 2021. Kexby did not own any such land, the Clerk was asked to respond accordingly.
Action GP
e) Upton & Kexby Playing Field – had requested financial support towards the cost of installing a new children’s play area (which could cost in excess of £50K). There was some concern that the Parish Council had been told in the past that “blanket grants” could be in contravention of the precept regulations and that any such grants should be for a specific purpose. It was decided to defer a decision to the next meeting which would allow the Clerk time to check the regulations. It was agreed that the treasurer of the playing field committee should be invited to the next meeting so that he could answer any queries directly.
Action GP
11/21 Any Other Business
a) Litter picking – a letter had been received from Jack Bower who had been litter picking as part of his Duke of Edinburgh Silver Award. The Award required just 24 weeks but Jack continued for 31 during which time 294 bags of litter were removed from the villages of Kexby and Upton. Some of the items collected necessitated liaison with the police and the collection service liaison with WLDC which were valuable skills. Jack successfully completed his Silver Award and hopes to start his Gold Award in October which will require nine months of voluntary work. The Clerk was asked to write and thank him for his report.
Action GP
b) Overgrown footpath – a complaint had been received about hedges encroaching onto the footpath between High Street and the playing field. Only minimal work could be carried out during bird nesting season but CH agreed to arrange for a light trim to be carried out within the next couple of weeks. The situation would be reviewed in the autumn when it may be necessary to carry out a more severe trim.
Action CH
c) Bus shelter Kexby corner – the bus stop sign had not been replaced after being knocked down last year, the Clerk has requested a new pole via “Fix My Street”, the sign and timetable were still in the shelter and could be fixed to the new pole. There were several ridge tiles missing off the roof and the woodwork was in need of re-painting, the Clerk was asked to get quotes.
Action GP
d) Newsletter/magazine – several very positive responses had been received following the distribution of the last issue, the Clerk was asked to convey the thanks of the Parish Council to Gerry Forrest for producing it.
There had been a request for a large print copy, the Clerk was asked to organise this.
Action GP
e) Village notice board – was in need of wood treatment but there was insufficient time to discuss so this was deferred to the next meeting
Action GP
The meeting disbanded at 7:30pm as the Annual Parish Meeting was due to start.
Date and time of next meeting to be agreed via email and date posted on the village notice board