July 2024 Minutes
Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on 24th July 2024
Present: R. Gore (Chair), D. Strollo C. Cuckson, J. Scott
In attendance: Cllr. Bailey (WLDC), G. Payne (Clerk)
Apologies: had been received from L. Hoggarth
23/24 Co-option to fill vacancy – Mia Stallman was proposed by DS, seconded by JS and agreed by the meeting. She had been provided with an acceptance form, copy of the Code of Conduct, and a Register of Interest form, once the acceptance form, form to acknowledge receipt of Code of Conduct and Register of Interest form had been returned to the Clerk he would notify WLDC of the co-option. Action MS/GP
24/24 Approval of minutes of meeting held on 9th May 2024 – these had been circulated and were approved as a true record, (proposed CC, seconded DS) and signed off by the Chairman.
25/24 Matters arising;
a) Traffic speed – as Cllr. Butroid was not present the Clerk was asked to contact him for an update. Action GP
b) Email addresses – the supplier had yet to contact the Clerk, DS was chasing this up.
c) Parish Cottage gas and electric checks – RG had arranged for these to be carried out, the contractor had been in touch with the tenant to say that he had quite a lot of work on but with be in touch to arrange a date in the near future. The Clerk was asked to keep in touch with the tenant to ensure that this progressed. Action GP
d) Village Hall Internet – this had now been installed, the agreement was to supply a free service, initially on a two year contract. Quickline were continually reviewing this provision and the village hall committee had been made aware of the importance of collecting evidence of its benefit to the community in order to ensure an extension of the contract.
e) Telephone Box – CC will liaise with Chris Petty regarding painting once the box has been washed.
25/24 Review of Annual Parish Meeting – despite fliers having been delivered to every dwelling there was still a very poor turnout for the meeting. It was decided that it did not justify repeating the process next year, advertising would be via notices on the website, notice board and telegraph poles around the village plus notification in the village newsletter.
There was a degree of repetition between the Annual Parish Meeting (APM) and the Annual Parish Council Meeting (APCM). It was therefore agreed that in future years the APM would be held first with a short Parish Council meeting afterwards to cover any matters not dealt with at the APM.
A request to have the seat on the village green replaced was made at the Annual Parish Meeting. It was agreed that the existing seat should be replaced by a low maintenance seat made from re-cycled materials. It was suggested that the planters should also be replaced using similar materials, the Clerk was asked to investigate and circulate details to members for discussion at the next meeting. Action GP
26/24 Financial Report – these continued to show a healthy financial position. Reserves had built up in anticipation of a potential request from the playing field committee for support towards the refurbishment of the playpark. Grant aid had been sought for this and, until the outcome of this request was known, it was not clear whether such a request was likely to be made. The landlord’s inspection of the parish cottage had identified areas of improvement needed in the bathroom and kitchen in particular.
Clare Cuckson had been added as a signatory and Peter Bishop removed but now that Sue Farrow had resigned there was still a need for one more and for Sue to be removed. Danny Strollo agreed to become a signatory and the Clerk was asked to initiate the process. It was again suggested that the use of on-line banking should be investigated and CC agreed to look into this. Action GP/CC
27/24 Parish Cottage Report – additional information, particularly around the tenancy agreement was required to assist with discussion on this topic. The existing tenant had occupied the cottage for 10 years without any rent increase, it was suggested that any proposed increase in excess of 10% per annum was likely to be rejected if challenged despite the fact that no increases had been made for a decade. It was noted that no deposit was taken from the tenant at the start of the tenancy, current regulations required that a depoit must be taken (usually one month’s rent) and placed into a Government scheme. This would be noted for any future tenancy agreements. It was agreed to hold a separate meeting with the parish cottage as the sole agenda item to enable better informed discussion once the additional information was to hand. The date suggested was Tuesday 30th July at 6:30 in the committee room. The Clerk was asked to check availability and notify members accordingly. Action GP
28/24 Correspondence
a) Speed limit sticker – an advertisement for stickers to go on wheelie bins to remind motorists of speed limits had been received, it was decided not to pursue this.
b) Drains – the Clerk had arranged to meet with the Senior Highways Officer from LCC on Tuesday 30th July at 10:00am to look at the drain on the footpath near the entrance to Britannia Mill. Both this one and the Glentworth Road drains were long outstanding issues requiring a site meeting to fully understand the issues.
c) LCC – Cerntral Lincolnshire Design Code Meetings – an invitation had been received for meetings in September but it was not deemed necessary to send a representative.
d) Solar developments – the new Secretary of Stage had approved the Gate Burton proposal (along with others) within days of being appointed. It was felt that this approach was likely to see other local proposals similarly Approved, Cllr. Bailey had suggested to parishes in her Ward that it might be worth investigating what community benefits might be available if they were given the go-ahead. Knaith Parish Council were investigating the idea of a public meeting to which members of Kexby Parish Council might be invited. She agreed to keep the Clerk informed. Action Cllr. Bailey
29/24 Any Other Business
a) Playpark – this had deteriorated badly to the point where it may pose a health and safety issue, DS agreed to have a look and, if it posed a significant risk, he would inform the Clerk who would formally write to the playing field committee. Cllr. Bailey recommended that if action was required by the playing field committee they were given a timeline in which to comply. Action DS
b) Community Speed Watch – it was noted that neighbouring communities were now involved with this, Knaith Parish Council had purchased a speed gun which was being shared. Kexby had been offered the opportunity to have people trained up in the use of these devices but no volunteers had been forthcoming.
c) Clerk’s renumeration – it had emerged that the hourly rate had fallen below the minimum wage because increases to the Local Government Service Pay Agreement (LGSPA) had been missed. The Clerk was asked to ascertain the current rates and calculate any underpayments. Cllr. Bailey pointed out that it was good practice to increase the scale in line with greater experience. It was agreed that the Clerk should be paid at scale 12 on the LGSPA. Action GP
Date of next full Parish Council meeting – Wednesday 4th September 6:30pm in the committee room.