2025 Minutes

Minutes of the Annual Parish Council Meeting held on 24th September 2025

 

These minutes are in draft form and may be altered

 

Present; R. Gore (Chair), D. Strollo, J. Gregory, D. Forrest, Cllr. Wimhurst (LCC) Clerk; G. Payne

Apologies; had been received from C. Cuckson, L. Hoggarth, J. Scott, Cllr. E. Bailey

 

25/27 Approval of the minutes from meeting on 21st May – these had been circulated and were accepted as a true record, proposed DS, seconded DF, agreed unanimously and signed off by the Chairman.

25/28 Matters arising

a) Email addresses – DS had paid off the outstanding balance of the Dalton account for their work on the Microsoft email addresses. It was agreed that this was a Parish Council expense as the council had originally agreed to go ahead with this arrangement. He was asked to arrange for the Clerk to be invoiced and the Clerk was authorised to pay the account.             Action DS/GP

 

The Clerk had spoken with Cloud Next regarding setting up .gov.uk emails. Their annual charges were £50 + VAT for the .gov.uk domain plus £49.99 + VAT for up to 25 email accounts but the first year would be provided free of charge. It was agreed to use the domain Kexby-pc.gov.uk and to use first name.surname for councillors in addition to “Clerk” and “Chair”.   Action GP

 

b) Parish Cottage  – it was 8 years since the willow tree had been pollarded and it was in need of similar work doing again. The Clerk had been in touch with the tree surgeon who did the work last time and was awaiting a quote

c) for the work. The Chairman agreed to obtain an alternative quote for comparison.         Action GP/RG

 

d) Jubilee trees – the arrangements had been made at the last meeting and the individuals concerned would arrange between themselves for the trees to be planted during the dormant season. 

  Action LH/CC/DS

e) Speed Indicator Device – a quote of £238.84 + VAT had been received for new fixing brackets so that the device could be used on Kexby Lane. It was agreed that this was very expensive and the Clerk was asked to take one of the existing brackets to Nev Barnes to see if they could make them more competitively. (Subsequent to the meeting DF suggested that a bracket was taken round to the farm to see whether they could fabricate one before taking it to Nev Barnes). Action GP

f) Funding for Christmas Party – a grant of up to £400 was available from the Willingham and District Relief Fund towards providing a party for elderly residents. The Clerk had been liaising with Upton Parish Council with a view to putting on a joint event. DS had spoken to his son-in-law, who was in the catering business, and he would be willing to source and prepare the food which would enable the provision of a hot meal in the village hall. The only stipulation being that it would have to be at a weekend. The Clerk was asked to liaise with Upton PC regarding this and the production of fliers for each village.   Action GP

 

g) Planters – DS had agreed to make a new planter for the front of the bus shelter plus two for the village green.   Action DS

 

25/29 Financial Report

a) Current position – current account £2,887.62, Business Reserve £869.87, Liquidity Manager (35 day notice) £9,286.54. The work on the parish cottage had been paid for and a claim for a VAT refund of £1,717.53 had been received.

 

25/30 Correspondence

a) Church Christmas Tree and Lighting – A request for support towards the cost had been received (the cost of the tree in 2024 was £169, trees over a certain size become liable for VAT which increases the cost considerably). It was suggested that the Parish Council should buy the tree and donate it to the village as they could claim the VAT back. There was some discussion about each Parish Council paying half but this could compromise a VAT claim, it may be better for the two parishes to donate a tree in alternate years. The Clerk was asked to put this proposal to Upton Parish Council.   Action GP

b) Lincoln Aero Club – were undertaking a major restoration project on the control tower, they were inviting comments from the Parish Council and would appreciate a letter of support should the Parish Council feel able to do so. It was agreed that the Parish Council would write a letter of support, the Clerk was asked to draft a letter and circulate.   Action GP

c) Lincolnshire Police – had sent details of their new staffing structure which had been circulated to members of the Parish Council the details were noted.

25/31 Clerk’s Pay and expenses

These had been circulated before the meeting, they were agreed and authorised for payment

25/32 Any Other Business

a) Village Hall Bookings – the meeting was advised that Jane Scott had resigned as booking secretary and Loretta Adlem had taken over.

b) Telephone Box – the external painting had been completed, Cllr. Hoggarth has agreed to paint the inside but was currently indisposed due to Covid. The Clerk agreed to liaise with LH and CC with regard to completing the painting and returning the books.   Action GP/LH/CC

c) Hedge on playing field – the playing field committee had agreed to cut the hedge on the south side of the playing field once restrictions on cutting had been removed. The other hedges on the playing field had been cut but no work had been done on this one. The Chairman agreed to speak to Paul Mann to try and resolve this as it had been a long-running issue.   Action RG

d) LCC representation – The Chairman thanked Cllr. Wimhurst for attending and said that the council looked forward to working with him as they had with his predecessor. Cllr. Wimhurst, as an ex parish councillor, said that he appreciated their role and would support in any way he could. He was involved with the Highways Authority and agreed to look into two ongoing issues, the speed round Kexby corner and the footpath on Kexby Lane. The Clerk was asked to forward Cllr. Wimhurst recent correspondence concerning both.   Action GP 

Next meeting Wednesday 19th November or Wednesday 12th November 6:30?