March 2019 Minutes
Minutes of meeting March 2019
A meeting of East Keal Parish Council was held on Wednesday 27th March 2019 at 7pm in Cracroft Village Hall, Boston Road, West Keal.
Welcome. Cllr Smith welcomed everyone to the meeting.
Public Forum. There were no items for discussion.
1. Apologies for Absence These were received from Cllr Thornley. All resolved to accept the reason given.
Present. Cllr Smith, Cllr Dromey, Cllr Davies, Cllr Kemp, Cllr Litchfield and Clerk to the Council Mrs E Martin. Also present was Cllr Aron & Cllr Swanson.
2. Notes of the Parish Meeting held on Wednesday 30th January 2018. It was resolved that the notes be accepted as minutes of the meeting, all agreed and the minutes were then signed.
3. Reports from representatives on outside bodies. It was accepted by all that Cllr Swanson give his report first as he had another meeting to attend.
a District Cllr Report.
i. Cllr Swanson reported that ELDC had scored highly as one of the best Councils in the country for dealing with planning applications.
ii. Appointment of a new Environment Officer. Paul Carville has now been appointed and he will be responsible for litter and dog fouling.
iii. The last Bank is due to close in Mablethorpe. Barclays have announced they are closing their branch in July.
iv. Elections are due on 2nd May 2019.
v. ELDC Budget. An allowance has been included for provision of improved leisure facilities. The increase for their budget is a band D will be 9.5p per week.
vi. Cllr Grants. These will be available in the next financial year but will be reduced to £1000 per Cllr.
vii. Electric Charge Points. These have now been installed on 11 sites across the area. Parking in these bays will be free whilst the car is being charged. The nearest is Spilsby by the Doctors.
viii. Glass Recycling Point. Concerns were raised that there had been a large number of glass bottles left by the side of these bins. ELDC had been contacted and the bins emptied very quickly. Cllr Smith said he would monitor the situation and, if necessary, we may place a sign suggesting if the bins are full where the next available recycling point is.
b County Cllr Report.
i. Cllr Aron informed the meeting that the County News is being circulated and that includes a lot of information.
ii. Highways walkabout. He has not yet received any official feedback.
iii. Glebe Farm. Planning item. Cllr Aron offered to report back any concerns that are held. Cllr Smith stated he had been informed that it was in respect of the availability of new technology and residents should not have any concern regarding leakage from the plant as regulations are very firm. One Cllr expressed concerns and wondered if we should ask the owner to come and explain issues. The Clerk replied that the owner has always offered to talk if you contact him.
iv. Community Engagement meeting. Cllr Aron is hoping to attend.
c. Neighbourhood Watch. No Report.
d. Village Hall. New coat hooks have been installed in the corridor. Around the chair storage area, new boards have been fixed to the walls to prevent rubbing and damage. Re-decoration quotes have been obtained for two contractors to paint the inside and outside. A 3rd is awaited.
e. Village Groups
i. PCC. You will probably have heard that these has been some damage to the cladding on the Church tower. This has meant that there are concerns regarding falling masonry and someone being hit by this. To ensure safety we have been advised to rope off the side of the Church where the cladding fell and ensure the tower door is not used nor underneath the area from the tower steps to 20388 the red carpet. With taking these precautions we can still use the Church for events and services. We have been given a rough estimate that the cost will be in the region of £10k to 19 K! So forthcoming fundraising events include on 13.4.19 a Fish & Chip supper and quiz. Tickets are available from Maralyn Bird. A chine/ham supper with entertainment on 18.5.19 again tickets available from Maralyn. Do book quickly as these events are very popular and tickets go quickly. The main fundraising event will be a 40’s weekend. This will start with a dance at Toynton Village Hall, then displays and activities in Church over the two days. The date is 6, 7 & 8 of September 2019. Participants are to be encouraged to dress up! Any offers of help would be gratefully received. I suggest you put the date in your diary now! Services continue on a regular two a month at 9.30am on the 2nd & 4th Sunday of each month. This year instead of a Mothering Sunday service we are celebrating Mothers on the Saturday morning with Coffee and Cake 10.30am to 12noon. Do come along and join us. Tom Tuplin has decided that he really intends to resign from all he is doing to help the Church. His retiring will be a great loss and we are looking for someone or a team of volunteers to help cover some of the jobs that he did. The main one being keeping the Church yard looking so lovely and tidy. We have some offers of help but need someone to liaise this. If you know of anyone willing to take this on or help in any other way please speak to me or a member of the PCC. The PCC wish to thank all residents who continue to support the Church in an effort to make it the centre of our community. Without you help we would not have such a lovely and lively Church of which we can be so proud.
ii. WI The Keals WI, the book club and craft group continue to meet on a monthly basis. Members enjoy the various activities which are on offer. The Walkers Group has recommenced with the start of the better weather and the first walk will take place in Woodhall Spa on 16 April. Members enjoy the various activities which are on offer, both from within our local group and from other WI groups from around the area. Our meeting this month was our AGM where the Committee was elected for the forthcoming year. Joan Slaney, June Clingan and Vicky Moore were returned as our President, Secretary and Treasurer respectively, unopposed. The WI have agreed to participate in the Church events regarding the War Years 1939-1945 weekend celebrations in September. As always, anyone who is interested in joining would be made very welcome if they just come along and see what we are about. Our next meeting will be on Thursday 11 April here in the Village Hall and we will be listening to a speaker from Step 2 Change who will be telling us about Talking Therapies. Our website also contains detailed information at info@the keals .org
iii. Gardening Club. Mr Kingswood submitted a written report which was read to the meeting. Since his last report the gardening Club has held it’s AGM on 22 Jan when long serving key figures stood down. It has been a difficult handover period with new committee members getting to grips with inherited systems – also due to prior obligations our subsequent committee meetings have on occasion lacked key figures such as Secretary & Treasurer. This has made it impossible to make certain decisions until a full committee can be assembled. Due to this there are certain roles still to be filled, particularly those who will represent the Club on various committees. I ask that all such Committees show us some latitude until the reps are in place. On a lighter note, on 5th Feb we had a very interesting talk by Gary Steele on Barn Owls – this was well attended by members. On 5th march, Lee Perkins gave us a talk on carnivorous plants, again well attended. All were amazed at just how many varieties of such plants exist. At the recent quiz night Easter Eggs were collected for a local children’s charity. Renewed membership numbers are similar to this time last year and are expected to rise as people attend various forthcoming events.
iv. Petanque Club. The first session will be held on Sunday 28th April 2019 at 4.00 pm at the Keals Village Hall (Cracroft Hall). 20389
v. Workforce. A written report was read to the meeting. Volunteers have already cut the grass around the village a couple of times this year. The daffodils on the verges are looking great but those in the tubs are a bit sad. These tubs will be replanted later in the year. A village tidy up is due to start. The laybys will be cleaned up, dead trees alongside the A16 will be cut out and road signs washed. A litter pick is due to take place this weekend. There are concerns about the increasing amount of dog fouling in the village. There are plenty of bins around the village that can be used and dog owners are to be encouraged to use them. It is hope that the additional rubbish bin will be placed in the village by the end of April. It will be sited down Fen Lane on the left hand side. Thanks were expressed to all the volunteers who give their time to ensure the village is kept neat and tidy especially Helena, Jane and Sue for looking after the War memorial. A project involving some of the village children has been implemented. Sunflower seeds have been planted and eventually they will be placed around the war memorial and in some of the flower beds.
vi. Newsletter. The first edition has been circulated and everyone thinks it is most useful document. Thanks were expressed to Mr Dines for this initiative. The next edition is due to be delivered on 3.4.19.
4 Declaration of Interest. None given.
5. Report from meeting with Highways. Three officers from LCC attended this walkabout. The outcome being that within two hours the large pothole on the switchback was filled. Other holes around the village have also been repaired. The drain top on Blacksmith’s Lane has also been replaced. In respect of resurfacing for the bottom of Fen Lane this is low priority and as yet has not been allocated to next year’s schedule.
6. Concerns regarding glass recycling overspill. See 3aviii.
7. Planning Application – Corkscrew Cottage. No objections raised.
8. Finance.
a. Payment of £17.50 to Cracroft Village Hall for 1 meeting 27.3.19.
b. Payment of £8.50 to LALC for 1 lunch on 7.2.19.
c. Payment of £23.20 to AM Thornley for travel to training.
d. Payment of £16.80 re travel to election briefing.
e. Payment of £120.00 to E Martin for internet.
f. Payment of £1076.10 to E Martin salary.
g. Payment of £269.00 to HMRC re tax.
h. Payment re LALC training fees of £90.00 for 2019-20.
i. Payment of £143.31 re LALC fees for 2019-20. It was resolved that these payments be accepted. All agreed.
j. Financial Report and Bank Reconciliation as at 20.3.19. It was resolved to accept these documents. All agreed.
9. Welcome Booklet. No new residents were identified.
10. Forthcoming meeting with LCC Community Engagement Officer on 9.4.19, at 2pm. All welcome to attend.
11. Any other matters for discussion only or next Agenda.
i. One Cllr asked if the council would pay for a printer ink cartridge to help with the cost of printing. The Clerk offered to print any documents required and will bring paper copies of Agendas etc to each meeting if that would help.
ii. Forthcoming Elections. At present four sets of papers have been submitted for the forthcoming elections. If there are no other nominations Cllrs can be co-opted to fill spaces. Grahame thanked Cllr Pam Davies for her 8 years as a Cllr as she has indicated she wishes to step down from this role.
iii. Residents Meeting. This is due to take place on 17.4.19 at 7pm at Cracroft Village Hall. The guest speaker is Mr L Marsh from the Fire Service. 20390 In addition it was agreed that three certificates of ‘Community Recognition’ would be presented.
iv. First Aid Course. This event was well supported with 18 residents attending. It was felt to be a very successful afternoon.
12 Date of next meeting 29th May 2019 at Cracroft Village Hall.