21st January 2021 Minutes
South Kyme Parish Council
Minutes of the meeting held on 21st January 2021 by Zoom
Attendees Cllr S Shaw Vice Chair, Cllr M Head RFO, Cllr M Clark, Cllr P Goode, Cllr J Head, Cllr C Midgley
Open forum Mr R Tarrant mentioned he had trouble logging into the meeting.
No other points were raised
Apologies Cllr A Alexander
20/21/25 – Approval of 19th November minutes
Following a discussion over several issues it was agreed by the majority of councillors that the open forum text be resubmitted as bullet points.
Action Cllr M Head re-work as above and bring to next meeting.
20/21/26 Declaration of interest
Cllr C Midgley on Festival Committee
Cllr M Head confirmed he was attending this meeting as a Parish councillor not in his role as District Councillor
20/21/27 Financial report
Prior to the meeting Cllr M Head had emailed all councillors a financial statement as at January 2021 and an Income and Expenditure account for the year to January 2021.
Payments of £104.91 were approved, invoice for North Kyme Parish Council re SID Batteries £15.49 was kept in abeyance until confirmation it was to be paid or a credit received.
Action Cllr M Head to provide a copy of the cash book at end of financial year to all councillors
20/21/28 Correspondence
Letters received and read out from:
Mr D Henderson applauded the village for its fund-raising, updated on the current and the purchase of new SID, concerns about the open forum from the previous meeting and upcoming election dates.
Mrs M Tarrant regarding the kingfisher sculpture showing its age and suggesting a gazebo could be erected to protect it
Mrs T Clarke praised the work of the VTG but expressed concerns over the extent of the cutting.
The items raised will be included in the next Parish Council meeting.
20/21/29 Not for Resolution
- Environment Warden update – Cllr M Head informed the Council that he had spoken with Mrs S Glossop and that she has agreed to take on the role of Environment Warden and do necessary training needed for the role. It was proposed that she be engaged on a contract basis at the National Minimum Wage for a maximum of 6 hours per week. Mrs Glossop was at the meeting and was asked to confirm this arrangement, which she duly did. It was agreed that Mrs Glossop should be engaged on this basis.
Action Cllr M Head to take Contract of Engagement to Mrs Glossop within the week.
- Festival Committee Accounts – a breakdown of the statement of accounts was presented, it was noted that this money is there as a reserve for anything that may be needed within the village, with the approval of the festival committee (Mr S Coy and Mr C Midgley). All councillors happy with information given
Action Cllr C Midgley to provide Cllr M Head with a copy of statement of account.
- Volunteer Policy Update – prior to the meeting Cllr M Head emailed all councillors a copy of the present policy and his proposed alterations, which were to make the policy non-date specific and to amend insurance to £5 million as a minimum. All councillors agreed to amendments.
- Clerk Vacancy Update – Cllr M Head presented this item on behalf of Cllr A Alexander. The previous Clerk, Mr P Ayre, had been contacted before Christmas about re-joining the Council as Clerk. Cllr A Alexander advised that she had spoken to him recently and he told her that he was not able to resume the role of Clerk. It was agreed by all councillors that a separate meeting be held next week to address this issue. A request was made for a copy of the letter which was sent to the applicant interviewed in December be seen by all councillors.
Action Cllr M Head to arrange meeting and forward copy letter sent to all councillors.
- Morris Memorial Update – A wooden sculpture of a 5ft swan has been suggested, approx. cost £2000-£2500. Various questions followed regarding public donations, whether the Parish Council would hold the funds, Parish Council donation as previously done for the Coy’s Bridge sign. The siting of this sculpture was to be agreed but a likely position would be on the riverbank opposite where Mr & Mrs Morris used to live. Cllr P Goode very generously donated £50.
Action The donation from SKPC to be discussed at the next meeting
- Complaints Procedure – Cllr M Head on behalf of Cllr A Alexander suggested that details of a complaints procedure should be available on our new village website in the event that anyone wished to make a complaint about the Parish Council, or a Councillor. All councillors agreed with this suggestion.
Action Cllr M Head to work with Cllr A Alexander to formulate the procedure for presentation at the March meeting.
20/21/30 For Resolution
- Precept – Cllr M Head provided all councillors with a detailed Income & Expenditure Budget Proposal for 2021/22 showing the effect of various percentage changes. Councillors all agreed that in the present climate it would be improper to request too great an increase. All councillors agreed to increase the precept by 2.5%.
Action Cllr M Head to complete the relevant forms and documentation
- Grass Cutting Contract 2021 – Discussion about the land covered by the contract with LCC and whether land from the footbridge to the new bridge should be included.
Action Cllr C Midgley to review documents to confirm the areas to be cut
Action Cllr M Head to sign the agreement with LCC with the covenant that there may be an additional piece of land.
- Grass Cutting Policy – Cllr M Head presented this item on behalf of Cllr A Alexander. It was suggested that SKPC should have a policy covering the procedures for grass cutting, similar to that of LCC.
Action Cllr M Head to draft and email to all councillors for review before the next Parish Council meeting.
- SID – Cllr P Goode informed the meeting that the SID is currently running well. New batteries had been purchased and Mr D Henderson is working on a set of back-up batteries. A discussion took place regarding the purchase of the new device, in light of the support shown by the village through the consultation. All councillors agreed on an Evolis Mains Radar Speed Sign from Elancity, which would be hard-wired and, if possible, fitted on a swivel bracket. All councillors agreed that any further details would be confirmed by email.
Action Cllr M Head to obtain a revised quote from Elancity, write to LCC for their agreement to where the SID can be sited and the cost of connection, and request permission from NKDC to attach to a lamppost
- Grit Bin – Cllr S Shaw presented information about the recent events at the footbridge south ramp approach where a parishioner had fallen. Cllr M Clark had raised the hazard on Fix My Street and a reply had been received from LCC to say that they would be taking no further action regarding the tarmac surface. A grit bin has been placed on the south side of the footbridge as a temporary solution.
Action Cllr M Head to reply as District Councillor to LCC to request a site visit. Cllr C Midgley requested to be present at the meeting.
- Flags – Cllr J Head reported that Mr B Phillips had contacted her regarding the wear and tear on the flags used at the Village Hall purchased two years ago.
Action Cllr J Head would find new flags of a stronger quality, for which Cllr M Clark provided a web site link. All councillors agreed that the detail would be confirmed by email and the replacement flags purchased.
- Parking – Cllr M Head presented this item on behalf of Cllr A Alexander had provided photographs of a car parked on the access path to the jetty. It was noted that cars were parking on the grass verges throughout the village. The two “no parking” signs should be retrieved from the lock-up and if additional fixings were required it was agreed that these could be purchased.
Action Cllr P Goode to contact Mr T Midgley to retrieve the signs and fix on SKPC land by the jetty and picnic tables.
The next meeting will be on Thursday 25th March starting with a public forum at 7:30pm. It was agreed that the Zoom session would open at 7:15pm to allow everyone attending to login and check connectivity.
The meeting concluded at 22:09pm.