November 2021 Minutes
Minutes of the ordinary meeting of Cranwell, Brauncewell and Byard's Leap Parish Council held at Cranwell Village Hall, Old School Lane, Cranwell Village, NG34 8DF on Monday 8 November 2021 at 7:00 pm. (APPROVED)
Participating: Vice-Chairman: Cllr M Pears (Acting Chair)
Councillors: Cllr Mrs M Cassidy, Cllr Mr M A Cassidy, Cllr C Dickinson
Also in attendance: County Cllr Richard Wright, D/Cllr Jim Clark and D/Cllr Steve Clegg, RAF CDO Ian Whitehead.
Mrs Kirsty Elson, Clerk to the Parish Council
14 members of the public were in attendance.
The Acting chair welcomed the public, the RAF representative, County Councillor Richard Write, District Councillor Jim Clark and District Councillor Steve Clegg.
A member of the public raised concerns about the closure of the permissive footpath, from Willow Lane to the Brauncewell footpath. They also raised a query about the Parish Councils application to LCC, to consider making the footpath a public right of way. Cllr Mike Pears the acting Chair stated that as of January 2021, Lincoln County Council made a decision not to make an order for the footpath in question. The other footpath from Willow Lane to the bridleway west of the village, is still under investigation.
A member of the public stated that on the 13th August 2018, 15 Definitive Map Modification forms for one path and 30 forms for the other were submitted by the public to the PC. Is there an audit trail for these forms? It appears that some have not been received by LCC.
The Chair concluded that the following would be actioned by the Parish Council:
1. The PC need to find out what happened to the documents from 2018.
2. What are Beeswax plans for the permissive footpaths?
3. The PC would invite the field path officer from LCC, and a representative of Beeswax to the next meeting of the Parish Council.
The Chairman invited the MOP to address the Council.
Dist Cllr Clarke stated that he opened footpaths four years ago. The farmers were aware of the lockdown situation and that dogs need walking.
Dist Cllr Clegg announced that the NKDC lottery is being launched. Tickets will be available on the 4th December and 23 local charities will benefit and receive 50% of the ticket fees.
County Cllr Wright – The Holdingham roundabout lights will be switched on (possibly this week after rush hour) and these will be red for 6-7 minutes whilst they calibrate.
The RAF Community Support Officer – He would like to attend as many meetings as he can.There will be night time flying at RAF Cranwell in the next few weeks. RAF Cranwell are introducing community policing, they would be happy to come to meetings too. Cllr M Cassidy highlighted the issue of speeding from RAF Cranwell to Cranwell Village and that RAF lights 64, 39, 54 and 62 are not working. The RAF CSO will look into the speeding issue by trying to find a deterrent and will also look into the lighting issues.
The Chair thanked The RAF CSO for attending and stated that it is great help for the PC.
The Chairman declared the ordinary September meeting open at 8:10 pm.
1.To receive apologies for absence and reasons given i.a.w. Local Government Act 1972, Sch 12, para 40.
Apology received from Cllr M Collier, his reason was made known to the council.
Apologies received from Cllr T Batten and Cllr C Batten, their reason was also made known to the Council. Apology received from Cllr S Chapman, his reason was made known to the council.
Action: The council RESOLVED to approve Cllr M Collier, Cllr S Chapman, Cllr T Batten and Cllr C Batten’s reasons for absence. Proposed by Cllr M Cassidy, Seconded by Cllr C Dickinson and approved unanimously.
2. To receive declarations of interest and to consider applications in relation to Disclosable Pecuniary Interests.
Disclosure of pecuniary and non-pecuniary interests is to be in accordance with the Localism Act 2011. The need for disclosure is to be based upon agenda items, or at any suitable time during a meeting when it becomes apparent to a Member.
Cllr M Cassidy and Cllr Maureen Cassidy declared an interest in item 4.b. as Cllr M Cassidy has submitted expenses.
Cllr Mr M Pears declared an interest in item 4.d.
3. Notes of the ordinary meeting held on Monday 11 October 2021, of Cranwell, Brauncewell and Byard's Leap Parish Council to be approved as Minutes.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the notes of the ordinary meeting held on Monday 11 October 2021, of Cranwell, Brauncewell and Byard's Leap Parish Council, as Minutes.
Proposed by Cllr Maureen Cassidy, seconded by Cllr M Cassidy and approved unanimously.
4. Financial Matters
a. Approve the payments made since the last meeting.
Southern Electric 496126941 DD £ 142.65
Cranwell PCC (Donation towards tree works) EB-0724 £ 150.00
HMRC (ref) 475PD001036442205 083210 £ 1.77
Mrs K A Elson (Clerks Salary, Mth 7) EB-0724 £ 674.96
Mrs K A Elson (Expenses, Mth 7) EB-0724 £ 58.76
Total: £ 1028.14
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the payments made since the last meeting.
Proposed by Cllr C Dickinson, seconded by Cllr M Cassidy and approved unanimously.
b. Approve the payment of invoices etc. as listed on the Payments to be Authorised sheet.
Warden and Security Services (Inv-066) EB-0725 £ 132.00
Streetwise Environmental Trading Ltd (Inv-51771) EB-0726 £ 479.88
MK Electrical Ltd EB-0727 £ 211.20
John Scotney Turf Management INV x 3 EB-0728 £ 272.75
Cllr M Cassidy (October Expenses) Chq £ 37.92
Cllr M Collier (Sept Expenses) Chq £ 3.85
Caloo (INV Ref 3572) EB-0729 £ 942.00
Viking EB-0730 £ 7.28
Anglian Water (Acct*****5216 – Old School) DD £ 20.00
BT Business Payment Services Ltd DD £ 74.28
Total: £ 2181.16
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the payments of invoices etc. as listed on the Payments to be Authorised sheet.
Proposed by Cllr C Dickinson, seconded by Cllr M Pears and approved by a vote of 2 for, 0 against and 2 abstentions.
c. Approve the bank reconciliation from the previous month (October).
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the bank reconciliation from the previous month.
Proposed by Cllr M Cassidy, seconded by Cllr C Dickinson and approved unanimously
d. Consider whether to purchase Adobe Acrobat Pro DC, to enable Cllr Pears to continue his work on the interactive newsletter and website.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the purchase of Adobe Acrobat Pro DC.
Proposed by Cllr C Dickinson, seconded by Cllr M Cassidy and approved by a vote of 3 for, 0 against and 1 abstention.
e. To discuss the 2nd quarter Southern Electric invoice for the old school (£3221.28) and consider the action to be taken.
The vice-chair reported that the bill for £3221.28 was for 24 months of back dated payments, as the meter had not been read. It was concluded that the clerk would find out if the monthly direct debits payments need to be adjusted, to ensure that a back-dated bill is not received again.
f. Consider the quotes to repair the old school kitchen.
The quotes have not been received, the council concluded to defer this item to the next meeting.
g. To consider purchasing a 1.8m stout round tree support and a heavy-duty tree tie for the Jubilee Tree.(Post/support £12, tree tie £5).
Action: The council RESOLVED to purchase a 1.8m stout tree support and a heavy-duty tree tie for the Jubilee Tree. Proposed by Cllr C Dickinson, seconded by Cllr M Pears and approved unanimously.
5. Receive a report from the Clerk on matters pertaining to the Parish Council.
a. 3/11/21 – Lincolnshire County Council Treescapes application form submitted.
b. 5/11/21 – Clerk contacted contractor to request a quote for the hedge near the portacabins. Contractor confirmed he would have a look at the site and send a quote. Currently waiting for the quote.
c. 7/11/21 – Defib check – Light in the Brauncewell defib cabinet keeps falling down, needs new adhesive. No light in the Byards Leap cabinet.
6. Planning Applications.
i. None
7. Receive reports from Councillors on their Areas of Responsibility.
Cllr M Cassidy had circulated his report via email, the following issues were highlighted:
Byards Leap
B6403
The outer casing of a large tyre is situated in the verge near the B6403 turn off from the A17. This has been reported, Ref:407821
Junction of B6403 and A17
Noted that potholes forming against the kerb stone/drain adjacent to the A17. These are not yet reportable due to modest size.
The work for the new water pipeline is well under way across the fields, a wide area cleared and the soil banked into a very neat bank.
B1429
The previously reported LCC street lights and RAF lights have all been repaired.
New RAF lights not working: 39, 54 and 62. Reported Ref: 24582400
Footpaths college side, Transport hub side.
Footpaths have some degraded surfaces, not yet meeting repair requirements.
OASC layby
Remains with loose metal plate covering hole and two lights not working.
Can the PC write to Planning at NKDC to ask if they have any plans indicating ownership of this area?
Village Green
Willow Lane pothole work completed.
New meter box installed.
Play area etc
Caloo has replaced the paddles on the Skier exercise equipment and some hand grips.
Hedges now cut, standard of top cut needs to be considered, re being level.
Awaiting NKDC report on overhanging branches on two trees near the play area.
Chain basket below the basket ball hoops are hanging down. Either broken or detatched from hoop. Step ladder needed to determine issue.
Recreation Ground.
8th November – works starts on clearing the overgrown area at the far end of the ground. Work will take 2/3 days. Area will be marked off for pedestrians.
Cllr Pears reported the following:
Website:
Statistics for October 2021: 1,226 visitors. This is up 20% on the previous month. 3,832 page views, this is approximately the same as the previous month.
The website is now established, very useful and a well used part of the community.
Email subscription database:
Now up to 74 subscribers. This is up 2 over a month. Cllr Pears will send out another newsletter in the next couple of weeks.
Roads
He received a complaint about a Street light not working and footpath in front of No 2 College Road, which still has a hole in it. The street light has been reported on FixMy Street, the status is ‘on schedule to be done’. The hole in the path has been re-reported to FixMy Street with photos and the case has been re-opened with the status ‘being investigated’.
8. To consider replacing the following noticeboards:
• The Remembrance Garden Noticeboard.
• The Noticeboard on the Village Hall
• The Parish Council Church Noticeboard
It was discussed that some councillors may prefer the look of wooden noticeboards but recognised that the durability of metal noticeboards were more cost affective. The councillors concluded that they needed more information/images of different types of noticeboards before they could make a decision.
Action: The council RESOLVED to defer considering the replacement of the noticeboards to the December meeting. Proposed by Cllr M Cassidy Seconded by Cllr C Dickinson and all agreed.
9. To consider writing to Streetwise Environment Ltd to query why the hedges have not been cut by the date set in the contract (31st of October).
Cllr M Cassidy stated that the hedge has been cut by the date given above, but the cut is not up to standard.
Action: A short discussion was had and it was RESOLVED to write to Streetwise Environment Ltd about the poor standard of cut to the hedges.
10. To consider writing to Lincoln County Councillor Richard Wright, regarding the lack of response to the Parish Councils request for LCC to contact the RAF about reinstating light no 64 on the B1429.
Cllr M Cassidy spoke to the RAF CDO Ian Whitehead in the public session regarding this matter.
11. Update from the Community Pavilion sub-committee.
Cllr Mike Pears stated that there are two plans for funding for this build, Plan A: The PC have £15,000 reserved from initial funds raised and a further £5,000 that was voted for from this year’s budget. The Chair has approached three associations for funding for the whole project which will be approximately £165,000 in total. The three associationa are: The Sports Council, The Football Association and The National Lottery.
Plan B – The PC have had an offer of approximately £70,000 of funding from a Charitable Trust, this is administered by Cllr Michael Cassidy and Cllr Maureen Cassidy. They would place some restrictions on the building (such as size) so that it follows their environmental principles. This offer will be available until March 31st 2022. Estimate price for Plan B is £120,000.
Cllr Pears reminded the Councillors that as a result of the 2021 survey, the Parish Council have a mandate from the public to fund a borrowing of up to a maximum of £94,000 from the precept.
An adult football team and a ladies netball team have shown interest in setting up teams if they can use the new facilities in future.
The next sub-committee meeting is on Thursday 9th December 2021.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to accept the Minutes of the Sub-Committee for adding to the minutes listed on the website. Proposed by Cllr M Cassidy, seconded by Cllr C Dickinson and approved unanimously.
Cllr Mike Pears (acting Chair) quoted Standing Order No.10, Subsection (a) Clause (ix) which gives the Chairman of the Meeting the power to propose members of a sub-committee without prior written notice being given.
The acting Chair then proposed that Cllr Michael Cassidy should be invited to serve on the sub-committee, as his administration of the £70,000 (possible) donation to the project makes it imperative that he rejoins, so further discussions can be carried out about what needs to be done to reach an agreement for plan B.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to approve the addition of Cllr Michael Cassidy to the Community Pavilion Sub-Committee. Proposed by Cllr C Dickinson, seconded by Cllr M Pears, approved by a vote of 3 for, 0 against and 1 abstention.
12. Update on speeding initiatives.
Cllr Pears stated that six more 30mph signs were received free from Graeme Butler from LCC. These have been placed on lamp posts around the Parish and there are now twelve 30mph signs up in total.
It has been reported that the two sites on Sleaford Road are where the mobile SID is most needed (and possibly most effective). The PC have use of the mobile SID until the end of November.
The PC SIDs were to be delivered two weeks ago, they have not yet arrived.
Cllr Pears stated that The Police and LCC have suggested that the Parish Council set up a Speed Watch Group, this was discussed and Cllr C Dickinson volunteered to lead this group. Cllr Pears proposed that the PC investigate with LCC if the PC can use their own SIDs for the working group, and can Cllr Pears ask about interest for the working group on Facebook? There needs to be enough serious volunteers who are prepared to do this on a reglar basis and in all weathers.
Action: The Council RESOLVED to query with LCC if the PC can use their own SIDS and for Cllr Pears to post on Facebook, to find out if there is any interest for volunteers for the Speed Watch Group. Proposed by C Dickinson, Seconded by M Cassidy and approved unanimously.
13. Confirm the date of the next meeting.
The clerk confirmed that the date of the next meeting is on Monday 13th December 2021.
The Chairman closed the meeting at 9:50 pm.