May 2021 Minutes Annual Parish Council Meeting
STUBTON PARISH COUNCIL
Members
Martin Davis - Chair
Bob Warren - Clerk
David Butler - Councillor
Rick Crooks - Councillor
Andrew Smith -Councillor
Jackie Warren - Councillor
Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on Wednesday 5th May 2021
Present Cllr Martin Davis - Chair
Cllr David Butler – Vice Chair
Cllr Rick Crooks
Cllr Andrew Smith
Cllr Jackie Warren
Bob Warren - Clerk
1. Cllr Davis welcomed everyone to the meeting and briefed the participants on the Zoom protocol for the meeting. He stated that the meeting may be recorded by anyone present.
2. Cllr Davis stood down as Chair of the PC and Cllr Butler took control of the meeting. He asked for proposals for Chair for the forthcoming year 2021/22. Cllr Crooks proposed Cllr Davis to continue for another year. Cllr Smith seconded the proposal. A vote of the councillors was unanimous and Cllr Davis was duly elected.
Cllr Davis resumed control of the meeting and Cllr Butler stood down as Vice Chair. Cllr Davis proposed Cllr Butler to continue as Vice Chair for the forthcoming year. Cllr Warren seconded the proposal. A vote of the councillors was unanimous and Cllr Butler was duly elected.
3. There were no apologies for absence as all councillors were present. It was noted by the clerk that County Councillor Maughan wished to have his apologies noted due to the meeting being held on the eve of the County Council elections and he was otherwise engaged.
4. There were no declarations of interest received by the Clerk.
5. Open Forum (15 minutes) - Members of the public were invited to speak for up to 3 minutes. No one wished to make comment.
6. The Minutes of the last meeting held on Wednesday 10th March 2021 were agreed and approved unanimously. Cllr Davis signed a copy to be delivered to the Clerk.
7. A report from County Councillor Maughan was read out by the clerk and is attached to the minutes. Cllr Crooks commented that there were works being completed in other villages near Stubton but that very little was being done in Stubton itself despite some of our roads being in a worse condition. It was agreed that the clerk would feed this back to Cllr Maughan for comment.
8. South Kesteven District Councillor Penny Milnes was welcomed to the meeting and provided the following updates.
Various elections across South Kesteven will be taking place on 6th May with results being announced on Friday and Saturday.
Covid-19. There have been 7557 confirmed cases in SK since March 2020 and 266 deaths attributed to the virus. The latest statistics indicate how successful the vaccination program has been and this means that SKDC can start to move back to real meetings instead of virtual ones.
There is a large planning application in Grantham for another 4000 homes and the creation of 2 garden villages which will eventually grow to 9000 homes.
Closer to home the application for the Brandon Woods shooting ground is still being considered. Limited shooting has recommenced and the decision for extended days and hours will hinge on noise levels. A report is being compiled and will be presented at a future planning meeting.
The replacement property at Home Farm Cottage was approved and there is currently an application in for some non-material amendments to that. I have asked for drawings to be added to the website.
The rear extension and heat pump at Keruan Cottage has been approved.
The tree work at Home Farm is likely to be approved in the next few days.
The clerk thanked Cllr Milnes for sorting out the signage for the village bin highlighting the fact that dog waste is accepted in it.
9. Financial Matters
9.1 The Precept of £1300 for 2020/21 has been received.
9.2 Accounts paid following approval at the last meeting.
1. £58.50 for garden bins at St Martins Church.
2. £73.50 Membership of LALC.
3. £90.00 Subscription to LALC Annual training scheme.
4. £40.73 administration costs.
5. Unresolved payment of the clerk’s salary of £300 due to issues setting up PAYE with HMRC.
9.3 The clerk advised the council that the completion of the Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR) was in hand and on schedule to be completed by the deadline date. In order to have it approved by the council a meeting would be required prior to 30th June 2021.
10. Community Matters.
10.1 Cllr Butler informed the council that there have been no updates on the Neighbourhood plan since the last meeting.
10.2 Cllr Crooks advised the council that there has been no progress on the Doddington Lane designation/signage and that he was still awaiting confirmation from Cllr Maughan as to when a site meeting could be arranged with the highways department.
10.3.1 Cllr Davis informed the council that three trees at Home Farm were subject to preservation orders and required permission to be pruned. A meeting has taken place and permission should be granted on 7th May.
10.3.2 The Cherry tree on the village green adjacent to the flagpole is getting to the stage where it needs to be shaped/pruned. The conservation arborist involved with the protected trees at Home Farm has been asked to provide a quote for the pruning of the Cherry tree as well. This will provide a starting point on how and when to progress.
10.4 Cllr Warren advised the council that a resident had approached her with a suggestion for making a flowerbed under the hawthorn tree. It was further suggested that it might form the basis of a memorial to Prince Philip following his recent death with perhaps a bench as well. The area has recently been cleared by volunteers and it was noted how much better it now looked
Mrs Crooks identified herself as the resident that raised the issue. It was thought that the land might be owned by Stubton Hall so she had approached Mrs Brainerd the owner to seek her views. Mrs Brainerd was amenable to the idea.
The council debated the idea and felt that further investigation was required. Ownership of the land was questioned and needs to be checked. It was also felt that residents, particularly those with property near to the tree, should be consulted and that if it were to go ahead all residents should have a say in to whom it might be dedicated. It was proposed to list the item on the next agenda.
10.5 A request was made for a grant to offset some of the cost of summer planting in the village and for the purchase of a couple of watering cans to assist with maintaining the beds. Cllr Davis proposed a grant of £50 plus the cost of 2 watering cans. This was seconded by Cllrs Smith and Warren and the motion was carried.
10.6 In previous years the village barbecue has been run by the Parish Council.
It has however been suggested that it is better suited to being run by the Stubton Social Club Management Committee (SSCMC). The current chair of the SSCMC stated that they were more than happy to take on the responsibility. Cllr Davis proposed passing ownership of the village bbq to the SSCMC and Cllrs Butler and Smith seconded the proposal. The motion was carried unanimously.
10.7 Cllr Davis proposed that a litter pick should take place and this was seconded by Cllrs Butler and Warren. The councillors voted 4 to 0 to hold a litter pick with 1 abstention. The chair of the SSCMC stated that the hall would be opening on a number of Sundays in the coming months for social purposes. It was suggested it might be a good idea to coincide the litter pick with one of these days to encourage more residents to participate. The dates will be passed onto the clerk and a date decided and advertised in advance.
11. The next meeting of Stubton PC will be 23rd June 2021.