May 2023 Minutes
Annual Meeting of the Parish Council Monday 15th May 2023
Date: 15th May 2023
Parishioners in attendance: 6
Council Members in attendance:
Chair: Geoff Dorrity
Acting clerk and Councillor: Zoe J North
Cllr Teri England
Cllr Jenny Taylor
Minutes
1. Election Results – Confirmation of councillors and appointment of Chairman and Vice Chairman, signing Declaration of Office and Declaration of Interests forms
Five individuals put themselves forward for the five councillor positions. Therefore all were elected unopposed.
1a) Appointment of Chairman: nominations for the position of Chair and resolution to appoint to the position followed by signing of declaration of Acceptance of Office as Chair and Councillor. Cllr Jenny Taylor proposed Geoff Dorrity for Chair, this was seconded by Cllr Zoe J North. The Declaration of Acceptance was signed by Cllr Geoff Dorrity and witnessed by Cllr Zoe North as acting clerk to the Council.
1b) Appointment of Vice Chairman: Cllr Teri England nominated Cllr Zoe J North for Vice Chair; this was seconded by Cllr Jenny Taylor. The Declaration of Acceptance was signed by Cllr Zoe North and witnessed by Cllr Geoff Dorrity.
1c) Councillors: Councillors had signed their Acceptance of Office forms and completed the Declaration of Interests Forms prior to the meeting. These had been witnessed by the proper person.
1d) Acting Parish Clerk The Chair nominated Zoe J North to remain acting as Clerk for the council, this was seconded by Cllr Teri England and accepted by Cllr Zoe J North.
Action: GD to send copies of forms to Democratic Services at SKDC.
Update: Action completed 16/05/2023
2. Apologies for absence: Cllr Watkins could not attend due to illness. Cllr Alex Maughan & Cllr Penny Milnes could not attend the meeting due to prior commitments.
Meeting suspended for
Open Forum
[This does not form part of the Parish Council Meeting]
Residents were invited to raise issues during this 15-minute period. Please note that decisions on issues raised during this period will not be made but the council shall use every endeavour to table them for addressing at the next or future meeting.
Drainage on Doddington Road
The issue of inadequate drainage on the bend of Doddington Road was discussed.
Action: GD to contact Anglian Water; Lincolnshire County Council (LCC); Cllr Alex Maughn
Update: All contacted 16/05/2023. Anglian Water stated it was not their responsibility. Reported online to LCC. Response received from Cllr Maughn who is following this up.
Flag Flying Days
A parishioner raised a question regarding flag flying days, specifically inquiring about whether there is a need to fly the Ukrainian flag every day.
Action: Survey to be created in time for delivery alongside the newsletter.
Speeding Signage and Monitors
A parishioner inquired about speeding signage and monitors.
Action: JT to follow up with the Prosperity Fund team. GD to follow up with the Community Fund team.
Meeting re-opened by Chairperson at 8:21.
Acknowledgements
The meeting recommenced with the Chairperson giving special thanks to Cllr Jenny Taylor for painting the bus shelter and Martin Stammers for painting the benches. Their efforts in enhancing the appearance of these community assets were greatly appreciated.
Additional thanks were also extended to the committee members who organized the coronation activities for their sterling efforts.
3. Review and agree the Standing orders for the coming year: All council members agreed to continue with the existing standing orders unamended for the coming year.
4. Review and agree Financial Regulations for the coming year: All council members agreed to continue with the existing financial regulations unamended for the coming year.
5. Proposed meetings for the coming year: A proposed list of meetings for the next twelve months had previously been sent to all councillors for consideration. See appendix1
Motion: To agree to the Meeting dates - Proposed by Cllr Teri England, seconded Cllr Zoe J North. Furthermore, provisional dates for future meetings have been reserved at the hall to ensure availability and prevent any potential scheduling conflicts.
6. Agreement of exemption re external audit as per Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR)
Councillors had been provided with copies of the AGAR before the meeting. Councillors agreed that Stubton Parish Council is exempt from external audit due to the annual gross income being below £25000. The Certificate of Exemption was signed by the Chair.
Action1: The Certificate of Exemption be sent to the external auditors by the Chair.
Update: Action1 completed
Action2: The AGAR to be published in the period 5th June to 14th July in the bus shelter and on the website as per regulations.
7. Update on residents’ priorities from previous meeting as outlined below:
7a) Further progress toward the potential purchase and installation of a moveable electronic speed signs. Including Update on Signage Cost and Speeding Measures
The acting Clerk has been in contact with the Clerk of Dry Doddington regarding the signage cost. It has been determined that the total cost of signage amounts to £2500, which is significantly higher than the initial estimate anticipated by the council. As a result, additional funding or fundraising efforts will be necessary to finance this expense. Furthermore, the Chair has reached out to an additional council that has encountered similar challenges. They have shared their experiences and insights on addressing the issue of speeding in their area. To explore alternative options, the Clerk suggested approaching a neighbouring village to inquire about the possibility of borrowing a sign temporarily. This would allow the council to assess if the presence of signage reduces speeding through the village. Residents have proposed utilizing handheld speed guns to gather data on the effectiveness of speed signs. By recording the instances of speeding before and after the installation of signage, the council can determine if the signs justify the cost. However, historically there have been insufficient volunteers to undertake this. Cllr Teri England proposed to engage with relevant individuals to investigate the availability of temporary loop systems that can monitor speeding in the area. Cllr Jenny Taylor recommended exploring the rental or borrowing of a speed sign as a means of assessing its effectiveness in mitigating speeding issues. A resident suggested they would make contact with the Brandon speed awareness group, as they are looking to purchase some second hand signage and may be prepared to share. This offer was accepted. Please note that these measures are being considered as potential solutions and will require further discussion and evaluation. Please also note the discussion above in the open forum.
Actions: as above in open forum plus
-TE to investigate the installation of temporary speed loops
-JT to investigate potential rental or borrowing opportunities
-RT (resident) to make contact with the Brandon Speed Awareness Group.
7b) Further progress the design and installation of a village sign and possibly link this with coronation commemoration. The Chair apologised for no update being available but supported a resident’s idea at the previous meeting of linking the sign with the coronation commemoration. Cllr Watkins had indicated there was a metal fabricator in the village at the previous meeting, who may be interested in supporting this initiative.
Action: GD to get contact details of said individual and explore their potential further involvement.
7c) Increase planting and flowers throughout the village. The Chair had previously spoken about a ‘garden group’ to be established in the coming months, to plan and maintain the common planting areas and care for present plants in the future. A budget of £300 had already been agreed by ring-fencing the second prize in the BKVC. A suggestion was made for the gates to have planted areas; Cllr Jenny Taylor suggested daffodils and tulips surrounding the gates.
Action: This will be added to the next agenda as an item for discussion.
7d) Research the establishment of a footpath Stubton to Claypole for road safety, and/or the improvement of the current footpath from Fenton Road to Claypole.
Prior to the meeting, a local landowner had been contacted by the council regarding the potential change of a style into a kissing gate. No objections were raised by the landowner, and LCC will be responsible for installing the kissing gates soon. The council will initiate contact with LCC regarding the condition and replacement of the footpath styles. The vice-Chair will approach LCC to discuss the possibility of changing the remaining styles on the public footpath to Claypole, aiming to enhance accessibility for the community. Furthermore, Cllr Jenny Taylor expressed concerns and a desire for a road footpath from Stubton to Claypole. This matter will be pursued by following up with Cllr A Maughan.
Action1: ZN to contact Andrew Savage regarding upgrading of styles on public footpath.
Update: Contact made, and response received 16/05/2023. Please see appendix 2.
Action2: JT to initiate conversation with Cllr Maughn in regard to major works of a roadside footpath being created.
7e) Selection of a commemorative tree for the coronation was deemed important due to spacing and placement considerations. It was proposed money be spent on a sign instead of a tree. This would celebrate coronation of King Charles and link to the bus shelter which was built to celebrate the late Queen’s coronation. No decision was made regarding this proposal and both ideas need following up.
Action: As for 7b above
8. Date and time of next meeting: Wednesday 12th July at 7:00pm
Appendix 1
Parish Council meetings for 2023/24 are scheduled as follows:
Wednesday, 12th July 2023, at 7:00 PM
Thursday, 21st September 2023, at 7:00 PM
Wednesday, 15th November 2023, at 7:00 PM
Wednesday, 17th January 2024, at 7:00 PM
Wednesday, 6th March 2024, at 7:00 PM
Wednesday, 10th April 2024 - Annual Parish Meeting at 7:00 PM
Appendix 2 Response regarding footpath styles
Thank you for your email regarding the installation of kissing gates between the villages of Stubton and Claypole.
The County Council has received a number of similar requests in recent years asking for the stiles on the public footpath to be replaced by kissing gates in order to improve accessibility to less able path users.
It would be significant financial undertaking to replace all of the kissing gates on the route at the same time.
The County Council is therefore proposing to install six kissing gates in the coming financial year at the locations indicated on the plan as A to F. The remaining kissing gates will be installed in the next two years subject to landowner approval.
