Christmas Lights Committee : 13 August 2007

3.2.2014Council

Minutes of the proceedingsat a meeting of

Kendal Town Council

held on Monday, 3rd February 2014 at 7.30 p.m.

in the Kendal Town Council Chamber, the Town Hall,Kendal

PRESENT The Mayor(Councillor Sylvia Emmott) in the Chair;

CouncillorsA. Robinson, T. Clare, G. Vincent,G. Cook, P. Bramham,
J. Brook, C. Feeney-Johnson,J. Veevers, G. Archibald, S. Coleman, J. Dawson, M. Deverill, P. Dixon, D. Evans,S. Evans,J. McCreesh,M. Severn,
G. Tirvengadum, L. Oldham, L. Oswick and P. Walker.

APOLOGIESCouncillorsC. Mayho, A. Finch, E. Maughan and J. Willshaw.

OFFICERSLiz Richardson (Town Clerk), John Hutchinson (Town Treasurer) and Margaret Graham (Secretary).

673/13/14DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

No interests were declared at this point.

674/13/14ORDER OF BUSINESS

The Mayor proposed that the items in Part II (excluded items) be dealt with as the initial items of business, and this was agreed.

675/13/14EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

RESOLVEDthat the press and public be excluded for the following item.

Part II

In accordance with Section 100(B)(2) of the Local Government Act 1972, the following reports were excluded from inspection by members of the public as they contain exempt information as described in Schedule 12A of the Act, as amended by the Local Government (Access to Information) (Variation) Order 2006, as follows:-

-Information relating to any individual [Paragraph 1]

676/13/14STAFFING MATTERS [Paragraph 1]

The Town Clerk reported that the Assistant to the Town Clerk had satisfactorily completed her six months probationary period. Management Committee had recommended that she now be appointed as a permanent member of staff (Minute 633/13/14, 20th January 2014 refers).

RESOLVEDthat the Assistant to the Town Clerk be appointed as a permanent member of the Council’s staff with effect from 1st February 2014.

677/13/14THE WAINWRIGHT AWARD

The Treasurer reported that an unusually high number of nominations (six) had been received for the Wainwright Award 2013. He had prepared a list of nominees, and Members were circulated with the nomination details.

Councillor John McCreesh requested that, in view of the number of nominees this time, the decision should be taken not by a show of hands but by a written single transferable vote.

Councillor Paul Bramham indicated concern in respect of “sharing” the award, saying that he would prefer to see it made to a single nominee whether that be an individual or an organisation. Councillor John Veevers said that there were six strong candidates, and suggested that the unsuccessful candidates could be re-nominated next year. It was recognised that new names would come forward in future years, and there was a concern that the list of nominees could become unwieldy if unsuccessful candidates were re-nominated year on year. Councillor Austen Robinson suggested that the period of re-nomination could be limited to two years.

Councillor Phil Dixon asked for clarification on the criteria for the award, and how the Award had been advertised. The Treasurer read out the criteria for the award, and advised that this year nominations had been sought through the Town Council Newsletter.

Councillor Clare Feeney-Johnson pointed out that,in the normal course of events, unsuccessful candidates could be re-submitted for consideration (by their sponsors or by Councillors) in future years. This was supported by Councillor Matt Severn. Councillor Tom Clare felt that the process could become too prescriptive with multiple nominations being carried forward. Councillor Paul Bramham pointed out that the Award is an annual one. He said that he was one of the few Councillors who had actually known Alfred Wainwright, and suggested that an annual award, made to a single candidate, would be more in keeping with the spirit of the benefactor.

In the circumstances, proposals for multiple nominations were withdrawn and it was agreed that the process should be a simple, annual invitation to submit nominations and make a single award.

Members were asked to undertake a written ballot on the nominees for the 2013 Award. Ballot papers were distributed by the Town Clerk and the Treasurer, and the Treasurer counted the votes assisted by Councillor John McCreesh. The winner was announced later.

RESOLVEDthat

(1)the award be decided by a written, single transferable vote and announced at the end of the meeting; and

(2)the process be an annual invitation to submit nominations.

678/13/14READMISSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

RESOLVEDthat the press and public be re-admitted for the remainder of the meeting.

679/13/14MINUTES OF MEETING HELD ON 6TH JANUARY 2014

Members considered the minutes of the meeting of full Council held on
6th January 2014.

RESOLVEDthat, the minutes of the meeting ofCouncilheld on 6th January 2014 be approvedas acorrect record and signed by the Chairman.

680/13/14MAYOR’S COMMUNICATIONS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

The Mayor had prepared a list of engagements undertaken on her behalf by Councillor Tom Clare, the Deputy Mayor, during January 2014 and expressed her thanks to him for standing in while she was visiting family in Australia.

The Mayor reminded Members that the Mayor’s Charity Dinner will be held on Wednesday, 12th February 2014, and sought contributions of raffle prizes.

681/13/14REPORTS ON OUTSIDE BODIES

It was noted that no reports had been submitted.

682/13/14REQUEST FOR NOMINATIONS FOR MAYOR AND DEPUTY MAYOR 2014/2015

The Town Clerk sought nominations for the office of Town Mayor and Deputy Town Mayor for the year 2014/2015. She requested nominations to be submitted by Friday, 28thFebruary 2014. She reminded Members that nominations can be submitted up until the day of Mayor Making, which this year is on Thursday, 5th June because of the elections on 22nd May.

RESOLVEDthat the request for nominations be noted.

681/13/14ANNUAL REPORT AND ANNUAL TOWN ASSEMBLY

The Town Clerk thanked Committee Chairmen for their contributions to the Annual Report and indicated that it was being prepared for printing.

She said that the Annual Town Assembly had worked well with being held on the same evening as a Neighbourhood Forum. Unfortunately the protocols have changed so that Neighbourhood Forum meetings are now held “ad hoc” rather than quarterly. She was trying to establish whether a Neighbourhood Forum could be arranged to coincide with the Assembly, probably in March or April 2014.

RESOLVEDthat progress on the Annual Report and Annual Town Assembly be noted.

682/13/14MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

The minutes of the meeting held on 20th January 2014 were presented by the Committee Chairman, Councillor Austen Robinson, who invited Members’ questions and comments and drew attention to the summary page of the minutes where information/resolutions/recommendations were recorded. It was suggested that it might be helpful to other Committees to include such a summary page with the minutes, and this was agreed.

Comments were made on specific items. Councillor Tom Clare made reference to the Kendal Emergency Plan (Minute 640/13/14) as he felt that Ward Councillors would be expected to assist in emergency situations, such as a power failure, e.g. in identifying vulnerable people. He suggested that other Councillors might like to become more involved in the Steering Group, and asked if the Town Clerk would e-mail meeting dates to Ward Councillors. Councillor Graham Vincent agreed it was pertinent that Councillors should become a “point of contact” in emergency situations.

Councillor Robinson said that the issue of Police Reporting (Minute 641/13/14) was to be referred back to the Management Committee, and discussions on reporting of figures had been held with Inspector Paul Latham. The Town Clerk suggested that, when the figures are issued with Council agendas, Members could prepare questions for the meeting. Councillor Robinson confirmed that the Town Clerk had arranged for a Public Participation statement to be placed on the Town Council Website (Minute 643/13/14).

RESOLVEDthat

(1)the minutes of the meeting of the Management Committee held on
20th January 2014 be approved, and

(2)summary sheets be prepared to accompany the minutes of Committee meetings.

683/13/14ALLOTMENTS COMMITTEE

The minutes of the meeting of the Allotments Committee held on 9th December 2013 were presented by the Chairman, Councillor John Veevers, who invited questions from Members.

RESOLVEDthat the minutes of the meeting of the Allotments Committee held on
9th December 2013 be approved.

684/13/14ENVIRONMENT AND HIGHWAYS COMMITTEE

The minutes of the meeting held on 13th January 2014 were presented by the Chairman, Councillor Tom Clare, who invited questions on the minutes and introduced the recommendation in respect of Police Yard (see Minute 685/13/14).

Councillor Geoff Cook said that it would be useful to have information on the series of public events to be held in connection with the Local Plan Development Briefs (Minute 580/13/14). Councillor Clare said that the Committee had recognised that Parish Councillors would want to be involved. The Council’s LDF Working Group had met with SLDC Officers, and had responded to the consultation paper on Design Briefs. The Town Clerk said that she had e-mailed all Councillors, and let Alastair McNeill at SLDC have the names of the Members representing the relevant Wards, and adjacent Wards. Councillor McCreesh said there was an opportunity for all Councillors to gather information / respond to the consultation template, in addition to the “formal” response from the Group on behalf of the Town Council. Councillor Giles Archibald felt it was important to make sure that the Council’s response was broader than just Design Briefs as there were other infrastructure issues, such as GP surgeries.

Councillor Graham Vincent referred to the condition of the footpath between Romney Bridge to Scroggs Wood (Minute 600/13/14). He understood that both SLDC and United Utilities were interested parties, and that there had been an arrangement for SLDC to cut the grass some six years previously. The Town Clerk had spoken to Tony Naylor at SLDC since the meeting.

Councillor Phil Walker queried the timescale for the resurfacing work at Kendal By-Pass, anticipating delays at the beginning of the tourism season (Easter, May Bank Holidays). Councillor Geoff Cook explained that there were long-standing drainage problems at Prizet and the work needed doing. He said that work on the By-Pass at Plumgarths had been well handled to minimise closures and delays, and he had confidence in Cumbria County Council to manage the Prizet situation in a similar fashion.

RESOLVEDthat the minutes of the meeting of the Environment and HighwaysCommittee heldon13th January 2014be approved.

685/13/14Police Yard, Kendal

Councillor Clare referred to the recommendation from the Environment and Highways Committee (Minute 590/13/14) that the Civic Society be awarded £2,000 towards the Police Yard enhancement project, and advised that a further £2,000 could be contributed to the scheme conditional on improved lighting being included.

Members’ concerns included the issues that the improvement scheme was of significant benefit to private owners, who were not being asked to contribute financially, and the escalation in the costs of the project. Councillor John Veevers referred Members to the relevant minute, pointing out that the Committee had recognised those concerns and taken them into account in its deliberations and recommendation. Councillor Matt Severn said that part of the Town Council’s budget is channelled to town improvements; he felt it was part of the Council’s remit to support enhancement programmes. Councillor Clare echoed that the concerns raised had been considered, including the fact that the Yard was dark and needed improved lighting, and said that the recommendation to support the improvement programme was partly because work had already started.

RESOLVEDthat the Kendal Civic Society be awarded £2,000 immediately towards the Police Yard Improvement Scheme, and advised that a further £2,000 will be contributed providing it can be established than improved lighting will be included in the
project.

686/13/14PLANNING COMMITTEE

The minutes of the meetings of the Planning Committee held on 6th and 20th January 2014were presented by the Chairman, Councillor Mark Deverill, who invited questions from Members.

RESOLVEDthat the minutes of the meetings of the Planning Committee held on
6th and 20th January 2014 be received.

FINANCIAL MATTERS

687/13/14Financial Report : Nine Months ended 31st December 2013

The Treasurer presented a report on the Council’s financial position as at
31st December 2013, including details of income and expenditure against budget and variances. He reported that the overall position, almost £20,000 favourable variance, was satisfactory.

The report had been submitted to the meeting on 28th January 2014 of the Audit, Grants and Charities Committee, which had recommended that Council approve the Report.

The Treasurer re-issued an updated report on the Development Fund, pointing out that the £4,000 now earmarked for the Police Yard Improvement Scheme (see Minute 685/13/14 above) had reduced the balance of the Fund to £7,311. The Treasurer indicated that he would be contacting all Councillors, as individuals and Chairs of Committees, requesting them to review and/or re-assess their particular schemes for the full Council meeting on 3rd March 2014. This would allow the Council to identify monies within the Development Fund that are no longer needed, or where there is no justification for them being retained within that Fund, so they can be released for other schemes or to bolster the General Reserve.

Councillor Geoff Cook requested that the Development Fund be included as an item on the agenda for the next meeting of the Management Committee on
17th February 2014.

RESOLVEDthat

(1)the Financial Statement for the nine months ended 31stDecember 2012, as presented, be approved;

(2)the Development Fund be included on the list of agenda items for the Management Committee meeting on 17th February 2014; and

(3)a review of the Development Fund be undertaken by full Council at its meeting in March 2014.

688/13/14Payments Schedule : December 2013

The Town Treasurerpresented a summaryof invoices paid by the Council during December2013.

RESOLVEDthat the summary of invoices paid in December2013 be approved.

689/13/14Invoices over £2,000

The Town Treasurer sought Council’s approval for the payment of two invoices over £2,000 – to Christmas Plus for the dismantling of the Christmas Lights (as per contract) and to Amberol for planters.

RESOLVEDthat payment of invoices over £2,000 be approved.

690/13/14WORLD WAR 1 GRANT APPLICATIONS

Councillor Matt Severn, Vice-Chairman of the Audit, Grants and Charities Committee, and the Treasurer presented recommendations on three applications relating to World War I commemorations. The Treasurer confirmed that £5,000 had been set aside for this category (similar to the funding arrangements for the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations). It had been was agreed, in view of the relatively restricted timescale, to present the recommendations on these WW1 applications to the meeting of full Council on 3rdFebruary 2014.

691/13/14Kendal Pals

Members had considered this application from Queen Katherine School for assistance with the cost of costumes, lighting, sound system etc for a play, based on actual people, commemorating the “Kendal Pals” who had served in the first World War.

Councillor Paul Bramham said that he had been in touch with Jon Linaker at QKS, the author of the play, and was impressed with what had been produced so far. He felt that the play could engender audiences for years to come. The Town Clerk said that she had also been in contact with Mr Linaker, and that a grant towards the total estimated costs presented would be gratefully received. There was some concern that no actual sum had been asked for, and Councillor David Evans felt that more information was needed in terms of budget, ticket sales and number of performances. It was felt that additional information was needed before an informed decision could be made.

RESOLVEDthat the Treasurer be asked to seek additional information on the application so that an informed decision can be made.

692/13/14Fellside Forum

Note: Councillor Giles Archibald abstained from voting on this application because he is a member of the Fellside Forum.

It was reported that Fellside Forum intends to hold a commemoration event on 28th June 2014, providing children’s activities, a Tea Party and a Brass Band Concert. The Forum has asked for a contribution of £200 towards the estimated cost of £350, and this was recommended.

RESOLVEDthat a grant of £200 be approved.

693/13/14Cumbria Choral Initiative

The Cumbria Choral Initiative was seeking a contribution towards the cost of staging a performance of Benjamin’s War Requiem, to be held in Kendal Parish Church on Saturday, 8th November 2014. The total cost of the project was estimated to be in excess of £15,000. The Committee had recommended a grant of £1,000.

RESOLVEDthat the Cumbria Choral Initiative be awarded £1,000.

694/13/14EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

RESOLVEDthat the press and public be excluded for the following item.

Part II

-Information relating to any individual [Paragraph 1]

695/13/14THE WAINWRIGHT AWARD

The Mayor announced that the winner of the Wainwright Award for 2013 was the Kendal Sea Cadets. Councillor Tom Clare said he had learned at the Air Cadets Parade in Kendal on 2nd February that both the Air Cadets and the Army Cadets are Government funded, whereas the Sea Cadets is a charitable organisation.

It was agreed that the presentation of the award would be made before the full Council meeting on Monday, 3rd March 2014. The Town Clerk would make the necessary arrangements for the presentation and refreshments.

RESOLVEDthat the presentation of the Award to the Kendal Sea Cadets be made on
Monday, 3rd March 2014.

The meeting ended at 9.20p.m.

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