Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on 14TH March 2017 at Gedney Victory Hall commencing at 7.00pm.
Chaired by Cllr I Field
Also present: County Cllr W Webb, District Cllr J Reynolds, Mrs J Ripley Parish Clerk and 8 members of the public.
1. The Chairman welcomed all present.
2. The minutes of last year’s meeting held on 8th March 2016 were taken as read and were accepted as minutes.
3. The Chairman gave a report on council activities during the past year:
(Report attached)
4. Financial Report from the Clerk to the Council & RFO.
(Report attached)
5.Topics for discussion:
Defibrillator project
The Chair informed those present of the proposed project to install defibrillators at all three Village Halls within the parish.
6. Any other matters from members of the public:
Items discussed:
None
There being no further questions the meeting was closed at 7.10pm.
Confirmed and approved
Sign:Date:
Chairman's Report 2017
During the year we have welcomed several new members to the council who are playing an active part in helping us to deliver the best possible service for the betterment of GEDNEY parish and the surrounding area. I also once again call on our parishioners for someone to fill the one remaining seat in the south ward. If anyone is interested please contact Jane Ripley our parish clerk or any member of the council for more information.
Jane Ripley has been our clerk for a number of years now and she continues to do a sterling job for the parish. Neither myself or my fellow councillors can thank her enough for the many hours of work she puts in trying to keep us firmly on track.
I have reserved a special thank you for William Webb, as many you know William has served both the Parish and on the county council for many years. Last year William decided that the time was right to retire from the parish council and we have missed his presence among us. However William still serves as a county councillor and regularly attends parish meetings where his local knowledge still proves invaluable to us.
Moving on to the councils activities over the last 12 months I am pleased to report that the QMNR has been much improved in the last year with the opening up of the 4th side to give a complete walk around the perimeter of the meadow. To develop the nature meadow properly we needed to find someone to graze and crop this in line with the wildlife trust guidelines. I am pleased to say that after 2 seasons without, Alan Hargreaves has leased the meadow at a peppercorn rent in exchange for the grazing rights. We are especially pleased about this as Alan is an avid supporter of the Wildlife trust and was instrumental in setting up the nature reserve.
We have now installed the junior play area at Gedney Dyke and have already begun to see some use albeit the weather is currently against outdoor play. The railings surrounding the park still have to be painted black; this will be done as soon as the weather improves.
We have also requested quotes to repaint the railings on the war memorial as these are beginning to look a little shabby. If all goes well and budget permitting we would hope to complete this work before the next Remembrance Day.
There have been further improvements to the Walker memorial park play equipment by replacing the old and crumbling concrete steps to the embankment slide. We now have a smart and cheerful wooden set complete with safety railings and handrails. I am sure these will prove to be a welcome addition to this much loved piece of play equipment, some of you may recall them being donated to the Parish many years ago. We will also shortly complete this year's maintenance program in the park.
The council tries to deliver at least one new resource every year and for 2017 we are looking to install defibrillators at all three village halls. I am very pleased to say that all three Village halls in the parish are now on board with this and have agreed to the siting of the equipment. We will now progress with finalising funding and obtaining quotations to carry out the work. I am sure the whole community will support the installation of this valuable lifesaving equipment.
Councillors continue to give freely of their time to serve the community and have attended various training events over the past year. We continue to receive revisions to the rules we operate under and it is not easy trying to keep abreast of the many different subjects we undertake. From finance to planning all the time being aware of data protection, freedom of information and so on. However we also continue to benefit from the knowledge gained, this year we have seen the adoption of new rules for operating the cemetery at Dawsmere. This will mean a more efficient service being provided and the rights of families and relatives better protected in future years.
We continue to support the voluntary car scheme and the parish is seeing an increased use of this valued service, Katrina Parks not only looks after the council's interest in the scheme but also serves as a driver as well.
Lastly but not least we were asked to help set up an emergency group within our parish to assist the emergency services should there ever be a major incident within the community. This is part of an expanding government initiative and Andy Parks has not only been instrumental in setting this up but continues to lead the group outside of his duties for the Parish Council.
Ian Field Chairman, Gedney Parish Council
14/03/2017
Gedney Parish Council – Financial Report Parish Meeting for the year 2016/17
For the financial year 2016-2017 Gedney Parish Councils total income is expected to be approximately £52,200.00 with expenditure in the region of £59,500.00. This figure includes the grant funding and expenditure for the Gedney Dyke Village green play area.
The Precept this year was £29000.00.
Other income has been generated from Cemetery fees at £2875.00 & Allotment rents at £3950.00; this figure is down on last year due to a drop in rent revenue following the council relinquishing its tenancy of land with LCC. This year Council served notice to The Crown on the land it rents from them, again this was due to the size of rent increase received.
Finally bank interest at approximately £16.00
The Accounts for the previous year were signed off by the internal and external Auditors and the notice displayed for the required period on the Parish notice board.
Ring fenced funds at the end of the year will be £1000 leaving general reserves at around £12,000.00.