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MINUTES OF THE MOUNTSORREL PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON MONDAY 14TH MARCH 2016 IN THE PARISH ROOMS, LEICESTER ROAD MOUNTSORREL AT 7PM
AMENDED AT ITEM 294. ON 11.04.2016
PRESENT
Mr B Allard (Chair) Mr N Asher
Mr T Duffin Mr P Harris
Mr S Haywood Mrs P Maguire
Mr F Newitt Mrs M Pirt
Mrs L Twigg
IN ATTENDANCE
Ms J Wainwright, Assistant
Borough Councillor Mr R Shepherd
County Councillor Mr P Osborne
PC Glenn Spiby
PCSO James Johnson
Adrian Ward (CBC)
Martin Fagan (Community Heartbeat)
The Chairman announced that this meeting is being recorded
273. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Apologies were received from Borough Councillor Mr J Capleton, Borough Councillor Mr D Slater, Borough Councillor Ms L Harper-Davies, Mr D Emmins, Mr M Lemon, Mr G Pirt and Mr D Shardlow.
274. CONSIDERATION FOR RESOLUTIONS TO BE READ OUT AT MEETINGS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE ANY VOTE IS TAKEN
It was proposed by Mrs M Pirt, seconded by Mrs P Maguire and unanimously agreed that resolutions should be read out at meetings immediately before any vote is taken.
275. CONFIRMATION OF THE MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 11th JANUARY 2016
It was proposed by Mr S Haywood, seconded by Mr F Newitt and unanimously agreed to accept the minutes as a true and accurate record.
276. CONFIRMATION OF THE MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 18TH JANUARY 2016
It was proposed by Mr S Haywood, seconded by Mr F Newitt and unanimously agreed to accept the minutes as a true and accurate record.
277. CONFIRMATION OF THE MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 8TH FEBRUARY 2016
It was proposed by Mr F Newitt, seconded by Mr S Haywood and unanimously agreed to accept the minutes as a true and accurate record.
278. DECLARATION OF INTERESTS
Mrs P Maguire declared a personal interest in items 288 (Mountsorrel War Memorial Trust Ltd) and 290 (Mountsorrel Memorial Centre)
279. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
There was no public participation.
280. REPORT OF THE POLICE
PCSO Johnson referred to the tabled report for February.
PC Spiby reported that Budgens has ceased trading; the Police accommodation at the premises has to be vacated within 5 weeks; the Police will relocate to Rothley after that time; they hope to continue to have a presence in the village; they will move back to the Budgens/Waitrose premises if agreement can be reached with Waitrose to do so. There were no comments regarding the report save for the future hope for a Police presence in the village.
Mr Allard thanked PCSO Johnson and PC Spiby for their report.
281. REPORTS OF THE BOROUGH AND COUNTY COUNCILLORS
For the Borough Council, Cllr Shepherd had nothing to report.
For the County Council, Cllr Osborne had nothing to report.
There were no questions for either Councillor.
Mr Allard thanked Cllr Shepherd and Cllr Osborne for their attendance.
282. QUESTIONS FOR ADRIAN WARD (MONITORING OFFICER OF CHARNWOOD BOROUGH COUNCIL – TO INCLUDE DISCUSSION REGARDING DECLARATION OF INTERESTS)
Q If a Councillor is on the committee of a charity should a declaration be made?
A The Councillor should declare an interest – see section 4.5 of the Code of Conduct. If there is a personal interest that might lead to bias, that must be declared – see part 4 C of the Code of Conduct. If a Councillor does not declare an interest a complaint could be made that a breach of the Code of Conduct has been committed.
A Councillor that has declared a personal interest may still vote.
A Councillor that has declared a personal interest which might lead to bias should not vote on that item.
Mr Ward explained about pecuniary interest and that failure to declare this could be a criminal offence.
It is advisable to always err on the side of caution. If a Councillor is in doubt about whether a particular course of action should be followed then the answer is usually ‘don’t undertake that course of action’.
Section 4.18 of the Code of Conduct relates to dispensations.
Dispensation could be granted at the start of each meeting or at a single meeting for a 6 month period.
Q How can the standing orders be amended?
A If the standing orders do not include reference to declaration of interests, dispensation etc a new section could be inserted relating to that.
Changes to the standing orders are wholly determined by the Parish Council.
Mr Allard thanked Mr Ward for his attendance and informative assistance.
283. DEFIBRILLATORS FOR THE VILLAGE – PRESENTATION BY MARTIN FAGAN OF COMMUNITY HEARTBEAT AND UPDATE
Mr S Haywood reported that a reply to the BT consultation is still awaited from Charnwood Borough Council regarding the telephone box at Cromwell Road.
Mr Fagan explained the background to his organization.
There are only x 2 AEDs (defibrillators) that his organization deems capable of being used by anyone. Mr Fagan recommended that the best (not necessarily the cheapest) AEDs are bought. Placement of AEDs should be 500 metres apart. There was a discussion about suggested locations i.e. in the vicinity of the Co-op, the Green and the Waterside plus possibly one between the Waterside and the North End.
There will be ongoing running costs.
If Community Heartbeat was to take over responsibility for the AEDs the current ongoing cost would be £126 per year per site.
The purchase price varies between £1500 and £2200 per unit.
It was proposed by Mr S Haywood, seconded by Mrs P Maguire and unanimously agreed to request Community Heartbeat to report back to the Parish Council with details of the suggested units, their cost, locations and the situation regarding telephone boxes.
Mr Allard thanked Mr Fagan for his attendance, information and for agreeing to take this forward.
284. PAYMENT OF ACCOUNTS
February accounts:
It was proposed by Mr P Harris, seconded by Mr N Asher and unanimously agreed to accept the accounts and the cheques were duly signed.
It was proposed by Mr F Newitt, seconded by Mr P Harris and unanimously agreed to accept the pending receipts.
285. TO RECEIVE AND CONSIDER A REPORT AND MINUTES OF THE PLANNING & HIGHWAYS COMMITTEE MEETING OF 7TH MARCH 2016
Mr P Harris reported as follows:
· Planning application by the Parish Council to erect palisade fencing to the rear of the pavilion has been granted conditionally.
ACTION: To be added to agenda for April R & A meeting
· The General Manager of Marshall Honda has confirmed that all deliveries to the Honda garage site by transporters will cease by the end of March 2016.
· Watling Street parking issues – Graham Compton of Leics Police has asked the Neighbourhood Sergeant to arrange for some attention at the site. The Beat Team will keep an eye on the blocking of residents driveways and will deal as necessary. Mr Compton will visit the site and assess the situation concerning access for the emergency services.
ACTION: Ms Wainwright to update the residents’ action group accordingly
· Damaged wall on Leicester Road opposite the Post Office – CBC telephoned to say that, as the wall requires ‘specialist repair’ it is currently with their insurers – they are in contact to get the correct contractor to carry out the repairs.
It was proposed by Mr S Haywood, seconded by Mrs L Twigg and unanimously agreed to accept the report and minutes.
286. TO RECEIVE AND CONSIDER A REPORT AND MINUTES OF THE CEMETERY, CONSERVATION & ENVIRONMENT COMMITTEE MEETING OF 15TH FEBRUARY 2016
Mr Haywood reported that the vacancy for a Cemetery Gardener has been advertised on notice boards and in the Quorn and Mountsorrel Post Offices.
He (Mr Haywood) had approved the purchase of a new boiler for the Parish Rooms because of H & S and Duty of Care to Users and Staff. The cost of the new boiler is in excess of the £1000 limit referred to in the Financial Regulations.
The posts on the Green have been renewed.
Trees around the War Memorial have been cleared.
It was proposed by Mr P Harris, seconded by Mrs M Pirt and unanimously agreed to accept the report and minutes.
It was proposed by Mr T Duffin, seconded by Mrs P Maguire and unanimously agreed to endorse the action taken by Mr Haywood in authorizing the purchase of the new boiler, because of H & S and Duty of Care.
287. DISCUSSION REGARDING USE OF THE PARISH ROOM AT THE WEEKEND
Mr S Haywood reported that there is increased pressure on premises available for hire in the village because of the closure of the Memorial Hall. There is currently nothing in writing to confirm that the Parish Room may be hired at weekends.
It was proposed by Mr S Haywood, seconded by Mr T Duffin and unanimously agreed that the Parish Room may be used at weekends.
288. TO RECEIVE AND CONSIDER A REPORT ON THE MEETING OF THE MOUNTSORREL WAR MEMORIAL TRUST LTD
Mrs Twigg in formed the Meeting that she had been advised by Mr W Antill that there was no report to go forward at the moment.
289. TO RECEIVE AND CONSIDER A REPORT ON THE MEETINGS OF THE MOUNTSORREL MAJOR PROJECTS WORKING PARTY
There had been no meeting of the Working Party since the last Parish Council meeting.
Library – Cabinet met on 1st March. A decision on the Library was deferred by Cabinet until 18th April to enable a meaningful discussion to take place with the landlord.
290. MOUNTSORREL MEMORIAL CENTRE – THE EVIDENCE OF EVENTS BETWEEN 28.07.2015 AND 15.12.2015
Mr Allard referred to the circulated enclosures relating to this item.
He referred in particular to the minutes of the Parish Council meeting of 8th February 2016.
Mr Allard totally refuted the allegation that he is responsible for the building costs of the Memorial Centre being increased by £100,000. He added that since the meeting on 8th February x 4 members of the public have spoken to him (Mr Allard) expressing their concern about disputes witnessed by them during Parish Council meetings.
Two Members were supportive to Mr Allard and he thanked them for their support.
291. CONSIDERATION OF MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL TO CLERKS AND COUNCILS DIRECT - £75 (S.137)
It was proposed by Mrs L Twigg, seconded by Mr F Newitt and unanimously agreed to renew the membership to Clerks and Councils Direct from S.137 and then reconsider membership after the new Clerk is in post.
292. CONSIDERATION OF MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL TO RURAL COMMUNITY COUNCIL (LEICESTERSHIRE & RUTLAND) - £50 (S.137)
It was proposed by Mr S Haywood, seconded by Mrs M Pirt and unanimously agreed to renew membership to Rural Community Council (Leicestershire & Rutland) from S.137.
293. 1ST MOUNTSORREL SCOUT GROUP – PROPOSED DATE OF 11TH JUNE 2016 FOR CHARITIES FETE
It was proposed by Mr F Newitt, seconded by Mrs M Pirt and unanimously agreed to allow the 1st Mountsorrel Scout Group to use the Green on 11th June 2016 from 10.00 until 13.00.
ACTION: Ms Wainwright to advise the Scout Group accordingly
294. LITTLE LANE SINKING FUND – UPDATE
Cllrs Twigg and Emmins had been tasked with investigating why no monies had been received since 2002 in relation to the Little Lane Sinking Fund. It was unclear from the files whether any rents had been paid to management companies, and/or why payment had not been pursued.
Mrs L Twigg read out a detailed report on the background and suggested courses of action. Cllr Twigg returned documents back to the office for safekeeping.
It was proposed by Mr T Duffin, seconded by Mr P Harris and unanimously agreed to seek information from Edward Hands & Lewis including the deeds and any relevant information, to ask Edward Hands & Lewis what their interpretation is of the legal situation and to then refer back to Council for an informed decision to be taken. It was further unanimously agreed to write to x 2 Property Management Companies to pursue payment of invoices sent by Mrs Walker in 2013/2014.
ACTION: Ms Wainwright to contact Edward Hands & Lewis re the above and to chase the outstanding invoices
295. TO RECEIVE SUCH COMMUNICATION AS THE PERSON PRESIDING MAY WISH TO LAY BEFORE THE COUNCIL
Request from the Community Sport and Physical Activity Development Officer of CBC to hire Halstead Road Park on Thursday 31st March from 10.00 until 12.00.
It was proposed by Mr T Duffin, seconded by Mrs M Pirt and unanimously agreed to grant this request.
296. CORRESPONDENCE FOR INFORMATION
All correspondence was noted.
Mountsorrel Lock Open Days 27th/28th February – several Members had attended and found the experience of great interest.
297. CONFIRMATION OF THE CONFIDENTIAL MINUTES OF THE 8TH FEBRUARY 2016
298. STAFFING MATTERS
299. STAFF APPRAISALS AND CONSIDERATION OF ANY PAY INCREASES TO STAFF 2016/2017
300. DISCUSSION ON ACCEPTABLE CONDUCT DURING MEETINGS
It was proposed by Mr N Asher, seconded by Mr F Newitt and carried by a unanimous decision that, on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in section (1) and section (2) of the public bodies (admission to meetings) act 1960, members of the public be excluded from the meeting during the consideration of items 297, 298, 299 and 300 above.
301. RESOLUTIONS TO BE INCLUDED IN OPEN BUSINESS
· Staffing matters were discussed
· Decisions on accepting confidential minutes from previous meetings were taken
· Acceptable conduct during meetings was discussed
· Resolution to continue the meeting until no later than 10.30pm
The Chairman closed the meeting at 10.05pm