Minutes of the Ringsfield and Weston Parishes Annual Meeting held on
16 May 2014 at 8.00 pm in Ringsfield Village Hall
Present : Cllr A Wheeler (in the Chair), Cllr P Fearn, Cllr S Saunders, Cllr L Rees,
Mr R Ulph, Mrs J Springall, Mrs B Lanchester, Mrs M Lovegrove, Mrs B Ford, Mrs M Bateman and Mr M Saunders, Mrs T Hazell (Parish Clerk)
- Apologies : Cllr P Johnson, Cllr C Mehew, Cllr C Leggett, Mr S Hemp,
Cllr D Ritchie, Cllr K Springall, PCSO L Le Surf, Mrs D Hall,
Mr T Betts, Mrs J Betts, Cllr R Sherriff
Cllr Wheeler, Acting Chairman, welcomed everyone to the Annual Parish Meeting and explained that the Chairman, Mr P Johnson, had just come out of hospital after surgery and was therefore unable to attend the meeting.
- To receive a report from the Chairman of the Parish Council
No report due to the Chairman’ absence due to illness.
- To receive a report from the Chairman of the Community Council
No report due to the Chairman’s absence due to illness.
- To receive a report from the the Treasurer of the Community Council
Mrs Brenda Lanchester had sent a copy of the accounts to the Parish Council which had been circulated. The accounts had been audited by an accountant.
The Chairman referred to the development of facilities and asked if each item could be shown separately in the Receipts and Payments acount.
On the motion of the Chairman, seconded by Cllr rees, it was unanimously agreed that these accounts be approved as a true and correct record for 2013/14.
It was agreed that the clerk submit these figures to the Charity Commission and Mrs Lanchester will supply the clerk with a certified copy for this purpose.
There were no questions and the Chairman thanked Mrs Lanchester.
- To receive a report from the School Governors, Mrs M Lovegrove.
“With another year on I am pleased to report that RingsfieldSchool continues to be a popular choice amongst parents and carers, not just for the local community but for the Beccles and surrounding areas too. Once again we are seeing a gradual increase in pupil numbers, particularly the Nursery with 13 children and 81 pupils overall. In fact, owing to popular demand, plans are now ready for an afternoon pre-school but are just await the formal go-ahead from Ofsted before the project becomes fully operational.
With Mrs Vicky Allen as Head teacher for some 18 months now, she continues to be highly effective and there is a Head of school at each venue who take on the role in her absence which works well. As a federation the schools, we continue to have strong links the SirJohnLemanSchool, particularly so with the year 6 children as they approach High school age, enjoying regular visits to the site in Beccles whether it be for an educational or sporting activity.
As a ChurchSchool we enjoy regular visits from Canon Paul Nelson and Revd. Martin Allwood, who lead spiritual assemblies with a Christian theme which always proves popular with the children. Visits to All Saints' Church too, to celebrate Christian festivals such as harvest, Christmas and Easter are well attended, together with the all too familiar walk back to school across the fields afterwards. Sadly however, Martin and his wife have since moved to Yorkshire and we had a special assembly prior to their departure to thank him for the strong pastoral and spiritual care he had provided between both the church and our schools.
We had an Ofsted inspection of both schools back in July 2013; the criteria of which is possibly more rigorous than previous inspections and the main focus is on good teaching, achievement, behaviour, safety and leadership and management. Overall, the outcome was good for the federation as a whole but there were improvements recommended at Ringsfield in terms of quality of teaching. Under Vicky's direction, she has addressed these issues thoroughly and robust action plans are now in place so all staff are working really hard to improve standards. It should be mentioned that anyone can access the full report on line if you wish to.
Finally, and on a lighter note, the RingsfieldSchool version of Cinderella was quite amazing. It was held at the Village Hall and everyone had a part to play. With an emphasis on cross dressing, three of the key stage 2 boys took to the stage as the (very) wicked Stepmother and the ugly sisters and stole the show! It was a truly professional performance with fantastic back-drops and props, together with some very dedicated and long suffering members of staff to plan and over-see proceedings during a busy lead up to Christmas. I have to say that it made all the difference to hold such an event in the Hall and something that could be considered again another year….Mary Lovegrove”
The Chairman thanked Mrs Lovegrove for her report.
- To receive a report from the Police
PCSO Le Surf was not present but had emailed the Clerk stating that over the past year there have been 14 crimes recorded for the area, comparing to 12 crimes last year.
Out of the 14 crimes recorded over 13/14, the majority of crimes were burglary (other buildings) relating to 12 incidents of shed break in, the Church break in and a business premises break in. Theft resulted in four of these crimes. There was also a crime recorded for producing a controlled drug whereby a small amount of cannabis was being grown in an airing cupboard at a property in Ringsfield.
- To receive a report from Neighbourhood Watch
Cllr Alan Wheeler is the Co-ordinator for Ringsfield and Mr M Saunders for Weston. Cllr Wheeler reported that there seems to be a lack of information from the Police at the moment. The previous CPO had retired and he has not heard of a replacement as yet. There is a new website where crimes are headlined, but it is very difficult to pass on information if they are not given direct reports from the Police. He hoped to pass this over to someone else if anyone is interested in taken over the Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator role.
Mr Saunders had nothing to report from Weston.
The clerk was asked to contact PCSO Le Surf and ask if a new Crime Prevention Officer/Neighbourhood Watch Officer has been appointed and how we can
receive any reports of crime in our areas.
- To receive a report from the Women’s Institute
Mrs Beryl Ford reported that the local WI have 35 members and Mrs Angela Leggett continues as their very enthusiastic Chairman and they all enjoy meeting at the village hall. They have had some interesting talks over the pas year including Pip Wright describing his travels over the country on a bus pass, Jenny Mercer talking about yoga and Robert Tilney on antiques. Members have been on various outings including the Fisher Theatre BungAy, the Theatre Royal Norwich and HensteadExoticGardens. which have been thoroughly enjoyed by all.
Mrs Ford was thanked for her report.
- Matters for Discussion
- Mrs Bateman asked about the improvement plans for the village hall. The Chairman stated that the scaffolding is to enable the installation of solar panels, which are a prize for a competition launched by Lark Energy (Ellough) which was won by the Village Hall and the VillageSchool.
Mrs Bateman also asked if improvements will be made to the kitchen. Mrs Lanchester answered that plans have been drawn up and grants are being applied for to fund this. She added that the toilets are the priority, followed by the bar area and the kitchen. Later on they hope to have a new entrance area and a sliding stage. A Wren Grant for £15K was turned down but a larger grant of £20K can be applied for in August 2014 after consultation with the school children which is being organized by the Community Council. Mrs Springall and Mrs Lanchester also reported on their ideas for a storage container for the playing field equipment etc. and they had spoken to the Chairman of the Parish Councl about the possibility of the parish Council purchasing this as a community asset.
Mrs Ford stated that another idea for an improvement to the village hall would be sliding partition doors to divide the hall for smaller meetings. Mrs Lanchester stated that the refurbished bar area would be ideal for this purpose.
- Election of the Community Council 2014/15
The Acting Chairman thanked all current members for theirhard work over the past year and asked the clerk if any formal applications had been received. The clerk responded that six new names had been put forward as being interested in joining the Community Council. Cllr Hemp, Cllr Sherriff and Cllr Saunders are also willing to stand. Mrs Lanchester stated that all present members are also willing to stand for 2014/15.
The Acting Chairman stated that in the absence of the Chairman and Mr S Hemp, the Parish Council will meet before the next Community Council meeting on 2nd June and formally agree the new Council.
- Any Other Business
- The matter of bonfires on the land adjacent to the Village Hall was discussed. The Chairman explained the situation that had occurred and reported that a meeting will be held with the Essex & Suffolk Water Company about the problems with low water pressure in this area and to try to obtain a plan of the water pipes around the Village Hall.
There being no further business, the Chairman closed the meeting at 9.00 pm.
Signed …………………………………………..Dated ……………………….