Offord Cluny & Offord Darcy Parish Council
M I N U T E S O F M E E T I N G
Minutes of a meeting of the Parish Council held in the Village Hall, Offord Cluny on Thursday, November 6, 2014 at 7.30pm
Present: Cllrs Gimblett, Weitzel, Gatward, Harris, Tomlin, Dawson, Bargh,
Eayrs, Dist Cllrs Boddington & West, Cty Cllr Wisson & Clerk
2014/1424 Apologies for Absence
Apologies were received from Cllrs James & Young
2014/1425 Open Forum (max 10 minutes)
No Members of the public present. Cllr Lynne Harris announced her resignation with immediate effect and left the meeting.
2014/1426 Declarations of Interest and Dispensation for Agenda items only
(Section 27 Localism Act 2011)
None
2014/1427 To Approve and sign the minutes of the meeting held on
October 3, 2014
The Minutes were approved as an accurate record and signed
2014/1428 Matters Arising from Minutes dated October 3, 2014
None not contained within current Agenda
2014/1429 District & County Councillor Reports
Cllr Boddington stated that she was still heavily involved in actions towards improvements on the A428, either a new section or of the road becoming dual carriageway. A recent survey carried out in Yelling showed a huge number of vehicles travelling each day from West to East. A deputation was being made to the Secretary of State and it was hoped all contacted would press Ministers for action. She also mentioned that budgets were being looked at again and also the roles of the various tiers of government with a view to perhaps removing one tier and the creation of Unitary Authorities. Having attended a planning meeting earlier in the week she confirmed that they were all working hard to clear the backlog.
Cllr Wisson informed the meeting that the Boundary Commission was embarking on an Electoral Review of Cambridgeshire and that consultations would begin.
She also reported that the County was looking again at its costs and would have to make certain cuts to services to balance the budget. It was likely that the winter gritting would be reduced and there had also been a suggestion of dimming or switching off streetlights between midnight and 6am. Although she agreed that these measures would be unpopular she said she and other County Councillors had been asked to build community resilience. She stated that it was felt that some of these duties could be taken on by Town and Parish Councils. The Parish Council Chairman, Cllr Gimblett, asked Cllr Wisson to provide a summary of what the County Council’s statutory duties were. He mentioned that residents might object to paying the Parish for a service it was already paying for in its County Precept which amounted to double taxation. He also stated that it was impossible for Parish Council to set its own budget and Precept allowing for costs up to March 2016 without knowing what it was going to be called upon to provide or consult with residents.
Cllr West informed the meeting that he had responded to a recent article in the Hunts Post and that his response would be printed next week. He confirmed that he was chasing Planning Enforcement regarding Mi Man’s Meadow and had also queried the time allowed for appeals to be made which he understood to be 6 months but felt that this was rather long. He also commented that he was appalled at the possible cuts mentioned by Cllr Wisson and felt that the County should look at its own structure and administration costs first to ensure they were working as lean as possible before cutting services. He also felt that the two things together – reducing gritting and switching off lighting – were a recipe for disaster in rural areas.
With his Friends of St Peter’s hat on Cllr West confirmed he was aware of the tree planting scheduled for November 8th.
2014/1430 Finance, Risk Assessment & General Purposes
1430.1 To Accept the Financial Information
The Financial Information was accepted
1430.2 To approve and sign the balance sheet
The balance sheet was accepted as a true record and signed
1430.3 Review of FR & GP Meeting held on October 27, 2014
FINANCE, RISK & GENERAL PURPOSES COMMITTEE
MINUTES OF MEETING
Minutes of a Meeting of the Finance, Risk & General Purposes Committee held in the Meeting Room, Village Hall, Offord Cluny on Monday, October 27th
2014/01 Election of Chairman
Cllr James was proposed by Cllr Dawson, seconded by Cllr Weitzel and unanimously elected for a further year.
2014/02 Apologies for Absence
Apologies were received from Cllr Harris
2014/03 2015/16 Budget/Precept
The Budget and subsequent Precept were discussed at great length. It was agreed that a substantial increase was unavoidable due to the additional assets now taken on by the Parish Council and the need for it to act responsibly with an eye to the future in the setting up of various earmarked funds thereby avoiding issues it had recently experienced with legal costs and the rebuilding of the wall at St Peters.
The Pavilion Project was looked at as a separate issue which would only be included in the budget if Council had a mandate from the Electors that they were agreeable to the increase specifically for this project. To this end a letter would be delivered to all households.
The initial discussions resulted in two possibilities:
1. Proposed Precept including all increases and projects but excluding Pavilion Build - £69,744 – Increase of £24,497 (just under 55%). Approximate annual increase for Band D property of £53 or £4.41 if paying monthly by Direct Debit
2, Proposed Precept including all increases and project and Pavilion Build - £87,732 – Increase of £44,485 (just under 104%). Approximate annual increase for Band D property of £89 or £7.41 if paying monthly by Direct Debit.
It was agreed that a final budget would be agreed at the next meeting at the end of November once the reply slips were returned with a proposal going to Full Council on December 4th.
2014/04 Letter to residents
It was agreed to simplify the current draft and focus primarily on the Pavilion Project indicating that the detail of the general increases would be provided in Out & About. As the timeframe of delivery of Out & About would not allow the letter to be distributed at the same time it was agreed that all Councillors would assist with this if possible and that a delivery route would be provided by Cllr Bargh. The new draft would be circulated for agreement and printed on yellow paper for maximum effect. It was anticipated that the letter would be distributed to all households by the end of the weekend Nov 8/9th allowing 2 weeks for the slips to be returned.
2014/05 Any Urgent Business
In accordance with section 100(B)(4) of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended) the Chair will admit an item of urgent business in order that it can be dealt with at the earliest opportunity provided it has been raised at least 24 hours before the meeting.
None
2014/06 The meeting closed at 9.45pm and next meeting date confirmed as Monday, November 24th, 2014
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Following on from the meeting various scaled down versions of the budget had been circulated as well as an amended letter to residents and a final version of the latter agreed and printed for Councillors to circulate. It was agreed that it felt very rushed especially as the final information regarding the budget itself or the actual cost of the Pavilion were not known for certain. Cllr Dawson asked why the figure now stood at £300k when the original estimates were half of this. It was confirmed that the figures now being used regarding the Pavilion were based on the suggestions made by the FA for similar projects and although a much lower figure had initially been quoted this was for just the Pavilion build without any internals or connections to services which were a huge proportion of the total cost. It was confirmed that some information had to be given to the residents to gauge support of the project should there be a financial implication via the Precept although the aim remained to fund as much as possible via grants. To be able to raise a loan for any amount Council would need to obtain Borrowing Approval from the Secretary of State and could only apply for that with a mandate from Council Tax payers as any repayments would have to be added to the Precept. As Council has to work so far in advance and was in the process of setting the budget and therefore the Precept by early December for this to include all costs up to the end of March 2016 it had no option other than to approach residents now or risk delaying the project for 18 months should public funds be required.
The latest return date for the letters was set at Friday, November 21st with the next Budget meeting on Monday, November 24th. Council would then confirm its final budget and set the Precept on Thursday, December 4th.
2014/1431 To approve the following payment made between meetings
The following payments were approved
100795 Direct to Site St Peter’s Wall £863.16
100796 Hire or Buy Group St Peter’s Wall £660.00
100797 Team Buildings Storage for RG £3066.00
100798 Barriers Direct Posts for Millers Close £107.74
100799 Zip Wire Shop Replacement Seat £79.95
100800 Kinnaird Hill Accounts for M.Green £180.00
2014/1432 To approve the following payments and sign the cheques
The following payments were approved and cheques signed
100801 Hire or Buy Group St Peter’s Wall £697.70
100802 Paul Marshall Village Maintenance £226.00
100803 Tolly Cobbold Poppy Appeal £84.00
100804 Mrs J Stanbridge Salary £787.06
100805 Mrs J Stanbridge Travel & Homeworking £93.63
100806 HMRC Tax & NI £144.69
100807 Direct 2 Site St Peter’s Wall £439.59
100808 Ibbetts Maintenance Items £25.37
100809 John Gatward Office Items £19.57
100810 HAGS(SMP) Rep. Parts Play Equip. £369.60
2014/1433 Leisure & Amenities
1433.1 Review of meeting held on October 27, 2014
LEISURE & AMENITIES COMMITTEE MINUTES
Minutes of a Meeting of the Leisure & Amenities Committee held in the meeting room of the Village Hall, Offord Cluny on Monday, October 27, 2014 at 7.20pm
Present: Cllrs Gatward, Gimblett, Weitzel, Bargh, Eayrs, Dawson & Clerk
2014/261 Apologies for Absence
Apologies were received from Cllr Harris
2014/262 Declarations of Interest and dispensations for Agenda Items (Localism Act 2011)
None
2014/263 Approval of Minutes dated September 29, 2014
The Minutes were approved as an accurate record and signed
2014/264 Allotments
Cllr Gatward confirmed that the tree surgeon had looked at the tree on the allotments but felt that if the canopy was lifted further there would be little tree left and it was therefore decided not to carry out the works. Cllr Eayrs confirmed that he had looked at the tank and that it would be OK for the allotment holder to use it as a planter. Cllr Gatward also informed the meeting that some of the posts had rotted and needed replacing. It was noted that there might be some spares in the storage shed in the Churchyard. Cllr Bargh to look.
2014/265 Cemetery
The Clerk informed the meeting that she had received a call from a resident whose family had placed a bench at the cemetery some years before. They now wished to replace this. It was agreed that this was OK provided the family remove the old bench.
2014/266 St Peter’s Churchyard
Cllr Gimblett informed the meeting that works to the wall were now complete. The final invoices and certificates were awaited from the Architect. The final documentation could now be sent to the Diocese. It was noted that 4 replacement trees needed to be planted to comply with HDC’s request. It was further agreed that the Hollies would be planted on Saturday November 8th – Cllrs Gimblett, Gatward, Bargh and Eayrs to meet on site at 9.30. The mesh to assist with the parking would also be laid at this time.
2014/267 Millennium Green (OMGT)
The Clerk informed the meeting that she had heard from the Natural England legal team that afternoon that the process had been completed and that the Parish Council was now Sole Trustee. There were still some things to be completed by Jenny Mant. The Clerk confirmed she would chase the final documentation and the funds now that the Parish Council was responsible.
A request had been received from a local resident asking for permission to use a metal detector on the Millennium Green. It was unanimously decided that this should not be allowed.
2014/268 Pavilion Project
Cllrs Gatward, Bargh and Eayrs attended the recent meeting with the three representatives of the Football Club together with the newly appointed architect. It was agreed that this was a very productive meeting and that the group would work well together. Following Cllr Gatward’s meeting with representatives from the Football Association a drawing had been circulated which would provide a Pavilion suitable for all needs and one which would meet the requirements of possible funders. The architect was requested to provide new drawings based on this plan. It was felt unlikely that this new drawing would fit into the original site and therefore a new planning application would need to be made. Once a full set of drawings had been provided quotes could be sought but a general cost was thought likely to be in the region of £300K.