2024 Parish Council Minutes of Meetings

MINUTES OF ANCASTER PARISH COUNCIL MEETINGHELD ON 21 OCTOBER 2024 AT 7.30PM IN THE PARISH HALL ANNEXE

Present:            Cllrs Fleming, Rock, Clarke, Pearsey, Barker, Ferguson and Lovett            

In Attendance:    District Cllr Stephens, Andrew Newton  and Denise Gascoyne Parish Clerk

Public Forum: 
No members of the public present.        

The meeting began at 7.30pm

1.Chair’s Welcome. In the absence of the Chair and Vice Chair Cllr Fleming  welcomed everyone to the meeting.

2.Apologies for absence.  Apologies for absence with valid reasons had been received from Cllrs Sayer, Hollick,  Leighton and Dr Entwistle.  It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: that apologies for absence with valid reasons be accepted from Cllrs Sayer,  Hollick, Leighton and Dr Entwistle.

3.Declarations of Interest.
There were none.

4.To approve and accept as a true record the notes of the meeting held on 16 September 2024. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: that the notes of the meeting held on 16 September be accepted as a true record and these were signed by Cllr Fleming.

5.Cemetery/Newton Meadow/Orchard.
a. The agreement between Ancaster Parish Council and Natural England had been signed and agreed. The date was 01 May 2024, the start of Natural England financial year. We can now claim expenses as agreed.

b. The increase in Cemetery Charges had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to accept these increases and they would come into force from 01 November 2024. The Clerk to circulate to funeral directors and stone masons.

c. Cllr Hollick and Andrew Newton had completed the cemetery audit. 25 headstones needed attention. Some the parish council could deal with, others would need specialist attention. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to obtain estimates for the specialist work and report back to the next meeting.

6. Grass Cutting/Grounds Maintenance
a. Nothing to report.

7.Report from County Cllr/District Cllr.
a. County Cllr Martin was unable to attend the meeting but had sent his report. He said Anglian Water are now fairly responsive to fixing manhole covers, the are not willing to meet with residents, but if we have problems to contact him and he will investigate.
The speed limit at West Willoughby will be investigated next year.

b. District Cllr Stephens attended the  meeting but had no issues to report.

8.Chair Update.
a. In the absence of the Chair it was noted that the dyke near the horse field had been dredged and vegetation and trees cut back. Work seemed to be progressing on the properties.

b. Quickline had said they could supply a defibrillator.  As we had one at the village hall and playing field, it was suggested that one needed to be the other end of the village, either at the Co-Op or Railway. Permission would be needed from the owners.

c. The Clerk reported that the Highways Manager was doing a ‘walk-about’ with Wilsford Parish Council. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to produce a list of things in the parish that needed attention for the next meeting and then ask the Highways Manager to visit.

d. Dog waste bins were costing the parish around £3000 per year. It was agreed that this was something we needed and there had been less mess on the streets. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved:  to investigate if any savings could be made.

9.Planning
a. S24/0815 Amended plans for siting of portable field shelter and installation of field boundary gate 23 Ermine Street. The parish council had submitted their comments, they approved the moving of the portable field shelter but did not agree to the installation of the field gate.
b. S24/1459 Approval of details reserved by condition (Landscaping) Scott’s Bungalow. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

10.Highways/Policing/Speed Watch.
a. To date no further update on assessment of Rookery Lane/Woodland Waters entrance.

b. LCC had visited the Copper Hill site regarding excessive dust etc. At the time of the visit the wheel bath was in use . The access road was free of dust, although there was discolouration on the public highway adjacent to the site. They believed all planning conditions were being met.

c. Community Speed Warch. In his report Cllr Martin wanted to reach out to any villages not covered by a working Parish Council for some speed watch days. He asked if Ancaster PC would be happy to work with other local Pc’s and non-PC areas in a combined action manner.  Some Cllrs had sent their apologies; therefore it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to add to the next agenda.
                                
9.Parish Clerk Update.
a. The Clerk confirmed that all grit bins had been reported and action was being taken by LCC.

b. The Poppy Wreaths had been ordered and Cllr Barker would lay one in Church and Cllr Rock at the War Memorial West Willoughby.

10.Correspondence.
a. National Planning Policy Framework Consultation September 2024 – circulated to all Cllrs.
b. Safety and Security of locally elected officials - circulated to all Cllrs.
c. The Clerk – passed to Cllr Pearsey
d. Road Closure Order 21.10.24 to 25.10.25 Fir Tree Lane – circulated to all Cllrs.
e. LALC news – circulated to all Cllrs.
f. SKDC have sent 5 defibrillators to the Ukraine – circulated to all Cllrs.
g. SKDC free parking Christmas – circulated to all Cllrs.
h. LCC Town and Community Newsletter September 2024 – circulated to all Cllrs.
i.Railwatch – passed to Cllr Ferguson
j. Green habits SKDC sign – Biodiversity Agreement – circulated to all Cllrs.
k. Consultation: A design code for South Kesteven – circulated to all Cllrs.
l. Quickline Communications – circulated to all Cllrs.
m. Notification of Road Closure Order Fir Tree Lane 23.10.24 to 27.10.24 – circulated to all Cllrs.
n. Anti-Social powers renewed and refreshed SKDC – circulated to all Cllrs.
o. Community Matters Fund – circulated to all Cllrs.

12. Parish Hall.
a. Cllrs were reminded that we had planning permission to remove external staircase, replace doors and windows with UPVC and refurbish and refit 1st floor room as office space. The roof needed looking at before any progress could be made. Cllr Fleming reminded Cllrs there are owls at the back of the building and owl boxes would need to be sourced. Since Covid does people still need office space? After a short discussion, it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to put this on the Agenda for  further discussion next month.

14. Report from Cllrs.
a. As Cllr Hollick had sent her apologies, Grants and Funding was deferred until the next meeting.

15. Playing Field - Nothing to report

16. Finance:
a. The Bank Reconciliations and Cashbook to 30 September 2024 had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to accept the Bank Reconciliations and Cashbook to 30 September 2024. These were signed by the Chair.

b. The Approval List for Staff BACS payments had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to accept the Approval List and authorise the Clerk to make the payments.

c. The Approval List for BACS/DD Payments had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to accept the Approval List and authorise the Clerk to make the following  payments.

d. The draft budget had been circulated to all Cllrs.  There was a deficit of £10k. Cllrs asked if there was any way we could increase bookings. It was agreed to contact the caretakers and ask them if they had any ideas.  The cemetery we could not guarantee income but still needed to pay for grounds maintenance. 
The increase in cemetery charges would take effect from 01 November.   
Dog Bin emptying was a major expense amounting to nearly £3k per year. Cllrs discussed the possibility of renting the annexe out as a separate entity. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved: to discuss this at the next meeting.

e. The Clerk confirmed that the 2nd half of the Precept amounting to £15235.50 had been received. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

17.Training.
a. The LALC Training bulletin had been circulated to all Cllrs. If any Cllrs wished to attend any training to contact the Clerk.

19. Date of next meeting.
a. The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 18 November 2024 at 7.30pm in the parish hall annexe.

There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.58pm