2026 Minutes

MINUTES OF ANCASTER PARISH COUNCIL MEETING HELD ON 15 SEPTEMBER 2026 AT 7.30PM IN THE PARISH HALL

Present. Cllr Sayer (Chair) Cllr Leighton (Vice-Chair)
Cllrs Palmer, Ferguson, Clarke, Rock, Fleming, Hollick, Barker and Dr Entwistle.

In Attendance.    County Cllr Martin, Andrew Newton and Denise Gascoyne Parish Clerk.

Public Forum No members of the public present.
 
The meeting began at 7.30.

1. Chair’s Welcome. The Chair Cllr Sayer welcomed everyone to the meeting.

2. Apologies for Absence.
Apologies for absence with valid reason had been received from Cllr Pearsey. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept apologies for absence with valid reasons from Cllr Pearsey.

3. Declarartions of Interest. None.

4. To approve and accept as a true record the notes of the Parish Council meeting held on 21 July 2026. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept as a true record the notes of the Parish Council meeting held on 21 July 2026. These were signed by the Chair.

5. Report from County Cllr Martin/District Cllrs Stokes and Stephens.
a. County Cllr Martin had no further update on the new 40mph speed limit at West Willoughby. He confirmed that the provider had issues, but we were at the top of the work list.

b. The meeting with LCC Highways re Wilsford Lane had not taken place. The planning application had not yet been granted. 
Cllr Martin said that new planning laws were being introduced. The new Local Plan had to be redone.

c. The Chair had written a letter asking for an investigation into the repeated agricultural runoff and highway flooding Fir Tree Lane and opposite Waterwell Lane, and this had been forwarded by County Cllr Martin. 
Water Lane - A reply from Flood Risk Lincolnshire was due by the end of September.

6. Chair Update.
a. No further update on potential illegal waste site off Water Lane.

b. The Chair had suggested we produce a Neighbourhood Plan for the parish. This would be costly and would take several years.  A short discussion took place and Cllr Martin agreed to investigate whether this would be beneficial to Ancaster.

7. Planning.
a. S26/1252 No objection from SKDC to retain a self-contained welfare unit and storage container Castle Quarry, Sleaford Road, Ancaster. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

b. S26/1290 No objection from SKDC Regulation 5 notice of intention to install fixed line broadband apparatus Maple Cottage Fir Tree Lane. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

c. S26/0708 Refusal of planning permission for use of land for the siting of a mobile home for an agricultural worker land at Manor Farm Fir Tree Lane Sudbrook. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

8. Highways/Policing/Speed Watch.
a. The Chair confirmed that the repairs to Public Footpath No.1 Church Lane had been completed.

b. There is a bollard missing near the old Market Cross. County Cllr Martin agreed to investigate.

9. Parish Clerk Update.
a. The Clerk would provide instructions for Govt.UK emails.

b. Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership do not provide grants for solar speed signs. They suggested contacting local developers, small businesses etc. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved the Clerk to request contributions from local businesses.

c. A date for an Emergency Planning Meeting had not yet been scheduled. This would take place before the next parish council meeting.

d. The Clerk had contacted Quickline about providing broadband to the village hall. To date no reply had been received. 

e. A request had been received for the supply of a litter/dog bin at the valley. This had been requested before, and the land belonged to Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to reply and ask them to contact the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust direct.

f. LCC are offering parish council’s a one-tonne bag of salt to support local winter maintenance efforts.  It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved not to apply for the one-tonne bag of salt.

g. There has been unauthorised parking at the parish hall, and complaints have been received as hirers cannot park their car when attending an event. The Parish Council were aware of the parishioner; therefore, it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to write to the parishioner politely asking them not to park their car in the parish hall car park as this was for hirers only.

10. Correspondence.
a. LALC e-news – circulated to all Cllrs.
b. LCC Town & Parish July and August Newsletter – circulated to all Cllrs.
c. Traffic Restriction AW Pipeline project Waterwell Lane 14.09.26-15.09.26. 
d. SLCC Review of Model Standing Orders.
e. Temporary Road Closure Roman Way/Flaminian Way as and when necessary between 14.09.26 and 30.11.26.
f. Notice of Proposal to prepare a Neighbourhood Development Plan Barkston & Syston Parish. Consultation period 13.08.26 to 25.09.26
g. SKDC Business Update – circulated to all Cllrs
h. LCC Correspondence Environment Agency - circulated to all Cllrs.
i. Clerks and Councils Direct – passed to Cllr Dr Entwistle
j. Anglian Water – Road Closure Waterwell Lane 14.09.26-15.09.26
k. Proposed Reservoir in Lincolnshire briefing 19.10.26
l. NBB Recycled Furniture passed to Cllr Hollick.
m. Lincolnshire Community Resilience News – circulated to all Cllrs.

11. Cemetery/Newton Meadow/Orchard.
a. Andrew Newton confirmed that 6 trees had been requested as replacements for dead trees in the cemetery and 12 trees for around the village. These would be delivered to Mr Newton.

b. A wasp nest has been taped off in the cemetery; there is less activity now and hopefully the wasps will soon have gone. Andrew Newton agreed to monitor.
c. Vermin control has been taking place in the cemetery. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to ask the landowners either side of the cemetery if they would agree to control taking place on their property.

12. Grass Cutting/Grounds Maintenance
a. Confirmation LCC have deferred the commencement of the third grass cutting programme window by two weeks to 21 September. Details passed to A Newton. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.

13. Parish Hall.
a. The Fire Alarm had been installed and the sign off would take place on Monday 21 September.
b. Results from the Asbestos Survey had not yet been received
c. The toilets in the parish hall needed either replacing or refurbishing. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to contact a local plumber to assess the situation.

d. There was a problem with the box for the defibrillator. A locksmith had been contacted. However, the defibrillator was old and replacement pads etc were hard to source. After a short discussion, it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to see if any grants were available for a new defibrillator.

14. Report from Cllrs.
a. Presentation Sides from the Local Government Reorganisation had been forwarded to all Cllrs. 

15. Playing Field.
a. Update on play equipment and enhancement of the play area surfacing. This had still not been finalised. Cllr Barker suggested that instead of holding a separate playing field meeting why don’t we hold a meeting before or after the parish council meetings. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to suggest this to the committee at the meeting next week.

16. Finance.
a. The Bank Reconciliations, Bank Transfers and Cashbooks to 31 July 2026 and 31 August 2026 had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the Bank Reconciliations, Bank Transfers and Cashbooks to 31 July 2026 and 31 August 2026. These were signed by the Chair.

b. The Retrospective August Approval List for Staff Payments amounting to £1552.92 had been circulated to all Cllrs. These had been paid on 19 August 2026. The Retrospective Approval List was signed by the Chair.

c. The Retrospective August Approval List for BACS and DD Payments listed below had been circulated to all Cllrs. These had been paid on 19 August 2026. The Retrospective Approval List was signed by the Chair.

d. The Approval List for BACS Staff Payments had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the Approval List for Staff BACS Payments amounting to £1756.47 and authorise the Clerk to make the payments.

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

f. EdgeIT Systems had emailed to ask if we would like some of our old data removed from the Finance Software. After a short discussion, it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to check the Records Retention Policy and report back to the next meeting.

17. Policies
The following new/amended policies had been circulated to all Cllrs.
• Data Protection Policy
• Code of Conduct
• Bereavement Policy 

It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the new/amended policies en-bloc. A copy would be added to the website.

18. Training.
a. A Community Emergency Response Team Tabletop exercise was held on 09 September at South Kesteven District Council offices for the Ancaster/Wilsford Emergency Plan. Andrew Newton told the meeting that the new format of the document will replace the previous format and will only require the two Emergency Planning Team CERTS Andrew Newton (Ancaster) and Roger Sirs (Wilsford). 
Once the draft version has been amended and reviewed/approved by the two Parish Councils the documents will be signed and forwarded to the Community Resilience Officer – hopefully at the October meeting. Andrew Newton said Replacement Aqua Sacks for flood control could no longer be obtained from SKDC, and these are a single use item. 
The contents of the Emergency Kit have altered. The one provided was classed as a starter kit and it would be the parish councils that had to pay for batteries etc. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that a new budget line be added £200 for the emergency kit.

Andrew Newon said our plan was described as ‘Gold Standard’ so we are  not far from having a full working document in place.

b. LALC Training Bulletin – circulated to all Cllrs.

19. Date of Next meeting.
a. The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 20 October 2026 at 7.30pm in the parish hall.

There being no further business the meeting closed at 9.05pm

Chair ………………………………………
Ancaster Parish Council

20 October 2026