28th April 2021 Annual Parish Meeting
DRAFT MINUTES
HACONBY & STAINFIELD PARISH COUNCIL ANNUAL PARISH MEETING
WEDNESDAY 28TH APRIL 2021 AT 7:00 PM
A REMOTE MEETING ON ZOOM VIDEO CONFERENCING
Present: Councillors Richard Dixon-Warren (Chairman), Brian Blackbourn (Vice Chairman), Derek Bailey, Janine Rayfield, Paul Smart and David Winn
Mrs Wendy Gray – Parish Clerk
One member of the public was in attendance
1. Chairman’s Introduction. Cllr Dixon-Warren welcomed everyone to the meeting.
2. Public Questions, Comments or Representations. None.
3. Apologies for Absence. None.
4. Approval of Minutes of APM 15th May 2019. Cllr Bailey proposed, Cllr Rayfield seconded, all in favour that the above minutes be signed as a true and accurate record.
5. Reports:
a) Chairman’s Report for 2020/2021. Enclosed overleaf.
b) Annual Accounts 2020/2021:
1) Approve Annual Governance Statement
2) Consider Accounting Statements
3) Resolve to approve Accounting Statements
4) Sign and date Accounting Statement
Cllr Blackbourn proposed, seconded Cllr Rayfield that as income and expenditure is below £25,000 – Certificate of Exemption form should be submitted to External Auditors. Completion and signing off of forms 1 to 4 to be COMPLETED before 30th June 2021. All in agreement.
6. Conclusion. The meeting closed at 7.15 pm.
Haconby & Stainfield Parish Council – Chairman’s Report 2020-21
Annual Parish Meeting 28 April 2021
2020-21 was a busy and, at times, stressful year for the Council. Covid-19 restrictions impinged significantly on Council business and a number of unplanned events added to Councillors’ and Clerk’s workloads during the year. This report covers the period since the last Chairman’s Report presented on 7 July 2020.
We are sorry to bid farewell to Councillors Philippa Dixon-Warren (February 2021) and Paul Smart (April 2021). We thank them both for their contribution to Parish Council business and the community.
The following points highlight events and occurrences in 2019-21.
Meetings
• The Council’s decision in July 2020 to conduct Council business and to make essential decisions via videoconferencing proved to be very effective. The dispensation to conduct Council business remotely lapses in May 2021. Hopefully, so too will the need to do so.
Financial
• Financially, the Council remains in the black and is recovering from unexpected expenditure in December 2019. It reviewed projected income and expenditure and decided to increase the precept by no more than the current rate of inflation (2.9 %) for 2021-22. The Council continues to work to make its finances and budget strategy transparent.
Police
• The civil parish remains a low crime area. Neighbourhood Police Team (NPT) attendance at Council meetings has ceased and the Neighbourhood Police Panel has been disbanded following withdrawal of Lincolnshire Police support to such panels. Information on the implementation of the new Neighbourhood Policing strategy is still awaited.
Codes of Conduct / Standing Orders & Policies
• The Parish Information and Policy Guide is on the Council’s website. It has been updated for adoption at the Annual Meetings and the website will be updated in due course.
Parish Emergency Plan
• The utility of the Parish Emergency Plan in its current pre-set format is subject to review. It was not activated for the pandemic nor for the Chapel Street flood in 2016. The plan remains on the Council’s website and will be reviewed when circumstances permit.
Communication with the Parish Community
• A new Haconby and Stainfield Parish Council website replaced the old version in December 2020 and is proving a significant improvement for communications with the community. The ‘Parish Councillors’ Facebook group supports the website and provides routine updates on Covid-19 Coronavirus and other national and local government issues.
Parish Land (formerly Allotments / Townlands)
• The Council’s aim remains to ensure that Parish Land is let for the benefit of both community and Council. Common Law Tenancy, Farm Business Tenancy and Garden Allotments contracts are now in their third year following the management review in 2018. A number of tenancies have changed over and three are vacant. Recovery of the cost to the Council (£360) of remediating the site of a bonfire in 2018 remains outstanding.
Planning Permission for Change of Use – Parish Land
• The Council’s application on 15 May 2020 for planning permission for a mixed use of the Parish Land was granted on 5 August 2020.
Haconby with Stainfield Parochial Church Council
• Covid-19 reduced liaison between Council and PCC 2020-21. Condition of the closed churchyard and the Council’s assumption of responsibility for its maintenance remain ‘live’ issues, with SKDC support. In the interim, the Council will subsidise the cost of maintaining the closed churchyard.
Planning Permission for Change of Use – 44 Chapel Street
• An application for a change of use for change of use of 44 Chapel St from dwelling house to care home was submitted on behalf of Cambian Group on 27 October 2020. This elicited considerable opposition from neighbours. The Council convened two extraordinary meeting to discuss the issue, compiled a detailed representation and subsequent responses, and provided representation at the SKDC Planning Committee meeting on 3 March 2021. The application was refused.
Wyer Close
• The Council was pleased to suggest the name ‘Wyer Close’ for the Northfield House development and the wording for the commemorative plaque that now honours the sacrifice of the three Wyer brothers in the Great War 1914-18. This represents Haconby and Stainfield service and sacrifice in both World Wars (https://haconby-stainfield.parish.lincolnshire.gov.uk/downloads/file/17/181111servicesacrificeww1hsahradwedn1).
Haconby ‘Green’
• A crowd-funded replacement for the chestnut tree on the ‘green’ felled for public safety in 2019 was planted in February 2021. The ‘green’ remains unregistered LCC Highways verge. The Council continues its grass cutting contract but has no other responsibility.
Bus Shelter
• The Haconby bus shelter still needs work to bring it up to a satisfactory standard. This is an ongoing project – funds will need to be found to complete it.
Neighbourhood Plan
• The Council no longer monitors the Aveland Neighbourhood Plan.
I tender my thanks to:
• Parish, District and County Councillors who have supported the Council and its role in acting on behalf of the community it represents over the past year.
• Councillor Brian Blackbourn for his support as Vice Chairman and his work to support Parish Land projects and maintenance, Councillor Derek Bailey for his work with LCC on the construction of a new Parish Council website and his Parish Land maintenance schedule, and Parish Clerk Wendy Gray for continuing to keep the Council on track and legal.
The Council’s aim remains to work diligently to represent the local community, supporting local needs where possible, and improving quality of life and community well-being. It welcomes and is always open to courteous and constructive engagement by the Haconby and Stainfield community, individually and collectively.
RA Dixon-Warren
Chairman, Haconby & Stainfield Parish Council