2022 Parish Council Minutes of Meetings

October 2022 Minutes EOM

METHERINGHAM, SOTS HOLE AND TANVATS PARISH COUNCIL

High Street, Metheringham, LINCOLN, LN43DZ

Tel: 01526 323100

 

Minutes of the Extraordinary Council Meeting held on 11th October 2022 at 6:15pm in the Parish Council Office, High St, Metheringham. These are notes of the meeting until approved by the Council as a true record.

 

Present:

Cllrs K Parker (Chairman), S Peek, J Tatton, F Pembery, B Nelson, I Holmes, D Holmes,

M Westerman, D Parry, C Toynton, K Rymer and M Worthington.

 

County Councillor R Kendrick.

 

Temporary Clerk, J Sargent.

 

Public Session

There were 11 members of the public in attendance.

 

The Chair welcomed all present, advising all of safety procedures and appropriate conduct.

 

Resident 1 enquired about the repayment of the loan for the pool. The resident mentioned how they were looking forward to working with the Council.

 

Resident 2 mentioned that there should be a notice on the door advising members of the public the office is not open for the time being. The resident also advised the public toilets had now been cleaned.

 

Resident 3 asked about when they can expect to be reimbursed for the works on the outside tap.

 

Resident 4 asked about when they can expect to be paid by the Council, who owed 3 months wages. The Chair explained the situation regarding not currently having access to the bank accounts due to the previous Clerk’s actions. However, the Chair also explained that the Council was working to resolve this issue as soon as possible.

 

Resident 5 mentioned how the football club had been charged for the use of electric, which was actually used by another group. The Chair advised this was to be discussed during Full Council. The resident also mentioned other issues that had been reported to the previous Clerk such as leaking taps and basins, as well as issues concerning waste disposal. No action had been taken. The Council will look into these problems. The MUGA was also discussed; the Chair advised it would be on the next agenda to progress the MUGA.

 

As the 15 minutes allocated to the public forum had now been completed, it was resolved to move into full session.

 

 

 

  1. Chairman’s Remarks

Cllr Parker read out the relevant standing orders, reminding Councilors of the correct procedures and behaviour standards expected.

 

  1. Apologies.

Cllrs R Grummitt

 

  1. Declarations of Interest.

Cllrs Holmes and Rymer declared an interest in item 10 regarding the swimming pool.

 

  1. To approve as a correct record the minutes of:
  1.  Full Council Meeting held on 17th August, 2022.

With the Clerk’s absence at the time, no minutes were received by Councillors. It was resolved to defer to the next meeting.

 

  1.       Full Council Meeting held on 23rd August, 2022.

With no matters arsing, it was resolved unanimously to accept the minutes as a correct record.

 

  1. To receive reports from representatives on outside bodies:
  1. To receive report from County Councillor

Cllr Kendrick emailed his monthly newsletter and spoke briefly about how extra money was being allocated to road repairs across the county and that the fix my street website had been made more user friendly.

 

  1. To receive report from District Councillors

No apologies were received from the District Councillor Amelia Bailey.

 

A report had been emailed to Councillors by Cllr F Pembery.

 

  1. To receive monthly newsletter from BBH policing team

Councillors were updated on a several issues including disturbances by youths, how to report anonymously with crime stoppers and that the transport police would be patrolling 3 time a week in the near future.

 

  1. To receive reports from Council representatives on other outside bodies
    1. Village hall management committee

Cllr Parry will send an update via email.

 

  1. Metheringham Swimming Pool

The finances look good, however, there are some utility bills outstanding. The RAF are looking at training lifeguards.

 

  1. Metheringham Community Hub

Numbers are increasing post-pandemic. The after-school club have expanded to a second night. A recruitment campaign will soon begin.

 

  1. Metheringham Bowls club

The club has been granted a members only alcohol licence.

 

  1. Metheringham Football Club

Things are going well with the teams. However, need to look into grass cutting issues and possible handyman services.

 

  1. To receive an update on the Council’s Facebook page.

Cllr Pembery provided an update, announcing that the old page cannot be deleted, but the Council can apply to Meta to close the group. The new page is up. Councillors were advised to liaise with Cllr Pembery if they wanted to be added as an admin for the page.

 

  1. To receive an update on the LCC issued Parish website

Allison Hickie has issued new access details to Pete Langford at LALC.

 

  1. To discuss complaints received regarding the hub and pavilion and to review the contract of the cleaning provider.

The Football Club had complained about the bins not being emptied. It was resolved to defer to environment committee to review the contract.

 

  1. To consider and approve outstanding invoices for payment.

With no access to the bank accounts, it was resolved to defer the next meeting.

 

  1. To appoint representatives to review the swimming pool MOU and agree a date to review.

After a short discussion on which Councillors to appoint, it was resolved unanimously to appoint Cllrs Parker, Westerman and Worthington to the review.

 

  1. To consider and resolve access to Council asset keys to allow the asset register review to be carried out.

The Council had now been provided with keys.

 

  1. To consider and resolve to take part in the Remembrance Day Parade and liaise with the Church.

Cllr Parker confirmed the bugle player is available for the parade, as is the Vicar. It was resolved unanimously to purchase a wreath up to £50 and 2 small posies up to £30.

 

Cllr Worthington to ask the cadets to attend.

 

Cllr Pembery to ask schools, guides and scouts if they could participate.

 

Cllr Parker advised the Chief Inspector would walk at the head of the parade as road closures had not been submitted in time for the event.

 

  1. To consider and resolve the Councils commitment to the Christmas Market and appoint Councillors to liaise with MCM Committee.

It was resolved unanimously to appoint Cllr Parry to liaise with the MCM.

 

It was resolved unanimously to approve the purchase of a Christmas Tree.

 

  1.  To consider the fee payable by the beer fest organisers.

After a long discussion on the cost of electric and the location of electric meters it was resolved by majority to deduct £50 from the invoice for electricity usage.

 

  1. To consider the electricity usage during the beerfest and reimburse the Football Club

It was resolved by majority to deduct £50 from the invoice for electricity usage for the Football Club.

 

It was resolved to defer to the environment committee to consider whether the Football Club should pay the standing charge on the electric meter.

 

  1. To discuss a request from a parishioner to assist with a sustainability project.

Cllr Pembery updated the Council on this, advising the parishioner would like to create a library of tools that the community can access to and pay a nominal fee to use. Councillors discussed their reluctance to get involved due to concerns over insurance, liability and storage.

 

  1. To consider and resolve to replace damaged wood as per the quote received.

After a long discussion over the suitability of the wood and costings as well as the condition of the stalls, it was resolved unanimously to accept the quote for the works.

 

  1. To receive an update regarding staffing issues.

Cllr Parker advised that the Clerk had offered her resignation which would be deferred to the Staffing Committee.

 

  1. Date and time of next meeting.

27th October. Resolved unanimously.

 

With no further matters, Cllr Parker closed the meeting at 20:00.