April 2019 Minutes
Minutes Of The Hogsthorpe Parish Council Meeting Held On Wednesday 6th April 2019
Present: Cllrs M Culley, B Hornby, P Smith, E Carter, M Banks, A Green and V Worley
Also present: 4 members of the public (2 of which left after the public forum).
Public Forum
• The Sea Lane sign was again reported – clerk to contact Highways
• Resident offered to give out notices of monthly Car Boot sales
• Resident wanted to bring to the attention of the council that more should be done to promote the village, namely the excellent school, holiday caravans and holiday lets, the Village Hall events, the church, pubs and dance studio, and the various businesses of strawberry fields, the village shop, the farm shop and equestrian centre.
• Resident asked if anything could be done about dog fouling on the verge outside the village hall. The clerk had also noted the amount of fouling in this area whilst litter picking. The owner of the dog was known to the council but they did not have powers to prosecute. However, this is against the law and a hefty fine could be imposed. Further notices would be posted and if information can be gathered as to who, when and where this will be reported to the dog warden at ELDC.
1. Apologies – None
2. Declarations Of Interest – Cllrs Wildman and Carter declared interest in item 12 Allotments
3. Approval Of Notes Of Meeting
It was unanimously resolved that the notes of the Meeting of 6th March 2019 be accepted as a true record of the proceedings and were duly signed by the Chairman.
4. Clerk’s Report
Various items were still outstanding as the clerk had been very short of time due to year ends and elections. These would be picked up in the next couple of weeks.
5. To Receive Reports From Outside Bodies & Other Meeting
No County or District Councillors present to report.
Cllr Banks had nothing to report from the Village Hall and a tenant had been found for Charity Farm.
6. Correspondence
• Complaint by e-mail regarding the heavy lorries carrying unsheeted stone and the coating of very thick dust along the road caused by Triton Knoll construction work. Clerk to take it up with the contractor and reply to the resident.
• A further complaint letter had been received from an allotment neighbour – to be dealt with under Item 12.
7. Financial Matters
(a) The Financial Statement for the year end to 31st March 2019 showing a balance at the bank of £33478 was unanimously approved.
(b) The Annual Governance Statement for 2018/19 was noted and approved and signed by the Chairman
(c) The Accounting Statements for 2018/19, having been completed, were approved and signed by the Chairman.
(d) Payment of accounts was approved for £200 to J F Wootton for wood chipping in churchyard and £17.92 to Sid Dennis for churchyard waste disposal.
8. Elections
The clerk confirmed that all the nomination papers from the Parish Councillors had been taken in to ELDC before the closing date. It was expected that there would be no need for an election and the current councillors would be automatically re-elected.
9. Highways And Village Maintenance
a) The trees on the S bend on Mill Lane were overgrown making it difficult to see round the corner.
b) Bushes on the verge coming into the village from Skegness made it difficult to see the road.
c) The churchyard gate needs re-hanging and the willow needs trimming.
10. Speeding Through The Village
Speed indicator devices had not yet been ordered.
11. Planning Issues And Enforcements
No planning issues
12. Allotments
a) Cllr Carter reported that all rents with the exception of two had been collected – a cheque would be drawn for the Parish Council and £250 could then be repaid to the allotments for maintenance. There are currently two allotments available.
b) Cllr Wildman and Carter, having declared an interest would not take part in discussions on a letter of complaint from an allotment neighbour which had been received via the ELD monitoring Officer. The clerk read out the complaint and it was discussed in detail. Cllr Wildman, as Chairman of the Allotment Committee was asked for clarification on some of the points raised. Separate notes of the issues are shown separately - Clerk would reply appropriately
13. Newsletter
Cllr Worley is currently working on production of the newsletter. A mock-up will be shown at the
14. Poster For APCM
Clerk to produce a poster ready for leaflet drop.
15. Playpark
A meeting preceded this meeting for which minutes are available. The fete and car boot event organisations were going well.
16. Date Of Next Meeting
The next meeting is the AGM/APCM and would be held at Hogsthorpe Village Hall at 6pm for the AGM and 6.30 pm for the Annual Parish Community Meeting on FRIDAY 10th May 2019.
17. Any Other Business
No further business
Meeting was closed at 8.00 p.m.
Addendum To Item 12
There had been previous incidents in the past with this neighbour – clerk to look at old minutes for any references.
23rd March 2019 Allotment complaint issues:-
i. Copy of allotment regulations and complaints procedure requested – clerk to investigate.
ii. Storage facility – the only storage, apart from the tenant’s sheds, was the communal shed which stored the allotment equipment – there was no business being run from this shed or anywhere else on the allotments.
iii. No wagons were loading or unloading except that recently there had been waste drums and pallets delivered by a contractor working in the area for use on the allotments.
iv. There is no knowledge of loud music being played. Individual radios are played in some of the individual sheds but they are not considered to be loud. ELDC enforcement are responsible for any noise pollution and this issue would be left for them to decide.
v. The entrance to the allotments has not been made wider and there has been no alteration to the dyke.
vi. The parking area is only mown and strimmed as required. The allotment holders have a responsibility to keep the adjoining areas clear and tidy.
vii. There is no proof that the field opposite is flooding because the entrance to the allotments was made. This is purely conjecture.
viii. The public footpath sign was changed round with the permission of the LCC footpaths officer to make it clearer where walkers were to walk.
ix. Machinery is not used early in the morning. One tenant visits the site early in order to feed the chickens. If it is the case that machinery has been used early, it is believed to be an isolated case.
x. No-one has attacked the husband and neighbour – there had been an altercation in the past to which the police were called – previous minutes to be examined to see if there is any details of this - but this is not recent.
xi. Bonfires are allowed on allotments and they are never left unattended. ELDC enforcement are responsible for any nuisance and this issue will be left to them to decide.
xii. With regard to the DPI – the clerk will contact the Monitoring Officer and check that disclosure is required. If so, this will be rectified.
To be further investigated:-
Does the PC Code of Conduct comply with the Localism Act 2011 and the 7 Nolan Principals?
Look into when the allotments were first made – is this previous to the neighbour moving in? Were the neighbours informed?
Were the allotments legally authorised? Could they have been elsewhere?