Northwold Parish Council AGM 2014

MINUTES OF NORTHWOLD PARISH COUNCIL AGM MEETING HELD AT THE VILLAGE HALL ON

TUESDAY MAY 6th 2014

Present: Cllr. R. Crisp - Chair, Cllr. A. Collins - Vice Chair, Cllr. F. Eglington, Cllr. A. Jenkinson, Cllr. G. Gillett, Cllr. A. Muir, Cllr. S. Leet & Cllr. M. Peake.

Vicky Bright – Clerk and 3 members of the public.

Cllr. Crisp welcomed all to the meeting.

OPEN FORUM

3 members of the public were present and presented a presentation on parking issues relating to Normandy Close. Resident’s driveways and gates are being obstructed by parents parking there during school drop off and collection times. Resident’s driveways and lawns are also being damaged by vehicular access when accessing their driveways and parents using the driveways as turning circles. The residents have tried several options; approaching the school Head teacher for assistance, placing an article in the village newsletter, contacting the local PCSO and Kings Lynn Enforcement Officer with no success. It was agreed that the residents would forward all the information to the Clerk, who would then draft a letter to the Borough Council to ask them to address the issue and look into possible options to resolve or improve the problem.

Election of Chairman

Cllr. Rosemary Crisp was proposed by Cllr. Alison Muir and seconded by Cllr. Michael Peake. Cllr. Crisp accepted the position of Chairman for the year 2014-2015 and was duly elected.

2. Chairman to sign Declaration of Office

Cllr. Crisp signed the declaration of office of Chairman for the year 2014-2015 and this was witnessed and countersigned by the Clerk.

3. To receive and consider accepting apologies for absence

4. Election of Vice Chairman

Cllr. Alan Collins was proposed by Cllr. Alison Muir and seconded by Cllr. Michael Peake. Cllr. Collins accepted the position of Vice Chairman for the year 2014-2015 and was duly elected.

5. Declarations of Interest made

Cllr.  Jenkinson, declared an interest in Item 14 on the agenda, Planning Application 14/00542/F.

6. To agree the minutes of the meeting held on  1st April 2014

The minutes were approved and signed by the Chairman, Cllr. Crisp as a true record, all Councillors agreed.

7. Matters arising from the minutes (for information only)

Councillor Vacancy

It was agreed that a notice of the vacancy will be displayed on the Parish Council website and notice board and that an advertisement be placed in the Village Life newsletter.

9. Reports

i)        Chairman’s Report:

Cllr. Crisp raised complaints from residents regarding the state of the cemetery and recreation ground. It appears that the grass cutting has been neglected by the contractor. It was confirmed that this should be carried out twice monthly, along with strimming the boundaries and around obstructions. It was also confirmed that the application of an herbicide should be applied to the gravel drives 4 four times per season. It is apparent that the contractor has not been following these terms of the contract. It has also been noted that the contractors on occasion have cut the churchyard grass instead of the cemetery. It was agreed that Cllr. Jenkinson would meet with CGM’s manager to discuss the issues and the contract to try and resolve the problems.

Cllr. Crisp also raised concerns from residents that litter in the village is becoming a problem. It was suggested that the Clerk contact the Borough Council to discuss what options may be available to us regarding street cleaning and to look at the costs involved in employing a Litter Warden.

ii)      Clerk’s report:

Streetlights- Quotes received to change 7 MBFU lights to LED’s

K & M Lighting have now provided the Council with a revised quotation for the street lights work, following a quote received from Westcotec, which was much lower.

Lightsource

Queries sent to Carolyn were addressed as follows: “To address your concerns as to the Deed of Gift below;”

1. We are comfortable removing the reference to “Methwold” as it does not impact any of the operative provisions of the deed.

2. It is standard practice for payment not to be made until the site is generating, however, I can confirm that the Reaches solar farm (and also the Meadow solar farm) are now generating, so this clause has already been fulfilled. I therefore have removed this reference from the updated deed.

3. The 20 working day payment terms is simply for administrative practicality purposes. Our accounts team may be able to process your invoice for payment within a few days of receiving (i) a copy of the written quote; and (ii) a valid invoice from the Parish Council with details of the method of payment. There is no obligation for the Council to make any payment to third parties before receiving the payment due under the deed. All that they need to do is supply us with the contractor’s written quote and their own invoice. Our accounts team will be unable to make any payments without receipt of a valid VAT invoice from the Parish Council.

Mandy queried the VAT and the fact that we are not registered for VAT and the accounts team at Lightsource have said that it is fine.

With regards to the meeting the Council requested, they do not usually hold meetings for such a simple deed; Carolyn asked if you could clarify any remaining issues. Mandy advised that the questions had been answered, but that she would ask the Council if there were any more issues to forward to Carolyn for reply.

Insurance

Could not compare prices this year as the Council currently holds a long term agreement in place with Came and Company until May 2015. It is suggested to get quotes from other insurance companies, next year (Aon, Zurich).

Constable’s Charity – Annual return completed for 2014

Mandy has completed 2013’s annual return for the charity, but made a mistake and ticked the wrong box and put that the charity does not own land rather than it does own land. Mandy has emailed them and corrected details online.

1. Accounts to be presented for approval of payment May 2014

Invoices were checked, payments were approved and cheques signed by Cllr. Crisp and Cllr. Collins, all Councillors agreed.

ii)      To accept account for year end March 2014

The accounts and bank reconciliation for the financial year ended 31st March 2014 were scrutinised and all approved by all Councillor’s and signed by the Chairman, Cllr. Crisp.

iii)    To appoint an internal auditor for 2013-2014 audit

The Clerk recommended an internal auditor known to her who would be independent of the other financial controls and procedures of the council and that they are competent to carry out the role in a way that will meet the business needs of the council. It was agreed by all Councillor’s to go ahead and appoint Mrs. Sue Prigg as the internal auditor for the year 2013-2014.

1. To consider treatment for Chaffer Bugs

Cllr. Collins confirmed that there may be a possibility of grant funding for the treatment of the Chaffer Bugs. It was agreed that the Clerk would source 3 quotes for the costs of treating the Chaffer Bugs and this should be discussed at the next meeting.

2. To Consider Lightsource and agree action

No further queries raised at this point. It was agreed that the replies from Lightsource regarding the queries raised and the agreement should be reviewed in more detail by the Council, and the item be deferred to the next meeting for a decision on approval.

3. To consider any planning applications

• Play Area
• Lightsource agreement
• Street Lights LED replacement
• Chaffer Bugs Treatment quotes

Next meeting to be held on Tuesday 3rd June at 7:30pm, in the Village Hall.

The Chairman, Cllr. Crisp advised that from 12th May the key to the Village Hall would be kept in a key box opposite the hall and a code would be issued on the 12th May.

It was resolved to exclude the public to discuss the appointment of the new Clerk.

The meeting closed at 8:47pm

Signed:                                                                 Date: