November 2019 Minutes
MAREHAM LE FEN PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the meeting held on 20th November 2019
Chairman, Mr J Huggins
Councillors:
Mr P Chilvers.
Mr R Cox.
Mr D Loveridge
District Councillor A Hall and County Councillor B Aron also attended.
Cllr S Avison sent his apologies.
1 members of the public also attended.
2935. Apologies for Absence.
Councillors Mr P Bourn and C Wentzell sent their apologies, Cllr Bourn had a previous engagement and Cllr Wentzell was working.
2936. Declaration of interests.
There were no interests to declare.
2937. Minutes of the Ordinary Parish Council meeting held on October 23rd 2019
to be approved.
The minutes had already been circulated to the Councillors. It was proposed by Cllr Huggins and seconded by Cllr Chilvers that these were accepted. All Cllrs voted in favour and they were signed by the Chairman.
2938. Matters Arising.
Matters arising will be discussed as items on the agenda.
2939. Correspondence.
The Clerk had received a telephone call from Lindsey age UK regarding a Lunch Club which had been set up at the Royal Oak in Mareham le Fen. The Clerk will put up a notice on the notice board.
2940. Letter from Community Centre Trustees and their reply to nominated Parish Councillors.
This will be discussed at a closed meeting following this meeting.
2941. Letter from Parishioner regarding grass cutting in front of his property.
E L D C had sent a letter informing the Parish Council that they were responsible for cutting all the grass in front of this property and not just the grass along the roadside. Cllrs
apologised to the Parishioner and told him that the contractor would be notified and this area would be cut in future.
2942. Venue and dates for Parish Council meetings in 2020.
The Clerk was asked to contact the Community Centre and the Bowls Club and ask for the cost of hiring a room and whether any discount was available for a block booking and payment for the year in advance. This will be put on the agenda for the next meeting
2943. Planning.
S/114/01742/19. Outline permission for a dwelling and garage on land at Fen Lane and Beggars Lane had been granted. The Chairman had contacted the Planning Department to ask why none of the Parish Council’s objections had been into account, he had had Parishioners calling at his home to complain about the issue. It was suggested that the head of planning Mr Dan McNally could be asked to attend a meeting and explain what was taken into account before decisions were made by the Planning department. Cllr Hall said he would try and arrange a meeting.
2944. Benches for the Village.
This will be put on the next agenda when more Cllrs should be present
2945. Cemetery
It was reported that the pegs had been put around to mark out the ground but no news had been received regarding the finalisation of the purchase. Cllr Cox said that hedging would be required to mark the boundary but this could not be done until the Parish Council owned the land.
2946. Finance.
The following bills were presented for payment:
£195.00 R Hobson & Sons cutting hedge, flailing and mowing.
£289.75 Mr D Lawrence grass cutting October 2019.
£90.00 K Seaton making and fitting owl box in Chapel.
It was proposed by Cllr Huggins and seconded by Cllr Chilvers that these were paid, all voted in favour.
Following the resignation of Cllr Fytche there were only 2 signatories at the meeting. Cllr Wentzell will sign the cheques and send them off.
2947. Grass Cutting and Management.
Mr Lawrence had contacted the Parish Clerk to ask if he should continue doing necessary work because his contract only went up to 31st October and there was still work to be done. The Clerk had contacted the Councillors and they were happy for him to continue.
2948. Resignation of Parish Councillor.
Councillor Paula Fytche has resigned from the Parish Council and the Clerk has notified ELDC.
Following the resignation Cllr Hawkes, a notice had been displayed asking for applications the Clerk had been notified that the vacancy could be filled by co-option. If anyone is interested in helping the Village by volunteering as a Councillor please contact the Clerk or any Councillor.
2949. Flooding in the Village.
The flood risk was a major concern, Parishioners had complained that sewage was coming out of the flooded drains. Cllr Aron said that the Flood risk manager at LCC had reported the flooding problem to ELDC and also asked for a meeting with Anglian Water and the East Lindsey drainage department, it was noted that some of the ditches had been dug out.
Cllr Aron would be meeting the Officer at LCC next week and would reiterate the Parish Councils concerns.
The Chairman has done some research into the purchase of sandbags to be used in the event of flooding. The best option appeared to be “flood sax” which were re-usable bags which did not have to be filled with sand, therefore making them light to carry and easy to store. These have a life of approx. 10 years and it was suggested that they could be kept in the Chapel at the Cemetery and a combination lock could be fitted, the number could be given out during an emergency and then changed. The Chairman suggested that the purchase of these bags should be advertised and if anyone wishes to buy any for their own use, they can be added to the Parish Council order. This will be publicised on the website and the Village facebook page.
The Parish Council had a supply of sand which had been stored by Mr Hodgson for many years. The Clerk will write and thank him and tell him that it is no longer required.
2950. LCC Parish Agreement.
The Parish Council had received a letter from LCC asking if they wanted to renew their contract for verge/highway cutting for 2020. Cllrs discussed this and decided to continue to use their own contractors, which gave more control as to when the grass was cut. This was proposed by Cllr Huggins and seconded by Cllr Cox.
2951. Maintenance and Church wall.
The Church warden had been contacted to ask if the Church knew the cost involved in repairing the wall. They had no idea of costs at the moment so will contact the Clerk when they have details.
2952. Highway issues.
Cllr Loveridge reported that vehicles were going the wrong way up School Lane, He said that no entry signs were only painted on the road and not very clear. Cllr Loveridge was asked to investigate this further with a view to applying for proper signs to be put up.
Cllr Aron had again informed the Highways Officer about the missing directional signs and he had been told that they would be dealt with as soon as possible.
2953. Trail Camera for owl box.
A Parishioner asked Cllr Chilvers if a motion sensor camera could be put up to see what birds/animals were using the box, the Parishioner would then pass this information to the Parish Council. It was agreed that this would be a good idea so Cllr Chilvers will notify the Parishioner.
2954. A Moratorium on new building projects.
This will be reviewed following the proposed meeting with ELDC.
2955. Parish matters and items for the next agenda.
Earlier proposals for wild flowers were again discussed, but it was thought that they would make the verges look very untidy. Troughs with bulbs and flowers was suggested as an alternative. Planning permission would be another option. Cllr Aron will send the relevant forms and it will be included on the next agenda.
The meeting closed at 8.45 pm.
The next meeting will be held at the Bowls Club at 7.30 on 15th January 2020.