May 2019 Minutes
MAREHAM LE FEN PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the meeting held on 22nd May 2019
Chairman Cllr J Huggins.
Vice Chairman, Mr P Chilvers.
Councillors:
Mr R Cox.
Miss P Fytche.
Mr A Hawkes.
Cllr D Loveridge
County Councillor B Aron
20 members of the public also attended.
2847. Apologies for Absence.
Apologies were received from District Councillor S Avison who had to attend another meeting.
2848. Declaration of interests.
No one had any interests to declare.
2849. Minutes of the meeting held on 24th April 2019
The minutes of the meeting had already been circulated to the Parish Councillors. It was proposed by Cllr R Cox and seconded by Cllr P Chilvers that the minutes were approved. All voted in favour, they were duly signed by the Chairman.
2850. Matters Arising.
Cllrs P Chilvers and J Huggins had applied to be trustees for the Community Centre, they had both attended interviews but had, so far, heard nothing.
2851. Correspondence.
The Clerk had been notified by the secretary of the Community Centre that the hiring charges would be increased by 50p per hour from 1st May 2019. This will take the charges to £11.00 per hour.
A letter had been sent to the Clerk telling her that an unused grave plot would not be required. The Clerk was asked to write and ask for formal notification that the right to the plot would be relinquished.
A parishioner had sent an email to inform the Parish Council of a Great Get Together weekend on 21st-23June in memory of MP Jo Cox to try and encourage communities to forget their differences. The letter will be put on the notice board.
2852. Planning.
There were no planning items to discuss.
2853. Finance.
The following items were presented for payment:
£31.50 Mareham le Fen Community Centre rent of room April meeting
£369.25 Mr D Lawrence grass cutting etc to 29.04.19
£217.41 Zurich Insurance to 1st April 2019
£200.59 HM Revenue and Customs tax, clerk’s salary (plus late payment charge.
It was proposed by Cllr P Fytche and seconded by Cllr P Chilvers that these were paid, all voted in favour.
The Annual Accounts had been approved and returned by the Internal Auditor and Cllrs had been given a copy. It was proposed by Cllr Huggins and seconded by Cllr Loveridge that these were approved. All Cllrs voted in favour.
Cllr Cox noted that the interest received from the bank was very low. The Clerk was asked to make enquiries to try and obtain a higher rate of interest.
2854. Vacancies for Councillors
There were still vacancies for 2 Parish Councillors. The Clerk will put a notice on the notice boards and on the website.
2855. Dates and venue for meetings
An email had been sent by the Bowls Club informing the Parish Council that the path had now been completed. They could hire the hall for £10 per hour. The Clerk was asked to find out if the Bowls Club could reduce the hire charge if the fee was paid in advance. This will be discussed again at the next meeting.
2855. Grass Cutting and Management.
The grass triangle has now been cut. The contractor needs the key for the notice board in order to repair it. The Clerk will put up the Minutes and notice of vacancies and leave the key with Cllr Chilvers.
2856. Mareham Angels.
Cllr Huggins said he was still working on this idea, taking into account comments made by Cllr Hawkes. Cllr Huggins suggested it might be a good idea to split the Village up into sections with a Cllr responsible for each section. He asked for this item to be put on the agenda for the June meeting.
2857. Parish matters and items for the next agenda.
A Parishioner reported that the street sign to the west of Fen Lane needed replacing. The Clerk will contact ELDC.
It was suggested by a Parishioner that a register should be available for Councillors and members of the Public in case of fire. Councillors thought this was a good idea, the Clerk will purchase a book.
Cllr Huggins suggested that the Mareham facebook should be used to update the Village on events and information. The Parish Council website is not very user friendly. The Clerk will update the events section and ask LCC if any updates are available. Cllr Hawkes asked if the Parish Council would consider using the Village News again, this will go on the agenda. Anyone with any queries or who wishes to contact an individual Councillor must contact the Clerk, either by phone, email or letter. A notice of these details will be put on the notice board and on the website.
Cllr Aron informed the Council that the Moon exhibition in Lincoln had had 30,000 visitors and will close shortly. The Dam Busters exhibition in Lincoln is open Monday-Friday until the end of September. Andy Ratcliffe the Highways Official has retired, his successor will start in September. The LCC discussions on carbon emissions is going well.
The meeting closed at 8.45 pm.