April 2020 Minutes
Minutes of Witham St Hughs Parish Council meeting held on Wednesday 15th April 2020 at 7pm via Skype (New Regulations due to COVID 19)
Present Cllr Harrison – Chair, Cllr Snape – Vice Chair, Cllr Eckert, Cllr Linnell & Cllr Fenney
Rachel Popplewell - Clerk
No Public comments were received.
Agenda Items
1. Welcome & Apologies
The Chair welcomed everyone to the ‘Very First Skype’ meeting. The meeting was being held via Skype to comply with Social Distancing Regulations due to COVID 19.
Apologies were received & accepted from Cllr Young.
2. To received Declarations of Interest in accordance with the Localism Act 2011 and outlined in the councils Code of Conduct – being any pecuniary interest in agenda items not previously recorded on Members Register of Interest and any written requests for dispensations.
None received.
3. Notes of the Parish Council Meeting held on Wednesday 18th March 2020 to be approved as minutes.
It was Resolved to approve the notes as minutes – All agreed.
Minute reference for approval written on paper copy.
4. Clerks Update
The Clerk made comment that she applied & received the COVID 19 Small Business Grant - Retail, Hospitality & Leisure Grant of £10,000.
S106 monies had been applied for as per the request from North Kesteven District Council.
The Clerk had instructed Interserve to carry out the Risk Assessment of the Water-related plant & storage system as per their quote of 6.3.2020.
The village hall was being deep cleaned whilst it was closed to the public by the Caretakers, ensuring they comply with the Social Distancing Regulations.
The Clerk made comment that she received a quote to upgrade the Fire Alarm system, another was required for comparison.
Action Clerk
Cllr Fenney had been in touch with the local businesses in the village to offer the support of the Parish Council, most of the staff involved had already been furloughed.
The Clerk made comment that she received an email from a parishioner regarding the increased amount of Dog Mess that had appeared around the village since lock down, and that the dog poo bins were overflowing.
The issued had been highlighted on social media reminding dog owners to pick up after their dogs, there are lots of bins located in the village for everyone to use.
The possibility of an Environmental Warden was considered to help combat the problem; more information was required regarding the role. A map of all the locations of the bins in the village was to be published.
The grass cutting contractors are due to restart on Monday 20th April 2020.
The Clerk made comment that the CCTV admin password had been misplaced, the whole system would need to be reset to gain access and amend the settings.
Action Clerk
5. Finance
a. It was Resolved to approve the list of payments (list previously circulated). All Agreed. Payments sheet to have the minute reference put on.
b. The Bank Reconciliation was presented with the accounts balancing to the year end 31.03.2020. The Clerk added that the Annual Return had been completed – just now awaiting further instructions from the external auditor. The Internal Audit was still to be carried out.
6. Corona Virus – Hall Contingency Plan
All hall booking fees had been reimbursed when requested. Hall Bookings had been cancelled until June 2020.
The Caretakers were going in daily to ensure the hall is cleaned and kept secure. The Clerk is working from the hall periodically.
7. To discuss a request from a resident regarding the location of a tree with regard to his planned extension. Oak Tree Drive.
After consideration it was Resolved to decline the request, the tree is on Parish Council Property, next to a walkway it is not directly next to the resident’s address.
Action Clerk
8. To Discuss & Review the Asset Register.
Deferred to the next meeting the asset register needed updating with all the correct information. Valuations and Stock numbers to be collated.
Action Clerk.
9. To Review the following policies.
a. Recording of Meetings Policy
b. CCTV policy
It was Resolved to adopt the policies after they had been reviewed.
10. To Consider the quote for the Fire Alarm Monitoring.
The Clerk was asked to obtain an additional quote to upgrade the whole system.
Action Clerk
11. To discuss the possibility of a maintenance company to manage the ‘odd jobs’ at the Village Hall.
After discussions it was Resolved not to use a management company at this time.
12. Items for the next Agenda
13. Date & Time of the next Meeting
Wednesday 20th May 2020
The Parish Council moved into Closed Session. 20:30pm