March 2021 Minutes
Minutes of the meeting held on 17 March 2021
Present
Cllr Hinton (Chairman), Cllr Harvey (Vice Chairman), Cllrs Brooman, Farley, Goodman, Hayward, McLaughlin, Thomas, Webber.
In attendance
County Cllr B Adams, four members of the public.
The meeting was conducted using Zoom IT conferencing facility in line with advice from the National Association of Local Councils.
1.Declarations of interest
Cllr Harvey with regard to item 11. Cllr Goodman with regard to item 8B
2.Approve minutes 17 February 2021
The notes of the meeting held on 17 February 2021 were approved as minutes and will be signed by the Chairman. Proposed by Cllr Brooman, seconded by Cllr Harvey, all in favour.
3.Matters arising
Cllr Hinton said that four sets of litter picking equipment had been purchased.
4.County Council matters
County Cllr B Adams said that parish councils in self help situations, such as Castle Bytham would be encouraged to revisit the placing of speed road signs in view of the Community Watch scheme. Elections will be held in May for Police and Crime Commissioner and County Councillors for some electoral divisions. Cllr Thomas raised the issue of Water Lane drains leaking into sewers; Anglian Water had addressed the problem but as a result water was still flowing onto the road. County Cllr Adams will speak to Paul Skinner at LCC with regard to collaboration between LCC and Highways; Cllr Adams said that serious infrastructure concerns had been raised ahead of development in towns and villages and that Anglian Water were always consulted but failed to give feedback.
5.District Council matters
County Cllr B Adams said that an election for Glen Ward District Councillor will be held in May. A review of the Local Plan will be carried out after 6 May.
6.SKDC’s consultation on the Draft Statement of Community Involvement
The Planning Working Group had studied the Draft Statement of Community Involvement - 2000 planning applications were submitted to SKDC annually; the document will be linked to the Local Plan. Cllr Thomas said that the Draft Statement was vague on issues such as hedgerows and neighbours’ notification regarding planning applications but that overall the Planning Working Group had no objections to the Draft Statement of Community Involvement. The Parish Council agreed with the recommendation; Cllr Thomas will fill in the form and return it, copying in County Cllr B Adams.
7.Planning issues - verbal report from the Planning Working Group
Cllr Thomas said that a condition from SKDC in the planning approval of application S20/1381, for an additional barn at Little Bytham Road disused quarry was that a planting scheme should be submitted prior to the start of building work. The barn had now been built. County Cllr Adams will find out whether the condition had been adhered to.
8.Planning Applications
A)S21/0194 - Mr and Mrs J Dale. Lawful Development for existing use of the building as a dwelling (C3). The Bytham Stud, Morkery Lane, Castle Bytham - the Parish Council had no objections to this application. B)S21/0382 - Mr and Mrs J Martin. Erection of porch extension, integral garage conversion and alterations to dwelling including timber cladding to rear projection. 6 St Martins, Castle Bytham - the Parish Council supported this application. C)S21/0379 - Mr L Worrall. Listed building consent for replacement of three doors (Retrospective). Red Barn House, 8 Glen Road, Castle Bytham - the Parish Council had no objections to this application.
SKDC has given planning permission to application S21/0161 for tree work at 19 Station Road
9.Amenities Working Group report – cemetery paths; cemetery tree work; cemetery fencing; Upper Green fencing
Cemetery - Cllr Webber said that cemetery tree work had been completed and access issues during the work had been satisfactorily settled. The residents at The Old School had offered to provide the electricity during repair work to the section of the fence near the cemetery tap; Cllr Brooman said that the contractor’s liability should be checked prior to the work - Cllr Webber will liaise with John Turner, who will carry out the work, and report back. The Old School residents had expressed an interest in the logs left after the tree work and had offered to give a donation; Cllr Hayward suggested Glenside News as beneficiary of the donation. Cllr Webber said that the cost of fencing between the cemetery and a property in Cumberland Gardens was prohibitive. The installation of a litter bin at the cemetery would be advisable; Michael Wright would take the bin bags to the Castle Inn wheelie bin; Cllr Farley was happy with this arrangement - the purchase of an additional bin will be on the agenda at the April meeting.
Upper Green - Cllr Hayward had overseen clearing and edging of the steps; the work was carried out by Michael Wright. Work was needed to tidy up the trees. Replacement of the railings would be affordable in phases; each new post cost £9.60 +VAT; materials would be £1000.00 and installation costs had to be factored in.
Playing field - Cllr Hinton had carried out the quarterly technical inspection and had no issues to report. Cllr Harvey carried out a visual inspection on 17 March - the area was generally in good condition; grass cutting had just taken place. Swing area base surfaces were stable and clean; three anti-pigeon spikes had been removed and will be replaced. All seat bolts are to be tightened and seats cleaned by the beginning of April. The area for the new woodland planting has been marked out; Cllr Harvey will liaise with Patrick Candler regarding further tree planting plans. Concrete surrounds at each end of the castle mound and slide tunnel have become exposed and need re-covering with soil available from the cemetery. Worn upper slats will be cut away to remove sharp edges as recommended in the ROSPA report. The goal posts remain secure. Covid-19 mitigation warning signs were present at both entrances.
Cllr Webber said that the report on traffic management, being prepared for the Neighbourhood Plan, will include repositioning of speed signs at entry points to the village.
10.Recreation Field development; discuss summer party possible dates and financial contribution; residents’ concerns regarding rubbish left near the entrance gate
Cllr Hinton had secured a £9,500.00 Lottery Fund, and had hopes for a £29,000.00 application for a Mick George fund grant - both will be used to purchase family equipment on the Recreation Field. The £58,000.00 S106 fund from the quarry development will be used to purchase children’s equipment. Cllr Hinton will liaise with the Amenities Working Group for the overall project. LCC had awarded a £350.00 grant for tree planting, which will be used to purchase tree guards and stakes for the trees donated by Patrick Candler.
A family event was planned once Covid restrictions were lifted. A zoom meeting will take place between the Parish Council and community groups to underwrite the project and financial contribution from the Parish Council.
County Cllr Adams will assist the Parish Council in trying to have rubbish removed from a plot near the playing field entrance as Cllr Hinton was unable to reach anyone at SKDC’s Housing Dept.
11.Request for financial assistance from Glenside News
It was proposed by Cllr Goodman, seconded by Cllr Farley to give a £400 donation to Glenside News - Cllr Harvey abstained from the vote, all other Councillor in favour. Cllr Harvey explained that the donation would help to make the magazine more attractive, with colour photographs, include more editorials and adverts; a website was also planned to provide urgent information in between magazine publication dates and to archive previous magazine issues.
12.LALC annual subscription
It was proposed by Cllr Goodman, seconded by Cllr Harvey, to renew the LALC annual subscription at a cost of £237.96 - all in favour.
13.Purchase and cost for 30mph rigid signs
It was agreed to purchase six 30mph rigid signs from the Road Safety Partnership at a cost of £10 each.
14.Sand bins - 6 months review
The Councillors agreed to leave the three sand bins behind the village hall; additional sand and sandbags had been requested from SKDC.
15.Burial Committee matters - memorial request
The Councillors unanimously approved a memorial application from Set-in- Stone.
16.Correspondence
E-mail from a resident regarding the condition of Church Lane during cemetery paths work
SKDC - parish update
E-mails from two residents regarding speeding in Castlegate
Rural Services Network bulletin
SKDC - census 2021 communication
RBLI shop - VE Day 2021
DM Planning Support weekly planning lists
LALC newsletters
Invest SK
Clerks and Councils Direct magazine
Lincolnshire Police - Community Speed Watch training paused during Covid-19
Calor Gas community fund
LCC - 30MPH passive signs purchase
Little Bytham Parish Council - future Neighbourhood Plans for Little Bytham and Castle Bytham
LCC town and parish council newsletter
YMCA Community Lincs news and updates
LCC - household waste recycling centres; changes to present arrangements
LALC training scheme 2021/22
SKDC - offer of sand and sandbags
Environment Agency routine maintenance fact sheet
17.Accounts
Credited:
Set-in-Stone - Memorial £95.00
Cheques approved:
Anglian water - cemetery rates £11.97 [101291
Reimbursement P Hinton for litter picking equipment £72.33 [101292]
Woodcraft Tree Services - cemetery trees £1560.00 [101293]
M Cooke - salary 26 weeks £1035.00 [101295]
HMRC - clerk’s PAYE £258.75 [101296]
Glenside News - donation £400.00 [101297]
(Cheque 101294 for LALC annual subscription renewal was approved and will be sent to LALC early April in order to appear in the 2021/22 financial year accounts)
18.Councillors’ verbal reports
Cllr Goodman said that a sign had been placed on a piece of unregistered land on the former section of the railway line on Station Road, signifying a possible request for adverse possession; Cllr McLaughlin said that the plot included the former station. Cllr Goodman had also been made aware that bids had been submitted to Richardson Estate Agents for the Castle Mound, despite it not yet offered for sale. Cllr Hinton said that the Parish Council had registered an interest for the Mound in 2019 and renewed this with Richardson’s; the Parish Council would like to purchase the land to improve public access, create a wildlife corridor between existing and planned woodland areas and would continue to rent the site for stock grazing. The Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) has been approached for advice on a loan to fund the purchase and have indicated that such purpose would be considered to meet PWLB loan criteria. The site would have to be purchased at its market value.
Cllr Webber said that volunteers were sought to paint the cemetery railings on 10 April.
Cllr Hinton was working on the upper green and cemetery land registration. Clerk to provide further documentation.
Cllr McLaughlin had requested a Bytham Heights grit bin refill on Fix-my-street and had swept up grit spread during the last snow falls. Cllr Hinton advised that refills for all the bins had already been requested but experience shows this is most likely to be done by Highways in September.
Cllr Hayward said that Holywell Road verges had been ruined during recent work by utility companies.