East Kirkby Parish Council Meeting
21st September 2023 19.00 start
East Kirkby Village Hall
Present: Cllrs B Nowicki (Chairman), C Briggs, V Lingard, C Brandwood, Members of the Public (MoP), Mrs JH Mussett (Clerk)
Apologies tended and accepted: County Cllr W Gray and District Cllr T Taylor
Declarations of interest: None – based on the published agenda.
Public meeting: Chairman opened the Public Meeting at 19.05.
Clerk asked Chairman if she could address the public meeting first regarding an anonymous email received Wednesday 20th September 2023 which held observations about the parish council and its involvement in the village. The e-mail was not read out during the meeting. As a council, we do not respond to anonymous letters or emails.
If any member of the parish wishes to have a point raised in any meeting and remain anonymous, they only have to mention this to me (The Clerk) and I will absolutely respect that wish.
Clerk thanked Chairman for allowing this interruption and Chairman opened to floor to the parishioners present.
Cllr Lingard advised the parish council meeting that Mrs Lesley Smithson had passed away early September. Mrs Smithson had been a valued member of the parish council for many years in the past. Our thoughts are with the family of Mrs Smithson.
MoP mentioned that there is a problem with traffic both in terms of speed and lack of attention to anyone walking on the road – in particular near the village shop. MoP mentioned there had been several near misses, which was backed up by other MoPs. MoPs also mentioned that people seem to speed up as they come off the A155 to Fen Road by the shop. MoP asked if there was a possibility of getting a crossing. Chairman advised that this was virtually impossible.
Chairman advised that the Parish Council has previously asked Cllr Gray to get an Archer survey.
Action: Clerk to chase Cllr Gray.
It was also mentioned that there is a large puddle which is causing a massive problem. Chairman encouraged everyone to go onto FixMySTreet.com to report. MoP and Chairman will report.
The eastern verge to the north of Ms Sheriff’s bungalow has subsided and is an “accident waiting to happen”. This is a massive potential risk as the deep hole is not clearly visible. Chairman again encouraged everyone to report this via FixMyStreet.com.
MoP, as a matter of courtesy, wished to advise EKPC that a garage is being built on her property, which does not require planning permission. MoP has spoken to both the Planning Department and Building Regulations at East Lindsey District Council, who have both confirmed in writing that neither planning permission nor building regulation approval is needed. MoP handed a copy of the letter to the Chairman, who filed it for future information, if needed. Chairman thanked MoP for her proactive approach.
MoP raised the weight limits in the village which do not seem to be adhered to. Chairman re-iterated that although the weight limit does apply within the village, it does exclude buses and farm traffic. Anyone can use the road regardless of weight IF they have a “legitimate purpose within the village”. It is virtually impossible to police and verify – Unless you follow the vehicle as it goes through the village and prove it via dash cam video etc. and you can then report to the police.
It was also mentioned that down by the Treehouse pre-school, someone in a Mini had parked on the path, totally blocking it. This means that everyone had to walk into the road which could be very dangerous, especially with a push-chair or pram. Chairman advised that this is a matter for the Police/Traffic Enforcement and is something that the PC has no powers to enforce.
Chairman closed the Public Meeting at 19.47 and thanked everyone for their spirited input. At this point, Chairman asked Mr Andersson if he would like to join the Parish Council, which he agreed to. Parish councillors unanimously voted to accept Mr Andersson to the council.
We welcome Cllr Anderson to the Parish Council.
Approval of minutes from the July 2023 meeting: Chairman ascertained that the councillors had read the minutes and that they were an accurate representation of the meeting. Minutes were unanimously agreed. Chairman signed a copy of the minutes and will post a copy on the notice board.
Updates from District and Country Councillors:
Reports from both have been distributed to the Parish Councillors.
Update from last month:
Anglian Water: Nothing to report.
Village information board: Chairman advised that the price from Burgess has risen to £1,644 incl. VAT. Chairman to send information to Clerk, who will raise the cheque.
Cllr Brandwood suggested that we go ahead with it despite the increase in cost, seconded by Chairman. All councillors voted unanimously to carry on.
Action: Clerk to raise cheque and progress the works
Training update: Overall, the training session didn’t really cover the expectations of either Councillor, but it was still a useful session. One of the points made was that “Any materials donated to the village must be valued at £1 in the future accounts”, which Chairman and Clerk/RFO have noted.
Dispensation in relation to the Disclosure of Pecuniary Interests:
Cllr Brandwood mentioned that during the training session it was raised that with the large number of small parish councils where virtually anything that happens within the village may have a pecuniary influence on everyone in the village and parish council. It was unanimously agreed to adopt the proposed “Dispensation for Disclosure of Pecuniary Interests (DPI) and dispensation”.
Minute ref: 197 /01
Planning applications:
S/046/1801/23 – Aviation Heritage Centre.
All Councillors unanimously voted to SUPPORT the application.
Action: Clerk to update website
S/046/01613/23 – The Red Lion Inn
The proposed planning application addresses the points raised by the Parish Council in the “non-compliance email” that was sent to Planning Enforcement. The Environmental Assessment has been applied for and approved.
Councillors discussed the application at great length and delved deep into the planning application and rules. It was unanimously agreed to Object to the application.
Action: Clerk to update ELDC planning portal with the document outlining the objections, detailing the PC’s position.
Financial matters:
Invoices received: Clerk’s wages totalling £214.80 (Which included a £6.00 charge for additional stamps). Invoice was unanimously agreed.
Minute ref: 198/01
Clerk advised Council that a request from LIVES for donation had been received. EKPC do not give out donations to charities (Mainly due to the small size of our precept)
Cllr Brandwood advised that the East Kirkby Choir recently held their final meeting to discuss what to do with the remaining monies in their account. Donations were made to CLIC Sargent (A children’s cancer charity), Butterfly Hospice and LIVES.
Chairman thanked all for their attention and contribution and closed the meeting at 21.45.
Next meeting date: Thursday 19th October 2023 - starting at 19.00.
Any items to be brought before the Council can be submitted to the Clerk via eastkirkbypc@gmail.com
by the Thursday (1 week) before the meeting.
Please visit our web-site via:
https://east-kirkby.parish.lincolnshire.gov.uk/
Date of last meeting in 2023: 30th November
Dates for 2024 meetings: 18th January; 15th February; 14th March; 18th April
Dates are subject to change.
All meetings start at 19.00 and take place in East Kirkby Village Hall.