Minutes
WESTON PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of meeting held on Monday 1st July 2024 at Weston Hills Village Hall
Commenced at 7.30pm
Present:- Cllrs, Dicks, Bellamy, Brotherton, Ellis, Higgins, Halgarth, Mews, Pennington and the Clerk/RFO.
Apologies Cllr Pratt.
Absent :- None
In Attendance:- Cty Cllr Gibson, Dist Cllrs Casson & Sneath, five members of the public.
The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting.
24.087 Declaration of interest in accordance with Localism Act 2011
Cllr Pennington re. Outer Dowsing/National Grid & Meridian Solar Farm.
The Chairman reminded those present of the importance of DPI and their duty to declare any interest and to leave the room while that agenda item was discussed. Failure to do so could result in a councillor being reported to the monitoring officer at SHDC who in turn might then ask the police to investigate the matter.
24.088 Minutes of Parish Council Meeting held on Monday 13th May 2024
Minutes of the meeting having been circulated were taken as read by the Chairman and signed as a true record. Proposed JB, seconded DH, unanimous vote in favour.
Minutes of the closed meeting having been circulated were taken as read by the Chairman and signed as a true record. Proposed PM, Seconded JB, unanimous vote in favour.
24.089 Co-option of new Parish Councillor
Following the resignation of Cllr Bunder the Parish Council looked to co-opt its next councillor. Dist Cllr Casson asked to be considered for the position. A vote was taken on card with a vote of five for, three against. He duly signed his declaration of acceptance and then took his place on the Parish Council.
24.090 Public Forum
A resident (Jenny Pennington) updated those present on the Outer Dowsing, National Grid and Meridian Solar Farm projects. There had been a public meeting on 26th June attended by Sir John Hayes MP. The Meridian project will potentially involve a second line of pylons crossing the parish and more villages will be affected by this project. Dist. Cllr Gibson said that the key to all the projects was the proposed substation at Weston Marsh with Dist Cllr Sneath adding that there was the capacity for twenty-seven connections to the sub-station.
The chairman moved item 14 up the agenda so it could be discussed following on from the public forum.
24.091 Outer Dowsing/ National Grid & Meridian Solar Farm
Cllr Bellamy told the meeting that Lincolnshire is a major processing area with 52% of the population employed in the food industry. These developments will further damage the farming industry at what is a difficult time for them. The technology proposed for the solar farm is old while new cheaper underground cabling technology which is being used in Germany is not currently being considered. Cllr Bellamy proposed a “set piece” response to these projects from the Parish council but stressed the need for individuals to make their views known to the relevant authorities.
24.092 Matters Arising
Cllr Bellamy thanked everyone for their help with the 80 Years D Day Beacon lighting. Cllr Brotherton in turn thanked Cllr Bellamy for all her hard work on the project. It is the intention of the Parish Council to involve the local schools in a project to engrave the shield on the beacon with designs put forward by the children.
24.093 Correspondence
(a) email from the Chairman of SHDC (Andrew Woolf) inviting everyone to his church service at Moulton on 29th September at 2:30pm.
24.094 SID/CSW
Cllr Bellamy reported that the SID was still not working but that she would be prioritising this matter in the coming week. The SID unit is currently programmed at the wrong speed for its location.
The chairman updated the meeting on the CSW which continues to be run by Chris Dark. Broadgate near to Cassons Close continues to be a problem as does the A151, the Austendyke Road and the 60mph section on Broadgate Weston Hills. The CSW intends to work with the police on “Project Edward” on 12th July. Weston parish is third highest in the county when it comes to drivers who have received three warning letters. A new sign at the north end of Small Drove is due to be put in place shortly directing drivers to turn right and to not turn left on to Broadgate.
24.095 Allotments
The meeting resolved to allow Arek Marek of Weston to have tenancy of garden allotment G2A and following a request from him to allow him to put a shed (no larger than 12’x8’) a greenhouse and fencing on his allotment. Proposed BH, Seconded IP, unanimous vote in favour.
The chairman suspended standing orders to allow a resident Mrs Butters to speak who voiced her concerns about how some allotments were being maintained by the tenants and the condition of the road. The chairman replied that one of the purposes of reviewing the allotment agreement is to address these issues.
The meeting then discussed proposed changes to the tenancy agreements. Suggestions were a quarterly check on the allotments, the need for tenants to implement crop rotation and a disclaimer for liability for sheds and tools etc. Cllr Brotherton who has led this project will work on the proposals with a view to the Parish Council finalising these matters at its August meeting together with potential increases in rent. The Chairman then re-instated standing orders.
24.096 Weston Playing Field
Cllr Bellamy informed the meeting that she was in the final stages of getting quotes for CCTV at the playing field. Three quotes would be circulated for councillors to consider at the August meeting. She was also arranging a site visit with Kompan to secure quotes for new (Zip Wire) and replacement play equipment. The clearing of some hedges and re-location of the skate park was suggested.
Cllr Brotherton reported that work was about to start on the installation of the automated gates with completion expected by the end of July. The Clerk informed those present that the invoice for the first 50% (£3,800.00+vat) had been received and would be paid w/c 1st July. Those present agreed that the gate opening times would be set at 7am to 7pm all year. Proposed JB, Seconded BH, unanimous vote in favour
24.097 Weston Hills Playing Field
Cllr Bellamy showed on the screen the progress being made with the schools growing area and reported on the progress with the new play equipment order. She was hopeful it would be installed by August at the latest. Planning permission has now come through for the second phase of play equipment and the details of the play equipment to be installed were shown to the meeting.
The Clerk briefed those present on three quotes he had received from Hollyoaks on different levels of maintenance on trees primarily at the side of St Johns church. It was agreed the clerk would look to obtain two more quotes to be considered at the August meeting.
24.098 Planning Matters
Notification of application for consideration available via SHDC website:-
H22-00276-24, H22-0280-24, H22-0296-24, H22-0984-23, H22-0313-24, H22-0202-24 all approved.
H22-0515-24 54, Ivy Cottage, 692 Broadgate. No Objections
H22-0349-24, Flamingo Flowers Ltd, Stonegate. Comment re. vehicle access. Clerk to action.
24.099 Finance Report
The financial report to 30th June 2024 (Please see accompanying report) having been circulated was taken as read and its contents noted. Proposed DH, seconded JB, unanimous vote in favour.
24.100 Cllr Halgarth’s disqualification and co-option.
The chairman asked the Clerk to explain the procedure and protocols adopted on this matter and he duly did so assuring that instructions taken from LALC and SHDC had been followed. The chairman asked Cllr Halgarth and Cllr Pennington if they were happy with the explanation given and they said that they were.
24.101 Items for Discussions
The chairman stated that due to the time he was deferring agenda items 16 to 18 until the August meeting.
Cllr Bellamy asked that the matter of CCTV and how the council might look to allocate support for organisations in the parish be added to the agenda for August.
Cllr Brotherton asked what could be done to get more relevant speed limits in the parish, especially on Broadgate Weston Hills, Austendyke Road and Moulton Chapel Road. It was agreed to make this an agenda item in August. Cllr Gibson said he would be happy to take the Parish Councils comments and requests to LCC Highways.
Cllr Ellis informed those present that Weston Village Hall was holding an event on 7th July and that the “Love Weston” Facebook page was up and running again.
Cllr Higgins asked who was responsible for the bin in Wimberley Close as it was over flowing. The question was also asked who was responsible for the play equipment at that location. The reply was that the maintenance company (Ashwood Homes) were responsible and residents should contact them with their comments.
24.102 Date of Next Meeting
Monday 5th August 2024 7:30pm at Weston Village Hall.
Dist Cllr Gibson, District Cllr Sneath and members of the public then left the meeting.
The Meeting then went into closed session.
Chairman …………………………………………………