MAREHAM LE FEN PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the meeting held on the 18th October 2017.
Chairman: Mr P Chilvers
Councillors Present:
Mr R Cox
Mr A Hawkes
Miss K Marshall
Miss I McLachlan
Mrs I Moorhouse
Mr C Wentzell
Cllr S Avison
3 members of the publicalso attended.
2570 Apologies for Absence.
Apologies were received from Cllrs P Fytche, S Millen andCllr B Aron who had other commitments.
2571 Declaration of interests.
There were no interests to declare.
2572 Minutes of the last meeting.
These had been circulated to the Parish Councillors.
Item 2555 should read ‘6 Councillors voted against the application’.
After this alteration the minutes wereapproved and were duly signed by the Chairman. Proposed by CllrR Cox and seconded byCllr K Marshall.
2573Matters Arising.
The grant application for the War Memorials Trust had been sent off. The Clerk had contacted Leakes at Horncastle for a quote but had so far had no reply. She will contact other contractors and get some other quotes.
Cllr K Marshall reported that the facebook page was under construction.
The Village newsletter is a work in progress.
2574 Correspondence.
An email had been received notifying the Parish Council that the street light at Fieldside/ Church Corner had fallen out. The Clerk will report this.
2575 Planning.
Cllr, I McLachlan declared an interest in this item because she lived opposite the site.
A planning application had been received for an extension and alterations at Dunelm Cottage, Main Street Mareham le Fen.Reference S/114/01712/17. Cllrs looked at the plans and were concerned that a roller shutter was included. They felt that this would be used as a garage, which would be dangerous as the property was directly on the main road. A vote was taken, 1 Cllr abstained and 2 objected to the application. The Clerk will notify E L D C of the decision.
2576Police Officer’s Report.
No report had been received.
2577Finance.
The following accounts were presented for payment:
Mareham le Fen Village Hall£31.50 Rent for the September meeting.
Grant Thornton£120.00Annual accounts 2017
P Barnett£841.80 Grass cutting etc to 18.10.17
Payment of these accounts was proposed by Cllr R Cox and seconded by Cllr I Moorhouse.
The Clerk reported that the accounts for 2017 had been approved. She had been unable to scan the accounts in order to put them on the Parish Council website so they will be displayed on the notice boards.
2578 Cemetery.
The Clerk had sent the original map and details of the purchase of ground for the Cemetery to Ms Romina Llorente at Savills. Ms LLorente now asked if the Parish Council could send details of the extra ground they would like to buy. Cllrs discussed this and Cllr I McLachlan suggested that the plot would be better if it was a rectangular shape instead of the wedge shape it is currently. Cllrs approved this. This was proposed by Cllr I McLachlan and seconded by Cllr C Wentzell. 1 Cllr abstained, 1 was against, the rest of the Cllrs were in favour. The Clerk will send the revised map to Ms Llorente.
It was reported that there are a lot of moles in the Cemetery, the Clerk will arrange for them to be cleared.
Mr Johnson had contacted the clerk to ask for the Parish Council’s permission to inter his uncle’s ashes in his parent’s grave. Permission was given.
A resident of Mareham le Fen has recently purchased a plot for the cremation of her ashes. She wished them to be buried in front of her parent’s. There is currently no plan of the cremation side of the Cemetery. The Clerk will draw up a map to enable cremation plots to be marked.
2579Allotments.
The rent for the allotments had been received. The Clerk will send a receipt and ask if a copy of the tenancy agreement is available.
2580Grass Cutting and footpath maintenance.
Several applications had been received for the grass cutting and maintenance contract. This will be discussed more fully at next month’s meeting. The Clerk was asked to write to Mr Barnett to terminate his contract at the end of the season and advise him to send in a new quote. This was proposed by Cllr R Cox and seconded by Cllr K Marshall, all voted in favour.
2581 Christmas Tree.
Janet Fowler, the secretary of FOSH had sent another email regarding their carols round the tree and requesting that the Parish Council reconsider their decision not to provide a tree for them. Cllrs discussed this and decided that they would not provide a tree, saying that they were not able to favour 1 group in the Village.
The Clerk was asked to contact Western Power and find out if there is a facility for plugging Christmas lights into their system. The Clerk will look into the purchase of Christmas lights for the trees opposite the Post Office. A maximum price of £50 was agreed.
2582 New Venue for Council Meetings.
Cllr McLachlan had contacted the Monitoring Officer at E L D C on behalf of the Parish Council following a letter from the school saying that they had contacted L C C and the School Hall would not be suitable for Parish Council meetings. It was suggested that the Clerk contact the Bowls Club and ask for a quote to rent their new premises for the meetings.
2583 New Code of Conduct.
A new code of conduct was being circulated by Councillors. This will be discussed at thenext meeting after all Cllrs have read it.
2584Parish Matters.
Cllr S Avison told the Parish Council that the Louth Cattle Market had been saved from closure.
The potholes in Watery Lane had been repaired.
A Parishioner reported that a street light at the top of Watery Lane, opposite Twyman Cottage was leaning at a dangerous angle. The Clerk will report this.
Cllr I McLachlan said that there was a deep pot hole near the Church. The Clerk will report this.
A complaint had been received about the state of the Memorial Lawn following the recent Bowls Club work. The Clerk will contact the Bowls Club and ask when the Lawn would be re-instated.
Parishioners had asked when a disabled access would be provided to the Memorial Lawn. The V H M C will be contacted to ask.
The Parish Councillors had been contacted to ask how many Cllrs would be attending the Remembrance Day service. The Chairman will notify the Church Warden of the numbers. The Clerk will check that a wreath has been ordered.
The meeting closed at 8.35 pm
The next ordinary meeting will be held in the Village Hall on 22nd November 2017 at 7.30 pm