2023 May 16 - Minutes

LEADENHAM PARISH COUNCIL – ANNUAL PARISH MEETING
Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on Tuesday 16 May 2023 7pm at Leadenham Village Hall.
 
The meeting was called under the Chairmanship of Cllr M Nelstrop.
Present: Cllr M Nelstrop, Cllr M Everett, Cllr G Luff, Cllr K Willgoose. R Keillar (Clerk).
Members of the public attending 0.
1. Chair Cllr M Nelstrop welcomed everyone to the meeting.
 
2. The notes from the APM held on 29/05/2022 had been circulated and were approved and signed as Minutes.
3. To receive a Parish Report from the Clerk/RFO.
 
RFO Report – Year 2022-23.
Budget and Precept
The Budget requirement for 2022-23 had been agreed at £12.440. The Precept request was agreed at £12.920, representing 0% change for taxpayers from the previous year.
Income:
Total other income for 2022-23 = £4,527.43
Including:
LAW, contribution to PC (2019/20 + 2020/21) £734.99
LAW, contribution to PC (2021-22) £286.16
LCC Grass-cutting Grant £420.19
NKDC Litter-picking Grant £91.14
NKDC CIL payment £2,503.82
HMRC VAT reclaim (01/12/21-31/12/22) £443.83
 
Expenditure:
All payments are noted in each month’s Minutes.
Including:
a) Donation to PCC Churchyard upkeep £525.00
b) Donation to Fountain upkeep £100.00
c) Donation to RBL representative £30.00
d) Donation to CAB Midlincs £50.00
e) Village Maintenance services £510.00
f) LIVES defibrillator maintenance scheme £216.00
g) Plaque for the Parish Field project £54.99
 
CIL funds totalling £5,931.21 had been received since 2019.
Funds remaining total £5,876.22
Play Area third party contribution will be taken from this (expected to be £1,499.01)
The remaining balance will therefore be £4,377.21.
 
Precept 2023-24:
The Budget requirement to cover anticipated costs for 2023-24 was agreed at £14,956. The Precept request was agreed at £12,328, with the PC contributing £2,628 from reserves, to make up the shortfall, representing 0% change for taxpayers from the previous year.
AGAR 2022-23 (Annual Governance and Accountability Return)
Accounts for the Parish Council to be audited by T Holleran Accountancy. 
A full Statement of audited Accounts for this financial year, April 2022 – March 2023, will be presented to the full Parish Council Meeting when completed.
 
The external auditors for 2022-23 year end are PKF Littlejohn; the Parish Council will be exempt from submitting the accounts, however the Audit documents will be completed and displayed as required.
 
Parish Report
The current membership stands at 7 parish councillors. 
Cllr N Johnson has been co-opted (09/02/22).
Cllr T Sisson resigned (24/02/23). 
Following the May 2023 election, 5 Members have been elected to the PC and two vacant seats remain for co-option.
Defibrillator
The defibrillator, located at the Village Hall, is owned by the Parish Council and had been checked on a regular basis by a member of the community. It was agreed that the PC would subscribe to a maintenance scheme run by L.I.V.E.S.  
Parish Field.
This project has been instigated, installed and will be maintained by a volunteer group, overseen bt Rory Booth. The PC has purchased a commemorative plaque, purchased with CIL funds. The group has been asked to suggest other items for consideration by the PC, using further CIL funds.
Speed Limit Reduction. 
LCC Highways has proposed a speed reduction in Leadenham on the A607 from 40mph to 30mph. The public consultation period closes on 16 June 2023. It is not known how soon after that the change will be implemented, however all updates will be reported at meetings and will be posted to the PC website. 
Play Area.
On 17/08/21 the ROSPA inspector reported that the Swings were in a state of very poor repair and should be taken out of use immediately. 
A Working Group was established to investigate and propose replacements and the Leader at the time oversaw a plan where the entire area would be replaced, however thei was later reduced to replacement of the swings only, due to costs. An application for grant funding was made to FCC; this was by the Working Group, following approval by the PC. The application is still being processed.
 
4. To consider any points which any parishioner may wish to raise.
No members of the public were present.
 
The meeting closed at 7:28 pm.
 
 
 
Signed (Chair)…M. NELSTROP……….Date…………14/05/2024………………………