May 2025

Minutes of the Annual Parish Council Meeting of Ropsley & District Parish Council held at Ropsley Hall on Monday 19th May 2025.

Public Forum

There were no members of the public in attendance.  Members resolved to suspend the Standing Orders to allow the meeting to commence at 7.30pm.

In Attendance

Councillor Ward (Chair), Councillor Marshall (Vice-Chair), Councillor Hughes, Councillor Louth, Councillor Vaughan,  Mr Andrew Jones (Clerk & RFO), Councillor Sarah Trotter (SKDC)

The Chair opened the meeting at 7.30pm

1. ELECTION OF CHAIR & DECLARATION OF ACCEPTANCE OF OFFICE (25/01)

Councillor Marshall proposed that Councillor Ward be re-elected as Chairman, which was seconded by Councillor Louth.Councillor Ward indicated that he was happy to stand and there were no other candidates.The Chair will duly sign the Declaration of Acceptance of Office.

2. ELECTION OF VICE-CHAIR & DECLARATION OF ACCEPTANCE OF OFFICE (25/02)

Councillor Louth proposed that Councillor Marshall be re-elected as Vice-Chair, which proposal was seconded by Councillor Hughes.  Councillor Marshall indicated that she was happy to stand and there were no other candidates. The Vice-Chair will duly sign the Declaration of Acceptance of Office.

3. WELCOME REMARKS BY THE CHAIRMAN (25/03)

The Chairman welcomed returning Members to the meeting and thanked them for their attendance and hard work during the past year especially the Christmas Tree and Coronation Orchard.

4. APOLOGIES:  TO RECEIVE APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE AND TO RESOLVE TO ACCEPT REASONS GIVEN (25/04)

There were no apologies received.

5. DECLARATIONS OF PECUNIARY INTEREST AND REQUESTS FOR DISPENSATION (25/05)

No declarations of pecuniary interest or requests for dispensation were made.

6.            APPROVAL OF MINUTES (25/06)

6.1         Councillor Marshall proposed that the Clerk’s notes of the Parish Council meeting held on 10th March be approved as a true record, which was seconded by Councillor Hughes.

Resolved: The minutes of the meeting held on 10th March 2025 were approved and duly signed by the Chairman.

7.            ANNUAL PROCEDURES (25/07)

7.1         The Clerk advised that he had reviewed the Financial Regulations and Standing Orders against the model documents and there were no significant changes.  However, some of the procedures dated back to 2021 and so the Clerk is to look at these and ensure they are still up to date and report back at the next meeting.

               Resolved: To approve the Financial Regulations and Standing Orders

               Action: Clerk to ensure that the procedures are up to date and report back at the next meeting.   

8.            ANNUAL RETURN (25/08) 

8.1         A representative of LALC will perform the Annual Audit and this was approved as External Auditor for 2024/25.

8.2         The Chairman read each statement of Section 1 of the Annual Governance Statement in turn and Members indicated their agreement to each question.  Councillor Marshall proposed that the Section 1 of the Annual Governance Statement was approved, which was seconded by Councillor Hughes.

Resolved:  To approve Section 1 of the Annual Governance Return.

8.3         Members considered the Annual Accounting statements contained in Section 2 of the Annual Return, which had previously been circulated along with supporting documents.  This showed that gross income for 2024/25 was £16,460 and gross expenditure was £17,444. Councillor Hughes proposed that they be approved, which was seconded by Councillor Louth.

Resolved:  To approve Section 2 of the Annual Governance Return.

8.4         Councillor Ward proposed that the Council declare exemption from External Audit as its income and expenditure were below £25k in 2024/25 and all other conditions were met, which was seconded by Councillor Marshall.

Resolved: To declare exemption from external audit.

Action: The Annual Governance Return and Certificate of Exemption was signed by the Chairman and Clerk. The Internal Audit report to be reviewed at the next meeting when completed by the External Auditor.

9.            DISTRICT AND COUNTY COUNCILLORS’ REPORTS (25/09)

Councillor Trotter informed the meeting of the forthcoming reorganisation of local councils and the full proposal will be issued on the 28th November 2025. There are a number of information meetings that will be held at SKDC that we should attend, and Councillor Trotter is to ensure that we are informed of the meeting dates. It is hoped that the final reorganisation would be finalised by 2027.

There are also some information being sent out by SKDC re Foodbanks etc and Councillor Trotter is to ensure we receive these.

The Lincolnshire Police have been called in by HM Inspectorate of Constabulary due to poor performance but they have received £5.7M of interim funding.

Discussion then took place re the proposed Battery Farm at Aisby. They are looking at screening the site and other options re transport but no firm proposal has yet been filed to the Council.

There is an open meeting to be held at Heydour Village Hall on the 20th May at 7.30 organised by the local residents.

10.         CLERK’S REPORT (25/10)

10.1       Councillors noted the contents of the Clerk’s Report with regards to actions from previous minutes.

               Councillor Trotter confirmed that the extension to the New Conservation Area in Ropsley was correct and in place.

11.         FINANCE (25/11)

11.1       Members noted income received as follows:

11.2       Councillor Ward proposed that the following payments be approved, which was seconded by Councillor Marshall.

Resolved: To approve the payments as listed.

11.3       Councillor Hughes proposed that the April bank reconciliation be approved, which was seconded by             Councillor Louth.

Resolved:  To approve the April bank reconciliation.

11.4       Members noted the budget monitoring statement showing expenditure and income against the 2025/26 budget to date. 

11.5       It was agreed that the National Minimum Wage increase to £12.21 per hour be implemented.

11.6       A request had been received from Braceby Church for their £100 grass cutting grant. Councillor Ward proposed that this donation is paid and this was seconded by Councillor Marshall.

               Resolved: To approve the £100 grass cutting grant to Braceby Church.

12.         PLANNING (25/12)

12.1       To consider the following planning applications received since the last meeting:

12.1.1    S25/0394 Amend roof specification – Brookfield, Little Humby NG33 4HW

12.1.2    S25/0622 Remove 2 ash trees – The Cemetery, Ropsley

12.2       To note the following planning decisions:

12.2.1    S25/0394 Amend roof specification – Brookfield, Little Humby NG33 4HW  approved 9th May 2025

13.         HIGHWAYS (25/13)

13.1       The Clerk had written to Councillor Hill re the advisory 20mph speed limit and yellow lines request and he will submit this to LCC.

13.2       The Clerk had not had a response from LCC re the removal of the grass triangle on Braceby Road and he is to chase LCC.

               Action: The Clerk is to chase LCC re a response.

13.3       A discussion then took place re the possibility of speed bumps on the roads into Ropsley to try and slow the traffic. The Clerk informed the meeting that he had broached this subject with Councillor Hill who was not in favour as in his opinion the parked traffic acted as a speed limiter.

               It was decided that we canvass opinion from the residents by placing an article on the Council’s Facebook page with a simple yes or no and ask for other comments.

               Councillor Vaughan brought to the meeting’s attention that the 30mph sign on Humby Road is difficult to see due to the overgrown trees and hedges. The Clerk is to see if we report this on Fix My Streets LCC website.

               Action: Councillor Marshall to place the poll re speed bumps on the Facebook page and monitor the results.

               Action: The Clerk is to report the overgrown trees near the Humby Road 30mph sign to LCC

14.         CEMETERY (25/14)

14.1       The Clerk is to discuss with Tidy Gardens to extend the mowing area in the cemetery to create more space.

Action: The Clerk to discuss the increase in the mowing area in the cemetery with Tidy Gardens

14.2       Councillor Louth informed the meeting that due to ill health, Barry Buxton is to retire from cutting the memorial etc. Steve Rogers has indicated that he is willing to take on the cutting and Councillor Louth is to take the mower to him to use.

The Chairman and Council acknowledged their thanks and appreciation to Barry for all his hard work and it was decided to present him with a thank you gift.

The Clerk is also to investigate the whereabouts of the original “Best Kept Village” sign which was taken down when the new village sign was erected.

Action: To organise a thank-you gift for Barry Buxton

Action: The Clerk to investigate the location of the original “Best Kept Village” sign.

15.         COMMUNITY UPDATES (25/15)

15.1       The Christmas Tree lighting etc will be discussed at the next meeting when the Christmas Tree Sub-committee will be arranged.

               Action: To ensure that this item is on the agenda for the next meeting  

15.2       There had still be no response from SKDC re the storage container and it was decided that the Clerk contact them again.

               Action: The Clerk to contact SKDC re the siting of the storage container.

15.3       It was discussed whether there was need for a watering rota for the Coronation Orchard. After some discussion, The Clerk agreed to take this on for the summer.

               Resolved: The Clerk to organise the watering of the Coronation Orchard this summer..

15.4       The Hedgehog Scheme had been a great success and had resulted in a donation of £25.

15.5       The Clerk had now taken over the administration of the 5 defibrillators. These were purchased approximately 10 years ago and so we need to consider that some of these may need to be replaced next year so we should bring this into next year’s budget.

               Resolved: To consider the replacement of some of the defibrillators in next year’s budget.

15.6       In the absence of Councillor Campbell, a report on the 2025 calendars will be brought to the next meeting.

               Action: Councillor Campbell to report on 2025 and 2026 Calendar competitions

15.7       The Community Emergency Plan was discussed and Councillors agreed to look at it and we will review again at the next meeting. The idea of putting Emergency Contact Numbers on the website and Facebook page was welcomed.

               Action: To discuss the Emergency Plan at the next meeting

15.8       LCC sand and aqua bags – these will be carried forward to next meeting

               Resolved: To carry forward on the agenda for future meetings

15.9       Proposed battery storage at Aisby – this was covered in Item 9 above.

15.10     Membership of CPRE – the Parish Council had been members of the CPRE in 2022 and it was agreed that this membership be renewed at an annual cost of £60.

               Resolved: Council to renew its membership of CPRE

15.11     It was noted some of the village gates had been cleaned and we thank the volunteers for their hard work. The Humby Road sign is still to be done.

16.         PARISH COUNCIL VACANCY (25/16)

16.1       There is still a vacancy on the Council and The Clerk is to advertise the position on the Humby residents email list and notice board.

               Action: The Clerk to advertise the vacancy on the Humby email and notice board

17.         CORRESPONDENCE (25/17)

17.1       The Clerk has received correspondence and map from Mr Sochacki who is the Forestry Consultant for the new owners of Kirton Wood. They are to carry out large scale works to clear the ash dieback problem and develop the wood with new wildlife habitats etc. This will not affect the public footpaths but walkers will need to take care while the works are being carried out.

The Clerk is to contact Mr Sochacki to see if he wishes to put his plans on the Council Facebook page for residents to comment.

Action: The Clerk to contact Mr Sochacki re Kirton Wood works

18.         DATE OF NEXT MEETING (25/18)

18.1       The date for the next meeting was set for Monday 21st July 2025 at 7pm at Ropsley Hall.

               The Chair closed the meeting at 9.26pm.