April 2022 Minutes Annual Parish Meeting
SCOTHERN ANNUAL PARISH MEETING WAS HELD ON WEDNESDAY 13TH APRIL 2022 AT 7:30 PM
Present:
Councillor Mrs Cathryn Nicoll – Meeting Chairman
In attendance:
Clerk – Mrs Laura Richardson
5 members of the public
Councillor Rob Creaser gave a brief talk on the speed awareness scheme to the public, including what is entailed, time needed and the logistics of volunteering.
APM/22/01
Chairman’s Report – Report Attached
APM/22/02
To receive Reports from any local organisations present
– Report Attached from Spirit of Scothern
- Welton District branch of Royal British Legion is closing.The current committee are trying to find new members but they are struggling to recruit.
APM/22/03
To consider any points which any parishioner may wish to raise
- An update on the bus service was requested
Meeting closed 20:05
Signed (Chairman) ……………………….. 11th May 2022
Chairman’s Report
Scothern Parish Council - Annual Parish Meeting
13 April 2022
The impact of the Coronavirus continues although it is lessening and life is now becoming more “normal” however there is still the need to be cautious.
Many public services are still not running as efficiently as we would hope!
Highways Matters
Cllr John Fotheringham has continued with the portfolio for highways matters around the village. John works hard to encourage Lincolnshire County Council to undertake maintenance around the village however LCC continues to cite shortages in funding. This means that the Parish Council (PC) must pick up many of the tasks that would have at one time been funded by the LCC and this results in the Precept steadily rising but the PC aims to be as prudent as possible with the public funds.
Following much campaigning by the PC over several years, a drainage scheme to alleviate the flooding issues on Sudbrooke Road will start on 19 April 2022 and is likely to last approximately 20 weeks. The scheme has proved to be much larger than initially envisaged with a cost of around £850,000 to LCC. Contingency plans are in place to minimise, as much as possible inconvenience to residents. A public meeting was held on 24 March 2022 when LCC officers and a representative from the contractors were present. The notes of this meeting with Q & As are posted on the PC website and FB page.
The condition of many of the roads in Scothern has been an ongoing challenge especially the road surface on Dunholme Road and the many potholes throughout the village. LCC has indicated that works on Dunholme Road will be completed during the summer of 2022 and scheduling of this work is currently being planned especially considering the drainage works on Sudbrooke Road.
Any issues in relation to highways matters; streetlights out, potholes, poor parking, overhanging trees, etc can be reported to Fix my Street (https://fixmystreet.lincolnshire.gov.uk). Doing this brings LCCs attention to the problems quickly - the more times an issue is reported the better!
Outstanding matters in Scothern have been twice escalated to Sir Edward Leigh MP and we are currently awaiting a second reply.
Public Transport
The PC has not lost sight of the lack of public transport from Scothern to Lincoln and to Welton and has been vigorously campaigning for some considerable time for reinstatement of public transport. Discussions have been ongoing with LCC and there is an indication that a limited service is to be reinstated - more
information is currently awaited. This issue has been escalated to MPs Sir Edward Leigh and Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.
The stop press here is that there will be from 19 April 2022, a bus from Scothern into Lincoln each morning Monday to Saturday; departing Scothern at 09:05 and returning from Lincoln at 12:10. PC will be considering in the PC meeting following any further action to “persuade” LCC and Stagecoach to further extend the public transport provision. Timetables are available on the PC website and Facebook page from tomorrow morning (14 April 2022).
Central Lincolnshire Local Plan (CLLP)
The Central Lincolnshire Local Plan is currently under review and the PC will be discussing at the PC meeting following this meeting a further response opposing the two areas identified for development in the village which will give an additional 94 residences. The two areas are at the rear of the development on Dunholme Road (Cathedral View), 53 properties and off Nettleham Road 41 properties. This last consultation ends on 9 May 2022.
Scothern Neighbourhood Development Plan (SNDP)
The SNDP is being reviewed; the review group is Cathie Nicoll, Melanie Tointon, Jane Johnson, John Fotheringham, Robert Creaser and Neighbourhood Plan specialist Luke Brown.
The group is due to meet again on 18 May 2022 when a final draft will be considered prior to consulting with the residents of Scothern. It is planned to distribute a summary of the plan to all residents prior to statutory consultations and a referendum.
War Memorial
The PC is working in collaboration with St Germain’s Church PCC to renovate and move the War Memorial, in the interests of health and safety to a more suitable location within the Churchyard.
Grange Park
The Grange Park management group (John Good [chair], Melanie and Steve Tointon and Cathie Nicoll) continue to oversee the park and carry out minor works.
The legend board has recently been updated to reflect changes in the park which is well used.
The orchard is thriving and is well managed by Melanie Tointon and the “orchard group”. The native daffodils are struggling a little but hopefully they will continue to pop up!
There are changes to the grass cutting regime this year as many of the wildflowers are being “strangled” with cow parsley which is not affected by the yellow rattle.
There is a plan to plant a tree to mark Queen Elizabeth IIs Platinum Jubilee in the autumn.
Recreation Centre
Cllr Fotheringham sits as a liaison member on the Scothern Recreation Centre committee and regularly updates the PC on activities of both.
Final plans have been produced for the rebuilding/refurbishing of the hall although funding continues to be an issue.
A PC grant was made to assist with essential electrical works in the hall.
Finance
The PC strives to keep any increases to the Precept to a minimum and seeks to supplement funds by available grants. The annual internal audit and compulsory annual external audit raised no issues in relation to the management of finance.
A CIL payment in respect of the housing development on Dunholme Road is expected following much pressure by the PC on WLDC who seemed convinced that CIL was not due. A meeting between the Chief Executive of WLDC, our District Councillor and PC Chair convinced WLDC otherwise and a payment is expected in respect of an additional property (making a total of 34) being built on the site.
The Parish Council will continue to meet the cost of grass cutting at St Germain’s Church and the Recreation Centre field and surrounding areas.
Cemetery, Sudbrooke Road
Mark Harris of Mark Harris Commercials continues to maintain the cemetery on Sudbrooke Road resulting in a considerable saving to the parish and creating a respectful and peaceful haven. On behalf of the Parish Council and residents of Scothern I should like to thank Mark for committing to this work.
Best Garden Competition
The PC will be discussing the Best Garden Competition at the PC meeting following this meeting. If there are any willing volunteers to help with the judging, please do get in touch with John Fotheringham.
Speed Awareness Initiative
The Speed Awareness Group in the village must be thanked (you know who you are!) for the contribution to road safety in the village.
There are now Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs) in the village located permanently on Dunholme Road and Sudbrooke Road although either one will make occasional appearances on Main Street. Some phenomenal speeds have been recorded; information is downloaded and forwarded to the Police.
Cllrs Derek Canton and Robert Creaser both work very hard on the initiative well supported by other volunteers. More volunteers are needed to help with the speed guns, if you are interested please do get in touch with Derek or Robert (or any of the other volunteers), equipment and training provided.
Christmas Tree Event
The annual “switch on” event of the village Christmas tree lights at the school happened in 2021 and the tree was again supplied and decorated by the Straw family and we offer thanks on behalf of village residents. The tree was located on the grass outside the school, and we thank the school for allowing this and providing the electricity for the lights!
Live Christmas Advent Calendar
The Clerk led on a Live Christmas Advent Calendar for the first time in 2021 which seemed to be well received and those residents who walked around the village looking at the windows were very complementary. Hopefully it will be run again this year.
Councillors
Jane Johnson has joined the PC and is making a valuable contribution to the work of the Council. This still leaves one vacancy; if anyone interested in joining Council, please do contact the Clerk or any of the existing councillors.
Thanks
In closing this report, I should like to offer my thanks to all Parish Councillors, the Clerk, District Councillor Bob Waller and County Councillor Sue Rawlins for their support throughout the year.
Cathryn J Nicoll (Mrs)
Chair - Scothern Parish Council
13 April 2022
Spirit of Scothern Report
We have emerged from the pandemic with two immediate aims:-
1. To get social events re-started in the village
2. To develop agreed plans for the phased development of the village hall
In respect of social events, we have re-started these, notably with Flix in the Stix. At the present time, we are struggling to get interest back to pre-pandemic levels which is disappointing, and which resulted in the cancellation of the Race Night we had planned for 11th March. We are in the midst of preparing, including with the Church and Chapel, for the Queens Platinum Jubilee and have received grants from the National Lottery and Parish Council towards these events.
With regards to development plans, by early April these should be approved having undergone various modifications as result of comments from our public open evening in October and users comments of the various versions. Whilst the plans have not substantially changed since the version shown at our open evening a number of changes have been made for practical or design reasons. The agreed plans will be circulated. What this now means is that we can apply for planning permission and, perhaps more importantly, start applying for grants and commence more targeted fundraising.