1st April 2026 minutes
Minutes are in DRAFT FORM until approved at the following meeting.
SCOTHERN PARISH COUNCIL
Minutes of the April Meeting of Scothern Parish Council, held in Scothern Methodist Chapel, 1st April 2026 at 8.10pm
Present: Cllrs Jane Johnson (Chair), Robert Creaser, Barnaby Patchett, M Unwin
Not Present: Cllrs Derek Canton, Sian Watt Jones, Jackie Atkins
In attendance: Lisa Brooks-Sleight (clerk), LCC Cllr Jane Smith, WLDC Cllr Baptiste Velan
46/2026 Apologies of Absence -To receive apologies with any reasons given
received from Cllr Canton, Atkins & Watt Jones with reasons accepted, Resolved
47/2026 Representatives Report -To receive reports from the District & County Councillors
Cllr Smith reported – she has emailed all residents who contacted her on the Church St one-way request; the grass verge on Heath Rd; the Weight limit request and Craypool Lane issues are ongoing. Cllr Velan reported on an issue raised by a resident complaining about litter on the A46 which he passed to Highways; Scampton base update and the streetsigns for the village have been ordered. Cllr Velan offered £300 grant funding from his CIF towards adding the 3 missing names on the War Memorial.
48/2026 Public Participation - To resolve, if necessary, to temporarily suspend the meeting for a period of no more than 15 minutes to allow for a period of public participation.
No public present
49/2026 Declarations of Interest - To record declarations of interest in accordance with the Localism Act 2011 and consider any requests for dispensation for any listed agenda items
None received
50/2026 Minutes of last Meeting - The minutes of the Council Meeting held on 4th March 2026 were approved as a true & correct record. Proposed & seconded. Resolved
51/2026 Clerks Report
• The Drain guard has been purchased for the pipe across Grange Park and will be fitted once the water has subsided
• Pelican Trust notification of price increase from the 1st April 2026
• Grass Contractor – notification that if the price of diesel increases to £2 per litre, he will have to request an extra payment
• The Alders – email sent to WLDC to request the planning agreement to establish the ownership of the public footpath/grass verge from Sudbrooke Rd to West Thorne Grange and the planning agreement to establish who’s responsible to maintain the ditch/trees between The Alders and West Thorne Grange following an enquiry
• LCC have planned a footpath micro-surfacing scheme (also known as slurry seal, a surface treatment to existing footway to protect it & extending its life) works on The Alders in May
• Sudbrooke Rd speed device question – Cllr Creaser received a speed device enquiry from a resident: at what distance does the elan city unit record the speed of vehicles as against detecting them. The reply was sent: The distance of first recording is, by default settings, up to around 300 meters. Then the radar does several recordings and then does the average of all the recordings.
52/2026 Play Area
a. To receive a visual monthly inspection report and decide any future actions – received with no current actions required
• To receive a report from the Play Area Opening - a great success, feedback form received on the day. Final completion payment has been paid. Outdoor Play have also sent the Inclusive Roundabout maintenance guide which should be inspected yearly and the Completion Certificate
53/2026 APM – To receive any comments/issues raise at the meeting
• Sudbrooke Rd issue – fille-in land drain that needs investigation
• Sudbrooke Rd – early morning deliveries of large vehicles blocking the road
• A weight restriction through the village request
54/2026 Highways - To discuss and receive any issues/updates and decide future actions
Cllr Smith – some potholes have been filled but still more to do
55/2026 Finance
a. To review the 2026/27 earmarked reserves – reviewed and approved, proposed & seconded. Resolved
b. To receive the Expenditure & Budget for 2025/26 – received and approved, proposed & seconded. Resolved
c. To approve & sign the monthly accounts for April payments with the corresponding bank statements up to 31/3/26 - bank balance of £54,144.59, and to nominate 2 councillors to authorise the online bank payments.
Proposed & seconded to approve all the above and Cllr Johnson & Patchett were nominated to authorise the bank payments. Resolved
Outdoor Play UK Play equipment completion payment 17046.72
Employee Salary/expenses 998.60
Multidata VH Broadband April invoice 53.36
Springbok Monthly IT invoice 54.92
Tesco Monthly DD mobile 7.50
Lloyds Bank Monthly account fee 4.25
LALC Annual Subs 306.22
SRC Grant funding 100.00
HMRC PAYE + NI 634.54
LALC Training Scheme 174.00
Pelican Trust SN printing April 253.50
56/2026 To receive reports/updates
a. Community Speed Watch – Cllr Creaser presented the speed data report
b. Police – new sent prior
c. Village flooding – discussed in the APM
d. Lindum Homes, West Thorne Grange – reply from Mark Foster after an enquiry when a resident reported coloured water flowing into the ditch: This is a land drain which runs from the site into the ditch - we have diverted the majority of these existing land drains, but this one is still in situ. We think the colouration is purely silt build up with water running clear - we are certainly not discharging anything through this drain, and it will be cut off in time.
e. War Memorial – work started this morning (1st April) to refurbish
f. SRC – next meeting 14th April and the AGM 11th May at 7.45pm
g. Emergency plan – Cllr Johnson & the clerk attend the cluster session at the Headquarters in Lincoln and updated the council on the session. A date to be announced (end of June/beginning of July) to hold a Community Emergency Plan Session in the village hall, to invite residents to introduce the plan and explain what it is all about.
h. Village weight restriction – Cllr Smith passed on the request to LCC and updated the resident
i. Church St one-way system – Cllr Smith passed on the request to LCC and updated the resident
57/2026 Planning - To receive any decisions and discuss any applications received from WLDC
Ref: WL/2026/00057, 36 St Germains Way WLDC Grant with conditions
Ref: WL/2026/00106, 15 Heath Rd WLDC Grant with conditions
Ref: WL/2026/00017, 1 Saxon Fields WLDC Grant with conditions
58/2026 Grange Park working group -to receive the notes from 23/2/2026 and decide any future actions.
Received and noted, no action at this time
59/2026 LALC Training Scheme - To approve any training requests by members
No current requests
60/2026 Village events
a. To discuss the Children’s Easter Hunt and prize - Cllr Atkins sent the clues prior, Scothern Nurseries agreed to be a base for the forms, winner to be randomly selected from all entries, Easter chocolate to be purchase -£6 from the Chairs allowance, approved. Proposed & seconded, Resolved
b. To discuss & arrange the First Aid/CPR Training event – a resident requested after a successful previous event. It was suggested to check availability with the First Aid providers & the Chapel, with the possibility of holding it in July.
c. To arrange a Litter picking event – to be arranged later, for a Saturday in May
61/2026 Correspondence for information (sent prior)
• LALC – E-news & Training bulletin
• NALC Bulletin
62/2026 Agenda items for next meeting (by 29th April) and any updates/points from members
The date & time of the Annual Meeting of the Council as 6th May 2026 at 7.30pm
The Chair closed the meeting at 9pm