Draft March 2025
SWINSTEAD PARISH COUNCIL
Draft Minutes of the of the Parish Council held
Thursday 13th March 2025, 19.00pm in the Village Hall
Cllr L Underhill Chair, Cllr A Whitworth Vice Chair, Cllr K Vardy, Cllr M Hoodless, Cllr M Robinson & C Hatch (Clerk)
Public Forum (15 minutes maximum) No members of the public attended the forum.
Apologies for Absence. None.
To receive declarations of interest in accordance with the 2011 Local Government Act. – personal or prejudicial interest in any items for discussion. None declared.
Draft Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on Thursday 9th January 2025 to be approved as the Minutes. Having been previously circulated, the minutes were approved unanimously.
Matters Arising. The Clerk confirmed, the consultation regarding the decommissioning of the phone kiosk on the High Street was now complete. SKDC has no objections to the kiosk being adopted by Swinstead PC. BT have emailed a contract to the Clerk which he has circulated to the Councillors, if accepted the kiosk will be purchased for the sum of £1, once decommissioned, a defibrillator will be installed.
The Clerk also confirmed he has received two new battery powered defibrillators; these were donated by James Hodgkin of Little Bytham. One defibrillator will be installed in the phone kiosk the other inside the Allotment. This will provide a total of three units throughout the village.
5.0 Chairmans Report. Cllr Underhill provided her report. See below.
5.1 Since the last meeting a letter was sent to Creeton Quarry management requesting that quarry lorries observe a 20 mph through Little Bytham and Swinstead villages. An obliging reply from the Head of Cotswold Quarries was received saying that drivers would be asked and reminded to do this. I personally have observed lorries going through the village at a slow speed and so am hopeful that this is generally taking effect.
SKDC responded to the Fix-my-Street reporting of mess and debris in the village streets following the January floods and a clean up has been done.
Since the January meeting I report with great regret that resignations have been received from Councillor Hoodless and Councillor Whitworth who will be standing down from the Parish Council at the AGM in May. They will be sorely missed and the contributions they have both made whilst serving on the Council have been much appreciated. Replacements will need to be found.
I have written to the Repairs of Council Properties Department requesting that priority be given to replacing Martin Tonkin’s garden fence at No 48 High Street as soon as possible due to his special circumstances.
A memorial bench to the late and much loved George Brown was unveiled outside the Village Hall on Friday February 28th in front of a large gathering. I would like to thank the Village Hall Committee for purchasing the bench on behalf of the Village Hall and the Parish Council and to thank Ron Hoodless for installing it.
5.2 Councillors Reports. SKDC Cllr Nick Robins provided an update from District Council. See below.
South Kesteven Conservatives did not support rising the council tax by the maximum allowed under government guidance and
increasing social housing rents by 2.7% next financial year. South Kesteven administration approved maximum increases in
council tax and above inflation increases in fees / charges.
Plans to roll out Food Waste across the district were confirmed and should start in April 2026. South Kesteven Conservatives argued against starting a food waste program on Easter weekend after the chaos of the purple bin roll out in 2024.
Multiple censure notices for breaches in the council code of conduct for bringing the council into disrepute were published against the chair of Governance and Audit and one other member of the administration who remain in post.
Conservatives proposed and secured support for a boost to the flood alleviation reserve by £100,000.
The South Kesteven Administration proposed breaking up Lincolnshire by suggesting a devolved authority of Rutland, Melton, South Kesteven and South Holland. The Conservatives argued that this would result in significant increases in costs and would not be allowed by the government devolution framework. Conservatives would work for whatever is best for the residents.
The 2-year Conservative Party campaign to get South Kesteven to collect litter on the A1 verges (which is the responsibility of SKDC) supported by Alecia Kearns MP yielded results after the council agreed to start collection in March.
Fees and charges were sent out for consultation with most charges rising by inflation. Green Bin charges will increase above inflation by £2 per bin to increase from the next financial year.
6.0 Parish Clerk report.
Position at Bank. The Clerk provided the accounts to date, these were accepted unanimously.
Cheques to be signed. Clerks’ salary £332.92. This was agreed and signed.
7.0 Highways: The Clerk advised the Councillors that Highway Lincolnshire do not install Table Ramps as speed calming measures due to the ongoing maintenance costs, the Clerk will investigate other options. Cllr Robins suggested speaking with Highways regarding an Archers survey, (where rubber strips are placed across the road to monitor vehicle speed). The Clerk will contact Highways Road Safety team. On a more positive note, the Clerk confirmed, the dropped curb due to be installed in Park Road to assist residents with mobility issues will be installed between the 4th and 11th of April.
8.0 Speed sign repair. The speed sign was returned to the manufacturer for inspection due to the sign not illuminating when vehicles travel past in at a speed greater than 30 mph. The engineers report confirmed the main radar unit was faulty, the cost of repair being £1086.00. At this time, the PC funds will not cover the repair. The Clerk will speak with the manufacturer, he will also speak with SKDC to enquire if grants are available to cover the cost of repairs or replacement.
9.0 Correspondence: The Clerk confirmed, he has received letters of resignation from Cllr Hoodless and Cllr Whitworth. Their resignations are due to work and other commitments. The Chair thanked both Councillors for their contribution to the Parish Council and wished them well for the future.
10.0 Co-option of new Councillors. Having received letters from both Cllrs Hoodless and Whitworth, confirming they are stepping down from the PC, the Clerk will advise SKDC who will advertise the posts for 14 days, if no by-election is requested, a co-option notice will be published on the PC website and the village Facebook page.
11.0 Planning.
11.1 S25/0304, Mr Matthew Brooker, 37 High Street, Swinstead, Lincolnshire, NG33 4PA, Installation of air source heat pump to replace oil fired central heating. (No comments from the PC).
12.0 Donation for Memorial Bench for Mr G Brown.
George being an integral part of both the Parish Council and the Village Hall for many years, it was agreed, both will share the cost of the Memorial Bench. Cllr Underhill commented on how well attended the presentation of the bench was by so many residents.
13.0. Other items for discussion. Cllr Hoodless advised the Councillors that the PC meeting scheduled for the 8th of May,
clashed with the National Lighting of the beacon to commemorate VE Day. The Councillors agreed to reschedule their meeting.
to the 15th of May.
The Clerk advised the Councillors, he has found a new supplier for the annual Christmas tree, who can supply the tree at a reduced cost.
Date of next meeting
May 15th, 2025, 7.00pm at Swinstead Village Hall
https://swinstead.parish.lincolnshire.gov.uk/