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Moulton Parish Council
Minutes of the General Meeting of Moulton Parish Council held on Tuesday 4th
February 2014 at the Youth & Community Centre, Moulton Chapel at 6.30pm under the Chairmanship of Cllr Coooper, who presided over Cllrs Scarsbrook, Hahn,
Walters, Briggs, Lockie & Walker.
In attendance – PCSO Robinson, Cllr Casson & 3 parishioners
1.
Chairman’s remarks
The chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting.
6.30 p.m. open Forum
Please note, in line with LALC advice, members of the public can ask a question or make a statement, but this is not required to be recorded in the minutes. If an item is on the agenda it will be debated by councillors at that agenda point (when the public may not take part) or, if it is not on the agenda, with the agreement of council, the item will be placed on the agenda of the next meeting for debate by council.
2.
Apologies for Absence and acceptance of reasons given
Cllr Goad – holiday; Cllr Wakefield – wife in hospital;
3. Additional Declarations of Interest a. None received
4. Police Matters a. The police report was received nem.con.
PCSO Robinson reported the crime figures for the period 7/1/14 - 4/2/14 as follows:
ASBO – 5; Criminal Damage – 1; RTC – 9; Theft – 1. Cllr Scarsbrook reported that highway safety was a priority for the Community Policing Panel. The next CPP meeting is to be held on 18 th
March at Weston Hills Village Hall at 7.00pm.
There has been a warning from Lincs Alert regarding tractor & machinery thefts in the county. Should anyone see any suspicious movements after dark of such vehicles this should be reported to the police on 101.
5. Approval of Notes from 7 th January 2014
Notes of the meeting were approved as the minutes. Proposed Cllr Scarsbrook, seconded Cllr Walker . Agreed nem.con.
6. To receive the clerk’s report on matters outstanding. a . The clerk’s report was received nem.con.
Cllr Scarsbrook felt that we should promote the mobile library service by obtaining the timetable and stopping points. Cllr Lockie felt that the mobile library vehicle was badly parked in Moulton Chapel and suggested that the Community Centre would be a better location. The clerk was asked to contact LCC with these views.
7. Cemetery & Churchyard matters a . The cemetery report was received nem.con.

2536 b. The clerk reported that although 4 tenders had been sent out, only 2 had been received those being Complete Weed Control & Mark Grummitt. After some discussion it was agreed that the contract be given to Complete Weed Control as this was £1072 cheaper. Proposed Cllr Briggs, seconded Cllr Scarsbrook. This figure was an increase of 2.6% on 2013/14 totalling £3758 plus vat for a minimum 14 cuts. Cllr
Scarsbrook asked whether Bob Marriott would consider the maintenance for another year. The clerk agreed to ask Mr Marriott but was of the understanding that he did not have the equipment to carry out this work. Cllr Lockie asked for a copy of the job description for the cemetery keeper as he felt that the hours were excessive for the required work. c. Consideration was given to the remuneration of the cemetery keeper and it was agreed that a 2% increase would take effect from 1 st
April 2014. The hourly rate would be increased to £9.52. Proposed Cllr Briggs, seconded Cllr Scarsbrook. d. The cemetery fees were considered for the forthcoming year. The fees for the cemetery are considerably lower than SHDC and the PCC. It was agreed therefore that they be increased by 10% with the intention of a similar increase each year going forward to bring them more in line with other cemeteries. Proposed Cllr Briggs, seconded Cllr Walker. These figures will take effect from 1 st
April 2014. Cllr Briggs asked that this be put on the December agenda in future in line with the precept discussions.
8. Highway matters a. The Highways report was received nem.con.
Cllr Briggs had been contacted by a number of parishioners in relation to the road and garage’s near Moons Green and wondered if this was a highways issue. Cllr Casson confirmed that contract work was being carried out by AWA, 2 garages had been demolished with a possible third to follow. This was an ongoing issue and being dealt with by SHDC but at the moment there was not a completion date. Any further issues should be directed through SHDC.
9. Planning matters a. The planning report was received nem. con.
Cllr Walters said that she did not have an issue with application H13-0026-14 but was unsure how it would tie in with the street scene to the front of Broad Lane as the plan was not that clear and asked that our response should have concern that Development
Control are able to satisfy themselves of this and the materials being used.
10. Financial matters a. The payments list totalling £2,013.28 was approved. Proposed Cllr Hahn, seconded
Cllr Briggs. This was signed by two signatories in order that a Bacs payment be made.
Agreed nem.con. b. The financial statements for January were considered. Income was £3,711.61 which included the 3rd quarter VAT refund, Expenditure was £3,029.84. Bank balances comprised £9,939.02 & £30,043.29 Agreed nem.con.
Cllr Walters enquired about the way-leave income and what it related to. The clerk confirmed that this was for poles on the Crown land and that she was awaiting confirmation from Carter Jonas of the tenants who would be recompensed accordingly. Going forward, this should be paid direct to the tenants as the Crown are their new landlords.

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11. Moulton Seas End a. A letter has been received from LCC advising that not all the residents along Seas
End Road have agreed to the proposal of dedicating their land as highway and as such the scheme cannot progress without 100% support. Consideration of building part of the footway had been given but this would not achieve the linking in to existing footways which is one of the criteria when assessing the budget spend for this type of work. Cllr Walker confirmed that a compulsory purchase order would not be viable however, he would be contacting Dr Greeves of Highways personally to pursue the footpath. It was generally agreed that the Parish Council could not add any more to the decision taken by LCC. b. The future of the village hall was discussed at length after Cllr Cooper gave a briefing on the decline of groups and volunteers. The Parish Council are Custodian
Trustees of the village hall but the village hall management committee are responsible for the upkeep. It appears that as long as 5 members are present at the meetings this constitutes a quorum. The current management committee are looking for volunteers to help and have said that they will continue as a management group but not organise events if the support is not forthcoming. The Trust Deed seems to be contradictory however, Cllr Walters has offered to take a ‘legal look’ at the Deed and report back to the next meeting. The village hall AGM will be held on 28 th
March and be widely publicised in the hope that new members may be encouraged to join.
12. Moulton Village a. There have been no further details on the Gardman site. Cllr Briggs felt that the
Parish Council need to be open minded about the site and be prepared for any plans going forward. He felt that whatever the plans may be for the site, this would be a major change for the centre of Moulton village. Cllr Walters felt that we needed a policy to support any future decision and suggested that there be a meeting with planners at SHDC to discuss site specific policies. It was proposed Cllr Walters, seconded Cllr Briggs that a meeting be sought. The vote was for 4 in favour, 1 against and 1 abstained. Cllr Briggs agreed to speak to planners with view to arranging a date for an informal chat.
13. Moulton Chapel a. The bus shelter along Fengate was discussed at length following the findings & costings. It is in a poor state of repair and a health & safety issue. The roof is rotten, it is covered in graffiti and the seats have been ripped out. The fascias would need replacing. There is still some good wood in the remaining construction but this would need wood preservative. An approximate cost for repair would be in the region of
£550-£600. It does not appear to be the responsibility of LCC, Highways or SHDC. It has been there for several years but no one appears to know who built it. There are currently no departure times for this bus stop although the school bus does stop here.
Cllr Lockie felt that it should not be repaired. Cllr Scarsbrook asked that further investigation take place. The clerk will contact Fowlers coaches for more details on school buses and endeavour to contact the landowner as the concrete base is in the dyke adjacent to this field.
14. MCA Ltd a. The clerk had not received any details of the MCA meeting held on 23 rd
January however Cllr Scarsbrook confirmed that the committee will be pursuing the route of a

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Charitable Incorporated Association and that there is still some legal work to be carried out. The Parish Council will be contacted in due course.
15. Citizen of the Year a. Consideration was given to the proposals from the Management Group. Cllr Briggs suggested that there be no age restriction which was agreed. It was suggested that it be available on face-book in addition to the village voice, website, press, notice boards, schools, bus stops & businesses. It was agreed that letters promoting the award could also be sent to the MCA Ltd, Moulton Mill, MCYCC, MSE Youth Club & Harrox
Sports & Social Club. It is hoped that a press reporter and photographer be present on the evening. It was agreed that in addition to the shield which will be engraved, the winner will receive a replica to keep, there will be a runners up shield along will certificates for all nominees. A list of nominees will be provided along with past winners. The deadline will be the 19 th
March with judging on the 24 th
March. The judging panel would comprise of the Management Group. The new vicar Rev’d Julie
Timings and the Headmaster Daniel Pilsworth will also be invited to join the panel.
The presentation evening will take place on the evening of the Annual meeting
Tuesday 1 st
April with refreshments in the hope that it will encourage all parishioners and the nominees family and supporters.
16. Moulton Harrox Educational Foundation
There were no further updates.
17. St John’s College
There were no further updates.
18. Correspondence a. General correspondence was made available for inspection after the meeting.
19. Spalding Magistrates Court a. Consideration was given to the correspondence relating to the closure of the Court in Spalding. Cllr Walters suggested that a letter be written in support of the court remaining open giving reasons around rural proofing. Environmental issues in relation to travel also needed to be considered. Cllr Scarsbrook also suggested that we should question whether or not the policy makers have got the evidence to support their decision.
20. Moulton Chapel resident request for re-housing of daughter a. A letter has been received from a resident seeking support from the parish council for her daughter to be re-housed by SHDC from another local authority in order to help her and her husband as they have both been very poorly and unable to cope without family support. The clerk has received an e-mail from the Housing Officer at
SHDC confirming that the application could not be discussed without the applicants’ written permission and that she should be encouraged to contact the Housing Advice
Team to discuss both the housing register and other options to secure accommodation in this area. It was generally agreed that the Parish Council could not get involved with this issue.

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21. Minor matters not included elsewhere on the agenda and items for inclusion on the next agenda a. The new vicar, Rev’d Julie Timings will be licensed on Thursday 6 th March at
7.30pm in Whaplode Church. The new group of parishes will be known as the Elloe
Stone Parishes & comprise Whaplode, Holbeach St John’s, Moulton & Moulton
Chapel. b. Cllr Lockie asked that the playing field in Moulton Chapel be put on the agenda for
March.
22. To confirm the date of the next meeting a. The date of the next meeting will be held on Tuesday 4 th
March 2014 at 6.30 pm at the Community Centre, Moulton. The clerk asked that support be given for the agendas to be sent a little earlier than usual. Agreed nem.con.
23. Exclusion of public, press & police
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.45pm