May 04 2021 - Annual Meeting of the Parish Council - Minutes
ANNUAL PARISH COUNCIL MEETING
04 May 2021 MINUTES
Present:
Councillors: Cllr. E. Murray (Council Chair), Cllr. M. Clarke (Council Vice Chair), Cllr. G. McDonnell, Cllr. H. Wilson, Cllr. P. Johnston-Davis
Clerk and RFO: Mr S Baxter
Members of the public: Four
Meeting commenced at 7.00pm
AGENDA ITEMS AND DISCUSSIONS
1. Welcome to all Councillors and any members of the public sitting in observation. The Chair will make people aware that the meeting is recorded and the recordings are kept for a minimum of 12 months
The Chair welcomed all, including the new Clerk and checked all Councillors were able to see, hear and be heard as the meeting was held via a digital format.
2. Apologies for absence from any Councillors
The Clerk had previously been made aware of the apology given by Cllr Faulkner who is absent due to a previously booked holiday. The Council confirmed that they would accept his apology which was duly noted.
Cllr McDonnell was not present at the start of the meeting but joined at 7.25pm – his delay was caused by a personal issue which the Council accepted.
3. Minutes from Annual Meeting in 2020 – confirmation that as no meeting was held during the normal period of May due to Covid-19 restrictions as thus there are no minutes
The Clerk confirmed that there was no Annual Meeting of the Parish Council in May 2020 due to the pandemic. The permission to delay the Annual Meeting was granted under the Corona Virus Act 2020.
4. Minutes for the Annual Meeting on the 11 August 2020 – just for note as already formally agreed on the
08 September 2020
The Chair confirmed that the Annual Meeting of the Council was held on the 11 August 2020 and the minutes were agreed in the 08 September Full Parish Council Meeting.
There was no questions or comments from the Councillors.
5. Election of Chair Person – nominations and vote for the position of Chair of the Council
The Clerk asked for nominations for the Chair of the Council, that while it was not specified in legislation it was good practice.
Cllr Clarke nominated Cllr Murray and it was seconded by Cllr Johnston-Davis. Cllr Murray accepted the nomination
There was a full vote by the Councillors, but Cllr Murray felt it appropriate to abstain from the vote as to not appear to influence the decision.
• The Councillors present voted through a majority to re-elect Cllr Elisabeth Murray as Chair; she was duly appointed as Chair of the Nocton Parish Council.
The Chair signed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office Document in front of the Clerk and Councillors via Zoom. This will be signed by the Clerk upon receipt of the document from the newly elected Chair.
6. Election of the Vice Chair Person – nominations for the position of Vice Chair and vote
The Clerk asked for nominations for the Vice Chair of the Council, that while it was not specified in legislation it was good practice.
The Chair nominated Cllr Clarke, and it was seconded by Cllr Wilson. Cllr Clarke accepted the nomination.
There was a full vote by the Councillors, but Cllr Clarke felt it appropriate to abstain from the vote as to not appear to influence the decision.
• The Councillors present voted through a majority to re-elect Cllr Michael Clarke as Vice Chair; he was duly appointed as Vice Chair of the Nocton Parish Council.
Action by the Clerk – The signing of the Declaration of Acceptance will be requested to be signed by Cllr Clarke – while it is not statutorily required it is good practice.
7. Agreement to adopt the current standing orders and the policies of the Council
The Chair stated that while the Council’s policies and the full standing orders will be reviewed later in the year by the Clerk once other urgent Council work has been undertaken, the Council does have to readopt them every year.
• Motion to agree to the re-adoption of the Council’s policies and standing orders was proposed by Cllr Johnston-Davis, seconded by Cllr.Wilson and agreed unanimously. Motion carried.
8. Discussion and formation of any committees of the Council including Chair of the Committee: - Personnel Committee & Finance Committee
The Chair opened the discussion by stating that the Council previously had a Personnel Committee and that the recommendation by the RFO to the formation of a Finance Committee decision had been agreed at a previous meeting.
The Council briefly discussed the Committees and all agreed it was appropriate to have both of them.
i) Personnel Committee:
The Council discussed the details of the membership of the Committee and felt that while it was not essential to reappoint the same membership, it may be prudent to allow consistency.
The Chair nominated Cllr Clarke as Personnel Committee Chair with Cllr McDonnell and Cllr Faulkner being members of the Committee. This was seconded by Cllr Wilson.
There was a full vote by the Councillors, but Cllr Clarke felt it appropriate to abstain from the vote as to not appear to influence the decision.
• Motion to the re-adoption of the Personnel Committee with Cllr Clarke as the Committee Chair and Cllr’s McDonnell and Faulkner to be members of was agreed by majority. Motion carried.
ii) Finance Committee:
The Council discussed the details of the membership of the Committee and felt as Cllr Wilson had previously had the held the Finance portfolio it would be prudent to consider her as the Finance Committee Chair.
The Chair invited volunteers for the membership of the newly formed committee – she stated that it was good practice that the Chair was not involved in a finance committee.
Cllr’s Clarke and Johnston-Davis volunteered.
The Chair nominated Cllr Wilson as Finance Committee Chair with Cllr Clarke and Cllr Johnston-Davis being members of the Committee. This was seconded by Cllr McDonnell.
There was a full vote by the Councillors.
• Motion to the re-adoption of the Personnel Committee with Cllr Clarke as the Committee Chair and Cllr’s McDonnell and Faulkner to be members of was agreed by majority. Motion carried.
Action by the Clerk – To investigate the requirements of the terms of reference of the Finance Committee and update the Councillors.
9. Discussion of appointment of Councillors have specific portfolios for Police and Planning
The Chair stated that previously the Council had Councillors with portfolios of Planning as well as Policing. She stated that the portfolio of the Planning was not to decide the planning permissions, it was to review the application specifics and the provide guidance to the Full Council who have the legal duty to decide on each application.
i) Councillor with the Planning Portfolio
The Chair confirmed that she was the previous holder of the Planning Portfolio and was happy to continue if the Council wished.
• Motion to agree to re-appointing the Chair as the Planning Portfolio holder for the Council was proposed by the Cllr Wilson, seconded by Cllr. Johnston-Davis. The motion was agreed by majority (the Chair felt it appropriate to abstain). Motion carried.
ii) Councillor with the Police Portfolio
The Chair stated that while having a Councillor with the Police Portfolio had been useful previously, due to the changes in the way that the Police operate, the effectiveness of the Policing Panels was decreasing to a point where the Police do not consider them useful anymore. The Chair continued to state that while the current Chair of the Police Panel (who is not associated with Nocton Parish Council) did want them to continue, in her opinion there was less need to have Councillor with this portfolio and as an alternative ask any Policing issues to come through the Clerk.
Cllr Johnston-Davis stated that he agreed that the influence of the Policing Panel, as well as the Neighbourhood Watch had decreased to a point that the Police do not engage with these groups any longer. He continued that while there was the NEIGHBOURHOOD ALERT system, again this was ineffective unfortunately.
The Council discussed the issue of the Police Portfolio and all concluded that it was not needed and any Police or crime issues to go through the Clerk.
10. Agreement to subscribe to any Advisory Bodies – specifically LALC
The Chair opened the agenda point to state that currently the Council subscribe to LALC (Lincolnshire Association Local Councils) who had provided useful guidance, training as well as support over the previous years. They are a very useful source of information for urgent issues.
The Chair asked the Council if there was any other associations or bodies that the Council may wish to subscribe to. There was no further suggestion or request.
• Motion to agree that the Council to continue to subscribe to the LALC was proposed by the Chair, seconded by Cllr. Johnston-Davis and agreed unanimously. Motion carried.
11. Agreement of the frequency of the meetings of the Council - agreement of the meetings to be held on the SECOND Tuesday of every month
The Chair stated that the traditional schedule of the Council Meetings was to hold the meetings on the SECOND TUESDAY of every month at 7pm.
Cllr Clarke asked if the Council meet in August.
The Chair confirmed that it had been traditional that there was no meeting in August and that the meeting in January was held a week later to agree to agree the budget and precept which often meant there was no need to meet in February; if there were urgent issues to address, then of course the Council would meet.
• Motion to agree the scheduling of the Council Meetings to be held on the SECOND TUESDAY of every month at 7pm was proposed by Cllr McDonnell, seconded by the Chair and agreed unanimously. Motion carried.
The Clerk stated that as the meetings for the next six months would actually be CLERK ADVISORY MEETINGS under the Scheme of Delegation granted to the Clerk, it was the Clerk’s intention to continue the schedule of the meetings on the second Tuesday of every month.
MEETING WAS CLOSED BY THE CHAIR AT 7.25PM
NOCTON PARISH COUNCIL
Clerk to the Parish: Mr S R Baxter JP MIFA ADPS ADIP Email: clerk@noctonparishcouncil.gov.uk Tel: 0781 444 3058