MINUTES OF TROSTON PARISH COUNCIL MEETING held on Tuesday 15th November 2024
7.00pm at Troston Village Hall
- Present
- Cllrs D Bilverstone (Chair) J Moffat, S Rose, P Riddick, D Pugson & WS D. Cllr A Speed.
1. Apologies for absence
The Parish Council received and accepted apologies for the absence from Cllrs P Walton and R Hopfensperger.
2. Co-option of new Parish Councillor
N/A
3. Members Declarations of Interest and Dispensations:
- To receive declarations of interest from Councillors on items on the agenda. None.
- To receive written requests for dispensations for disclosable pecuniary interests. None.
- To grant dispensations as appropriate under Section 33 of the Localism Act. None.
4. Minutes
The minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on 10th September 2024 were agreed and approved as correct records.
5. Report from RAF Honington:
The Clerk has been informed that Sqn Ldr DM Williams has moved to another position and that currently there is no liaison, Officer. It was agreed to forward minutes to RAF Honington to keep them up to date on Parish matters.
6. Meeting open for questions from the public
It is politely requested that this session does not exceed 15 minutes in total.
Councillor Pugson reported that he had been asked if there was a site available for village allotments. Council advised as there was not available land this was not an option but agreed that if there was a possibility of any land becoming available this should be considered.
7. Village Hall report
To receive any report from the Village Hall, including any update regarding the acoustic treatment and roof repairs. Brenda Burridge gave the report which advised:
- Bookings - Regular bookings continue with some additional dates booked on the run up to Christmas.
- Maintenance - The external painting has been completed, an additional shelf has been put up in the kitchen and the windows cleaned. The electrical certificate has been issued meaning everything complies with regulations. It has been reported that the lights in the drive were not working so Bright Sparks will be contacted again.
- Roofing – Quotes have been considered and will be checked again to reflect the equity of the work to be done. Current quotes are £30.000, funding options are being explored through grant applications and approaching the Church.
- Meetings – Monday 2nd December at 2pm to put up the Christmas decorations, Monday 7th January 2025 at 2pm Committee meeting. Please note that in the minutes of our last meeting 10th September it stated that the village hall was seeking a new secretary but this is incorrect.
8. Report from County Councillor: R Hopfensperger.
To receive updates regarding possible signage at the playing field and confirmation of any grant towards VAS.
Cllr Hopfensperger was unable to attend the meeting, there were no updates.
9. Report from B. Councillor: A Speed
Cllr Speed reported that it has been confirmed the bin collections would continue to be fortnightly once the new recycling and bin collection schedule begins. The glass recycling bottle banks in the area will start to be collected ahead of the new waste management system but no time scale was available.
10. Finance
10.1 The following accounts were approved for payment/noted.
| Description | Type | Supplier / customer | Net | VAT | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Village Hall Wife | Payment | BT | -29.99 | -6.00 | -35.99 | |
| village hall wifi | Payment | BT | -29.99 | -6.00 | -35.99 | |
| 2nd quarter bank charges | Payment | Unity bank | -18.00 | 0.00 | -18.00 | |
| 7th month bank charges | Payment | Unity bank | -5.40 | 0.00 | -5.40 | |
| September salary | Payment | Amanda Jackson | -326.54 | 0.00 | -326.54 | |
| October salary | Payment | Amanda Jackson | -326.54 | 0.00 | -326.54 | |
| September tax calculated by salc | Payment | HMRC | -75.20 | 0.00 | -75.20 | |
| McAfee antivirus for Council lap | Payment | Amanda Jackson | -69.99 | 0.00 | -69.99 | |
| PC insurance 2/11/24 - 1/11/25 | Payment | Clear Councils | -827.45 | 0.00 | -827.45 | |
| budget meeting 23.10.24 | Payment | Troston Village Hall | -10.00 | 0.00 | -10.00 | |
| Poppy Wreath | Payment | Royal British Legion | -30.00 | 0.00 | -30.00 | |
| -1,749.10 | -12.00 | -1,761.10 | ||||
10.2 Bank reconciliation, budget report and accounts update.
The Clerk provided a schedule of payments, bank reconciliation and budget report for the Councilors information. It was noted that the new Clerk should be set up to administer the account in the next week.
10.3 Council to consider transferring funds from the Current account to the Instant access account.
Councilors discussed and agreed for the Clerk to transfer funds to the Instant access account and monitor to keep enough monies available when required. Action Clerk
10.4 Council to consider a donation to Ixworth Surgery Patients Association.
The Parish Council discussed a request for a donation by Ixworth Surgery Patients Association and unanimously agreed to donate £200. Action Clerk
11. Budget planning 2025/26
The budget working party meeting was held on 23rd October 2024 in the village hall to discuss the Precept for 2025/26. Councillors considered their findings and unanimously agreed to the working party budget and set the Precept demand for £20,000. This would represent an overall increase of £6.02 per annum on the council tax bill for a property in band D.
12. Play Area/Field to include:
12.1 To discuss revised quotation for steps to slide
Councillors considered the amended quote to replace all 5 of the wooden steps to the slide at a cost of £445.00 and unanimously agreed to proceed. Action Clerk
12.2 To discuss quote for goal sleeve to aid goal mouth repair.
Councillors felt the quote of £573 was more than expected, Councillors Pugson and Riddick will liaise with the supplier. Action Cllrs Pugson/Riddick
12.3 To receive any update on the application for Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) for the children’s play area.
This matter is still in hand at West Suffolk Council.
12.4 To consider the Capital funds grant from West Suffolk Council.
Councillors considered the Capital funds grant from West Suffolk Council and unanimously agreed to proceed with an application to use for a new amenity on the playing field. The deadline to apply is 29th November 2024 and the grant needs to be used by 31st March 2025. Councillors agreed to finalise the questionnaire and advise residents in the newsletter to look out for it on facebook, the Jackdaw and the wooden box. Replies will be collected from facebook, hard copies from Councillor Rose and email replies from Councillor Pugson who will collate the results. Action Cllr Bilverston/Clerk
13. Village Maintenance/matters
13.1 To discuss the damaged grit bin.
Councillors discussed the damaged grit bin and decided to clear away the debris of the existing but not replace it. Action Cllr Bilverstone
13.2 To confirm purchase of new VAS, following confirmation of funds from SCC Cllr R Hopfensperger
Confirmation of funding is yet to be received from Cllr Hopfensperger. The purchase of a new device will be put on hold until this confirmation has been received. The Clerk has emailed the quote as requested. Action Cllr Hopfensperger/Clerk
13.3 To receive any updates regarding the village website.
Cllr Pugson has continued to work on the website in 3 phases.
- Updating of Information and Content: Removal of pages that are no longer relevant (archived lest one day become needed again), adding Council Bios (with requests for information to complete the Councillor bio section) - progressively going “live”. Deadline 30 Nov 2024
- Content and supporting Imagery: building some additional pages. Upgrading wherever high rez photography exists and adding new photography such as the Troston Wood Hollyhocks, etc. Will involve additional links and owner consent requests. Deadline 16 Dec 2024
- Pagination: re-doing pagination, layouts, fonts, print sizes and further updating of ese-of-access links. Deadline 15 Jan 2025.
Thereafter, constant updating and enhancement. Action Cllr Pugson/All
13.4 To discuss potential use for the decommissioned phone box.
Councillors agreed to revisit the topic in the new year.
14. Clerks Report.
14.1 To confirm .Gov domain name and to confirm councillors new email addresses.
The Clerk confirmed that the new .gov email address is now up and running clerk@trostonparishcouncil.gov.uk. A gentle transition between the old and new address will occur. At present two Councillors have dedicated parish council email addresses; the Clerk recommends that all Councillors obtain a parish council only email address at their earliest convenience. Action Cllrs Pugson/Walton/Moffat
15. Planning
To also include any applications/decisions received since the agenda was posted.
15.1 There were no applications to consider.
16. Councillors reports and items for future agendas.
Review of the grass cutting requirements at January 2025 meeting. Action Clerk
17. Correspondence for action or information
There was no correspondence to action or information note.
18. Date for next meeting.
The clerk presented a meeting schedule for 2025 which was agreed. Next meeting will be Tuesday 14th January 2025 7.00pm
With no further business the meeting was closed at 9pm