Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting Held in Lindsey Village Hall

Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting held on Wednesday 9th November 2022 in Lindsey Village Hall, Church Road, Lindsey which commenced at 7.30pm.

Present: The Chair, Cllr. Arthey welcomed the following Parish Cllrs. to the meeting: R Corcoran, B Howe, R Howe, J Moore and A Sturgeon. In attendance was Mrs V Waples, Clerk, District Cllr. L. Jamieson and three members of the public.

Opening – the Chair opened the meeting and thanked all for attending. The statement on reporting at meetings of the parish council was read out by the Clerk.

Apologies of Absence

Apologies of absence were received from Cllr. Hainsworth for personal reasons.
Council consented to accept the apology given, aif.
The meeting noted that County Cllr. Finch had submitted his apologies for this meeting due to clashes with other ward meetings.

Declarations of Interest

To receive declarations of registrable interests and non-registerable interests as detailed in Appendix B of the LGA Model Code of Conduct Model Code of Conduct 2020 - there were no declarations of registrable interests and Cllr. Arthey declared a non-registrable interest as Chair of Lindsey Village Hall for agenda item 8iv.
There were no declarations of gifts of hospitality received exceeding £50.
There were no requests for dispensations for the agenda under discussion.

Minutes of Previous Meetings

To approve the minutes of the Parish Council Meeting 28th September 2022 - the meeting agreed that the circulated minutes, were a true and accurate record of the meeting that took place and agreed for the Chair to sign the minutes, aif.

Public Forum

(maximum 10 minutes)

To note the report from the County Councillor – the meeting noted the written report previously circulated and there were no matters to refer to Cllr. Finch.
To note the report from the District Councillor – the meeting noted the written report previously circulated – a copy of which can be found at Appendix A. The following points were raised:
- CIL application approved this week. Cllr. Jamieson addressed the concerns that had been raised as to whether the funding for the Befriending Scheme was coming from the Lindsey Neighbourhood CIL, but it was confirmed that the sum of £100,000 was coming from the District Infrastructure List.

At this point both the Clerk and Cllr. Jamieson provided an update on the meeting held as reference under Agenda Item 10iii. During the meeting it had been stated that there was overall support from people in the community and that three people had indicated their interest in being part of the scheme; issues had arisen with the previous site although these had not been addressed by the CEO of the scheme and assurances were given that the benefits would outweigh the harm that might be caused from increased traffic. It was noted that within the planning documents and CIL bid forms, it was mentioned, and agreement was forthcoming, that a member of the parish along with a resident of the village would be expected to join a focus group to deal with any operational issues and that restrictions had been placed on the CIL bid. Concern was raised at the pressure placed on the planning officer before the application was determined. It was also agreed that it was unclear from the Highways response given as to whether they had taken into account concerns raised. Reassurance had also been given that the portacabins would be clad. All however agreed that there was no point in revisiting the planning application and CIL award as both had been awarded and that any issues should be addressed by direct communication with the Befriending Scheme via the focus group. The clerk made the meeting aware that an invitation to attend a meeting extended to the CEO of the Scheme had met with a positive result but unfortunately the earliest date for attendance would be the March 2023 meeting.

To receive comments from the public on the agenda as published – none submitted prior to the meeting.
To receive comments from or questions from the public on matters relating to Lindsey –
- From those present –
  - Issue of muck being moved from one residential site to another by vehicles for several months. Significant impact on the road surface – state of roads has deteriorated significantly along The Tye and towards Boxford. Offer has been made to sweep the road once the removal of spoil has finished. It was queried as to whether the Environment Agency might need to be notified as there was an understanding that permits were required for moving muck from one site to another. Following further discussion, the Chair agreed, in the first instance, to speak to the Site Manager and request if the relevant permits were in place. The Chair would then liaise with the Clerk prior to any further action being taken on this matter.
- As submitted by email / letter – the Clerk had not received any matters for Council’s consideration.

Parish Matters

To receive updates on items raised at previous meetings:

Climate Awareness / climate emergency –
1. To consider whether there are any further measures that can be taken for raising awareness of the issues relating to actions that can be undertaken at a local level – Cllrs. Moore and Sturgeon confirmed that an article on thermal imaging had been placed into the village advertising the loan of the thermal camera to the parish council. All properties would be leafletted shortly before the arrival and use of the camera. The Clerk agreed to ensure the relevant GDPR consent forms were in place containing details as to how the images would be stored overall.
2. To receive an update on the Heating Bildeston project – see Agenda Item 5ic) below for the update.
3. To receive a verbal report on the SALC Climate Forum as attended by Cllr. Sturgeon – Cllr. Sturgeon provided the meeting with a resume of the online meeting attended which had included presentations from Karbonhomes.co.uk and Heat Bildeston. Cllr. Sturgeon made the meeting aware that retrofitting was the becoming popular and might be something that the parish council could consider pushing forward. It was agreed that the role of the parish council was to provide assistance, guidance and signpost residents to as much information as possible to allow an informed decision to be made. Council was recommended to visit the LETI website which has published a climate awareness retrofit guide with the aim of working together to put the UK on the path to a zero-carbon future. Cllr. Sturgeon reported that the Heat Bildeston was a long-term and complex project and that whilst the feasibility has provided proof of the concept of an open-loop heat network in Bildeston, it would require further action and funding for this to come to fruition. Financial feasibility studies would be carried out in 2023.
Directional Signage – to consider the costings from SCC Highways Department on the project to consider improvements to the directional signage for Lindsey (Paper: Replacement Directional Signage) – Council reviewed the costs involved and it was agreement that they seemed excessive. The clerk was asked to ascertain whether the council could install their own signs, sourced by the parish council, under licence from Suffolk County Council. It was also queried as to whether a licence would be required per sign or whether there could be just one for the signs within the parish of Lindsey. It was noted that there was no funding available from the County for the upgrade of the identified signs as the parish was not in a conservation area.
Improvements to the two triangles near the Rose Pub – to receive further information on the costings from County Cllr. Finch for improvements to both areas – all were made aware that the request for a firmer site survey and design requests had been passed from the Councillor Highways Support Team to the Community Liaison Engineer for Lindsey as the Highways Assessment and Claims Manager was no longer dealing with such requests. Further detailed costings were now awaited. Cllr. Jamieson was asked to enquire whether there were any grants to assist with taking this project forward. It was noted that Cllr. Jamieson had offered £500 from his Locality Budget to Lindsey for either this or the directional signage project.

Statutory Business

Council to note insurance cover has been renewed and is in place effective 1st October 2022 – Council noted renewal of the annual premium effective 1st October 2022.
Council to note the reappointment of PKF Littlejohn as the Council’s External Auditors for the years 2023 – 2027 – Council noted that, following the central procurement undertaken for the appointment of the external auditor, PKF Littlejohn had been reappointed the external auditor for Suffolk (and other areas) for the next five year period covering the years 1 April 2022 through to 31 March 2027.

Correspondence

BMSDC – Town and Parish Updates – Council noted that all monthly updates are emailed to Councillors for their perusal.
SALC – Councillors noted that all weekly news bulletins are emailed to Councillors for their perusal. Councillors to contact the Clerk if there are any items of interest / training courses they wish to attend.

Clerk’s Financial Report

To consider schedule of receipts received and payments made since the last meeting – Paper A – all noted that there had been nil receipts received since the last meeting and that nil expenditure had been incurred for the same period.
To consider and approve the verified items awaiting authorization as per the schedule submitted – Paper B – all approved the payments to be settled via the internet banking system, details of which can be found at Appendix B, aif. Council noted that the 2022-23 National Salary Award had been applied to the Clerk’s salary in accordance with her employment contract.
To consider the Council's financial position to date – Paper C – Council noted the reconciled position of £5,937.12 once the accounts awaiting payment had been settled, aif. Cllrs. Corcoran and Howe confirmed that they had verified the position against the bank statements and cashbook. It was noted that the reserve fund allocation for the year was achievable, and that Council’s reserves to date could be broken down as follows: £2,015.37 CIL; Earmarked Reserves £1,650.00. Council’s yearly general balance stood at £2,271.75.
To consider the actual versus budget for the period ending September & November - Paper D – Council reviewed the two papers and noted that overall to date the Councils position showed a small overspend mainly attributed to the National Salary Award for the year 2022-2023 and an uplift in the Clerk’s pay scale.
To consider and approve donations to be made under the General Power of Competence (previously LGA 1972 s137 has been used) – Paper E – agreement was forthcoming that a donation of £100 be made to SARS.
To consider the 1st (first) draft of the Budget for 2023 – 2024 – Paper F – the draft budget was reviewed and accepted by all as an indicative budget (£5,657) with formal approval to be given at the meeting in January 2023 once the tax base was known. It was agreed that, at the meeting in January, Council would consider whether a sum should be included within the budget for a contested election as opposed to an uncontested election.

Clerk’s Report

To be advised that the Clerk has responded to a request from Hitcham Parish Clerk to agree to the setting up of a suitable account for the Roundabout Magazine to cover all financial transactions connected with the magazine – all noted the agreement given.
To be advise that the Clerk has responded to the Rural Mobility Survey as issued by Transport East – all noted the Clerk’s responses to the survey which in the main included an audit of the services in the village and details as to where the residents of Lindsey would travel to avail themselves of services and facilities.

Planning Matters

To consider the following planning applications:
- DC/22/05413 –Householder Application - Erection of new porch extension and home office and insertion of bathroom window (following demolition of shed and greenhouse, and relocation of second shed) @ Fair View, The Street – agreement was forthcoming that whilst the Council had no objection to the proposal, a concern should be raised over the proximity of the proposed buildings to the rear boundary of Monks, aif.
- DC/22/05271 - Full Planning Application - Erection of 1 no. dwelling, cart lodge and new vehicular access (in lieu of the dwelling approved under DC/21/02911) (following demolition of existing barn) @ Church Farm Meadow, Church Road – the meeting noted that the site was outside of the cluster of dwellings that form part of the proposed settlement boundary for Lindsey at this part of the village) in the Draft Joint Local Plan (Lindsey - Church (Hamlet) and that the Council had originally opposed the building of a house around the barn. The proposal to recommend refusal of the application on the grounds that this was a new house in the countryside, which should be objected to in policy terms, and that there were no grounds to support an exception to planning policy, was agreed by a majority decision with one abstention. All further agreed that if view from the barn was an important matter under the original application, then this still held for this proposal as there was still a detrimental impact on the setting of the Church under the new proposal.
To note the following planning applications determined by the local planning authority: there were none for notification.
Consultation - Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) Bid Round Nine – Position Statement for Compliant Bid Project reference B22-09 – Project - Red Rose Friends Community Farm – Council to receive an update from the Clerk on the meeting held with the Spatial Infrastructure Officers at BMSDC with regards to this project and its funding – this had been covered previously within the agenda.

Parish Councillors’ Reports

There were no reports on village issues from Councillors present.

Date of Next Meeting

Parish Council Meeting 18th January 2023 commencing at 7.30pm in Lindsey Village Hall.
Date of Meetings for the remainder of 2022 -2023: 8th March 2023

There being no other business the Chairman declared the meeting closed at 21.59pm.

Appendix A – County and District Councillor Reports

County Councillor James Finch report to Council:

Suffolk proposes already-planned developments for Investment Zone status by Govt - The Government launched the process in early October to invite councils to submit their bids by 14th October. Suffolk Councils have been working in partnership with landowners, the Local Enterprise Partnership, the Chamber of Commerce and key local stakeholders to identify sites that meet the Government’s criteria. Suffolk County Council, in partnership with the district and borough councils, submitted on 14th October an Investment Zone expression of interest to Government based around sites which are already in existing local plans or have otherwise been identified for development. The proposal will seek Investment Zone status for sites along Suffolk’s key transport corridors of the A14, A12 and A11 and near the gateways to the county in Lowestoft, Sudbury and Mildenhall. No new greenfield sites and no new sites adjacent to Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty have been brought forward. The sites in our local area include a cluster around 1. Ipswich including land adjacent to Copdock Interchange, the Eastern Gateway, Europa Way, Hadleigh Road and Seven Hills; 2. Sudbury including the Delphi site, the Hamiton road Quarter and Chilton Woods. These sites submitted are all supported by Suffolk’s MPs. We have chosen locations that will not only benefit most from regeneration, but will also allow sustainable, balanced development while protecting the environment and the AONB. We feel the proposed clusters in Copdock and Sudbury have enormous potential, with the possibility of bringing thousands of jobs to the area. It is also important to note these contain locations that are, apart from one, either brownfield sites or sites where planning permission has already been granted.
More Special Educational Needs (SEND) places funded at October Cabinet Meeting - Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet agreed a new wave of funding to continue its programme to provide much-needed specialist places for children and young people with SEND. The £3million agreement marks the start of Phase 3 of the Capital Programme to create three additional specialist units providing 42 additional places for students with special educational needs and disabilities. This follows Phase 1 of the programme which created 825 news places across Suffolk and Phase 2, which was signed off in June 2022, and will create up to 73 new places. So far, £45m has been allocated by Suffolk County Council to deliver the new places for Phase 1 and Phase 2 - £15m of which has been provided by the Department for Education making a total of an extra £63m investment for Suffolk.
Could you help a Ukrainian family in need? There is still more need for help - Guests on the Homes for Ukraine scheme who are not yet ready to leave sponsorship and move into their own alternative accommodation, but who cannot stay with their current host after 6 months, can move to a new host. We are now looking for hosts for these families as well. We also sadly continue to see more people fleeing the conflict each day. We are therefore asking anyone who thinks they may be able to help a family in need to sign up to the Homes for Ukraine scheme." For more information see this link: Support for Ukraine | Suffolk County Council to find out more, including the experiences of people who have hosted Ukrainian families in their homes. Or visit an upcoming drop-in session in Ipswich: Tuesday 8 November, 11.30am – 1:30pm at Ipswich Cornhill, Ipswich. IP1 1DD
Deadline to apply for Secondary School Places has passed – still apply though - Parents and carers can now apply for primary and secondary school places for September 2023. The deadline for applications to secure a place at a Suffolk secondary school is Monday 31st October 2022. The deadline for applying for a primary school place, including infant and junior schools, is Sunday 15 January 2023.
Suffolk Road-safe Partnership rolls out ANPR devices to target speeding motorists - Speeding motorists are to be targeted with a mobile number plate recognition system to be rolled out across Suffolk. Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) Speed Indicator Devices (SIDs) will be rotated around sites where there is a problem with speeding or rat-running on roads with a 20 or 30mph speed limit. The devices, 10 in total, will display the speeds of drivers to them as they approach, encouraging them to slow down. If they continue to ignore the speed limit the ANPR camera will take a picture of them and record the date, time, speed, vehicle registration and a photo of the vehicle. In certain cases, persistent offenders will be reported to Suffolk Constabulary and, while no one will be prosecuted as a direct result of the devices, they may be visited by a police officer who will speak to them about their driving. This project is part of the Suffolk Road-safe Partnership between Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Constabulary and is particularly targeted at roads in the rural areas.
Cost of living to impact Suffolk County Council’s budget - Suffolk County Council is keen to hear from Suffolk residents, businesses and local communities, as it decides its budget for next year. An online survey has been launched, and a number of focus groups will be held, for you to have your say on the services which are important to you - https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/7BQY0J/. A summary of your responses will be included in the report considered by the council when agreeing the budget in February 2023. The budget setting process includes your thoughts, advice from council officers, elected members from political groups, businesses and partners in health and other public service organisations across Suffolk. Setting our budget each year is always challenging, but we always strive to offer taxpayers the best possible value. We work hard to maintain all our services and invest where we can, which is what we were able to achieve last year. However, this year is going to be much more difficult. Many people that I speak to think that councils are not affected by the increase in the cost of living – unfortunately this is not the case. A proposed budget will be presented at a County Council Cabinet meeting in January 2023 and the final budget will be discussed at Full Council in February 2023.
Launch of ‘Childhood’ – short film to raise awareness of the need for Foster Carers - In a ground-breaking national collaboration, 56 Local Authorities across England have worked together to share ideas and jointly fund the creation of a short film to raise awareness of fostering. It is aimed at finding more people who may be interested in becoming foster carers and providing nurturing, positive homes for children and young people across the country who need them. The new film, simply called ‘Childhood’, highlights the impact of neglect on children, particularly brothers and sisters who may be left at times to try and care for each other. It shows the journey of ‘Sophie’ and ‘Charlie’ who are in a very difficult home situation where their needs are not being met, to being nurtured and supported through foster care to attend school and be able to enjoy their hobbies and interests. In other words, have a childhood. The film can be viewed by copying this link into your browser at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arYodXGnYsU. /HERE, The readers of this column know the personal interest I have taken in this subject.
Virtual Fostering and Adoption Sessions for the Stour Valley - A Foster Carer Recruitment Event is held the 1st Wednesday of every month, and an Adoption Event is on the 1st Thursday all 7:00pm in your home. To book a place please email Claire.Gwatkin@suffolk.gov.uk.

District Councillor Leigh Jamieson report to Council:

Friends Farm CIL application - The £100,000 CIL application for Friends Farm was approved at Cabinet this week. The sum, which will be used to help the charity adapt the site to their needs will be taken from the wider CIL budget and will not be coming from Lindsey’s neighbourhood CIL. The CIL team have also confirmed that this approval will not prevent any other project in Lindsey from bidding for their own funding.
Retrofitting Motion - I recently, successfully, submitted a motion to Full Council asking the council to investigate working with other councils in Suffolk and Essex to help Retrofitting of Council Owned Properties. By combining resources and finances it may be possible to increase the number of properties that can be retrofitted. Not only is this a good thing environmentally, but it could be good for the local economy as the economies of scale would allow local companies to target there business effectively and will help with training local people.
Council Property arm generates income - Babergh and Mid Suffolk’s commercial property company CIFCO made a £6.7m profit last year and generated £3.7m in net income for the councils to plough back into services, councillors heard this week. This means that since CIFCO Capital Ltd was established jointly by Babergh and Mid Suffolk District Councils in 2017, it has not only maintained its debt repayments in full but also generated net income last year of £1.7m for Mid Suffolk and £2m for Babergh, bringing the total net income received by the councils by the end of the last financial year to £9.25m. I did raise concerns regarding the potential risks that the cost of living crisis could bring, but these were largely dismissed as mitigation is in place.
Corks Lane - Work is ongoing at the former council offices in Hadleigh, which will see a regeneration of original buildings to preserve and enhance the original structure. The aim is to ensure the character and retain the features of the existing building, through sympathetic conversion. Work onsite started in the summer and progress to date has included clearing the site, formatting the car park area, demolition of non-listed buildings (where necessary) and commencement of retaining wall structures. The next steps will be installing drainage and associated ground works, completion of the retaining walls and boundary treatment alongside Hadleigh Cricket Club, and car park installation. Early in the new year work will begin on the development of the new build properties, which should be available early summer 2024.
Bird flu outbreak - The Animal Plant and Health Agency (APHA) has detected a number of cases of bird flu (avian influenza) in poultry, and wild and captive birds, across the east of England, including in Nedging in Babergh. The situation continues with outbreaks reported daily across the East and nationally. This means there is now a legal requirement for all bird keepers in our districts, and further afield, to implement enhanced biosecurity measures to help protect their flocks. Our teams will be supporting APHA and Suffolk Trading Standards over coming days as required, with more information available on the Government's website including posters for town and parish noticeboards if required. We need to advise residents to report dead wild birds to the Defra helpline (03459 33 55 77) if they find: one or more dead bird of prey or owl. Three or more dead gulls or wild waterfowl (swans, geese, and ducks) Five or more dead birds of any species Otherwise, it is landowner’s responsibility to safely arrange safe disposal of the carcasses.
Council Tax Reduction consultation - A public consultation is underway over a plan to cut council tax for the poorest households in Babergh and Mid Suffolk. The consultation, which runs from October 13 to November 24, asks for views on how the councils should run their Council Tax Reduction Scheme for 2023/24, and whether bills should be reduced by up to 100% for working age adults with the lowest incomes.
Parking strategy - The councils’ have now approved their first ever joint parking strategy. The strategy includes prioritised recommendations to improve all types of parking, from council-owned car parks to on-street parking. The recommendations include updating signage and markings, increasing safety provisions, providing more EV charging, and cycling facilities, and introducing resident permit schemes to allow overnight parking. Importantly, it also seeks to find the balance between supporting local trade across the districts and achieving climate change and sustainable travel goals, reflecting the councils recently approved Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plan.

Appendix B – Financial Report

Items received since the last meeting:

Income Description	Nett	VAT	Gross	Ref
Total Income	£NIL

Items Paid out since the last meeting:

Income Description	Nett	VAT	Gross	Ref
Total Expenditure	£NIL

Items Authorized for Payment:

Expenditure Description	Nett	VAT	Gross	Ref
Clerk’s Salary & Expenses	433.80	0.00	433.80	BACS
Total Expenditure	£433.80

Financial Report

Date	£
Opening Balance 22.09.22	6370.92
Add Income Received October – November 22	0.00
Less Expenditure Incurred October – November 22	0.00
Less Verified Expenditure 09.11.22	433.80
Closing Balance 09.11.22	5937.12

Bank Reconciliation

Community Account Statement at 03.11.22	6370.92
Less uncleared payments At 09.11.22	433.80
Plus unaccredited income At 09.11.22	0.00
Reconciled Total At 09.11.22	5937.12

Within the balance above are the following reserves:

(Restricted) CIL reserve - £2,015.37
Earmarked General reserve - £1,650.00
General reserve balance for year - £2,271.75