Minutes of the Rescheduled Council Meeting Held in Lindsey Village Hall

Minutes of the rescheduled Council Meeting held on Wednesday 28^th January 2026 in Lindsey Village Hall, Church Road, Lindsey which commenced at 8.00pm.

In attendance: Cllrs. C Arthey (in Chair), R Corcoran, B Howe, J Moore and A Sturgeon, District Councillor L Jamieson (in part) and Mrs V Waples, Parish Clerk.

1. Opening and Welcome

The Chair, Cllr. Arthey, opened the meeting and thanked all for attending. The statement on reporting at meetings of the parish council was read by the Clerk. The Chair opened the meeting and thanked all for attending.

2. Apologies of Absence

To receive apologies of absence – apologies of absence were received from Cllr. Hainsworth and noted from County Councillor J Finch.
To consent / non-consent to accept the apologies for absence received – the meeting resolved to accept Cllr. Hainsworth’s reason for absence.
Council to note the factsheet produced on Apologies for absence and disqualification – council noted the factsheet produced by NALC.

3. Declaration of Members Interest

To receive declarations of registrable, other and non-registerable interests as detailed in Appendix B of the LGA Model Code of Conduct Model Code of Conduct 2020 – Cllr. Arthey as Chair of the Village Hall Committee. There were no other declarations of interests submitted.
There were no declarations of gifts of hospitality received exceeding £50.
There were no requests for dispensations for the agenda under discussion.

4. Minutes of Previous Meetings

To approve the minutes of the following Council Meeting:

Council Meeting of 12^th November 2025 - the meeting resolved that the circulated minutes were a true and accurate record of the meeting that took place, and resolved for the Chair to sign the minutes, which was undertaken in accordance with prevailing legislation.

5. Public Forum

(maximum 10 minutes)

To receive a report from County Councillor James Finch – Cllr. Finch had previously submitted a report which was taken as read a copy of the written report submitted can be seen at Appendix A. There were no questions / issues raised by Councillors for onward submission.
To receive a report from District Councillor Leigh Jamieson – Cllr. Jamieson was invited to submit his report in which he commented or drew the meeting’s attention to the following: a copy of the written report submitted can be seen at Appendix B.
- Car parking charges – increase by 20%. Called in to Scrutiny to be heard the following day.
- Stronger regulations to prevent the spreading of sewage sludge.
- Small grants for Village Halls.
To receive comments from the public on the agenda as published – there were none received.
To receive comments from the public as submitted:
- To consider the submission of a request for the installation of dog bins in the village – it was agreed that this would be considered as a formal item at the next meeting. The clerk agreed to ascertain the most suitable sites.

6. Parish Matters

Climate Awareness / climate emergency – to receive an update / information on climate related issue coming forth – not much to progress as they were still awaiting a meeting with UKPN to discuss linking to the grid, exporting to the grid and the cost of linking. Once this is known, the project can then be discussed further.
To receive a progress report on matters relating to:
- Traffic calming and appropriate signage on the A1141 in the vicinity of Canada Cottages and Hollow Trees Farm Shop – it was noted that Cllr. Finch had stated at the last meeting that a survey had been carried out at the end of October and that he was still awaiting those results prior to commenting further. Given the absence of Cllr. Finch at the meeting, the Clerk agreed to chase him for updates.
- Traffic calming on C720 between Church Road to Lindsey Tye – at the previous meeting, Cllr. Finch has stated that he would discuss this matter further with the relevant Highways Officer. All noted that a speed survey would need to be undertaken and dependent upon the results further consideration could be given to either the deployment of vehicle activated signs or whether there were other traffic calming measures that could be introduced in this area.

7. Statutory Matters

Casual Vacancy – council to consider applicants for co-option to the vacancy in the position of councillor – there were none to be considered at this stage.
To review and adopt the Council’s Standing Orders and Financial Regulations - Paper - Review of Standing Orders and Financial Regulations 2026 – it was resolved that Council had reviewed and adopted the Standing Orders and Financial Regulations dated January 2026 and confirmed that having been reviewed, they were fit for purpose and that Council agreed to adhere to them as written.
To review and adopt the Council’s Policies and Procedures - Paper - Review of Policies and Procedures 2026- it was resolved that Council had reviewed and agreed to adopt the policies as listed with a review date of January 2026 thereby confirming that they are updated, fit for purpose and that it agreed to adhere to them as written. Policies reviewed were Complaints Procedure; Data and Electronic Information Retention Policy; Data and Information Security Policy; Disciplinary Rules; Dispensation Policy; Freedom of Information Policy and Procedures; Grant Awarding Policy; Grievance and Disciplinary Procedure Health and Safety Policy; Internet Banking Policy and Procedure; IT Policy; Privacy Policy; Reimbursement of Expenses Procedure; Reserve Policy; Subject Access Policy and Training Policy.

8. Planning Matters

To consider the following planning applications: none at time of serving.
To note the following planning applications determined by the local planning authority:
- DC/25/003909 – Refusal of planning permission for the extension to dwellinghouse and alterations to existing dog kennel. Location: The Long House, Folly Farm, Waldingfield Road.
- DC/25/03914 – Refusal of Listed Building Consent - Extension to dwellinghouse and alterations to existing dog kennel. Location: The Long House, Folly Farm, Waldingfield Road.

9. Correspondence: To Consider / Note the Following

Devolution – to note correspondence on this matter from SALC, Suffolk County Council and Babergh District Council – all noted correspondence on this matter.
SALC – Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects Bulletin – December 2025 & January 2026 – all noted correspondence on this matter.
BMSDC – Town and Parish Updates – council confirmed all monthly updates are emailed to Councillors for their perusal.
SALC – to note 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.

10. Financial Matters

To consider schedule of receipts received and payments made since the last meeting – Paper A – all confirmed receipt of Paper A (details can be seen at Appendix D) noting that there were no receipts allocated into the account since the last meeting. Payments that had been made between meetings as shown on Paper A (details can be seen in Appendix D) covered the direct debit to HMRC (£140.60) for 3^rd quarter of 2025-2026 for PAYE due.
To consider and approve the verified items awaiting authorization as per the schedule submitted – Paper B - all confirmed receipt of Paper B (details can be seen at Appendix D) - having reviewed the paper submitted, it was resolved to approve the payments awaiting authorisation for settlement via online transfer.
To consider the Council's financial position to date – Paper C – Council noted the reconciled position of £6,770.62 once the accounts awaiting payment had been settled. Councillors Corcoran and Howe confirmed that they had verified the position against the bank statements and cashbook. (Details can be found at Appendix D).
To consider the council budget versus actual statement to end of January 2026 – Paper D – all reviewed the submitted paper noting the slight underspend for the year, in the main due to decreased administrative costs.
To consider and approve the budget for the year 1^st April 2026 to 31^st March 2027 – all confirmed receipt of the revised paper and resolved to set the budget at £6,514 for the year commencing 1^st April 2026.
To consider and approve the precept to be levied on the parish of Lindsey for the year commencing 1^st April 2026 following receipt of the confirmed tax base – Paper F - following confirmation of the tax base for Lindsey at £ (an increase of 1.1%), it was resolved to set a precept of £6,127 for the year 2025-2026. This would equate to an increase of 4.82% or £2.93 over that set for the previous year. The Chair and Clerk signed the appropriate precept forms which would be submitted to BDC prior to the deadline of 31^st January 2025.

11. Clerk’s Report

To review the effectiveness of Internal Audit for the year 2025 - 2026 – Paper G - council, having reviewed internal audit in terms of independence, competence, proportionality and effectiveness (with reference to the paper submitted), resolved that it had complied with its duty under the 2015 Regulations and met the standards of audit provision.
To confirm the appointment of the Council’s Internal Auditor for the year ending 31^st March 2026– Paper H –Draft Audit Plan – the council resolved that, having regard to the Audit Plan submitted, Mr Trevor Brown CPFA be appointed to carry out the internal audit on Lindsey Parish Council at a maximum cost of £200 plus pro rata travelling expenses at £0.45 pence per mile. It is anticipated that the audit will take place in late April 2026. The work planned to be completed was as per the Appendix in Paper H.

12. Parish Councillors’ Reports

Village sign – all reviewed the repainted sign noting that the artist had recreated the picture as it had been originally designed. Ideally it was considered that the metal work on the sign required attention and Cllr. Arthey agreed to progress this further. All thanked the Chair for his endeavours in sorting this matter.
Missing footpath sign on footpath number 4 (Lindsey – Cllr. Sturgeon confirmed that he has reported this on SCC Reporting Tool.
Elm Cottage – Cllr. Howe asked that this matter be chased up with the District.
Cllr. Moore – Procession Way – now being replanted from Folly Farm to Stackyard Green. This is now a mile long in the form of an avenue.
Scouts – following a request form the 1st Honington RAF Scouts to use the village green in Lindsey as a start and meet point for an event taking place at the end of May, the Clerk was advised to suggest that contact be made with the Lindsey Rose in relation to the grassed area opposite the public house.

13. Date of Next Meeting

All meetings will take place in the Village Hall, Church Road, Lindsey.

To note the next meeting is scheduled as 11^th March 2026.
To agree the meetings for the year commencing 1^st April 2026 to 31^st March 2027: all agreed that the following meetings should be entered into the diary for the coming year: 20^th May; 15^th July; 23^rd September; 25^th November; 20^th January (2027) & 10^th March (2027).
To note that the Annual Parish Meeting will take place on Wednesday 20^th May at 7.00pm prior to the Annual Council Meeting.

14. Close of Meeting

There being no other business the Chairman declared the meeting closed 9.10pm.