2023 Rauceby PC Minutes of Meetings

Minutes
Rauceby Parish Council
email: raucebypc@gmail.com, website: https://rauceby.parish.lincolnshire.gov.uk
Minutes from the Parish Council Meeting held on Wednesday, 20 September 2023 at 7.30 pm at the Village Hall, South Rauceby. 

Present:      Cllr M Ireland (in the Chair), Cllrs J Malloch, G Hall, G Enstone, B Balderston, P Ireland, J Hoare and M Froggatt; Cllr J Clarke of NKDC and the Clerk, Mr I Grady. 

Public speaking time: There were no members of the public present. 

Cllr J Hoare signed his Declaration of Acceptance of Office before the meeting started.
1. Apologies for absence: Apologies were received from Cllr. S Enstone and Cllr A Hagues of NKDC and Cllr R Wright of LCC.
2. To receive any Declarations of Interest: None were received.
3. To decide on any items to be carried out in Closed Session: None required. 
4. To approve as a correct record the notes of the meetings held on 5 July 2023: Unanimously approved; the Chairman signed the minutes. 
5. Rauceby Gigabit Project: An update was given by the chairman on behalf of Cllr S Enstone. Progress is being made in installing the street fibre cable network. No houses have yet been connected.
6. Reports from Visiting Representatives and Police Matters if any: 
NKDC (1)   Cllr Hagues had sent a newsletter earlier in the month which had been distributed amongst the councillors. 
NKDC (2)   Cllr Clarke described various meeting that had taken place at NKDC. He also reminded us that any member of the public may attend the NKDC meetings. Cllr M Ireland asked what the future of the Sleaford Marketplace was to be in terms of NKDC planning for the future. The Parish Council has not yet been invited to comment on any proposals but individuals may make direct representation. Cllr Clarke will report back our concerns to NKDC. 
LCC   in response to an earlier action item, an email from Cllr Wright confirmed that the Highways Dept of LCC owned the verge along Rauceby Grove. He also stated that any rewilding project on the verge had to have prior consent. 
Police   Nothing to report. 
7. Planning Applications Received from NKDC (This may include plans received since the agenda was circulated):
i. 23/1027/TCA | Laburnum - Fell | 54 Main Street South Rauceby Sleaford Lincolnshire NG34 8QQ. No Objections by full membership of Rauceby Parish Council. 
Plans decided by NKDC since the last meeting
ii. 23/1004/TCA | T1 Conifer - Fell | 63 Main Street South Rauceby Sleaford Lincolnshire NG34 8QQ. No Objections by Planning Sub-Committee of Rauceby Parish Council. Approved by NKDC; no TPO issued. 
iii. 23/0995/TCA | Oak - Fell | Meriden House 36 Main Street North Rauceby Sleaford Lincolnshire NG34 8QP. No Objections by Planning Sub-Committee of Rauceby Parish Council. Approved by NKDC; no TPO issued.
iv. 23/0484/FUL | Proposed extension to and change of use of existing garage to cattery | 72 Main Street South Rauceby Sleaford Lincolnshire NG34 8QQ. Objection submitted by full Parish Council by majority 5:1. Approved by NKDC.
v. 23/0414/HOUS (Amended) | Erection of single storey extension | Ermine Street Farm High Dike Byard's Leap Cranwell Lincolnshire No Objections by Planning Sub-Committee of Rauceby Parish Council. Approved by NKDC.
vi. 23/0414/HOUS | Erection of single storey extension | Ermine Street Farm, High Dike, Byard's Leap, Cranwell, Lincolnshire. No Objections by Planning Sub-Committee of Rauceby Parish Council. Approved by NKDC.
8. Matters Arising and New Business Notified to Clerk prior to meeting
i. Safety Audit follow-up. The Chairman presented a list of proposals for following up the audit. Some items have been actioned:
a. A quote is being obtained by the chairman to repair the bench on Cliffe View (#3 on list circulated to councillors).
b. Cllr Hoare has volunteered to remove ivy at the bus shelter on Cliffe View (#5).
c. Chairman has volunteered to cut back brambles from the Bees bench (#9).
Action Sept (1): Chairman and Cllr J Hoare.
ii. Village Litter Pick. Cllr G Enstone has organised a litter pick in the village for Saturday 7th October. It will commence at 11h00 with volunteers gathering at the village to collect equipment.
iii. Rauceby Drove flooding. The Highways Dept of LCC spent several days in September repairing the drainage at the bottom of the Drove. After a few rain storms since the repairs the drainage looks very good, there having been no flooding.
 Action Sept (2): Chairman to contact Cllr Wright to pass on our thanks to the Highways Dept
iv. Drainage Survey. LCC has asked the council to comment on the known drains, culverts, gullies, outfalls etc, in the village presented in a series of maps by LCC. We believe the maps are comprehensive except for two culverts that do not appear to be marked: at the bottom of Burrough s Hill, just south of Heath Farm, North Rauceby and along Tom Lane in the Hollow s which is the dip between Rauceby School and The Bustard adjacent to the house.
Action Sept (3): Clerk to write to LCC to highlight these discrepancies. 
v. Highways Survey. LCC has also asked for the council to respond to a Highway s questionnaire. The survey looked exceedingly complex and there appeared to be many repetitive aspects. It was considered that the format was not suitable for a committee-like response so it was decided to let individual councillors carry out the survey as they saw fit.
Action Sept (4): All Councillors to consider carrying out the survey and responding directly to LCC.
vi. NKDC Engagement event. Councillors have been invited to an engagement event in Whisby Natural World Centre. An email was distributed to the councillors on 10 September 2023. Councillors have been asked to volunteer if they are interested and let the Clerk know so he can book places. 
Action Sept (5): All interested Councillors to notify Clerk.

vii. King Charles Coronation bench. Some structural damage has been reported. Cllr Hoare will investigate.
Action Sept (6): Cllr J Hoare
viii. Village Sheep Signs. It was confirmed that the signs belonged to NKDC. Cllr Malloch should be able to continue with its maintenance. 
Action Sept (7): Cllr J Malloch
9. Update on Outstanding Matters 
i. Actions from the previous meetings: 

Further information
(1) Jul (4): LCC had run out of kits by the time our application was made.
(2) Jul (7): The Heartbeat Foundation has not responded to our contact. It was established in the meeting that the kiosk is a Grade II listed structure and cannot be removed easily.
Action Sept (8): Clerk to write to the Heartbeat Foundation to remind them again of their ownership duties regarding the safety of the kiosk in respect of its accessibility to the public. 
10. Financial report   for approval and signing
i. The financial report was approved and signed off by the Chairman.
The Current account stands at  19074.57 on 26 July 2023.
ii. This month s payments were approved and cheques signed:
* NKDC: fee for uncontested election
* I Grady: fees (2 months) 
* J Earle: grass cutting and leaf clearing costs
* S Clegg: payroll administration fee
* Royal British Legion: purchase of wreath
iii. NKDC has offered a grant to Parishes to augment litter picking expenses. The council considered that the conditions imposed would be too onerous and given that we had our own kit and the pick was carried out by volunteers, we had no need to apply for the grant.
iv. It was agreed that a wreath be purchased for the Remembrance Day commemoration. 
Action Sept (9): Clerk
v. It was agreed that the clerk investigates the commencement of a savings account at Lloyds Bank using some of the accumulated funds of the Council.
Action Sept (10): Clerk
11. Any Other Business:  Any matters which have arisen after the agenda was published. 
i. Cllr G Enstone raised two road condition concerns: 
a. The state of the Church Lane top surface was extremely poor in that it appears to be sinking in several areas. This causes great problems for vehicles.
b. The drains outside the Manor House are choked with leaves causing flooding in wet weather.
It was suggested she contact FixMyStreet to report these issues. The experiences of other councillors with FixMyStreet have been very positive. 
Action Sept (11): Cllr G Enstone to report matters to FixMyStreet 
Action Sept (12): Clerk to notify Cllr Wright of our use of FixMyStreet 
ii. Cllr J Malloch asked that a letter from St Barnabas Charity be circulated.
Action Sept (13): Clerk
12. Date of Next Meeting: The meeting closed at 20h50. The next regular meeting will be held on Wednesday, 15 November 2023 at the Rauceby Village Hall starting at 19h30.

Matters which have been raised in meetings and which may be considered further at a future date:
* Flooding item removed   problem resolved.
* South Rauceby Well refurbishment: deferred until more appropriate.
* Rewilding of Rauceby Drove verge: deferred until results of pilot study on the land by Main Street have been evaluated.