Councillors Present
- Present
- Matthew Lunn (Chair), John Calver, Vashti Mouncer, Kevin Shelver, Robert Wardley
- Apologies
- Cllr. Hopewell-Smith (on holiday), Cllr. Dearing (medical reason), Cllr. Steward (working)
- In Attendance
- Lydia Kirk (clerk), Jo Denton, Matt Bonner
- Apologies
- County Councillor Stephen Burroughes
Declarations of Interest
There were no declarations of interest.
Minutes
The Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 3rd June 2024 were approved as a true record and signed by the Chair.
Matters Arising
There were no matters arising.
Chair's Report
The Chair had nothing additional to report.
Clerk’s Report
The Physical Assets Register has been amended and circulated. It was agreed to also add the heavy-duty bench located at the tennis courts to the register.
The Council is currently in the annual period of public rights but no requests have been received to date.
Planning application DC/24/1397 regarding the extension at Orchard Cottage has been permitted.
The insurance company erroneously sent 2023’s invoice last month. The correct invoice has now been issued and has resulted in an additional fee of £11.52 being owed.
Responsible Financial Officer’s Report
- The following payments were approved:
Reference Number Amount Payee Details P10 24-25 £10.00 Dennington Village Hall Meeting room hire for July P11 24-25 £223.00 HMRC PAYE to 5th July 2024 P12 24-25 £970.40 L. Kirk Pay to 30th June 2024 - The following payments have been made since the last meeting:
- Dennington Sports Club CIL donation for play equipment £3,095
- Robins Row Additional insurance premium 24-25 £11.52
Interest received: £28.50 & £35.79
- The bank balances as at 26.06.2024 were:
- Current account £6,213.66
- Equipment account £9,605.72
- Savings account £7,648.86
- The bank statements and bank reconciliation were reviewed by Cllr. Mouncer in the absence of the Examining Officer.
- The year-to-date receipts and payments account was noted.
Planning Application
Discuss the following planning application:
DC/24/2093/FUL The Fields, The Street, Dennington, IP13 8JF
External and internal alterations
Cllr. Wardley proposed supporting this application. Cllr. Calver seconded this and it was carried unanimously.
Highways and Footpaths
- Cllr. Lunn reported on his conversations with Rights of Way Officers at Suffolk County Council regarding the national public rights of way consultation. The deadline has now been extended from 2026 to 2035. It was agreed that previous rights of way that are not on the current definitive map should be investigated. Cllr. Wardley has previously carried out work on this and will search for statements and evidence he holds about these walking routes.
- Other
- Cllr. Mouncer reported garden waste is being dumped on the footpath near Swainston’s Way. The resident has been spoken to about this but the fly-tipping is continuing. Action: She will send the clerk details of the location for this to be reported.
- Cllr. Wardley has again reported the flooding at Wash Farm.
Financial Regulations
Discussing NALC’s new Financial Regulations will be deferred until the next meeting. The model regulations have been shared and Councillors are encouraged to consider these ahead of the meeting.
Website and Email
As reported at March’s meeting, Matt Bonner has kindly volunteered to run the village’s website. Councillors were very grateful for this offer. Matt ran through various options to consider if moving to a gov.uk domain name for the website and Council email addresses. After detailed discussion, it was agreed to spend up to £150 per annum on 11 Council email addresses and to seek a government grant to fund the first year’s costs in adopting the following domain name- Denningtonparish.gov.uk.
Action: The clerk will seek a quotation from Framlingham Broadband for this gov.uk email provision. If below £150, it was agreed to use the local company. If it exceeds this price, Matt will sign the Council up to Zoho’s package as discussed.
The Chair thanked Shirley Cunningham for her many years of editing the website. She will be carrying out a handover imminently.
Correspondence
There was no correspondence to be considered.
Public Session
Jo Denton reported that the next newsletter will be available this week. She also reported that the Village Hall will be closed for a week in October in order for works to the roof to be completed.
Councillor Reports
Cllr. Wardley is still in discussions with HSBC regarding the dormant account.
Cllr. Wardley expressed strong concerns regarding the pedestrian safety signs that have been affixed to existing poles at Owl’s Green without the consent of SCC. Action: Clerk to notify SCC’s Highways’ team that we have affixed these signs as a safety measure to help protect pedestrians, and await their response.
The Chair will try and attend one of the Sizewell Community Foundation events in July.
Cllr. Wardley is continuing to carry out regular checks on the two village defibrillators. One was removed for an incident yesterday but not used.
Matters for Next Meeting
- Receive an update on the gov.uk domain name and email switchover
- Consider NALC’s Financial Regulations
Next Meeting
The next meeting was confirmed as being on Monday 2nd September 2024. There being no further business, the Chair thanked everyone for attending and closed the meeting at 8.55pm.
Signed …………………….. …………………………
Chair Date