2022 Annual Parish Meeting

UNAPPROVED NOTES OF THE ANNUAL PARISH MEETING OF GREETWELL HELD ON MONDAY 4 APRIL 2022 IN THE SUDBROOKE VILLAGE HALL

PRESENT:  Councillor John Taylor (Chairman), Mrs Christine Myers (Clerk)

Six residents, County Councillor Ian Fleetwood, District Councillors Mrs Anne Welburn

1   APPROVAL OF THE NOTES OF THE MEETING HELD ON 12 APRIL 2022 TO BE SIGNED AS MINUTES

That the Chairman sign the notes as minutes proposed by Mrs Sarah Bates, seconded by Mike Taylor.

2  CHAIRMANS REPORT

The Chairman reported:-

That although the parish is further on with the pedestrian crossing, there is now deliberations at County Council level over who is to pay for the provision of the crossing.

The new speed indicator sited on the A158 was a plus for the parish, the high speed of traffic on the A158 always being commented upon.  He noted that the data on the device can be recorded from both directions, not just the direction that the device is facing.

He thanked all Parish Councillors for continuing in their roles for the benefit of the parish.

CLERK/TREASURERS REPORT

The Clerk reported that the last year had now returned to some normality for Parish Councils with face-to-face meetings being resumed last summer.

We have welcomed two new Councillors, Ms Sue Pullen and Vernon Stuffins who are now active members.

North Greetwell has benefitted from Litter Picks, a refurbished bus shelter and the grass cut regularly on Westfield Avenue roundabout.  At the end of March, a speed indicator device was fitted on to Wragby Road East and we look forward with interest to the collection of data from the equipment.

The play equipment at The Chase has been maintained to a high standard with thanks to our Play Equipment Inspector Ed Morton.  

The Parish website continues to be updated regularly by our Website Manager – it is full of useful information for residents.

The Council has spent within its budget during the year having a balance at 31.3.2022 of £9,902.75 which consists of the following to carry forward:-

Events Fund - £973.96
Parish Enhancement  - £1475.42
Funds for seat from DC A Welburn - £341.09

The remaining balance is the Contingency Fund of £7,112.28

The Chase Account -  Expenditure for the year  -  £1673.32  leaving a balance of £10,578.87

REPORTS BY COUNTY/DISTRICT COUNCILLORS

County Councillor Ian Fleetwood – Stated that he continued to keep residents informed on a monthly basis through his briefings of what was happening within the County Council.

He reported that preparations were underway in Lincolnshire to celebrate the Queens Platinum Jubilee. 

District Councillor Anne Welburn - Covering the period May 2021 - April 2022

It has been a busy year for West Lindsey and as Chairman of the Corporate Policy and Resource Committee I have been heavily involved in approving many of the funding streams that have been paid out to help with Covid support. Some of my work stream include being a member of the Grants Panel including the Platinum Jubilee Fund as well as the Tourism, History and Leisure Working Group and Police and Crime Panel. More recently I have joined the Lincoln Transport Board and at my first meeting I asked about the pedestrian crossing at Greetwell, so I expect an update at the next meeting. 

As part of a wider remit, I represent West Lindsey on the Local Government Association Culture, Tourism and Sport Board which lobbies the Government to improve this area which has suffered recently for many reasons. 

I also run the West Lindsey Members Forums which is a space to suggest/discuss future projects and improvements and I am the Chairman of the Standards Committee.

I report to the Parish Council on a monthly basis so below are just some of the highlights from the year.

Finance

West Lindsey District Council continued to support a number of community-led projects with grant funding throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. A total of 91 projects received grant funding of more than £92,000 from the Council’s Match Funding Grant and the Councillor Initiative Fund, to support communities where they need it most. Projects range from much-needed food banks, COVID 19 support, to longer term projects such as developing an under 5-year-old play area. 

In 2020-2021 the following grants were awarded:

•   15 Match Funding Grant awards totalling £67,396.97
•   76 Councillor Initiative Fund awards totalling £24,773.85 

For every £1 invested from all the schemes, the Council matched/levered in £6.98. This means our grant funding total of £92,170.82 matched or leverage into the district a staggering £643,921.05.

Full details for the year 2021/22 will not be available until after this fiscal year ends.

West Lindsey is still supporting the Councillor Initiative Fund for another year; and I have a small sum of money left which is available for any small local group to help with equipment.

At the full Council meeting on 07/03/22, Councillors approved a balanced budget of £14.979 million for the 2022/23 fiscal year. They also approved a Council Tax rise of £5 - or 10p a week, for the 2022/23 fiscal year. 

The financial gains from the 2022/23 settlement have enabled the Council to build up its reserves to support delivery of its corporate strategies. It has been allocated as follows: 

£250,000 for Culture
£500,000 for Environmental and Climate Change
£250,000 for Communities at Risk
£6,000,000 for Investment for Growth
£250,000 for cost of change.
£250,000 has been allocated for investment in technology.

Audit of the council finances shows that West Lindsey District Council has “no significant weaknesses” with regards to its use of financial resources, according to an annual report produced by an independent Auditor and presented to Governance and Audit Committee on 8 March 2022.

Auditors checked the effectiveness of controls in place for the awarding of grants from the Councillor Initiative Fund, and the Match Funding scheme and found them to be in good order.

West Lindsey District Council has been successful in its bid for Levelling Up Fund (LUF) of £10 million. The Chancellor’s announcement included £203m of LUF for the East Midlands across 10 projects and the 'Thriving Gainsborough' proposal was one of the ten. 

The national scheme was created to support town centre and high street regeneration, local transport projects, and cultural and heritage assets.

It is hoped that this funding can fund local projects including improving Whitton’s Gardens, creating a new park at the Baltic Mill, building a new cinema, refurbishing the bus station, bringing an extension to our heritage led regeneration across the district.

Mayflower 400

An Award for Excellence has been presented to West Lindsey District Council for its project 'Pilgrim Roots’ – Gainsborough’s cultural programme for Mayflower 400. 

The work led by historian Dr Anna Scott received the accolade from the Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology (SLHA), which promotes Lincolnshire’s heritage.

The Award for Excellence was announced at the final commemorations of the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower story, which was held earlier this month in Gainsborough, after the SLHA gave the award during their annual meeting last month. However, whilst the vibrant spectacle of fire and light attracted more than 2,000 people to the event, a lot of work had taken place over the last five years, in the run up to the finale.

Green Habits

West Lindsey District Council is urging residents to start implementing small “Green” habits into their daily lifestyle during 2022 – to help play their part in tackling climate change.

In June last year, West Lindsey Councillors approved a Sustainability, Climate Change and Environment Strategy outlining just how, as a council, they intent to lower their carbon footprint to net-zero by 2050 at the latest, whilst also leading the way for our communities to do the same.

2022 is the first full year since the approval of the Climate strategy.

Over the next ten years (by 2032) – the Council hopes to see the following:

•   That there is a better-quality environment which has made people healthier
•   People are more aware of how important the environment is to our prosperity and where there are more ‘low carbon’ and environmental jobs
•   We are more self-sufficient and use energy and our land resources better
•   We are an important agricultural area that feeds the nation in the most carbon efficient environmentally friendly way possible
•   The landscape and built and historic environment retain its unique character and has been protected and enhanced so that it benefits all – visitors, businesses, and residents
•   Areas of high nature conservation quality have been preserved and the loss of plant and animal species has been reversed
•   We are firmly on track to becoming a ‘low carbon’ district and are more adaptive to climate change
•   People have become ‘greener’ in the way they live their lives
•   Local businesses are seen to have the most environmentally friendly land use practices and are leaders in green technologies
•   The environment lies at the heart of other strategies and plans for the district and the county and where we have worked together better to implement them

Habitual change does not have to be anything overwhelming or life-changing, it can simply be one small action which can have a significant impact. Changing just one small habit in your life, however, could be the momentum which encourages the changes of many more – this is called a Keystone Habit.

What could you do in West Lindsey to tackle Climate Change in 2022:

•   Walk or cycle to work at least a few times a week.
•   Join the Queen’s Green Canopy and help plant trees in honour of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
•   Try a “staycation” – enjoy one of Lincolnshire’s hidden treasures. Did you know – dotted around the county are a number of landmarks, heritage sites, family attractions and even an area of outstanding Natural Beauty. Find out more on Visit Lincolnshire- Opens in a new window
•   Shop Local – Join in with our Business of the Week competitions by finding and supporting your favourite local businesses in West Lindsey! To find out what your local High Street looks like in 2022, use this live and interactive guide- Opens in a new window
•   Re-use – and then recycle – Take your reusable cups to local coffee chains and make use of re-usable water bottles, reuse carrier bags over and over again where possible – the more you have an item you can reuse over and over again, the better!
•   Carefully check what can or cannot be recycled locally. To learn more, see our recycling and reducing waste pages
•   Create a wildlife friendly garden – for more, visit the RSPB- Opens in a new window
•   Budget

The Great British Spring Clean 

West Lindsey District Council encourage and support groups and individuals who want to ‘do their bit’ to help clear up the litter that blights our streets, parks, and countryside. After last year’s success, The Great British Spring Clean is once again supported by West Lindsey, helping to bring people together and clean up their area.

Litter remains a huge problem, causing harm to the environment and wildlife, with councils in England having to spend over £700 million on street cleaning services every year. If you would like some support from the council in terms of equipment or collection of litter, then please call 01427 676676 or email customer.services@west-lindsey.gov.uk

PARISHIONERS ITEMS – None raised.

The meeting concluded at 7.40pm.