May 21 2026 Minutes (Annual Meeting)
MINUTES OF SILK WILLOUGHBY ANNUAL MEETING HELD IN THE VILLAGE HALL ON 21 MAY 2026 IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING THE ANNUAL PARISH MEETING.
Present Cllrs Roberts, K Wright, J Wright, and Cooney
In Attendance 9 parishioners and Denise Gascoyne Parish Clerk
1.Election of Chair
The outgoing Chair asked if anyone was willing to stand as Chair. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Cllr Roberts be re-elected as Chair. Cllr Roberts signed the formal Declaration of Acceptance of Office as Chair. This was countersigned by the Clerk as Proper Officer of the Council.
2.Election of Vice-Chair
The Chair asked if anyone was willing to stand as Vice-Chair. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Cllr Cooney be elected as Vice-Chair. Cllr Cooney signed the formal Declaration of Acceptance of Office as Vice-Chair. This was countersigned by the Clerk as Proper Officer of the Council.
3.To receive Declaration of Acceptance of Office and Members’ Disclosable Pecuniary and other Interest. All remaining Cllrs signed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office, and these were countersigned by the Clerk as Proper Officer of the Council.
4.Election of Finance Officer
It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved Cllr Cooney be elected as Finance Officer.
5.Apologies for Absence
Apologies for absence was received from Cllr Bell. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that apologies for absence with valid reasons be accepted from Cllr Bell.
6.To approve and accept as a true record the notes of the Parish Council meeting held on 26 February and to authorise the Chair to sign the official minutes
Cllr Cooney asked that Item 5 Adrian Cooney should be changed to Aidan Cooney on the minutes 26 February. The changes were made, and it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that the notes of the meeting held on 26 February be accepted as a true record and these were signed by the Chair.
To approve and accept as a true record the notes of the Parish Council meeting held on 26 March and to authorise the Chair to sign the official minutes. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that the notes of the meetings held on 26 March 2026 be accepted as a true record and these were signed by the Chair.
7.To review and accept Model (2025) Standing Orders. The Model (2025) Standing Orders had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to readopt the Model (2025) Standing Orders and a copy would be added to the website.
8.To review and accept 2025 Financial Regulations. The Financial Regulations had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to readopt the Financial Regulations and a copy would be added to the website.
9.To approve and accept the Asset Register to 31 March 2026. The Asset Register had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the Asset Register to 31 March 2026.
10.To declare eligibility and adoption of The General Power of Competence (compliant with S.1-8 Localism Act 2011 and the Parish Councils General Power of Competence Prescribed Conditions) Order 2012.
It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to declare eligibility and adoption of The General Power of Competence as CiLCA was obtained on 20.05.19.
11.To review and accept the following new/amended policies
• Code of Conduct
• Data Breach Policies
The above policies had been circulated and reviewed by all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that the above policies be adopted en-block and copies added to the website.
12.To accept new Insurance Policy as from 01 June 2026. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the new Insurance Policy as from 01 June 2026 and to pay the premium of £241.00.
13.Finance
a. Section 1 of the Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR) 2025/2026 was read out by the Chair. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Section 1 of the AGAR be accepted and signed by the Chair.
This was recorded as Minute Reference 13(a).
b. Section 2 Accounting Statement of the AGAR had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Section 2 of the Accounting Statement of the AGA be accepted and signed by the Chair.
This was recorded as Minute Reference 13(b)
c. The Internal Audit Report had only been done by LALC on 20 May 2026. A copy of the report had been received on the same day. A copy of the report had been circulated to all Cllrs and points raised were discussed.
Resolved to accept the Internal Audit Report, and for the Clerk to implement the recommendations. A copy would be added to the website.
d. The Certificate of Exemption Part 2 (AGAR) had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the Certificate of Exemption Part 2 (AGAR) and this was signed by the Chair.
This was recorded as Minute Reference 13(d).
e. The Statement of Accounts had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the Statement of Accounts and these were signed by the Chair.
There being no further business the Annual Meeting closed at 7.55pm
It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to continue with the Ordinary Parish Council meeting. This began at 8.00pm
14.Declarations of Interest – Cllr Roberts 17(a).
15. Reports from County Cllr Whitaker and District Cllr Jackson
a. County Cllr Whitaker had now arrived and gave a brief update on Lincolnshire County Council.
16.Chair Update
a. A resident had bought some issues to the Parish Council including the width of the path on School Lane and the amount of litter in the village. The hedge on School Lane would not be cut until October due to birds nesting. Cllr Whittaker agreed to inform LCC.
Cllrs said they had not noticed an increase in litter in the village. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to write to the resident.
b. No further correspondence had been received on the future of the Post Office. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved the Clerk write to the Post Office for an update.
c. At a previous meeting it was agreed to investigate a new Litter Bin and Dog Bin for Gorse Lane. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to order a new Litter Bin and Dog Bin
d. The Parish Council would like to implement an Emergency Plan. This could not be done just by the Parish Council it would need volunteers from the village. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to contact Osbournby Parish Council to see if they would be interested in a shared Emergency Plan.
e. A complaint had been received about lorries transporting farmyard waste on Gorse Lane. Councillors believed this had now ceased and no further action would be taken.
f. Photographs of Church Lane had been supplied by LCC and circulated to all Cllrs. After a short discussion, it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to request Highways contact the resident concerned.
e. The Pond had not had any maintenance this year. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to form a volunteer working party to remove the weed etc.
17.Parish Clerk Update
a. It had been suggested that we should purchase a small brass sign in memory of Cllr Thackray to be put on the bench near the pond. Cllrs suggested that we purchase a bench for midway up School Lane and put a small brass sign on that. The village hall had already received confirmation a bench could be put in that area. They would forward the details to the Parish Council. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to investigate the purchase of a new bench and a small brass plaque.
18.Village Hall
a. An email had been received from LCC Emergency Planning Team to use the village hall as a rest centre in the event of an emergency. This had been forwarded to the village hall committee.
19.Correspondence
a. LCC Town & Parish Newsletter – circulated to Cllrs Roberts and Cooney.
b. LALC e-news – circulated to Cllrs Roberts and Cooney.
c. NKDC Town and Parish newsletter – circulated to Cllrs Roberts and Cooney.
d. Clerks and Councils Direct.
20.Planning
a. 26/05487/FUL Planning application for erection of single storey dwelling and detached garage land r/o 1 London Road. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to make no comment on this application.
b. 26/0276/VARCON Planning permission to remove condition three land at School Lane. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.
c. Notification of changes to managing trees in a Conservation Area from NKDC had been circulated to all Cllrs. FOR INFORMATION ONLY.
d. PL/0022/26 Planning application for proposed extension of Water Re-Cycling Centre Sewage Works Church Lane. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to make no comments on this application.
21.Finance
a. The Approval List for Retrospective Payments dated 26.02.26, 26.03.26 and 30.03.26 had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the following Retrospective Payments made.
|
St Denis Church |
Clock Donation |
£3300.00 |
|
D Gascoyne |
Wages |
£405.60 |
|
HMRC |
PAYE |
£101.40 |
|
HMRC |
NI |
£13.50 |
|
LALC |
Website |
£108.00 |
|
SWVH |
Hire Charges |
£25.00 |
|
Sudmeister |
Cleaning Gates |
£79.00 |
|
Tidy Gardens |
Grass cutting |
£476.40 |
b. Bank Reconciliations and Cashbooks to 28 February, 31 March and 30 April 2026 had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Bank Reconciliations and Cashbooks to 28 February, 31 March and 30 April 2026 be accepted and these were signed by the Chair.
c. Another bank signatory was required for the HSBC accounts. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Cllr Cooney become a signatory on the Parish Councils HSBC accounts.
d. The Clerk confirmed that the VAT Repayment of £383.21 had been received from HMRC.
e. The Approval List for payments had been circulated to all Cllrs. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to accept the Approval List and make the following payments.
|
D Gascoyne |
Wages |
£507.00 |
|
HMRC |
NI & PAYE |
£114.90 |
|
ICO |
Data Protection |
£47.00 |
|
Parish Online |
Gov.uk |
£192.00 |
|
Tidy Gardens |
Grass Cutting |
£476.40 |
|
Zurich |
Insurance |
£241.00 |
f. The Clerk had asked if the Parish Council would go 50% of SLCC Membership with Ancaster. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to pay 50% of the membership to SLCC.
|
SLCC |
Fifty percent membership |
£79.00 |
22.Solar Farm Monies
a. The Chair had prepared a document for reinvesting Solar Farm monies.
• Account I reinvest £77844 – matures October.
• Account two reinvest £40000 – matures August.
• Account three reinvest £77744 – matures October.
• Account 4 Add £3155 to bring total back to £10000.
After a short discussion it was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to reinvest the monies subject to the Closed Session at the end of the meeting.
b. A request had been received for possible restoration of the Monument. Cllrs also discussed restoration of the Pump House. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved to add this to the next Agenda.
23.Training
a. LALC Training Bulletin – circulated to Cllrs Roberts and Cooney.
• Cllr Cooney – new Cllr training
b. Cllr Roberts asked if she could attend an Introduction to Cemetery Management Training when available. It was proposed, seconded and
Resolved that Cllr Roberts attend an Introduction to Cemetery Management Training and the Clerk would book her place.
24.Date of Next Meeting
a. The date of the next meeting was confirmed as 30 July 2026 at 7.00pm in the village hall.
25.To resolve to exclude the media, press, and members of the public from the meeting in accordance with S.1(2) Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960 due to the confidential nature of the business to be transacted.
• To confirm the village graveyard is now full for cremation plots and to consider the purchase of private land for use as a village cemetery.
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.40pm
Signed …………………………..
Chair Silk Willoughby Parish Council
30 July 2026