Little Paxton Parish Council Annual Report May 2013 - April 2014
Welcome to this Annual Report of the activities of the Little Paxton Parish Council for 2013-2014. I would like to start by thanking Cllr Alan Dennison, who resigned from the Council last year, for all his hard work and dedication as a Councillor, Vice- Chairman and Chairman. The Parish Council has 7 new councillors who have been co-opted onto the Council since May 2013. The Council now has its full complement of councillors, all of whom have skills and expertise to offer. Councillors have attended 22 training course over the year in order to broaden the skills base available within the Council. Much time is spent by Council ensuring that policies are relevant and up-to-date. This year, all Council policies have been reviewed. A Civil Response Plan was adopted as well as a Business Continuity Plan. The latter being essential for the smooth and continuous running of parish matters in the event of unforeseen circumstances overtaking key staff. A Social Media Policy also has been adopted. The Council felt that it was important to use all forms of communication, especially those which are current and immediate and has set up a Council Facebook Page. The Parish Website continues to be monitored and updated. Village groups are encouraged to use the parish website to promote their groups activities. To keep residents informed, the Parish Council has issued 29 Press Releases and is in the process of replacing old notice boards. Little Paxton continues to grow and change and the Council has been vigilant and responsive to any changes affecting Little Paxton. Seven Consultation Documents, mainly dealing with planning issues, have been studied by the Parish Council. These have been produced by Huntingdonshire District Council as the first stage in the implementation of Government s policies dealing with the nationwide need for housing and development. Formal comments have been made upon any impact that proposals within the documents may have upon Little Paxton. Planning Officers from the Parish Council have reviewed 25 planning applications and submitted recommendations on the applications to the Planning Dept at Huntingdonshire District Council. These recommendations are made after site visits, consultation with those directly affected and a report to Council from the Council Planning Officers. Change and growth impacts upon infrastructure. The Parish Council has identified areas to present to Huntingdonshire District Council which are eligible 1
for consideration under the current Community Infrastructure Levies. These are a pelican crossing in Mill Lane, disabled access from Rampley Lane to the village, improved crossing points in the High Street, Bydand Lane and St James Road. The need to extend the cemetery also was identified. Preliminary work has started for a cemetery extension with an Environment Agency ground water T1 Audit. A new cemetery leaflet has been produced and one on transfer of burial rights. The agreed safety checks on all memorials at Lt Paxton Cemetery and St James Churchyard will be carried out at the start of April. All memorial owners have been contacted. This commitment to residents safety continues with regular inspection and management of all council owned trees, council-owned property and land. It has been agreed to replace the dilapidated and cramped council garages and preliminary work has started. The village hall compound area has been cleared and tidied and architects quotations have been received. Good financial management has enabled the Parish Council to run such events as the Easter activities in Samuel Jones Crescent with part funding from the Cambridge Housing Association, the Connections Youth Bus school summer holidays visits and the successful Paxfest, which included for the first time, a fun dog show with 86 dogs taking part. I would like to say a huge thanks to all those who organised and helped with this event. It is certainly a true community event. The same good fiscal practice has allowed for the purchase of an additional CCTV camera and IR unit, new safety signage for the outside gym equipment, a sign for the Community pavilion, the planting of a Commemorative Tree for 100th anniversary of the start of WWI, new arrangements for the collection of waste material and the installation of grass matting for disabled access to the community pavilion which was officially opened at Paxfest last year. The Parish Council has been very committed to helping existing facilities and groups. A successful campaign, using letter drops, local press, magazines and radio, was organised to save the village hall from closure by encouraging residents to form a new management committee. The Scouts have had help with their Community Badge work and S137 donations have been given to ten groups totalling 1853.99 Over the years, the Parish Council has been made increasingly aware of the impact of flooding on Mill Lane. A working party has been set up by the Parish Council to progress a petition for improvements to Mill Lane Road to prevent closures caused by flooding. 2
In all, it has been a busy year for the Parish Council and it remains for me to express my sincere thanks to all councillors who give of their time so readily to serve the residents of Little Paxton. Cllr Jeanette Cleaver Chairman of the Council Who is the Parish Council and what do we do? The Parish Council comprises of 15 Councillors who serve for a term of four years. The Councillors represent an electorate of 2,999 (Dec 2013) persons. The Council employs 2 part-time members of staff:- Mrs Jenny Gellatly - Parish Clerk Mr. Perry Stentiford - Groundsman The Council has appointed Dr. Mike Williamson of Mijan Ltd as the Independent Auditor. The Parish Council has a Full Council meeting on the first Thursday and third of the month with the exception of August. All Agendas are displayed on the four village notice boards along with a Meetings Calendar. The notice boards are located at: Corner of St. James Road & High Street Corner of Gordon Road and Parkside Entrance to Skipper Way, the Island Site Samuel Jones Crescent Meeting dates are mentioned in the monthly magazine PE19, Village Views which is produced quarterly and the community web site www.littlepaxton.org.uk. Details of the meeting dates can also be found on the Cambridgeshire.net and MyHuntingdonshire websites. Community Notices- the Council has dedicated one side of the notice board at the corner of Gordon Road/Parkside for village groups and organisations. 3
There are community notice boards at the Queen Elizabeth II Playing Field, Boardman Close, Samuel Jones Crescent and inside three of the blocks of flats in Samuel Jones Crescent. Public Forum Notices are displayed (these are posters in luminous colours- so that they can be easily seen). These posters highlight three or four of the most important items on the Agenda. These are displayed on the Parish Notice Boards and also at the: Village Hall notice board Visitors Centre at Paxton Pits At the beginning of each meeting, there is a 15 minute public forum. This is an opportunity for the public to raise any concerns to the Parish Council. There are currently three advisory groups and four Committees. Summary of Income & Expenditure Account 2014-2014 Current Year Ended 31st March 2013 INCOME 31st March 2014 78,090.00 Precept 82,835.00 492.75 Interest on Bank Accounts 11.28 450.00 Cemetery Fees 1,050.00 1,058.67 Allotment Rents 1,196.91 241.00 Allotment Tap & Key Deposits 203.00 20.00 Ground Rents 40.00 247.50 Playing Field Maintenance Charge 285.00 76.00 Newsletter Sponsor 50.60 312.00 Newsletter Advertisements 138.00 55.00 Paxfest 266.00 150.00 Village Hall Refund 45.34 0.00 Insurance Claim 0.00 1,198.30 Misc Income 3,869.60 Term Deposit Bank Interest 0.00 82,391.22 Total Income 89,990.73 Expenditure 4
37,390.10 Staff Costs 40,953.52 8,032.93 General Administration 8,904.67 3,925.36 Insurance 4,383.75 400.00 Audit Fees-External 400.00 82.88 Audit Fees-Internal 81.25 100.00 Quality reaccreditation 0.00 1,717.93 Street Lighting 1,958.65 1,190.99 Cemetery 1,069.48 1,001.72 Allotments 533.86 113.00 Allotment Deposit returns 137.00 3,547.34 Maintenance playing field 4,004.08 2,122.00 Maintenance- trees 1,168.80 510.49 Tractor & Mower Costs 134.15 Waste disposal 228.05 Capital projects 2013/2014 750.00 4,082.00 Capital Project 2012/2013 1,223.00 Donations 1,350.00 1,600.00 Section 137 Payments 1,853.99 490.00 CCTV 150.00 266.02 Flood Lighting 334.67 63,128.00 S106 Payments 7,525.69 1,173.60 Paxfest 1,754.10 1,584.00 Jubilee exp Election Expenses Nov Fayre 75.00 Miscellaneous 0.00 11,529.83 Reserves 5,626.94 145,211.19 Total Expenditure 83,377.65 Summary 82,391.22 Total Income 89,990.73 145,211.19 Total Expenditure 83,377.65-62,819.97 Surplus/(Deficit) 6,613.08 163,409.20 Retained Surplus b/fwd 100,589.23 100,589.23 Retained Surplus C/Fwd 107,202.31 Balance Sheet as at 31 st March 2014 Year ended Current Year ended 31st March 2013 31st March 2014 5
- Long Term Assets - Current Assets 7,098.94 Debtors(VAT) 365.41 2,218.43 Pre-payments 1,902.94 91,890.32 Cash at Bank 105,719.51 101,207.69 Total 107,987.86 Current Liabilities Creditors 618.46 Receipts in advance 785.55 618.46 Total 785.55 100,589.23 Net Assets 107,202.31 100,589.23 Retained Surplus Fund Balance 107,202.31 Financial Summary The majority of income comes from the Precept (this is collected by Huntingdonshire District Council (HDC) and is included in Council Tax payments). The balance of income includes Bank Interest, Cemetery Fees, Allotment Fees, Grants to the Council, Playing Field Maintenance Charges and Village Newsletter adverts. The S106 funds from the Skipper Way Development have been fully utilised thus the bank interest received is reduced. There have been several requests for new memorials at the Lawn Cemetery which has increased the cemetery fees. Miscellaneous Income includes 3331 from HDC as Council Tax Benefit Rebate. Capital projects included new footpath to the Community Pavilion to enable users to allow wheel chair access. A new Infra Red colour camera was also added to the CCTV system. Staff costs equate to 49%, admin including insurance 16.5%, Street lighting 2.3%, Cemetery 1.28%, Allotments 0.8 %, Maintenance 5.2%, Donations 4%, Paxfest & Fun Dog Show 2.1% and Tree maintenance 1.4%, Capital Projects & S106 payments 9.9%, CCTV 0.1%, Flood lights 0.02%,Cemetery 1.28% and Reserves 7%. 6
In November, a ground water T1 audit was instructed for the proposed cemetery extension to Little Paxton Cemetery. This was funded from Cemetery Reserves. What we achieved in 2013/2014 The Parish Council gave donations to the following organisations: Connections Youth Bus- Summer visits Little Paxton Youth Club- Village Hall rent St.Neots Museum - this allows residents of Little Paxton to visit the museum free of charge. St James Church- November Village Fayre Little Paxton Scarecrows Little Paxton Community Pavilion Little Paxton Gardening Club 1 st The Paxton Rainbows 1 st Little Paxton Scout Group The Parish Council underwrites the production of the Village Views quarterly newsletter. Planning Matters The Parish Council made recommendations on 25 Planning Applications. Responses were given on the various Local Development Framework Consultations. Allotments The Parish Council has 19 full size allotments and 57 half plots and they are available to rent to anyone living in Little Paxton. The allotment site is now at capacity and there is currently no waiting list for allotments. The Council appointed Mr Peter Jakes as Allotment Officer and our thanks to Peter for undertaking this task. Cemetery There have been 6 interments, 4 disposal of ashes, 4 transfer of Burial Rights, 3 purchases of Burial Rights and 7 memorial requests during 2012/2013. 7
Website The Council has been working with Jevstar Ltd and is a now member of the community website- www.little-paxton.org.uk. All Council meeting agendas, minutes, policy documents, news articles, cemetery and allotment documents are available on the website. Social Media The Council adopted a Social Media Policy in February and now has its own Facebook page. Social media provides another channel for the Council to engage with residents. Village Events The Council are now the main organisers of the village fete Paxfest and the Fun Dog Show. This was very successful with 86 dogs taking part in the event. During the year Huntingdonshire District Council organised five Activity Road shows on the playing field. The Connections Youth Bus visited the village once a week during the school summer holidays and at Paxfest- this was paid for by the Council. A grant was received from CHS Group for a visit by the Connections Bus and two additional visits from HDC Activity Road Show team on the Samuel Jones Crescent. The Council also organised the Sport Relief- Little Paxton Mile on 23 rd March which was supported by 264 runners. Little Paxton Village Hall In November, the Parish Council working with the Village Hall Management Committee (VHMC) carried out a village campaign to recruit new trustees to the Village Hall Committee. A public meeting was held in the village hall early December which was attended by over 70 residents. New trustees have now joined the VHMC. 8
Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) The Parish Council received no CIL funds from Huntingdonshire District Council during 2013/2014. Councillors During the year Cllr Alan Denison resigned from the Council. Cllr P. Chapman, Cllr S. Codling, Cllr Peter Loughran, Cllr Stephen Johnson- Proctor, Cllr David Rennie and Cllr Alun Thomas were co-opted onto the Council. Meetings Attendance Summary The Councillor attendance was as follows: Cllr D. Alder 74%, Cllr J. Cleaver 96%, Cllr P. Chapman 75%, Cllr S. Codling 75%, Cllr S. Dean 96%, Cllr A. Denison 83%, Cllr E. Freeman 22%, Cllr C. Gamby 83%. Cllr S. Johnson-Proctor 80%, Cllr P. Loughran 75%,Cllr J. Longbottom 78%.Cllr J. Matheson 100%, Cllr S. Radley 35%, Cllr D. Rennie 86%, Cllr Russell 70% & Cllr A. Thomas 71%. Overall the attendance rate was 75%. LITTLE PAXTON PARISH COUNCIL (As at 30 th April 2014) Diane Alder, 7 Field Close Paul Chapman, 2 Tortoiseshell Walk Jeanette Cleaver,33Lakefield Avenue Stan Codling 13 Hayling Avenue Sue Dean, 29 Lakefield Avenue Emma Freeman 69 Skipper Way Carol Gamby 37 Gordon Road Stephen Johnson- Proctor Tel 01480 405630 Tel 07881 894 546 Tel. 07802 708060 Tel 01480 475022 Tel 07797 747948 Tel 01480 218315 Tel 01480 211171 Tel 01480 356799 diane.alder@littlepaxton.org.uk paul.chapman@littlepaxton.org.uk jeanette.cleaver@littlepaxton.org.uk stan.codling@littlepaxton.org.uk sue.dean@littlepaxton.org.uk emma.freeman@littlepaxton.org.uk carol.gamby@littlepaxton.org.uk stephen.johnson@littlepaxton.org.uk 9
John Longbottom Tel 07587 john.longbottom@littlepaxton.org.uk 13 Park Avenue 153606 Peter Loughran Tel01480 533016 peter.loughran@littlepaxton.org.uk Jean Matheson 21 Tel. 01480 jean.matheson@littlepaxton.org.uk Jubilee Close 476298 Sean Radley 99 High Tel. 01480 sean.radley@littlepaxton.org.uk Street 218727 David Rennie 5 Tel 01480 david.rennie@littlepaxton.org.uk Hawthorn Close 470014 Reginald Russell 6 Tel. 01480 None The Sycamores 213647 Alun Thomas Tel 01480 Alun.thomas@littlepaxton.org.uk 471554 Clerk of the Council Jennifer Gellatly 11 Hayling Avenue PE19 6HG 01480 470193 The Chairman of the Parish Council is Cllr Jeanette Cleaver and the Vice Chairman is Cllr Jean Matheson. The Chairman and Vice-Chairman are automatically members of all committees. Adopted 05/06/14 MinFCJun14 10