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Draft Minutes of East and West Beckham Parish Council
Meeting Held on Thursday 19th September 2024
Present.
Cllrs. R. McNeil Wilson, (chairman), D. Barrass, R. Batt, J. Dovey, R. Lewis, G. Place, T. Toyn,
County Cllr. E. Vardy, PC. Jack Houghton, Mr.&Mrs. P. Spurgeon (Village Hall Committee) J.Stibbons (clerk)
The chairman opened the meeting at 7.00pm.
1. Apologies Cllr. Bob Lewis. Dist. Cllr. Callum Ringer.
2. Cllr. Barrass declared an interest on items in agenda item 8. Felbeck Trust.
3. There were no Comments and Questions on the agenda from members of the public.
4. Reports.
Dist. Cllr. C. Ringer A written reports was received and is attached to these minutes.
County Cllr. E. Vardy. Due to the election there was not much to report. Not many meetings had
been held. Due to the change of Government, devolution is unlikely to happen. Government funding
has also been withheld for the Holway Roundabout and a firm decision is awaited from the new
government.
PC. Jack Houghton. The priority issues for the Police at present are Anti-social Behaviour and Speeding. Speedwatch has become important in some areas. There was no crime reported in Beckham during the last quarter.
The next Police Priority meeting will be held at Sheringham on 17th October at 7pm.
Mr. Pat Spurgeon. The target for installing solar panels on the village hall has been reached.
The total cost is £16,500 of which Horsey 3 Project have given a grant of £13,200 and donations of £3808 have been received.
Broadland Housing. Further information regarding the renewal of the fence at the play area is awaited.
5. The minutes of the meeting held on Thursday 11th July 2024. having been previously circulated, it was proposed by Cllr. Toyn that they be approved as correct. This was seconded by Cllr. Dovey and carried.
The chairman then signed the minutes.
6. Matters arising from the Minutes.
Wheatsheaf. It was agreed that the Wheatsheaf was a good community resource. There was still some concern amongst councillors regarding the exact wording of the forms and what impact an ACV would have on the parish council.
It was proposed that a further meeting should be held, asking Cllr. Callum Ringer to be present, specifically to discuss the way forward.
The date will be the earliest which is suitable to Mr. Ringer who is abroad on holiday at the moment.
Dates suggested were 26th September or 3rd October
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7. Horsey 3 Community Fund.
David Barrass suggested that one area needing improvement was the allotments. It would be useful to have a wooden shed for storage and an improved water saving system.
Providing family plots could also be an asset as this would encourage younger children to take an interest in growing vegetables. Possibly some play equipment could be provided to encourage youngsters.
8. Felbeck Trust.
Felbeck Trust have asked for a donation of £1500 towards match funding for the purchase of a mower.
Also ask for the ten year lease, which has already been in place for five years to be extended to a ninety nine year lease.
It was proposed by Cllr. Dovey that a donation of £750 should be made towards the purchase of equipment and the lease should remain as a ten year lease which could be reviewed in the future and carried forward when the renewal date was approached.
This proposal was seconded by Cllr. Toyn and unanimously approved by the meeting.
9. Suggested articles for the Bulletin.
Cllr. Dovey noted the several suitable topics suggested and will liaise with Kathryn Lord in the preparation of the next edition.
10. Playing Field.
The inspection report by J. Dovey noted further deterioration of the kick board.
A reply is still awaited from Broadland Housing regarding the replacement of the fence.
11. Financial matters.
Bank Balances at 19/9/24:-
Current a/c £1967.05 Savings a/c £4556.29 Investment a/c £46440 + interest £771.15
Cheques signed:-
Felbeck Trust Grant towards mowing equipment £750
Beckham Church Grass maintenance grant (2ndyear) £1000
It was agreed that the above grants should be paid from the Savings account
12. Correspondence The following correspondence was sent to members by email:-
NNDC New Draft housing allocation scheme.
Bodham and Beckham Horticultural Show. A letter of thanks for sponsoring the show. Volunteers are being sought to run the show in 2025.
13. Matters for information only or for the next agenda.
It was noted that there had been a serious accident on the main road with four people taken to hospital.
There being no further business the chairman closed the meeting at 8.51pm
The next meeting of Beckham Parish Council will be held on Thursday 14th November 2024
