CPC February 2020 Minutes
Minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday 18 February 2020 at the Bottle & Glass Pub
1. Meeting attended by:
Jeff Summers, Isabelle Brooke, Sara Carter, Danny Mellor, Barbara Moulson, John Moulson, John Fox (attending in place of Angela Hanson)
Apologies received from:
Denise Leah, Jamie Marshall
2. Minutes of the previous meeting
The minutes of the meeting held on 21 January 2020 were agreed to be a true and accurate record of the meeting and were signed by the Chairman.
3. Matters Arising from the Minutes
3.1 (ref 3.1) IB reported that the Parish Clerks had been informed of contact names for Maintenance, Events and Grants issues.
3.2 (ref 3.2) DM reported that he had been unable to find a contractor with a circular saw type hedge cutter so had engaged a local contractor to cut the hedge as low as possible with a flail, as this needed to be done before the end of the month. SC stated that she was in contact with a garden contractor who is currently removing a similar hedge and replacing with post and rail fencing in Reepham. It was agreed to ask him to supply an estimate to do the same work at the park to give an idea of the cost of the project in order to start seeking funding.
4. Reports from Sub-Committees
4.1 Events
4.1.1 IB reported on a constructive meeting of the Events Committee held on 11 February at which the programme of events for the year was discussed and agreed upon as follows:
Monthly
Quiz Nights
13 April
Easter Event (Easter Egg Hunt, Decorated Cake Competition, Raffle, Refreshments.
8 May
V E Day Celebration (Victory Afternoon Tea)
13 September
Summer Fete (Children’s Races, Fun Dog Show, Classic Cars, WI Tea Tent, Produce Show, Side Shows, Raffles)
27 or 28 Nov
Christmas Craft Fair
13 December
Christmas Jumper Walk
19 December
Christmas Raffle
4.1.2 The first two quiz nights would be at priced £2.50 per head while take-up numbers are ascertained. Thereafter, if food could be provided as part of the ticket price, the cost would be reviewed.
4.1.3 March and April Quiz Nights, the Easter Event and the VE Day Celebration to appear in the March Signpost.
4.2 Maintenance
4.2.1 DM reported that safety fencing had been erected around the flooded drainage ditch at the south end of the field, together with warning signs. However, ditches at the north end of the park had now also filled so it was agreed, for the sake of the safety of the public, the park should be closed until such time as it could be judged safe. It was agreed that JS would lend locking chains for the gates and that BM would make up suitable signs.
4.2.2 DM reported that the cost to hire a digger to work on site would involve a £1000 deposit, £140 for delivery and collection, with a minimum hire of a week, which would mean responsibility for securing it on site. Therefore, it would probably prove cheaper to hire a driver and digger per day rather than a ‘self-drive’, as above.
4.2.3 JM reported that weekly inspections of the play equipment were underway, with a signed form filled in on each occasion.
4.3 Grants & Finance
4.3.1 BM reported that, now the former Chairman’s documents had been handed on, she would be in a position to review what applications had been made in the past and the outcome, and would then be able to create a suitable list of potentials funders for the future projects. She noted that the pool of available funders would be limited by the status of the Committee, i.e. a committee of Parish Councils.
4.3.2 IL reported on the current financial position:
Lloyds account current balance (from bank statement) £1399.64 *
OPC Reserve account £3529.58 *
Therefore our current funds stand at £4929.22
* Subsequent to the meeting these figures have been fully reconciled against bank records. The Lloyds Bank Account spread-sheet, once adjusted for cash transactions, reconciles with bank statement.
The OPC Reserve Account now includes a VAT reclaim of £1197.47 but excludes an amount of £385.86 which was included in error.
4.3.3 IB commented that a major cause of confusion in the accounts had been the number of cash transactions. Whilst it is unavoidable having to deal with cash receipts from events, the practice of paying expenses from cash takings should cease, as it makes reconciling the Income & Expenditure Account against bank statements problematic. Such was the case for both the Joint NP/CPC event and the ‘Right Royal’ evening.
5. Discussion on Terms of Reference
5.1 Cllr John Fox made the suggestion that many problems would be resolved if the CPC became an Incorporated Charitable Organisation, which could then lease the park from the Councils. Cllr Fox stated that this suggestion was his personal opinion and not made on behalf of Normanby Parish Council.
Since this had been the original intention for the CPC, it was agreed that, if there was any chance that this might be possible, it should be investigated as it would provide many more avenues for funding. It was agreed that this would need to be discussed by both Parish Councils and additional expert opinion sought as to how this might be made possible.
5.2 In view of this, it was agreed that any discussion of Terms of Reference should be deferred pending investigation regarding ICO status.
6. Any other items for discussion (post-circulation of Agenda)
6.1 Following the earlier discussion about hedge cutting and the possible replacement with fencing, IB offered to draft Project Proposals for that, the fencing of the Playground and acquisition of a storage/event unit. These would be circulated and could form the basis of a plan for the next year, to be presented at the forthcoming Joint Meeting.
7. Date of next meeting
Because of a clash with the date of the next Owmby Parish Council meeting it was agreed that the next meeting of the Community Park Committee should be Wednesday 18 March, venue to be agreed.
There be no further business, the meeting closed at 9.30pm