Present
Councillors D Stothard (Acting Chairman), R Butler, K Chewings,D Eldridge, S Ellis, B Handbury, L Healy, N Monday,
C Patterson, I Shaw and A Simpson.
Apologies Received
Councillors H Brumpton, M Chewings, C Jeffreys and D Wilkie.
Attendance
The Town Clerk, Administration Manager (Cotgrave Town Council), and 1 member of the public.
The meeting was held virtually, via Zoom, and commenced at 7pm.
Apologies
1266
The apologies given were approved.
Declarations of Interest
1267
No declarations of interest were received.
Public Open Session
1268
No members of the public wished to speak.
Minutes of the Town Council Meeting held on 8th December 2020
Resolved
1269
“That the minutes of the previous meeting held on 8th December 2020 be received and confirmed as a true record”.
Progress
1270
M1200 Off Road Motor Bikes
Councillor Shaw asked if there had been any feedback from the Police regarding the riding of motor bikes in
the woods at the back of The Dial. No further information had been provided.
The Clerk will invite the Police to attend the next council meeting
1271
M1206 Telephone Box on West Furlong
The Clerk informed Council that the transfer of the telephone box from BT was now complete.
A poster has been placed on the box saying that the telephone box is now under ownership of Cotgrave Town Council.
1272
M1213 Pensioners Christmas Meal
Councillor Butler said what a great success the Christmas meal had been and that it had received a good
reception and wished to thank Jill and her team of volunteers for providing the meal.
1273
M1260 Litter bin on Owthorpe Road
Councillor Shaw ask if there was an updated on the request for a litter bin on Owthorpe Road near to the
entrance to the public footpath at the top of the hill? The Clerk had put this request to the County Council
but had not received any update. She would chase up this matter.
1274
M1264 Hot Pots Café
Councillor Stothard asked if there had been any more information on the extraction system that had been
installed on the side of the old Hot Pots. The Clerk informed that this was now in the hand of the Borough’s
Enforcement Officer.
Planning Minutes
1275
Resolved
“To confirm the planning minutes recorded the decisions taken by the Council and those of the Planning Authority.”
Planning Applications
1276
Council discussed the planning application 20/03248/OUT, land rear of Mill Lane/The Old Park, an
application for outline planning permission for the construction of up to 210 dwellings (all matters reserved
except for access)
1277
Councillor I Shaw said that the working group for future local development in Cotgrave had met and they
had requested information from the medical centre and local schools.
1278
Councillor Butler stated that the local schools would be consulted as part of the planning process and their
responses would be made public on the Borough Council’s planning website, as would the medical centre
and all utilities.
1279
Councillor Ellis asked if it was possible to see what is already on the website? Councillor Butler informed that
it was probably too early for any comments to have been placed, but to check the planning application for consultee comments regularly as the information would be loaded daily.
1280
Councillor K Chewings stated that this was a contentious application and that he proposed that an
Extraordinary Council Meeting be called where this matter can be discussed fully
1281
Any consultee comments on the application should be received no later than 28th January 2021 for
inclusion.
1282
Resolved
“To call an Extraordinary Council Meeting on 25th January 2021 to further discuss planning application 203244/OUT.
Financial Matters
1283
Payments
Resolved:
‘’That the payments made since the previous meeting totalling £17,268.21as recorded below, be approved and the invoices awaiting payment be paid’’.
| COTGRAVE TOWN COUNCIL 13th January 2021 | ||||
| UK Fuels | 1058633 | Fuel | 1 | 68.26 |
| D H Electrical | 20632 | Install Christmas Lights/Pat Test | 960.00 | |
| Anvil Hire Ltd | Cherry Picker Hire Christmas Tree | 619.55 | ||
| SLCC | 232408 | Membership | 1 | 234.00 |
| Sublime Shine | 555 | Office Window Cleaning | 1 | 11.99 |
| Sublime Shine | 556 | Cotgrave Futures Window Cleaning | 1 | 49.99 |
| RBC | 709821171 | Broadmeer Play Area Rent | 1 | 40.00 |
| Mrs J Pick | Selection Boxes for Schools | 1 | 85.44 | |
| ICO | 1420656 | Registration Fee | 1 | 40.00 |
| Veber | 47996 | Data Backup | 1 | 13.20 |
| C Knott Insurance | Allotment Insurance 2021 | 1 | 139.02 | |
| CSC | Domain Name | 1 | 100.00 | |
| Mrs J Stephenson | Hand sanitiser | 1 | 5.52 | |
| SLCC | 199874 | Conference (virtual) Feb 2021 | 1 | 90.00 |
| Cotgrave Super Kitchen | Pensioners Christmas Meal | 1 | 1325.00 | |
| HSBC Bank | Bank Charges | 1 | 6.50 | |
| Meerkat Comms | 6124 | CCTV Broadband | 1 | 59.40 |
| NCC | 92524381 | November Salaries | 1 | 11315.68 |
| Talktalk | 21714480 | Business Phone and Broadband | 1 | 38.40 |
| Opus Energy | 6964595 | Pavilion Electricity | 1 | 69.14 |
| Notts CS | 122000873 | Stationery | 1 | 6.96 |
| TMS Hardware | Consumables | 1 | 18.30 | |
| J A Kent | 61788 | December Grounds Maintenance | 1 | 880.00 |
| Streetwise | 18730 | Install Bench and Planter | 1 | 421.97 |
| Real Christmas Trees | 1000012233 | 20ft Christmas Tree | 1 | 550.00 |
| Lexis Nexis | 104392407 | Arnold Baker Local Council Admin | 1 | 119.99 |
| TOTAL | 17,268.31 |
1284
Income
Resolved
“That the income totalling £8311.16 since the last meeting, as reproduced below.
| 1.12.2020 | Cotgrave FC | Rent | 150.00 |
| 4.12.2020 | BDW Trading | Maintenance Payment Hollygate Allotments | 7214.00 |
| 5.12.2020 | EWPS Hallam Insurance | No claims Rebate | 101.02 |
| 14.12.2020 | RBC | Shopping Centre Litter Clearance | 846.14 |
| TOTAL | 8311.16 |
Financial Statements
1285
Members considered the Statements for November 2020 as reproduced at the back of the Minute Book.
At the end of November 2020 Council had £24,290.85 in the Co-op account, £131,4884.23 in the HSBC account and £201,082.63 in the NatWest account.
Budgets 2021-2022
1286
A working group of councillors had attended a Budget meeting with the Clerk and set a budget for 2021-2022 and this had been presented to Council for consideration.
1287
Councillors thanked the Clerk for a “first class job’ work on the budget.
1288
All Councillors were in favour of the budget and Council
1289
Resolved
That Council appy for a precept of £230,225.00 which equates to £94.67 per year or £1.892 per week for a band D property, which was a 0% increase”
Working Groups
Grassmere Play Area
1290
Councillor D Stothard gave an update. He had received a second plan back from one of the play equipment
suppliers but had been very disappointed in it and had requested a revised plan. The equipment had included equipment that was like that that was already installed in other play parks in Cotgrave.
1291
Councillor K Chewings still required the costings of play parks in Cotgrave, but due to the National Lockdown this is causing delays in the Clerk being able to provide this information due to the council losing access to their office.
Future housing development in Cotgrave
1292
Councillor Shaw again stated that due to the National Lockdown there would be delays in being able to provide information required to produce a traffic survey on the five entrance points in Cotgrave, this would have to take place to get a true figure when some of the current restrictions had been removed.
1293
The working group wished to ask Council for permission to send a letter firstly to Barratt Homes requesting
information on the bridge at Hollygate Lane, that had still not been installed, including information on disabled access for the bridge, and its general design, followed by a letter to Rushcliffe Borough Council
1294
Council were all in agreement and
1295
Resolved
“To write to Barratt Homes and Rushcliffe Borough Council regarding planning planning details for the bridge at Hollygate Lane.”
1296
The working group had also discussed the benefits of a Neighbourhood Plan and wished to request that Council should invite someone from a neighbouring parish who have carried out a plan to discuss the amount of work and their conclusions regarding a Neighbourhood Plan.
1297
Councillor Butler said this was very encouraging to hear and said that Neighbourhood Plans were very complex and would need to input of a professional consultant.
1298
Councillor Ellis thought that now Rushcliffe Borough Council’s Local Plan II was in place, a Neighbourhood Plan would have very little weight.
1299
Councillor K Chewings stated that a Neighbourhood Plan would determine where the money can be spent in Cotgrave but might to too late for Local Plan 2, but this would help in the future and Local Plan II will go ahead.
1300
The Clerk said she would speak with RCAN and ask about the availability of funding.
1301
Resolved
“To invite representatives from neighbouring parish councils to attend a future council meeting to discuss the pros and cons of carrying out a Neighbourhood Plan.”
Tree Survey
1302
Councils are legally obliged to carry out a Tree Survey at regular intervals. Cotgrave Town Council’s last survey was carried out 5 years ago, but ideally should be every 3 years.
1303
The Clerk had obtained a quotation for a tree survey at the cost of £1350.00 + VAT.
1304
Several small trees on The Green had already been identified as needing some work.
1305
Council agreed that a tree survey should be completed every 3 years and the Clerk to get quotes at this point and submit to council for approval.
1306
Resolved
“To place the order for the tree survey to be carried out at a cost of £ 1,350.00 + VAT.”
Defibrillators in Cotgrave
1307
The Clerk had obtained a quotation for the supply of several different types of Defibrillators from Community Heartbeat, the company that has installed the defibrillator located at Cotgrave Futures.
1308
Council requested if further quotations and research could be obtained before Council any decision.
1309
Councillor Healy suggested speaking with First Responders and Councillor Simpson suggested the British Heart Foundation.
1310
This item will be added to the next Council Meeting agenda.
Cyber Security
1311
Council has been copied into an email from Council’s insurers regarding a new style of insurance regarding
cyber security.
1312
The cost of the policy would be £361 for £100K of cover.
1313
The Clerk stated that Council did already some basic cover already including the current insurance policy.
1314
Council agreed that it was not worth having the additional insurance policy.
Rushcliffe Borough Council Planning Enforcement Consultation
1315
The Borough Council are in the process of reviewing and amending its Planning Enforcement Policy and had
copied Council into the document and ask for any comments by 29th January 2021.
1316
Council did not wish to comment on the policy review.
Apologies – Review for extended apologies
1317
The Clerk asked Council if they wished her to write to those Councillors who had been given extended apologies for Council meetings until the end of January.
1318
Resolved
“To extend apologies for Councillor D Wilkie and M Chewings for the months of February and March 2021
Covid-19 Policy
1319
The policy had been updated to reflect the start of the National Lockdown on 5th January 2021.
1320
The MUGA had been closed as per government guidelines, and the outdoor gym equipment in Ringleas
and Grassmere Play Areas had been taped off.
1321
The Administration Staff are once again working from home; ground staff and park keepers can continue with their duties.
1322
Staff are contacted on a regular basis, asking that they feel safe carrying out their duties and that they have
a good supply of PPE.
1323
An additional supply of masks, gloves and hand wipes have been ordered.
1324
Councillor Healy asked if any of the Street Marshalls had been visiting Cotgrave?
There had been a Street Marshall on the shopping centre in the evenings until approx. 8.45pm prior to Christmas. This was an official person from a security company provided by Rushcliffe Borough Council.
Correspondence
1325
Nottinghamshire County Council Local Government Pension Fund
Council has been copied into the reform of exit pay arrangements regarding pensions.
1326
Cotgrave Church of England Primary School
A letter of thanks has been received from the school acknowledging Council’s support and generosity in the past year, including a thank you for the selection boxes given to the children at Christmas.
1327Crime Figures
| Date | Location | Crime |
| 14.12.2020 | Old barn field/Old A46 | Theft of batteries from within the National Grid Pylon |
| 17.12.2020 | Scout Hut Hollygate Lane | Damage water meter/tap vandalised/damage to Scout Hut |
| 18.12.2020 | Hickling Way | Criminal damage to vehicle windows. |
Clerks’ Reports
1328
Clerk had received an email from Jill Mathers at Community Kitchen. Cotgrave Welfare had asked them for £75 for the extra electricity that had been used for whilst cooking the pensioners Christmas dinners.
Council will pay the £75 as part of the pensioners meal expenditure.
1329
Following on from the resignation of the Chairman of Council, the Clerk asked if Council would like to elect a new Chairman at its next meeting or wait until the AGM in May, if to wait until May, then allow the Vice Chairman to act as Chairman?
1330
Resolved
“To election a new Chairman and Vice Chairman (if required) at the Council Meeting on 10th February 2021.”
1331
This item will be added to the agenda.
1332
The Clerk would need to give 3 months’ notice to discontinue the Zoom membership and ask Council if they wished to continue with the membership? Membership renewal is April 2021.
1333
Resolved
“To continue with the Zoom membership.
Councillors Reports
1334
Councillor Butler said that the parking issues at the Country Park is still a challenge. There was now the same issue with inconsiderate parking on Mill Lane and has asked for some additional signage.
1335
Councillor Butler also commented on the email forwarded by the Clerk referring to the NALC training on planning and said that this course was well worth taking part in.
1336
Councillor K Chewings was concerned about the lack of online learning provision for the pupils of Candleby Lane School.
1337
Councillor Patterson said what percentage of online learning they do and that they may not be meeting the statutory requirements and suggested that this question be put to the school.
1338
Councillor Eldridge asked if anything could be done about the large puddle that forms every time it rains on the pavement outside 27 Woodview.
1339
Councillor Butler said this issue can be reported on the Nottinghamshire County Council website under roads and highways. The Administration Manager will report this issue.
1340
Councillor Eldridge asked when the deadline date was for the next edition of Cotgrave Connections Newsletter. This is Friday 19th February.
1341
Councillor Eldridge asked that when Streetwise litter pick that they had a list of the streets, as there is a lot of litter, he has particularly noticed on Woodview from the Cotgrave Welfare to the junction with Ringleas. They are issued a schedule every month which they follow.
The Clerk stated that they had been struggling with staff shortages after some members of staff were self-isolating after someone had tested positive for Covid-19.
1342
Councillor Eldridge had been litter picking whilst he was walking his dogs and had collected half a bag of litter each time.
1343
Councillor Handbury had also noticed that there were two ladies that litter picked on Owthorpe Road.
1344
Councillor Handbury wish to thank the Clerk and the Administration Manager for all the work they had put in to helping organised the pensioner Christmas meals.
1345
Councillor Healy said that 188 meals had been delivered over the two days together with goody bags. He wished to thank the councillors who had helped with the deliveries and asked if a letter of thanks could be forward to Jill Mathers and her team of volunteers.
1346
Councillor Stothard apologies for not being able to help with the deliveries but his shift pattern had been changed at the last minute.
1347
Councillor Monday mentioned that parking at the canal crossing and car park for the County Park was also becoming a problem, and cars were now starting to park on the road. This will also be reported to Notts CC.
1348
Councillor Stothard said that he had noticed the driver of a school bus taking photos of cars parking on the road of the junction of Ringleas and Cartbridge when he was having trouble in getting through the vehicles.
There stretch of road does have a lot of car parking in this area, as most of the houses in the area are not able to park off road.
1349
Councillor Stothard wished for Council to write to the ex-Chairman, wishing him and his wife all the best wishes since his resignation.
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.40pm
Chairman…………………………………… Signed as a True Record (Date)………………………………
All Council minutes remain in draft form, until approved by Council at the next Council meeting.