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Parish Clerk Report for 27 July 2021

My first month has been a very steep learning curve, with so much to learn about both the village and the job. Thank you for being so patient with me. I have spent some time trying to get myself organised with both paper and electronic systems, and to find where all the information is. Thank you particularly to Ann for all her help.

Finances

I apologise that at the moment I have not had time to get my head round the financial side of the job. I have not included finance on the agenda this time, because I could not guarantee that the information would be complete or accurate. Please bear with me, and I will have a full report and first quarter budget completed for the September meeting. We also cannot sign the ‘Timetable of Meetings’ or Council Diary off until I have done the first quarter budget.

Website

I have received training from Simon Hill on how the website editing works. I have a login, and have already edited the contact information and uploaded the last two sets of minutes. I have several other items to upload when I have time.

Training

Thank you to agreeing to the 3 courses.

  • New Clerk Webinar – I have completed this four-hour online webinar, which was very useful, and has resulted in some of the items on the agenda! We were supplied with some useful resources to use going forward.
  • Introduction to Local Council Administration (ILCA) – This has been booked and paid for. I am awaiting the login to get started, and have chased!
  • Financial Introduction to Local Council Administration (FILCA) – Although this seemed to be the course which I most needed, I have discovered that it is not actually available to start until later in the year. It is therefore likely that the £120 + VAT for this course will not need to be paid until the next financial year, as I will complete ILCA first. Luckily there is a Finance module within ILCA to give me a start in this area.

Completed Actions

Copies of all letters and emails were available to view at the meeting, apologies that many of the actions were only completed this week.

  • Kate paid the honorarium for the internal auditor. Simon has written to say “Please pass on my grateful thanks to the Parish Council and the Skaigh Wood Trust for their cheques which whilst unnecessary are very welcome !!”
  • Kate submitted the Annual Governance Statement and Certificate of Exemption to PKF Littlejohn, which they acknowledged. The required documents are displayed on the website and noticeboard.
  • Kate commented on the 0312/21 Taw Marsh site Certificate of Lawfulness application by inserting the minutes from the special planning meeting on 29th June, and sent a copy to Jo Rumble at DNPA Planning. The date for observations to be submitted did not close until 19th July, so we are unlikely to hear anything about it until August or September.  We have not received any further correspondence from the Duchy of Cornwall.
  • I have written to Peter Grubb to thank him for his suggestion regarding the car park.
  • I have invited Robin and Edwina Hill to the next meeting
  • I have written to Michael Reddaway regarding the Ash Tree
  • I have written to the Commoners Association to ask them to put rocks around the Car Park and Great Green, and letting them know of our other actions.
  • I have emailed the DNPA regarding the incorrect procedures for Application 0061/19 Riverside Chalet. They phoned back to say that they had notified us of the appeal on 23rd October 2019, as part of their normal procedures to notify Parish Councils. We have no record of the email. They agreed that the appeal documents and the correct decision should be on the website and will rectify that, but they are very busy at the moment. As it is not an active application it is not a priority.

Car Park Actions (In Progress)

  • I have investigated the cost of purchasing an A-Frame sign online, A1 size (841 x 594 mm) from £88.20 (excluding VAT) or A2 size (420 x 594 mm) from £76.20  including two poster prints. This could only be paid by card, so I would need to pay and claim it back, but they do provide an invoice. I have also Contacted the local ‘Ink Print’ shop by email, they can do A-Frames with or without water in the base to improve stability and I have asked for a quote.
  • I have attached a suggested design for the front poster, and believe that the car park layout could go on the back of the A-Frame. This is really just a starter for ideas and discussion.
  • I would like some input on the ideal layout, and have emailed Peter Cooper for his ideas. I could also approach Peter Grubb as he was interested.

Correspondence

We were informed that an ‘Overseas elector who is only entitled to vote at UK Parliamentary elections’ has been deleted from the Register of Electors.