January 2026 Minutes
You are hereby summoned to attend a meeting of the Finance, Policy and Personnel Committee to be held in the meeting room at the Institute 38 Church Street Deeping St James PE6 8HD at 8.00pm on Tuesday 06 January 2026.
Present: Councillors Bowell, Gilbert, Halls, Neville, Nickerson, Rose and Shinkins-Hoppe.
26.53 To receive apologies of absence.
Apologies were received and accepted from Councillors Smith and Stevens
26.54 To receive any declarations of interest.
None declared.
26.55 To adopt the minutes of the previous meeting held on Tuesday 09 December 2025.
Agreed and signed.
26.56 To receive the Clerk’s report.
A 90-day notice account has been opened at the Hinckley and Rugby Building Society and funds totalling £65,000 have been transferred from the Barclays Business Premium Account. The Clerk advised that online access for them in their role of Finance Officer was not available unless they became one of the (maximum of four) named signatories on the account which was not felt to be good practice. The Clerk was asked to contact them and explain what was (view and input access for the Finance Officer and authorisation access for 4 Councillors) required to see if they could accommodate. If not the monthly statement required for reconciliation purposes would need to be provided to the Finance Officer by one of the named signatories.
26.57 To receive a report of the financial position as at 30 December 2025.
The report was noted
26.58 To receive a report on the income and expenditure against budget for the period 1 April 2024 to 30 December 2025.
The report was noted.
26.59 To receive the bank reconciliations for the period 1 September 2025 to 31 December 2025
Councillor Gilbert signed the 4 monthly reconciliations.
26.60 To consider the draft budget for 2026/27 in preparation for precept setting including consideration of the funding applications from Deepings Sports and Social Club and the Citizens Advice South Lincolnshire and Deepings Neighbourhood Plan Group plus the quotations received for the grass cutting contracts not yet agreed by Council
A revised draft budget and precept calculation was presented to the committee taking into account the amendments considered under minute 26.47 of the finance policy and personnel committee meeting held on 10 December 2026.
The revised budget included grant funding for Deeping Sports and Social Club (£5000), Deepings Neighbourhood Plan Group (£2000) and Citizens Advice South Lincolnshire (£5433) Paperwork supporting these applications had been shared with Council at the December 2025 meeting (minute 26.106.2) but had not yet been agreed. The committee RECOMENDS that Council agrees all 3 grant funding applications
The draft budget also included funding for grass cutting contracts for the riverbank Woody Heights, Jubilee Park and the Highway verges within the 30MPH speed limit of the Deepings area based on quotations from the contractors who had fulfilled these contracts in 2025 and which had not as yet been accepted by Council. The Committee RECOMMEND that Council accept the quotations and suspends Financial Regulations 5.8 and 5.9 which require 3 fixed price quotes and 3 estimates respectively. This was due to the fact that the two contractors had fulfilled the contracts to a very high standard during 2025 and also took into account that obtaining 3 quotations prior to acceptance of their quotes for 2025 had shown that they offered value for money. The Clerk and Councillor Rose would review the contracts with a view extending the length of terms.
Following acceptance of the previous two recommendations the committee further RECOMMENDS that Council accept the revised budget figures and precept requirement for 2026/27 of a 18.4% (£17.26p.a) on the Band D charge compared to 2025/26
26.61 To consider the Internal Auditors report and checklist dated 7 December 2025
The Committee and the Clerk worked through the items the Internal Auditor had highlighted as medium and high risk (13 and 1 respectively from a total of 97) and agreed actions and/or responses.
Item 14 – Considered and agreed that the Clerk would add the asset register as at 31 March 2025 to the website
Item 19 – Considered and agreed that the Clerk would add a document to the website
Item 20 – Considered and agreed that the Clerk would add a document to the website
Item 23 – Considered and agreed that the RFO should endeavour to complete a monthly bank reconciliation although did not agree that rotation of bank reconciliations between non- signatories should be put in place. Considered the recommendation that signatories are given the opportunity to review the invoices related to the payment schedule and agreed that this opportunity is already available is signatories request to look at an invoice although it was felt that as the invoices are already checked against the payment schedule by two Councillors who are non-signatories it should not be a requirement.
Item 28 – An investment policy/strategy was adopted by the Parish Council at the Council meeting held on 16 December 2025 (minute 26.106.1)
Item 40 – Considered and agreed that the reconciliation review should be completed bi-monthly
Item 42 – Considered and agreed that the addition of Councillor Neville as a banking signatory (minute 26.29 (clerks report)) should be agreed by council at the meeting on 20 January 2026 as banking arrangements should not be delegated to a committee (The Practitioner’s Guide 1.15.5)
Item 47 – Considered and agreed to add the Asset Register as at 31 March 2025 to the agenda for the Council meeting on 20 January 2026 and that going forward a standard agenda item would be added to the agenda for the Annual Parish Council Meeting.
Item 49 – Considered and the Clerk was asked to check the status of all land owned and if not registered with the Land Registry to instigate registration.
Item 51 – The risk register and management policy was reviewed at the Council meeting held on 16 December 2025 (minute 26.106.1)
Item 53 – Considered and agreed that the RFO would endeavour to complete the bank reconciliations on a monthly basis.
Item 68 – Considered and agreed that in future whenever contracts are awarded the value of the quote would be published.
Item 93 – Considered and agreed to be reviewed under 26.62
Item 96 - Considered and agreed to comply with the requirements of the Transparency Code please also refer to comments under item 19 and 20.
26.62 To review the website accessibility statement
It was RESOLVED to re-adopt the website accessibility statement
It was RESOLVED to move into closed session in accordance with The Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960 due to the confidential nature of the business to be discussed in relation to the following matters
26.63 To receive and consider personnel matters
It was acknowledged that there were some ongoing matters that needed to be progressed. It was agreed that in order to progress these matters the personnel sub-committee would meet at 8pm on Tuesday 10 February 2026 as the allotments committee meeting which had been re-scheduled from Tuesday 13 January 2026 to this date was to be further rescheduled.
It was RESOLVED to move out of closed session
26.64 To note the date of the next meeting – 8pm Tuesday 07 April 2026.