RAOS February 2023 Minutes
DEEPING ST JAMES PARISH COUNCIL
The Institute, 38 Church Street, Deeping St James, PE6 8EP
E-mail: clerk@dsjpc.co.uk
Tel: 01778 343266
Webpage: //deeping-st-james.parish.lincolnshire.gov.uk Facebook: Deeping St James Parish Council
Parish Clerk: Julie Fortnum
The minutes of the meeting of the recreation & opens spaces Committee held at 7.45pm on Tuesday 14 February 2023 in the meeting room at the Institute 38 Church Street Deeping St James PE6 8HD
Present: Councillors Halls, Little, Robinson, Stevens and Shinkins-Hoppe
The minutes were taken by the Parish Clerk
Published 16 February 2023
23.21 To receive apologies of absence.
Apologies were received from Councillor Olson.
Councillors Hall and Rose were not in attendance.
22.22 To receive declarations of interest.
None declared.
23.23 To agree the minutes of the meeting held on 6 September 2022.
Agreed and signed.
23.24 To receive the Clerk’s report.
-Tree work has been completed at Woody Heights and Millennium Wood (as well as at the Allotments and Cemetery) using the Arborist reports commissioned in Autumn 2021.
-The Clerk has contacted South Kesteven District Council to request the return of the missing swing which was taken from Hereward Way play area due to being damaged prior to the equipment being transferred to the Parish Council .
-The Clerk has also asked South Kesteven District Council to fix the access gates at the play area on Jubilee Park and also deal with the bubbling of an area of the safety surface prior to the area being transferred to the Parish Council.
-The grounds maintenance contracts from April 2023 have been agreed with EnvironmentSK Ltd for the riverbank, Woody Heights, the highway verges (shared with MDTC) and Jubilee Park.
- A vandalised Tesco shopping trolley which CCTV footage showed had been pushed up and down the concreted ramps at the skatepark had been removed and the damage this could cause and hazard the hazard it posed explained to the individuals present.
23.25 To receive an update and agree further steps regarding the organisation of the Annual Parish Meeting scheduled to take place on Tuesday 25 April 2023.
The Clerk confirmed that the conference centre at the Deepings School had been booked for Tuesday 25 April 2023 but no further action had been taken.
The committee discussed what needed to be organised but as they do not have the delegated power to move this forward agreed that the following should be recommended to Council –
Invite voluntary/community groups to attend the annual parish meeting to promote their work via a table top display and encourage them to nominate individuals and organisations for a making a difference award – Clerk to send invitations and nomination details.
Encourage networking by offering a buffet either provided by the school catering staff or an external provider – Clerk to investigate.
Entertainment to be provided by a choir and/or musician from one of the local Schools and a local poet – Clerk to make enquiries and book.
Encourage nominations for the making a difference award and invite the public to attend the annual parish meeting via emails to voluntary groups, community organisations and businesses, the Webpage, Facebook page and noticeboards plus local magazines – Clerk to arrange.
Councillor Shinkins-Hoppe to provide a brief report from the Parish Council with presentation of rolling photos as a backdrop.
All Parish Councillors to be invited to attend and asked to encourage friends and family to attend too.
A newsletter to be published as soon as possible to promote the annual parish meeting, upcoming elections and Coronation events, share photos from the Dog Show, Remembrance Parade and Carols in the Park held in September, November and December of 2022 and also to include a making a difference award nomination form – Councillors Stevens Shinkins-Hoppe and the Clerk to organise
23.26 To consider and agree further action to be taken regarding the organisation of events to mark the Coronation of King Charles III over the weekend Saturday 6 to Monday 8 May 2023 Coronation Weekend plans announced | The Royal Family
The national celebrations are suggesting a big lunch on Sunday 7 May and a Big help out day Monday 8 May 2023 could be organised on a local level over the Coronation weekend
It is known that Market Deeping Town Council are organising a Motorcade (the same as that organised for the Platinum Jubilee) from 11am on Sunday 7 May 2023 and individuals from the Town and surrounding parishes will be welcome to register with the Town Council to take part. Other than this they will be decorating the tree on the roundabout in red white and blue lights, organising a best dressed window competition for the businesses who will all been encouraged to take open and take part.
Councillor Shinkins-Hoppe suggested that the Parish Council should organise a big lunch (bring a picnic) event on Jubilee Park where dependent on volunteer help - music, children’s games and Royal fancy dress competition plus refreshments could be organised by the Parish Council. Toilet facilities would also be arranged.
Councillor Stevens offered to speak to Market Deeping Town Council to see if the vehicles from the Motorcade could park up on Jubilee Park and also speak to a parishioner who had a pony and trap to see if rides could be offered to the children who dressed up.
The committee do have the delegated power to organise this event however they do need a number of volunteers to make it happen (including help organising, setting up, acting as Stewards during the events and clearing away). They agreed to recommend to Council that an event is held provided sufficient Councillors volunteer to help.
As for the Big help-out day on Monday 8 May 2023 a suggestion had been received from a member of the public that the town and Parish Council should jointly organise and promote an event at the Community Centre and invite all the local community groups who needed more volunteers to attend. The committee agreed that whilst this was a brilliant idea the timing of it – close to the annual parish meeting on 25 April 2023 (which community groups would be invited to), the already busy Coronation weekend and the local council elections on 4 May 2023 and this date being an additional bank holiday so individuals may not feel inclined to attend such an event – meant it was not an idea that they felt Deeping St James Parish Council could pursue.
23.27 To consider what parish council funded activities should be offered to primary school aged children during the school summer holidays in 2023
Councillor Shinkins-Hoppe advised that Our Forest Garden had forwarded a proposal to the Council offering to run 10 forest school sessions for 30 children per session from Monday 24 July to Friday 28 July 2023 as a cost of £3,000. It was resolved to accept this proposal and the Clerk was asked to confirm this with Our Forest Garden
The Clerk was also asked to contact ‘Artivity;’ to see if they were interested in running some funded workshops as they did last year.
It was agreed that a school based playscheme should also be offered and the Clerk was asked to make contact with the two primary schools within Deeping St James (Linchfield and Deeping St James Community Primary Schools) to see if they were interested in running these prior to contacting Market Deeping Community Primary School who had run in for the Parish Council last year.
23.28 To consider if, and if so, when the following events should be organised during 2023
- Dog Show – Councillor Stevens to discuss this with Councillor Rose
- DSJ Remembrance Parade – 2.30pm on Sunday 12 November 2023
- Carols in the Park – 7pm on Friday 15 December 2023
Councillor Stevens asked about the Keep Britain Tidy Great British Spring Clean and the footpath walks which the Parish Council usually got involved with/organised.
It was noted that these were not on the agenda and also that organising an event for the first may be impractical due to the timing (17 March to 2 April 2023) of it however the Parish Council could encourage individuals and community groups to do litter pick and provide litter pickers, bin bags and arrange disposal of what was collected.
Dates for at least one footpath walk would be agreed by the Clerk and Councillors Shinkins-Hoppe and Stevens.
23.29 To agree the future management of the flower containers and planted areas around the parish.
It was agreed that the flower beds at Manor Way Deeping St James are the responsibility of the Parish Council as it was them that enhanced the area sometime ago. It was also noted that the benches were in need of re-painting. Councillor Stevens advised that the Friends of Deeping St James would still continue to plant the planters at Manor Way and that a local business has offered to water them. She also advised that the Friends of Deeping St James were refreshing the bed at Exeter Close.
23.29 To agree how to progress the following improvements at Jubilee Park
- Replacement of play equipment
- Installation of CCTV
- Works required to erect and light a Christmas Tree
Councillor Shinkins-Hoppe advised that she had spoken to a CCTV provider to obtain a quotation and she also stated that she was willing to complete any funding application forms required to obtain grants to renew the play equipment. She also noted that the groundworks for the Christmas Tree lighting could be completed at the same time as that for the CCTV and hopefully the installation of a defibrillator. It was acknowledged that once the transfer of ownership of Jubilee Park form District to Parish Council had been completed these projects would be moved forward.
23.309 To note the date of the next meeting – The meeting schedule for the next council year would be agreed at the Annual Parish Council meeting on Tuesday 16 May 2023.