Council Meeting, 27 September 2023

HELMDON PARISH COUNCIL
MINUTES
of the meeting of Helmdon Parish Council, held in the Reading Room, Church
Street, Helmdon on Wednesday 27th September 2023 at 7:30pm.
Present: Cllrs Harris, Marchant, Moody (Chair), Plunkett, Wheeler (Vice-Chair) and
Charmaine Jay (Clerk)
In attendance: 4 members of the public.
179. Apologies for absence
Apologies were received from Cllrs Bearman
RESOLVED: To not approve Cllr Bearman’s absence
180. Declarations of Interest
None
181. Approval and signature of the minutes of July 26th 2023
RESOLVED: That the minutes of July 26th 2023 are approved and signed
182. Matters arising
None
183. Open Forum
-Cllr Eastwood expressed thanks to all volunteers in the village that are involved in the community larder as it is becoming a huge success.
-It was expressed that the land that is for sale in the village, if developed on, should lean towards smaller homes to allow younger families to have affordable housing.
– If properties are built- there will need to be an investigation into the flooding.
184. To fill the vacancies on the council by co-option
No expressions of interest for the vacancies on the council
RESOLVED: To defer to October meeting
185. To receive an update from HS2 liaison officer from recent meetings
– No recent update from HS2 liaison officer.
– Information is being sent out via email, post and through websites.
186. Finance:
A. To receive the financial statement: note payments received and consider invoices to be paid (Appendix a)
RESOLVED: That the following bill(s) be approved for payment:
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Payee
Reading Room
Helen Timms
PKF LittleJohn LTD
Invoice Number
391
Pump Garden
SB 20231522
Reason
Room Hire
Pump Garden
External Audit
Amount
90.00
200.00
252.00
B. To note closure letter from PKF Littlejohn LTD
RESOLVED: To note closure letter from PKF Littlejohn LTD
C. To consider insurance quote received from Clear Councils
RESOLVED: To continue with insurance with Clear Councils
D. To receive report from ICC
Report was received from Cllr Wheeler, the Internals Control Councillor, and everything was satisfactory.
RESOLVED: To note the satisfactory report from the ICC
E. To consider SLCC membership for Charmaine Jay
The membership cost is £146 per annum and a £10 joining fee. It would benefit the clerk to network with other clerks and help move the council forward.
RESOLVED: To approve the SLCC membership for the clerk
187. To receive an update for alternative website providers
The report received was noted.
A lot of website providers focus on algorithm and are more focused on e-commerce website providers.
RESOLVED: To reduce the amount in mailboxes by two, treewarden@ and webmaster@.
To continue with 2Commune and review in June 2025.
188.
To establish a working group for a cycle way to Brackley project.
A lot of information was collated by Emma Gray and is keen to move forward with getting a cycle way to Brackley.
RESOLVED: For Cllrs Holloway and Plunkett to form a working group for a cycle way to Brackley.
189.
To consider quote from Dan Phillips for work on play area
The bark at the play area needs topping up according to the latest inspection from
RoSPA
RESOLVED: To approve the quote from Dan Phillips for work on play area
190.
To consider purchasing a new county flag
The current county flag is looking dishevelled
RESOLVED: To approve purchasing a new county flag
191.
To consider ideas for D-Day on June 6th 2024
There was discussions for D-Day that a beacon is purchased and exploring the option of the theme which is fish and chips.
Action point: Cllr Moody to speak to Bill Elkington to find out what the church is doing
192.
To allocate notice board key to a councillor
RESOLVED: Cllr Moody to hold the notice board key
193.
To consider how to respond to enquiries relating to the land for sale around the village
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Enquiries have been received regarding the land for sale around the village and
Priory Fields. It was discussed at length how the council should move forward with the correspondence.
RESOLVED: To forward all enquires and correspondence regarding land for sale around the village and Priory Fields to the planning committee.
194.
To exclude members of the public and press due to the next item being confidential
RESOLVED: To exclude members of the public and press
195.
Land sales
CONFIDENTIAL
196.
To agree the date and time of the next parish council meeting
RESOLVED: Wednesday 25th October 2025 at 7.30pm
197. Close
Meeting closed: 21.06
Next meeting is on Wednesday 25th October 2023 at 7.30pm
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