2026 Minutes

NAVENBY WITH SKINNAND PARISH COUNCIL

MEETING MINUTES

Date/Time: Tuesday 3rd March 2026, 7.00 pm. 

Location:  Parish Office, The Venue, Navenby.

Present (Cllrs): Mr M Burt (Chair), Mrs E Carless (Vice Chair), Mr K Gunning, 

Mrs J Thompson-Burt, Mr D Miller, Mrs S Munton

In Attendance: Mr A Callander (Parish Clerk), Mrs S Letham (RFO)

1. Chairman’s Welcoming Remarks. The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

2. Public Session. A resident advised Councillors of their concerns and recommendations regarding tidiness of the village and road safety on the High Street. The Chair described actions being taken to complete a comprehensive traffic survey that would include a range of recommendations to LCC Highways department. The draft survey would be made available on the Parish Council website for residents to comment on in the near future. Action: The Chair advised the resident that the Council would consider their recommendations on village tidiness and road safety and respond in due course. 

3. Apologies for absence and declarations of interest in accordance with the requirements of the Localism Act 2011. Consider any applications for dispensations in relation to disclosable pecuniary and/or prejudicial beneficial interests.

Absences: Cllr C Hall, Mr C East, Ms M Butler

Declaration of Interests: Nil

4. To approve and accept the minutes from the Parish Council meeting and to review outstanding actions from previous meetings. It was proposed by Cllr Miller, seconded by Cllr Carless, and thereafter resolved that the minutes from the previous Parish Council meeting held on 3rd February 2026, should be accepted as a true record of the meeting. All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion. Cllrs reviewed the Task Tracker for outstanding actions from previous meetings and agreed that, in future, timelines and owners are assigned to all tasks and a definition of ‘priority/important/routine’ included.

5. To consider the financial report and authorise payments (Appendix A). The Clerk provided Cllrs with the Financial Status Sheet. The RFO advised that in order to address a billing issue with NKDC, the alcohol license required transfer from the Parish Council to NPFA. After consideration, it was proposed by Cllr Munton, seconded by Cllr Carless, and thereafter resolved that all expenses (£10,282.48) listed in Appendix A were authorised. All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion. Otherwise, the PC Current and Deposit Accounts totals were £46,788.96 and £61,615.23 respectively. Action: Councillor Thompson-Burt is to ensure NPFA arranges for the alcohol license to be transferred as a matter of priority. 

6. To consider updates from District/County Councillors. Cllr Hagues had provided her monthly newsletter. Cllr Overton briefed Councillors on LCC and NKDC budgets for FY2026/27. LCC could have raised its budget by 5% but voted for a 3% rise only and intends to cease funding for some voluntary and health related projects. Councillor Overton had objected and advised the Deputy Leader of LCC to not cut projects that actually saved money in the longer term. Otherwise, NKDC had raised its budget by 3%, noting it had used £1M from reserves to enable this and assigned £5M over the next 2 years for restructuring as part of Local Government Reorganisation. Cllr Overton advised the Fosse Green Inquiry would start on 10th March and suggested the Parish Council could make representations at the Open Forum on 11th March at 4.30pm. Action: The Chair would attend the Open Forum and discuss input with Cllr Overton before the event. 

7. To consider updates from local police. Lincs Police had not confirmed to what extent community policing might be reduced since their last update. Cllr Munton advised that her understanding was community policing would be reduced rather than removed. Action: In response to a query by Cllr Gunning, the Clerk is to ask Lincs Police whether there had been any reports of offences/incidents related to the use of electric scooters in the village.

8. To consider Planning Matters.

a. Planning Applications.

Newlands, 2 Crossfield Road. 26/0169/HOUS. Single storey rear extension. No Comment.

1 Overton Close. 26/0055/HOUS. Remove existing hedge and replace with 2m high fence and gates to western boundary of property. No Comment

b. Correspondence. 

Notification of Decision. Ridge View, Lowfields. 26/0007/HOUS. Proposed erection of two storey side extension and attached garage and remodelling of existing farmhouse together with reinstatement of former access to dwelling. Approved.

Notification of Decision. Aviaries, 44 High Street. 25/1588/HOUS. Erection of single storey rear extension, 2no. dormers at the rear along with alterations. Approved.

28 January. Local Resident. Request to discuss potential of opening a children’s day nursery in local area, and to engage with Parish Council to better understand the feasibility of such a provision within the community. The resident had visited the Parish Office and Venue on 16th February to discuss their ideas and view available facilities. Action: The Clerk is to write to the resident inviting them to provide a development plan for further consideration. 

13 February. Enzygo. Offer to discuss Wellingore BESS proposal with Councillors on 10th March at 6pm at the Parish Office. Cllrs reconsidered the offer and no longer felt it appropriate to proceed with the meeting. Action: The Clerk is to cancel the provisional booking with Enzygo.

18 February. Fosse Green Energy Limited. Invitation to next Community Liaison Group meeting on 4th March at Thorpe on the Hill. No Cllrs available to attend.

21 February. Youth Club Coordinator. Request for Councillors to attend Youth Club session at 6pm on 20th March to discuss playpark refurbishment plans, particularly regarding replacement of North Lane Slide, and consult with playpark users. Noting the Engagement Group was formulating a plan to seek out youth views from across the parish, Cllrs Munton and Thompson-Burt had arranged to meet the Youth Club on 13th March to discuss the slide and other matters.

23 February. Openreach. Safety concern regarding telegraph pole at 10 Gas Lane. Urgent Requirement to remove and reinstall light after pole is replaced. Discussed at Item 11 below.

c. Tree Conservation. The Clerk briefed Cllrs on the 3-yearly tree inventory report received from NKDC (16 February). There were 11 essential tasks to address at the East Road Cemetery. There were no concerns regarding trees not belonging to the Council that overhung the playparks or cemetery. St Peters’ Churchyard, which had been included in the survey on behalf of Graffoe PCC, had 3 essential tasks. Action: The Clerk would present quotes for essential works to the next meeting, including for St Peters’ Churchyard (on the understanding Graffoe PCC would pay for its share of work required). 

9. Administration – 2026/27 Parish Council Meetings. After consideration, it was proposed by Cllr Munton, seconded by Cllr Gunning, and thereafter resolved that Financial Year 2026/27 Parish Council meetings would be scheduled as follows (all to commence 7pm unless stated otherwise):

7 April 6 October

5 May 3 November

2 June 1 December

7 July 5 January

4 August 2 February

1 September 2 March

19 May 6.45–8.30pm: Annual Parish Meeting & Youth Engagement Meeting

All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion.

10. Streetlights – Cllrs discussed lack of a streetlight at the western end of Green Man Road, and considered it was not appropriate at this time to apply to Openreach to ascertain whether they would allow a streetlight to be mounted on the extant telegraph pole, before the matter was explored further with NKDC. Action: The Clerk is to approach NKDC to discuss the need for better lighting at the western end of Green Man Road.

11. Streetlights – Councillors discussed the safety concern regarding the telegraph pole at 10 Gas Lane, reported by Openreach on 23rd February and the urgent requirement to remove and reinstall the light after the pole is replaced. After consideration, it was proposed by Cllr Thompson-Burt, seconded by Cllr Miller, and thereafter resolved to approve removal and reinstalment of the streetlight, after the telegraph pole is replaced at 10 Gas Lane, by Eon at a cost of £1,757.40 (incl VAT). All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion.

12. Governance – After consideration, it was proposed by Cllr Thompson-Burt, seconded by Cllr Miller, and thereafter resolved to agree the terms of the Letter of Engagement (received 13th February) for the previously approved LALC 100-point audit of Navenby Parish Council processes and procedures. All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion.

13. Events – The Clerk briefed Councillors on Xmas Market/Lights planning. It was proposed to make some changes in order to address increased numbers attending and the traffic/pedestrian challenges at the 2025 event. The 2026 event would be held on a Saturday, as opposed to Friday, i.e. 21st November at 3 – 7pm. Accepting that LCC Highways permission to close the A607 would be challenging and probably require hiring a traffic management company at extra expense, there would be no formal switch-on of the Xmas tree lights to avoid unmanageable numbers gathering at the Methodist Church. To reduce poor parking behaviour along the High Street and side streets, Venue parking would be expanded by opening up the playing field and using volunteers to direct parking. Events at St Peter’s Church would be spread out to reduce the numbers of pedestrians exiting onto Church Lane, with numbers entering the church also actively controlled. Finally, although not linked to crowd control, there would be no stalls at the King’s Head although an alternative attraction might be considered. After consideration, it was proposed by Cllr Thompson-Burt, seconded by Cllr Miller, and thereafter resolved to approve the scope of, and Parish Council support for, the event as proposed. All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion. Action: Noting that the Clerk would arrange risk assessment, event notification and insurance cover, Cllr Munton would assist the residents’ planning team with local engagement activity for the event. 

14. Finance – 3rd Bank Signatory. With the impending resignation of Cllr Carless, the Clerk advised that a 3rd bank signatory was required for the Parish Council bank account. After consideration, it was proposed by Cllr Thompson-Burt, seconded by Cllr Miller, and thereafter resolved to approve Cllr Munton as the 3rd signatory in addition to Cllr Gunning and Cllr Miller. All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion. Action: The Clerk would approach Cllr Butler to ask whether she would consider replacing Cllr Munton as the 3rd Bank Signatory.

15. Updates from Portfolios Holders. 

a. General. The Clerk requested that Cllrs draft terms of reference for their respective portfolios for approval by May 2026 or, ideally, before the LALC 100-point Audit, that covered specific responsibilities, plans and assigned budgets for FY2026/27. Action: The Chair would provide a template for Cllrs to use before the next meeting. 

b. Deputy Chair. Cllr Carless advised that she would be resigning as a Cllr and Deputy Chair as of 31st March 2026, as she was moving out of the Parish. She thanked Cllrs and staff for their assistance throughout her tenure as a Cllr and wished the Council the very best for the future. Cllr Miller proposed a Vote of Thanks for Cllr Carless’ many years of service to the Parish. All Cllrs voted in favour of the motion and wished Cllr Carless the best of luck for her move.

c. Planning (incl tree conservation). Nothing to report.

d. Highways (incl SIDs). Nothing to report. 

e. Play Areas. With regards to 20 Row improvements, Cllr Thompson-Burt advised that she was waiting on a proposal from a contractor and was also meeting with a 2nd contractor to seek an alternative proposal. 

f. Cemetery. Nothing to report.

g. Library. The Chair advised that he, the Clerk and the Library Volunteer Coord had visited Bracebridge Heath library, and would soon visit Branston library, to evaluate how other Parish Councils provided library services. Thereafter, the intention was to establish library volunteers’ views of how the library might develop. Otherwise, the Council was still awaiting a response from LCC on whether library reserve monies and future annual library grants could be transferred to the Venue. 

h. Defibrillators. Cllr Gunning advised that a replacement defibrillator had been ordered for the Methodist Church location. 

i. Streetlamps. Nothing to report.

14. Date & Time of next meeting: 7th April 2026, 7.00pm.

Minutes Accepted:  M J Burt (Chair) Date: 7th April 2026