Minutes

Minutes of the meeting held Thursday, 28 April 2026, 7pm at St Mary’s Church, Covenham

Public Forum

There were no members of the public present at the meeting.

Report from Outside Bodies.  

a) ELDC Ward Member Cllr Edward Mossop reported the following.

i. Congratulated CVV for winning in the recent Ambassador Awards and getting recognised for all their hard work which was great for the community.

ii. Reported a final round of ELIF grants is available for groups and community projects.

iii. Noted that proposed planning reforms aim to accelerate development, including “default approvals”, expanded permitted development rights, and new energy infrastructure requirements. The role of Planning Committees is expected to reduce significantly.

iv. Noted that Local Government Reorganisation may reduce representation for smaller parish councils.  Area Committees may come back. It was recommended to engage with neighbouring councils to coordinate responses, particularly on planning applications affecting the area.

b) LCC Division Member. Cllr Nick Hastings arrived at 7:30pm after attending the Louth Town Meeting.  He reported

i. A heating oil grant is available for families.  He will forward the details to the Clerk

ii. A free day’s labour of up to 3 people for community projects are available from LCC’s contractor Balfour Beatty. Cllr Hastings will send further details.

04/26-1 Record of Members Present and Apologies

Present: Cllr Mervyn Counter (MC) who chaired the meeting, Cllr Gillian Pollard (GP), Cllr Anne McCready (AM), Cllr T Coultas (TC), Cllr Nicky Gulley Brown (NGB), 

Also present: ELDC District Councillor Edward Mossop, LCC Division Councillor Nick Hastings and Mrs Nadine Must (Parish Clerk/RFO)

Apologies accepted: Cllr Lesley Jackson (LJ), Cllr Terry Aldridge (TA) and Cllr Ian Appleby (IA)

04/26-2 Declarations of Interest.

Cllr NGB declared her interests on agenda items relating to the Parish Rooms and St Barts; Cllrs AM and GG for items relating to St Mary’s Church.

04/26-3 Minutes from 29 January 2026.

It was resolved that the draft minutes from the meeting were accurate and was duly signed by the Chair.

P: AM; S: NGB, All in favour

04/26-4 Council Matters

a) Chair’s Remarks.  Cllr MC expressed the Parish Council’s sincere condolences to Cllr GG for her loss. 

He also reported the following:

i. Resident’s concerns of dumped asbestos on Newbridge Lane were reported to Environmental Health department at ELDC.

ii. Noted that, with assistance from a resident, a fallen tree in St Mary’s Churchyard that partially blocked the Main Road and damaged a streetlight and telephone cables was cleared. The area has been made safe; however, the streetlight remains out of service and the telephone lines have not yet been reconnected. Cllr MC will make further enquiries to resolve the issues.

iii. Thanked St Mary’s Church Committee for hosting the meeting.

b) Clerk’s Report.  The Clerk’s report was noted.  All other actions were considered at the meeting.

i. The purchase and installation of the convex mirror was deferred for another meeting.  The suitable lamppost outside the churchyard was damaged.

ii. Gardening services have recommenced.  The Parish Clerk was not copied in on the invoice.  Cllr GG will forward invoice and the Council agreed to process the payment.

c) Communications Received.  This was noted.

d) Tree inspections at St Mary’s Closed Churchyard and St Bartholomew’s Churchyard.   The reports were discussed and it was resolved to prioritise on the four trees at St Mary’s that require felling.  It was noted that there was no budget allocation for these works and St Mary’s Church Committee have no funds to help pay.  It was agreed to get further quotes for comparison.

e) Headstone topple test.  The report was considered. It was noted that remedial works are required to headstones in both churchyards; however, no budget is available. It was agreed to convene a working party to lay flat those headstones deemed a safety risk and to source voluntary labour reported by Cllr Hastings. Where families remain in the parish, they will be asked to undertake restoration of their memorials.

f) Scheduled dates for Annual Parish Meeting (APM) and Parish Council meetings.  It was resolved to hold the APM separately from the parish council meetings. The dates agreed as per table below.

P: TC; S: AM, All in favour

Cllr NGB sent her apologies for the APM and will request Cllr IA to provide the annual report for CVV. ELDC Cllr Mossop also gave his apologies and will try to send his report, time permitting.

Cllr GG may not be able to attend the September meeting as she is away. LCC Cllr Hastings has also sent his apologies for the same meeting.

g) Parish Council vacancies.  The Council agreed to advertise the poster in the CVV monthly newsletter for three months starting in June 2026.  Cllr NGB will organise the invoice for £10 per issue to be sent for payment.

P: TC; S: MC, All in favour

04/26-5 Parish Rooms

a) Building issues.  The two quotes received to repair the lead flashing were considered and it was resolved to accept E.T. Homes Improvements to carry out the work.  Cllr NGB will notify the builder.

P: MC; S: GG, All in favour

Cllr NGB also reported that a pub license for the Parish Rooms has been applied for and notices will be advertised shortly.

b) ELIF Funding.  The Council noted agreement from funders regarding a change to preferred contractor but there will be no extra grant funding money.  It is hoped that the building work is completed by end July and the unveiling and plaque ceremony can be scheduled sometime in August.

c) Accessible toilet.  The old building had been demolished but a contractor is still to be engaged to build the facility.  Cllr NGB is working on this.

04/26-6 Finance and Budgets

a) Payments.  The Council ratified payments made in March 2026 to close the accounts for FY2025/26.

P: NGB; S: MC, All in favour

b) Latest Receipts and Payments Monitoring. All receipts and payments were reconciled with the bank statements. Spend against budget were noted.  The Clerk will now complete the Annual Accounts and send to the Internal Auditor for checking.

04/26-7 Community Amenities and Groups

a) Covenham Reservoir Steps DMMO application.  Cllr TC reported that the official form from LCC to transcribe user evidence was not fit for purpose because the form is only for unrecorded footpaths The Covenham Reservoir steps are a well-documented established walking route and advertised in various organisations including Visit Lincolnshire.  Cllr TC is liaising with LCC Councillor Hastings to set up a meeting with Anglian Water to understand why they are not keen to restore the paths.  Covenham Reservoir is a prominent amenity in the area for nature and recreation.  Cllr Hastings reported that he has tried on a number of occasions to get a meeting but has not had any success but will keep trying.

b) St Bartholomew Church.  The bench has been suitably repaired and payment made.

04/26-8 ELDC/LCC Services

a) Grange Lane drains.  A temporary traffic restriction has been received for works on 8th May 2026.

b) Pear Tree Lane speed restriction.  Cllr Hastings reported that the speed restriction down to 50mph had been rejected by LCC.

04/26-9 Planning Matters

a) Update on applications.  Full approval for Ashton House has been noted.

b) Applications for consideration. There was no application to consider.

c) Any received between agenda close and meeting.  None received.

04/26-10 Date of Next Meeting

The meeting closed at 8:05 pm.