May 2025 DRAFT Minutes (Annual Meeting)
Timberland Annual Parish Council Meeting Minutes (Draft)
Date & time Monday, 19th May 2025, 19:00
Meeting Location Timberland Village Hall
Attendees:
PC Councillors Lenton (Chair), Audis, Slater, Nash, Thompson-Ayerst, Ayerst
County Councillor Rob Kendrick
Apologies for Absence: Parish Clerk Kay Harvey
1. Welcome to the AGM
The Chair welcomed all attendees to the Annual Parish Meeting.
2. Parishioners Open Forum
One parishioner was present at the meeting. No questions or comments were raised.
3. Minutes of previous Annual Meeting held on 20th May 2024
It was agreed that the minutes of the previous Annual Parish Meeting were a true reflection of the meeting. No changes were required.
Proposed: Cllr Audis, Seconded: Cllr Nash. All agreed.
The minutes were signed off by the Chair.
4 Chair Report to the Annual Parish Meeting 2025
The Chair presented the report to the Annual Parish Meeting. The Chair confirmed that the report also included a summary of financial matters and as a result a Clerk report would not be required.
No comments were raised from the attending councillors and the report was accepted.
Proposed: Cllr Slater, Seconded: Cllr Audis. All agreed.
The full report can be found in Appendix A at the end of these meeting minutes.
5. Election of new Chair
Councillor Lenton was re-elected unopposed as Chair for 2025/26. The official forms of acceptance were signed and witnessed by the Clerk.
Proposed: Cllr Audis, Seconded: Cllr Nash. All agreed.
6. Election of new Vice Chair
Councillor Audis was elected unopposed as Vice-chair for 2025/26.
Proposed: Cllr Nash, Seconded: Cllr Ayerst.
7. Election of Village Hall representative
A Village Hall representative was not elected at the meeting. A discussion took place as to whether an official representative is required for liaison with the Village Hill Committee. It was agreed by all that this would be placed on hold and PC councillors would attend Village Hall meetings in an informal manner as availability allowed. The success of this proposal would be monitored, and further discussions would take place on the success of this action as and when required.
8. Asset List
The asset list was reviewed and approved by all with the need for changes.
Proposed: Cllr Nash, Seconded: Cllr Audis. All agreed.
9. Meeting Close
The Chair closed the meeting at 19:17.
Appendix A: Chair Report to the Annual Meeting 2025
See below
Timberland & Thorpe Tilney Parish Council
Chair’s Report to the Annual Meeting 2025
Good evening, and welcome to the Annual Meeting of Timberland Parish Council. I will now present the Chair’s report for the financial year 2024/2025.
At the start of the financial year the PC was operating with five councillors. During the course of the year Councillors Lizzie Kornat and Glen Sharplin left the PC after long periods of doing great work for the parish. I would like to thank them for their dedicated service.
The good news is that we have been joined by Councillors Dave Nash, Shaun Ayerst and Courtney Thompson-Ayerst, which has boosted our number to six. Although we now have a good number of councillors, we will continue to recruit for a seventh. For voting reasons, it is always best to have an odd number on the PC and the target number for Timberland PC is seven. In many ways it is good to have a healthy turnover of members of the PC. New volunteers bring new ideas which is always a good thing, and all three have hit the ground running, bringing new skills, ideas and enthusiasm. We look forward to getting back to a full head count as soon as possible.
The renewal of the lease of Timberland Green was completed and signed in May 2024. This concluded a prolonged period of tough negotiations which ensured a further 10 years of use for recreation and fun by parishioners. The lease extension also removed any risk that the Family Fun Day would need to be cancelled this year, and preparations are in full swing for the 2025 event. Councillor Courtney continues to do a great job in planning the event, making full use of the Timberland PC Facebook page to ensure parishioners are aware of the entertainment that is being organised for their enjoyment. Councillor Terry Audis continues his dedicated maintenance of the green, keeping it in pristine condition, and he will ensure it is fully prepared for this year’s event.
Regarding social media, the PC has started to fully exploit this over the past year, ensuring that the Facebook page is updated regularly with information and news. Councillor Rory Slater does a fantastic job in publishing articles of interest so ensuring parishioners always have the latest information at the touch of a mobile phone screen. It has been a great success, and the PC will now need to refresh the PC website to ensure it is as valuable to parishioners as the Facebook page.
The PC would like to thank Mr Richard South for clearing the Church Lane and Timberland Green dykes. This was done at no cost to the PC and ensured that a heavy rain event passed with no flooding impact in the lower village. Despite the best efforts of the PC, the continual maintenance of the dykes remains an ongoing problem. This topic will require further attention and is another task that the PC should look to finally resolve before the bad weather hits later in the year.
Thanks to the fund-raising efforts of Claire and Michael at the Penny Farthing, the village now has the benefit of a second defibrillator which has been installed at the Penny. The first defibrillator has been successfully used on several occasions and the addition of the second one increases the chances of preserving life in the event of an emergency. The PC will need to fund the ongoing maintenance of the new defibrillator, a task that will be managed by Councillor Dave who has happily taken on this responsibility.
Finance
Turning to PC finances, I can report that the PC spent £9,647 in the financial year 2024/25 which represents an overspend of £1,875 against the budgeted target of £7,772. The overspend was incurred because of the purchase of the new defibrillator. As this was entirely covered by the donation of £1,885 from the Penny Farthing, there is no budget impact. Small deviations against some budget items were incurred but the net result was that the target budget for 2024/25 was achieved. The annual accounts have been audited and approved, and will be made available to parishioners
The precept request for 2025/26 was £7,500, which represents a small decrease on the previous year. The reduced request was possible in no small part due to a generous donation of £250 from The Grapevine magazine in celebration of the 10th anniversary of publishing. The Grapevine recognises the value that Timberland Village Green brings to the life of the parish and as such requested that this donation be used to fund the rental payment for 2025. The PC are happy comply. Our thanks go to all at The Grapevine.
This precept request was approved, and the funds were credited to the PC bank account on 01st April.
The PC reserve account now stands at £10,716, of which approximately £3,000 is CIL money. The PC will discuss how this money should be spent for the benefit of the parish during the current financial year.
Finally
In closing this report, it just remains for me to thank all councillors for your efforts on behalf of the parishioners over the past year. Once again you have all donated your free time for the benefit of others. Your efforts do not go unnoticed.
I would also like to thank the clerk who provides excellent support to the PC and ensures that we operate in an efficient and business-like manner.
Finally, my thanks also go to the litter-picker who maintains Timberland’s streets tidy and litter-free.
That concludes the chair’s report for 2024/25.
Chris Lenton
Chair, Timberland Parish Council