Minutes of a meeting of the Full Council, 20 June 2022

Present

Members:      

• Cllr Stephen Beatty
• Cllr Sue Hendrie
• Cllr Dan Beauchamp
• Cllr Steve Holder
• Cllr Giles Cattermole
• Cllr Nigel Hughes
• Cllr Paul Gibbon
• Cllr Katharine Keats-Rohan
• Cllr Marcus Harris (The Mayor) (Chairman)
• Cllr Deborah Whelan

 

Officers:

• Michelle Taylor, Town Clerk/Responsible Finance Officer (RFO)
• Luke Whitcomb, Meetings Officer

 

Others:         

• District Councillor Sue Roberts
• 11 members of the public

 

94/22   MEETING PROTOCOL

The Chairman welcomed everyone to the meeting and advised those present of the protocols that would be followed.

95/22   APOLOGIES

Apologies were received from Councillors Holford, Kidley, Lester, McGregor and Newcombe.

Councillor Sinkinson did not attend.

96/22  DECLARATIONS OF INTERESTS

No interests were declared.

97/22   MAYOR’S COMMUNICATIONS

The Chairman briefed the Council on recent mayoral activity, including hosting the Mayor of Wallingford’s twin city in France, Luxeuil le Bains, who had planted a rose in the Castle Gardens.

The Chairman thanked those that had worked so hard to make a success of the recent Platinum Jubilee Weekend, including Councillors Lester, Kidley and Whelan, and the Council staff.

98/22   MINUTES

It was proposed by Councillor Holder, and seconded by Councillor Hendrie, and RESOLVED that the minutes of the meeting of the Full Council held on 16 May 2022 and the Extraordinary meeting on 6 June 2022 be approved as a correct record and the Chairman is authorised to sign them.

Councillor Cattermole voted against the approval of the minutes of the Extraordinary meeting.

Councillor Beatty abstained on the vote to approve the minutes of the  Extraordinary meeting.

99/22   ACTIONS FROM PREVIOUS MEETING

The Council reviewed progress on the actions agreed at the last meeting and ‘open’ actions from previous meetings.  Most had been completed.  The results of the MRI scan of the tree at the Coach and Horses pub were still awaited, so this item would remain on the Action Log.

100/22   PUBLIC PARTICIPATION

Five members of the public spoke at the meeting.  Subjects covered were an update on the Hithercroft Sports Park, the Michaelmas Fair 2022  (see Minute  109/22 below), the formation of a Wallingford and Crowmarsh branch of the national initiative ‘Living Streets’, vehicle engines left idling in the Market Place for prolonged periods and the consequent impact on air quality, the Carnival, and fuel poverty.

101/22   QUARTER 4, ACCOUNTS 2021/22

The Council reviewed the Quarter 4 accounts and thanked the Town Clerk for her work on them.

It was proposed by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and seconded by Councillor Beauchamp, and RESOLVED that the Quarter 4 accounts for 2021/22 be approved and signed by the Chairman

102/22   AUDIT REQUIREMENTS FOR ANNUAL GOVERNANCE AND ACCOUNTABILITY RETURN (AGAR) 2022

The Council received and reviewed the Internal Auditor’s report prepared by Audit Solutions Limited.

The Town Clerk/Responsible Finance Officer took the meeting through each of the recommendations which had already been actioned.

It was proposed by Councillor Cattermole, and seconded by Councillor Whelan, and RESOLVED

(i)         that the Internal Audit be received

(ii)        that the Internal Audit has been effective

(iii)       that the action taken by the Town Clerk in response to all of the Audit’s recommendations be noted and supported

It was proposed by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and seconded by Councillor Hendrie, and RESOLVED

(iv)       that the Annual Governance Statement for 2021/22 be approved and the Mayor and Town Clerk be authorised to sign the document;

(v)        that the Accounting Statements for 2021/22 be approved and the Mayor and Town Clerk be authorised to sign them

103/22   EMR RESERVES

The Town Clerk reported that at the year end, due to prudent financial management, the Council’s general reserves were at a level to move funds to the EMR for the new financial year, as carried out with and confirmed by both accountant and Auditor.

104/22   CODE OF CONDUCT

The Council reviewed a proposed new Code of Conduct prepared by the Oxfordshire Secretaries and Monitoring Officers’ Group.

It was proposed by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and seconded by Councillor Holder, and RESOLVED that the new Code of Conduct be adopted

Councillor Cattermole voted against the adoption.

105/22   BEACON YOUTH PROJECT

Ms Karen Whiting updated the Council on the work of the Beacon Youth Project, including valuable work with young people who had been excluded from school, and thanked the Council for their support.

106/22   WIGOD FAMILY CENTRE

Ms Kelsey Proctor updated the Council on the work of the Wigod Family Centre and thanked the Council for their support.  The Centre was hosting around 170 people per week.

107/22   PEDESTRIANISATION OF FRONT AREA OF TOWN HALL

The Council considered different options for the pedestrianisation of the cobbled area in front of the Town Hall, including different types of bollards, ‘parklets’ and temporary/permanent barriers.  This was a work in progress.

‘Parklets’ were small movable seating areas or green spaces for public use on areas where there had previously been parking.

The Chairman read out a letter from a member of the public who was physically disabled and had concerns about the plans to pedestrianise the area.

108/22   LIAISON WITH ARTS AND DEVELOPMENT OFFICER

This item was deferred to the next meeting.

Councillor Beatty gave an update on the Agatha Christie statue which was progressing well and which would be completed on time.  There had been a recent meeting with the sculptor.

109/22   MICHAELMAS FAIR

The Council considered their conditions for the holding of the Michaelmas Fair, including no fly-posting, no posting on the windows of shops or homes, no stalls with live animals, no incidents with the Police, no disputes with local pubs, the prompt receipt of a booking form and the provision of a risk assessment and public liability insurance details.

Mr Phillip Searle of the Showmen’s Guild, who was attending the meeting, undertook that all the Council’s conditions would be met.

110/22   COMMITTEE AND WORKING GROUP APPOINTMENTS

It was proposed by Councillor Beauchamp, and seconded by Councillor Cattermole, and RESOLVED that Councillor Hughes be appointed to the Riverside Working Group

Two vacancies remained on the Finance and Properties and Planning Committees respectively.

111/22   RECOMMENDATIONS FROM COMMITTEES

Tourism and Economic Development Committee

It was proposed by Councillor Hughes, and seconded by Councillor Whelan, and RESOLVED that the cost of replacing the cast-iron mooring cleats be approved, based on the quotations that Councillor Cattermole had obtained from Casting Services Engineering Limited

112/22   RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE BULL CROFT TRUST

It was proposed by Councillor Hendrie, and seconded by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and RESOLVED that approval be given for the creation of a managed wildlife space in partnership with a local environmental group.

113/22   BAND CONCERTS

The Council considered plans for the programme of Band Concerts for 2022 and agreed on the desirability of attracting local musicians and diversifying the type of music played.

It was proposed by Councillor Harris, and seconded by Councillor Hughes, and RESOLVED that delegated responsibility be given to the Tourism and Economic Development Committee for determining the 2022 programme of Band Concerts, and that the Committee bring back to a Council a recommended strategy for the next few years.

114/22   WALLINGFORD MUSEUM – HEATING

The Council considered the replacement of the 40 year-old gas central heating boiler to reduce gas usage and control costs better.

It was proposed by Councillor Beatty, and seconded by Councillor Hendrie, and RESOLVED that the replacement of the boiler with a more suitable, efficient one, be approved

115/22    MARKET PLACE – POLE

It was proposed by Councillor Holder, and seconded by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and RESOLVED that the cost of replacing the missing pole in the Market Place be approved up to a limit of £1k

116/22   MAYOR’S CADET – ARMY AND AIRFORCE

Councillor Holder reported that the 966 (Wallingford) Squadron had accepted the Council’s decision to use the portcullis rather than the coat of arms on the Mayor’s Cadet badge.

He also presented a proposal on behalf of Mayor Wayne Thrussell for two Mayor’s Cadets to be appointed each year in future, one from the Airforce and the other from the Army.

It was proposed by Councillor Holder, and seconded by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and RESOLVED that two Mayor’s Cadets be appointed in future each year, one from the Airforce, the other from the Army

117/22   FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS

The following were identified as future agenda items:

o   Pedestrianisation of area in front of Town Hall (rolling item)

o   Elections 2023 (Councillor McGregor to report) (July meeting)

o   Liaison with Arts & Development Officer (Councillor Beatty to report) (July meeting)

o   Agatha Christie statue update (Councillor Beatty to report)

o   Committee vacancies

o   Purchase or hire of mower for ‘low mow’ areas

o   Upgrade to consumer unit in Town Hall

o   Staff team building/volunteering days

o   Community Emergency Plan (business continuity)

o   Triangle of space adjacent to Kinecroft

o   Wallingford Town signs, including riverside

o   Estates Portfolio Review

o   Renaming and reshuffling of committees to establish the Estates Committee

o   Alderman Emeritus (to consider making new appointment

118/22   EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

It was proposed by Councillor Beauchamp, and seconded by Councillor Holder, and RESOLVED that the press and public be excluded from the meeting due to the confidential nature of the business to be transacted

The meeting ended at 9.08 pm

 

Minutes of the meeting of the

Full Council held on

20 June 2022,

signed as a correct record                                                                 Chairman

 

 

2022-06-20 FC minutes