Finance and General Purposes Working Party Meeting Minutes 13 November 2024

1/1311. RECEIVE ANY DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

Christmas Smile - Cllrs K. Hardy and K. Bonsall.
Finance & General-Purpose Working Party - Cllrs J. Stephenson, K. Hardy, K. Bonsall, N. McGuiness and P. Dackombe.
Friends of the Earth - Cllr K. Hardy.
Labour Party Member - Cllr J. Stephenson.
Mansfield District Council Planning Committee - Cllr J. Stephenson.
Meden Medical Services PPG - Cllr K. Bonsall.
Staffing Working Party - Cllrs J Stephenson, K. Hardy, K Bonsall, N McGuiness, P Dackombe.
Vibrant Warsop Subcontractor - Cllr P. Dackombe.
Warsop Carnival Committee - Cllrs P. Dackombe, K. Bonsall and J. Stephenson.
WPC Room Hire (Ferocious Dog) - Cllr K. Bonsall.

2/1311. APOLOGIES

Cllrs N. Mcguiness and P. Dackombe.

3/1311. REVIEW, DISCUSS AND MAKE RECOMMEND ANY S137 APPLICATIONS

Two application packs have been sent out, but they have yet to be returned.

4/1311. REVIEW THE INCREASED NJC PAY SCALES

The new scales were shown to members. Cllr Bonsall asked some questions on the pay scales and if these are used by other councils. The Clerk explained that the pay scales are used by all councils and are already agreed. This item is to make sure that all members are aware of the increases.

5/1311. RECEIVE AN UPDATE ON THE ASSISTANT CLERKS SALARY PAYMENTS

Due to the Assistant Clerk submitting her notice, an error on MDCs part meant that she hasn’t been paid for a short while. This will be resolved in November’s payment.

6/1311. VIEW MORE CORRESPONDENCE FROM LIFESPRING CHURCH REGARDING THE WATER BILL

The Clerk contacted Lifespring following the decision made by full council at the October meeting and provided the following information:

Annual accounts for the council’s water costs for the past 3 years.
Water invoices from December 2023 to May 2024.
An explanation on the council process and the 6-month rule on decisions made.
Lifespring responded with a new calculation of what the Parish Council owe - £415.72.

The Clerk said she was disappointed that the water bills have only been used to look for when a bill was an actual reading.

A credit given to the council on the 8th or 9th May has not been taken into account, this would be issued if there were outstanding payments. This was at the time the council account was stopped. It looks like Lifesprings ‘standing charge’ is higher than what the council used to pay.

The annual bills for the past 3 years which are consistent. The year they were slightly higher was because we had full tank cleans and a leaking urinal.

The Parish Council allowed Lifespring to use the building from around September so they could start their full program of activities at no cost to them.

Considering all of this information and in the interest of public money and spending I would still advise that this is still not the responsibility of the council. The Clerk about other options and members had a discussion.

RECOMMENDED: The Clerk is to contact Lifespring again and reiterate the original decision made by full council and ask them to investigate the matter by contacting the water company and providing official evidence on the outstanding amount.

7/1311. DISCUSS THE CO-OPTION AND INTERVIEW DATES FOR THE NEXT VACANCY NOTICE

Members discussed different dates for the co-option period and the interview process. It was suggested that the Clerk uses a 2-week deadline. The Clerk said the notice would be published Thursday 14th November.

RECOMMENDED: Full council will decide on an interview panel and the dates for the interviews.

8/1311. RECEIVE AN UPDATE FROM CLLR BONSALL ON THE NOTICEBOARDS

Cllr Bonsall met with Brian from KHTE and visited all the noticeboards. It was discussed that Brian would undertake a site visit every few months free of charge. The noticeboard on Carr Lane seems to be the target for vandalism.

9/1311. REVIEW AND RECOMMEND POSSIBLE RESERVES FOR THE REMAINING 24-25 BUDGET

As of 31st March, there was £48,228.65 left in the bank that was carried over into the new tax year. The £48,228.65 included some reserves but once they were deducted the council are left with around £17,000 that needs to be earmarked. The following are suggestions for the £17,000:

Warsop Toilets - £3,177.37 – AGREED UNTIL PRECEPT DECISION

Emergency noticeboard maintenance fund - £3,000 - AGREED

Parish Projects - £2,000

WPN design software/training - £2,000

Christmas lights - £660.38 - AGREED

Contingency fund - £6,000 – ANY AMOUNT UNACCOUNTED FOR WOULD BE ADDED TO THE CONTINGENCY FUND.

The Clerk explained that there were a few increases in costs for the Christmas event. Reindeers, an extra stage, entertainers, and general inflation. The increase in the budget would also include any extras towards other events such as Remembrance.

Cllr Bonsall has some concerns about reindeers, but other members reassured her that they were a great addition if they could be booked.

RECOMMENDED: The Christmas fund be increased to £15,000 but the Assistant Clerk is to work towards a total of no more than £13,500.

The Clerk had researched some design software and found out that the councils current designer uses illustrator. The costs for this software are £21.98 a month for an individual user or £27.99 a month for business use. There is an option for a free trail period. The training part was much harder to research.

Members discussed the options and suggested the free trail would be ideal to see how user friendly the software is. Cllr Bonsall raised concerns on committing to pay for the software and training due to the Assistant Clerk re-evaluating her position at the council after Christmas. The Vice Chairperson said she knew someone she could ask for advice on the training for design software.

RECOMMENDED: The council try the 30-day free trial and report back after the 30 days. Consider who will use this software and seek assurances before committing to sign up to a monthly cost. The Vice-Chairperson will obtain some advice on what training is required.

10/1311. CLOSE MEETING

The meeting was closed at 7.41pm.

These will be presented to Full Council on Monday 18th November 2024.