Draft Minutes for Jan 2026

Download a PDF copy of the minutes here

DRAFT MINUTES: CORBY GLEN PARISH COUNCIL

Draft Minutes of the meeting held on Wed Dec 14^th 2026 at 7.30pm in the Willoughby Memorial Gallery, Corby Glen.

Present: Cllrs Walsingham (Chair), Baker, Ellam, Green, Harty, Mardling, Shepperson & Waumsley.

In attendance: 3 residents, Cllr Robins, Mrs S Woodman (Parish Clerk)

Open Forum:

A resident had emailed queries regarding the published draft minutes. Noted. He had received a response by email and has requested that it is recorded (see Appendix).

A resident raised a concern regarding the footpath along Bourne Rd and the state of the verge. He had not taken any independent action. Cllr Walsingham said this is a LCC Highways issue related to vehicle movement in seasonal conditions and widespread here and elsewhere. LCC matter whether would consider measures like edge markers. Clerk to report issue.

A Cllr had been approached regarding the hazard resulting from the lack of lighting along the Barleycroft / Pridmore footpath. The clerk had responded. Although it is really an LCC matter, when Cllr Ellam returns from holiday, he will attempt to install some cheap ‘vandal-resistant’ replacement lighting. Cllr Walsingham stated that as property occupancy is changing we cannot assume that the fence will remain.

Concern was expressed regarding the continued flooding by the Glen – the river is not considered deep enough to take excess water. The environment agency [EA] is to be contacted for advice. Cllr Walsingham said that this issue had been brought up before and EA responded before.

Other matters are covered by agenda items.

1. Apologies for absence: Cllr Harwood. Reasons given & accepted.
2. District and County Councillors’ Reports: Cllr Hill had provided a written report which Cllr Walsingham read out; subjects: tax and Barleycroft Road parking (check). Cllr Robins commented on the Barleycroft parking issues & provided an update on SKDC matters – the public are invited to a meeting to discuss planning options – either in person or by dialling in. The informal meeting will not be recorded. Cllr Walsingham said that present use of garages / garage forecourts should be looked into, and that parking on the carriageway, footways and dropped kerbs is a LCC traffic engineering or enforcement matter depending on their policies / competences. Cllr Robins said that there is no longer ringfenced funding for converting district council green space into parking like happened on Bourne Road SKDC bungalows. (Post-meeting note: Cllrs Walsingham & Ellam note that a garage lintel reported as dangerous previously had now disappeared.)
3. The Draft Minutes of the meeting held on Wed Dec 10^th, 2025 were approved subject to the following clarification being inserted in paragraph 10/18: “Together with the web site” (6 for, 2 abstentions as Cllrs not present).
4. Councillors’ Declarations of Interest: The proximity of Cllr Mardling’s property to the plot under development adjacent the Green was noted.
5. Review of Action Log:
   All items are in hand.
6. Clerk’s & Chairman’s reports on matters outstanding:

01 Neighbourhood Planning, Local Plan & Conservation area – update: The Neighbourhood Planning Group had submitted consultation comment and found the SKDC Design code rather vague.

02 S106 Funds: Add ‘new noticeboard‘ to February agenda. Contact RDMH committee to ascertain if they have `committed’ all their funds allocation. Cllr Shepperson to cover during a Cllr’s absence.

03 Issues associated with the new housing estates – sewerage issues:  Cllrs are meeting SKDC Planning Officer

04 Highways feedback: Awaiting responses. Residents to be signposted to use LCC’s Fix my Street (FMS).

7. Matter to be resolved:

05 Agree appropriate action to resolve email issues: Cllr Shepperson proposed accepting the £80 quotation to resolve email issues. It was agreed unanimously to implement the recommended solution for 12 months and monitor, whilst investigating other options. The ‘.gov.uk’ email addresses to be considered.

06 Consider action regarding new bus stops on Swinstead / Bourne Road re new houses: A response has been received from Delaine. (Post-meeting note, 2 responses before and after meeting.) They suggest a different location for the bus stops for the school children, namely on the A151 opposite the Woodhouse, and also near the fire station. The council is not in agreement, and it was agreed unanimously that Delaine will be contacted requesting a meeting on site so that a jointly acceptable solution can be reached.

07 Update on Christmas Matters: The donation of £25 to Marie Curie on behalf of the resident who kindly allowed the council to use their electricity for the Christmas Lights was agreed unanimously.  The resident who had assisted in putting the light up had also been thanked formally.

The possibility of an official ‘Switch on’ in tandem with other events next year was discussed.

08 Approve Draft Budget and agree amount of precept application: It was agreed unanimously to accept the draft budget and apply for a precept of £20,800.

09 Consider the implications of the new audit regulations, Assertion 10 & agree action: Deferred. Cllr Shepperson asked the Clerk to enquire if Cllrs are required to undertake any training in IT Strategy.

10 Agree LALC membership / Training scheme subscription: It was agreed unanimously to continue to subscribe to both LALC & their Training Scheme (ATS).

11 Agree payment of RDMH meeting space costs: Agreed unanimously.

8. Reports from:

Planning: to consider planning applications received prior to & after publication of the agenda:

 Green Energy Infrastructure – Cllr Walsingham alerted the PC to information about pylons and substation

S25/2422 InPost Parcel Lockers (retrospective) 11 Market Place – No comments (although the terminology ‘proposed’ was questioned.)

• 12 Greens Working Group: It was agreed unanimously to take out the Sovereign Maintenance scheme @ £399 for 5 years, which delivers 2 inspections a year by inspectors recognised on the Playground Inspectors Register, with recommendations for remedial action if required.
• Railing around the war memorial: Unclear if the railings themselves are listed. Cllr Waumsley agreed to investigate, review when listing status confirmed.
• Parking / vehicles driving / vehicles charging over The Green continues to be an issue. Cllr Walsingham shows the volumes of historic The Green paperwork on this issue and asks whether anyone wants to go through it / Clerk offered Clerks & Council Direct magazine (with relevant article); no volunteers. All Cllrs to take steps to observe use of, and potential neighbouring property transfers on, The Green and PC to address issues as they occur.
• Cllr Walsingham to meet Cllr Shepperson 18/1/26 to explain reported tree issues on The Green.
• Cllr Walsingham to liaise with Corby Glen Community Group [CGCG] about volunteer day on The Green like done before on Laxton Lane etc

9. Payments and Accounts

• Bank balances – monthly update set out below.
  (ii) Invoices for payment – Councillors signed payments as set out in schedule below.

10. Matters to be further discussed at the meeting:

13 Consider Custodianship of PC assets & The Green / play area: Already covered

14 Agree membership of Greens Working Group [WG]: Currently Cllrs Shepperson, Harty & Harwood.

15 Laxton Lane, consider actions needed: Interested parties have been informed concerning issues associated with works for Plot 1A Station Road building site. The Tree Surveyor reported no significant damage to PC tree roots from driving over The Green, and ‘pruning’ of PC trees, although without permission, was not harmful to the trees themselves, only their shape. (Post-meeting note: traffic issues on social media.)The relevant planning applications / permissions are on-line – all Cllrs to consult. S25/1845, S22/0913 and connected applications.

Various conflicting explanations for the diagonal tracks across The Green have been communicated. The one-time vehicle movement with surface protection was tolerated because the private treeworks were thought to benefit The Green and PC trees – but it remains that the PC, as custodian of The Green, cannot grant access over The Green.

16 Agree membership of S106 WG & Staffing Committee: S106 WG to be reviewed, Staffing Committee confirmed as Cllr Shepperson, Green & Harty.

17 Approve updated Risk Assessment: Latest version approved unanimously. To be published.

18 Approve Flag Policy: Approved unanimously. To be published.

19 Ratify community cleaner arrangements, as discussed at previous meeting: Approved by a majority
(7 for 1 against). Cllr Walsingham to touch base with Colsterworth & District Parish Council.

20 Ratify IT maintenance arrangements, as discussed at previous meeting: Agreed unanimously rolling contract to continue; other options to be investigated – pros & cons to be documented. Cllr Shepperson to review website provider and hosting options, and present a business case at March meeting.

21 Approve a donation to the East Midlands Ambulance Service for the First Aid training and to the Community Group for the hire of the Church Street Rooms: £36 as per December minutes agreed unanimously. Cllr Walsingham to contact CGCG – request they pay and CGPC will reimburse – paperwork required.

22 Agree location of bin for storage of sandbags: Locations agreed unanimously – top of High St, North side, junction with Tanners Lane & Irnham Road; & junction Tanners Lane / Station Rd (outside flood area). LCC have no issues with these locations. LCC Paperwork to be filled out and then scheme to be implemented. Budget previously agreed, approval would be upheld now new locations had been agreed.

23 Consider action re state of the surface of The Green: See 10/15 above. Wait until further developments and the warmer weather to consider options for actions and remedial work.

24 Authorise spend for purchase of rubbish bin for Swinstead Road: A budget of £200 + VAT was agreed unanimously for the purchase of the bin. Cllr Shepperson to purchase and site.

25 Consider PC role in local health service concerns / 26 Consider PC role in reporting building control issues
27 Consider PC role in reporting SKDC housing and land issues / 28 Consider action relating to o/s 20 Station Road as trip hazard, where former tree narrows footway / 29 Consider action relating to bulb-planted verge damage opposite Church Street Rooms / Exton Cottage, Church Street caused by parking:
25 – 29: Residents to be directed to the appropriate authority. Suggested that the PC only intervenes when all other avenues have been explored and exhausted. Cllr Shepperson to draft wording around the role of parish, district and councillors, and MP to be published on website.

30 Consider the need to maintain the Beacon: Cllrs Baker & Shepperson to investigate

31 Understand the position regarding the Dawson Memorial Tree: Contact has been made; arrangements in hand for the family and a resident to commemorate by planting Silver Birch in late Feb / early March to replace a failed tree. Displaced Cherry to be returned to Cllr Walsingham

32 Consider facilitating shared communication / leafletting with Ron Dawson Memorial Village Hall and other community groups to encourage volunteers: Cllr Walsingham requested £100 budget; majority felt the PC should not fund this. Cllr Walsingham to follow up options. Post-meeting note: Cllr Mardling to draft an A5 one-side leaflet that includes all groups wanting volunteers.

33 Discuss The Green, Trees & Hedges on the CGPC webpages: All Cllrs to read web pages accessed through  https://corbyglen.com/about-corby-glen/   – to discuss next meeting. (Post-meeting note: changes and corrections to content needed although already reported for sorting.)

11. Next meeting:

The next regular meeting will take place on Wed February 11^th 2026 at 7.30pm in the Willoughby Memorial Gallery

Note: Chair is likely to be absent, statutory delegation rules to apply.

Meeting closed at 9.27pm.                                                                                                   Mrs. Sue Woodman – Parish Clerk

Action Log 14^th Jan 2026 – TO BE UPDATED PRIOR TO NEXT MEETING going forward.

Appendix:

Email from Mr Fowler:

Dear Sue 

Could I please question the draft minutes of the meeting held on the 10th December 2025. 

Matter to be resolved. 

Item 05 – There is no cost mentioned so therefore, it is assumed that there is no additional cost to the Parish Council? 

Item 08 – The only capital expense that the Parish Council had to spend was £1,100 for swing legs. If it had not been for S106 funding, the Parish Council would not have installed SIDs yet 24/25 carry forward was £12,893.52. It would appear this year the carry forward would be £20,000 if the precept for the new year is £19,000 plus S106 money, this would give the Parish Council in the region of £47,000. 

Greens Working Group 

Not sure what the advantage is to the Parish Council for spending £399.00 for 5 years (£78.80 per year) when the Parish Council will still have to have the play equipment inspected weekly and inspected by RoSPA currently at a cost of £124.80. 

Matters to be further discussed at the meeting 

Item 18 – The minutes state that this represents 20% of the councils spend. Don’t know where this figure has come from. After SKDC’s grant of £926.64, the budget expenditure to the Council is £1428.72. Even for the next financial year, with an increase in the minimum wage and Colsterworth Parish Council administration cost, we are nowhere near 20%. 

Many Thanks 

David 

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Reply from Cllr Shepperson:

Dear David,

Thank you for your email and for setting out your comments on specific items within the draft minutes of the meeting held on 10 December 2025. I have responded to each point below for clarity.

Item 05

You are correct that no cost is referenced within the draft minutes. While it is best practice to include costs where known, this is not a legal requirement for minutes. At the time of the December meeting, the matter had not been fully scoped and it is now anticipated that there will be an additional cost to the Parish Council in order to resolve the issue.

As December’s meeting was not a legally constituted Parish Council meeting for the purpose of making decisions, no financial commitment could be agreed at that time. The matter will therefore be considered and a formal decision taken at the January Parish Council meeting. Should expenditure be approved, the agreed spend will be properly recorded in the minutes of that meeting.

Item 08

I am not clear where the figures you reference have been sourced from and would be grateful if you could clarify this.

As discussed at previous meetings of the Parish Council, S106 funding is not managed directly by the Parish Council and must be applied for; it is therefore not included as a budgeted income line. The Council is currently forecasting a carry forward of approximately £17,000 into FY 2026/27.

Looking ahead, the Council is planning for several significant expenditure items in FY 2026/27, namely the surfacing around the rocking horse and repairs to the junior slide. Based on current estimates, these projects would result in expenditure exceeding the annual precept. While the Council will be actively pursuing external funding to support these works, if those applications are unsuccessful, early predictions show that the reserves would be reduced by approximately £10,000.

As you will be aware, it is recommended that parish councils hold reserves equivalent to between 3 and 12 months’ expenditure, with councils of our size advised to maintain the upper end of that range. Taking this into account, reserves forecast for FY 2027/28 would equate to approximately four months’ expenditure. Should the Council be successful in securing external funding, this will be reflected when calculating the precept for FY 2027/28.

Greens Working Group

There is no legal requirement for the Parish Council to undertake a RoSPA inspection. The proposed five-year agreement, at a cost of £399 (£79.80 per year), would provide the Council with two professional inspections per annum, carried out by RPII (Register of Play Inspectors International) certified inspectors, rather than one.

In addition, the agreement would reduce the Council’s annual inspection spend by £44.70 per year and includes minor maintenance works. This removes the need for the Council to purchase items separately to undertake minor maintenance tasks and provides both financial and practical benefits.

Item 18

Thank you for drawing attention to this point. The wording in the draft minutes is inaccurate. The reference to 20% discussed at the meeting related to the combined cost of the community cleaners and the website. When considered together, these costs equate to approximately 20% of the Council’s overall expenditure. This will be corrected when the minutes are presented for approval. [Note: Minutes duly amended]

Thank you for taking the time to review the draft minutes.

Kind regards,

Luke