Agenda and draft minutes

To confirm and sign as a correct record the Minutes of the Meeting of Full Council held on 4 March 2024.

The Chairman highlighted to the meeting two typographical amendments contained within the Minutes.

The first being the word “be” missing from Minute 66, Matters Arising.  The second being within Minute 67, Announcements by Chairman, where reference to Wold Pines in paragraph three, should have read Wild Pines. 

The meeting’s consent was sought and received that these amendments be made to the published record.  

Having been proposed and seconded, it was: -

RESOLVED that the Minutes of the Meeting of Full Council held on 4 March, be confirmed, approved and signed as a correct record, subject to the typographical amendments detailed above being made.

Members may make any declarations of interest at this point and may also make them at any point during the meeting.

No declarations of interest were made at this point in the meeting. The Chairman reminded Members that they could make a declaration at any point in the meeting should they feel it necessary to do so.

Setting out current position of previously agreed actions as at 27 March 2024.

The Chairman introduced the report advising Members that it would be taken “as read” unless Members had any questions that they wished to raise.

With no comments or questions, and with no requirement to vote, the matters arising were DULY NOTED.

i)             Chairman of Council

ii)            Leader of the Council

iii)           Chief Executive

Chairman

The Chairman addressed the Council, referencing briefly some of the events in which he had been involved and attended since Council last met.

Starting with supporting fellow Councillor, Councillor Darcel, at an Environment Agency meeting to further some work Councillor Darcel had been undertaking with regards to potential flood protection or alleviation schemes in the south of the county.  The Chairman had found it extremely interesting and thanked Councillor Darcel for the opportunity.

The Chairman, in his civic capacity had visited the His Church in Binbrook, a charity which collects surplus food and other items from supermarkets and other sources before re-distributing it to those in need, both in this country and internationally. He spoke of the incredible work undertaken at the site and of the operation’s national and international recognition.  The visit had left an impression, had been worthwhile and the Chairman indicated he looked forward to learning more about their work. 

It had been a pleasure to attend at the fifth Annual Illuminate event in Gainsborough which had been a great success once again. Thanks were expressed to all Officers and Members involved in delivering the event which had been most enjoyable and had seen large numbers gathering in and around the Marketplace due to it being combined with the food market which had been welcomed.  Those who the Chairman had spoken with had enjoyed the event and he hoped that similar festivals could be held, both in Gainsborough and around the District.

The Chairman had raised a flag for Commonwealth Day, filming the event and making this available via the Authority’s social media accounts on this occasion.

It had been a pleasure to attend at the Lincolnshire Carers’ Awards, an event the District Council had sponsored and played a role in the judging of some award categories.  He spoke of the amazing and under-celebrated work of Carers and the evening had provided opportunity for them to be celebrated and honoured.

The Chairman had attended the Civic Dinner of the Mayor of Kirton Lindsey.  The Mayor, who was also a Clerk to a Parish Council within West Lindsey, had complimented the Authority on its facilities fund from which her Parish had received a grant for play equipment, she had asked that personal thanks be shared with elected Members.

Over the Easter weekend the Chairman had had the pleasure in attending and sponsoring a number of guests at the Market Rasen Racecourse, in celebration of its 100^th anniversary, hosted by the Jockey Club.  It had been a most successful day, despite the cool weather, and expected traffic issues.

The Saturday of the Easter weekend had seen the inaugural Antiques Market in Gainsborough and markets in both Market Rasen and Caistor, with the Chairman visiting them all.  It had been a pleasure to see the marketplaces experiencing increased footfall, and people enjoying their experiences. 

The second Antiques Market in Gainsborough had built on its experience from the previous week, with an increased number of stalls again and higher  ...  view the full minutes text for item 75.

Questions, if received, under this Scheme will be published by way of supplement following closure of the deadline.

The Chairman advised the meeting that no public questions had been received.

Questions submitted by Members under Procedure Rule No.9 will be published by way of supplement following closure of the deadline.

The Chairman advised the meeting that no questions had been submitted by Members under Council Procedure Rule No.9.

No motions have been submitted for this meeting.

The Chairman advised the meeting that no motions had been submitted by Members under Council Procedure Rule No.10.

Members considered a report presented by the Chairman of Council which sought to update the Officer Delegation Scheme in respect of Neighbourhood Planning, in particular responsibilities in relation to Neighbourhood Plan Reviews, with a number expected to be conducted during 2024/2025.

The report primarily sought to grant delegated authority, to allow Officers to deal with minor reviews, and reaffirmed that more substantial reviews would remain the responsibility of Full Council to “make” following Public Examination.

The Chairman moved the recommendations en-bloc from the Chair before opening the matter for debate.

During brief discussion Members complimented the work of the Neighbourhood Planning Team and the support given to communities.  Members believed the success of Neighbourhood Plans across the District was a testament to the support offered and the support was often commented on by Groups, when achieving “made and adopted” Plan status.

Neighbourhood planning was also seen as a real opportunity for communities to better understand the planning process and with reviews now coming around it was suggested by Members it may be opportune to hold an information session for those wishing to develop their Plans.  Members  considered West Lindsey had a real opportunity and role to play in increasing engagement, understanding and involvement in Neighbourhood Plan making.

Members from all sides of the Chamber were supportive of the sharing of workshops and seminars with Parish Councils being explored and encouraged.

Having been seconded, on being put to the vote it was

RESOLVED that: -

(a)        the varying levels of Neighbourhood Plan Reviews which could be undertaken be noted;

(b)        delegated Authority be granted to the Director of Planning, Regeneration and Communities to approve minor (non-material) modifications to Neighbourhood Plans, following a review, and this be added to the Scheme of Officer Delegation;

(c)        Full Council continue to “make” all Neighbourhood Plans following a Neighbourhood Plan review which is deemed by the Examiner to contain material modifications; and

(d)        Where a Neighbourhood Plan Review results in a referendum, the Neighbourhood Planning Group / Parish Council be invited to present their Plan to Full Council as they were at its first “making”.

Members considered a report, introduced by the Chief Executive which presented the findings of the Lincolnshire Devolution consultation exercise.  The report also highlighted the proposed amendments to the Greater Lincolnshire Devolution Deal, as a result of the consultation findings.

Section 3 had the overall findings arising from the consultation with the table at 3.5 showing West Lindsey specific responses.

It had been mentioned by the Chairman that one category question, relating to governance or the mayoral question, appeared to be missing from the table of West Lindsey specific data, apologies were offered, and the Chief Executive undertook to circulate this data to Members.   

Based on the consultation, there were a few amendments the constituent members had sought and approved, and these were detailed in Section 4 of the report and highlighted and summarised to Members.

Debate ensued and whilst Members commented on apathy around the mayoral proposals, given the length of time discussion had been ongoing, with the consultation now complete and data presented it was proposed the report be accepted.

The Leader of the Council expressed concern in a general sense around apathy to consultations, using the Devolution consultation exercise as an example to highlight his concerns, noting that only circa 4,000 responses had been received throughout Greater Lincolnshire. Despite apathy towards Mayoral proposals, they remained within the proposal, something he considered further fed apathy towards completing consultations.

From a West Lindsey perspective, the Leader wanted to ensure all consultations in the future were engaging and meaningful and when people took time to respond their comments were taken on board.

Devolution in Lincolnshire had many consequences and had communities understood this better, it was suggested more would have engaged.  The Leader was of the view that in years to come when communities understood the impact of the decision, the additional layers of Local Government it created and the cost, there would be public upset.

Bringing comments to a close, having previously highlighted a West Lindsey specific statistic having been omitted from the report, the Chairman advised the meeting that Lincolnshire-wide support for a Mayor had been 38%, West Lindsey specific that figure had been 40%.  It was further clarified that that was 40% of those responding to the survey as opposed to 40% of all residents.

With no requirement to vote on recommendations one and two, Members DULY NOTED the findings of the Greater Lincolnshire Devolution consultation exercise and the proposed amendments to the Greater Lincolnshire Devolution Deal, which had been approved by the three constituent authorities.

With recommendation three having been proposed and seconded, on being put to the vote it was

RESOLVED that West Lindsey District Council continue to engage with the implementation of devolution arrangements.