Alvingham Parish Council
Minutes of Annual Parish Meeting
Held on 11th March 2025
Present: Councillor N Ashley
Councillor V Stratford
Councillor G Cummings
Councillor A Graves
Clerk: Mrs S McFarland
Apologies
Both Councillor Shucksmith and Councillor Mossop had submitted their apologies prior to the meeting.
Minutes of meeting held on 5th March 2024
The minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting which was held on 5th March 2024 were read and approved. They were proposed by Councillor Cummings and seconded by Councillor Ashley who signed them as a true copy.
Matters Arising
There were no matters arising.
Treasurers Report
Councillor Cummings reported that we had started the year with £4419.96. During the year £632 was spent on refurbishing the telephone box, £300 on refurbishing the Alvingham Cup, £229 on the Pylon protest as well as the usual expenses, insurance hall hire etc leaving a balance at the end of the year of £4346.45.
Chairmans Report
Councillor Ashley thanked all the Council members for their regular attendances in particular the treasurer and Clerk for their excellent services throughout the past year.
During the year the Parish Council has tried to support the communal activities and infrastructure of the village whenever possible. Some of the activities have turned out to be more successful than originally forecast. He praised the community for pulling together to make this happen.
The state of the roads as always has cropped up again. With Councillor Hall’s help highways have assessed the village roads and hopefully this might lead to an improvement in the centre of the village. The ‘Mega pothole’ along the Louth Road has re appeared. He noted that all we can do is keep reporting the problems as the rearise.
Our community centre is going from strength to strength both in the way the hall is managed and the activities provided. It is certainly something the village can be extremely proud of. He praised the Alvingham Village Community Hall Chairman and committee for their hard work.
The footpath through the Church Yard he felt maybe a lost cause, not through our intention but due to the uncooperative nature of the Church of England.
Councillor Ashley hoped the change in ownership of the cottage on the footpath along Highbridge Road may enable the path through to Austen Fen to become more accessible to ramblers.
As sad as the closure of the village Chapel is the change of use to a dwelling is taking shape and it is nice to see the old pews have been repurposed and remain as a memento in the village.
As a Parish Council we have tried to keep the village reasonably presentable without must cost to our parishioners and as such we can be proud of our village which is the envy of many. Time will tell what the threat of Mega Plyons, pipelines and nuclear waste on our patch will do to our village.
Clerk’s Report
The year April 2024 to March 2025 has seen 6 meetings of Alvingham Parish Council. Attendance at the meetings this year has been down on previous years, with us only achieving a full house of councillors on 2 occasions. Public attendance at the meetings has been limited to one person which would perhaps suggest the parishioners are in general happy with the way the council is being run.
It has been a quiet year on the planning front with just 2 planning applications being received, one of which relates to the Offshore wind farm which is still to be decided. The other, a successful application for a property on an infill site of Church Lane.
In all the year as been uneventful. We continue to monitor the flood risks and the usual complaints regarding the state of the roads. The highlights of the year are the refurbishment of the telephone box and the discovery and refurbishment of the Alvingham Cup which will and in the case of the phone box does enhance the village aesthetic.
Finally, it has been my privilege to serve as the Clerk to Alvingham Parish Council but after 10 years I have decided the time has come to step down. The Parish is in good hands with our current mix of Councillors and I wish you continued success in the good work you do.
The Chairman thanked everyone for coming and the meeting was declared closed at 7.55pm.