Parish Council

Report for Parish Council Meeting held on Tuesday 3 September 2013

SID
The Speed Indicator Device has finally been rescued and is now under the ‘charge’ of Cllr Graham Jones on behalf of Nocton and the other villages within our cluster group.  The Council will now be contacting the other parishes to agree an arrangement for sharing SID.  As far we are concerned, SID will be sited in rotation at the two main entrances to the village on the B1202 and on Wellhead Lane. Hopefully this will have a positive effect in reducing the speed of traffic along these roads.  In due course it is hoped that information gathered from the device on the speed and volume of traffic will be analysed and published in The Doodle.

Police Report
During the last month there have been three reported crimes in the village.  One agricultural theft (a bird scarer machine) and one domestic theft in Wellhead Lane, where a bike was stolen from a shed.  There was also an attempted break-in to another shed in Wrays Yard.  No one yet has been apprehended.

Neighbourhood Watch Scheme
More by luck than judgment, given the previous item, it is proposed to introduce a Neighbourhood Watch in Nocton.  Cllr Jones is spearheading this initiative and it is intended to hold an Open Meeting in early autumn to explain the benefits of the scheme to residents and ways in which they can become involved.  The scheme will run alongside the county- wide Lincs Alert that some of you may already have signed up to on line.

Village Hall
Work is in hand to get some more comfortable chairs and Cllr Burr has arranged to have a sample chair delivered to try out before an order is placed.

Estimates are also being obtained to spruce up the outside of the Hall and to finally replace the fence.  Larger projects such as lagging the roof space, replacing heaters, lighting etc in line with a recently completed Energy Review of the building will be decided on once the Parish Council has a clearer idea on how soon a more comprehensive refurbishment of the Village Hall can be carried out.

Best Kept Village
Unfortunately, Nocton did not make it through to the final round of judging (which is taking place during the first week in September).  We are currently trying to find out whether we made it through the first round and what areas we can improve upon for next year.  However, although the result of the competition was disappointing, the “Tidy Days” organised by Cllr Burr were deemed a great success and led to a significant improvement in the appearance in our village..

A “Yes” and “No”
Yes, the proposed finger signpost to point out village features is being taken forward, but No parking will now be allowed on the Village Green.

Planters
Cllr Williams will continue to see that the planters at the three entrances to the village are kept in good order and plants ordered for the seasons.  Volunteers are always welcome to help with planting and care.  Therefore, if you see a weed, feel free to pull it out and if the plants are thirsty – then a can or two of water helps!

200 Club
A cheque for an impressive sum of £2,400 from the “200 Club” was handed to the Parish Council to be used for ‘Community ‘Projects.  The Parish Council has earmarked £1,400 of this for the purpose of helping to set up a Youth Club for young people in the village (more detailed proposals for setting up this Club will be considered at the October meeting).  Suggestions for using the balance of the money include the reintroduction of a ‘Welcome Pack’ for new residents.  If you have any ideas on how this money should be spent for the benefit of the whole of the village then do, please, let either the Parish Clerk or one of your Councillors know.  Groups are also reminded that £500.00 has been set aside by the Parish Council to support the local clubs that operate in Nocton and it would welcome applications from them.

Neighbourhood Plan
It was agreed to hold exploratory talks with both Potterhanworth and Dunston to produce a joint Neighbourhood Plan.  So many of you responded to the Parish Plan in Nocton much of our groundwork will already have been covered.

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.

Next meeting Monday 1 October at 7pm

Councillor MaryAnn Williams