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Meeting of the FULL COUNCIL held on Monday 16 May 2022
MINUTES of the meeting of the FULL COUNCIL held on Monday 16 May 2022 at 7.00 pm at Wallingford Town Hall
Present
Members:
- Councillor Stephen Beatty
- Councillor Nigel Hughes
- Councillor Dan Beauchamp
- Councillor Katharine Keats-Rohan
- Councillor Giles Cattermole
- Councillor Mike Kidley
- Councillor Marcus Harris (Chairman/The Mayor)
- Councillor Rosslyn Lester
- Councillor Rob McGregor
- Councillor Steve Holder
- Councillor Deborah Whelan
Officers:
- Michelle Taylor, Town Clerk/Responsible Finance Officer (RFO)
- Luke Whitcomb, Meetings Officer
Others:
- 4 members of the public
- 1 member of the Press
19/22 MEETING PROTOCOL
The Chairman advised all those present of the protocol of the meeting.
20/22 APOLOGIES
Apologies were received from Councillors Gibbon, Hendrie, Holford, Newcombe and Sinkinson, and also from County Councillor Sudbury and District Councillors Levy and Roberts.
21/22 DECLARATION OF INTERESTS
No interests were declared.
22/22 MAYOR’S COMMUNICATIONS
The Chairman thanked the Office Staff for their work for Mayor’s Sunday which had just taken place. He also placed on record his thanks to Barbara Atkins for her work on the event.
He reported on his attendance at the Henley Mayor’s dinner, the newly-refurbished Cross Keys pub, the Wallingford Regatta and the formal opening of Wallingford Radio, amongst other events.
The Deputy Mayor reported on his attendance at the Wallingford Town Football Club’s championship play-off where Wallingford had won and would be promoted to the next group.
23/22 MINUTES
It was proposed by Councillor Cattermole and seconded by Councillor Whelan, and RESOLVED that the meetings of the Full Council on 14th February and 9th May 2022 are true and an accurate record of those meetings, subject to the amendments below, and the Chairman is authorised to sign them as a correct record; and that the minutes of the meeting of the General Purposes Committee on 25th April 2022 be adopted
Amendment to the minutes of the meeting on 9th May 2022:
(i) List of those present and Minute 2/22: Councillor Beatty was not present but had given his apologies
(ii) Minute 3/22: Councillor Kidley had seconded the resolution.
24/22 ACTIONS FROM PREVIOUS MEETING
The Council went through the actions of the previous meeting, closing most items, with a few remaining as ongoing issues.
25/22 PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Two members of the public had indicated their wish to speak to the items of under Minute 29/22 and Minute 37/22 below.
A member of the public questioned why the Grants Officer item would not be considered by the Council in public. The Mayor responded that it was because the discussion would include consideration of the role’s salary.
26/22 REPORTS FROM DISTRICT AND COUNTY COUNCILLORS
The Chairman read out brief reports from the District and County Councillors who could not be present.
27/22 BILL SCHEDULE
The Council considered the bill schedule for March 2022 and thanked the Town Clerk/Responsible Finance Officer for her work on this.
It was proposed by Councillor Lester, and seconded by Councillor Whelan, and RESOLVED that the bill schedule be approved.
28/22 COMMITTEE VACANCIES
Two vacancies on the Finance and Properties and Planning Committees remained.
Action: The Chairman would discuss these with Members before the next meeting.
29/22 COMMUNITY INFRASTRUCTURE LEVY (CIL) – SPENDING PLAN
The Council considered how CIL money would be spent, including the prioritisation of infrastructure projects and how spending in this area would be monitored going forwards.
Two members of the public spoke to this item.
It was proposed by Councillor Beauchamp, and seconded by Councillor Hughes, and RESOLVED that a working party, chaired by Councillor Hughes, be set up to develop a strategy and to report back within the next three months, the working party to include members of the community as well as Councillors.
Councillors Beauchamp, Cattermole, Keats-Rohan and Whelan indicated their willingness to be part of the working party. If others were interested, they should contact the Office.
30/22 PUBLIC FOOTPATH CREATION AGREEMENT – PART OF PUBLIC FOOTPATH (NO.28)
The Council reviewed a public footpath creation agreement.
It was proposed by Councillor Holder, and seconded by Councillor Kidley, and RESOLVED that the Town Clerk/RFO be authorised to sign the agreement.
31/22 BE FREE YOUNG CARERS APPLICATION FORM
The Council considered an application for a grant of £1,200 from Be Free Young Carers. The Council’s total annual budget for this area for 2022-23 was £1,500.
It was proposed by Councillor Lester, and seconded by Councillor Cattermole, and RESOLVED that Be Free Young Carers be invited to present their proposal at the next meeting, alongside other applications so that the allocation of the annual budget could be considered in the round.
Action: Office to invite Be Free Young Carers, and any other applicants, to present their proposals at the next meeting.
32/22 THE QUEEN’S PLATINUM JUBILEE 2022
Councillor Lester updated Members on the planned activities to mark The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June, and thanked all those who had given their time.
33/22 PEDESTRIANISATION OF FRONT OF TOWN HALL
The meeting considered a proposal by the Mayor for the front of the Town Hall to be pedestrianised.
It was proposed by the Chairman, Councillor Harris, and seconded by Councillor Keats-Rohan, and RESOLVED that options for pedestrianisation be developed by the Office, with costings, and brought back to the Council, before consultation with local commerce.
34/22 CLIMATE CHANGE UPDATE
In interests of balance, Councillor Beatty advised of a forthcoming meeting on 22nd June 2022 at which Jeremy Niebor of the Bruges Group, a leading anti-climate change campaigner, would be speaking, and encouraged other Councillors to attend, especially those who held an opposing view.
35/22 FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS
The following items were identified for the next meeting:
o Elections 2023 – Councillor McGregor to report
o Liaison with Arts and Development Officer – Councillor Beatty to report
o Be Free Young Carers
The following items were identified for future meetings:
o War memorial railings
o Town Council grants strategy
o Major Wayne Thrussell to update on the work of the cadets who were celebrating their 150th anniversary
o Pedestrianisation of the Market Square and introduction of 20mph speed limit throughout the Town
o Heritage Crime Strategy: Mr Mark Harrison of Historic England
36/22 EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC
It was proposed by Councillor Hughes, and seconded by Councillor Holder, and RESOLVED that the press and public be excluded from the meeting due to nature of the business to be transacted.
The meeting ended at 9.04pm