June 2025 DRAFT Minutes
Clerk’s Contact Details:
Clerk’s Office, Franklin Hall, Halton Road, Spilsby, PE23 5LA.
07872943179 | croftparishclerk@gmail.com
Croft Parish Council
Minutes of the full Council Meeting held at Croft Village Hall on Monday 2nd June 2025, commencing at 7:00pm. These are notes of the meeting until approved by the Council as a true and accurate record.
Present:
Cllrs A Coxall (Chair), G Batten, N Dennis and County Councillor J Brookes; and Clerk - J Sargent.
Public Session
There were no members of the public in attendance.
To receive a report from East Lindsey District Councillor - Cllr C Drury
Cllr Drury submitted apologies through ill health; no report provided.
To receive a report from Lincolnshire County Councillor Report - Cllr J Brookes
Cllr Brookes attended to introduce himself as the new County Councillor, offering to invite County Council Officers to Croft to walk around the parish, to assess issues that require attention. Cllr Brookes provided a brief update on recent training, appointments to the Executive Committee and new food waste management plans for the near future. Cllr Brookes can be contacted via email - cllrj.brookes@lincolnshire.gov.uk.
23. Welcome from the Chair of the Council.
The Chair welcomed all present, confirmed quorum and thanked Councillors for their attendance.
24. Apologies
It was resolved unanimously to accept apologies from Cllr C Drury (Vice-Chair - Parish and District Councillor), G Bowser, S Drury and S Gould. No apologies received from Cllr N Cooper.
25. Declarations of Interest
None received.
26. To confirm the minutes of the Annual Meeting of the Council held on Tuesday 6th May 2025.
With no matters arising, it was resolved unanimously to accept the minutes as a true and accurate record of the meeting.
27. To approve the list of accounts submitted for consideration for May.
With no matters arising, it was resolved unanimously to accept the list of accounts. The Accounts Report to be included as an attachment with these minutes.
28. To receive bank reconciliation for May.
The Clerk provided the bank reconciliation for information purposes only, to keep Councillors up to date with the financial status. The Bank Reconciliation Reports to be included as an attachment with these minutes.
29. To receive notification of any planning permissions, refusals, or amendments.
No planning notifications received.
30. To receive a report from:
a. The Chair
Cllr Coxall provided a brief report on the Drope Proctor Charity Field bank account, having gained access, now requires additional signatories. Banking mandate forms have been sent by Barclays bank. Cllr Coxall asked the Clerk to check how much had been paid into the Council’s bank accounts, which should have been paid to the Charity account.
b. The Clerk
No report provided.
31. To receive an update on the installation of a bench in memory of Sid Dennis.
The Clerk to contact Cllr C Drury for an update.
32. To approve the Annual Governance and Accountability Return for 2024-25:
a. To approve section 1, points 1 - 9 of the Annual Governance Statement for 2024-25.
The Clerk read points 1-9, it was resolved unanimously to agree to points 1-8 as correct and mark point 9 as N/A.
b. To approve section 2, Accounting Statement.
The Clerk explained the figures on Accounting Statement. It was resolved unanimously to accept the Accounting Statement and submit to the external auditor.
33. To confirm the period of the dates of the period for the exercise of public rights for inspection of the accounts, 3rd June to 14th July 2025.
The Clerk advised the dates proposed were the recommend dates from the external auditor. It was resolved unanimously to confirm the period of the dates of the period for the exercise of public rights for inspection of the accounts, 3rd June to 14th July 2025.
34. To appoint bank signatories.
The Clerk recommended appointing new bank signatories and all giving Councillors viewer access only to the Council’s bank accounts, for increased transparency. It was resolved unanimously to appoint Cllrs Coxall, Drury and Dennis as bank signatories and give all Councillors viewer access only to the Council’s bank accounts. The Clerk to contact Lloyds Bank to arrange.
35. To consider using .gov.uk email addresses for Council business.
The Clerk provided information via email from LALC and from the government’s website detailing costs and benefits of using .gov.uk email addresses. The Clerk also advised that using .gov.uk emails was recommended by LALC as the external auditors - PKF Littlejohn will be marking Council’s not using .gov.uk emails as non-compliant. Using .gov.uk email addresses increases security and gives a more professional look to the Council. However, using .gov.uk emails is not currently a legal requirement. The Clerk advised building this into the 2026-27 budget or to wait until it is mandatory.
Cllr Coxall expressed concern that this was unnecessary and a poor use of Council funds. It was resolved unanimously to defer to November when considering the 2026-27 budget.
36. To receive a copy of the Action Points list.
The Clerk provided a copy of the Action Points list to keep Councillors up to date with work on previous resolutions. The Action Points list to be included as an attachment with these minutes.
The Chair of the Council closed the meeting at 7:40pm.