Gittisham Parish Council CIL report 2020-21

15 February 20239 December 2021 by Fiona

Gittisham Parish Council CIL Report

Reporting Year 1 April 2020 to 31st March 2021

A	Total CIL Income Carried Over from Previous Years	£4,201.86
B	Total CIL Income Received (Receipts)	£12,874.96
C	Total CIL Spent (Expenses)	£15,050.00
D	Total CIL Repaid following a repayment notice	NIL

E	Total CIL Retained at the end (A+B-C-D)	£2,026.82

CIL expenditure
Item / purpose	Amount spent
Village hall refurbishment	£15,050.00

Total spent	£15,050.00

Signed Parish Clerk:

Fiona Clampin

Verified Chair of Parish Council:

Carol Hall

09.12.2021

Explanation of variances 2020-21

12 June 2021 by David

Name of smaller authority: GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL

County area (local councils and parish meetings only: DEVON

Please provide full explanations, including numerical values, for the following:

variances of more than 15% between totals for individual boxes (except variances of less than £200);
a breakdown of approved reserves if the total reserves (Box 7) figure is more than twice the annual precept/rates & levies value (Box 2).

Section 2	2019/20 £	2020/21 £	Variance £	Variance %	Detailed explanation of variance (with amounts £)
Box 2 Precept or Rates and Levies	8160	8160	0	0	n/a
Box 3 Total other receipts	12442	13835	-1393	-11.20	n/a
Box 4 Staff costs	2940	3356	-416	-14.15	n/a
Box 5 Loan interest/ capital repayments	NIL	NIL	NIL	NIL	n/a
Box 6 All other payments	20235	19951	284	1.40	n/a
Box 9 Total fixed assets & long term investments & assets	16523	26774	-10251	-62.04	Updated asset register 2020-21 inc benches, picnic tables, laptop
Box 10 Total borrowings	NIL	NIL	NIL	NIL	n/a
Explanation for ‘high’ reserves	Box 7 is almost twice Box 2 because the authority held the following breakdown of reserves at the year end: £7,030.36 Contingency

GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL PAYMENTS OVER £100 1 APRIL 2020 TO 31 MARCH 2021

12 June 2021 by David

DATE	PAYMENT – Vendor	PAYMENT – Description	Payment Type	ITEM	AMOUNT INC VAT	VAT

01.04.2020	Clerk	Clerk’s salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	5	£223.61	0
01.04.2020	Devon Assoc of Local Councils	Annual membership	Memberships	6	£146.83	£16.83
01.04.2020	RosPA	Play area annual inspection	Play area	8	£107.40	£17.90
01.04.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	12	£1,000	0
01.04.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	13	£1,000	0
01.04.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	15	£1,000	0
01.04.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	16	£1,000	0
01.04.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	17	£1,000	0
01.04.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	18	£1,500	0
01.04.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	19	£1,000	0
01.04.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	20	£1,000	0
06.05.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	24	£289.67	0
06.05.2020	Community First	Annual insurance policy	Play area & assets	27	£495.17	0
06.05.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	28	£1,000	0
06.05.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	29	£1,000	0
15.05.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	30	£1,000	0
15.05.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	31	£1,000	0
25.05.2020	Paul Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	32	£1,025	0
25.05.2020	Adam Martin	Village hall refurbishment	General admin	33	£1,025	0
03.06.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	35	£219.55	0
03.06.2020	Websites Ahoy	Domain name & hosting of website	General administration	40	£140.40	0
01.07.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	42	£220.09	0
01.07.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary	Clerk salary	43	£218.79	0
01.07.2020	Len Abbott	Lengthsman work	Lengthsman	46	£147	0
02.09.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary	Clerk salary	54	£218.79	0
02.09.2020	Len Abbott	Lengthsman work	Lengthsman	55	£399	0
02.09.2020	Len Abbott	Lengthsman work	Lengthsman	56	£112	0
07.10.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	68	£228.46	0
07.10.2020	Len Abbott	Lengthsman work	Lengthsman	70	£126	0
04.11.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	78	£228.46	0
04.11.2020	Clerk	Clerk tax rebate	Clerk salary & expenses	79	£373.64	0
04.11.2020	Len Abbott	Lengthsman work	Lengthsman	81	£105	0
02.12.2020	Clerk	Clerk salary	Clerk salary	83	£224.86	0
02.12.2020	Len Abbott	Lengthsman work	Lengthsman	84	£147	0
02.12.2020	Community Heartbeat Trust	Defibrillator maintenance subscription	General administration	85	£324	£54
06.01.2021	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	88	£225.51	0
03.02.2021	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	92	£225.52	0
03.02.2021	Gittisham PCC	Parish gazette printing (2020)	General administration	94	£157	0
03.02.2021	Arthur G Gallagher Ins.	Public liability insurance (lengthsman)	Lengthsman	97	£266.81	0
03.03.2021	Clerk	Clerk salary & expenses	Clerk salary & expenses	100	£226.37	0
03.03.2021	Clerk	Clerk	Reimbursement for laptop	101	£629	£104.83

GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL RECEIPTS AND PAYMENT ACCOUNT FOR YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

12 June 2021 by David

RECEIPTS	2020	2021
Precept	£8,160
Refund for overpayment		£44.09
VAT	£139.03
Community Infrastructure Levy	£12,874.96
HMRC tax rebate	£373.64
DCC Locality Budget	£400
Interest on business reserve		£2.86
TOTAL RECEIPTS	£21,947.63	£46.95

PAYMENTS	2020	2021
Clerk’s salary	£2,441.78	£674.58
Clerk’s expenses	£34.47	£2.82
Clerk’s pension	£172.44	£67.44
HMRC / PAYE	£0
Parish room hire		£23.50
Subscriptions	£130
Audit	£100
VAT incurred	£115.29	£110.83
Lengthsman	£1,239	£126
Lengthsman expenses	£119.56	£266.81
Maintenance	£660	£60
Donations S137	£0
Website & related	£140.40	£17.50
Village hall refurbishment	£15,050
Clerk’s laptop		£524.17
Defibrillator annual maintenance x2	£270
Insurance	£495.17
Gittisham Gazette printing		£157
Other miscellaneous expenditure	£168.32	£139.99
TOTAL PAYMENTS	£21.136.43	£2,170.64

TOTAL PROFIT / LOSS FOR THE YEAR

£811.20

-£2,123.69

RECEIPTS AND PAYMENTS SUMMARY
Balance b/f	£14,545.04
Gross income and reserves	£21,994.58
Less total payment	£23,307.07
TOTAL	£16,232.55

BANK BALANCES 31.03.2021
Nat West Business Reserve	£7,030.36
Nat West Current Account	£9,402.58
Unpresented cheques	£200.39
TOTAL	£16,232.55

GPC BANK RECONCILIATION 20-21

11 June 2021 by David

GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL

INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT FOR THE YEAR ENDING 31 MARCH 2021

INCOME

Precept	£8,160.00
CIL	£12,874.96
Other	£817.73
VAT rebate 2017-18	£139.03
net interest (on business reserve a/c)	£2.86
Gross income EXPENDITURE		£21,994.58
Administration	£37.29
Salaries	£3,116.36
Pension	£239.88
S137 / Transport	£0.00
VAT payments	£226.12
Maintenance	£720.00
Lengthsman	£1,484.56
Other	£17,482.86 this doesn’t include £3,000 moved to business reserve, see below)
Total expenditure	£23,307.07
Excess of income over expenditure BANK RECONCILIATION	-£1,312.49
Balance b/fwd 1 April 2020	£14,545.04

Gross Income current and reserves accounts (includes the £3,000 moved to£23,602.48 less total expenditure £23,307.07

Cashbook Balance £16,232.55

Bank balance as at 31 March 2021 Current Acc £9,402.58

Reserves Acc £7,030.36 less unpresented cheques (992, 1089 £200.39

Bank Account Balance £16,232.55 as per cashbook balance

Responsible Financial Officer

Fiona Clampin

Chair

Carol Hall

10th June 2021

Notice of public rights 2020-21 – exempt authorities

11 June 2021 by David

WHAT EXEMPT AUTHORITIES NEED TO DO TO ADVERTISE THE PERIOD DURING WHICH ELECTORS AND INTERESTED PERSONS MAY EXERCISE RIGHTS RELATING TO THE ANNUAL ACCOUNTS

The Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 and the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 require that:

1. The statement of accounts prepared by the authority (i.e. the Annual Governance & Accountability Return (AGAR) Part 2), the accounting records for the financial year to which the audit relates and all books, deeds, contracts, bills, vouchers, receipts and other documents relating to those records must be made available for inspection by any person interested, during a period of 30 working days set by the smaller authority and including the first 10 working days of July.

2. The period referred to in paragraph (1) starts with the day on which the period for the exercise of public rights is treated as having been commenced i.e. the day following the day on which all of the obligations in paragraph (3) below have been fulfilled.

3. The responsible financial officer for an exempt authority must, on behalf of that authority, publish (which must include publication on the authority’s website):

(a) the Accounting Statements (i.e. Section 2 of the AGAR Part 2), accompanied by:

(i) a declaration, signed by that officer to the effect that the statement of accounts will not be audited on account of that authority’s self-certified status as exempt, unless either a request for an opportunity to question the auditor about the authority’s accounting records under section 26(2) or an objection under section 27(1) of the Act, results in the involvement of the local auditor;

(ii) the Annual Governance Statement (i.e. Section 1 of the AGAR Part 2); and

(iii) the Certificate of Exemption (i.e. Page 3 of the AGAR Part 2); and

(b) a statement that sets out—

(i) the period for the exercise of public rights;

(ii) details of the manner in which notice should be given of an intention to inspect the accounting records and other documents;

(iii) the name and address of the local auditor;

(iv) the provisions contained in section 25 (inspection of statements of accounts etc), section 26 (inspection of documents etc) and section 27 (right to make objections at audit) of the Act, as they have effect in relation to the authority in question;

HOW DO YOU DO IT?

You will meet statutory requirements if you fully and accurately complete the notice of public rights pro forma in this document; and publish (including publication on the smaller authority’s website) the following documents, the day before the public rights period commences:

the approved Sections 1 and 2 of Part 2 of the AGAR; and
the completed Notice of Public Rights and Publication of Annual Governance & Accountability Return (Exempt Authority). Please note that we have pre-completed it with the following suggested dates: Monday 14 June – Friday 23 July 2021. (The latest possible dates that comply with the statutory requirements are Thursday 1 July – Wednesday 11 August 2021); and
the notes which accompany the Notice (Local authority accounts: a summary of your rights).

Smaller authority name: GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL

NOTICE OF PUBLIC RIGHTS AND PUBLICATION OF ANNUAL GOVERNANCE & ACCOUNTABILITY RETURN (EXEMPT AUTHORITY)

ACCOUNTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2021

Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 Sections 25, 26 and 27

The Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 (SI 2015/234)

NOTICE

NOTES

1. Date of announcement_13^th June 2021____________________________(a) 2. Each year the smaller authority prepares an Annual Governance and Accountability Return (AGAR). The AGAR has been published with this notice. It will not be reviewed by the appointed auditor, since the smaller authority has certified itself as exempt from the appointed auditor’s review. Any person interested has the right to inspect and make copies of the AGAR, the accounting records for the financial year to which it relates and all books, deeds, contracts, bills, vouchers, receipts and other documents relating to those records must be made available for inspection by any person interested. For the year ended 31 March 2021, these documents will be available on reasonable notice by application to: (b) Fiona Clampin (clerk, Gittisham Parish Council), Garlands, Gittisham EX14 3AJ Tel. 01404 851442 email: commencing on (c) __Monday 14 June 2021 _______________________ and ending on (d) ___Friday 23 July 2021 ________________________ 3. Local government electors and their representatives also have: The opportunity to question the appointed auditor about the accounting records; and The right to make an objection which concerns a matter in respect of which the appointed auditor could either make a public interest report or apply to the court for a declaration that an item of account is unlawful. Written notice of an objection must first be given to the auditor and a copy sent to the smaller authority. The appointed auditor can be contacted at the address in paragraph 4 below for this purpose between the above dates only. 4. The smaller authority’s AGAR is only subject to review by the appointed auditor if questions or objections raised under the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 lead to the involvement of the auditor. The appointed auditor is: PKF Littlejohn LLP (Ref: SBA Team) 15 Westferry Circus Canary Wharf London E14 4HD () 5. This announcement is made by (e) Fiona Clampin Clerk / Responsible Financial Officer Gittisham Parish Council

(a) Insert date of placing of the notice which must be not less than 1 day before the date in (c) below (b) Insert name, position and address/telephone number/ email address, as appropriate, of the Clerk or other person to which any person may apply to inspect the accounts (c) Insert date, which must be at least 1 day after the date of announcement in (a) above and at least 30 working days before the date appointed in (d) below (d) The inspection period between (c) and (d) must be 30 working days inclusive and must include the first 10 working days of July. (e) Insert name and position of person placing the notice – this person must be the responsible financial officer for the smaller authority

LOCAL AUTHORITY ACCOUNTS: A SUMMARY OF YOUR RIGHTS

Please note that this summary applies to all relevant smaller authorities, including local councils, internal drainage boards and ‘other’ smaller authorities.

The basic position

The Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 (the Act) governs the work of auditors appointed to smaller authorities. This summary explains the provisions contained in Sections 26 and 27 of the Act. The Act and the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 also cover the duties, responsibilities and rights of smaller authorities, other organisations and the public concerning the accounts being audited.

As a local elector, or an interested person, you have certain legal rights in respect of the accounting records of smaller authorities. As an interested person you can inspect accounting records and related documents. If you are a local government elector for the area to which the accounts relate you can also ask questions about the accounts and object to them. You do not have to pay directly for exercising your rights. However, any resulting costs incurred by the smaller authority form part of its running costs. Therefore, indirectly, local residents pay for the cost of you exercising your rights through their council tax.

The right to inspect the accounting records

Any interested person can inspect the accounting records, which includes but is not limited to local electors. You can inspect the accounting records for the financial year to which the audit relates and all books, deeds, contracts, bills, vouchers, receipts and other documents relating to those records. You can copy all, or part, of these records or documents. Your inspection must be about the accounts, or relate to an item in the accounts. You cannot, for example, inspect or copy documents unrelated to the accounts, or that include personal information (Section 26 (6) – (10) of the Act explains what is meant by personal information). You cannot inspect information which is protected by commercial confidentiality. This is information which would prejudice commercial confidentiality if it was released to the public and there is not, set against this, a very strong reason in the public interest why it should nevertheless be disclosed.

When smaller authorities have finished preparing accounts for the financial year and approved them, they must publish them (including on a website). There must be a 30 working day period, called the ‘period for the exercise of public rights’, during which you can exercise your statutory right to inspect the accounting records. Smaller authorities must tell the public, including advertising this on their website, that the accounting records and related documents are available to inspect. By arrangement you will then have 30 working days to inspect and make copies of the accounting records. You may have to pay a copying charge. The 30 working day period must include a common period of inspection during which all smaller authorities’ accounting records are available to inspect. This will be 1-14 July 2021 for 2020/21 accounts. The advertisement must set out the dates of the period for the exercise of public rights, how you can communicate to the smaller authority that you wish to inspect the accounting records and related documents, the name and address of the auditor, and the relevant legislation that governs the inspection of accounts and objections.

The right to ask the auditor questions about the accounting records

You should first ask your smaller authority about the accounting records, since they hold all the details. If you are a local elector, your right to ask questions of the external auditor is enshrined in law. However, while the auditor will answer your questions where possible, they are not always obliged to do so. For example, the question might be better answered by another organisation, require investigation beyond the auditor’s remit, or involve disproportionate cost (which is borne by the local taxpayer). Give your smaller authority the opportunity first to explain anything in the accounting records that you are unsure about. If you are not satisfied with their explanation, you can question the external auditor about the accounting records.

The law limits the time available for you formally to ask questions. This must be done in the period for the exercise of public rights, so let the external auditor know your concern as soon as possible. The advertisement or notice that tells you the accounting records are available to inspect will also give the period for the exercise of public rights during which you may ask the auditor questions, which here means formally asking questions under the Act. You can ask someone to represent you when asking the external auditor questions.

Before you ask the external auditor any questions, inspect the accounting records fully, so you know what they contain. Please remember that you cannot formally ask questions, under the Act, after the end of the period for the exercise of public rights. You may ask your smaller authority other questions about their accounts for any year, at any time. But these are not questions under the Act.

You can ask the external auditor questions about an item in the accounting records for the financial year being audited. However, your right to ask the external auditor questions is limited. The external auditor can only answer ‘what’ questions, not ‘why’ questions. The external auditor cannot answer questions about policies, finances, procedures or anything else unless it is directly relevant to an item in the accounting records. Remember that your questions must always be about facts, not opinions. To avoid misunderstanding, we recommend that you always put your questions in writing.

The right to make objections at audit

You have inspected the accounting records and asked your questions of the smaller authority. Now you may wish to object to the accounts on the basis that an item in them is in your view unlawful or there are matters of wider concern arising from the smaller authority’s finances. A local government elector can ask the external auditor to apply to the High Court for a declaration that an item of account is unlawful, or to issue a report on matters which are in the public interest. You must tell the external auditor which specific item in the accounts you object to and why you think the item is unlawful, or why you think that a public interest report should be made about it. You must provide the external auditor with the evidence you have to support your objection. Disagreeing with income or spending does not make it unlawful. To object to the accounts you must write to the external auditor stating you want to make an objection, including the information and evidence below and you must send a copy to the smaller authority. The notice must include:

confirmation that you are an elector in the smaller authority’s area;
why you are objecting to the accounts and the facts on which you rely;
details of any item in the accounts that you think is unlawful; and
details of any matter about which you think the external auditor should make a public interest report.

Other than it must be in writing, there is no set format for objecting. You can only ask the external auditor to act within the powers available under the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014.

A final word

You may not use this ‘right to object’ to make a personal complaint or claim against your smaller authority. You should take such complaints to your local Citizens’ Advice Bureau, local Law Centre or to your solicitor. Smaller authorities, and so local taxpayers, meet the costs of dealing with questions and objections. In deciding whether to take your objection forward, one of a series of factors the auditor must take into account is the cost that will be involved, they will only continue with the objection if it is in the public interest to do so. They may also decide not to consider an objection if they think that it is frivolous or vexatious, or if it repeats an objection already considered. If you appeal to the courts against an auditor’s decision not to apply to the courts for a declaration that an item of account is unlawful, you will have to pay for the action yourself.

For more detailed guidance on public rights and the special powers of auditors, copies of the publication Local authority accounts: A guide to your rights are available from the NAO website.

If you wish to contact your authority’s appointed external auditor please write to the address in paragraph 4 of the Notice of Public Rights and Publication of Unaudited Annual Governance & Accountability Return.

Gittisham Parish Council Annual Governance Report 2020-21

8 January 202411 June 2021 by David

Certificate of Exemption – AGAR 2020/21 Part 2

To be completed by smaller authorities where the higher of gross income or gross expenditure did not exceed £25,000 in the year of account ended 31 March 2021, and that wish to certify themselves as exempt from a limited assurance review under Section 9 of the Local Audit (Smaller Authorities) Regulations 2015

There is no requirement to have a limited assurance review or to submit an Annual Governance and Accountability Return to the external auditor, provided that the authority has certified itself as exempt at a meeting of the authority after 31 March 2021 and a completed Certificate of Exemption is submitted no later than 30 June 2021 notifying the external auditor.

Gittisham Parish Council

certifies that during the financial year 2020/21, the higher of the authority’s total gross income for the year or total gross annual expenditure, for the year did not exceed £25,000

Total annual gross income for the authority 2020/21: £21,995

Total annual gross expenditure for the authority 2020/21: £23,307

There are certain circumstances in which an authority will be unable to certify itself as exempt, so that a limited assurance review will still be required. If an authority is unable to confirm the statements below then it cannot certify itself as exempt and it must submit the completed Annual Governance and Accountability Return Part 3 to the external auditor to undertake a limited assurance review for which a fee of £200 +VAT will be payable.

By signing this Certificate of Exemption you are confirming that:

The authority was in existence on 1st April 2017
In relation to the preceding financial year (2019/20), the external auditor has not:
issued a public interest report in respect of the authority or any entity connected with it
made a statutory recommendation to the authority, relating to the authority or any entity connected with it
issued an advisory notice under paragraph 1(1) of Schedule 8 to the Local Audit and Accountability Act 2014 (“the Act”), and has not withdrawn the notice
commenced judicial review proceedings under section 31(1) of the Act
made an application under section 28(1) of the Act for a declaration that an item of account is unlawful, and the application has not been withdrawn nor has the court refused to make the declaration
The court has not declared an item of account unlawful after a person made an appeal under section 28(3) of the Act.

If you are able to confirm that the above statements apply and that the authority neither received gross income, nor incurred gross expenditure, exceeding £25,000, then the Certificate of Exemption can be signed and a copy submitted to the external auditor either by email or by post (not both).

The Annual Internal Audit Report, Annual Governance Statement, Accounting Statements, an analysis of variances and the bank reconciliation plus the information required by Regulation 15 (2), Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 including the period for the exercise of public rights still need to be fully completed and, along with a copy of this certificate, published on the authority website/webpage* before 1 July 2021. By signing this certificate you are also confirming that you are aware of this requirement.

*Published web address

ONLY this Certificate of Exemption should be returned EITHER by email OR by post (not both) as soon as possible after certification to your external auditor, but no later than 30 June 2021. Reminder letters incur a charge of £40 +VAT

Annual Internal Audit Report 2020/21

Signed by the Responsible Financial Officer

Date 10/06/2021

Signed by Chairman

Date 10/06/2021

I confirm that this Certificate of Exemption was approved by this authority on this date: 10/06/2021

as recorded in minute reference: 33/21

Generic email address of Authority:

Telephone Number 01404 851442

Published Web address www.gittisham.org.uk

Gittisham Parish Council

www.gittisham.org.uk

During the financial year ended 31 March 2021, this authority’s internal auditor acting independently and on the basis of an assessment of risk, carried out a selective assessment of compliance with the relevant procedures and controls in operation and obtained appropriate evidence from the authority.

The internal audit for 2020/21 has been carried out in accordance with this authority’s needs and planned coverage. On the basis of the findings in the areas examined, the internal audit conclusions are summarised in this table. Set out below are the objectives of internal control and alongside are the internal audit conclusions on whether, in all significant respects, the control objectives were being achieved throughout the financial year to a standard adequate to meet the needs of this authority.

Internal control objective	Yes	No*	Not covered**
A. Appropriate accounting records have been properly kept throughout the financial year.	Y
B. This authority complied with its financial regulations, payments were supported by invoices, all expenditure was approved and VAT was appropriately accounted for.	Y
C. This authority assessed the significant risks to achieving its objectives and reviewed the adequacy of arrangements to manage these.	Y
D. The precept or rates requirement resulted from an adequate budgetary process; progress against the budget was regularly monitored; and reserves were appropriate.	Y
E. Expected income was fully received, based on correct prices, properly recorded, and promptly banked; and VAT was appropriately accounted for.	Y
F. Petty cash payments were properly supported by receipts, all petty cash expenditure was approved and VAT appropriately accounted for.			Not Used
G. Salaries to employees and allowances to members were paid in accordance with this authority’s approvals, and PAYE and NI requirements were properly applied.	Y
H. Asset and investments registers were complete and accurate and properly maintained.	Y
I. Periodic bank account reconciliations were properly carried out during the year.	Y
J. Accounting statements prepared during the year were prepared on the correct accounting basis (receipts and payments or income and expenditure), agreed to the cash book, supported by an adequate audit trail from underlying records and where appropriate debtors and creditors were properly recorded.	Y
K. If the authority certified itself as exempt from a limited assurance review in 2019/20, it met the exemption criteria and correctly declared itself exempt. (If the authority had a limited assurance review of its 2019/20 AGAR tick “not covered”)	Y
L. The authority publishes information on a website/webpage, up to date at the time of the internal audit, in accordance with the Transparency code for smaller authorities.	Y
M. The authority, during the previous year (2019-20) correctly provided for the period for the exercise of public rights as required by the Accounts and Audit Regulations (evidenced by the notice published on the website and/or authority approved minutes confirming the dates set).	Y
N. The authority has complied with the publication requirements for 2019/20 AGAR (see AGAR Page 1 Guidance Notes).	Y
	O. (For local councils only) Trust funds (including charitable) – The council met its responsibilities as a trustee.	Yes	No	Not applicable
			Y

For any other risk areas identified by this authority adequate controls existed (list any other risk areas on separate sheets if needed).

Date(s) internal audit undertaken Name of person who carried out the internal audit

27/05/2021

Alison Marshall

Signature of person who carried out the internal audit

Date

10/06/2021

*If the response is ‘no’ please state the implications and action being taken to address any weakness in control identified (add separate sheets if needed). **Note: If the response is ‘not covered’ please state when the most recent internal audit work was done in this area and when it is next planned; or, if coverage is not required, the annual internal audit report must explain why not (add separate sheets if needed).

Section 1 – Annual Governance Statement 2020/21

We acknowledge as the members of:

Gittisham Parish Council

our responsibility for ensuring that there is a sound system of internal control, including arrangements for the preparation of the Accounting Statements. We confirm, to the best of our knowledge and belief, with respect to the Accounting Statements for the year ended 31 March 2021, that:

Agreed
	Yes	No	‘Yes’ means that this authority:
1. We have put in place arrangements for effective financial management during the year, and for the preparation of the accounting statements.	Y		prepared its accounting statements in accordance with the Accounts and Audit Regulations.
2. We maintained an adequate system of internal control including measures designed to prevent and detect fraud and corruption and reviewed its effectiveness.	Y		made proper arrangements and accepted responsibility for safeguarding the public money and resources in its charge.
3. We took all reasonable steps to assure ourselves that there are no matters of actual or potential non-compliance with laws, regulations and Proper Practices that could have a significant financial effect on the ability of this authority to conduct its business or manage its finances.	Y		has only done what it has the legal power to do and has complied with Proper Practices in doing so.
4. We provided proper opportunity during the year for the exercise of electors’ rights in accordance with the requirements of the Accounts and Audit Regulations.	Y		during the year gave all persons interested the opportunity to inspect and ask questions about this authority’s accounts.
5. We carried out an assessment of the risks facing this authority and took appropriate steps to manage those risks, including the introduction of internal controls and/or external insurance cover where required.	Y		considered and documented the financial and other risks it faces and dealt with them properly.
6. We maintained throughout the year an adequate and effective system of internal audit of the accounting records and control systems.	Y		arranged for a competent person, independent of the financial controls and procedures, to give an objective view on whether internal controls meet the needs of this smaller authority.
7. We took appropriate action on all matters raised in reports from internal and external audit.	Y		responded to matters brought to its attention by internal and external audit.
8. We considered whether any litigation, liabilities or commitments, events or transactions, occurring either during or after the year-end, have a financial impact on this authority and, where appropriate, have included them in the accounting statements.	Y		disclosed everything it should have about its business activity during the year including events taking place after the year end if relevant.
9. (For local councils only) Trust funds including charitable. In our capacity as the sole managing trustee we discharged our accountability responsibilities for the fund(s)/assets, including financial reporting and, if required, independent examination or audit.			N/A	has met all of its responsibilities where as a body corporate it is a sole managing trustee of a local trust or trusts.

*For any statement to which the response is ‘no’, an explanation must be published

This Annual Governance Statement was approved at a meeting of the authority on:

10/06/2021

Signed by the Chairman and Clerk of the meeting where approval was given:

Chairman

Clerk

and recorded as minute reference: 31/21

Other information required by the Transparency Code (not part of the Annual Governance Statement)
The authority website/webpage is up to date and the information required by the Transparency Code has been published.	Yes	No

www.gittisham.org.uk

Section 2 – Accounting Statements 2020/21 for

Gittisham Parish Council

	Year ending	Notes and guidance
31 March 2020 £	31 March 2021 £	Please round all figures to nearest £1. Do not leave any boxes blank and report £0 or Nil balances. All figures must agree to underlying financial records.
1. Balances brought forward	20,118	17,545	Total balances and reserves at the beginning of the year as recorded in the financial records. Value must agree to Box 7 of previous year.
2. (+) Precept or Rates and Levies	8,160	8,160	Total amount of precept (or for IDBs rates and levies) received or receivable in the year. Exclude any grants received.
3. (+) Total other receipts	12,442	13,835	Total income or receipts as recorded in the cashbook less the precept or rates/levies received (line 2). Include any grants received.
4. (-) Staff costs	2,940	3,356	Total expenditure or payments made to and on behalf of all employees. Include gross salaries and wages, employers NI contributions, employers pension contributions, gratuities and severance payments.
5. (-) Loan interest/capital repayments	0	0	Total expenditure or payments of capital and interest made during the year on the authority’s borrowings (if any).
6. (-) All other payments	20,235	19,951	Total expenditure or payments as recorded in the cashbook less staff costs (line 4) and loan interest/capital repayments (line 5).
7. (=) Balances carried forward	17,545	16,233	Total balances and reserves at the end of the year. Must equal (1+2+3) – (4+5+6).
8. Total value of cash and short term investments	17,545	16,233	The sum of all current and deposit bank accounts, cash holdings and short term investments held as at 31 March – To agree with bank reconciliation.
9. Total fixed assets plus long term investments and assets	16,523	26,774	The value of all the property the authority owns – it is made up of all its fixed assets and long term investments as at 31 March.
10. Total borrowings	0	0	The outstanding capital balance as at 31 March of all loans from third parties (including PWLB).
11. (For Local Councils Only) Disclosure note re Trust funds (including charitable)	Yes	No	The Council as a body corporate acts as sole trustee for and is responsible for managing Trust funds or assets.
	N	N.B. The figures in the accounting statements above do not include any Trust transactions.

I certify that for the year ended 31 March 2021 the Accounting

Statements in this Annual Governance and Accountability Return have been prepared on either a receipts and payments or income and expenditure basis following the guidance in Governance and Accountability for Smaller Authorities – a Practitioners’ Guide to Proper Practices and present fairly the financial position of this authority.

Signed by Responsible Financial Officer before being presented to the authority for approval:

Date 10/06/2021

I confirm that these Accounting Statements were approved by this authority on this date:

10/06/2021

as recorded in minute reference: 32/21

Signed by Chairman of the meeting where the Accounting Statements were approved

2021-03 Gittisham Gazette March 2021

22 March 202119 March 2021 by Fiona

A monthly Community Newsletter
Published by St. Michael’s Church and Gittisham Parish Council
March 2021 Edition 229

Spring has sprung

Well we seem to be well on the way to warmer times, the lovely wild flowers and
Shrove Tuesday leading us into Lent. Gittisham church usually collects ‘jars of change’ for
WaterAid and I do hope some of you have started collecting, I know not many people use coins these days but I’m sure you might be able to find a note.

Tip Tip Toe

Gittisham’s annual Tip, Tip Toe took place this year on Zoom to keep up the tradition on Shrove Tuesday with children going round the village chanting “tip, tip toe please for a penny and then we’ll go, if you haven’t got a penny a halfpenny will do, if you haven’t got a halfpenny then God bless you.”

2021 Census

Census weekend is the 21st March It is so important everyone takes part and we have made it easier for people to do so online on any device, with help and paper questionnaires for those that need them. Results will be available within 12 months, although personal records will be locked away for 100 years, kept safe for future generations. You should receive a paper copy in the post. For more information visit www.census.gov.uk

People in the news

Lewis Lawrence-Jones and Katalin Kristo announced their engagement on the 16th February.
Lewis is grandson of Lilian Hayman, Katalin comes from Szeged Hungary 20 miles from Serbia
we congratulate them and wish them every happiness.

Jack and Lize Hunt announced the arrival of Lily Florence Hunt , 4kgs , born in Dubai on
Sunday 17/1/21. Ruth sent some photos but I couldn’t copy them despite having permission as they were sent PDF. This is their first grandchild.

Hazel Snell has moved from Church Mead to a care home in Colaton Raleigh, we wish her
every happiness as she settles in.

Becky Knowles and James have moved to Torquay as James was able to get a transfer from his Ambulance station in Yeovil and is joining Becky at hers in Torquay. We will miss them and puppy Tor and wish them good house hunting.

Chris and Naomi Lancaster have moved to 2 Westgate, Chris is herdsman at Gittisham Farm
and Naomi (on furlough) works in the travel industry, we welcome them to Gittisham.

Gittisham Village Hall dates to save for your diary

THURSDAY 18th MARCH. FILM NIGHT. 7pm
The film will be Educating Rita, to be watched on BBC iPlayer, with chat before and discussion afterwards.
Zoom link below.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85731315536?pwd=RGdRVmRrZ1lsWForbW1LcERCRGRFUT09
Meeting ID: 857 3131 5536
Passcode: 840046

SATURDAY APRIL 17th. GITTISHAM BAKE OFF 2
Following the successful and enjoyable baking last time we hope for another well supported Bake Off.
(Hamish has requested a single ingredient recipe!).
Zoom link will be in the April Gazette.

PLAY READING. Date in April to be confirmed
SATURDAY JUNE 26th: GITTISHAM BASH

A start to a summer of enjoyment! A great event to make up for all those missed birthday parties, Christmas get-togethers, Easter, Father’s Day, Burns Night….. We plan a Duck Race, BBQ, Bar, Band / Disco…..

SATURDAY 6TH AUGUST GITTISHAM FLOWER AND PRODUCE SHOW (See end of Gazette for full show schedule)

Proposed events and services for and around Easter

Mothering Sunday – due to Covid restrictions sadly there will be no service, but posies will be available in the church porch for collection.

National Day of Reflection: March 23rd will be exactly one year since lockdown for the Covid pandemic. From 11.50 to 12 noon one church bell will be rung followed by a minute’s silence at the Lych Gate, as part of the national day to reflect on our collective loss and to support those who’ve been bereaved. Other suggestions include shining a light in your window at 8pm for everyone to see.

Good Friday: A Cross will be brought from the church and affixed to the lych-gate and there will be a short service. There will be an invitation to place a flower by the Cross to remember those who have lost: their lives to the virus.

Easter Day: at 11.00am there will be a short service on the green and the bells will be rung and again an opportunity to place a flower by the cross as a sign of the new life promised by Christ’s Resurrection.

Easter Monday: we are planning for Easter Egg hunt in the church yard and/or trail round the village. Watch out for a poster in the porch or bus shelter in due course.: please, please, please remember to observe social distancing regulations for all the services and events. For further information see notices in church porch and posted on St Michael’s Gittisham Facebook Page.

Parish Council March report

EDDC / DCC Report.
Phil Twiss said in what has been a very difficult past year due to the pandemic, there is finally genuine cause for hope that we are emerging from it with the escalation of the COVID-19 vaccination programme, a reduction of daily cases, hospital and community deaths and a cautious roadmap in lifting lockdown restrictions, where we can look forward with optimism towards a good summer for us and our families and friends, as well as the recovery of our economy. He outlined DCC’s budget for 2021/22. There is to be an increase for a Band D Council Tax property by 4.99 per cent to £1,511.28 per household. Phil Twiss reminded councillors of DCC’s holiday food voucher scheme, which is a way of providing funds to ensure families of children who are eligible for free school meals during term time are able to purchase food over the holidays to replace the meals a child would have received during a school day. DCC has also been given Government funding to support a holiday activities and
food programme.
Susie Bond said EDDC had approved an increase in Council Tax of 3.41 per cent. Car park charges across the main car parks in East Devon are set to increase by 20 per cent (i.e. from £1 per hour to £1.20 per hour). However, this increase has been deferred to 2022 in an attempt to help businesses during the Covid recovery.

Finance. Members agreed the finances.

Crimes. January 2021, 1 x anti-social behaviour

Councillor vacancy (Vale ward) Carol Hall encouraged all councillors to speak to people who might be interested in joining the parish council.

Planning applications. 21/0428/FUL 34 Meadow Acre Road Gittisham EX14 3FE Construction of single side/ rear storey extension

Members had no objections.

Superfast broadband. Jurassic Fibre gave a short presentation to bring councillors up to speed on their plans to extend broadband infrastructure to Gittisham. Members heard that once construction was underway in summer 2021, the company would be in a position a few months down the line to offer individual installations. Residents interested in receiving the service should register on the Jurassic Fibre website, and in doing so there is no obligation to sign up for their services at a later date. Phil Twiss asked for reassurance that the roll-out would happen sooner than the end of 2021, but Matthew Galley said applying for road closures and such like for construction usually takes three months.

Scams. Janet Twist warned members that with Census Day due on 21st March, the latest round of scams would undoubtedly use the census in some way to trick people.

Bus shelters. Carol Hall explained that the swap system in the village and Vale bus shelters would finish at the end of March. Items in good condition will be passed to charity shops once they reopen, and those in poor condition will be disposed of.

Sports facilities. Carol Hall said she would be meeting Honiton Town Council’s chair to discuss how S106 money from the Hayne Farm development (which belongs to GPC) can be spent, and what proportion could be spent in Honiton itself. A proportion will be earmarked for Gittisham to use as appropriate.

Next meeting. This will be on 7th April at 7.30pm via Zoom.

St Michael’s Church, Honiton Mission Community and 200 Club

St. Michael’s Gittisham: Like the other members of the Mission Community St. Michael’s Church remains closed for visitors and services; however if you would like to contact our Lay Minister Julia Barrett her details are within the Mission Community piece below. The churchyard is of course open and is looking very springlike with all the grave flowers and daffodils coming up. Once we are permitted we hope to have a churchyard tidy-up with lots of people helping at the same time. At our PCC meeting on 4th March the annual accounts prepared by treasurer Ian Warne were ratified as was the annual report, thanks go to Ian for all his hard work as he has to prepare accounts in several different ways for the Diocese of Exeter.

The Honiton Mission Community: The website (honitoncofe.org) is updated regularly and has news about the latest guidelines on the new covid regulations there is also a link to the Gittisham website. The monthly newsletter Around the Parishes is included plus details of Rev’d Sue’s weekly Zoom Sunday Morning Worship at 10.00am, if you would like to join in this service do please email Rev’d Sue and she will forward the link There is also a ‘virtual’ Eucharist at 6.00pm. Julia our Lay Minister also holds a telephone (freephone) Morning Worship service at 11.00am to receive the details for this please email Julia on or for those without internet ring her on 07763111367 or 01404 850680. St. Paul’s is still closed. The Parish office is also closed to visitors, but can be contacted on 01404 44035 or and messages will be replied to when someone is available.

200 Club: March is the time to renew your 200 Club subscriptions (£12 per number per year)
There are some numbers available If you would like to have a number do please let me know, I can email or post an application form. Payment can be made by cheque – payable to Gittisham PCC, BACS or by standing order – I can email or post this form too. (Carol McCann 01404851113, 07946 409142, . Draws are made monthly with prizes of £40., £20., £15., £10., and £5., with 2 six monthly of £48.

MARCH 2021 200 CLUB RESULTS
1st Steve Minshall

2nd Margaret Ballantyne

3rd Michael Hawkins

4th Edith Phillips

5th Jane Whitehouse

6-monthly Helen Fuller

Printing

Gazette printing is still not possible with the lockdown situation, as the Parish Office in Honiton remains closed. The Gazette is also available on the Gittisham website gittisham.org.uk. If you would like a copy by email please let me have your email details or if you have no internet it can be posted to you until things get back to order some help with 2nd class postage would be appreciated, Carol McCann 3 School Cottages, Gittisham,Honiton, EX14 3H. I will leave a few copies in the Vale bus shelter again until the whole print run can be delivered by Peter and Ann again.

Contact details

Editor/Distributor:
Carol McCann 01404 851113/07946409142 . If you have events
or news items for inclusion in the Gazette do please email it to Carol as early as possible (using Arial font please) Copy date for April edition is the 29th March please. I hope to have the edition ready to send out on Friday 9th April.

Parish Council meeting minutes 3 March 2021

19 March 2021 by Fiona

GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

HELD ON 3^RD MARCH 2021

via Zoom

The Parish Council Meeting has to take place remotely for reasons of social distancing brought in by HM Government during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Present:

Gittisham Village Ward:

Cllr C Hall (Chair)

Cllr D Valentine

Cllr M Walker

Cllr A Rowe

Gittisham Vale Ward:

Cllr P Orchard

Cllr J Twist

In attendance: Cllr Susie Bond (EDDC), Cllr Phil Twiss (DCC), Fiona Clampin (clerk), Emma Talbot & Matthew Galley from Jurassic Fibre

Apologies for absence: PCSO Darren England

Before the meeting, Jurassic Fibre gave a short presentation to bring councillors up to speed on their plans to extend broadband infrastructure to Gittisham. Emma Talbot explained that once construction was underway in summer 2021, the company would be in a position a few months down the line to offer individual installations. She encouraged residents to register on the Jurassic Fibre website so the company could gauge interest, and Matthew Galley added that registration did not oblige anybody to sign up for their services. He said fibre to the premises broadband packages start from 30mbps / second and are based on rolling 30-day contracts. Cllr Twiss asked for reassurance that the roll-out would happen sooner than the end of 2021, but Matthew Galley said applying for road closures and such like for construction usually takes three months. He said they could not commit to a date until they understood fully the type of equipment needed to build the connection. Cllrs Orchard & Valentine asked about installation costs. Emma Talbot replied that in most cases this was not necessary, although Cllr Orchard said he had been quoted £500. The Chair agreed to send to Emma Talbot the addresses which had previously indicated an interest in superfast broadband for information only.

Emma Talbot & Matthew Galley left the meeting.

199/20 To accept and approve apologies

Apologies were received and accepted.

200/20 To confirm the minutes of the meeting held 3^rd February 2021

The minutes of the meeting held on 3^rd February 2021 were confirmed and signed by the Chair.

201/20 To receive the Beat Manager’s Report

The police did not send a report this month, so the clerk provided figures taken from https://www.crime-statistics.co.uk/ . In January 2021, 1 crime reported: 1 x anti-social behaviour (Laburnum Close).

The clerk agreed to contact Darren England again, and also follow up with the new area division commander, to see if it is possible to have more detailed reports from the police and more parish involvement in combating crime.

ACTION: Clerk to follow up with PCSO Darren England and Inspector John Gait.

202/20 To receive declarations of interest

None.

203/20 To consider actions from the last meeting not otherwise on the agenda

Cllr Valentine said he would circulate to members a suggested response to EDDC’s issues and options report, and invited councillors to comment by email in time for him to submit Gittisham PC’s response before 15^th March 2021.

204/20 Reports from County Council and District Council representatives

Cllr Twiss said in what has been a very difficult past year due to the pandemic, there is finally genuine cause for hope that we are emerging from it with the roll out and escalation of the COVID-19 vaccination programme, a reduction of daily cases, hospital and community deaths and a cautious roadmap in lifting lockdown restrictions, where we can look forward with optimism towards a good summer for us and our families and friends, as well as the recovery of our economy.

Cllr Twiss argued that the Government budget announced today has many positives items in it, not least the continuation of support to individuals and businesses on what is sure to be a long road back to recovery. Devon County Council has to set its own budget and below are some key extracts from the 2021/22,169- page budget document.

DCC Budget

Financial targets are set for all the areas of activity that are undertaken by the County Council. Day-to-day expenditure and income are referred to as revenue and investment in assets is referred to as capital. Elected members approve all budgets of the authority and throughout the year monitoring of expenditure and income is undertaken to ensure that spending remains under control.

The funding for the budget currently comes from several sources including council tax, business rates and government grants, fees and charges. The 2021/22 Budget is set in the context of the ongoing Covid-19 global pandemic. The virus has had a devastating impact on public health, social care, the NHS and the economy. The national response has cost billions of pounds and has seen national debt rise to more than £2 trillion, levels not seen since the last world war. In November the Chancellor announced a Government Spending Review (SR2020); it had been hoped that it would be a multi-year spending review, but this was not the case. The one-year spending review was followed in December with a one-year provisional settlement. Whilst not a generous settlement, Cllr Twiss said it is better than it might have been in the current economic climate and has allowed the authority to set a balanced budget with only modest savings being required.

Cllr Twiss outlined February’s Final Local Government Finance Settlement 2021/22, which is £103.2 million. For DCC, there is to be an increase for a Band D Council Tax property by 4.99 per cent to £1,511.28 per household

Food poverty support for Families over Easter

The DCC holiday food voucher scheme is a way of providing funds to ensure families of children who are eligible for free school meals during term time are able to purchase food over the holidays; to replace the meals a child would have received during a school day.

Devon’s level of food insecurity has risen over the past 12 months, with rates of more than 20 per cent in Mid Devon, North Devon, and Teignbridge. The scheme will mean almost 16,000 food vouchers will be distributed to those families in need and that qualify. The offer over the Easter period will be similar to that provided at Christmas and through the recent half term week. The main form of support will be through vouchers (£15 per week per child) which can be redeemed at a range of supermarkets. For families not able to access a supermarket (online or in person) a food parcel will be available. The voucher scheme will continue to work alongside District Council COVID Hardship Funds, enabling a package of support (e.g. power, travel, advice services) to be awarded to applicants in tandem with food. Additional funds remain available via the Early Help system so that families in need can be provided with other support alongside food.

Cllr Twiss said the COVID Winter Grant scheme run by Citizens Advice is also continuing, providing households with a grant to help towards energy costs. This helps clients who are facing a choice between heating and eating, this money is designed to cover the ‘heating’ element for a short period of time.

Devon Community Foundation have also been commissioned to map organisations providing food across Devon and help to build networks of support in each area, ensuing that food and associated needs are coordinated.

Holiday Activities & Food Programme

In November 2020 the Government announced a significant expansion of its tried and tested Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme. In areas of high deprivation this programme has provided healthy food and enriching activities during the summer holidays to children who receive benefits-related free school meals (FSM). It offered valuable support to families on lower incomes, giving them the opportunity to access rewarding activities alongside healthy meals over the school holidays. For 2021 the programme has been expanded to reach all Local Authority areas and will cover the Easter, summer and Christmas holiday period. As a result, Devon County Council has recently been allocated a substantial grant of up to £1,793,720 to develop, co-ordinate and deliver the programme which will offer:

• An activity and Food programme for children aged 5 -16 years who are eligible for Free School Meals; with the aim of making it a universal offer where possible.

• The programme will offer inclusive and accessible provision (for example, SEND, young carers, etc).

• The offer will consist of at least 4 hours, for 4 days a week, per child for 4 weeks in the summer, and for one week in Easter and Christmas holidays.

Devon County Council is keen to work with a wide range of partners to maximise resources and opportunities in the development of a county-wide HAF programme. Cllr Twiss said the council aims to do this by publicising what’s already on offer, upscaling provision where needed and offering support to develop new provision where gaps have been identified. The Easter programme will focus on the areas of Devon listed below (top 30 per cent deprivation indices) which is approximately 3,000 children. The intention is to roll it out over the whole county for all 16,000 children who wish to attend over the summer holidays and Christmas period.

Cllr Bond reminded members to complete the EDDC survey on the issues and options for a revised Local Plan (see minute ref 203/20). The questionnaire is available here: https://eastdevon.gov.uk/news/2021/01/have-your-say-on-future-developments-in-east-devon-local-plan-consultation/ . It can be completed by individuals, as well as the PC.

A first meeting of the Hayne Lane employment site Working Group is envisaged for the next couple of months. This is a site which was allocated for employment in the Local Plan and initial work will be carried out to assess options, including viability of the site. The working group will consist of officers from EDDC, Cllr Paul Hayward (Economy portfolio holder), the ward member for Gittisham, a representative from each of Gittisham Parish Council, Honiton Town Council and Combe Estate.

Meanwhile, EDDC approved an increase in Council Tax of 3.41 per cent, which represents £5/year for a Band D property. Devon County has increased their element of Council Tax by 4.99 per cent (which includes 3 per cent for adult social care), the Police by 6.73 per cent and Fire by 1.99 per cent. The average Town and Parish precept increase across the district is 2.37 per cent.

Car Park charges across the main car parks in East Devon were set to increase by 20 per cent (i.e. from £1 per hour to £1.20 per hour). However, this increase has been deferred to 2022 in an attempt to help businesses during the Covid recovery. Meanwhile, Cllr Bond said the parish council would have received a survey on the Community Asset Transfer Procedure. It would be useful to complete even if there are no EDDC assets with the parish, so that EDDC has a complete picture across the district.

Otherwise work continues on coping with Covid and the rollout of business support and discretionary grants, to both businesses and individuals in East Devon.

ACTION: Clerk to complete Community Asset Transfer Procedure.

Before he left, Cllr Twiss reminded members that next month, due to local elections in May, he would be entering the purdah period.

Cllr Twiss left the meeting.

205/20 To consider the following planning applications:

21/0428/FUL 34 Meadow Acre Road Gittisham EX14 3FE Construction of single side/rear storey extension

Members had no objections to the application.

206/20 To receive reports from councillors on areas of responsibility and actions since the last meeting:

To note the latest planning decision notices

20/2656/LBC Winsor Cottage Gittisham EX14 3AS Ground floor: remove walls in kitchen/breakfast room and install new door and removal of stone cladding around fireplace and under 2no. windows in lounge. First floor: remove and construct walls and doors in bedroom no.4; create door opening from bedroom no.1 onto landing for bathroom; remove and construct walls in bedroom no.1 to create ensuite and replace existing metal stair balustrade with timber balustrade. Approval with conditions.

To receive an update on Highways

Cllr Orchard said on 9^th February the signage for closure of the lane to Catshayes Farm had caused some confusion, leading to buses missing the village. He said he had reported a blocked pipe in Hayne Lane to DCC Highways on 4^th February, but not yet had a response. Work on Hayne Lane for drainage, clearance of foliage and tarmac patching at the north end had been completed ahead of schedule.

Forthcoming road closures in Gittisham Parish:

10 March Outside parish, but road west of Buckerell from Orchard Cross will be closed for two days.

Cllr Walker said she thought potholes behind Truances Cottage had been repaired, and Cllr Bond urged everyone to use the appropriate website to report potholes as it appeared to be having some effect. Cllr Rowe asked if the resurfacing had taken place at the junction with the Heathpark estate, but Cllr Orchard said it had been deferred several times. Cllr Bond encouraged Cllr Rowe to mention this via the reporting website.

To consider plans for expenditure in the parish under the Community Infrastructure Levy & S106

The Chair explained that Honiton Town Council’s new clerk is keen for her to meet HTC’s chair to discuss how S106 money from the Hayne Farm development (which belongs to GPC) can be spent, and what proportion could be spent in Honiton itself. Members discussed the history of these funds, suggestions put forward in the past and their viability. Cllr Bond reminded councillors that the criteria for spending the S106 money is strict, and can only be spent on sports provision. Members agreed that as the money came from the Hayne Farm development, it should mainly benefit those residents who would primarily be using sports facilities in Honiton. They felt Gittisham should earmark roughly £40k for use in Gittisham parish on a new boules pitch, and for anything that would likely arise at Hayne Farm. Cllr Bond encouraged Cllr Orchard to explore the new boules pitch in Seaton and how this had been acquired. Advice from EDDC indicates that Gittisham PC must be consulted on how Honiton TC would spend the remaining funds. Cllr Orchard reminded members that he had carried out a consultation exercise last year, and members heard that Honiton TC had also done this but would have to wait until all the money had been received before making any decisions on spending in consultation with Gittisham PC.

To receive an update on public transport

See Highways item above. The clerk said the 10.46 Stagecoach bus had failed to turn up this morning, but Cllr Orchard said he did not think a real-time display board would be a priority for the company.

To consider the purchase of a defibrillator for the Hayne Farm development

Cllr Twist said there was no update on this.

ACTION: Cllr Twist to try getting more information on an alternative location for the defibrillator in time for the next meeting.

To consider climate change measures within the parish

Cllr Twist said there was no update on this. Members discussed whether it was possible to support particular renewable energy providers, but concluded that this was best done on an individual level.

ACTION: Cllr Twist to comment on DCC’s draft resource & waste strategy.

ACTION: All to keep eyes open for new climate change initiatives that the PC can support.

To consider parish council support for scam awareness and security

Cllr Twist said a piece had appeared in February’s Gittisham Gazette. She warned members that the next scam would undoubtedly be focused on the census, which is due on 21^st March.

To consider limited residential development in the parish

Cllr Valentine said the pre-app submission to EDDC Planning was made on 25th February. The planning officer has 30 days to respond. In the meantime the focus will be on dwelling design and site infrastructure development. There will need to be (hopefully) a short period following receipt of the planning officer’s comments for any amendments before putting the proposals forward for public consultation. Details of this event remain to be finalised.

Regarding the use of CIL funding for a village “gateway”, the Chair said she had started a discussion on the village WhatsApp group and there appeared to be strong support. She said the discussion had led to comments about speeding in the village, and therefore it would potentially be necessary to revisit this. She suggested printing and laminating some ’20 is plenty’ signs to put on black bins etc, especially as children would start emerging in the spring.

To consider the parish emergency plan

Cllr Orchard said he had tidied up the text and added emergency contact numbers. Cllr Rowe had smartened up the grit bin map and added lettered locations. All that remains, he said, was to fill in the names and numbers of the various responsibilities. Cllr Orchard added that as a result of his article last month in the Gittisham Gazette, one person from the Vale and one person from the village had come forward to offer help in the event of any emergency.

ACTION: Chair to add parts about flooding, and meet Cllr Orchard to discuss the names currently in use within the document.

To consider the refurbishment and maintenance of the village play area, and approve the annual play area inspection visit

Cllr Walker reported that the play area had been used recently in fine weather. Members agreed to invite the RoSPA inspector to carry out the annual play area inspection.

ACTION: Cllr Walker to keep hand sanitiser at the entrance to the play area topped up, install rubbish bin and carry out regular inspections during fine weather and Easter holidays.

To consider work to be carried out by the lengthsman to maintain ditches and drains in the parish

Cllr Walker said that Len Abbott had maintained ditches and drains in February for three hours.

ACTION: Cllr Walker to notify the lengthsman that Cllr Valentine would like to discuss a drainage ditch further up Dark Lane.

207/20 To receive a report from the Chair

The Chair thanked all members for their work, and said that the council appeared to be keeping on top of issues of concern and making progress on some of its initiatives. She said it was unfortunate there had been an unpleasant situation over people using the private parking in front of the play area, and she would find out if the residents intended to put up some kind of sign.

The Chair explained that the swap system in the village and Vale bus shelters would finish at the end of the month. Items in good condition would be passed to charity shops, and those in poor condition would be disposed of.

The Chair asked if grit bins should be topped up after a cold spell.

ACTION: Clerk to laminate signs for the Chair to put up in the bus shelters. Cllr Walker to sweep the village bus shelter.

208/20 To consider updating the parish website to comply with accessibility standards

Cllr Rowe said he had discussed this with the clerk to understand how the site can comply with the latest accessibility standards.

ACTION: Cllr Rowe to continue work on council documents online.

209/20 To approve the internal auditor for 2021/22

Members resolved to appoint Alison Marshall for another year.

ACTION: Clerk to contact Alison Marshall.

210/20 To consider the practicalities of returning to face to face meetings from 7th May 2021, including a review of the scheme for delegation to ensure continuity of the Council functions (as far as practicable)

The clerk explained that Gittisham PC does not have a scheme of delegation, and this might be necessary if face to face meetings return but members are uncomfortable with that or the council cannot be quorate. Cllr Bond said it was possible to hold meetings outdoors. Members agreed with the Chair that it was acceptable to wait until the next meeting to decide whether to pursue a scheme of delegation for this purpose, although Cllr Valentine indicated that it would be wise to have a scheme of delegation in place in future for such things as emergency payments.

211/20 To approve the March payments and to note the current bank balance

It was resolved to approve the following payments:

1086 F J Clampin £226.37 Clerk’s salary & expenses

1087 F J Clampin £629 Reimbursement for laptop computer

1088 F J Clampin £59.99 Reimbursement for Microsoft Office individual

1089 Michael Poll £60 Grass cutting, play area

1090 Len Abbott £42 3 hours lengthsman work, Feb 2021

1091 DALC £36 Being a Good Councillor, 2 x sessions @£18 each inc. VAT

DD NEST £22.48 Clerk’s pension (5% employer, 5% employee)

Members were informed that the current bank balance stands at £16,185.60 (which includes the £7,000 in the business reserve account).

The clerk said that the website hosting would need to be renewed at the beginning of April before the next meeting to ensure continuity of service, but she had not yet received an invoice. The Chair said the clerk should avoid where possible paying this from her personal account, and suggested the provider should agree to maintain the service until payment could be approved at the next parish council meeting. Members discussed the possibility of using internet banking in future; Cllr Twist said it was possible to set limits on payments done this way, and members agreed that with a scheme of delegation it would be easier to make necessary payments that needed to be done quickly. The clerk said the current standing orders did not permit internet banking for a variety of reasons, including a need for two signatories.

ACTION: Clerk to enquire with other councils how they handle internet banking.

212/20 To consider the council’s grant-giving policy, publication scheme, complaints policy, anti-fraud & corruption policy and code of conduct

It was resolved to approve the above documents, once former councillors’ names had been removed and Chairman replaced with Chair.

213/20 Clerk’s Report

The clerk said she had not yet received any applications for the parish councillor vacancy. The Chair encouraged all members to contact likely candidates.

214/20 For information only; items for the forward agenda

Face-to-face meetings & scheme of delegation.

215/20 To consider any late entry correspondence

Cllr Walker said one resident had been distressed by some young cyclists passing at speed through the village, playing loud music, and all members agreed to be alert to this.

216/20 Date of next two meetings

Wednesday 7^th April and Wednesday 5^th May 2021 at 7.30pm via Zoom. Should restrictions on public movement be lifted, these meetings will revert to being held in the parish room or another suitable venue.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 2115 hrs.

Chair…………………………………….

7^th April 2021

Parish Council meeting minutes 3 Feb 2021

18 March 2021 by Fiona

GITTISHAM PARISH COUNCIL

MINUTES OF THE PARISH COUNCIL MEETING

HELD ON 3^RD FEBRUARY 2021

via Zoom

The Parish Council Meeting has to take place remotely for reasons of social distancing brought in by HM Government during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Present:

Gittisham Village Ward

Cllr C Hall (Chair)

Cllr D Valentine

Cllr M Walker

Cllr A Rowe

Gittisham Vale Ward

Cllr P Orchard

Cllr J Twist

In attendance: Cllr Susie Bond (EDDC), Cllr Phil Twiss (DCC), Fiona Clampin (clerk), one member of the public

Apologies for absence: PCSO Darren England

Before the meeting, one member of the public suggested that an additional rubbish bin would be useful for the village green.

180/20 To accept and approve apologies

Apologies were received and accepted.

181/20 To confirm the minutes of the meeting held 6^th January 2021

The minutes of the meeting held on 6^th January 2021 were confirmed and signed by the Chair.

182/20 To receive the Beat Manager’s Report

The police did not send a report this month, so the clerk provided figures taken from https://www.crime-statistics.co.uk/ . In December 2020, 5 crimes reported: 4 x violence & sexual offences (Laburnum Close, Parsonage Lane, Cypress Close), 1 x anti-social behaviour (Parsonage Lane).

Having circulated the annual crime report, the clerk said she had raised questions with Darren England, asking if the parish council could do more to help combat crime. Cllrs Orchard and Twist said that the parish council would like to have more detailed reports to know if the PC could be more proactive, as rising crime figures can affect things such as house insurance prices. The clerk agreed to contact Darren England again.

ACTION: Clerk to follow up with PCSO Darren England to see how the police can be more involved.

183/20 To receive declarations of interest

None.

184/20 To consider actions from the last meeting not otherwise on the agenda

Cllr Twiss said he hoped Mike Brown from DCC Highways would be in touch with Cllr Rowe regarding grit bins.

185/20 Reports from County Council and District Council representatives

Cllr Twiss said it is very much a case of two steps forward, one step back this month. But the vaccine rollout being delivered at a rapidly escalating pace in Devon and beyond gives a great deal of hope for a measured lifting of current restrictions and a much better summer than 2020, improving all of our mental health and wellbeing, as well as the local economy including jobs and inbound income from a likely ‘staycation boom”.

Covid-19

As we all see from media outlets, infection rates in the UK appear to have peaked and are now beginning to recede due to the impact of lockdown and the vaccination programme to a lesser degree. Thankfully we have no seen COVID variants in our area and with the new door to door testing regime in areas identified let’s hope it remains that way.

Cllr Twiss reported that he was able to visit County Hall last week where a pop-up testing site has been set up and at full tilt is able to test up to 2,000 people each day, adding to other sites around Exeter. It is quite likely that in due course a vaccination site will also be sited at County Hall to add significant capacity to the programme, as well as more jabs being delivered at local G.P. surgeries and some private pharmacies in supermarket locations that have space to maintain social distancing.

A significant number of beds occupied by COVID patients at the RD&E NHS Trust sites are because of ‘out of area’ patients, but large numbers of frontline staff have been vaccinated and staff numbers returning to work is improving to ease the pressure a little.

Crime figures

Cllr Twiss said he recently met via Zoom Alison Hernandez, the Police & Crime Commissioner for Devon and Cornwall to discuss a wide range of issues and concerns, with Neil Parish our MP sitting in as his post bag is much the same as mine, albeit with a much higher volume of correspondence!

One of the matters raised was a lack of report of crime statistics to Parish and Town Councils by way of a regular report. The Devon and Cornwall Police web site at https://www.devon-cornwall.police.uk/your-right-to-information/our-people/our-performance/crime-figures/ is now providing regular ‘high level’ data but does not enable you to drill down to parish level. Cllr Twiss added that for him, he can only refine to Honiton Rural and Honiton Town, which helps, but only a little.

He said all parties had agreed that resources are problematic and that an annual parishes meeting (online and physical to maximise attendance) might have more relevance than bare statistics which are often skewed by one or two rarely occurring crimes and don’t really provide reasons or analysis behind the figures. Cllr Twiss said he was aware this idea has been mooted before and has been trialled successfully in the DCC Axminster Division, but he said he would actively try to make this happen. He circulated the data for Devon and Cornwall for September where the Honiton area features on pages 99 and 100 of the attached document.

Fairer funding for Schools

DCC is part of the F40. ‘Fairer funding for schools’ campaign where we lag significantly behind other counties and is clearly unfair. Cllr Twiss circulated the latest update on the issues facing our schools and education from all f40 members. This briefing has gone to MPs in the f40 areas,

Bridges and structures

For a change something a little more day to day about the work of DCC, said Cllr Twiss. It’s the time of the year when the RAC Foundation release their annual bridge with 3,105 bridges (defined as structures over 1.5m in span) defined as being substandard. This was 1.6% up on the 3,055 figure twelve months before. Devon County Council is responsible for more bridges than any other authority in the UK and is recognised as one of the UK’s leading authorities in structures asset management.

The term ‘substandard’ does not mean there is a problem with the bridge, he explained; it means we are managing 233 bridges that cannot carry the full 40 tonnes ‘standard’ highway load and only 3 of these need upgrading. In 2019 this figure was 244. Ninety of these are ‘clapper’ bridges on Dartmoor National Park, which are performing well, and the remainder are either scheduled for strengthening work or have a weight limit. Those with weight limits are suitable for the road they are on, such as small lanes where large vehicles are unlikely to require access. DCC manage their bridge stock effectively in accordance with national guidelines to maintain the safety of the public.

Devon’s chief engineer made comment to the RAC Foundation following this year’s survey saying “Whilst the number of substandard bridges may appear worrying, there is often a good reason why a bridge falls into this category; it does not mean the bridge is unsafe as it will be managed by the Local Authority usually by a weight limit.

A restriction such as this may be wholly appropriate for the class of road and/or location, however the survey shows local authorities would want to remove 2,256 bridges out of this sub-standard category which can only be achieved by more investment through Government funding.”

The Chair said she would like to reiterate the difficulties experienced by people working from home and pupils home schooling with regard to slow or ineffective broadband. Cllr Twiss acknowledged that broadband was still a problem in the village particularly, and he hoped to make progress on this very soon. The Chair thanked Cllr Twiss for his work in the community.

Cllr Bond said East Devon District Council is currently consulting on the issues and options for a revised Local Plan. The questionnaire is here: https://eastdevon.gov.uk/news/2021/01/have-your-say-on-future-developments-in-east-devon-local-plan-consultation/ and it’s important for people to make their views known at this early stage of the review process. Meanwhile, in the last 3 years, a total of 2,868 new homes were built within the district, which is comfortably over the target of 928 per annum. The Chair said she welcomed the news that the district had exceeded its housing quota.

Cllr Bond explained that EDDC’s Cabinet had been meeting this evening to discuss whether to part-fund a masterplan for an extension to the Healthpark Industrial site at Hayne Lane. This is a site which was allocated in the Local Plan for employment. Consultants will be looking at the site primarily to establish viability and how best to bring the site forward. Cllr Bond said she had added a recommendation that one member from Gittisham PC, Honiton TC and Combe Estate be invited to attend meetings of the working group. The Chair thanked her for stressing Gittisham’s need to be involved in the process. Cllr Valentine said he wanted to highlight that this is the first stage of the review of the current Local Plan; this is always the publication of an issues and options report, where the district council identifies what it sees as the key issues over the next 20 years. Cllr Valentine urged the council to express either support for some of what EDDC is saying such as the renewables and energy-saving features, or concern regarding future growth for Honiton. He reminded members that previous planning applications such as that for the south side of Honiton above the Vale may well come back into focus. The consultation period expires on 15^th March, so Cllr Valentine proposed to study the report and present his findings at the March PC meeting where the parish council can decide on its submission. The Chair encouraged all members to look through EDDC’s report and email him any thoughts. If anyone would like a copy, please contact Cllr Bond.

ACTION: Cllr Valentine to prepare a report for the March meeting.

Cllr Twiss left the meeting.

186/20 To consider the following planning applications:

20/2656/LBC Winsor Cottage Gittisham EX14 3AS Ground floor: remove walls in kitchen/breakfast room and install new door and removal of stone cladding around fireplace and under 2no. windows in lounge. First floor: remove and construct walls and doors in bedroom no.4; create door opening from bedroom no.1 onto landing for bathroom; remove and construct walls in bedroom no.1 to create ensuite and replace existing metal stair balustrade with timber balustrade

Members had no objection to the application.

187/20 To receive reports from councillors on areas of responsibility and actions since the last meeting:

To note the latest planning decision notices

Cllr Orchard said there were no updates since the last meeting.

To receive an update on Highways

Cllr Orchard said the railway bridge at the Forge was inspected the night of 18 January. On Weds 20 Jan the old A30 under the new A30 dual carriageway was flooded during extended rain; DCC was aware of this, he said. Cllr Orchard reported that the balancing pond south of Old Elm Rd had been so 70 per cent full, partly due he felt to DCC’s summer 2020 response not to clear the outlet grill. However since 2^nd February the grill has been cleared. Cllr Orchard said he will get in touch with DCC’s Mike Brown to inform him of a blocked pipe at the entrance to a field on Hayne Lane.

Forthcoming road closures in Gittisham parish:

09 Feb: Lane to Catshayes Farm: BT pole installations.

22-26 Feb Chineway to Hare and Hounds. Water works.

24 Feb Hayne Lane again: Pot hole repairs 24 Feb-05 Mar

Members heard that https://one.network/ is a good guide to all works. You may need to log in to create an account (free) to see forthcoming works up to 3 months hence.

To consider plans for expenditure in the parish under the Community Infrastructure Levy & S106

Cllr Orchard said there was no update on this.

To receive an update on public transport

Cllr Orchard said he had received a refreshingly honest apology from the Stagecoach Operations Manager about the non-arrival of the school bus on 18 December 2020, last day of term. He said there was nothing else to report, but considering the police annual report is that in the parish there were 40 transport crimes of a total of 87 in the year, something is not adding up.

To consider the purchase of a defibrillator for the Hayne Farm development

Cllr Twist said she had received an email from Adam Clark, Development Officer at Sovereign Housing asking for further information, which she has supplied. Cllr Twist believes his main point was asking about the electrical contractor we would use to install the defibrillator. She responded that the parish council agrees a contractor with themselves and Baker Estates. The Chair said there was nothing more to be done for now.

To consider climate change measures within the parish

Cllr Twist said she had investigated the provision of renewable energy suppliers, of which there were 4 including Ecotricity. However changing companies is not the best route to take, she cautioned, as some companies (especially smaller ones) are going bust with alarming regularity, and your account is transferred by OFGEM to which ever company is prepared to take the accounts.

Electric Vehicle Charging Points

Cllr Twist reported that she had received an email from Alastair Mumford (Corporate Energy Manager, DCC), who stated they were in the process of providing more information to ORCS, and hoped to get back to her in about 4 weeks. There is additional funding available from the Government, announced yesterday.

Cllr Twist said she had spoken to Bob Nelson the Chair of Broadhembury PC about their EVCPs which have been installed for about 2 years. They received their funding through a grant from the Department of Transport, via the Energy Saving Trust, and received 75 per cent of the cost. They chose Pod Points (EDF) which are accessed via an app. Cllr Twist said she had also spoken to Talaton’s parish clerk about their plans. The Chair said perhaps the electric pool car would be worth pursuing alongside the charging point, and encouraged people to come forward with other energy-saving ideas for the parish.

To consider parish council support for scam awareness and security

Cllr Twist said that information released last week shows that fraud including credit cards, identity and cyber, is the most prevalent crime in Britain costing £190 billion a year.

ACTION: Cllr Twist to draw up a poster based on Neighbourhood Watch information about vaccine scams, and Cllr Orchard and the clerk to put on noticeboards.

To consider limited residential development in the parish

Cllr Valentine said preparations are in hand for having a pre-app meeting with EDDC planning (no date finalised yet). It has been necessary to extend the boundary of the site in a westerly direction for about 10 metres to help with accommodating a turning circle for larger vehicles, extending gardens and helping with surface water attenuation proposals. It is not anticipated that this will introduce any new planning problem since the previous planning permission granted in 1999 extended the site significantly in a westerly direction. Cllr Valentine reported that we are close to having a preferred scheme and details will be advised asap. Members agreed they endorsed the progress taking place with the Gittisham CLT, and the work it has been undertaking to date. Cllr Valentine said the Government appeared to be positive towards community-led developments, as it has recently given a further £4m to the Community Housing Fund. This is revenue funding, not capital, to help organisations such as CLTs get to the point of securing planning permission.

Cllr Valentine said that EDDC has 30 days from the pre-app meeting to feed back any comments, and after that there is the potential to move forward to submitting a planning application. At that point, Cllr Valentine said he would like to arrange a community event in March to seek wider community support for the proposal. Members discussed how this could be organised given the current Covid restrictions in place; the Chair confirmed it was not possible to use the village hall, and thought it was likely the other venues in the village would present the same issues. It was agreed an outside event might be a possibility, with display boards installed so that people could attend at their own convenience while respecting social distancing.

Regarding the use of CIL funding for a village “gateway”, Cllr Valentine said this was not as straightforward as anticipated. He had received a message from Tom Vaughan at DCC who said that if the community is considering investing in this, DCC may be able to support it if there is evidence of consultation and community approval. However, Mr Vaughan described issues with traffic speeds in Gittisham as “perceived”. Members agreed that the traffic monitoring system had been installed in the wrong location previously, and did not therefore provide the necessary data to show speeding as an issue.

ACTION: Cllr Valentine to speak to Hamish Hall regarding online public consultations.

ACTION: Cllr Valentine to write an article for the Gittisham Gazette asking if people would support the parish council’s investigation into a village gateway.

To consider the parish emergency plan

Cllr Orchard said Cllr Rowe had uploaded the old plan and template for the modern plan onto Google Drive. He added that there was now an additional paragraph on the location of defibrillators and how to use them, as well as ‘phone numbers for external agencies. Cllr Orchard said there was a need for volunteers to come forward who could act in the event of an emergency weather event. The Chair said she would contact the group of Covid volunteers, and Cllr Walker suggested one representative in the village, Hayne Farm and Vale respectively would be sensible. Cllr Orchard said there would also be a private list of vulnerable people in the parish, and he had access to advice from Devon Communities Together on how this could meet data protection law. The Chair asked for the emergency plan to be completed by the date of the next meeting.

ACTION: Cllr Orchard to write short article for the Gittisham Gazette asking for volunteers who would be able to assist in the case of extreme wet weather (flooding threat), and snow and ice for village, Vale and Hayne Farm areas.

To consider the refurbishment and maintenance of the village play area

Cllr Walker reported that a new family in the village had told her how delighted they are with the play area. She said she would return the hand gel to the entrance, and keep the cleaning rota under review.

ACTION: Cllr Walker to put hand sanitiser at the entrance to the play area.

To consider work to be carried out by the lengthsman to maintain ditches and drains in the parish

Cllr Walker said that Len Abbott had unblocked a drain on Honiton Lane where the pond had flooded after recent heavy rain. He had also found another drain he was unaware of, so he will wait for the water level to drop before he excavates it. The Chair said the heavy rain had mostly disappeared down the river, thanks to the lengthsman’s excellent work.

188/20 To receive a report from the Chair

The Chair said the off roading situation is improving with the involvement of Combe Estate, DCC rights of way, Cllr Twiss, the police and locals. All were using the proper channels, she reported, and thanked everybody for increasing the visibility of this problem. The Chair said she would be contacting the local parish council chairs.

189/20 To consider a temporary solution to the absence of a postbox in Gittisham village

Members heard that the postbox had been taken down briefly while work continues on the building, but the box has since been reinstated.

190/20 To consider the casual vacancy in Gittisham Vale

The clerk said EDDC had informed her no requests had been received for an election to fill the vacancy, and the parish council could now proceed to co-opt.

ACTION: Clerk to put co-option policy into action.

191/20 To consider updating the parish website to comply with accessibility standards

The clerk said since the resignation of Andy Wilkins, she was looking for a volunteer to update the parish website to ensure it complies with the latest accessibility standards.

ACTION: The clerk to forward details of the requirement to Cllr Rowe, although there is no obligation on him to undertake this if the workload is not manageable with other commitments.

192/20 To approve a supplier for the Gittisham play area maintenance contract for 2021/22

The clerk said she had approached three contractors to invite them to bid for the annual maintenance contract. Members resolved to appoint Michael Poll for another year.

ACTION: Clerk to contact Michael Poll and thank him for his previous work.

193/20 To consider the frequency of parish council meetings, and to discuss the practicalities of returning to face to face meetings from 7^th May 2021

Members agreed with the Chair that the schedule of meeting was not onerous, and they resolved to carry on as things stand. Cllr Orchard added that if parish council meetings were less frequent than once a month, sub-committees would still have to meet for items such as planning.

The clerk explained that from 7^th May 2021 the legislation regarding holding remote council meetings is due to end, and it was therefore necessary to plan for meeting face to face. Prior to the meeting, she circulated guidance from DALC. Members discussed how meetings could be held face to face, including half the council meeting one month and keeping meetings as short as possible. Cllr Valentine cautioned that due diligence would have to be observed. Councillors agreed to review the scheme for delegation at next month’s meeting, so that the parish council is prepared to carry on business if there is no change in the legislation.

194/20 To approve the February payments and to note the current bank balance

It was resolved to approve the following payments:

1080 F J Clampin £225.52 Clerk’s salary & expenses

1081 Combe Estate £10 Play area rent 01/01/2021-25/12/2030

1082 Gittisham PCC £157 Gittisham Gazette printing

1083 Gittisham PCC £23.50 Gittisham parish room hire 2020

1084 Len Abbott £84 6 hours lengthsman work, Jan 2021

1085 Arthur J Gallagher Insurance £266.81 public liability insurance (lengthsman)

DD NEST £22.48 Clerk’s pension (5% employer, 5% employee)

Members were informed that the current bank balance stands at £17,261.44 (which includes the £7,000 in the business reserve account).

195/20 Clerk’s Report

The clerk said the alternative laptop was out of stock. She explained that Cllr Rowe was due to attend DALC’s Being a Good Councillor four-part course in March, which the PC had approved at a previous meeting. Regarding dog poo bins at Hayne Farm, she said she had not yet received a reply to the PC’s message to Baker Estates.

ACTION: Cllr Valentine to ask his son for recommendations of in-stock laptops.

196/20 For information only; items for the forward agenda

Internal auditor’s contract 2021/22; website; face-to-face meetings, review of any outstanding policy documents

197/20 To consider any late entry correspondence

The Chair said she was pleased to see how proactive councillors had been.

198/20 Date of next two meetings

Wednesday 3^rd March and Wednesday 7^th April 2021 at 7.30pm via Zoom. Should restrictions on public movement be lifted, these meetings will revert to being held in the parish room or another suitable venue.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 2100 hrs.

Chair…………………………………….

3^rd March 2021

Certificate of Exemption – AGAR 2020/21 Part 2

Gittisham Parish Council

Annual Internal Audit Report 2020/21

www.gittisham.org.uk

Section 1 – Annual Governance Statement 2020/21

Gittisham Parish Council

10/06/2021

Section 2 – Accounting Statements 2020/21 for

Spring has sprung

Tip Tip Toe

2021 Census

People in the news

Gittisham Village Hall dates to save for your diary

Proposed events and services for and around Easter

Parish Council March report

St Michael’s Church, Honiton Mission Community and 200 Club

Printing

Contact details

199/20 To accept and approve apologies

200/20 To confirm the minutes of the meeting held 3rd February 2021

201/20 To receive the Beat Manager’s Report

202/20 To receive declarations of interest

203/20 To consider actions from the last meeting not otherwise on the agenda

204/20 Reports from County Council and District Council representatives

DCC Budget

Food poverty support for Families over Easter

Holiday Activities & Food Programme

205/20 To consider the following planning applications:

206/20 To receive reports from councillors on areas of responsibility and actions since the last meeting:

207/20 To receive a report from the Chair

208/20 To consider updating the parish website to comply with accessibility standards

209/20 To approve the internal auditor for 2021/22

210/20 To consider the practicalities of returning to face to face meetings from 7th May 2021, including a review of the scheme for delegation to ensure continuity of the Council functions (as far as practicable)

211/20 To approve the March payments and to note the current bank balance

212/20 To consider the council’s grant-giving policy, publication scheme, complaints policy, anti-fraud & corruption policy and code of conduct

213/20 Clerk’s Report

214/20 For information only; items for the forward agenda

215/20 To consider any late entry correspondence

216/20 Date of next two meetings

180/20 To accept and approve apologies

181/20 To confirm the minutes of the meeting held 6th January 2021

182/20 To receive the Beat Manager’s Report

183/20 To receive declarations of interest

184/20 To consider actions from the last meeting not otherwise on the agenda

185/20 Reports from County Council and District Council representatives

Covid-19

Crime figures

Fairer funding for Schools

Bridges and structures

186/20 To consider the following planning applications:

187/20 To receive reports from councillors on areas of responsibility and actions since the last meeting:

Electric Vehicle Charging Points

188/20 To receive a report from the Chair

189/20 To consider a temporary solution to the absence of a postbox in Gittisham village

190/20 To consider the casual vacancy in Gittisham Vale

191/20 To consider updating the parish website to comply with accessibility standards

192/20 To approve a supplier for the Gittisham play area maintenance contract for 2021/22

193/20 To consider the frequency of parish council meetings, and to discuss the practicalities of returning to face to face meetings from 7th May 2021

194/20 To approve the February payments and to note the current bank balance

195/20 Clerk’s Report

196/20 For information only; items for the forward agenda

197/20 To consider any late entry correspondence

198/20 Date of next two meetings

200/20 To confirm the minutes of the meeting held 3^rd February 2021

181/20 To confirm the minutes of the meeting held 6^th January 2021

193/20 To consider the frequency of parish council meetings, and to discuss the practicalities of returning to face to face meetings from 7^th May 2021