At the Annual Parish Meeting held on 8th May for the local goverment year 2012/2013, Councillor Mike Toates, Chairman, presented the following report.
‘The end of the year is also the end of an area, I will expand later.
This year Karen Martin stood down from the Council and Cllr Mark Joyce intends to stand down after this very meeting. Karen used to perform the important tasking of attending the Neighbourhood Forum meetings which will shortly transform into a more focused and high profile Local Joint Committee. Karen’s input to the website will hopefully continue as membership is open to non Council members. Mark has been and hopefully will remain a most useful member of the village in helping to plant trees, paint and repair the phone box site and fix the village green bench and work on the bus shelter. Thank you to Karen and Mark.
We will soon know if we have made a difference to the impact of the Secret Garden Party has upon our village. Many will know in past years we have attended Licencing committee meetings and objected to SGP plans and not to put too fine a point on it did not get anywhere with in, culminating in curfews over running, sound levels breeched and some nuisance in our village by attendees. This year there have been meetings with the Police, District Council and Backwoodsman who organise the event. Plans have been laid and routines changed. Overall there is now a greater awareness of our problems and good reason to believe this year’s stressful problems suffered by some people in the village will be alleviated.
Three people need to be thanked for their input towards the resulting organisational changes, Di Jenkins for organising the meetings at very short notice; District Councillor Robin Howe for hours spent working with the principals within organisations & County Councillor Victor Lucas DL for his support and attendance at our meetings.
Localism is daily becoming more evident; for instance LJC already mentioned. The Council also hope to start a village plan soon. One thing that should be made clear is; the bigger say communities will be given to shape their own destiny, will not mean they can prevent wind farms, incinerators or low level nuclear waste dumps on their doorstops. Existing planning channels will still be used.
Once again the parish precept remains the same as last year. We intend to plant a hedge the length of the allotment roadside and research into the village sign is still on going. For the future of the village plan we need people from the village to join in please. Volunteers please. Many people are helping to organise Kings Ripton Diamond Jubilee Celebrations. It will be a great get together for us all.Four people from the village have been honoured by an invite to the Burleigh House Royal Jubilee Garden Party which will be attended by Her Majesty the Queen. They are Gordon and Cllr Ros Townsend, Roy and Mary Collett; the invites are in recognition of their work over many years so freely given in the village for the benefit of all.
End of an era: Di is vacating the position of Parish Clerk after this meeting tonight. I can tell you how much we all appreciate Di’s input to the Council and to the village in general, the word ‘stalwart’ sums it up perfectly. Di joined the Council on May 27th 1998 and been battling with the vaguries, minutiae and convoluted details of ever changing Council life for 14 years. All with patience and good humour. Best of luck Di with your retirement and new hobby; Golf.
Welcome to Claire Tunnicliffe who will take over from Di. We hope you will stay for 14 years to be our next engine room.See you all at the Royal Jubilee Celebrations towards which Backwoodsman have donated £1000′.
M.J Toates, Chairman Kings Ripton.