May 2022 Minutes CF Cttee
Cherry Willingham Parish Council
Minutes of Cherry Willingham Parish Council’s Cherry Fields Committee held at The Vine on Tuesday 3rd May at 7.00pm.
Present: Nigel Hooper (Vice Chair)
Cllr Jean Trahearn, Cllr Andy Burge, Helen McCowan, David Leonard.
1) Welcome and resolve to receive apologies received by the Clerk and accept reasons for absence. Apologies had been received from Cllr Jenny Robinson and Cllr Barry Robinson, who both have Covid. Alan Gardner is on holiday and Cllr Trevor Bridgwood had another meeting.
It was RESOLVED to accept the apologies and the reasons for absence. In the absence of the Clerk, HM was appointed to take the minutes.
2) Members' disclosure of pecuniary interests.
None.
3) To receive the notes of the CFC meeting held on 1st March 2022 and to agree for them to be signed as a true record.
DL said he had been credited with building the cairn in item 10, but it was actually NH. With this amendment, it was RESOLVED to agree the notes and they were duly signed.
4) To receive a report on maintenance and project work undertaken since the last meeting. (NH)
The dog agility area is complete except for the vehicular gate. The Orchard and Wildflower meadow are done but are in urgent need of rain.
The Deep Water sign by the Delph bridge was destroyed, almost as soon as it was erected. This may be because people are pushing past to walk to Fenland nursery.
The benches on the top of the banking are being well used. The cairn has been started but an agreement is needed on the size of village sign before work can continue.
5) To receive a report on Expenditure v Budget year to date. (NH)
The Project document was circulated prior to the meeting.* The Maintenance budget was also sent to the Clerk but not circulated. A copy was circulated round the meeting.
The Maintenance budget paper had been populated with known items of expenditure, eg grass cutting, path repairs, meadow mowing, herbicide etc. and other items identified in the paper on the remaining programme of works for illustrative purposes.
As well as the reduced Parish Council funding the Project budget has been augmented by a carryover of grants plus the Orchard donations.
Grants will be required for dog exercise equipment and tree identification boards but around £1,000 for match funding can be drawn upon from the Parish council allocation.
6) To receive an update on the Co-op grant. (HM)
A cheque was received for £664.28, which was a quarter of the amount raised. This will fund the vehicular access gate for the dog area, with some left over towards agility equipment.
It was noted that no other application from the Parish Council can be submitted for 2 years.
The grant from iGas was also claimed for work done, but this will be carried over to the current year.
7) To review the remaining programme of works for the forthcoming months and associated expenditure. (NH)
The document was circulated prior to the meeting.*
The main area of work will be resurfacing the path to the Delph which is very well used.
NH said £600 would be ample for the planings and stone. It would be best done in warm weather and by hiring a roller (for around £200) to compact the surface.
Preservative for the shed and bridge will cost about £80.
The small bridge at the rear of the Oasis needs widening as some users of mobility scooters have said it is too narrow for them to use safely. The sub-structure will also need widening so three extra sleepers would be required costing around £250. DL said he has an old beam which could be used. NH and DL to look at this.
The current temporary signs for opening and closing times of the car park need replacing with permanent ones. The estimate for this is £150.
£400 has been allocated for the vehicular access gate, which will be funded by the Co-op grant.
The area around the ponds is slippery due to wet clay after rainfall. It has been suggested that two further boardwalks are built at minimal cost to make the edges safer.
NH asked about flags which could be borrowed for the Jubilee picnic. The Village committee have not purchased a Jubilee flag, just bunting. Various options were discussed and a flag on the castles was ruled out due to safety issues with a rope. Wooden pennants for each corner of the castle will be looked at. DL The cairn cannot be completed until the size of the sign is known. NH showed an oval wooden template which could have Cherry Willingham and a cherry on it. The cost would be around £120. This was agreed.
8) To receive an update regarding routine safety inspections (NH/BR)
BR has amended the sheet discussed at the last meeting. He is concerned about the amount of space available for comments to be made. DL said there should be space to comment on items picked up in a previous inspection to show if it has been dealt with. It is hoped to start using the sheet next month.
9) To receive an update on the equipment needed for maintenance of the Community Orchard and agree any further actions and expenditure as necessary. (NH/BR)
BR has been researching petrol mowers to cut grass between the fruit trees. There is up to £700 available in the orchard budget for a mower, but it was agreed that it also needs to be able to cut coarser grass and weeds. It was suggested that we could use some project money to add to this and get a better quality mower and this was agreed.
DL expressed concern about keeping a valuable item in the shed but said it could be shackled to a concrete block under the floor. We could also ask if the Oasis has a more secure space.
10) To receive an update on signs and agree any actions. (HM)
All signs have been purchased and erected. The only one damaged was the “Beware Deep Water” sign. It was discussed whether we still need this and decided that there should be a smaller one. The previous one was quite large, and it was suggested that people have been pushing past to walk to Janet’s tearooms. A smaller one might avoid the problem and it was agreed to purchase one.
NH reported that the volunteers considered that the amount of dog waste and plastic bags has reduced significantly since the signs went up. JT reported on her session of emptying the dog bin.
11) To receive updates and review matter relating to dogs and dog exercise area.
No update on the extra dog bin.
The noticeboard for the exercise area is now up.
12) To discuss and agree permanent signage for gate times and the overflow car park area (BR)
The current signs for gate times are pretty flimsy and there needs to be a sign to indicate the overflow car park for events and at busy times. These were estimated to cost £150. It was agreed to purchase these.
13) To receive an update on the offer of a life size (roe deer) stag sculpture from a local resident. (BR) The sculptor posted a photo of the deer on Facebook this week. It is looking very good and should be ready before the picnic. The proposed location at the end of the main path into the wildflower meadow was discussed and agreed. It was also agreed that a concrete plinth was required to fix it to the ground at an estimated cost of around £20.
14) To receive a progress report on the Platinum Picnic and agree any actions accordingly.
JT reported that there had been a further meeting since that for which the minutes were circulated. The ukulele band and dancers have been arranged. A larger number of stalls will be included than last year. Elmoo ice cream is no longer coming but Eskimoo shakes are coming instead.
The toilets are booked. The details set out in the meeting notes were discussed and it was noted that the picnic format will be similar to last year but bigger and arrangements are moving along nicely.
15) To receive an update on the Platinum Jubilee Beacon on Cherry Fields (BR/AB)
AB reported that the beacon will now be lit at 9.45 pm, in line with government guidelines. This is later than we hoped, and concern was expressed that this will be too late for young children. The fire brigade have been informed. The DJ has since pulled out so there is no music at present. The event starts at 7.00pm so that leaves a lot of time to fill. It was suggested that Paul Wood might be able to help with a PA system, with music coming from a mobile phone. JT will discuss this with Paul Wood.
The bonfire will need to be surrounded by fencing for safety and more is being hired.
16) To consider an invitation to attend the “Grow, Gather and Graze Food Festival” on 28th August as part of the Gusto Community area and agree our response.
We received a cheque from Gusto Construction for the scramble trail and they would like to enable community groups such as ours to attend this festival.
NH says it will be held in Navenby and is about food, sustainable farming, and the environment.
He volunteered to attend and take some of the existing display material to show what has been achieved at Cherry Fields. It was also agreed that we should offer to give a short presentation if required.
JT said there were some table top display stands somewhere from the Twinning Group and these will be looked for. Members of the volunteer group will be invited as it should be an enjoyable day out.
17) To receive brief reports from members on actions/issues arising since last meeting and resolve actions required (if not itemised on agenda above and dealt with already):
a) Health and Safety (AG/NH/BR)
Nothing further
b) Grants (HM)
Nothing to report.
c) Ditch maintenance (AG)
Nothing to report.
d) Pond maintenance (NH/BR)
NH reported that the level of the lagoon has dropped significantly due to the lack of rain. If this continues, we will need to hire a pump and top it up from the drainage ditch. This was agreed.
e) General path/track and site maintenance (BR/NH)
Previously discussed.
f) Grass Cutting (NH/BR)
Cutting has started and the contractor is doing OK at the moment.
g) Woodland and Meadow Project (NH)
The Lincoln Naturalists Union have asked if they can hold a field study day at Cherry Fields. Their members are specialists in all types of flora and fauna. It is a feather in our cap that they have heard of Cherry Fields and think it worth holding their event here. It would enable us to discover what species can be found on site. This was welcomed.
h) Orchard
Some trees are not looking very healthy, mainly due to the lack of rain, although some were quite dry on arrival. The supplier is understood to have offered to replace any which die.
i) Dog exercise area and off lead strip
Cllr Bates had reported that some of the exercise jumps need repairing and it was agreed that they should be repainted. NH will have a look at this.
j) Bike Track (BR)
It was noted that BR is planning to upgrade some areas because of heavy use.
k) Car Park and Gate-opening and closing (BR)
The car park opening and closing team is working well
l) Oasis
AB and JT confirmed that the PC has discussed with Worth Unlimited about giving up their lease and then offering a new one to the YMCA. The current lease is not fit for purpose and a new lease could be improved and offered for 10 years, with a review at 5 years.
18) To agree the date of the next meeting. Tuesday 5th July at 7pm.
This is subject to amendment, and the membership of the committee may have changed by then.
*Additional documents available from the clerk