The Chairman welcomed Mr. Joe Utting to the Meeting.
Apologies were received from absentees, the minutes of the meeting 9th February 2005 were approved and signed.
The meeting adjourned for public participation.
In the absence of police representation, the Chairman read out the police report for the month of February. There had been 20 recorded crimes, the breakdown was 4 Theft, 3 assaults, 1 theft from a motor vehicle, 1 possession of an offensive weapon, 6 criminal damage, 2 burglaries and 3 domestic incidents. The report also mentioned that the Police had contacted Suffolk County Council about the parking in and around the entrance to the car boot sale in Whites Lane and in the vicinity of the junction with High Street. The police will now be issuing fixed penalty tickets for the vehicles that park on the grass verges where double yellow lines are in existence. There will also be the placement of clearway signs for the roundabout area on the A12 and once they are in place fixed penalty tickets will issued there as well. With regards to the problem highlighted by the Parish Council of parking at the bottom of Field Lane with its junction of Wash Lane, the police stated that they do not consider this to be dangerous, they stated that if anything the traffic is slowed down considerably thus reducing the danger of speeding vehicles to the large amount of children playing and congregating in this area outside their homes. Those councillors present stated that they would not be accepting these comments and would be taking the issue further with the police.
Apologies for absence were received from Suffolk County Councillor Tony Andrews and District Councillor Jamie Starling, there were no reports.
Mr Joe Utting then informed Councillors present that when the new arrangements are put forward at the next Annual General Meeting of the Community Centre, and a new lease is drawn up between the Parish Council and the new combined charity, as an existing Trustee of the Playing Field he would be standing down to make way for somebody younger and therefore he would like his name removed from the lease. There then followed a short discussion on the Community Centre.
When the meeting reopened, the Chairman gave his report , which included a report on his attendance at the newly re-formed Parish Team, an update on the newsletter and comments received from the previous months edition, a reminder to Councillors of the public meeting about the library/community complex on the 10th March. There was also an update on the James Paget Hospital Link and the Church Road Play Area and Car Park.
The Chairman then gave a report on the site meeting that he and the Vice-Chair Councillor Purkis attended on the 1st March at the Parish Councils Nature Reserve site in Marsh Lane. Those present were Dorothy Casey ( Suffolk Wildlife Trust Conservation Manager) and other representatives of the Community who had an interest in the site and the adjoining reed bed. Mrs Casey said at the conclusion of the meeting she would forward a copy of her report to the Council, her intention being to make the site a County Wildlife site.
Vice-Chairman Councillor Purkis reported on the latest position regarding the acquisition of seating from Block Engineering.
The Clerks report included informing those present that the Annual Parish meeting will be on the 27th April and that the guest speaker would be Janet John from Citizens Advice Bureau.
Amongst the correspondence to be dealt with was a consultation document from the Standards Board about reviewing the Codes of Conduct. Those present were handed a questionnaire to be completed and returned by June 05, when a response would have to be made.
Amongst the financial issues discussed was the provision of funding for the First Aid/First Responders Group. This group, formed after Councillor Purkis had brought the subject to the attention of the Parish Plan Steering Group and it had been included in the Parish Plan, were now at the stage where they had the volunteers and they wished to get started. There would be a cost involved in the first aid training part of the project, the ambulance service would take over the training once people had attained the qualifications. The Chairman proposed and it was seconded and approved that the Parish Council would give £500 to the project for those Kessingland volunteers to be given initial training. Anybody from outside the village who wishes to join the classes would have to pay for their own training.
After receiving reports from those Committee representatives present at the meeting, the meeting closed at 9pm.