Finance & Staffing Committee
Minutes of the Myland Community Council Finance & Staffing Committee Meeting held on Thursday 7th January 2016, 7.30pm @ Myland Community Council Office, 101 Nayland Road, Colchester, CO4 5EN
Present: Cllr Pete Hewitt (Chair)
Cllr Richard Beauchamp
Cllr Jean Dickinson
Cllr Carolyne Hurst
Cllr Ciarán McGonagle
There was one member of the public present.
047-15/16 Apologies – Cllr John Sutcliffe.
048-15/16 Declarations of Interest – There were none.
049-15/16 Have your say
Mrs White apologised for not attending the previous meeting. She queried what the £2,000 under Item 53 would cover. The Chairman said details would be discussed when that item was reached on the agenda but reassured Mrs White that the three quotes received were all from reputable local Quantity Surveying firms.
050-15/16 Minutes of the meeting held on 3rd December 2015 to be approved as a true record and signed by the Chairman
The minutes of the meeting of the F&S Committee held on the 3rd December 2015 were approved as a true record and signed by the chairman.
Proposed: Cllr Hurst Seconded: Cllr Beauchamp (4 For; 1 Abstention)
051-15/16 Update on progress of resolutions made at the last meeting
The Clerk referred to Item 044-15/16 regarding the Budget/Precept 2016-17 and said it had gone to full Council on 9th December 2015 where it had been agreed. She said the relevant form had been completed and returned to Colchester Borough Council. Confirmation of receipt had been received 11th December 2015.
The Chairman said Item 43-15/16 would be covered under Item 53 on the agenda and Item 043A-15/16 would be revisited towards the end of the financial year.
052-15/16 Report from Responsible Financial Officer
- Budget monitoring
| Budget £ | Ear Marked £ | Total Actuals £ | Variance £ | |
| Total Income | 101,988.00 | 99,703.65 | 2,284.35 | |
| Staff Costs | 50,000.00 | 0.00 | 35,529.81 | 14,470.19 |
| Loan | 12,338.00 | 0.00 | 12,338.32 | – 0.32 |
| Building & Mtce | 4,000.00 | 0.00 | 2,263.27 | 1,736.73 |
| Office Equipment | 3,000.00 | 0.00 | 1,430.40 | 1,569.60 |
| Mylander | 12,000.00 | 0.00 | 7,754.00 | 4,246.00 |
| Street furniture & Mtce | 0.00 | 2,905.00 | 951.06 | 1,953.94 |
| Meetings | 550.00 | 0.00 | 328.48 | 221.52 |
| Training courses | 1,100.00 | 0.00 | 327.20 | 772.80 |
| Fees & Subscriptions | 2,500.00 | 0.00 | 2,240.03 | 259.97 |
| Community funding | 2,000.00 | 2,000.00 | 1,813.12 | 2,186.88 |
| Other Costs | 4,000.00 | 0.00 | 61.00 | 3,939.00 |
| Contingency Fund | 500.00 | 2,000.00 | 320.00 | 2,180.00 |
| Projects Fund | 10,000.00 | 15,000.00 | 562.00 | 24,438.00 |
| Expenditure Total (Ex VAT) | 101,988.00 | 21,905.00 | 65,918.69 | 57,974.31 |
- Mylander Advertising income
| Mylander | Income £ 2015/16 | Expenditure £ 2015/16 | Outstanding £ | Written off £ |
| 4,170.00 | 7,754.00 | 1,270.00 | 305.00 |
The RFO said the outstanding amount included £1,200 for four issues from Woodland View plus £70 from M&K Gardens – both of whom had been chased for payment.
- Neighbourhood Plan Grant
The RFO said there was no change to the amount left of the Neighbourhood Grant. Summary below:
| Original Grant Total | £20,000.00 |
| Grant Remaining | £13,961.13 |
- Community Centre Account
The RFO said 64p interest had been received in the Community Centre Account:
| Date | Payment From | Amount £ |
| 7th December 2015 | Barclays – Interest | 00.64 |
| TOTAL | 6,238.64 |
053-15/16 To consider and possibly resolve to appoint a local Quantity Surveying practice to provide QS evaluation of the Community Centres report to be submitted to full Council on 27th January 2016. Cost maximum £2,000 – Cllr Dickinson
A proposal to amend the maximum cost to £1,000, with the proviso that any expenditure over £500 would be endorsed by all members, was proposed by Cllr Hewitt, seconded by Cllr Hurst and agreed unanimously.
To consider and possibly resolve to appoint a local Quantity Surveying practice to provide QS evaluation of the Community Centres report to be submitted to full Council on 27th January 2016. Cost maximum £1,000. (Any expenditure over £500 to be endorsed by all members).
Proposed: Cllr Dickinson Seconded: Cllr Beauchamp (Unanimous)
054-15/16 If 053-15/16 is resolved, to consider and possibly resolve which local Quantity Surveying practice to appoint to provide QS evaluation of the Community Centres report – Cllr Dickinson
Cllr Dickinson proposed that Daniel Connal Partnership be appointed as their quote had been the most competitive at £500 for the 20 hours work proposed.
Proposed: Cllr Dickinson Seconded: Cllr Beauchamp (Unanimous)
055-15/16 To discuss establishing an Award Programme for Myland residents who are: under 18 and have demonstrated a positive contribution to their local community – Cllr McGonagle
Cllr McGonagle said he wanted to try to engage with younger members of the Parish and generate some positive PR for MCC. He said his idea was to reward younger people for work they did in the Parish, whether they are already involved or to prompt them to do more or get involved. He said he was thinking about a £50 award.
Cllr Hurst said the Myland Order of Merit already existed and an article would appear in the next Mylander asking for nominations – recognition for people who contribute to the Parish – with the presentation to be at the Annual Community Meeting in May. She suggested that the youth award could be aligned with the Order of Merit. She agreed that it would be something positive that MCC could do.
Cllr Hewitt said he liked the idea and was fully supportive of the idea and that extending the Order of Merit could be the way forward. Cllr Hurst suggested that the award could be in the form of vouchers which should also be extended to the recipient(s) of the Order of Merit. Cllr Beauchamp said he was essentially in agreement although he felt that for older people a cash reward did not seem appropriate.
Cllr Dickinson suggested Cllr McGonagle contact Rev Ray Gibbs for contacts involved in youth organisations. The Clerk suggested that as a follow on perhaps Cllr McGonagle could consider the formation of a Youth Council, which had been suggested some years ago, although this may involve getting DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checks. Mrs White suggested contacting the police for advice regarding working with young people.
Cllr Hurst said she thought both awards should be treated the same, with the same reward. Cllr Beauchamp said recipients could be given the opportunity to donate any reward to charity.
Cllr McGonagle asked what his next steps should be. The Clerk said he needed to produce a paper to go to full Council to agree the establishment of the award. She suggested he work with Cllr Hurst to align with the Myland Order of Merit.
056-15/16 Date of next meeting – 3rd March 2016, 7.30pm @ 101 Nayland Road
The meeting closed at 8.05pm
Cllr Pete Hewitt …………………………………………………..
Chairman
Exclusion of Press & Public – Having regard to the confidential nature of the following business proposed to be transacted to exclude the Press and Public pursuant to Section 1 of the Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960
057-15/16 To discuss any staffing issues
Staffing was discussed.
The meeting closed at 8.15pm