TH&C 2021 Minutes

TOWN HALL AND CEMETERY COMMITTEE

Minutes of the virtual meeting of Market Deeping Town Council’s Town Hall and Cemetery Committee held on Wednesday 17 March 2021 at 8.00 pm.  Cllr Miss Moran presided over Cllr Yarham, Cllr Broughton, Cllr Hembrow, Cllr Dolan, Cllr Shelton, Cllr Mrs Redshaw, Cllr Mrs Sked. The Town Clerk, the Deputy Town Clerk were also in attendance. 

85 Chairman’s Welcome

Cllr Miss Moran welcomed members to the meeting.

86 Apologies for absence

No apologies for absence had been received prior to the meeting.

87 To receive declarations of interest under the Localism Act 2011

There were no declarations of interest.

88 Minutes from meeting held on Wednesday 20th January 2021

It was proposed by Cllr Miss Moran, seconded by Cllr Yarham and RESOLVED unanimously to accept the minutes of the previous meeting as a true and accurate record and they were duly signed by the Deputy Clerk on behalf of the Chair. 

89 Clerk’s report

The Deputy Clerk informed the members of the following:

Matters relating to the Cemetery:

• As requested, letters and a copy of the cemetery policy had been sent to flat plaque grave owners requesting that vases and mementoes should not be placed on the plaques or on the grass area around the plaques. 
• Since the last meeting there had been 1 scattering of ashes in The Spinney, 1 interment of cremated remains and 1 burial.
• The Town Clerk and Deputy Clerk recently attended, via Zoom, a Cemetery Management Compliance training session. 

Matters relating to the Town Hall:

• As requested, the Listed Building Consent application for the replacement of the entrance door was submitted to the Planning Department which has since been returned requesting further details. 
• As requested at the last meeting three possible jewellers had been identified to clean and update the engraving to the Mayoral Chains.  As the shops are closed, due to the Covid pandemic, it has not been possible to obtain quotes and details at this stage.  

Dawson’s Jewellers, Stamford
J W D’Arcy, Peterborough
Hoppers Jewellers, Bourne

• The fire extinguishers at the Town Hall and Park keeper’s shed were inspected on 25 February 2021.  On inspection it was discovered that they did not meet the British standard and have now been replaced. 

90 Update on work activity taking place in the Cemeteries

• The park keepers would like permission to install posts along the grass verge running alongside the cemetery towards their shed, this is to prevent cars from driving on the grass.  The park keepers will be able to remove these if necessary.  The posts have been provided by a nearby resident. 
• The old and new cemetery lawns have been cut and general maintenance is ongoing.
• Commonwealth graves and graves under trees have been cleaned.

There were no other issues to report.

The request from the park keepers to install posts along the grass verge was approved by the Committee.

91 Correspondence received up to 17 March 2021

92 Finances: Omega reports: Review of budget/expenditure/income

The deputy clerk had presented a copy of the Omega report to all members prior to the meeting.  Cllr Miss Moran asked if there were any questions and there were none.  

Cemetery

93 Chairman’s Cemetery Report

Cllr Miss Moran had visited the cemetery and reported that it was looking lovely and well maintained as was the pond with a few ducks which had taken residency.  

94 For members to receive an update on the installation of the Sanctum facility

Cllr Miss Moran reported that the Sanctum had been installed and was looking lovely.  Cllr Miss Moran reported, at this stage there will just be the one sanctum as it contains 32 niches and each niche can hold 3 x 3.5 litre of cremated remains.   Cllr Miss Moran reported that there are spaces for two more Sanctums but this will be a few years away before additional Sanctums are required.  The resin is still to be completed and has been held up due to poor weather.  

The Deputy Clerk had presented a draft copy of the application for placement of ashes in the Sanctum to all members prior to the meeting.   The Committee agreed that placement of ashes in the Sanctum would be for residents of Market Deeping only.  Requests from non-residents of Market Deeping would be considered under special circumstances by the Town Hall and Cemetery Committee.  The Committee agreed that all plaques would be engraved in gilded gold.   It was proposed with 5 in favour and 3 against that a small posy container, provided by Columbaria would be optional at an additional charge.  Cllr Miss Moran agreed to consult with the local funeral director with regards to the casket size for the Sanctum.    

95 For members to review and approve the Spinney Policy

The Deputy Clerk had provided a copy of the updated Spinney Policy to all members prior to the meeting. It was proposed by Cllr Miss Moran and seconded by Cllr Broughton and RESOLVED unanimously to approve the updated Spinney Policy. 

96 For members to receive an update regarding the dog enforcement patrols

Following Full Council on 10 March it was agreed to commence the patrols in May and to also note that there would be a price increase in April which is yet to be determined by SKDC. 

Town Hall

97 For members to receive an update of issues raised in the commissioned Condition Survey Report on the Town Hall 

Cllr Hembrow had produced a tender document for remedial works to the Town Hall along with a list of local builders to be issued by the Clerks.  The Committee requested that a copy of the document should also be sent to the Conservation Officer at SKDC to seek their opinion and, if necessary, to arrange a meeting.  It was agreed that the identified works to the Town Hall should be submitted in one application.

In the absence of any further matters Cllr Miss Moran thanked everyone for their attendance and the meeting closed at 8.24pm. The next meeting of the Town Hall and Cemetery Committee will be held on Wednesday 19th May 2021.