FRM(22)M03
FINANCE, EMPLOYMENT AND RISK MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE
Minutes of the meeting of Melton Parish Council Finance, Employment and Risk Management (FERM) Committee held on Wednesday 20th July 2022, commencing at 19:00 at 17 Riduna Park, Station Road, Melton IP12 1QT.
Present:
Cllr Gradwell (in the Chair)
Cllr Brown
Cllr Porter
Cllr Taylor
Cllr Packard
In Attendance:
P Alder Clerk and Executive Officer to Melton Parish Council
Cllr Banks (by video call)
Agenda – Part One of Two – Open to the Public
Item No Item to be discussed
22.23 Election of Chair and Vice Chair of FERM
It was RESOLVED that Cllr Banks be elected Chair of FERM Committee.
Proposed by: Cllr Porter Seconded by: Cllr Taylor
It was RESOLVED that Cllr Gradwell be elected Vice-Chair of FERM Committee.
Proposed by: Cllr Brown Seconded by: Cllr Packard
22.24 To receive apologies for absence
Apologies were received from Cllr Banks, who attended via video call.
22.25 Declarations of Interest
22.25.01 To receive Amendments to the Register
There were none
22.25.02 To receive Declarations of Pecuniary Interest in Respect of Items on the Agenda
There were none
22.25.03 To receive Declarations of Non-Pecuniary Interest in Respect of Items on the Agenda
There were none
22.25.04 To consider Full / Partial Dispensations for Pecuniary Interests Declared
There were none
22.26 Public Participation Session
No members of the public were present.
22.27 To approve the Minutes of the Previous Meeting
It was RESOLVED to agree the minutes of the FERM Committee held on 13th April 2022 (FRM(22)M02) previously distributed).
Proposed by: Cllr Brown Seconded by: Cllr Porter
22.28 To review Terms of Reference of FERM Committee and make recommendations to Full Council
The terms of reference were reviewed (https://melton-suffolk-pc.gov.uk/documents/terms-of-reference/) and no changes were proposed.
Proposed by: Cllr Brown Seconded by: Cllr Taylor
22.29 To consider Financial and Internal Control matters
22.29.01 To consider the Management Accounts for the period 1 April 2022 to 30 June 2022 and the current budget position
Papers FRM(22)29.01 and FRM(22)29.01a-f previously distributed were received and noted. The bank statement were checked, verified and signed by the Chair. It was acknowledged that the quality of reports was very good and there could be additional useful reports that can be produced by Scribe. We are running on a very tight budget and with inflation running at 9.5% it needs to be monitored very closely. This will be a consideration for Budget Working Group in November.
22.29.02 To review the CIL and EMR Projects
Papers FRM(22)29.02 and FRM(22)29.02a previously distributed were received and noted .Cllr Gradwell asked if an additional notes column could be added to the EMR table to track when additional funds or changes had been made to the EMRs.
22.29.03 To consider the appointment of the Internal Auditor for 2022/23
Following discussion it was RESOLVED to appoint Mr Trevor Brown as the Council’s Internal Auditor for 2022/23.
Proposed by: Cllr Porter Seconded by: Cllr Taylor
22.29.04 To consider the draft revised and updated Melton Parish Council Business Plan
Paper FRM(22)29.04 previously distributed was discussed. All the proposed changes were accepted and additional changes were requested:
P3 add landowners and residents to first paragraph and include reference to the Jubilee Green in the penultimate paragraph.
P5 update the population figures with 2021 census (4,216) and remove the number of households figure.
P6 insert additional bullet point regrading making representations for the community eg SZC
P11 Change ‘this month’ to ‘in July 2022’
P13 Change the order of the first paragraph so it starts with an explanation of how the Council sets the Precept. Replace working families with households. Add in a section about the Environment. Add a reference to the Neighbourhood Plan refresh in the P&T objectives paragraph.
P14 change or to for in last sentence of second paragraph
These changes will be made and the updated tracked version will be taken to Full Council in September for approval. The concept of an Emergency Plan for the village was also discussed. The Clerk will follow up with Cllr Taylor and Cllr James.
22.29.05 Fete Financial Report
Paper FRM(22)29.05 previously distributed was discussed. It was RESOLVED to give £200 each to the Primary School, Burness Parish Rooms and St Andrew’s Church. Cllr Porter will invite representatives to the opening ceremony in October. £700 will be used as a seed fund for the 2023 fete and the remainder (£1,185.96) will be placed in a new Pavilion Kit Out EMR.
Proposed by: Cllr Packard Seconded by: Cllr Brown
22.29.06 Bank Accounts
The Clerk reported that £70k has been moved from Barclays into Lloyds, which takes it to the FSCS threshold of £85k and reduces the liability with Barclays, as recommended by the internal audit. Once the road crossings, Winifred Fison and Pavilion projects have finished and payments made, a decision will be taken about closing the Barclays accounts and spreading the remaining funds between the Lloyds and Suffolk Building Society accounts. An additional account with another provider might be considered but this might not be required and could cause additional work for the office. The Asst Clerk has been added to the Lloyds accounts and is able to access online banking.
22.30 To review risk management issues
22.30.01 Risk Register
The Risk Register was reviewed https://melton-suffolk-pc.gov.uk/documents-base/risk-register/ It was decided to keep the Pavilion project risk rating as low as the project is back on track and running on budget. It was AGREED to add a new risk item relating to the Pavilion and the associated risks with running costs, vandalism etc. The Clerk raised a new risk of Councillors being away simultaneously which meant that payments could not be second authorised if they did not have internet access and decisions could be delayed. It was AGREED to update the Financial Regs that in emergencies the Clerk and Assistant Clerk could authorise and second authorise a payment and report any such incidents at the next Full Council/FERM meeting. Councillors are asked to share their holiday dates with the office so they can try to mitigate any such further incidents.
Proposed by: Cllr Porter Seconded by: Cllr Packard
22.31 Pavilion Update
The Committee received an update on the Pavilion project (paper FRM(22)31). The Clerk explained that although the project had slipped due to delays with the roof it was now back on track as the time allocated for plastering has been condensed. The Topping Out ceremony took place on the 14th July and there was an article in the EADT. It was AGREED that para 12 of the Hire Agreement should be updated to replace ‘assistance dogs’ with ‘assistance animals’ and it would be sent to our solicitors to be formally reviewed.
Proposed by: Cllr Brown Seconded by: Cllr Packard
22.32 To consider employment matters
22.32.01 Staffing report
The Clerk reported that the Asst Clerk is taking on responsibility for the Recreation Committee and Cllr Gradwell reported that the Clerk’s appraisal had been carried out.
22.33 To consider governance matters
22.33.01 Report of decisions made by Clerk/Assistant Clerk under the Openness of Local Government Bodies Regulations 2014
Paper FRM(22)33.01 detailing decisions taken relating to change of water supplier, electricity supplier at the Pavilion and repair of wetpour at Beresford Drive playpark was received and noted.
22.34 Finance Committee Chair’s urgent business
There was none
Date of next meeting
The next meeting will take place on Wednesday 12th October 2022, commencing at 19:00 at 17 Riduna Park, Station Road, Melton IP12 1QT. It was noted that Cllrs Porter and Brown will not be able to attend. Following consideration of the confidential items the meeting closed at 20:23.
