Millom Without Parish Council

Millom Without Parish Council

Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting at The Hill Village Hall on 3 November 2025, commencing at 7.30pm.

Present

Cllr C Carrington (Chair), Cllr I Lockwood, Cllr B Wright, Cllr Bates, Cllr D Savage, Cllr V Pogrel, Cllr A Calsy, Cllr M Kitchingman.
Lesley Cooper, Clerk.

90/25 Apologies for Absence

None.

91/25 Exclusion of Press and Public

Press and Public are excluded from Agenda Item 17 – Closed Session (Human Resources Issues).

92/25 Declarations of Interest

None.

93/25 Minutes of the Parish Council Meeting Held on 6 October 2025

The minutes were signed by the Chair.

94/25 Police Liaison Report

Circulated.

95/25 Progress Report

Clerk’s Report:

• Chased the underpayment on the garage licence.
• Contacted the school regarding the proposed location for the last bench – no response; Clerk to continue chasing.

96/25 Public Participation

None.

97/25 Unitary Councillor Report

None.

98/25 Applications for Development

98/25.1 New Applications

4/25/2362/OF1 – Low Shaw Farm, The Green
Construction of a new 465sqm agricultural building to provide a covered slurry store.
Supported.

98/25.2 Ratification of Observations

None.

98/25.3 Decisions of the Planning Authority

None.

99/25 Financial Records

99/25.1 Payments Approved

• L Cooper – Clerk’s salary & expenses: £223.72
• HMRC – PAYE: £47.40
• L Cooper – Reimbursement (Annual Microsoft Plan): £84.99
• M Bates – Reimbursement (Pinnel Hole map fee): £28.51
• Kompan – Repairs to play area: £766.80
• Hill Village Hall – Room hire: £310.00
• Community Heartbeat – Annual support fee: £162.00

99/25.2 Receipts

None.

99/25.3 Bank Reconciliation

Statement dated 30 September 2025 checked and verified by Cllr Kitchingman.

99/25.4 Budget Comparison Report (as at 31 October 2025)

No action required.
Current Account: £21,902.24
Deposit Account: £12,108.93
Committed Reserves: £10,277.40
General Reserve: £12,652.05

99/25.5 Budget for Financial Year 2026/27

Resolved: Budget spend set at £14,737.44 for financial year 2026/27.

99/25.6 Precept for Financial Year 2026/27

Resolved: The precept will remain at £12,000 for financial year 2026/27.

100/25 Parish Matters

100/25.1 Community Plan

a) Audit of Assets
Action plan now on website. Cllr Carrington working on footpaths to Duddon Furnace. Pinnel Hole car parking: Cllrs Pogrel and Bates presented several options; a final paper to be submitted to the January meeting.

b) New Entrance to Play Area
Clerk to chase funding application; option to approach CGP.

100/25.2 Parish Projects

i) Active Transport
Cllr Calsy reported that an application to the GDF fund will be submitted in January.

ii) Lights
Clerk awaiting proforma invoice. Report required by the Parish Council as to why the unit failed.

iii) Duddon Iron Furnace
Cllr Carrington reported no response; has written to head office. Clerk to investigate the cost of a brown sign.

100/25.3 Policies, Procedures and Consultations

a) Play Inspection Report
Quote received from Kompan regarding issues raised – to proceed.

b) Proposed Mayor
Cllr Wright expressed concerns regarding the proposal for a mayor for Cumberland.

c) CALC Board Member
No nominations presented.

d) 2026 Meeting Dates
Dates presented by the Clerk – approved; venues booked.

100/25.4 Sub-Group Reports

a) Environment Group
Cllr Calsy reported that school children are planning up the old play area.

100/25.5 Councillor Vacancies

The Clerk reported that two expressions of interest had been received; awaiting formal applications.

101/25 Reports from Representatives on Outside Bodies

Copeland Community Partnership (GDF): Cllr Savage provided feedback from the last meeting. Meetings moving to bimonthly; next meeting 5 November (apologies to be sent).

102/25 Correspondence

None received that had not been previously circulated.

103/25 Councillor Matters

• Cllr Savage requested that the Millom Town Deal be placed on the January agenda.
• Cllr Savage reminded members of the Governance Review of the Ghyll Scaur Quarry Fund on 11 December.
• Cllr Savage requested that a copy of the Thwaites Village Hall agreement regarding the play park be forwarded to himself and Cllr Kitchingman.
• Cllr Savage asked that Development of the Website be placed on the January agenda.
• Cllr Savage requested that all copies of Out and About be placed on the website.
• Cllr Carrington requested that the website provider supply a simple guide to setting up emails on devices.

104/25 Date of Next Meeting

5 January 2026 at Thwaites Village Hall, commencing at 7.30pm.

Meeting Close

There being no other business, the meeting closed at 20:48.

105/25 Closed Session

Human Resources issues discussed. The Clerk’s contract and new pay scale were agreed.

Signed: C. Carrington
Date: 12 January 2026