Present: Cllrs. W. Allison, M. Beazley, C. Bryan, R. Gudgin, I. McEachran, A. Wilson, P. Wregg, & J. Wroughton (Chairman)
In Attendance: Clerk, Cllr. N. Clarke N.C.C. & 3 Public Members
Apologies Approved
- Cllr. M. Barlow – Work
Declarations of Interest & Confirmation of Agenda
- Declarations of Non-Pecuniary Interest Cllr. Wilson Agenda Item 5E, Cllr. Wroughton Agenda item 5f), Cllr. Wilson, Cllr. Wregg & Cllr. Clarke Agenda Item 10, Cllr. Wroughton & Cllr. Wilson Agenda Item 12b
The agenda was confirmed.
- Standing Orders were suspended at 7.05pm to allow the order of business to be amended to enable attendees to speak to the meeting.
Parishioners’ Question Time & Policing Report
No Parishioners Questions.
Crime Figures
There were 55 crimes in the Wiverton Group in May 2026. 35 in Cotgrave, 3 in Langar/Barnstone, 1 in Saxondale, 4 in Cropwell Butler and 11 in Cropwell Bishop.
- 6 – Burglary
- 2 – Antisocial Behaviour
- 1 – Criminal Damage & Arson
- 2 – Other Crimes
There were 58 crimes in the Wiverton Group in June 2026 – 45 in Cotgrave, 1 in Saxondale, 2 in Colston Bassett, 2 in Barnstone, 2 in Cropwell Butler and 6 in Cropwell Bishop.
- 3 – Violence & Sexual Offences
- 1 – Antisocial Behaviour
- 1 – Criminal Damage & Arson
- 1 – Other Crimes
- Standing Orders reinstated at 7.07pm
Minutes of the Previous Meeting
- Cllr. Bryan proposed the minutes of the Ordinary Parish Council Meeting on the 7th July 2026 were a true record, Cllr. Wilson seconded – all agreed
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “That the Parish Council meeting held on 7th July 2026 were confirmed as a true record and signed by the Chairman”.
Progress
- M.100 7/7/26 – RoSPA Safety Inspection – Swing Mixed Bay – Surface Issues
The Clerk asked Streetscape to come and inspect the surface as it was faulty and crumbling. Streetscape have inspected the surface and agreed to rectify the issues once the school holidays have finished.
- M.110 7/7/26 – Overhanging Growth on the Pavement
COMPLETE: The overgrowth has now been removed.
Planning Matters & Applications
- RBC Grant Permission 26/00676/FUL – Erection of 2 additional units and associated parking – Canalside Industrial Park, Kinoulton Road, Cropwell Bishop.
NOTED
- RBC Grant Permission 26/01032/LBC – Replace existing softwood timber windows and doors with bespoke hardwood timber and doors – 18 Fern Road, Cropwell Bishop.
NOTED
- RBC New Application 26/01242/FUL – Single storey side extension/garage. Erection of 2-metre-high fencing side and rear boundary. New front porch canopy roof. New drop kerb to front – 51 Cooper Close, Cropwell Bishop NG12 3BJ
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “No Objection.”
- RBC New Application 26/01317/FUL – Erection of a detached dwelling (self-build) with a detached garage/workshop, following demolition of existing dwelling and stable – 19 Colston Road, Cropwell Bishop NG12 3BJ
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “No Objection.”
Finance
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- Financial Statement up to 31st July 2026
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “To approve the financial statement.”
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- Financial Statement up to 27th August 2026
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “To approve the financial statement.”
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- Payments made July to 27th August 2026 and Awaiting September 2026
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “To approve all payments as reproduced on payments document 217”.
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- To Note Conclusion of External Audit & Dates of Notice of Public Rights
It Was Noted: Completed the Audit with the following comment: “We note the smaller authority did not comply with Regulation 15 of the Accounts and Audit Regulations 2015 as it failed to make proper provision during the year 2026/27 for the exercise of public rights, since the correct information was not published on the website. As a result, the smaller authority must answer “No” to Assertion 4 of the Annual Governance Statement for 2026/27 and ensure it makes proper provision for the exercise of public rights during 2027/28”.
The notice of public rights would commence on the 2nd September 2026. The Conclusion of Audit and Notice of Public Rights will be placed into the Notice Boards and on the Website.
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- To Consider E-Mail from Friends of School Requesting a Donation for a Space Frame at The School Play Area
The chairman advised that there were not enough funds in the Community Grant Fund to help, but the Clerk had advised she had checked with R.B.C. and we could offer funds from our CIL monies as it benefited the children of the village. Cllr. Wroughton proposed we pay £1,000 to the Friend of School towards the project from CIL monies, Cllr. Allison seconded – Cllr. Wilson abstained, all other councillors agreed.
It Was:
RESOLVED: “To pay Friends of School £1,000 from CIL Monies towards the Space Frame”.
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- To Consider Community Grant Request from CKOB Club – Public Liability Insurance
Cllr. Wregg proposed a £200 grant be issued to the CKOB Club for the insurance, Cllr. McEachran seconded – Cllrs. Wilson & Wroughton abstained, all other councillors agreed.
It Was:
RESOLVED: “To approve a community grant payment of £200 to CKOB for the insurance.”
Correspondence for Action
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- To Consider Attendance to Rushcliffe Annual Town and Parish Conference Thursday 15th October 2026.
The Clerk and Cllrs. Beazley, Bryan, Wilson, Wregg & Wroughton will all attend.
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- To Consider Attendance to NALC AGM on Wednesday 21st October at Calverton Village Hall
The Clerk & Cllr. Wroughton Will Attend. Cllr. Wroughton will be a voting delegate.
To Consider Consolidation/Change to Clerk Working Hours
- Cllr. Wroughton advised she had discussed the proposed changes of hours to Monday to Thursday 9.00am to 4.30pm with Friday off with the Clerk. The Clerk has advised that should anything urgent come up or events etc. dictate she needed to work a Friday she would do so and swap hours around. The Clerk would like the last working Friday to be the 18th September and will advertise the changes in the September Cropwell News and the village information pages. Cllr. McEachran proposed the change of hours, Cllr. Bryan seconded – all agreed.
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “To approve the change of Clerk working hours to 9.00am to 4.30pm Monday to Thursday with Friday off. The last working Friday being the 18th September.”
Update on Village Green Open Spaces Ball Games
- Notice had been served that the goal posts had to be removed by the end of August. As of the morning of the 1st September the goal posts had been removed.
Action: Some issues were raised with regards to chairs being left on the green for quite some time, Cllr. Gudgin was either going to speak to the residents and ask for them to be removed or advise the Clerk of the address so a request letter to remove them could be sent.
LGR – Date for Shadow Unitary Councils/Parish Council Elections
- Due to the recent Local Government Reorganisation decision, there will be Shadow Unitary Elections and Parish Council Elections on the 6th May 2027. The shadow council will be elected to run alongside the existing councils for 1 year.
Parish Council Elections will also take place, but this will mean that Parish Councillors are standing for a 5-year term. This is to bring things in line for the next elections which will be in 2032.
Parish Councillors will have to bare this in mind when they make their decision to stand in the elections or not. It would be helpful for the Clerk to know who does and does not wish to re-stand in January to assist in the election campaign process.
Cllr. Clarke advised that District Councils have put a proposal to Government for Ward Boundaries.
Cllr. Clarke has written to Government to express his concerns of the Ward Boundaries proposed by the City Councils as they are unworkable rurally.
The Memorial Hall
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- Update on The Memorial Hall
A report was put to the meeting from the Memorial Hall Chair (copy attached at the end of minutes).
Cllr. Wroughton advised that the Rabbit holes mentioned in the report had been filled in and that a quote is being awaited for the works on the hedgerows.
Cllr. Wregg thanked Cllrs. Bryan, Gudgin & McEachran for their help with the Chillin in The Park event. It was a successful run out for the Marquees and noted all risk assessments etc., had been completed for the Marquees.
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- The Launch Field
A report was produced by the Memorial Hall. (copy attached at the end of minutes).
Cllr. Wregg advised the Memorial Hall were looking at a rent review for TLF and considering putting the rent up from £15 to £17.50 per hour (increase from £30 per session to £35 per session). Cllr. Wregg had been asked to ask the Parish Council if the extra £5 could be retained by the Memorial Hall and not split with the rent share to the Parish Council.
Cllr. Gudgin advised TLF were worried about the rent increase and would potentially look to the parish council for some funding. The Clerk advised this would not be allowed by the Parish Council as TLF are a commercial business, therefore negating the Parish Councils ability to offer funding.
Cllr. Wroughton proposed the Parish Council would retain a full 50% of the rent share as the maintenance costs for the field etc., was also increasing, Cllr. Beazley seconded. 5 Councillors voted for the proposal, Cllrs. Wilson & Wregg abstained.
It Was:
RESOLVED: “The Parish Council would wish to retain 50% of the rent share”.
Village Ranger/Lengthsman Inspections
- The Ranger/Lengthsman has been busy clearing weeds and hay debris from the highways.
The Lengthsman has been attempting to make some decent edgings of grass on footpaths within the village.
A report has been done regarding blocked drains along Fern Road and Nottingham Road and reported to VIA for inspection. Cllr. Clarke followed this through with VIA on our behalf and the Clerk has received an email to say they are all going to be inspected. Some drains have already been marked for clearing.
The Ranger has been out and cut the grass within the village to remove the weeds and wispy grass that has been growing on the verges etc.
The Chairman reported The Lengthsman had an incident whilst grass cutting where a lorry chucked a stone up and it hit in the face just under his eye. It has been noted in the accident book; he had it checked at the GP and there was no serious damage.
The Ranger/Lengthsman is to wear his PPE whilst grass cutting. The Ranger/Lengthsman has goggles and a face protection mask already provided.
The Old School
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- Entertainments, Activities & User Update
Grease was cancelled in July due to poor ticket take up.
The September Film is The Devil Wears Prada 2.
Live music by the Graham Transfield Band will be performing on the 26th of September, October will host a Mountain Gorilla talk and December will host a winter quiz.
Films for October and November are to be decided as there are some licencing issues with the films they want to show.
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- CKOB Club Update
Cllr. Wroughton advised CKOB resumes on the 4th September with the new Year 6 intake.
Cllr. Wroughton is looking at being well equipped for supporting those with any special needs by ensuring the associated equipment is in place such as Epi pens etc.
Cllr. Wroughton will be arranging Safeguarding training for the regular volunteers and wishes to undertake further Safeguarding training herself as CKOB lead and the Parish Council Safeguarding lead. Cllr. Wroughton was advised that her Safeguarding training would be paid for by the Parish Council.
This year’s panto has been booked for the 10th December at the Curve Theatre in Leicester who are showing Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. The cost is £25 per child plus the bus, and they get 1 free adult place with every 10 children. The Christmas party will be on the 18th December.
Volunteers are required for every session Cllr. Wroughton will be doing requests for that.
Transport
- The Chairman wished to thank Cllr. Greenwood for his recent summary of when and where people can use the bus services for evening entertainment – a great summary.
Highways & Footpaths Defects/Issues
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- DMMO Mill Lane.
Standing Orders were suspended at 8.10pm to allow the order of business to be amended to enable attendees to speak to the meeting.
Jonathan Good spoke to the Parish Council about the DMMO order. To enable the DMMO order to proceed Jonathan Good must prove he has asked if anyone knows who owns the land. Therefore, was requesting the Parish Council answer to this question and send confirmation of this to N.C.C. DMMO department and to have it registered in the minutes. There had also been mention of the usage of the now co-op car park for access to residents to improve exiting onto Nottingham Road.
- Standing Orders reinstated at 8.17pm
The suggested Parish Council statement for sending to the DMMO office and be added to the minutes is:
“To the best of the Parish Councils knowledge, the Parish Council does not have any information regarding ownership or liability in respect of Mill Lane and has not been able to ascertain any information in this regard. Nor does it have any knowledge of any legal agreements or otherwise in respect of the frontage of the Co-op supermarket”
Cllr. Gudgin proposed the above statement to be sent to the DMMO and be retained in these minutes, Cllr. Bryan seconded – all agreed.
It Was Unanimously:
RESOLVED: “The statement to be sent and recorded is to the best of the Parish Councils knowledge, the Parish Council does not have any information regarding ownership or liability in respect of Mill Lane and has not been able to ascertain any information in this regard. Nor does it have any knowledge of any legal agreements or otherwise in respect of the frontage of the Co-op supermarket.”
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- Update on Sunken Road Surface Fern Road.
Repair works have taken place over the last 2 weeks in this area, however, there were some questions as to finish of the works and the potential success as the subbase had developed a hole before it was finished and after the finish surface has been applied there is still quite a significant dip in the road.
Action: Cllr. Clarke will report this back to N.C.C.
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- Update on Safety Signage for Pedestrians Crossing on Kinoulton Road
Cllr. Clarke advised he will follow this up with VIA.
- Cllr. Wroughton advised she has been speaking with Cllr. Clarke re the possibility of plateau ramps being installed on Nottingham Road to slow the traffic down, these seem to be successful in Radcliffe on Trent and in East Leake. Cllr. Clarke advise these were very expensive projects, but he would speak to Highways regarding any possibility.
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- Community Speed Watch
Cllr. Wregg advised that Cllr. Bryan had looked at the speed gun which required a new part that could possibly made with a 3D printer. Cllr. Wregg is going to investigate this possibility. A new gun may be required if the part cannot be made.
Cllr. Wregg advised that on Thursday August 13th James Naish and his assistant attended a session at 9am on Nottingham Road. 307 cars came through in an hour where 20 cars were recorded going over 36mph and 6 were dong over 45mph.
Action: It was requested that Cllr. Clarke find out the recent statistics from the Speed tubes placed on Nottingham Road.
The Environment/Biodiversity
- A report from the tree warden is attached.
We have once again been offered 6 free trees as part of the R.B.C. tree scheme. This has been sent to the Warden to see if she is aware of any sites suitable.
Councillors Reports
- Cllr. Wroughton advised that an afternoon tea took place in August for all the village garden volunteers. It was very well received and enjoyed. The garden volunteers wished to thank the Parish Council.
- Cllr. Wroughton asked for attendees to the September and October Saturday Cafés. September – Cllrs. McEachran, Wilson & Wroughton. October – Cllrs Beazley, Bryan & Wilson
- Cllr. Wroughton advised the Senior Citizens Christmas Luncheon would be on Wednesday 16th December 2026.
- Cllr. Wroughton asked all councillors to put an auto message on their old email addresses asking them to notify that the email address is no longer being used and signpost them to the new email address.
- Cllr. Wroughton advised that for email addresses 2 factor authentication must be put in place. Darrel Towndrow will attend the Old School at 6.15pm prior to the October Parish Council if Councillors can attend with laptops and phones to enable this to be set up for all users.
- Cllr. Allison advised that Cllr. Bryan and her attended the new vicar inauguration and it was a very good service.
Correspondence for Information
- There is no folder for circulation any information has been circulated via email through the month.
Date of Next Meeting
- 6th October 2026, 7.00pm Parish Council Meeting all at The Old School (6.15pm for Email Authenticator set up)
There being no further business the meeting closed at 8.47pm
Chairman’s Signature: ___________________________ | Date: _______________
Agenda Item 10a)
CMBH Chairman’s Monthly report July/August 2026
NEW BUILDING PROGRESS & FUNDRAISING
- Background work in terms of establishing the various elements that will be required for grant applications etc. continue to be set up, mainly driven by the never ending efforts of Pam Wregg and supported by some of the Committee.
- “Chillin’ in the Park” event held on Sat July 18th was successful in both fundraising and Village engagement with plenty of positive feedback, so a great BIG THANKS to all involved and especially to the three acts who played for free.
As this was a last minute, and one-off event, it meant that we had to set out our objectives very carefully and gamble on many elements including the weather. One benefit from this is that we have now seen potentially what works for us and will help in organising future events such as the Summer 2027 coming soon.
- As we come to the end of our Bric a Brac events the remaining items are to be taken to a third-party Car Boot sale where we hopefully can sell a good proportion of these. Any items not sold will be delivered to the Salvation Army and Dove Cottage Charity shops. Thanks to Bob and Mel Stanley for their work through the various Bric a Brac pushes and they will continue with “small items” for sale at the Saturday Cafe events.
- Obviously we can now focus on Christmas events and will be making sure that the Santa’s Sleigh run will be as successful as ever.
GENERAL
- We have had a Structural Survey carried out and await the full report and the good news is that there are no critical issues with the building, just the normal deterioration and movement expected in such a structure. This means that we can carry on using the Toilet and Kitchen facilities.
- Small amounts of maintenance are required including decoration to external doors which we have kindly had an offer from a resident decorator to carry out for us. We are still waiting for a quotation for more roof works which thankfully we haven’t required as yet, but no doubt will become an issue when the weather does eventually break.
- With regards to the Playing Field we have watched the grass gradually turning to a crisp and trust that it will recover eventually when we get some rain. There has been further rabbit activity on the field whereby starter holes are appearing which I cannot remember seeing in previous years, and so these need to be reviewed for repairs before they become hazards. The hedgerows along the newly fenced sections will require some cutting back to ensure that the grass cutting, when it is needed, can be taken as close to the fencing as practical.
- The top gates are becoming increasingly difficult to lock due to the movement of the support posts and so they will require addressing once the ground has settled back down.
PETANQUE
- The turnout for this activity has been very good considering on a couple of occasions we have had to cancel due to it being too hot. Our annual Christmas lunch has already been arranged and around 16 will attend. Takings for the Kitchen continue from this very social activity and some members have been volunteers on the main events.
J J Lacey 25/08/2026
Agenda Item 10b)
The Launch Field report July/August 2026
The Launch field ended their season early at the Memorial Hall on the 11th of July making way for Chillin in the Park on the 18th July, before the start of the school holidays.
Training resumes on Saturday 5th September.
The Launch field are arranging a promotion at the Village School and village Facebook pages with posters at the Memorial Hall and postings on our Facebook pages.
P Wregg 25th August 2026
Agenda Item 15a) Tree Warden Report
As the PC are aware, we now have a second tree warden on board (Sebastian Ellis). We both attended a tree identification course last month, which was held at Rushcliffe Country Park and organised by Rushcliffe Council. It was a really useful day which we both benefitted from. It was all about identifying trees when they are in leaf. We are hopeful that there will be a follow-on course later in the year about identifying them in winter.
Apart from that, my time has mainly been spent recording the trees in Cropwell Bishop. So far, I have surveyed around 70 of them, covering the area at the Cropwell Butler Road end of Hoe View as well as the ‘middle greens’. There are still plenty more to do!
I have noticed that several young trees on Cropwell Meadow have died. I’m not sure whether this is through lack of water or something else, but I guess it’s quite common that new build estates have these trees planted that then get neglected. I haven’t yet recorded what’s there, so will have a better idea of the state of things once I have done that, which will maybe give me something to feed back to the company responsible for the management of that estate.
That’s it for now Jan!
Cheers,
Gill
