From our Reporter at the Parish Council Meeting
March: Novelties, Mutterings and Sticking-points
The meeting of the Parish Council on 10th March was the first I had attended
for several months; so I was not surprised to see faces unfamiliar to me The
Council has fairly recently acquired the services of Mr. Hart and Mr.
Kent-Phillips. But on this occasion we welcomed yet another newcomer: Mrs.
Sandra Gynn was present and officially welcomed by the chairman. Mrs. Gynn
comes from a background related to schools, teaching and education-committees.
Though the Parish Council has no responsibility for schooling, it is always
pleased and gratified to hear news and particularly successes of our local
schools: primary in the village, and also Bottisham Village College. Mrs. Gynn
will be able to make well-informed comment on such matters.
I was seated near the chairman and secretary, hoping that as by convention speakers Address the Chair, they would all turn their heads, when speaking, towards that end of the table, so there was a good chance that I would hear them - with the help of Loop and hearing-aid. But alas, none of them did. turn their heads. Instead, they muttered at their Agenda-Papers. I hope that the defects of this report will be charitably put down to the inaudibility of Mutterings-to-Agenda-papers. Early in the meeting, a lengthy muttered conversation took place between Mr Alderton of the ECDC and Mr. Glennon. I think it was about car-parking, where? and what did it cost? and long-term and short-term parking? It seemed to be about parking in Ely and Newmarket. So why it was the proper concern of Swaffham Prior Parish? I could not guess. But the Chairman must have thought it was, as he let it go on for a long time...
An important Date was announced early in the Meeting. On Tuesday May 18th, there will be the Annual Assembly of the village. Put the date in your diary now. It is your one chance this year of letting off steam, about the village hall drive-way, the dirty seats in the playground, the long grass in the churchyard, and any other of your favourite village horrors [Street lights? Eds.].
We got stuck for long time over estimates for renovation work on the Pound. There were two estimates, one of which was for (say) "Two coats of paint to the brickwork and repair for one course of bricks" and the other for (say) "Two coats of paint to the brickwork and repair for base of shed". After a long time, it struck the Council that they were being asked to compare chalk and cheese - impossible. So they postponed a decision and asked for another estimate; and perhaps they will specify, this time, precisely what they want - this, and no more.
It does not matter that we get held up for ages over one small item, because lots of other items go through on the nod. We dealt with Correspondence, Recreation Ground, Accounts and Planning Applications all in about 30 seconds. So although the Agenda looked a long one, we cleared it in only just over two hours. I wonder whether the Clerk and the Chairman look at the Agenda beforehand.
And ask themselves: "What will be the sticking-points THIS time?"