Follow me @LindaDerrick1
Facebook Linda Derrick for Ridgeway East
14 November 2023
I have been on holiday for two weeks without access to my HPC e-mail account. So, I went into my account last weekend to find out what had happened in my absence.
The answer appears to be virtually nothing. So, if you want to know what is happening at HPC, you can stop reading here.
For those who are interested in what virtually nothing looks like – read on.
Recap
Just to remind you, the last scheduled meeting of HPC’s Full Council was on 19 September and it's not due to meet again until 21 November – a gap of 2 months.
There was also an Extraordinary meeting of Full Council on 26 September to discuss Ms Main’s unlawful proposals to sanction me (Ms Main was then a councillor but has since resigned.) Council remitted some of these proposals to its HR Committee.
The Environmental and Services Committee met on 9 October but no draft minutes are on HPC’s website or have been circulated to councillors. So, over a month later, I don’t know the outcome. It is not due to meet again until 11 December.
The Finance Committee’s meeting which was scheduled for 23 October did not take place and its next meeting is not until 18 December.
This means, amongst other things, that there will be a two-month delay in authorising payments to Council’s creditors. It also means that the Finance Committee will not be able to consider any of HPC’s pressing financial issues before they need to be decided by Council.
The Human Resources Committee met on 10 October. No-one has informed me about the outcome of the discussion on the proposals to sanction me.
Hughenden Parish Council has no Planning Committee – individual ward councillors can comment on planning applications, if and when they wish.
Just before I went on holiday, I submitted three motions to the locum Clerk for the November meeting.
The first was to reinstate the monthly meetings of the Council.
The second was to appoint a Clerk and a Responsible Financial Officer as both are working for the Council without being appointed by the Council as required by HPC’s Scheme of Delegation.
The third motion was to propose some (very basic) priorities for Council. These are: -
1. To recruit, induct and train staff and provide them with clear objectives and agreed workplans;
2. To provide prompt and effective burial and allotment services;
3. To meet statutory and compliance requirements, including commenting on planning applications and grass and hedge cutting;
4. To establish and maintain sound processes for receiving income and making payments;
5. To manage within budget supported by regular, clear accurate reporting;
6. To identify, assess and manage health and safety risks;
7. To review all outstanding decisions of Council and prioritise and plan their implementation;
8. To improve engagement with residents and encourage them to apply to be councillors.
I assume all three motions will be included on the November agenda of Council.
What’s been happening during my 2 weeks holiday?
It is against that background – and what I see as the Council’s priorities – that I opened my HPC e-mail account. And here’s what I found: -
(i) An e-mail from a resident saying my motion on priorities made sound and pragmatic sense, but of course it shouldn't be necessary for a member to do this;
(ii) 3 e-mails about laying wreaths for commemoration ceremonies in the parish;
(iii) 4 e-mails forwarded from the National Association of Local Councils about a) an event, b) the reappointment of its President, c) an analysis of Council tax levels, and d) NALC’s comments on Martyn’s Law;
(iv) 2 emails forwarding planning applications (neither in my ward);
(v) An e-mail forwarding an email from Bucks Association of Local Councils forwarding an e-mail from NALC about the Government’s legislative programme;
(vi) An e-mail forwarded from BALC setting out some of its training which is on offer;
(vii) A note of a meeting of the Streetlights Working Group. I was appointed to this WG but the meeting was arranged at time I was unable to attend. The note of the meeting says those attending agreed to close the Working Party down;
(viii) 2 e-mails about some streetlights where access is obstructed;
(ix) 3 e-mails about a walk on Christmas Eve; and
(x) An email forwarded from Bucks Council with an update for town and parish councils.
I think it is fair to say that, over the 2 weeks I was away, either:-
- nothing of any substance was done; or
- considerable work was done but not communicated to councillors; or
- considerable work was done but was not communicated to me.
You can take your choice.
Since my return
So, what have I done since my return? Well not a lot really because as you can see not a lot seems to be going on.
I read the draft minutes of the Full Council meeting on 19 September which were put on HPC’s website sometime during my holiday. They were put on-line without circulating to councillors beforehand for comment (which has previously been HPC’s normal practice).
This was a pity as I think they are inaccurate including:-
- inaccurately recording the way I voted,
- the inclusion of a motion which I don’t think was proposed and
- no record of the departures of councillors at the end of the meeting nor a record of when the meeting became inquorate.
I also wrote to the Clerk seeking his advice on whether I could use HPC’s Complaints Procedures to complain about the way in which the Council has handled Ms Main’s unlawful proposals to sanction me and about the Council’s decision to put an untrue and defamatory statement about me on its website.
The alternative is for me to sue the Council – or for the Council to simply take the statement down and apologise.
I have offered, in exchange for the latter course of action, to be open to be persuaded to replace Ms Main as the deputy Chair of HPC. I am not holding my breath.
I have also written to residents to explain why I think there is little chance of Hughenden Parish Council preparing a Neighbourhood Plan for Hughenden as Hazlemere Parish Council is doing for Hazlemere. Hazlemere’s draft Neighbourhood Plan gives some protection to Ladies Mile at Four Ashes, but I remain concerned about the lack of any management plan for Cookshoot Wood which is threatened by development.
I have no idea why HPC is paying a consultant to develop a management plan for Burnham Meadow and Spinney – but apparently doing nothing about Cockshoot Wood.