Council Meeting – 14th January 2026

Minutes of the Meeting of Great Longstone Parish Council

held at 7.00pm on Wednesday 14^th January 2026

in Great Longstone Village Hall, DE45 1TB

Present: Cllr J Rigby (Chair), Cllr A Douglass, Cllr J Cox, Cllr P Barrett, Cllr Hornsey

In attendance:  Simon Headington (Clerk) and one member of the public.

1/26      Apologies for absence from members.
All members were present

2/26      Declarations of disclosable pecuniary interest relating to items on the agenda.
None

3/26      To approve minutes of the meeting held on 11^th November 2025.
Approved

4/26      Discussion of Confidential Matters: (Public Bodies (Admission to Meetings) Act 1960 S1(2)) – Council decided that no items in this meeting needed to be discussed with the public excluded

5/26      Report from Proper Officer to the Council

1. Emails to allotment holders about new tenancy agreements (see Item 6/26)
2. Housing Needs Survey (see Item 8/26)
3. Arranged safety inspection of Cherry Tree on Village Green (see Item 10/26)
4. Dealing with issues relating to Moor Road (See Item 12/26)
5. Arranging Carols on Xmas Eve (See Item 14.2/26)
6. Flooding in front of Village Hall (see Item 15/26)
7. Two Planning applications (see Item 17.3/26)
8. Worked on various policy updates (see Item 19/26)
9. Prepared draft plan for the Council for 2026/27 (see Item 20/26) and linked to draft budget (see item 21.4/26)
10. Submitted claim for reimbursable expenses to DDDC (See Item 24.2/26)
11. Made provisional bookings for Council meetings later in the year.

6/26      Allotments: The Clerk reported that all tenants and prospective tenants had been sent a draft copy of the updated tenancy agreement and there had been no negative feedback. The final versions will be sent once the plots have been measured.

7/26      Neighbourhood Plan Update from Cllr Douglass

1. Wed 21^st Jan – Evening workshop in the Village Hall covering Home and Community Energy projects. Open to all.
2. Sun 15^th Feb – Extended deadline for completion of the Community Survey. It was explained that a new round of publicity would be launched with paper copies of the survey forms, posters around the village and flyers for sending home through the school “book bags”. Council approved the expenditure on this printing, on the understanding that it should be reimbursed by PDNP.
3. Wed 25^th Feb – Evening meeting for the community with updates on the Housing and Community surveys

8/26      Housing Needs Survey: The interim report was shared with Councillors. A total of 93 responses of which 54 just answered the first question about opinions on additional housing with the community. The remaining 39 respondents completed the full survey.

The Council instructed the Clerk to accept the DDDC’s Housing Needs and Research Officer’s offer of a meeting to talk through the report and discuss the next steps regarding finding a suitable site.

9/26      Recreation Ground: Cllr Barrett reported that the new noticeboard for the Tennis Court was ready to be put-up when there was suitable weather.

10/26   Village Green: A resident had reported to the clerk a concern about a “bough” of the Cherry Tree that had a major split. The clerk arranged for it to be checked by a local tree surgeon who recommended that the volume of the tree be reduced by around 30%, which would make the tree safer and less likely to lose a branch. The Clerk was instructed to obtain another quote and then move forward with whichever represented best value.

11/26   Old Infant School Building: Following the recent unsuccessful planning application, to turn the building into a domestic residence, it is now being marketed for rent for community uses. The current planning “User Class” is F1 and a planning application would be needed for a change to something similar to the village hall (Class F2).

Cllr Douglass reported that there was interest in leasing the building for something along the lines of a “Men’s/Maker’s Shed”. A number of local residents have agreed to guarantee the rental costs for the first year, if the project is successfully launched. Arrangements are being made to view the property and to get more details of the terms that a lease will be offered under.

12/26    Camper Vans on Moor Road: The Clerk reported that the way in which this issue is dealt with will most likely depend whether the vans are parking on private land, or on sections of the highway. The clerk has been in contact with a representative of the landowner, but they are not interested in pursuing this. The next step is to liaise with the Highways Department at Derbyshire County Council. County Cllr Sutton has been approached, and he will try to find a contact within Highways that GLPC can speak to.

13/26   Highways:

13.1 Moor Road: The Clerk reported that a site meeting was held with County Councillor Sutton and concerns regarding overgrown verges and dangers from speeding cyclists meeting farm vehicles on narrow sections of the road were raised.
13.2 Gritting: The Clerk was authorised, in consultation with the Chair, to arrange for emergency gritting of roads during adverse weather. This is temporary authorisation until a full Scheme of Delegation has been put into place.

14/26   Christmas

14.1 Tree: This had been provided by Jim and Wendy Long. Putting up and decorating, and later removing, the tree was arranged by John Fawcett with help from others in the community. John reported afterwards that 2 of the light strings and a number of bulbs needed replacing. The Clerk was instructed to arrange the purchase of the necessary replacements and to send thanks to Mr & Mrs Long for providing the tree.

14.2 Xmas Eve Carols: The event, led by William Cole, was a great success. Thanks were due to Mr Cole for providing the sound system and leading the event, David Beale for arranging the music, Mad4Ink for donating the printing of the carols sheets and the councillors and community members who acted as safety wardens. A collection raised £353.99. Of this £70 was in electronic payments that the Council decided to donate to LEAP. The other £283.99 will be allocated to an appropriate project at a future date.

15/26   Village Hall: The Village Hall Management committee reported concerns about flooding across the parking area, to the Clerk. A drains survey confirmed that the issue was on the highway and the responsibility of DCC. The issue has been reported to Highways and raised with County Cllr Sutton.

16/26   Annual Parish Meeting on 29^th April: Plans for this meeting were discussed. The main objective will be to report back on the council’s activities over the past year, to layout the plans for the coming year and to solicit feedback and ideas for the future.

The Neighbourhood Plan Steering Group will be invited to provide feedback on progress, and the Thornhill House trustees are to be given the opportunity to provide an update on their proposals to move to a new site.

Other community organisations will be invited to give a very brief overview of their achievements during 2025 and plans for 2026/27.

17/26   Planning Applications

1. Recent – Decided/Withdrawn:
   • NP/DDD/1025/1015 at Gritstone House, Moor Road. Demolition, rebuild and extension of outbuilding to give habitable accommodation – Granted with conditions. Council noted that, according to the delegated report, “the property is within the centre of the village where there is ample unrestricted on-street parking”. Clerk instructed to write to PDNP to challenge this statement as it does not reflect the experience of many residents.
2. Recent – No decision made yet by PDNP:
   • NP/DDD/0725/0657 & NP/DDD/0725/0658 at Longstone Hall (multiple changes). No further updates.
3. Submitted dealt with between meetings
   • NP/DDD/1025/1083 – Little House, Main Street DE45 1TA – External and internal alterations to listed building. After consulting with Councillors no one requested that a meeting be held so PDNP was notified that the Parish Council did not wish to comment. – Granted with conditions.
   • NP/DDD/1225/1251 – 11 Edge View Drive – Permission for proposed rear ground floor extension and first floor side extension (over existing garage and porch) to dwelling. After consulting with Councillors no one requested that a meeting be held so PDNP was notified that the Parish Council did not wish to comment.
4. New, for consideration in meeting: None

18/26   Staffing Committee

1. Proposed terms of reference were approved.
2. The membership was confirmed as being Cllr Rigby, Cllr Douglass, Cllr Barrett and Cllr Hornsey. The chair will be elected at the first meeting.
3. It was proposed that the first meeting will be held on 29^th

19/26   Policies

1. Existing Policies for review and readoption
   • Code of Conduct (Localism Act 2011) – Approved
   • Website Accessibility Statement (Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018) – Approved
   • Website Privacy Policy (Data Protection Act 2018) – Approved
2. For Adoption
   • Reserves Policy (Local Government Finance Act 1992: Section 31A(2) and 49A allows for the precepting and management of reserves. Note that Parish Councils can only hold revenue reserves for working capital or specific earmarked purposes.) – Approved – Subject to adding in a Play Equipment Replacement Reserve.
   • Information Technology Policy: (Required by paragraph 1.54 of the Practitioners’ Guide 2025) – It was noted that this requires further review before it can be adopted. Cllr Hornsey agreed to review the NALC template document and make recommendations.
   • Risk Management Policy and Risk Register: To approve a Risk Management Policy and to update the Risk Register. – Approved – Subject to:
     • Some editing changes to remove duplicate words.
     • Addition of historic land contamination risk under Assets heading.
     • Increasing of “Risk Score After Control” as the Council does not yet have
       an Information Management Policy in place.
   • Equality Policy: To ensure that the Council meets its legal duties with regards to the Equality Act 2010. – Approved
3. For discussion
   • Biodiversity Policy (Section 40 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 as amended by Section 102 of the Environment Act 2021) – It was agreed to take up the offer of a resident to review this document.
4. For referral to Staffing Committee for decisions.
   • Dignity at Work Policy.
   • Health and Safety Policy: To meet requirements of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974. Whilst this is only a legal requirement if there are more than 5 staff, NALC recommend that all Councils have an appropriate policy and risk assessments.
   • Flexible working arrangements/ Homeworking Policy
   • Recruitment Policy,
   • Induction and Appraisal Arrangements,
   • Sickness absence policy,
   • Training and Development procedures,
   • Expenses policy

20/26  Parish Council Action Plan and Budget for 2026/27 – The action plan and budget were approved.

21/26   Finance

1. Bank reconciliations – as at 31st December 2025 the total cash available was £27,160.87. Balance was checked by a Councillor Hornsey against the bank statements and found to agree.
   At the November meeting Cllr Hornsey had noted that the interest rates being obtained by the council were quite low. The clerk was instructed to open a Savings account with Unity Trust Bank.
2. VAT Refund: A VAT refund claim, for £4,608.37, covering the periods 1 Jan to 31 Dec 2025, has been submitted.
3. Budget Review: Income and expenditure to end December 2025 was reviewed.
4. Draft Budget & Precept for 2026/27: The draft budget and precept for 2026/27 was reviewed and approved. The precept demand for 2026/27 is £23,835.
5. Payments made since last meeting

No	Item	Supplier	Net	VAT	Total	Notes
1.	Finance System Dec 25 & Jan 26)	Starboard Systems	£31.00	£6.20	£37.20	Per month
2.	Drains – Village Hall	County Drains	£150.00	£30.00	£180.00	Paid 10th Dec 2025
3.	Parish Online – Website and Email	Local Authority Technology CIC	£491.00	£98.20	£589.20	Paid 10th Dec 2025
4.	Emergency phone for Defibrillator	Community Heartbeat Ltd	£60.00	£12.00	£72.00	Paid 10th Dec 2025
5.	Drains mapping	Digdat Data	£23.67	£4.73	£28.40	Credit Card
6.	Recreation Ground Maintenance Jan to Mar	LASRA	£1,038.00	0.00	£1,038.00	Paid 2nd Jan 2026

These payments were noted and approved.

6. New payments

No	Item	Supplier	Net	VAT	Total	Notes
1.	Bank Charges (Jan & Feb 2026)	Unity Trust Bank	£6.00	£0.00	£6.00	per month
2.	Credit Card Fees (Jan & Feb 2026)	Lloyds Bank	£3.00	£0.00	£3.00	per month
3.	Finance System Feb & Mar 26)	Starboard Systems	£31.00	£6.20	£37.20	Per month

These new payments were noted and approved.

22/26   Items of Correspondence

1. 17^th Nov – Web archivist about electronic copies of old council minutes
2. 19^th Nov – Trek26 sponsored walk though Longstone 27^th June 2026
3. 23^rd Nov – Village Hall Management Committee about flooding in front of building
4. 27^th Nov – East Midlands Major Transport plan consultations
5. 28^th Nov – DDDC about Public Space Protection Orders 2025-28
6. 1^st Dec – Derbyshire Constabulary – Bakewell monthly update
7. 1^st Dec – Derbyshire Constabulary – Survey on priorities update
8. 10^th Dec – Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Survey
9. 16^th Dec – PDNP – Nature Futures Event on Sat 24^th Jan 2026
10. 18^th Dec – Resident about issues caused by resurfacing on Edge View Drive
11. 23^rd Dec – East Midlands CCA about changes to management of buses.
12. 28^th Dec – Resident about having a skip on Sunny Bank
13. 1^st Jan – Resident about having an allotment
14. 5^th Jan – DALC – Forum with Derbyshire Wildlife Trust about potential reintroduction of wild beavers in the County.
15. 6^th Jan – Derbyshire Fire & Rescue – Reminder about their consultation ending 25 Jan 2026.
16. 6^th Jan – Flood risk and resilience public drop-in events on 13^th Jan
17. 7^th Jan – DALC Newsletter for January
18. 7^th Jan – Peak Cluster Phase 1 Consultation

23/26    Items of Late Correspondence
1.    17^th Nov (missed from list on agenda). Email from a property owner with a copy of an email letter to Robinsons brewery.

24/26   Items from Councillors for information: A question was asked about a tree that had fallen across Hardrake Lane (footpath WD/42/17/3). Cllr Cox offered to clear it.

25/26   To note forthcoming meetings

1. Dates of future Parish Council meetings: (note additional mtgs added)

• Wed 11th Mar 2026
• Wed 13th May 2026
• Wed 8th July 2026
• Wed 9th September 2026
• Wed 11th November 2026

Noted

2. Date of 2026 Annual Parish Meeting
   29th April 2026 @7pm – Noted
3. Date of forthcoming Neighbourhood Open Evenings
   21st January 2026 @ 7pm and 25th February 2026 – Noted

The Chair closed the meeting at 9.03pm