HACKLETON PARISH MINUTES OF THE ANNUAL PARISH MEETING HELD AT 7.00 pm ON TUESDAY 7th APRIL 2014 IN THE ANNEXE OF HACKLETON VILLAGE HALL. Attendance: 31 members of the public. Chairman Edward Kilpin chaired the meeting.

APPOINTMENT OF THE MINUTES CLERK The Parish Clerk was appointed by the meeting. APOLOGIES: Rev Beverley Hollins, Cllr P Heap, Cllr Harris, Headteacher Andrea Revens & Mrs Joanne Wilde APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING Approval of the minutes of the meeting held on Tuesday 1st April 2014 were proposed by Cllr Ward, seconded by Cllr Peterkin and approved by the meeting. Adam Simmonds, Police Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire Following a request from a number of local farmers Mr Adam Simmonds attended the meeting to discuss rural crime. The Chairman welcomed Mr Simmonds to the meeting. Mr Simmonds gave a high level view of his role which was created in 2012. He stated he wants Northamptonshire to be the safest place to live in England and that he wants to reduce violence, rural crime and maintain police officer numbers at 1220. Mr Simmonds advised the meeting that he has set a target of recruiting 1000 special constables which are volunteers. The role is similar to that of a “Parish Bobby” and the Special Constable will only be located in the Parish they live in and be tasked by the Parish Council. Anyone interested can register on the police website. Mr Simmonds said he would like to understand local issues and invited questions from the audience. Mr Jamie Whatton advised Mr Simmonds of a theft he had had on his farm and would like to know if there is any police presence in the village. He stated he had only had one visit to the farm by police in twenty years and crime is going up and it’s organised crime. He also asked if there had been any arrests relating to local crime. Mr Simmonds said there is a police presence in the Parish but recruiting a Parish Special Constable will help solve the problem of visible policing. He also advised the meeting of the Horse Watch programme. Mr Simmonds said there is a lack of reporting back to communities particularly regarding arrests and he will take this on board. He said he realises that a letter from victim support is not what victims of rural crime want to receive; they want their tractor back! Mr Simmonds stated is very important to report all crime. Inspector Tim Pearson introduced himself and advised the meeting that he is the Parishes’ local inspector and has been in post for two days. He said a lot of work does happen behind the scenes and many offences are organised crime. Inspector Pearson said it is a misconception that crime is on the increase but stated that doesn’t make Anyone feel any better when someone has been victimised. He advised of a few shed break ins in a nearby village and to keep tools out of vans. Inspector Pearson said there were 24 crimes in this area last year. Mr Mark Arrowsmith said that reported crimes seems to get lost in a system and there doesn’t seem to be a trace to link it all together. Inspector Tim Pearson answered by saying police officers should be aware of local crime and should be sharing this information. He explained that the IT systems are in place and it should be being used; Inspector Pearson said he will be looking to see if this process can be tightened up. Mr Arrowsmith asked if there have been any arrests following the haul of farming equipment that has recently been found.Mr Simmonds said that yes there have been arrests and they could be linked to local crimes within Hackleton Parish; the investigation is still going on. Cllr Ward said Farm Watch petered out as the police control room never seemed to be aware of who they were when they rang in. Mr Simmonds reiterated that the recruiting of the Special Parish Constables would solve that problem and that they could also be attached to a Speed Watch. District Councillor Bob Atkinson said last November a leaflet was issued regarding a taxation consultation he asked what the outcome of this consultation was? Mr Simmonds answered by saying the response from the consultation was that people are happy to pay more for policing and therefore he had raised council tax by 7p per person. This money is ring fenced for victims of crime and a new organisation called Voice has been created. Mr Simmonds said the organisation is purely for the victims of crime and replaces Victim Support and it also includes support for children and young people and those victims of road accidents. The telephone number for Voice 03003031965.

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 Phil Renshaw from Neighbourhood Watch asked what value Mr Simmonds places on this organisation. Mr Simmonds said he is a proud supporter of Neighbourhood Watch and stated it brings enormous value to local communities and is a crucial part of stopping crime. Mr Renshaw asked what the force is doing to look at road safety with drivers whose sight is deteriorating. Mr Simmonds said he is planning a large campaign which is encouraging people to re-sit their driving test. Part of this campaign is targeting the over 65s and Mr Simmonds is lobbying the government to make some changes in this regard. Mrs Jane Ward said the road safety in rural areas is at risk due to the lack of mowed verges. Mr Simmonds said he is working very closely with Highways. Cllr Peterkin said certain groups of drivers will never change their habits unless they are punished more. He advised of speeding on the A45 and of the frequent jumping of red lights at the Queen Eleanor roundabout. Mr Simmonds said there are an extraordinary number of people being fined at this moment and he is looking at purchasing a new mobile average speed camera and will be increasing enforcement. He said we need a different tactic to encourage people to slow down. The law needs to be upheld and enforced. Parish Council Chairman’s report as written by Edward Kilpin BEM One of the things I have tried to do since becoming Chairman is to make sure we approach everything as professionally as possible If money has been spent to achieve this then I consider this is money well spent. One of my pet subjects is to make the appearance more welcoming for both residents and those visiting or passing through our parish and this theme goes all the way through my report. One of the areas letting us down has been the state of many of the bench seats around the Parish. As some of you will have noticed new benches have replaced some of our old benches. Very soon the Punch Tree in Horton will be surrounded by a bench. (This particular matter has been the subject of many discussions over the past two years.) Following the purchase of extra land for the Cemetery new railings were erected on the south and west side. The existing railings have been removed and are undergoing repairs and will then be erected around the perimeter. This will complete the boundary fencing. Our thanks go to Phil for all his hard work in the cemetery keeping it mown and for being available when needed. Phil has decided it is time to hang up his mower and his position has been taken over by Joe Stuart. In addition to the Cemetery the Parish Council maintains the Churchyard. When we took over responsibility parts of the stone wall had collapsed and needed a considerable amount of work doing to it. This had been done by the Community payback team. I am sure we all appreciate that the churchyard now looks the best it has looked for quite a few years with our contractor doing an excellent job in cutting the grass. Some work has been done on the War Memorial and it is our intention to do more and to complete this before the celebrations commemorating the centenary of the end of World War One in 2018. Thank you to Peter Elliott who succeeds in providing care and colour throughout the year. Your Councillors have discussed Street Lighting on a number of occasions and have recently commissioned the replacement of all non-new Street lights. Some of the existing fittings are unsafe and most have served the community well for many years. This work will be done in three phases with the first phase starting shortly. The total cost is in excess of £37,000. We took the decision to try to make our villages more welcoming and one of the ways of doing this was to position troughs in certain places and ask for volunteers to fill them with flowers. Thank you to those who offered and hope that they will continue to brighten up the entrances to our Parish. Claire, our grounds person, is seen around the villages in all weathers picking up litter and generally keeping the paths and verges clear. She has also become very adept with moles who must by now realise their hills are being regularly flattened! We have a contract with Weedwise to cut the grass in the village Playing Field together with the Recreation Ground. The staff from Weedwise also cut many other areas, particularly in Hackleton at no extra cost and we are grateful to Will Pinnock for allowing this to happen. It greatly enhances the verges of the main road and adds to the visual effect of those passing through and gives a feeling of community pride. Thank you also to those local residents who take on additional mowing throughout the Parish. As Chairman, my one regret is that we have failed to complete negotiations with the School and the education authority regarding the villages Playing Field and Recreation Ground. This area has for many decades been an area used by the community and the school for many activities. (We still have 6 years left on our lease with the County Council.) It was, and remains, our hope that the Parish Council could secure

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 its use so that many more generations in the future can use its facilities. The Parish Council and, I thought, the School Governors were of a similar mind. In fact after many years of discussions, together with the fact that the School wished to become an Academy an agreement was drawn up and signed by myself (on behalf of the Parish Council). This agreement would have ensured use by the community at agreed times for the next 125 years. The School Governors pulled out of this agreement at the very last minute and decided not to go for Academy status at this time. Unfortunately for us this was not until after a huge sum of money (over £9,000) was spent on legal services. Whilst I appreciate the School has also involved itself in legal fees I am being somewhat selfish in that really I don’t care. It is the opinion of the Parish Council that the Villages Playing Field would be in much safer hands if leased (or better still owned as has happened in a number of areas) by them, thereby ensuring that no development for housing etc would take place. There would still be areas at the rear of the school for any future expansion. This would not deny use of those facilities by the School. The Parish Council will continue with negotiations following the re-structuring of the Schools Governing body and the recently appointed Head Teacher with hopefully an agreement which suits all parties. Someone we all need to thank is our Parish Clerk who has led us on occasions through the legalities of Parish Councils. These are many, but I know that we as a Council are now working to the correct procedures. Tina has worked many hours and on days she should not have often without extra payment, although we have tried to make sure that does not happen I am sure we have failed sometimes. She has also attended many courses and has recently passed all 25 parts of an exam. I am sure that many Councils across the country would be willing to employ Tina. In closing my report I inform you that all Parish Councillors are shortly up for re-election after many serving for 4 years. I do not know at the time of writing this report if all present Councillors are going to stand again or even if we have others wishing to stand and an election has to take place – now that would be a first for some time! The position of a Councillor is voluntary and I am extremely grateful to all of them for the hard work they have put into helping the residents of Hackleton, Horton, Piddington , Preston Deanery and the part of Poppyfields which falls within the Parish. I have been fortunate to have people who have not only helped me through some quite difficult times but also for being so willing to give up their time, sometimes at very short notice. I hope you will continue to serve the community in whatever capacity you decide. Financial report for the year ending 31st March 2015 – written by Cllr Sue Harris Following the Chairman’s opening remarks we have constantly reviewed our budgets, I am sure you will agree that it has been a very challenging year for the Parish Council even though the precept was increased by £2810.00 HACKLETON REC was over budget by £525 due to the increase in the frequency of mowing that was necessary because of the warm Summer Weather and additional costs for the upkeep of the play equipment. LONGLAND MEADOW slightly over budget £289 again due to the increased mowing CEMETERY showing overspends of £7972 for new fencing for the additional cemetery but good news is that a grant has been agreed so this means that we are within budget for the year. CHURCHYARD again a slight overspend on mowing due to an additional cut at Christmas time, and a slight increase in the amount of water used. OPEN SPACES showing overspend of £2730 due to the replacement of benches throughout the parish but again good news a grant has again been agreed so we are within the allocated budget for the year. ADMINISTRATION – Additional costs were incurred as follows:- As already outlined in the Chairman’s opening remarks the legal fees paid for the Rec lease & license were in excess of £9000. This has contributed to the increase in the Precept amount and consequently an increase in resident’s council tax bills. The Precept for the next financial year has increased to £48,000 There is also a small overspend for the new Hackleton Parish Website for the purchase of the Hosting fee. This website is due to go live within the next month All other areas are within budget. The carry forward figure for the fiscal year 2014/2015 is £43460.94 Judith Willoughby & Relief In Need Charities reports for 2014/2015 as written by David Dunkley There are two small registered charities in the parish. Under their trust deeds they are administered and managed by four nominative trustees appointed by Hackleton Parish Council plus the current incumbent of the benefice of Horton and Piddington as an ex officio trustee acting as chairman.

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 Last year a jumble sale was held to boost the funds and another will be held on Saturday 16th May in the Village Hall. Hackleton Relief in Need Charity Summary of objects: To relieve, either generally or individually, persons resident in the Parish of Hackleton who are in conditions of need, hardship or distress. At the close of the financial year the charity’s resources totalled £1,275. Judeth Willoughby Charity Summary of objects: Assisting boys and men who are resident in the parish, under 25 and who are in need of assistance with tools, books, fees and expenses for entering into any into any profession, trade or occupation. The Trustees have an outstanding application with the Charity Commissioners to amend the objects to include all young persons of the parish who are under 25 years old, regardless of sex. At the close of the financial year the charity’s resources totalled £929. Observations of the County Councillor as written by County Councillor Michael Clarke The finances of Northamptonshire County Council remain under pressure and the principal reasons for this are two fold:  Year on year reducing support grant from central Government. It will continue to reduce from £77m in the recently approved 2015/16 budget to £13m in 2019/20.  Increasing demands from Childrens’ Services much of which is due to the increasing number of children being taken into County Council care under its statutory duty. Also the increasing demands at the other end of the spectrum from Adult Social Care accounted for by demographic changes as the County’s population ages. Despite the huge challenges, the Administration at County Hall is adapting the structures of the Council to deliver our services to our residents on a more cost effective basis. The protection of the County’s front line services is a very high priority. One example is libraries ; every library remains open, the range of services offered has widened and the opening hours have been extended to include Sunday opening. The Highways budget is important to us in the rural areas. I have worked to protect it from budget reductions and the NCC Highways Maintenance Initiative has contributed to an improvement in the quality of work delivered by Highways’ contractors. As more homes are built, the pressure on the highways infrastructure will continue to rise. It remains a high priority at County Hall. The continuing roll out of Super Fast Broadband means that 98% of homes and businesses can be connected to the new service by the end of 2017. Taxpayers’ money is being spent in enabling BT to extend the programme to the rural areas. Northamptonshire County Council’s share of the Council Tax has been increase by 1.95% in 2015/16. . A Band D property will increase from £1048 to £1069. Our County continues to enjoy the lowest Council Tax in England among shire counties. If anyone wishes to reach me, they can do so by e mailing me on [email protected] and I will do my best to help. County Cllr Michael Clarke said he was glad to see the re-surfacing of Sheppey Lane and Highways is a very high priority. The bus is also a high priority and Cllr Clarke said he wants to ensure the bus service to Horton continues. County Cllr Michael Clarke said he has an Empowerment Fund in which he is able to give funds. Observations of the District Councillor Once again another year passes us by and I would like to reflect on some of the recent achievements by South Northamptonshire Council (SNC) for the tax paying residents in our communities. We have a council that has saved millions through joint working helping ensure financial viability despite having revenue grants from central Government cut by a quarter in the past few years. Our budgets that use our resources to best effect, protecting front line services and preserving that which is valuable and special and at the same time being able to freeze council taxes for all SNC tax payers over the last 5 years. Within the budget restraints SNC have been able to enhance the environment with Conservation reviews in various village areas. SNC have increased the quality of the waste collection services achieving the best recycling rate in the county and on target for the top-ten in performance nationwide.

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 SNC is a council that pays 98% of its supplier’s invoices in 7 days and 80% in 10 days. It also pays benefits to new claimants within 7 days and any changes required within 5 days. It also collects 99.1% of the council tax due and 98.5% of Business Rates. It is a council that has ambitions to regenerate those areas of the district where it is required and a recent example is that of the new Forum in Towcester and the continuing regeneration of the Moat Lane area in general and all this being funded on a cost neutral basis. The move to Moat Lane will increase our revenue stream through rents from the letting of office spaces, together with fees from the hiring of the Forum’s civic rooms for wedding parties and social functions. All of this income helps to contribute to keeping council tax to a minimum which in turn keeps money in the pockets of the good people of South Northamptonshire. We have also increased the funding to voluntary and charity sectors and offered them multi year funding agreements through a half million pound funding stream. SNC has allocated one and half million pounds to local parishes that have taken housing growth, this is provided through the New Homes Bonus (NHB) scheme and apportioned via the Grants Panel. Hackleton parishes have over the last 12 months received a total of £13,668 with the last allocated sum being used for a circular wooden seat to be placed around the Punch Tree in Horton. Other grants went towards railings and fencing around the new cemetery extension and the provision of 4 new benches to add to, or replace existing items around our villages. A further allocation of approximately £20,000 for future projects will be available in 2015/16. So to conclude, South Northamptonshire’s Corporate Priorities are as follows:

 Preserve what’s special  Protect our quality of life  Secure a sustainable and prosperous future  Enhance the Council’s performance

As an organisation we have set these priorities taking into account the needs and aspirations of the people living and working in South Northamptonshire. Planning report as written by Cllr F Jacobs There have been some changes to the planning committee this year and the way the applications are allocated. We have 6 members who are each responsible for applications within a particular area of the ward: James Clark – responsible for Horton and south towards the Parish boundary Guy Ward, Edward Kilpin & Neil Barnes – who divide the applications within Hackleton Jo Wilmer and myself, who share the area of Piddington, Preston Deanery & Wootton Fields. The process works in that we contact immediate neighbours and those who may be impacted by the proposal. Their views are noted and taken to the planning committee meeting, who then discuss and vote on the application. If we cannot contact a neighbour we will post a card detailing our name, contact number and last date for comment. Work undertaken and completed during the past year include The Training Centre at Yardley Chase, which incurred little negative impact during construction. Francis Jackson Homes ‘Manor Farm’ development in Piddington is near completion, with the remaining 2 properties soon to be occupied. Francis Jackson have given assurances during the process that where areas had become overly muddy and unsightly, these would be cleaned, on completion of the development, to a level we are satisfied with. The roads and street lighting on the Oak Way development on Main Road, Hackleton was adopted by NCC on 17th March 2015. Currently we are supporting the residents of Wootton Fields with their objection to the proposal from Morris Homes regarding the New Homes Development on Poppy Ridge. The number of homes on this site has been reduced from 300 to 270. Last week we held an extraordinary meeting, inviting the developer to explain in more detail their revised proposal. It was attended by a number of residents and went some way towards alleviating certain queries arising from the development. We now await a revised planning application. Highways & Footpaths report No reports Street Lighting report as written by Cllr J Willmer Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 The budget for 2014/15 was £7,152 Expenditure for 2014/15 was £3,593.43 to include both power and maintenance. A survey of all lighting in the parish was undertaken in August 2014 to ascertain visual condition, establish a detailed location description and to assess the visibility and quality of the lamp numbers. This was combined with other information on file to establish an improved understanding of the maintenance history and condition of each light. For example, there were several instances where vegetation was obscuring lights and landowners were contacted to remove or cut back the growth. Our thanks go to all those residents who responded so quickly to improve the lighting for all of us. A meeting was held with our contractor and they were provided with updated maps and detailed location information. They are now responding quickly and efficiently to all repair requests. All lamps can now be cross-referenced to check for in-date electrical testing and the contractor can be instructed to test only where necessary. As identified in the previous lighting report, meetings and discussions have also taken place with the contractor regarding the age, condition and quality of light provided by the current lighting stock in the Parish. Many lamps are reaching the end of their serviceable life, many of the bulbs currently used are no longer being produced and new bulbs do not fit our lampshades! The contractor undertook a no-cost survey of the lighting in the Parish and made a strong recommendation of replacements. The replacement programme is scheduled to start Spring 2015. Any street lighting faults should be reported directly to The Clerk. Playing field report as written by Cllr G Tobutt The playing field still plods along with no major problems if you ignore the moles who just like doing what moles do making mole hills to annoy the mowing team. The play equipment area is a different story we had quite a bad report from RoSpa with two major problems we need to put right at quite a cost  The safety surface around the roundabout has to be replaced as the sub-base has sunk with all the wet weather over the last year or two. This means the removal of the safety surface level and consolidate the sub-base and install new safety surface and needs to be done prior to next inspection in June  At the same time the gap between all the other safety surfaces and their perimeter kerbs need to be filled in with safety surfacing  The tree trunk timbers have to be removed as they are rotting but do not comply with current regulations as they have no safety surface and are too near the swing safety area Cemetery report as written by Cllr G Tobutt The past year has been a mixed one with the extension being fenced in on two sides, with the third side being the original end fence which is in the process of being refurbished at present. During the last year there have been 2 burials. Once again Phil has worked hard keeping the cemetery in a well maintained condition but sadly Phil has decided to retire from his cemetery duties and we thank him for all he has done over the past few years and wish him well in the future. We now have a new Groundsman, Joe Stuart who we hope will continue Phil's good work although he will have to bring the newly seeded area into maintenance and it needs a lot of stone picking. Lastly the trees to the old cemetery are getting worse with some falling over and others starting to die back these will have to be removed and replaced at the same time as new trees will be planted in the extension. Hackleton Primary School report as written by Chair of Governors Rev Beverley Hollins The year since the last Hackleton AGM has been one of great change for your local school. The summer term of 2014 saw the departure of a number of people who had guided the school for some years, and had shaped its identity as an outstanding school. Dawn Burns, head teacher, left to lead a new primary school in Duston; the deputy and assistant heads felt that this was a good time for them also to do new things, and Alan Wilkinson, chair of governors, retired from that position. The Autumn term was in some ways a transitional one. Acting Head Mel Servent had the task not only of caring for the school in the midst of great change, but also of beginning to implement some of the extensive changes introduced by the Dept for Education (DfE) for this year: a new curriculum, a new assessment scheme and new ways of teaching certain subjects. I took on the role of chair of governors for one year only, to help see the school through the changes. During this term it had also been planned that the school would become an academy. However, information emerged, with a very short time to go before the academisation, that the sponsoring company was no longer working to the high standards that it had

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 had when the process began, and that the financial advantages that had been identified in becoming an academy were no longer the case. Governors felt that the school and its place in the community could be impaired if the academisation went ahead, but the decision had to be made very quickly (indeed, not all governors were able to be part of the decision making). Overall, Hackleton will be better off keeping its school under the Local Authority. One effect of this decision was that the work and investment in an agreement regarding the recreation ground seemed in the short term to be wasted, because the school will not now take on responsibility for the grounds. The lease with the local authority is due for renewal soon, and so the work that has been done will still be taken into account in that process and so hopefully not wasted after all. Our new head teacher, Andrea Revens, joined the school in January, and is supported by Mel Servent, who is remaining with the school for the rest of the academic year. Under Andrea’s leadership new ways of working are being introduced that will help the school to go forward as a stronger team. Another requirement of the DfE this year was the reconstitution of the governing body. This has just been completed, and the process of recruiting new governors to join existing governors in a more engaged and involved style of governance is almost complete. We are now working to ensure that the school remains the best place for your children to learn and grow. The governors and staff are keen for the school to take its place within the community, because it is the children of this community that we are here to educate and inspire. Events like the Christmas carol concert organised by Mrs Servent, hosting the Knit and Natter, and inviting you all to join us for our annual fete, are important to us. We have been especially grateful for the work done by members of the church, the Hackleton School Association and other villager supporters, to paint our school hall and make it so much nicer for the children. Save the date! We will be celebrating our tenth anniversary as a church school on September 23rd with a special service led by the Bshop of Brixworth. Details have yet to be worked out, but we hoped to see lots of our friends from the villages of Hackleton Parish joining us. Piddington PCC report as written by Rev Beverley Hollins As always, the parish of St John the Baptist Piddington with Horton has much reason to be grateful for the support and friendship of all who live in the Hackleton parish: your friendship, encouragement and in some cases very swiftly coming to our help is always important; not least recently when lead was stolen from the north aisle roof of the church. It isn’t only emergencies that you help us with. The response to our blanket making project and those who have joined Knit and Natter, using those needlecraft skills to help others, has been more than we could have hoped for. Our fundraising team have put on some great events as ever this year, not least the Harvest Quiz and the Burns Supper, and it was great to see so many local people having a good evening out together. other landmarks this year have included the introduction of a new Pet Service, held in the churchyard in Horton, the growth of our church choir (so ably led by Edward Kilpin), some fabulous services led by the Living Brook Youth Fellowship and the beginning of two new working groups: the Pastoral Care group and the Schools Team, which we are glad to share in with our friends at Hackleton Baptist Church. Another highlight was the appointment of a curate, Deborah Marsh, who will be joining the Living Brook Leadership Team at the end of June. The church building is open for prayer every day, and we hope that we will be able to welcome many of you to use the building for prayer or a quiet space, or to join us on any Sunday at 11am. A flower festival is being held on the 18th & 19th of July, the theme is to be “bright and beautiful” and details will follow in Forum. Voluntary organisations in the parish Longland Meadow report as written by Cllr P Heap It has been another busy year in the Meadow. There are 13 regular volunteers and a further 4 who help keep the paths mown. I would like to thank all of these for all their work .I would also like to thank Sylvester of Angel Landscapes for the regular deliveries of woodchip for our paths. Regular maintenance undertaken involves :- hedge trimming ,( including bramble control,) tree thinning + hazel coppicing as the trees in the spinneys get larger , care of the orchard trees , sowing wild flower seeds then transplanting the successful plants to increase bio-diversity in the Summer Meadow , thinning of plants in and around the pond , litter clearing, topping up the woodchip paths and hay raking of the autumn mowing in the Summer Meadow . This year we have cleared 2 patches of very overgrown hedge growth near the boundary with St. John's Way where we will plant taller wild flowers in the coming season and started to tidy the rough area behind

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 where Sedge's bench was installed in the SE corner. Another memorial bench was also installed near the SW corner. Both these were installed by villagers not the volunteers but we will keep the areas around them tidy. There remains just 1 location in the Meadow where a further bench could be installed but it is within Carey Copse and has no views. The wild daffodils in the Memorial Strip and in the dell are naturalising beautifully . The harvest from the orchard was poor and there was a lot of insect damage but we did donate 2 large baskets of eating apples for raffle prizes at Village Hall events. Hackleton Village Hall report as written by Edward Kilpin BEM – Chairman of the Trustees As in past years the Trustees have continued to improve the facilities for all users of the Village Hall. We need to do this to ensure the building is maintained to a high standard both internally and externally. During the past year the outdated kitchen has been removed and replaced with up to date facilities, new and larger cooker, fridge, freezer and an industrial dishwasher. Other catering equipment has been purchased together with additional crockery etc. We are now able to offer our hirers virtually everything they need. Lighting has been improved by having LED fittings connected in different parts of the building. New curtains in the Functions Room have also enhanced the look of the room. A new venture for us is the regular Film Nights which we hold monthly. This is arranged by David Dunkley, one of our Trustees. These have received varying support from the community but on the whole have been much appreciated. As with all organisations there have been changes. We have a new Bar Manager, Barbara Bayes who has taken over from Neil Barnes, our Secretary resigned and our cleaner has moved out of the village. The position of cleaner has been filled although unfortunately we are at present without a Secretary. At our AGM last month 2 volunteers came forward and offered to join the existing Trustees. The hall continues to be well used and our lettings Secretary (Diana & John Adams) manage the administration extremely well. The finances of the hall are good and we are again able to maintain our present low level of charges. We are very grateful to all who support the events at the hall. Special thanks go to those who have raised and donated money. Our next project is the refurbishment of the Gents toilets costing in the region of £10,000 which we hope to complete in 2015. Piddington Museum report The Upper Nene Archaeological Society had another very busy year in 2014, both with the ongoing excavations and at Piddington Roman Villa Museum. This time last year, we were awaiting the result of our application to Arts Council England to renew our Accredited Museum Status. I’m happy to report that we were successful and were congratulated on the quality of the application. Accreditation is awarded to museums which can demonstrate that they have achieved certain prescribed standards in the care of the collections, documentation and their offer to the public and is open to all types of museum. We had a drop in visitor figures, with a total of 830 overall, down by about 200 on the previous year. While the number of ‘ordinary’ visitors increased slightly, we had fewer school visits, largely due to the cost of transport, but also to the changes in the National Curriculum. Other museums have reported the same trend. We occasionally take our activities out to schools, which avoids the cost of coach hire. We are also looking to extend the range of activities which we offer to schools to include other periods pupils will be studying, We expect school visits to increase in the Summer Term, when we can also offer the opportunity to do some ‘real’ archaeology on site. We welcomed 2 15-year-old students on Work Experience, for 2-week periods in the spring, to introduce them to the world of work, arranged through Connexions and their respective schools. We participated in Northampton School for Girls’ annual ‘World of Work’ careers event and Northamptonshire Libraries’ Volunteers’ Fair, during National Volunteers’ Week, at Northampton’s Central Library. Several young people continued to volunteer with us as an element of their Duke of Edinburgh Award activities. A number of talks about the site have been given around the County and beyond and we’ve welcomed a number of other archaeological and historical societies, U3A and W I groups etc. We excavated at the Roman Villa site for 10 days over Easter and for the month of August. A number of university students come to Piddington on short-term placements, to gain practical archaeological experience, as part of their course requirements. Some also use the Museum’s collections, all excavated from the site, as subjects for their dissertations and higher degrees. Last year, we started digging a new area, expecting to uncover a military bathhouse, but instead, we have an enclosure, so far of unknown purpose, which we shall be continuing with this Easter.

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 A great deal of work goes on behind the scenes at the Museum. The excavation produces a lot of material and information to process, so this is a continuous activity. Liz Friendship-Taylor is continuing to train a small group of members in conservation of finds – cleaning and stabilising them. Another group is studying recognition of animal bones – over 400 years of occupation at the site has produced a lot of food waste! Among the more unusual types of animals represented is a wolf, found down a filled-in well!. The Museum had a facelift in the summer: 2 of our members kindly offered to paint the outside of the Museum, so it is now looking very smart. Towards the end of the year, the Piddington excavation was nominated for a national award, ‘the Best Project of the Year’ Award’, organised by the archaeological magazine, ‘Current Archaeology’. Voting was open to all and we were very pleased to have a lot of support, not least from the villages, for which our thanks. While we didn’t win – the Award went to a very worthy project in Cumbria – we were delighted to have been nominated and we understand that we did quite well in the voting. Thanks to our dedicated volunteers (35-40 at the Museum alone), who give so much of their time and skills to keep it running smoothly. We are always happy to welcome new volunteers, for front-of-house, education, digging and processing finds and information. AFC Hackleton as written by Garry Nash AFC Hackleton are the local adult football team and we are currently in our 5th season of the Northants Sunday Conference. We have a total of 51 players registered with us ranging from 16 to 42 years old and we adopted a ‘local lads’ policy half way through our first season, a ‘local lad’ is one who lives, or has lived in the parish or one who has very strong connections within the parish. Of the 51 registered players 96% fit this criteria, the only players who do not were signed on, in 2010, prior to us adopting this policy. We are now in our 3rd season of fielding both a 1st and a reserve team as we had far too many players for just the one team. We play our home fixtures on Hackleton Village Recreation Ground on Sunday mornings and often get good support from local residents. We also use the Rec for summer training sessions on Thursday evenings. The First Team Manager takes great pride in looking after the pitch which he looks after and marks out. Having two teams made up almost entirely of local lads is, we feel, a great achievement and the 1st team were promoted to Division 1 in the Northants Sunday Conference last season after coming runners-up in Division 2. Currently the reserve team are 12th in Division 3 and the 1st team are 9th in Division 1. Whilst every player wants to go out and win on a Sunday morning, for some reason, this is not the be all and end all of the lads playing for AFC Hackleton they just seem to enjoy going out and playing football, in their village, with their mates. There is a great team spirit amongst all the lads and we are sure this is due to keeping it local. Whilst the football is the reason AFC Hackleton was set up we also have great evenings together. Last October saw our 4th very successful ‘Stars in their Eyes’ evening which again sold out within days of advertising the event. We have, through these evenings, raised money for Cynthia Spencer Hospice, The Crazy Hats Breast Cancer Appeal and last year we bought and donated toys for children who would be spending Christmas in Northampton General Hospital. We also played in a charity football match, last summer, for the Leon Barwell Foundation which resulted in them raising a substantial amount of money for their charity. We are currently planning our 5th Annual Awards Dinner which we are holding at the Masonic Hall on 13th June. We are confident this will be yet another great evening and welcome anyone to attend – tickets are available from any player or the White Hart. We have had great sponsorship from the White Hart & Wootton Tyres & Exhausts in the past but we are always interested to hear from anyone who could offer sponsorship in any way. We are always looking for new players, aged 16+ , and you can contact us via our Facebook page or through our website – AFC Hackleton.moonfruit.com alternatively just come down to a training session, at the rec, on a Thursday from 7-8pm you will be made to feel very welcome. Hackleton WI Hackleton & District WI is one of the largest WIs in the County. It has just experienced another successful year raising considerable money via its Community events which has meant it has been able to donate money to Hackleton Village Hall to assist in its ongoing maintenance and upkeep. It has also donated money to the county WI Federation and to Denman College which offers courses and education for WI members. In 2014 the date for the Roman Challenge event was brought forward in the hope to avoid wet and muddy fields. This was a success and we did not suffer the problems of the previous year. The Roman Challenge cycle event has been organised for ten years, including the event this year. The WI has decided

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 that they will not be organising any further events such as this but it is hoped that another local organisation may take the event over. The annual plant sale will take place in the village hall on the 17th May. This event is very popular locally and with other local villages and communities. Our WI will be celebrating its golden anniversary in November this year, the national WI celebrates its 100th birthday this year as well so various celebrations are being organised The WI operates through a hardworking and dedicated committee. New members are always welcome at the WI which meets on the third Thursday of every month and provides a wide range of speakers, demonstrations and other activities including theatre visits, an annual ramble and a day out in the summer. Hackleton Scouts as written by Emma Dil, Secretary 1st Hackleton Scout Group The 1st Hackleton Scout Group have had yet another fantastic year and have undertaken many varied activities from canoeing on the Nene, camping at Bromham, to line dancing. We have had a successful year fundraising to help us supplement our subs so we can offer more activities to our youngsters. We were still unable to fill our vacancy for Scout leaders so unfortunately the Scout troop remains closed. However, fortunately we were able to find replacements for the Cub pack when their leaders stood down this year, our grateful thanks to Fiona Jacobs, Sue Southall, Phil Zeidler and Tony Pepper for leading the Cubs for four years. We are looking for volunteers to help on the Scout Committee as the Chair and Secretary are stepping down after being on the committee for 6 years. If we are unable to find replacements both the Cubs and Beavers will fold, they are not onerous positions but are vital for the running of the organisation. If anyone wants to volunteer please contact Emma Dil 870681. Finally, our grateful thanks go to County Councillor Michael Clarke for his very generous donation that enabled us to buy four new tents that we used at our Bromham camp last summer, the children had a fantastic weekend on one of the hottest weekends of the year. Neighbourhood Watch – Piddington as written by NHW co-ordinator Phil Renshaw A number of incidents have been reported to the police during the year in Piddington. A young girl was approached in the Willoughby Way area. There has been a burglary in Forest Road where documents and bank cards were stolen. Crop thefts from the allotments in Piddington have been reported and a stone saw was removed from the new housing development in Church End. Eggs were thrown at premises in Old End and Willoughby Way during Halloween. A suspicious blue van has been sighted on numerous occasions around the village where the occupants have been seen removing items from skips outside premises. Lead has been stolen from the roof of Piddington Church to the value of £25,000. Bank, computer support and invoice scams have also been received by residents. Hackleton has suffered from a high volume of crimes over the past 12 months. These include burglaries in Carey Road, Sansome Close, The Banks, Vicarage Close, and Lyne Walk where cash and jewellery were amongst the items stolen. Garden tools and a planter have been stolen from a premises in Elm Way. A suspicious vehicle was also reported in Vicarage Close. There have also been reports of a microlite landing on the Hackleton playing fields, this has since ceased. I wish to highlight that Hackleton still urgently requires a Neighbourhood Watch Coordinator. Anyone who would like to know more information on what this role entails please give me a call. I should also remind residents of Hackleton that they do not have a Neighbourhood Watch Scheme and this could impact on their home insurance cover. Our PCSO has recently moved on to become a local police constable. I have been informed that this should not affect the service we receive from the Police. Decisions regarding the police community team and officer allocation will be made over the next few weeks, during this time our area will be covered by all of the Towcester safer community team. I will keep the Piddington Neighbourhood Watch street coordinators informed. A few of the Neighbourhood Watch signs around Piddington are quite faded and these are due to be replaced over the following months. We have 2 new street coordinators who have kindly volunteered to cover Hillside Road and the bottom end of Forest Road (near Chapel End). Unfortunately, due to unforeseen circumstances, our coordinator for Martins Road is not able to continue. If anyone would like to take on this role in the area please let me know. The current areas covered and street coordinators are: Chapel End – Mick Lee Church Road – Lorraine Whatton Forest Road (top end) – John Fegan

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 Forest Road (middle) - Ken Warner Forest Road – (bottom end) Anne Butterworth Grafton Court – Susan Hanley Hillside Road – Sue Jones Martins Road – TBA Old End & Church End – Phil Renshaw St Johns Way – Marion Brown Salcey Rise - John Whittlesea Smith Close – Mark Collier Willoughby Way – San Vaughan Mr Renshaw thanked all the street co-ordinators for their help and support There is now a new Neighbourhood Watch dedicated telephone no. 01604 888964 it replaces the 432436 number. I have been advised that there have been some delays calling the 101 number so I would recommend you call the 888964 number initially. When making a report please advice the police with as much information as possible, including descriptions of the person/s involved vehicle registration no. and time of the day. Of course if you see a criminal act in progress call 999. Phil Renshaw (Piddington NHW Coordinator) Tele 07541 959836 Email address - [email protected] Footpath Warden as written by Footpath Warden Doug Beedie Whilst very much in it's infancy, the most significant development in terms of activities during this reporting period, was establishing a core group of volunteer Footpath Wardens. These being: Vanessa Hart Sarah Elliott John Ward Doug Beedie Key activities Meeting held with area Rights of Way Officer Obtaining/ distributing maps showing parish public footpaths, byways, bridleways and boundary. Obtaining/ distributing copies of the relevant guidelines handbook Held 1st group meeting to discuss; role/ responsibility, guidelines within the handbook; dividing the footpath network; target setting and method of recording activities. Minimal footpaths inspected with 1 x infringement reported (KM36) Waymarks added to posts where missing or no longer clear. 2015 Target: Primary goal throughout 2015 is to inspect every public right of way within the parish boundary reporting and logging any infringement on accessibility and clear ground markings. Once completed; it would be our intention to then focus on clarity and condition of waymarks, fingerposts and apparent ease of following a route. To ensure that the local community is correctly represented, we would also like to encourage all public rights of way users to highlight any concerns in regards to access and clarity of signage. To facilitate this we advise contact details and a reporting process to be included in the Living Brook Benefice Forum. WW1 History Research Group as written by Joanne & Ivor Wilde Introduction This group was formed following a notice inserted in Forum in early 2014, by Ivor and Jo Wilde to see if anyone was interested in researching World War 1 and its effects in our villages. Membership Anyone interested was welcome to attend the first meeting which took place on Monday 19 May 2014. The initial group consisted of Anne Falkner, Liz McHale, Ivor and Jo Wilde, and Jo Willmer. Jo Willmer, as well as her interest in the subject, is a Parish Councillor and informed the first meeting that the Parish Council wished to be involved in and support the project, depending of course on what we decided to do. Liz Friendship-Taylor and Alan Wilkinson joined the group later in the year. Iris Sanders, with her wonderful memory and archive of historical information has attended many of the meetings and has given her time generously in between to provide details and fill in gaps of knowledge.

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15 The group has not been constituted in any formal way. Meetings are short, informal and friendly with each member having complete autonomy in pursuing areas of interest to them. There is no plan to formalise the group in any way. Activity The group realised early on that with over 130 men who went to war from our villages and more than 30 that were killed, the project was potentially huge, whatever we decided to do. An early contact was made with Hardingstone History Society to compare notes on what each group was seeking to do. It was discovered that they were almost ready to publish a booklet about their soldiers, some of whose names appeared on both our War Memorials. The Group decided, as a minimum, to research information on each soldier who died, to be able to insert a memorial notice in Forum on the 100th anniversary of their falling. It was also decided that, with funding from the Parish Council, a memorial notice would be inserted in to the nearest edition of the Chronicle & Echo to the 100th anniversary. This was done in Dec 2014, for the first soldier from the parishes to die, Albert Pickford. Other activities:  Notices in Forum asking for information about soldiers, families, artefacts and life in the villages  Interviews with people who have offered information  Research by members of the group using resources, such as Northamptonshire Record Office, Public Libraries and, most of all, the internet. Happily, each group member seems to have specific and complementary interests and expertise. Each has expended his/her own money on membership of, inter alia, Northamptonshire Family History Society, Ancestry.com, National Newspaper Archive, Find.my.past , ww1photos.com etc.  Compilation of an extensive database of information about each soldier, their rank, regiment, service, place of death and burial/memorial, and where known their family and connections to the villages. Future work As well as the memorials mentioned above, the group has decided to stage a public exhibition of its findings on the weekend of 19 & 20th September 2015, at Piddington Museum, by kind permission of UNAS. This is both to inform anyone interested of the work so far and also to raise awareness in the hope of obtaining more information. Depending on the success of that event and the feedback received, the group may decide to continue with more research into the lives of the soldiers who returned from battle and find out more about how life in the villages went on during the war years. Questions from the floor There were no questions from the floor Chairman’s closing remarks The Chairman thanked everyone for coming to the Annual Parish Meeting and he said how much he appreciates listening to say many reports from people who are so interested in their community. He said many in the community appreciate all the work the local volunteers. He commented on how brilliant it is that the local football team is filled with local lads. He said all this shows that we have a great community spirit.

Chairman ...... Date ......

These minutes are in draft format until formally approved and signed by the Chairman.

Hackleton Parish Annual Meeting 07.04.15