BARKING PARISH COUNCIL

Minutes of the Annual Parish Meeting held at Barking Village Hall at 7.00pm on Thursday 27th May 2021 PRESENT: Cllr Mark Lillie – Chairman, Cllr Marcus Tabberer, Cllr Rosamund Fellowes, Cllr Steve Butler and Cllr Mike Bailey County Cllr Kay Oakes and District Cllr Dan Pratt

IN ATTENDENCE: Mrs L Rogers - Clerk 2 members of the public attended

BPC 01/21 APOLOGIES Cllr Ann Ross, Richard Cage (Barking Tree Warden), Sandra Reynolds (Barking Community Council and Choir), Sue Marsh (St Marys Church), Juliet Beadle (WI), Kate Griffin (Art Group) and Brian Smith (BATS)

BPC 02/21 MINUTES The minutes from the meeting held on 9th May 2019 were approved by the councillors and signed by the Chairman as a correct record.

BPC 03/21 BARKING PARISH COUNCIL –Cllr Mark Lillie (Chairman) I would like to start by thanking my fellow councillors and especially Lucinda for all their hard work throughout the past year and we will look forward to serving the community during the coming year. I would also like to thank everyone in the village who contribute so much by running the village organizations and activities. We have witnessed acts of great kindness during these unprecedented times. I was particularly pleased that The Council was still able to meet according to its normal schedule through the use of virtual meeting technology. Special thanks go to Marcus Tabberer for facilitating. We would like to thank Councillor Oakes, our County Councillor, for her hard work and guidance during the past year. In particular she was able to fund the SID camera which is finally up and running in the village. We would also like to thank Dan Pratt, our District Councillor, for his hard work and guidance during the past year. He has been instrumental with helping fund the flora and wildlife surveys and is an inspiration for ideas on how we can increase our green credentials in the future. The changing of the contractors for the cutting of the grass on the Tye, has gone smoothly and a 3 year contract has been agreed to save costs. We have had a changing of the guard on litter picking Grants have been recently awarded to St Mary’s Church, Headway, East Anglian Air Ambulance, the Four Parishes Magazine and Neighbourhood Watch. Progress has been made on negotiating and agreeing an easement with building contractor DAB. Future funds will enable community projects such as the construction of a footway along the Tye which is a long term ambition of the Parish Council. We will report further progress through the year. The Council adopted a Tree Policy and commissioned a Tree Survey last year. The Survey highlighted a number of trees which required attention. Urgent items have been addressed and this year priority will be focussed on items such as crown lifting. There has also been interest expressed in using the Tye for junior football coaching in the future and I would like to thank Mike Bailey for his support on this. We

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received a resignation from a councillor earlier this year and have advertised to co-opt a new member, so far with no success. The pandemic has presented challenges to everyone in the community, but it has also demonstrated the care and kindness of neighbours to each other. I feel proud and fortunate to live in a happy village and look forward to seeing it grow as light now emerges from these most challenging times.

BPC 04/21 INVITED REPRESENTATIVES: Barking Neighbourhood Watch – Mark Lillie - Barking Neighbourhood Watch Co-ordinator Main points: The crime figures are stable with about 6 crimes a year – burglaries. Much more online and phone scams. Nextdoor group is a way of keeping in touch with what is happening locally. The police are focusing on abuse and drugs crimes St Mary’s Church, Barking - Sue Marsh (Lay Chair). Report read by Cllr Lillie. The year 2020 started as normal with the first PCC meeting on February 18th, A concert by the Trianon music group would occur in May to raise funds for the benefice and there would be fund raising afternoon teas in July. However all changed with the tragic arrival of the Corona Virus. Our Mothering Sunday service in March was cancelled and all routine Church services were banned by the PM with the backing of the Archbishop of Canterbury. Only Funerals and weddings could take place under strict regulations. It was allowed that places of worship could remain open for private prayer under strict safety guidelines. Initially it was hoped to keep St Mary's open under this routine. However large unruly groups who used the Churchyard as a meeting place and an attempt at an overnight stay in the car park plus the rigid cleaning routines decided us to keep the Church closed. The weddings were cancelled as were all fund raising events. There were two funeral services in the Church during the year and three cremations of parishioners. Sadly, one of the latter was that of our late Lay Reader and Church Warden for many years, Michael Hodgson. We were able to say our good byes as the Cortege left from outside the Church on his journey to the crematorium. In July 2020 regular Services were allowed to resume with strict guidelines, distancing, masks, sanitisation and no singing. We were again able to celebrate our regular communion service on the 4th Sunday of the month at 11.00am. We are extremely grateful to Dan for undertaking this unlike some other Cathedrals and Churches, although streamed services from the Diocese and Dan's sermons were available on line. We were able to hold a Harvest themed Communion in September and on Remembrance Sunday had a well attended Act of Remembrance [Socially distanced etc] at the War Memorial on the Tye. Finally we were able to hold our Annual Parish meeting in October when Barry Gascoyne [who had been shielding since March] resigned as Church Warden. Unfortunately no one wished to undertake this appointment and it was agreed that members of the PCC would share the duties. At the PCC meeting afterwards plans were made for a take away Valentines tea and Easter Raffle in 2021. Reports were received of the on going investigation and plans for work to be carried out to repair the leak in the South Aisle. Thanks to a healthy bank balance and generous donations and collections we were able to pay £6,000 towards our Parish share. We were grateful, again, to the Parish Council for their donation towards maintenance of the Churchyard and to the faithful few who helped at our belated work party. Thanks too to Brenda our organist who played for us when services returned although we were not allowed to sing the words. We lost worshippers during the year due to shielding but welcomed those who have joined us, keeping our numbers fairly steady.

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Barking Chapel –Pastor Graham Steward: In common with everyone else we have experienced a year like no other. Fourteen months ago we discovered what ‘lockdown’ meant, followed shortly after by the discovery of Zoom which most of our members had hardly heard of. When all normal activity within the church came to a halt the telephone came into its own to enable us to keep in touch with those who were very much isolated. Shortly afterwards we commenced Sunday services via Zoom which enabled us to continue to worship as a community. When guidelines allowed, we returned to worship at the Chapel with appropriate Covid-security measures in place. Initially we met outside in the car park and then within the building. At the same time we have continued to have a Zoom link from the Chapel to others at home. Often the music we have used has been played by some of our members at their home in Hadleigh. We have even had services in the building led by someone at home. We still struggle with the fact that we are not allowed to sing in the building but in recent weeks have been able to move outside at the end of a service to sing. Most of our other activities have been, and still are, on hold. One exception is our mid-week meeting for Bible study and prayer. This has taken place entirely via Zoom and may well continue to do so. It has seemed very strange to have no activities specifically for children nor any opportunities to do school assemblies or care home visits. We look forward to being able to resume some of these things in due course. As our old hall has been out of use for all this time it has given us the opportunity to get the floor replaced, which it desperately needed and we have just had a new carpet laid, so it is ready for action. We also gave the worship area a lick of paint during the first lockdown. As restrictions are further lifted, and we settle into whatever the new normal is, we look forward to welcoming old friends and new to share with us in our journey of faith. Village Hall Management Committee & Community Council – Jeremy Reynolds Current Situation Covid Restrictions effectively closed the hall in 2020. The hall had no users until the Preschool re-started in January 2021. As Covid restrictions are easing, there will be an increased interest in clubs re-starting their activities. The current Chairman/Booking Agent and the treasurer are standing down from the posts after many years in post. The Secretary post is vacant after the loss of Sue Bailey last year. One of the last major changes to the committee was the re-combination of the Village Hall Management Committee and the Community Council, due to reduced membership The simplification of the accounting processes was to help with the reduced numbers. This re-organisation was agreed and signed off, but combined committee never got a chance to operate in the new configuration before Covid closed us all down. Finances Our bank account is in surplus, which has been helped by grants to village facilities like ours. As of July 2020, it stands at nearly £19k. Although this may be changed due to various bills and the re- starting of the Preschool. See the Treasurer's Report. Maintenance The car park and entrance driveway was resurfaced at the end of 2019. The bargeboards at the front of the hall were re-painted. Jobs that were planned but were halted by Covid included - refinishing the Hall floor, Replacing the work tops, sinks and taps and the cupboard carcasses along the window wall. The water urn has been troublesome and it was decided to replace it. The front gate posts have deteriorated and one post has collapsed causing the gate to fail. It has been made safe temporarily. There is a process in place to obtain quotes for rebuilding the posts. Cleaning has continued since the Preschool re- started. Sole use is required as the cleaning regime is quite specific and other groups my not share the Hall at this time. Lets - There have been no 'Lets' although it is expected that they may start with only local groups, like the Parish Council and Parochial Parish council, when Covid rules permit. This will be decided by the next committee after the AGM which

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will be conducted on 2nd June via Zoom. Please contact [email protected] if you would like an invitation. Improvements are planned for the external lighting with LED floodlights in the car park area, likewise the internal lighting with additional LED up-lighters. Finding a new committee is paramount to maintaining, developing the hall to provide a secure friendly space for the village to socialise Needham Market and Barking Welfare Charities – Shaun Cochrane The "Town Lands" and "Almshouse" charities are restricted by charity law to make grants that only benefit residents in Needham Market town and the parishes of Barking & Darmsden. They are registered with the Charity Commission and managed by eleven local trustees. The principal objectives of Town Lands are: to relieve residents' need, hardship or distress, and to provide relief for old age or sickness in the area, including convalescence, and to use any balance of income for such charitable purposes for the general benefit of the inhabitants as the trustees think fit. Apart from grants to local individuals and organisations, Trustees support the local minibus, administer the historic Camping Land as a public amenity and provide a site for the Scout hut, and manage the allotments on Quinton Road. The Almshouse charity oversees four flats within Orwell Housing's Drift Court sheltered housing scheme. This year, we expect total income of £43,000 (last 2 years: £54,000 & £53,000), and spending of £33,000 (last 2 years: £45,000 & £33,000). The figures exclude some Almshouse expenses which have been capitalised in the accounts. Next year, we anticipate income will again reduce because of Covid effects on income streams, but expenditure may be much higher. This is because of a time lag in receiving Covid-related applications to support families distressed· by the lockdowns·. 1n this respect, we are prepared to spend more than we receive next year, if need be. Full details will be found in the independently-examined Annual Report and financial statements, which are available from the Charity Commission website. FUTURE PLANS After prioritising those in need, Trustees are always willing to discuss feasible ideas/projects within the community, subject to any constraint of funds available. Better use of Almshouse funds is also a key focus. Historically, rent from a small parcel of land in Creeting St Mary provided a small income & coal for residents of the old almshouses, but is not pertinent today. Trustees now have outline planning permission for housing on this land, and are reviewing options for new charity buildings to offer modern sheltered accommodation for local residents in need of support. We feel this will be better utilisation of our land asset for the benefit of the community. Ringshall School – Mr Gough This report will give a short overview of the learning provision in place during the spring 2021 lockdown where schools were closed to all but essential workers and home learning measures were implemented. It will also give an overview of the school plans for the future. Lockdown learning overview Ringshall Primary school closed to the children of non-essential workers on January 6th 2021. After that children of essential workers and children deemed vulnerable were invited into school. Staff worked on a rotational basis to teach the children who came to school and deliver the home learning offer. Safeguarding remained a priority during the lockdown period, vulnerable children continued to be monitored and were invited to attend school. Children who were not in school, who were either deemed vulnerable or were not engaging with the online learning or teacher communication, were visited on a regular basis by the schools Educational Welfare Officer (EWO). Teachers, as well as providing a comprehensive and interactive

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learning experience online, had regular contact with families through well-being phone calls home, emails, hangout assemblies and live lessons. Google classrooms were used as the home learning platform during lockdown for year 1 to 6, Early Years children had work posted on Tapestry. Work was posted daily for children in English, Maths and the foundation subjects. Over a typical week all foundation subjects had work set. Work was supplemented with live lessons in Google Chat, recorded lessons, videos and social chat. PE was not missed either, lessons were uploaded onto the Google Classrooms to keep the children active. Future plans - a learning mind-set for all It is an exciting time for Ringshall Primary School. We have plans to develop a topic based curriculum from September that both ensures curriculum coverage and engages the children in varied and inspiring topic based learning. This approach is designed to develop life skills, such as oracy, empathy, teamwork, curiosity, mind-set, resilience and strategic thinking, as well as driving core subject knowledge, reading and writing skills and numeracy skills. In next year's action plan reading will be at the heart of everything we do. We intend to ensure every student is a fluent reader by the time they leave Ringshall Primary School. We believe that reading is the secret to success in life and therefore must be our number one priority. We will be teaching reading across the curriculum as well as in English lessons and we will be giving children access to reading materials and opportunities to read or listen to stories in various forms throughout the week. Wellbeing is another area that we are committed to developing at the school. We have launched ‘Wellbeing Wednesday’ which is a day, once a week, devoted to developing a healthy body and mind. We are putting in plans to make sport, music and opportunities for new experiences, a central part of the Ringshall school experience. We intend to give the children an education that feeds, inspires and develops their learning mind-set. We also have exciting plans to rip up the derelict adventure playground and replace it with a state of the art Ninja Warrior style fitness course that can be used for play, sport and nurture interventions. We are also planning to invest in our library, our outdoor learning resources and further develop our computing capacity. On a final note, Ringshall Primary School intends to position itself fully within the communities it serves. Developing links and partnerships within the community is a central ambition for the school as it moves forward. Barking Tree Warden – Richard Cage Possibly due to a significantly wetter period over recent months Horse Chestnut trees on Tye land appear to be in improved health with less incidence of bleeding canker and significantly less early leaf fall. Contractors for the Parish Council continue to mow and strim unnecessarily under tree canopy cover and around the base of trunks. Ash trees in the parish continue to show varying degrees of ash dieback, some being severely infected resulting in removal of one mature tree adjacent to Fox Meadow due to safety concerns whilst others show little or no evidence of infection. Work was carried out at Walnut House adjacent to Barking Tye to a walnut tree, under Notification of Works to Trees Protected by a Preservation Order, in order to reduce its height and crown spread to reduce sail area and lower its centre of gravity. Due to Covid restrictions monthly work parties in Bonny Wood were largely curtailed with only one being permissible with a maximum of six volunteers attending. No contract felling was carried out in the Wildlife Trust section of the wood. Noticeably more people were using all of the Barking woods for recreation during the pandemic. A pack of 80 trees was procured from the Woodland Trust in conjunction with Suffolk County Council for a local landowner. are running a similar scheme for free trees this year and one local landowner has already filled in an application. The Tree Warden would be interested in hearing from

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anyone with space for tree planting and would be willing to guide them through the process involved and if necessary, to assist with planting. I have been asked to comment on what I would consider to be plans for the future and It is my belief as Tree Warden for the parish that the time is right to consider how the Tye is managed in respect of mowing regimes and ongoing management. In my opinion there are several areas near the main road and on the Tye itself which would benefit wildlife with a less frequent mowing cycle allowing native plants to flower and reduce costs. As the Tye occupies over 40 acres of land, just 10% of this if either planted with native trees or being allowed naturally to revert to scrub would have a vastly positive impact on wildlife in the area by creating a mosaic of habitats. Funding is currently available to plant trees from multiple agencies and the government are pushing for sustainable measures to be implemented so there is no better time to act, especially at a time where ash trees will be lost in large numbers. There is more than enough space on the Tye to facilitate species rich grassland and woodland, alongside space for parkland/recreation although correct management of the grassland under the current Stewardship scheme is paramount to ensure wildflower species currently present are not lost. If the Tye is designated as a County Wildlife Site in the near future, there will be sources of grant aid available to the Parish Council to protect and improve habitat. Ringshall &Barking Women’s Institute – Juliet Beadle – Ringshall & Barking WI was founded 88 years ago. It now has 30 members who come from Barking, Willisham, Gt. Bricett, Battisford and Needham Market. Meetings are held in the Barking Village Hall the second Tuesday of each month. However there has been no meeting since March 2020 because of the pandemic. The National Organisation of the Women’s Institute have organised many Zoom meeting for members should they wish to participate. We present our members every January with a programme of events for the following year but so far in 2021 there have been no meetings and it would look as if our next virtual meeting will not be until at least July when 30 people can get together for a meeting. Every month members receive a local magazine SEFWI News informing them of the local events of the WI throughout the area and outings which they may wish to attend. A monthly magazine from the National Headquarters of the Women’s Institute is also sent to members. The Committee were very pleased to see that despite the difficult situation we are in at the moment that all our members have renewed their membership for 2021 despite having little participation. Barking Village Hall Management Committee –Jeremy Reynolds Village Hall Management Committee Chairman). Main points: the accounts are in surplus. Planning to recoat the floor, resurface and extend the carpark and decorate the bargeboards. Have increased the cleaner’s hours to 4 a week to try to improve standards. Have had more private lets this year. The fence to the rear grassed area needs repair and Pre-school use this area so needs to be secure. The cupboards have been removed to provide more space for the stage. Need to make arrangements for annexe users to be able to get to the main store if they need more chairs or tables. Thanks to those who helped to decorate the hall. Barking Tye Community Choir –Sandra Reynolds - It is interesting to note that, if Covid had not intervened, the Community Choir would have been celebrating its 10th birthday this year. The choir has come a long way since our first appearances at the Community Council’s ‘1940s’ Evening’ and ‘Victorian Christmas’. Since then, Carol Services at Barking and Great Bricett became annual events, we were invited to sing at the Sergeants’ Mess Christmas party on two occasions and even joined hundreds of other singers for a Singday at the Royal Albert Hall. Our annual Summer charity concerts at either Barking or Great Bricett proved to be very popular and, having experimented with a ‘multimedia’ form of programme,

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whereby we included slides, video and the spoken word, we were working on our third such concert, which was to have taken place in July 2020. Alas, Covid-19 had other ideas and the choir was forced to stop meeting in February, just before the first lockdown. I would like to mention here that the Community Choir benefitted enormously from all the support given to us by Sue Bailey, who sadly passed away last year. Sue simply liked to be known as our tea lady but in fact she did a tremendous amount behind the scenes as secretary, designer of posters, and chief seller of tickets. As the choir’s musical director, I am indebted to Sue for all the support that she gave me. On another sad note, Eileen Hodgson, our first accompanist, died two or three years ago after quite a long illness. We were fortunate in being able to enlist the help of Michael Ulph, an ex-teaching colleague of mine and a brilliant pianist. Unbelievably tragically, Mike recently died unexpectedly, in his mid-thirties, leaving a wife and young family. His funeral is, in fact, tomorrow (25 May). So, much has happened in the Community Choir’s ten year history. I would love to say that we will get together again soon but, where Covid-19 is concerned, nothing can be certain or taken for granted. Singing has been proven to be one of the worst (if not THE worst) social activity. The latest Government guidelines, published on 18 May - the day after restrictions were eased - make it abundantly clear that there is still a risk of airborne infection from singer to singer. The message used to be that singing was so beneficial to one’s health. Alas, not for the time being at least. The choir will not be getting together again in the foreseeable future but nothing can be ruled out in these uncertain times. Barking Art Group – Kate Griffin The last time the Group met in the Village Hall was on 9th March2020 with 9 Members attending. We knew we would have to close down due to the Covid Pandemic but had hoped to reassemble last September after the usual Summer Break. This did not happen. We have however tried to keep in touch wherever possible by phone, (Margaret Page being most active in this respect) and remembering to send cards as appropriate for birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas etc. During the shutdown we lost Libby Ruffle one of our longest serving members which saddened all of us hugely. We now hope that the time we can start up again is not too far ahead and we still have enough retained funds to have a party together in the Hall when the good news comes. Theobald’s Foundation – Shaun Cochrane For those present who might not be aware of what the Theobald's Endowed Foundation Charity is I thought I would start by giving a very short summary of its back ground and aims. The scheme in its current form came into being in 1986 following a donation from Needham & Barking Charities and a very generous bequest from Mr Eric Lacey Theobald of over £30,000 in 1983. However, the Foundation itself can trace its history right back to 1632 with the endowment of a Free School in Needham Market. The school developed over many years to the point where in the 19th Century it had achieved considerable status and reputation, details of which can be found in the History of Needham Market by the late Hugh Paget. However, following the eventual closure of the school, the Foundation was governed by a new Trust deed established in 1911 enabling the Trustees, still called Governors, utilising a limited endowment, to give restricted financial assistance to a small number of applicants for the continuation of their education. The Foundation in its current form was approved by the Charities Commission and established in November 1986 replacing the 1911 Trust Deed. Direction of the Foundation lies with 9 Trustees, of whom 2 are nominated by Needham Market Town Council and 2 by Barking Parish Council the remaining trustees are co-

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opted. The· benefici·a1 area is the civil parishes of Needham ana Barking and the potential beneficiaries are young people under 25 proceeding to Higher or Further Education that have previously past through schools in Needham or Ringshall, this being to help provide facilities otherwise not available from usual County resources. It is the role of the Trustees to make grants to qualifying individuals and manage and maintain the charitable fund through investment. Written applications for grants are welcomed from individuals within the qualifying parishes and these are generally reviewed annually at the Foundations January meeting. Applications are considered in line with the request made by each individual against a set of qualifying criteria and scale of grant available. A written thank you from fund recipients is expected by the Trustees, although sadly not always received, and will be taken into account should the applicant approach the Foundation in subsequent years for further grants. In 2020 grants have been given to 23 applicants totalling £4,355, to students from both areas of benefit. These funds typically assist the young students in the purchase of books, study materials and specialist equipment pertaining to the area of studies they are engaged in. As in previous years as we approach the annual grant cycle we will be promoting awareness of the Foundation to local students moving into, or continuing in, further education and inviting them to apply.

BPC5/21 Public Forum A parishioner has kindly provided new nets on the small football goal. The orchids on the Tye have been roped off for protection. A sign will be added for explanation. The parish council is waiting for more information before carrying out a survey to consult the village about installing a footway from Ashworth to Michaelmas Bungalow. The clerk will check if the Fox pub is still registered as an asset of community value and write to the owner to ask what the future is for the pub. A large number of vodka bottles have been found in the ditch along the Willisham Road. MSDC have collected many and it has been reported to the police.

The Chairman closed the meeting at 7.55pm

Chairman…………………………………….. Date………………………………..

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