01-20-26 TC MINS
MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF LOUTH TOWN COUNCIL
HELD IN THE OLD COURT ROOM, THE SESSIONS HOUSE, LOUTH
ON TUESDAY 20th JANUARY 2026

The Mayor, Cllr. D. Hobson (DH) (in the chair).

Present Councillors: T. Ball (TB), Mrs. E. Ballard (Mrs. EB), J. Baskett (JB), J. Drake (JD), H. Filer (HF), Mrs. J. Makinson-Sanders (Mrs. JMS), D. Moore (DM), Mrs. K. Parsons (Mrs. KP), P. Starsmore (PS), H. Steer (HS), D.E. Wing (DEW)

Councillors Not Present: G.E. Horton (GEH), Mrs. P.F. Watson (Mrs. PFW)

The Town Clerk, Mrs. L.M. Phillips, the Town Clerk’s Assistant, Mrs. S. Chitauro-Adlard, the Mayor’s Serjeant, Mrs. S. Dykes, the Mayor’s Chaplain, Reverend K. Dally, ELDC Councillor R. Jackson and 10 members of the public were also present.

Public Forum
• Mrs. E. Maddison, of the Park Avenue Play Park group, gave a short update on the group’s progress.
• R. Jackson informed the Council that a website had been created for the Park Avenue Play Park project.

The Council received the following reports from elected Members of East Lindsey District Council (ELDC):
• Cllr. R. Jackson notified the Council that budget talks were ongoing. There was not a great deal of change but ELDC were tightening their belts.
• Cllr. Mrs. JMS told the Council that ELDC’s carpark scrutiny was ongoing and that the Football Foundation was still looking for an appropriate site in Louth for an astroturf pitch. She went on to divulge that she had received correspondence from Spout Yard asking for volunteers and appealed to Councillors for their help. She then said that she had been questioned as to why ELDC does not collect Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) monies, and confirmed that ELDC had responded that they could generate more from Section 106 Agreements, which Cllr. Mrs. JMS disagreed with. She finalised by stating that ELDC were going to consult on new neighbourhood services and hopefully determine ownership of Enginegate Walk.
• Cllr. Mrs. KP reported that the Louth Lions were helping at Spout Yard with gardening.

Prior to the commencement of the formal meeting, Rev. K. Dally said payers.

NB: Before the meeting, it was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to move Item 9 up the agenda to Item 6 due to public interest.

T112. Apologies for Absence
Apologies for absence were received from Cllrs. GEH and PFW.

T113. Declarations of Interest / Dispensations
The following declarations of interest were made:
a. Cllr. Mrs. JMS – Items 11, 12 and 13 as an ELDC Councillor.
b. Cllr. DH – Items 11, 12 and 13 as an ELDC Councillor.

T114. Town Clerk’s Remarks
The Town Clerk informed the Council that:
• The Deed of Surrender and new lease for the London Road Astro Turf site had been signed by the Council but was still awaiting the signature of Magna Vitae. She said that the matter would hopefully soon be finalised.
• LTC had taken ownership of the electricity supply box located in the Market Place.
• The Secretary of the London Road Allotments had contacted the Council to report that they believed there could be a small amount of asbestos on the premises. The Town Clerk said she was awaiting further information.
• Communications around Old Mill House were ongoing.
• She had received a complaint regarding the Lincolnshire flag bunting in the Cornmarket. She acknowledged that the bunting was old, somewhat frayed and needed to be removed, along with the Christmas themed bunting at the locations of Pawnshop Passage and Little Butcher Lane. The Town Clerk told the Council that the cost of removal was quite high, mainly due to a cherry picker being needed for the Cornmarket. She continued that the complainant felt that the bunting should not be hung, and asked Council whether they agreed or whether a compromise might be in order. Councillors did not agree with the complainant or to a compromise, they felt the bunting added positively to the town centre.
• Tabled were notes from the walk along the River Lud undertaken at the end of November with the Environment Agency, which also mentioned that further equipment to monitor water levels was to be installed and that she would receive further details. She had also received an email from LCC who were working on Project Groundwater Greater Lincolnshire and had invited Councillors to attend an onboarding session which would be held remotely via Google Meet for 30 minutes on Wednesday 11th February 2026.
• She was pleased to confirm that LTC had been accredited with a Bronze Award under the Local Council Award Scheme (LCAS), run by the National Association of Local Councils.

T115. Minutes
It was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED that the notes of the Council Meeting held on 18th November 2025 be approved as the minutes.

T116. Committee Minutes
It was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to confirm receipt of the minutes and adopt the resolutions contained therein of the following Committee Meetings:
a. Planning Committee – 21st October 2025
b. Planning Committee – 18th November 2025
c. Governance and Finance Committee – 21st October 2025

T117. Mayor’s Announcements
The Mayor, Cllr. DH, told Councillors that he had continued his support of local organisations and groups, including events organised by Louth Navigation Trust, Louth Rotary and Louth Lions. Cllr. DH went on to say that he had supported the talented local arts scene at exhibitions at both the Riverhead Gallery and Hammond House Gallery, as well as sitting for the Spout Yard Portrait Group. He divulged that he had attended and presented prizes at the annual Lincolnshire Young Musician of the Year competition organised by the Louth Male Voice Choir, which saw young people from all corners of the county take part in showcasing their incredible talents. He continued the Council’s association with local schools by attending Louth Academy’s awards and prizegiving evening at the Riverhead Theatre as well as visiting the St. Bernard’s School Parliament for one of their meetings and spoke to the students about the role of Mayor. Cllr. DH said that, as well as attending Civic Services in Bourne, Spalding and Kirton in Lindsey, he and the Mayoress were pleased to join the Mayor of Lincoln at a Civic Carol Service held at Lincoln Cathedral in support of SSAFA, an armed forces charity. Cllr. DH went on to inform Council that, in the busy Christmas period, he attended services at St. James’ Church, as well as taking part in the Santa Run for Life again. He also presented prizes to the winner and runners up of businesses who took part in the Festive Window competition. Cllr. DH continued that, in addition to attending both the Archer Ward at Louth Hospital and the Salvation Army on Christmas Day, he and the Mayoress had also, over Christmas, visited the crew at Louth Fire and Ambulance Station to thank them for the tremendous work that they do in keeping our community safe and well, and to recognize their efforts in frequently going beyond what was realistically expected of them. Cllr. DH finalised by stating that he and the Mayoress were looking forward to another busy period in the months ahead.

T118. Co-option
Cllr. DH read out the letters of application from applicants hoping to be co-opted onto the Council. Councillors then received presentations from the two applicants, and asked questions which they felt were pertinent to the candidate’s potential role on the Council. It was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED that Mr. T. Ball (TB) and Mr. H. Steer (HS) should both be co-opted onto Louth Town Council onto Trinity Ward. The two signed a Declaration of Acceptance of Office and joined the Council meeting.

T119. Precept
After receiving recommendations from the Governance and Finance Committee, who reviewed the budget and Earmarked Reserve (EMR) proposals on 9th December 2025, a recorded vote was requested with results as follows:
Cllrs for: Mrs. EB, JB, JD, HF, DH, Mrs. JMS, DM, KP, PS, HS, DEW
Cllrs against: None
Cllrs abstained: TB

Subsequently, it was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to approve the following:
a. The Draft budget 26/27 for day-to-day expenditure and EMRS, as presented, which resulted in:
i. A precept of £377,090.17 being levied in 2026/27, which equated to an increase on 2025/26 of £37,171.53 and an annual cost to a Band D ratepayer of £62.73.
ii. EMR’s being topped up from General Reserve and not via the precept.
Further, it was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to approve the following:
b. Earmarked Reserves Report, which explained the purpose and level of existing and proposed EMR’s and detailed how each individual EMR would be treated.
c. To delegate authority to the Town Clerk to complete the necessary forms and submit to ELDC, the Collection Authority.

NB: TB abstained from voting on b.

T120. Park Avenue Play Park
Following previous discussion on the above when the following was agreed:

“Louth Town Council would maintain its original resolution to take no further action until a) the Park Avenue Play Park group had successfully achieved charity status; and b) the group had successfully received funding. Further, it was RESOLVED that that the Council should seek confirmation from the landowners, through the group, that they would fulfil their promise of completing the necessary work to the land and when all of the above were achieved the draft Heads of Terms should be revisited”

i. Council considered an email regarding the above which confirmed that Louth Park Avenue Play Park had been successful in their bid for funding under the conditions that: 1) An accountable body for the administration of grant, suitably constituted and with a separate bank account with at least two signatories nominated for the receipt of the funds by Monday 16th March 2026, 5:00PM. 2) Use of the grant to install CCTV at the new facility as part of the works. 3) An agreement from Louth Town Council to assume responsibility for the ongoing management and maintenance of the site and asset, obtained in writing and submitted to East Lindsey District Council before Monday 16th March 2026, 5:00PM (three months).
ii. The Council also received a tabled document which detailed that, whilst the group had not yet obtained charity status, the group had received confirmation from the owner of a shop near to the site that they would install the required CCTV on their property. Councillors aired their concerns over the prospect of a private business installing CCTV to monitor a public area and felt strongly that the intricacies of CCTV needed to be researched further. It was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to defer the final decision of LTC’s position until Tuesday 3rd March 2026 and, in the interim, contact ELDC to request clarification of their conditions, Cllr. Mrs. EB to research CCTV, possibly revisit the draft Heads of Terms, invite Gleesons to the next meeting to be held Tuesday 10th February 2026 to discuss the possibility of Gleeson’s having an ongoing commitment to the land, ask whether they would consider doing the honorable thing, or if an arrangement could be made re. management of the site and if so how much this might cost and what kind of terms that might be on.
T121. Accessibility Statement
Council reviewed its Accessibility Statement, and it was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to approve it for use, noting that the website had been checked for compliance by an independent specialist company.

T122. ELIF Pride in Place Essentials Scheme Grant
Council noted that it had been successful in acquiring match funding from the above in the sum of £1,000 for signage at Hubbard’s Hills. It was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to accept the funding, and it was noted that the project must be completed for the fund to be claimed by the deadline of 13th March 2026.

T123. Town Centre Retail
Council received notes of the informal meeting of Councillors on 9th December 2025 to discuss the above and it was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED:
a. To approve the action points which arose at the meeting:
i) Remembrance – as a well attended, Council organised event in the town centre, persuade attendees to extend their time in the town by encouraging shops to offer discounts on the day.
ii) Market Stall – encourage communication from residents and distribute surveys.
(1) Have Town Council merchandise to distribute.
(2) Have pads of A4 size maps so that one sheet can be torn out and handed out to assist tourists.
iii) Street Furniture – fit Town Council branding where appropriate. Renovate/renew benches in Market Place to enhance aesthetic appeal.
iv) Sheds instead of Market Stalls – research this as an option for Louth.
v) Change to arrangement of market stalls e.g., in centre of road.
vi) Arrange for the Love Louth webpage to be updated.
vii) Free wifi – explore possibility of providing free wifi to users of the Town Centre, which will allow the Council to capture user data and communicate with those people.
viii) Parking Bays – explore the possibility of extending the time limit allowed on Town Centre parking bays and of offering the first hour of parking free in car parks.
ix) Visit other towns to gather information on their experiences and learn from them
x) Town Centre Activities – to draw users and boost the Town’s economy explore the possibility of organising monthly events in the Market Place/Cornmarket such as a Christmas Lights Switch On, Car Boot Sales, Outdoor Bingo, music and alfresco dining, specialist markets e.g., antique, flea or simply street entertainment supplied by outside specialist firms.
b. To form a working group consisting of Cllrs. KP, HF, DM, PS, HS with the following Terms of Reference:

Name Membership Remit Delegated Powers Meetings
Town Centre Retail Working Group 5 plus Town Clerk and members of the public with relevant experience, as approved by group. To investigate ways in which the Town Council could assist Town Centre Retail to boost the Town’s economy and help build the Town’s offer around it’s unique shops. Recommendations to be brought to Council. Progressing ideas approved by Council and assisting in execution. Delegated authority over budgets and reserves to Town Clerk under guidance of group. As required.
c. That the working group’s first action should be to meet with Cllr. Adam Grist and the ELDC Place Team to receive an update on and discuss the Vital and Viable action list.
d. Noted that its second grant application to the Pride in Place Fund was unsuccessful, and that a meeting of the working group should take place with the South and East Lincolnshire Councils Partnership to discuss amendments, with a view to submitting another application in the future.

T124. Emergency Plan
The Council noted that, following approval by the Lincolnshire Community Resilience Officer, it could now formally approve that the LTC’s Emergency Plan be adopted as a dynamic document for use by the Louth Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). It was proposed, seconded, and RESOLVED to adopt the plan, and include Cllr. TB as a member of the CERT Team.

T125. Lincolnshire Pension Fund Contribution Rates
After review, it was proposed, seconded and RESOLVED to accept the contribution rates.

T126. Next Meeting
It was noted that the date of the next scheduled Town Council meeting was 10th February 2026.

The Meeting Closed at 9.35pm.

 

Signed_______________________ (Chairman) Dated_________________________