Annual Parish Meetings

Notes of the Heighington Annual Parish Meeting

The Annual Parish Meeting was held on Monday 28th April 2025 at 7.00pm, in the Jubilee Hall.

The meeting was attended by 19 members of the public, including Parish Councillors and officers.

The Chair of the Parish Council, Councillor Sue Sockell, presided and opened the meeting with a welcome to those present. 

There were displays from the Parish Council, Heighington Bowls Club, the Garrett’s Charity, Guide Dogs and Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance.

The Chair confirmed that the agenda order would be slightly re-jigged as we were expecting someone else from Guide Dogs to arrive.

1. The notes of the Annual Parish Meeting held on 19th March 2024 were agreed.

2. The Parish Clerk shared a review of Council activities in the last year.

Our council:

• Achieved the Local Council Award at Foundation level (currently one of only 7 parish and town councils in Lincolnshire who have this).
• Received good internal and external reports.
• Said goodbye to Jacki Rushby and welcomed Debbie Yeates to the council.
• Said a sad goodbye to friend and colleague Denis and welcomed Mark.

Community Events:

• Once again put on successful (and popular) free events including Hoolahoop Megastructure, Halloween and circus workshops, and pre-school workshop. GLL on behalf of NKDC ran a popular Summer Sporting Day, which Heighington Bowls Club also got involved in.
• Everyone got in the festive spirit at our Festive Tea & Cake event.
• The Olympics came to Heighington when we took part in the annual Scarecrow Festival, along with Washingborough and Branston parish councils.
• Once again, we commemorated Remembrance with the knitted poppies.
• We were happy to support A Good Yarn’s knitted Christmas tree, which has now become ‘A Tree For All Seasons’. Look out for its new coat.
• Lost more events to come this year, starting with our VE80 anniversary tea for all residents on 8th May. 

Other activities:

• The old flagpole top is now proudly displayed at the Jubilee Hall, in a specially fabricated bracket with commemorative plaque.
• The Book Swap continues to be very popular and is well used. Unfortunately, the phone box proved to be too damp for books but we’re looking at other ideas for it.
• Solar speed sign was finally installed on Washingborough Road, following some delays getting the pole installed. The battery speed sign is now moved between various village locations.
• We still need more volunteers to get Community Speedwatch off the ground.
• Assortment of trees planted at Potterhanworth Road and Station Road. Seed bombing planned for the autumn.
• Two community litter picks last year collected 15 bags of rubbish. Our volunteer litter picker collected 24.5 bags and donated just under 28 hours of their time over the year.
• A number of bins have been replaced, with more purchased and awaiting installation. These are ‘dual use’ and can be used for dog as well as general waste. Two new benches installed at Potterhanworth Road following a request from dog walkers.
• Ongoing play area maintenance saw repair of various safety surfaces, replacement of chains, and hand grips. 
• Two new sensory boards and a ‘How Tall Are You’ board purchased for Station Road play area, just awaiting delivery and installation.
• Public meeting held about flooding in the village. LCC published their Section 19 report, with the hydrologist’s report due out soon. Groundwater sensors installed and we have access to an alert system for water levels.
• Working with Lincolnshire Resilience Forum, our Emergency Team and Emergency Plan is now in place.
• Grants awarded to Garrett’s Charity, HBW United FC and the WI. Grant Awarding Policy and application form are on our website. Applications can be made between 1 April and 30 June and will be considered at the July Council meeting.
• Finally - residents’ feedback matters. Please contact the Parish Office for any queries or issues.

The Chair thanked the Clerk for the update.

3. The following updates were given from our local clubs, groups and organisations:

Cllr David Trafford gave an update from the Pike and Eure George Walker Educational Foundation:

The introduction of the grants for voluntary groups resulting from the amended Trust Deed of 2023 implemented in 2024 has again been a beneficial and welcomed success. Two very worthy groups who entertain many youngsters between the ages of 5 - 25 were awarded grants towards their activities and the training of volunteer coaching or assistant helpers.

The Main Charity continues to be well supported each year, and grants are awarded to students between the ages of 16 – 25 years towards university, college, apprenticeships or vocational courses. (Please note, grants are not available for students attending the 6th form of schools). The Trustees contact the local secondary schools, Lincoln University, Lincoln College and Siemens each year with copies of the application forms informing them of the available grants plus adverts in the Sheepwash Times and details on village websites and posters around the villages. The applications are considered by the Trustees around late October/beginning of November each year when they are more aware of what interest the Charity will have to award grants as they can only use the interest plus this gives the applicants time to ensure they have been accepted on their courses or apprenticeships etc. In 2024 twelve students were awarded grants, three of which were for apprenticeships and the vocations chosen round were very varied and for a varied number of years.

There were no successful applications under the Sports Section in 2024.

If you have any queries or require help in obtaining or completing the application forms, please contact the Clerk to the Trustees as follows:

Mrs Anne Sutton, 5 Leicester Close, Washingborough, Lincoln, LN4 1DS.

Tel: 01522 791030 or 07930 542731

Email: anne318sutton@btinternet.com

Jane Dunning gave an update from the Garrett’s Charity: 

Background

Garrett’s Charity dates back to around 1620 when Thomas Garrett a local man left money and land in his will for the founding of a boys’ school in the private chapel he had owned in Heighington, which has late Norman origins. The buildings we know as the Heritage Rooms today were built in 1865 as a major refurbishment and expansion of the premises. The funds to build the school rooms came from the former Thomas Garrett Apprenticing Charity and the former Sir Edward Clarke’s Charity which both had educational purposes in their objects. The new schoolrooms housed the village boys’ school until 1976. Both the chapel and Heritage Rooms continue to be owned by Garrett’s Charity. It is unusual for a functioning community chapel to be under independent charity ownership, which makes this building in the heart of our community both distinctive and special. The premises are grade II listed (No. 1360209). The charity maintains The Thomas Garrett Heritage Rooms and St Thomas’ Chapel of Ease for the benefit of the community. It promotes both education and inclusion through use of the premises.

Whilst the charity is very old, the current governing document was registered with the Charity Commission in 1995 and slightly amended in 2020 to allow for co-option of two additional local residents onto the local Trustee board and now allows for nine Trustees.

During 2024 further work on revising the governing document to more accurately reflect the current use of the Heritage Rooms as a community building has been ongoing. This does not affect the operation of the Chapel.

In 2024 Nichola Briscoe was co-opted as a Trustee and is already contributing a great deal. There is a vacancy for a co-opted resident and one of the PCC nominated posts remains vacant.

Finances

The charity’s main source of income is from hire of the Heritage Rooms to community groups (up 20% to about £7,300 in 2024.) The Friends of the Garrett’s Charity manage the bookings on a day-to-day basis on behalf of Garrett’s Charity. The activities undertaken there include glass making, felt work, needlework, art groups, woodcarving, coffee mornings, drama, dance, willow weaving, Tai-Chi, and a community choir. These activities reflect the educational emphasis of the original benefaction.

Donations from the community include regular gifts and a cash collection box at Anderson’s butchers. The charity is registered with HMRC for Gift Aid and has registered on digital giving platform: crowdfunder.co.uk. Legacy giving is encouraged. The 100 Club has proved successful. Once again, the Friends of the Garrett’s Charity hosted a Car Boot Sale in June and Arts & Crafts Exhibition in October. Both events were well attended bringing together old friends and new visitors into the Heritage Rooms which created a vibrant social atmosphere.

During 2024 we also explored other fundraising activities. An aluminium recycling scheme was set up in May and processed around 9,500 cans or 119kg in the year. Whilst the funds raised are modest it is a good way to engage people in the work of the charity. The Smarties Challenge has been very popular generating over £220 from 26 filled tubes. Overall income was up 41% to £18,700 in 2024 and costs were around £10,000; so we managed to make a surplus in the year which will help with ongoing maintenance priorities.

Participation in the Village Event in July and the Heighington Christmas Festival helped further raise the profile of the charity.

The modest capital funds of the charity are invested in COIF Charities Ordinary Investment Fund which provides valuable income and an emergency reserve for the charity.

The Annual Accounts to 31st December 2024 were examined by Mr C M Green and were found to be sound. We are grateful for his help. The Annual Return has been submitted to the Charity Commission.

Roof Appeal

The Quinquennial Report undertaken in 2023 highlighted the poor condition of the roof. A Listed Building Application to reroof the building and insulate the internal ceilings was submitted to NKDC and approved in December 2024. The scheme will be undertaken in three phases commencing with the chapel where one section of the roof has already failed and is causing significant damp to a section of the internal wall. The first phase is estimated to cost £60,000 to £70,000. A grant from the Michael Cornish Foundation has already been secured and other grant funders have been identified. Nevertheless a substantial sum will still need to be raised by the community. We are hopeful that the local community will rally together to secure the future of this valuable distinctive historic asset at the heart of the village.

The Trustees are grateful to the Friends of the Garrett’s Charity for their support and particular thanks go to the Friends Management Committee for their dedication.

Trustees:

D E Chantler

C J Dunning

G J Chard

N J Eyre

N J Briscoe

C R Oxby

L D Brabin-Smith

Andrea White gave an update from Heighington Bowls Club: 

• Thanks for the continued support of the Parish Council.
• Heighington Bowls Club celebrates its 90th anniversary this year.
• The Club operates an ‘open door’ policy. Social bowling takes place on a Sunday. Open ‘have a go’ sessions are run on a Friday.
• The Club now has a premises licence and bar.

4. Les, Joyce and Bruce from Lincs & Notts Air Ambulance gave an insight into the charity:

• The charity has been going for 30 (nearly 31) years and in that time, it has completed 28,000 missions.
• It receives no government or lottery funding and is entirely funded through public donations.
• Running costs are £13 million per annum.
• The helicopter gets called out 4 – 5 times a day.
• A 2016 vision set the following (4 – 5 year) goals:
  • New HQ
  • Own critical care company 
  • Ability to look after people 24/7
• The new HQ opened in 2021. This was achieved through a government land grant of £3.8 million. A state of art helipad, costing £316,000 was funded through the HELP charity.
• The charity achieved ‘outstanding’ rating in the last CQC audit.
• New Leonardo helicopter. The charity does not own the helicopter. It comes with 10 pilots. 2 engineers cover 24 hours.
• Staff had to be given training on the use of night vision goggles, which cost £12,000 per pair.
• The helicopter gets serviced in Italy, where it is totally dismantled and reassembled. A replacement helicopter is provided for the duration of this work.
• The helicopter is on standby from 7:00am to 2:00am the next day. From 2:00am to 7:00am cover is provided by critical care cars, based in Lincoln and Nottingham.
• 14 paramedics are employed. They need to have spent 3 years in a land ambulance and had 3-5 years training to advanced trauma level.
• There are 30 volunteer doctors (plus a waiting list).
• The helicopter is now a flying A&E department.
• They’ve just had the busiest March on record, and 63% of those treated by the air ambulance in March were men.
• Blood is carried onboard the helicopter. Blood and plasma is delivered daily by the Blood Bikers and any not used is taken away at the end of the day. (The blood is kept at 4o C so is not wasted and can be redeployed elsewhere).
• Volunteers are essential and in 2024 the charity used 22,686 volunteer hours (which is the equivalent of £250,000 based on minimum wage).
• The biggest fundraising stream is through legacies, the Air Ambulance lottery and fundraising.

The Chair thanked the representatives for their interesting and informative update.

5. Alison from Guide Dogs gave an insight into the dog training programme:

• At 8 weeks old, the puppy goes to a puppy raiser, for approximately a year.
• During this time, they are trained to become familiar with buses, trains, crowded shops, loud noises, to sit quietly in a café and ignore smells. The aim of this training is to have a well-adjusted and confident dog.
• Dogs in training don’t have the same right of access as qualified Guide Dogs, although many premises still allow them access.
• The dogs are trained to toilet in a specific place and on command.
• They are assessed for their confidence and intelligence.
• Some of the very best dogs are selected as breeding dogs. Those that aren’t, are neutered/spayed and they move on to the next stage.
• These dogs are then boarded with someone else and start their training as a Guide Dog.
• This training focuses on achieving the safest transit from A to B for dog and owner.
• The dogs are trained to look out for low tree branches, trained to indicate stairs (including whether they are ascending or descending), trained to find a kerb (and sit and wait until the owner thinks it safe to cross).
• The introduction of electric cars poses an additional hazard for owners.
• The dog won’t move if it thinks it is not safe to cross.
• Dealing with puddles can be an issue – some dogs will happily take their owner straight through the middle!
• Not many people know, but if the dog is sitting and the harness handle is resting on the dog’s back, that is a sign that the owner needs help.
• Once the dog has been trained, it is matched with a potential owner. The matching process takes into account the owner’s lifestyle, needs, work and family environment.
• The potential owner and dog meet and train together. The dog will learn specific things depending on the owner’s requirements, such as going to a specific bus stop.
• The dogs are constantly assessed for the first 2 years.
• The process of becoming a fully qualified Guide Dog requires lots of concentration and some don’t make it through this process. The unsuccessful dogs are redeployed into different roles such as support or buddy dogs for a child.
• At approximately 10 years old, a Guide Dog will retire from working life. It will often stay with the family, sometimes returns to its puppy raiser, or may be offered out for general rehoming.
• It costs £50,00 per dog, from birth to retirement, and most of the charity’s funds come from legacies or corporate sponsorship.

The Chair thanked Alison for stepping in at the last minute to give her talk, which was fascinating.

6. There were no further questions from the parishioners.

The Chair thanked everyone for attending; to our guests for their interesting talks; and invited everyone to have refreshments and view the stalls, with a reminder that Councillors were on hand to answer any queries.

Heighington Parish Council Annual Report 2024-25 Presentation

Heighington Parish Council Annual Report 2024-25

Garrett's Charity Annual Report 2024

Garrett's Charity Accounts 2024