Phone: 07741 284132
Email: LanghamCC@gmail.com
LANGHAM COMMUNITY COUNCIL
Minutes of a Finance Sub-Committee Meeting
held on 3rd July 2017 at 7.30pm.

Present Alan Cadman, Liz Schofield, Maureen Shouksmith, Liz Winter, Sue Armstrong.

Minutes of Previous meeting on 12th June
These had been approved by those present at the meeting.

Matters Arising
1. Liz was on her second attempt to add Maureen to the bank mandate online, having been advised to try again by Barclays help desk, this time naming Andrew as the person to confirm the addition since Alan had been unable to do so. We may have to resort to doing it on paper as the online system doesn’t seem to be straightforward. Liz W will follow it up. EW
2. The E-on direct debit had been altered to £575 pcm, the first payment to be taken
on 1st July.
3. No independent examiner had been found. Liz S suggested contacting George who lives at The Old Forge on the far end of Rectory Road. She provided his number to Maureen to contact him. MS
4. Alan passed Sue the letters confirming hers and Cheryl’s pay increase. Sue would pass on Cheryl’s the following day.

Chairman’s Report
Alan and Andrew Craig had met Lee Spalding from Colchester Borough Homes at the community centre on 19th June. They had discussed plans for the proposed refurbishment of the disabled toilet facilities, including access from the field. Lee can support us through all stages of the project from feasibility study and initial specification, through the tendering process and Building Regs, obtaining a grant, right up to monitoring and completion of the works to the required standard. We shall not be ready to secure grant funding by the August 2017 deadline but will have the support of CBH for a deferred application later this year.
Andrew had suggested that we accept Lee’s quote of £636 for fees to “deliver costed feasibility study” undertaken by a building surveyor, electrical engineer and quantity surveyor. As this is such a reasonable figure, Liz Schofield proposed and Maureen seconded that Alan go ahead and accept it. All in favour. AC
Sue suggested the plans could include a path around the building, as wheelchairs cannot run easily on the grass, and possibly a stairlift which had previously been shelved while other refurbishments were undertaken. The baby change unit would need relocating since it would not fit into the revamped toilet area. This would require some thought.

Alan had read the electricity meter for the Shop. They had used a lot of electricity this time and would owe us around £900. Sue would raise an invoice. SA Alan also stated that he had transferred a further £5,000 into our Saver account as there had been £20,000 in the Current account.

Treasurer’s Report
Maureen’s income and expenditure account for May did not tally with the bank balance and she needed to look at the figures again and amend where necessary. She is still experiencing some problems with the laptop and is currently unable to send and receive e-mails. Sue Armstrong would have a look at it as she had set up the e-mail facility. The present May account showed a deficit of £740 probably because a large bill had been paid to Lindseys for boiler maintenance. Any discrepancies would be sorted out before the June account was prepared for the Management Trustee meeting on 20th July. MS

Budget and Car Park repairs
The final copy of the budget, showing planned outgoings for the current year at £20,000, was agreed. The car park repairs should not be delayed any longer. Liz S suggested asking Ken Dilliway for a quote as he had laid the original surface and might be able to suggest alternative companies, since ProMac had not been able to meet Alan last time. Liz S may also approach Lionel Whitnell, who has intimated that he could do the work.
ES
Pre-School update
The meeting with Pre-School reps earlier in the day had led to a decision to ask our Trustees to consider an extension of the rent reduction until end of March 2018. By then the Pre-School committee should know whether their efforts to attract more children had been successful.

Marketing Manager’s Report
Sue had circulated her end of May report prior to the meeting and reported that the VOIP phone was working very well and costing around £10 per month compared with BT’s £35. She has ordered more oil via the Shop but the watchman on our oil tank reads “error” and needs fixing.
The presence of travellers in the village has caused a lot of extra trips by Sue, Cheryl and Liz Schofield to check that the car park barrier is properly locked. Sue would like remote viewing of the CCTV cameras to be available on Cheryl’s phone as it is on hers. She also suggested adjustments to the cameras to give a better view of the gate and car park. Changing the key safe number very frequently is also causing extra work.
We are still waiting for Lindseys to solve the overheating boiler problem. Alan has not paid their last bill for replacement of the thermostat.
A new football team is coming for interview on Thursday to replace Connaught Reds who have left us. The recent Bailey caravan meet complained about the water tap being in the rubbish cupboard, which was very smelly. Perhaps plans for the new disabled facility could include a lockable external tap. It has been mentioned in the past that emptying their waste water into the drain outside the shop is far from ideal. Alan felt a silo pit could be put in near the shop bunkers where effluent could be less obtrusively emptied. At a cost of around £2,000 this could be undertaken at the same time as car park repairs and might even be funded by the Parish Council.
From Sue’s “to do” list, she confirmed that the floodlight bulb and motion light have been repaired, window batteries replaced and bar damage remedied.

Disabled Toilet upgrade
See Chairman’s report above.

Any Other Business
There was no other business.

Date of Next Meeting
Next Finance Sub-Committee meeting Monday 4th September 7.30pm at Alan’s house.
Next Trustee Meeting Thursday 20th July at 7.30pm in the Clubroom.

The meeting closed at 9.45 p.m.
How To Find Us
Langham Community Centre, School Rd, Langham, Colchester CO4 5PA
Get In Touch
07741 284132
LanghamCC@gmail.com
About Us
The Langham Community Centre was opened in June 1988 and has been serving local village residents and other commercial hirers ever since.

We are based at the heart of Langham Village, with easy access from the A12.
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