Spooner Row Message Board

Date: May 13, 2023

Archive Agendas for the current term - S.Row Community Council Meetings from May 2023 onwards

Date: Jun 4, 2023

Archive Agendas - S.Row Community Council Meetings from May 2023 onwards

Date: Jun 4, 2023

RE: Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 8th June 2023, 7.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Jun 4, 2023

Anonymous wrote:
Is there an established need for any of this and to be frank what appears to be wishy washy proposals, none of which have been properly costed as far as can be seen
This is PUBLIC money

As a resident, I am confident that any project which has approval using public money would have been presented with full costings and a contingency to the council. Without this then it would be wishy washy and just wishful thinking. What are these projects? Maybe they would be beneficial to the village if there was a need.

Date: Jun 4, 2023

Whose agenda is this Robert Fosters or our community councils !

Date: Jun 6, 2023

I WANT OUT!

i do not want to be in this community council any longer! How do we revert back? wasting my ,your money on such stupid projects. (....edited....) predicted this would happen!

-- Edited by webstation on Wednesday 7th of June 2023 08:53:30 AM

Date: Jun 7, 2023

outdoor adult gym equipment is getting more popular in other places, what equipment would we get ?

Date: Jun 8, 2023

I have tonight attended a Community council meeting with fellow Village Hall committee members . I have been involved in lots of different village meetings over the years but have not witnessed the like . We were asking for financial support from CC towards the building of the new kitchen in the Village Hall .We all , in my opinion , made a very good pitch .The CC has in excess of 90k which is there to help community projects . Mr Robert Foster apposed the application! Unfortunately because of Mr Foster there has been so many resignations on the CC ( 5 remaining ) there were not enough eligible councillors there to vote on the application !! Where do we go from here , possibly the kitchen will not go ahead ( work was due to start on 13th June ) this would have been a great asset to the VH in regards to facilities and made it more attractive for future bookings . We have a person on our CC who is only interested in his own agenda , who has seen the resignations of fellow Councillors and Clark’s because of his actions ( 2 more councillors walked out of the meeting tonight ) We no longer have a viable CC whilst Mr Foster is a councillor . Something needs to change quickly !

Date: Jun 9, 2023

I think we need to be careful to separate the policies from personalities. It feels like many otherwise exciting proposals are being rubbished because of their attachment to a certain counsellor. I personally do not support RFs actions, and can see that they have created divisions. However, let’s not discard the ideas by association. Investment in the playing field in the form of gym equipment is not a bad idea. Various other villages have done the same and our play park provision is woeful. Similarly, the idea of a pavilion is a positive one with many villages having something similar on their parks and greens.

Date: Jun 9, 2023

Anonymous wrote:
I think we need to be careful to separate the policies from personalities. It feels like many otherwise exciting proposals are being rubbished because of their attachment to a certain counsellor. I personally do not support RFs actions, and can see that they have created divisions. However, let’s not discard the ideas by association. Investment in the playing field in the form of gym equipment is not a bad idea. Various other villages have done the same and our play park provision is woeful. Similarly, the idea of a pavilion is a positive one with many villages having something similar on their parks and greens.

Well said.

Date: Jun 9, 2023

I agree but RF comes with proposals which have no costings , public opinion , plans etc so are not looked into further until this happens .

Date: Jun 9, 2023

Agenda - SRCC Extraordinary Meeting will be held on Tuesday 13th June 2023, 7.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Jun 9, 2023

RE: Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 8th June 2023, 7.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Jun 9, 2023

The trim trail has been mooted before and it was up to Robert Foster and Martyn Lemon to come up with the prefferred pieces of equipment so the council could consider them.

The council as a whole thought it a good idea but were keen to get the best deal

As is the norm, RF did not come up with the goods and at the time interpersonal relations had broken down so , as usual it did not happen. It is in the minute record

As regards a pavilion, we did have one of sorts but fell into disrepair due to non use and in my humble opinion unless you cannot demonstrate need for a new one , ( what team would it support?? etc etc) provide proper costings , planning permission, designs, power supply arrangements, access and offer to provide some money. Other councils who have done this have just ended up with an underused if ever white elephant

Date: Jun 10, 2023

The children already have play equipment on the playing field, we need gym equipment for the adults.

Date: Jul 10, 2023

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 13th July 2023, 7.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Jul 13, 2023

What has happened to the childrens play equipment and the adult exercise equipment ? This was on the June agenda but not on this one.As not resolved surely this needs to be added on?

Date: Jul 24, 2023

Agenda for extra meeting at 6pm on 24 July 2023 at the Village Hall

Date: Aug 7, 2023

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 10th August 2023, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Sep 8, 2023

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 14th September 2023, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Sep 13, 2023

Point 7 looks interesting. Where have these allegations come from?
Provable unlawful actions by the council?
Or more unwarranted attacks and abuse directed at the clerk by (...edited...)

-- Edited by webstation on Wednesday 13th of September 2023 12:02:31 PM

Date: Oct 7, 2023

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 12th October 2023, 6pm at the Village Hall

Date: Nov 4, 2023

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 9th November 2023, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Nov 4, 2023

Why haven’t the minutes from the last meeting been published yet?

(Dear Anon,

Item 4, minutes need to be confirmed as a true record before they are made available to the public unless they are a draft. The Clerk currently forwards a copy to this website soon after.

Webstation)

-- Edited by webstation on Saturday 4th of November 2023 08:41:06 PM

Date: Nov 6, 2023

It would be much more informative if draft minutes were published in good time to read before the meeting.

Date: Nov 6, 2023

How is the community council still functioning with only 3 councillors?

Date: Nov 7, 2023

Anonymous wrote:
How is the community council still functioning with only 3 councillors?

Of which only two were elected......to establish a complete and fully representative council, one individual needs to the right and proper thing for the greater good of the three villages, and RESIGN!!!!!

Date: Nov 7, 2023

Anonymous wrote:
It would be much more informative if draft minutes were published in good time to read before the meeting.

That is a good point. Can this be arranged?

Date: Nov 7, 2023

Think he has been asked to but won’t , until he goes the community council is dead in the water and not taken serious anymore !

Date: Dec 12, 2023

SRCC Meeting for December 2023 has been Cancelled

Date: Jan 9, 2024

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 11th January 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Feb 6, 2024

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 8th February 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Mar 8, 2024

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 14th March 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Mar 10, 2024

It's great to see a grit bin is arriving in the village. I am just questioning the placement though. Station road is automatically gritted when freezing temperatures are expected, it's the hill on Guilers lane that is vulnerable to ice.

Date: Apr 5, 2024

Agenda - S.Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 11th April 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: May 4, 2024

Agendas: Annual Parish Council Meeting and SRCC Meeting for Thursday 9th May 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: May 7, 2024

Why do we never see minutes from previous meetings ?

Date: May 7, 2024

Check the link at the top…

Date: Jun 12, 2024

Agenda - Spooner Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 13th June 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: Jul 10, 2024

Agenda - Spooner Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 11th July 2024, 6.30pm at the Village Hall

Date: September 6th

Agenda - Spooner Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 12th September 2024, 7pm at the Village Hall

Date: September 6th

Does the whole council have an issue with the external audit or is it just Councillor (...edited...)? £15k put aside of what I assume is our tax payers money for something one councillor has an issue with can not be right surely? If the rest of the council are happy then why is this being looked into and why is all this money being potentially wasted?? Just for someone to have a whinge? And waste funds that could be spent well in the community??

-- Edited by webstation on Tuesday 17th of September 2024 09:16:42 PM

Date: September 7th

All these issues and not one resident has been consulted !! Are we going to be forced to have all what councillor (...edited...) wants or is community council going put a stop to his crazy ideas?

-- Edited by webstation on Tuesday 17th of September 2024 09:17:22 PM

Date: September 10th

Nothing is or has been spent on the community in the past couple of years. It’s all sitting in an account. It’s about time some was spent - but there’s to much infighting.

Date: September 11th

Check your council tax invoice and see how much of your hard earned income goes towards the community council. Value for money I think not!!!

Date: September 11th

This issue is never going to be resolved with (...edited...) sitting on the council. if he really has the best interests of the community at heart, why can’t he just do the decent thing and resign? One (...edited...) should not be allowed to stand in the way and block the benefits we should be gaining from our council for the three communities It represents.

-- Edited by webstation on Wednesday 11th of September 2024 12:26:28 PM

Date: September 11th

Anonymous wrote:
Check your council tax invoice and see how much of your hard earned income goes towards the community council. Value for money I think not!!!

I disagree. We pay much less in council tax than we did when part of Wymondham Town. We had very little spent on us, which certainly wasn't value for money back then.

It is noticeable that there have been so many resignations over the years, and some very good people have gone, which unfortunately is a loss to us all. What is the common cause of all these resignations? Residents need to carefully consider who they vote for next time in 2027.

Maybe the council can agree on a village sign and spend some of the community money that way?

Date: September 11th

I agree that Wymondham Town council didn’t give us much but what we inherited is a very poor community council. 6 years ago it was looking good after we got our independence but it didnt take long before it all started to fall apart and good councillors left. Why, because we have a councillor who has his own agenda, is always in conflict with the other councillors, mainly the chairperson, and won’t do the honourable thing and resign for the good of the villages he represents. How many councillors have resigned because of this at least 10 I’m sure! We have 3 1/2 more years of this!

Date: September 11th

I noticed on the wooden poster board on Station Road that yet another councillor (Daz) has resigned from the committee.
How many councillors is this now? Seven? Eight?

>> Agenda item 2024 / 0198 - To discuss the retention of councillors and encourage new members.

Made me laugh.
IMHO It's pointless to discuss this. Everyone in the village knows what (who) the problem is and it's unlikely to change any time soon.

Date: September 12th

If you want to laugh or cry attend a community council meeting !

Date: September 12th

£15K is a lot of council tax money to set aside for an investigation. I've had a look at the financial and audit reports on the council's website and I can't see anything wrong. Everything is explained and there are no loans. I hope they wisely consider any issues before voting.

It would be interesting to hear an update on the London Road traveller site as it must be long after the deadline for the site to be vacated.

Date: September 14th

I would pay double to be back under Wymondham council.

that man is poison (we all know who I’m talking about)

Date: September 15th

I would rather he was voted out than go back to Wymondham. Can the other councillors make a vote of no confidence? There have been too many resignations.

Date: September 18th

GET HIM OUT!!!!!!

surely this can be done somehow. Spooner Row is suffering as a consequence.

Date: September 19th

Nothing can be done until the next election, unless the councillor decides to resign. That is the system of this country.

Date: September 20th

There is a clash of personalities on the community council therefore nothing gets agreed or done. This has been going on for nearly six years now and will continue for another three and a half years. Unfortunately some councillors were voted in by residents and others where co opted without a say from residents so we have got what we’ve got. Roll on May 2027!

Date: October 7th

Agenda - Spooner Row Community Council Meeting for Thursday 10th October 2024, 7pm at the Village Hall

Date: October 16th

2024/0221 External audit and complaints process

This sounds rather worrying.

Why is an external audit needed?
Who arranged this?
How much is this going to cost Spooner Row residents?

Date: October 17th

Strange that Mr Forsters name doesn’t appear on any of the agenda items this time, (...edited...) Has he at last resigned?

-- Edited by webstation on Thursday 17th of October 2024 10:31:14 AM

Date: October 17th

Can’t see you getting any information from community council as they seem to be a secret society !!!!

Date: October 17th

They produce monthly minutes and agendas and allow the public to attend their meetings, whats wrong with that?

Mr Foster is still listed as a councillor on thier website

Date: October 18th

There are no minutes for September or October! If you read the minutes of previous meetings there is still a lot of infighting so it’s not surprising that members of the public do not bother to attend meetings or engage with community council. Yet another councillor has resigned I wonder why!

Date: October 19th

I agree with A resident and it is very troubling.

There has been some-sort of external audit and complaints procedure but the nature and scope of this procedure is unclear.
The last two months minutes are not published . . . Why? Something to do with the external audit perhaps? Unknown.
Are we being deliberately kept in the dark about something?

Certain things are discussed with the public and press excluded. Again, why?
What is going on here?

And - yes - yet another councillor resigns off the council.

It just smacks of one unholy mess (to put it politely).

I wonder why more people in the village are not up in arms about these goings-on.
I can only ponder that they are not being informed about these activities - or maybe they just don't care.

'Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you. '
~ Pericles

Date: October 19th

Anonymous wrote:

The last two months minutes are not published . . . Why? Something to do with the external audit perhaps? Unknown.
Are we being deliberately kept in the dark about something?

Look at Agenda number 2024/2013, To confirm the minutes of the meeting held on Sept 12th 2024, its my guess that they are being prepared and will be available soon. The 10th October minutes will be confirmed at November's meeting. This seems to be the usual procedure. Agenda number 2024/0221, Conclusion of External Audit and Complaint Process, the outcome to that would be available after November's meeting. If the minutes cannot be agreed upon, then they should publish a draft version. I don't think the minutes are being held up.

Date: October 20th

It’s my belief that the minutes are not always agreed and signed off.

Date: October 20th

Is it correct that Mr Price has moved? Is he still on the community council and if so how can he represent our villages now ?

Date: October 20th

Having attended some of the meetings, it seems usual for one particular councillor to ALWAYS disagree about the minutes.

Date: October 25th

The September minutes are now on the SRCC's website. https://spoonerrow-cc.gov.uk/meetings/

I noticed that Cllr Foster confirmed that he had made a complaint against Cllr Sleigh Smith who has recently resigned. Why is it that Cllr Foster makes complaints about other Councillors and the Council? Didn't he complain against Cllr Halls and Cllr Ward as well years ago? They also resigned.

Village Councillors aren't paid and volunteer their time and expertise to the community. As a resident, I appreciate their contributions and am saddened that so many have resigned.

Date: October 25th

What is councillor foster trying to achieve? That we go back to being part of Wymondham council? 90 issues raised with the auditor which are going to cost the tax payer who knows how much money!? Other members of the public at the last meeting agree that this is purely in his self interest, perhaps he should pay for this instead of us taxpayers! Also I have just found the Nextdoor post mentioned in the meetings - he states there is a false narrative about his being disruptive, I suggest anyone who hasnt been attends one meeting, this will show just how bad he is. Secondly the wage increase for the Clark is due to her having more work to do, the councillor who previously did the RFO work voluntarily resigned because of Rob so this is his doing, thirdly he agreed to the precept increase so why is he complaining about it?! Wanting to check up that other members have done their jobs ordering items is just petty and pathetic. and yet another councillor resigns because of him, he is going to destroy this council before long.

Date: October 26th

Mr Foster likes to have a pop at all his fellow councillors and clerk on a regular basic ( see pervious minutes over the last 5 years ) no wonder no one will work with him! I think the residents of the 3 villages he represents should wake up to the fact that nothing will change whilst he is still a councillor!!!

Date: October 26th

The minutes of the meeting explain well what has been happening with the council. As someone previously questioned, what is Cllr Foster trying to achieve? It would help if he explained his behaviour. On a positive note, he did suggest some community projects at the September meeting but it takes more than that to operate as a team player on the council. He was elected by local people to represent them. At the next 2027 local election, people need to consider carefully who they vote for.