Your Parish Council, working hard for the community
Below is the work that we have carried out over the past five years. Of course, the Parish Council has been going a lot longer than that, and all actions of the Council can be found in meeting minutes, to be found on the website from 2017 to present, and posted on the noticeboard monthly.
In the past 6 months, we have:
- Been working with the Police and Crime Commissioner’s office to get a Drivesafe volunteer team to operate in Lilley – this work is ongoing
- Liaised with the War Memorial Trust and a stonemason to obtain quotes and grants to restore the war memorial – ongoing
- Liaised with Hertfordshire Highways for the removal of the Lilley village sign in order to repair/replace the unsafe post and replace the post and sign – ongoing
- Discussed a Christmas tree lighting and carols event in December – ongoing
- Requested the reinstatement of the 100/101 Arriva service through Lilley and kept in weekly contact with Arriva
- Carried out an audit of benches that need replacing, and replaced the damaged bench on the village green
- Implemented extra grass cuts at the recreation ground and play area on top of the regular cuts that we arrange and fund
- Welcomed two resident ‘guardians’ to assist the clerk with looking after the defibrillator
- Contributed funds and time to the D-Day event organised by Lilley Live
- Hosted an annual Village Meeting
- Granted £1000 to the Village Voice for production costs and £330 for the Babies and Tots Group
In the past 18 months, we have:
- Continued to report and request action on potholes and overgrown trees and verges to Highways
- Continued to review planning applications and objected to those which would adversely affect residents or the character of the village
- Held Arriva to account for the cancelled bus services through the village and refused to accept their reasons for the removal of the 101/102 services
- Continued to request a solution from Highways to reduce accidents along the A505
- Repaired play equipment and funded regular inspections, and funded the removal of wasps’ nests from the play area
- Replaced benches at The Baulk and Kingshill Lane
- Arranged the Remembrance Sunday procession in conjunction with the Parochial Church Council’s Remembrance service
- Liaised with Highways to enforce traffic conditions associated with housing development
- Funded further tree works around the village to keep residents and properties safe
- Contributed to the King’s Coronation event, along with Cllr Barnard’s grant, organised by Lilley Live
- Hosted an annual Village Meeting
- Granted £730 to the Village Voice for production costs, £330 to the Babies and Toddlers Group, £350 for a residents’ Halloween party and £350 to the PCC for the annual clock service.
In the previous 2 years, we:
- Replaced two benches in the recreation ground/play area with long-lasting steel and acrylic benches
- Met with Highways along with County Cllr David Barnard to request a reduction to the speed limit along the A505 by Silver Lion Cottages and before the dangerous junction at Carters Lane
- Replaced the old noticeboard with a new one, retaining the original posts
- Purchased and arranged installation of a new village defibrillator (outside Cassel Hall)
- Contributed funds and time to the Queen’s Jubilee event at Cassel Hall, organised by Lilley Live
- Arranged and funded repairs to play equipment, removed the old and unsafe zip wire and installed a new piece of equipment that had been purchased some years before
- Liaised with Highways to replace the broken fence at the end of West Street bordering the A505, and funded and installed the new mesh onto the fence to further ensure security
- Funded tree works to keep residents safe and the trees healthy
- Purchased a new, more user-friendly website
- Hosted two annual Village Meetings
- Granted £200 for a residents’ party, a total of £680 to the PCC for two annual clock services, £570 to the Cassel Hall Trust for the hall insurance and a further £250 towards new curtains.
The above does not take into account all the statutory work of the Parish Council, which includes:
Councillors’ duties: attending monthly meetings; making considered decisions on behalf of the community; agreeing the annual accounts; visiting planning application sites to consider a balanced response; taking responsibility for some of the village projects; approving the budget and resulting precept
The Clerk running the business side of the Council: keeping updated with legislation; keeping accurate accounts; writing/updating policies; setting agendas; writing minutes; responding to and sending all correspondence; arranging insurance; writing risk assessments; preparing internal and external audits; arranging VAT reclaims; arranging elections and co-options; arranging playground inspections; arranging urgent works for reasons of health and safety; managing projects; preparing the draft budget; studying for and achieving the CiLCA qualification