2026 Minutes

BICKER PARISH COUNCIL

DRAFT Minutes of the Parish Council meeting held on Thursday, 11th June 2026 at 7pm In the Gedney Room, Bicker Village Hall

Present: 

Cllr Bateson - Chair

Cllr Carrott

Cllr Kelly

Cllr Mountain

Cllr Stevens

Borough Councillor Cantwell

County Councillor Lock

County Councillor Daish

Clerk – Alison Delaney

Mr Saucier attended the meeting as a guest at the invitation of the Chair.

PUBLIC FORUM: 

The Chair welcomed the residents to the forum and Councillors introduced themselves.

The residents had come to speak about the Hammond BESS planning application.

A resident noted that the PC had put in their objection but were a bit disappointed that no one from the PC went to the meeting.

The Chair confirmed that Cllr Cantwell is a Parish Councillor and was at the meeting.

Bicker Fen Action Group (BFAG) confirmed that they had applied to speak but then agreed to share the slot and County Councillor Lock spoke

Residents wanted to know if there was any further action that can be taken, lot of concern from all the residents on the fen.

The Chair stated that he had watched the live stream of the meeting on YouTube. Planning officers did not seem to know much about the site.

Residents wanted to know why the planning officers had not been educated?

Cllr Cantwell stated that the objections from Richard Tice MP and Bicker Parish Council would have been in the pack given to the planning officers. 

Cllr Cantwell had asked for a site visit, but that was rejected. 

First step is judging the land use, then conditions would be separate applications. We will have an opportunity to object to those if we wish. They will have to consult with fire and highways on the conditions.

A resident commented it was interesting that the case officer provided an incorrect statement to the committee about passing places on Cowbridge Road. Have asked planning to enforce the 20mph speed limit, they have responded saying it is a police matter.

A resident asked if the PC were all linking up and working together?

The Chair explained that the PC were all volunteers. They must take the wider view for what is best for the parish. There are no voices coming back to us from others in the village. Only people on the Fens who are objecting.

Borough Councillor Cantwell explained that a lot of the arguments will come on the conditions. The last course is a judicial review. He had been speaking to officers today. The main issue cannot go to a judicial review but the conditions could launch one. Would need to be a county led one. Construction management and site layout, the County would be the specialist on those.

A resident commented that they had met with one of the leading people outside the meeting. Town & Country Planning Act is not fit for purpose when putting equipment on land. All the other BESS in the UK are not right, as no body governing the renewable energy industry. BFAG have proposed this in our objection. 

The Chair agreed the governing body was needed. Cheap accessible land around here.

A resident said that once the land is used for these energy developments it can no longer be used for food. Cover every building with solar panels first. Use brown field sites. 

No consideration for people that live there. No compensation. This is being done to us. Properties will be worthless, who is going to buy a property on the fen now. It is people in the community who are selling their land.

A representative from BFAG said that NESO threw out zombi projects, 3 BESS approved on the Fen. PACE solar farm and BESS responding that they have not got details yet with NESO.

The Chair commented that we had gone past the 15 minutes of the Public Forum, but he agreed to extend the time to 30 minutes to facilitate the remainder of the points the residents wished to make.

The BFAG have made a Freedom of Information Request to NESO for future connection dates, so residents can get a sense of what is likely to happen. Will give local authorities a chance to wrap their local plans around the developments. They are hoping that connection dates in the future will not happen if there is a leadership or government change.

Another resident asked about the new sub-station. Had there been any consultation or meeting about that. They want to take all the woodland down around it. Their property looks straight at the woodland that they are proposing to take down. Can we object?

County Councillor Lock stated that he has already done that. Bio diversity net gain. I raised that point at a planning meeting recently. That substation expansion is related to Springwell Solar Project at Heckington which sits with LCC and we are already taking that to a judicial review which will go to Court. Several points that we can challenge them on. Secretary of State signs them off because of the Government’s ideology. T&C Planning Act does not ask the “is it dangerous” question. The fact that we are challenging it will kick it a year down the line, will have to start again with the whole application. They must do a public engagement meeting with these big projects. Government want to stop us challenging them.

A resident stated that they feel that no one cares. No thought for mental health, noise, pollution or our investment. Two families already who want to put their properties on the market, as they cannot deal with the stress anymore.

County Councillor Lock said we do care. We will do our utmost to put hurdles in the way.

A resident stated that they live on a dead end, how will we get our horses out and our families out in an emergency. We understand that everyone in the village is disillusioned and negative about it because they have already fought the wind farm. Fire impact is on the whole village.

Borough Councillor Cantwell stated that the noise and fire issues are battles to have in the conditions. If you are worried about access, me and County Councillor Lock could meet you at some point to discuss that.

A resident asked what noise there would be. The Chair said that the BESS are like shipping containers with fans which would doubtless create noise. Will be a problem forever.

A resident asked if there was anything that the PC can do to help engage the village? Feel like they are not educated.

The Chair said that we will represent the village on what they bring to us. Not take the issues to them.

The resident asked if the Parish Council could take a stall at Bickerfest to speak to people. Councillors did not think that was a suitable idea.

The residents thanked the Parish Council for their time.

The Chair said they were welcome to attend the Public Forum any time they wished. 

The public forum ended at 7.35pm

031/26 Chair’s Welcome and Remarks:

The meeting started at 7.35pm following the extended Public Forum.

The Chair welcomed everyone and thanked them for attending.

032/26 To receive apologies for absence and acceptance of any reasons given: 

There were no apologies, all Councillors were present.

033/26 To receive declarations of interest in accordance with the Localism Act 2011:

Councillor Carrott – Member of Bicker Windfarm Trust and Trustee of Bicker United Charity

Councillor Mountain – Parish Council representative on Bicker United Charity

Councillor Kelly – Parish Council representative on Village Hall Committee and Member of Bicker United Charity.

Borough Councillor Cantwell - Full time Employment APMG International, member of the Conservative and Unionist Party, on the Board of Black Sluice Drainage Board.

There were no other declarations. 

034/26 To receive updates from Borough and County Councillors

Borough Councillor Cantwell reported as follows:

Supporting a resident with a complaint. A National Grid contractor put their middle finger up at the resident as they passed in their van. Witness to the event. Complaint has been lodged with National Grid.

Spoke to AGR. Have offered the PC a tour of their site. They own land to the left of Cowbridge Road. Trail through the trees open to the public.

Traffic management group for Bicker to get up and running again. 

Surgery at Sutterton village hall on 27th June. 12-1pm

Streetlights not working have been reported

Residents reporting that some street lights are on their land.

Investigating the responsibilities with dyke riparian ownership, particularly LHP residents

Pride of Place Funding email sent to Clerk – large fund that BCC has. Cllr Cantwell will be sitting on the panel judging the applications.

The Chair reported back about the white fence boards around the village – composite alternative being investigated to see if we can get it approved by the Heritage Team at Boston as they are in the Conservation Area. £42 a section with metal around the bottom.

County Councillor Lock reported as follows:

Councillor grant scheme, can do match funding £300 if I spread it around the parishes. Pot of £3-£15k which a panel will decide on.

Working party with IT team to get some of their projects rolled out to assist adult care and children’s services

A17 top layer booked for next Monday. Ahead of schedule but rain has not helped. Doing a lot of work at Mill Lane and A17

Blocked drains – report on FixMyStreet – ACTION: Clerk to report School Lane and Old Donington Road again.

Two press releases quoting Bicker BBC and Lincs press about planning.

School Lane parking restrictions – given feedback

Doing what we can to object to the Energy planning applications on the Fen. If we can make it not viable a financial investor will not do it. Hydrogen and fusion are the alternatives coming.

035/26 To receive reports from representatives on outside bodies:

Village hall had a meeting but Cllr Kelly was unable to attend.

Bicker United Charity’s meeting is on Monday, 15th June, so Cllr Mountain will report back at the next meeting.

Bicker Board – Cllr Cantwell confirmed that he was writing up the constitution and grants policy. Have got all the trustees sorted. 4 independent – Mike Brooks, Stuart Evans, Kate Wood and himself. Cllr Carrott and Cllr Kelly will be the PC’s trustees but we need one more. The Chair proposed Cllr Stevens, who was seconded by Cllr Carrott and accepted. Three meetings a year. Charity will need to employ a Clerk. AGR has said they would work with the charity. 

036/26 Notes of the last Parish Council meeting held on 14th May 2026 Cllr Carrott noted that section 020/26 mentioned the A52, rather than the A17. Clerk made the change and they were accepted and approved as the Minutes. Proposed by Cllr Carrott and seconded by Cllr Kelly. The Minutes were signed as a true copy by the Chair.

037/26 Clerk’s report on matters outstanding:

Councillor Vacancy: The vacancy caused by the resignation of Councillor Pell has been properly advertised by BBC. No requests for an election were received, so we can co-opt someone into the vacancy.

Cemetery maintenance – The contractor visited on 7th and 21st May

Verges and playing field grass cutting: The contractor visited on 8th and 21st May. The mole contractor visited on 22nd May. Clerk has chased them for an update on whether further visits are required.

Allotments: Clerk has issued invoices for 26/27 to all allotment holders. One outstanding payment remains. Clerk has emailed them again to chase. 

Repairs to play equipment – The contractor completed the repairs. Clerk visited on 03.06.26 and there are some issues with the roundabout surfacing and the work under the rocking horse. The Chair is going to meet with them on 16th June to discuss further. Their balance invoice has not yet been paid. We have not yet awarded them the contract to instal the new swing. Chair will discuss the best location for it with the contractors.

Moving to gov.co.uk email addresses:

Our domain name of bicker-pc@gov.co.uk has been registered with the Cabinet Office. Clerk has set up accounts for everyone and all but one Councillor are using them.

Ownership of the cemetery and playing field: Clerk has received a reply from BBC to say that they are not sure they hold title to the cemetery. Cllr Cantwell advised it is on BBC’s asset register. BBC have advised it would cost £4k in fees to arrange the transfer of the playing field. Councillors agreed that these assets should belong to the village.

AGAR: The AGAR was submitted to the external auditor on 1st June. The dates for the period of the exercise of public rights are 3rd June to 14th July. The notice and accompanying information is on the website and the three village notice boards. 

Complaint about the litter in the playground and requesting more litter bins: This was received from a resident who lives nearby. Clerk visited the playground on 03.06.26. Almost all the rubbish was pieces of red and white tape that had been used to cordon off play items while they were being repaired. Clerk removed all the bits of tape. There were a couple of other bits of rubbish, but nothing major. The bins at the entrances were empty. Clerk will write back to the resident.

FixMyStreet reference 2887879 - Broken posts on bridge by the post office – reported on 09.04.26. Reported fixed on 04.06.26

FixMyStreet reference 2887878 - Broken water hydrant sign on Drury Lane – reported on 09.04.26. Update received on 14.04.26 that it had been passed to Anglian Water to investigate.

High Street Sign – 28.05.26 and 10.06.26 – Clerk chased BBC with an email requesting an update on when this would be replaced. ACTION: Clerk to send the information to County Cllr Lock to see if he is able to assist with progressing the matter.

FixMyStreet – 12.12.25 reported streetlight near Corner Cottage and the school not working. Update 15.12.25 Investigating. 10.03.26 reported again with pictures ref: 2883798. 28.05.26 and 10.06.26 – Clerk chased BBC with an email requesting a quotation for repair.

038/26 To Receive the Finance Report  

a) To approve May payments: The Schedule of Payments for Approval at the June meeting was approved. Proposed and signed by Cllr Mountain. Seconded and signed by Cllr Kelly.

039/26 To Discuss Planning Applications Received Since Last Meeting: None for discussion.

040/26 To Receive Correspondence: 

a) Boston Borough Council re The Place Team: ACTION: It was agreed that someone from the team should be invited along to a PC meeting so that Councillors could obtain more information.

041/26 Review and Adoption of Policies:

The following draft policies had been circulated to Councillors in advance of the meeting:

• Handling Freedom of Information Requests

• Publication Scheme

• Accessibility statement for website

• Data Protection Policy

• Subject Access Request Procedure

• Privacy Policy

All the policies were adopted. ACTION: Clerk to add them to the PC website.

042/26 To Receive Members Reports: Councillors noted that the salt bin near the war memorial had fallen backwards and was open. ACTION: Clerk to report on FixMyStreet.

43/26 Membership of the Council: Mr Bob Saucier had expressed an interest in becoming a Parish Councillor. Cllr Carrott proposed and Cllr Stevens seconded his appointment. Councillors agreed unanimously to Co-opt Mr Saucier to the Parish Council. The Chair welcomed him to the PC. Mr Saucier and the Clerk signed the Declaration of Acceptance of Office. ACTION: Clerk to notify BCC of the co-option and to set up a Bicker email account for Mr Saucier.

044/26 Date of next meeting – this was confirmed as Thursday, 9th July 2026 at 7pm.

030/26 Any Other Business:

There being no further business, the meeting ended at 20.30.

Signed:  …………………………………………………

Name: …………………………………………………            

Date:               …………………………………………………