Agenda item

The Council noted the Chairman’s past and upcoming engagements, including the Chairman’s Civic Dinner.

The following announcements were made by members of the Cabinet:

Leader of the Council

The Leader of the Council welcomed recently elected District Councillors and the new Monitoring Officer to the Council. There was an update regarding Lincolnshire Police; the Leader asked that Councillor Sarah Trotter update members as she was the Council’s representative on the Police and Crime Panel.

Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Leisure and Culture

The following points were highlighted:

• At Culture Overview and Scrutiny Committee (OSC) on 3 February 2026 a programme of arts events would be discussed. One key anniversary to be aware of was the 100^th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II.
• 2027 would mark the 300^th anniversary of the death of Sir Isaac Newton. This anniversary had previously been discussed at Culture & Leisure OSC, and there had been an indication that the Council wished to be involved in marking that occasion.
• A meeting would take place on 2 February 2026 including those interested in working with the Council on events involving the community.

Cabinet Member for Planning

The following points were highlighted:

• Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) were proposing to renege on an agreement for £2 million of funding for High Street improvements that had been promised by the previous Conservative administration. This money had been part of a government grant. This issue had been raised at County Hall by the Chief Executive and the Leader of the Council. The Chief Executive had requested information that as yet had not been forthcoming; she had also requested to speak at LCC’s Growth Scrutiny Committee on Tuesday 27 January but was prevented from addressing the committee.
• Councillor Dilks was removed from LCC’s Growth Scrutiny Committee after having requested documents related to the government grant. However, he had made the same request to the Overview and Scrutiny Management Board on 29 January, who voted to recommend that the Executive at LCC should reverse this decision to renege on funding.

Councillor Sarah Trotter (Police and Crime Panel)

The following points were highlighted:

• There had been a recent reduction in rural policing, impacting on the rural crime team. This had arisen due to ongoing funding pressures on Lincolnshire Police.
• Reduced neighbourhood capacity would increase demand for council services, particularly around antisocial behaviour, housing enforcement and licensing checks. It may also lead to more complex and higher risk casework.
• Councillor Trotter had written to Marc Jones, Lincolnshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner to highlight these concerns and the effect the decisions by Lincolnshire Police would have on the Neighbourhoods team at South Kesteven District Council (SKDC).
• Following a meeting with the Head of Service (Public Protection), portfolio holders, the Chairman of Rural and Communities OSC and Councillor Trotter, a letter was drafted outlining the effects of reduced policing numbers, including the impact on officer caseloads. The letter should be addressed to local MPs, the Policing Minister, Home Secretary along with a copy to Lincolnshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner and the Chief Constable. Councillor Trotter hoped that there would be support across the Council Chamber for this letter.

Cabinet Member for Environment and Waste

The following points were highlighted:

·       On 2 February 2026 bin caddies were delivered to 65,000 residences across the district of South Kesteven. The collection of food waste did not start until 13 April 2026; however, it was a large operation to add an additional bin, and it needed to start now.

·       Publicity was being pushed out via social media channels by the Communications team, who were working hard to answer the questions of residents.