PARISH COUNCIL 9th Sept '26' • PART DEUX
PART 2
GPC 9th Sept '26: The Ticking Clock & Open Revolt
What I had not covered in part 1, is the order of seating. Naturally, the chair was sat in the middle. Left to right Jones, R Snell, Gorbutt, Ruddy, Favell, England, Carnell, T Snell, Leaning, Wilkinson (clerk), and finally, perched on the end was Elliott, making more noise from the head than the center seat. The Snells normally sit apart to keep professional distance, and Carnell is a calm observer. Given the dynamics of the divide between them, this seating choice in itself is very telling.
After enduring this for over an hour, I was sitting in the gallery with my tobacco tub on my lap, methodically rolling my twentieth cigarette, while the excellent cup of coffee Val Gorbutt had kindly made me was long finished. My thoughts were drifting to the nice cold bottle of wine waiting in the fridge. My recording device was still doing its job, magnetised directly to the front-center chair of the public gallery in full, plain view for later review.
What the room experienced over the remainder of the evening was a stark study in contrasts: an administrative engine attempting to rebuild basic village governance while simultaneously navigating personal vendettas, legal posturing, and an open council revolt.
This meeting didn't need to take two hours and fifteen minutes. Once you strip away the noise, the door-slamming, and the procedural stalling, the evening separates into four distinct chapters: genuine progress for the village, an astounding waste of public time, deep-seated conflicts of interest, and a decisive council revolt that forced backroom dealings into the open.
More detail of agenda items 11-33, containing some specifics and quotes are available below. Following that, we make some observations about "the GOOD", "The BAD & UGLY", and "The BATTLE" to restore order, how they blew up the "2Hr Window", the "Selective Pedantry", and finally the "Open Contempt for Enforcement".
Agenda Breakdowns 11-33
Personal Safety Alarms: Cllr Rob Snell presented his draft lone working policy and demonstrated his own wearable personal safety device ("MYSOS", £4.99–£65 upfront, £7.99–£19.99/mo) to safeguard Clerk Natasha when working alone in the Parish Rooms or village:
"With the pendant you can wear it on your person all the time... press that and within 20 minutes you have an ambulance." — Cllr Rob Snell (57:15)
Employer Responsibility vs Delegation: Cllr Elliott proposed letting Natasha choose the preferred device and policy to bring back to the next meeting. Cllr R. Snell pushed back, emphasizing employer legal liabilities:
"We're her employers so we're responsible for it... we can't just do what Natasha's said." — Cllr Rob Snell (59:28)
NLC Options & Merging Policy Drafts: Cllr Trudy Snell suggested utilizing North Lincolnshire Council's (NLC) existing log-in/log-out lone working scheme. Ultimately, Chair Sam England directed Clerk Natasha to evaluate available options and synthesise the draft policies submitted by Cllr R. Snell and Cllr Elliott:
"I mean I've looked at them both and it's like trying to pick a difference between fur and hair... pick the best from both of them." — Chair Sam England (1:01:05)
Grant Details & Time-Sensitive Planting: Cllr Ruddy explained that North Lincs Council (NLC) secured 21 cherry trees, with Goxhill's upfront deposit reduced from £320 to £252 (reimbursable via NLC receipt). He urged immediate action on a time-sensitive offer for NLC to plant 8 Hawthorn trees along Barrow Road (£880 + VAT / £1,056 total) at the same time:
"Regarding the Hawthorn trees, councillors, if we don't vote on it tonight then we've lost it, because by the time it gets to October it'll be too late to plant." — Cllr Ruddy (1:02:15)
Budget Confusion & Role Ambiguity: A extended exchange followed regarding whether funds remained in the £2,500 tree budget. Cllr Favell admitted she had not had time to check the figures, while Cllr Jones noted uncertainty over year-to-date spending. Despite the new Clerk being in post, acting Cllr Gorbutt was repeatedly called upon to confirm financial availability:
"I haven't got a copy of the budget in front of me I'm sorry I can't help you with that." — Chair Sam England (1:06:36)
"Right, if we have been informed that we have got the money, Val? [Val: 'Yep'], that we can cover it then we will make a proposal to agree the £1056." — Chair Sam England (1:07:24)
Pushback & Voting Deliberations: Chair England voiced strong support ("We'd be fools not to go with it personally"), with Cllr Ruddy proposing and Cllr Carnell seconding. However, Cllr Elliott refused to back the measure over the lack of a clear budget line item:
"I can't vote for it because we don't know... we were supposed to know in this meeting how much we had in the budget line and we don't know so we are just voting blind." — Cllr Elliott (1:08:20)
Miscounting the Room & Final Decision: Chair England miscounted the votes cast (claiming 10 for and 1 against), prompting correction from the gallery, before acting Cllr Gorbutt clarified the need to formally vote on the initial £252 deposit as well:
"Chair, that's the second time you've said 10 and 1, you've only got 10 councillors." — Jack Lawtey (1:08:45)
The £252 cherry tree deposit was subsequently passed unanimously.
Unanimous Approval: The schedule of payments was proposed, seconded, and passed unanimously without dissent.
Paperwork Timelines & Interjection: Immediately following the vote, Cllr Elliott raised a grievance regarding the timing of meeting documentation:
"Rather than sending things out on the day we meet, can we not have a bit of notice to actually have a chance to look at these things" — Cllr Elliott (1:10:01)
Clerk Standard & Public Weariness: Clerk Natasha interjected to clarify her operational procedure, confirming that documentation is routinely issued five working days in advance. With the public gallery visibly weary of ongoing procedural interruptions after an hour of meeting time, Cllr Favell called for unity:
"At this point I think it's worth saying thank you everybody for all your patience... We are all trying our best under the circumstances so I do appreciate..." — Cllr Katrina Favell (1:10:25)
Proposal & Cost Share: Chair Sam England proposed approving the Financial Introduction to Local Council Administration (FILCA) training course for Clerk Natasha, costing £140 + VAT split 50/50 (£70 each) with Flixborough Parish Council:
"I propose that we pay that, do we have a seconder." — Chair Sam England (1:10:45)
Mileage Query & Vote: Cllr Leaning seconded the motion. Cllr Trudy Snell queried whether additional travel expenses would be incurred, but members confirmed it is an online, work-from-home course with zero mileage costs. The motion passed unanimously.
Expired Consultation & Process Delay: Discussion focused on a ground-floor extension application where the consultation deadline had already passed prior to the meeting. Cllr Jones noted documentation was received late, while Cllr Favell acknowledged missing it on initial email circulations. Members agreed offering late comments was a "waste of time" as NLC had already recommended approval.
Digital Plans vs Physical Copies: Cllr Leaning raised accessibility concerns regarding the transition to strictly digital plan distribution:
"In the past, a copy of the plans and everything used to be produced at council meetings. Now, it appears with advent of computers, each individual councillor is expected to look at it and then report back. Would it not be possible for a single copy for that to be available for people to look at, at the meeting" — Cllr Leaning (1:12:34)
Agenda Reform: Clerk Natasha confirmed she had submitted a proposal to amend future agenda structures to include proposal summaries directly on the paperwork for quick reference:
"I have already sent in the committee a suggestion to amend the way that the agenda is done so that information like that is included... it's a summary of what they're proposing so that if someone hadn't had the opportunity to look at it, at least it gives you an idea what we're talking about." — Clerk Natasha (1:13:00)
Email Outage & Retrospective Approval: Cllr Favell detailed how a complete mailbox capacity outage left councillors unable to send or receive emails. To maintain operations, five accounts were urgently upgraded from 1GB to 2GB via Kyanite, requiring a retrospective vote of £17.05 per councillor per year. While open to exploring cheaper alternative email providers in the future, immediate retrospective approval was required:
"It was at a point when nobody could send any emails, the mailbox was full... For councillors to be able to continue their work, it is required." — Cllr Katrina Favell (1:14:22)
Deletion Pushback vs Legal Retention: Cllr Elliott advocated for an informal email deletion policy to manage storage constraints, remarking on deleting routine items and communications:
"We should have an email deletion policy within the council... otherwise emails will get full especially with my writing." — Cllr Elliott (1:15:16)
Statutory Policies & Historical Records: Clerk Natasha advised that an overarching statutory Document Retention Policy is required rather than ad-hoc email deletion, covering both physical and digital records. Cllr Favell strongly refused to delete historical emails due to ongoing legal and administrative matters:
"I find myself with the number of emails I find myself in the situation where I need to refer back to them. I'm not averse to comments but I don't agree to deleting things." — Cllr Katrina Favell (1:17:03)
Formal Vote: Interjecting before Chair England moved on, Cllr Trudy Snell reminded the council that a formal vote was strictly necessary to authorise the retrospective expenditure. The retrospective payment passed.
Account Freeze Resolution: Chair Sam England addressed ongoing banking issues, confirming that the parish council's bank accounts had previously been frozen. From the bench, Cllr Gorbutt confirmed that the freeze had officially been lifted:
"There has been an issue with the bank, I believe it's been frozen, Val?... I believe it's been, well I hope it's been resolved." — Chair Sam England (1:19:35)
Incremental Access Restoration: Cllr Gorbutt clarified that while the accounts were unlocked ("all free"), administrative access and signatory setups were being restored incrementally ("can only do one at a time"). Handled quietly and swiftly, the brief discussion concluded in under 35 seconds with minimal further public detail.
Donation Offer: Cllr Trudy Snell presented the repeat offer from local residents Tracy and Andy Broom to donate a village Christmas tree:
"Ok this is a quick one, Tracy and Andy have offered to donate a Christmas tree like they did last year..." — Cllr Trudy Snell (1:20:10)
Location & Unanimous Vote: Speaking quickly on the logistical details, Cllr T. Snell added light-heartedly, "If not, then somebody else can pay for it". Members confirmed the tree would be positioned at the entrance of the village and passed the motion unanimously following a brief moment of friendly banter.
Chairman's Allowance & VJ Day Donation: Chair Sam England addressed three questioned £50 transactions to Goxhill Memorial Hall (where he serves as Trustee and Booking Secretary). He clarified that two transactions were unsuccessful and only a single £50 payment actually went through. He stated this was drawn from his Chairman's Allowance to support the Women's Institute (WI) VJ Day event:
"Goxhill Parish Council didn't want to... make a donation, so I chose to pay £50 from the chairman's allowance to goxhill womens institute as a contribution towards their VJ day celebration." — Chair Sam England (1:21:15)
Omitted Context & Grant Forfeiture: The brief explanation glossed over wider background context surrounding the event: GPC had previously forfeited a £250 NLC grant specifically allocated for VJ Day celebrations due to unreturned award paperwork. Despite using a memorial facility, the WI was still charged full hall hire and tennis court access fees exceeding £85 by hall booking management.
Handset & Provision Needs: Cllr Favell proposed purchasing a council-owned mobile phone and SIM, explaining that Clerk Natasha inherited a non-functional handset lacking a SIM and charger. Using a dedicated council device prevents relying on personal phones, as occurred with the previous clerk. Chair Sam England confirmed budget availability from underspent clerk allocation.
Usage Scope & Working Hours Boundary: In response to questions from Cllr Elliott regarding data and line usage, Clerk Natasha confirmed it would handle incoming calls, hotspot connectivity for her laptop, and village contact. Cllr Trudy Snell firmly established clear boundaries regarding clerk contact hours:
"Can I just be clear though, this phone will be turned off outside our clerk's work hours, this is not a 24 hour call center, our clerk will be working 13 hours and at the closure, the laptop will be closed and the phone will be turned off... Our clerk will not be contacted outside the working hours, well she MAY be, but she will not be held to respond." — Cllr Trudy Snell (1:24:45)
Contract Cap & Vote: Following light-hearted banter regarding local mobile signal blackspots (such as the Co-op and Brigg Garden Centre), Chair England proposed capping a 24-month contract at £20/month including data:
"...allow the clerk to be perfectly honest go and source a mobile phone solely for use for Goxhill Parish Council and for her with her role, and we say can you find one for £20 a month or less." — Chair Sam England (1:25:20)
The motion was approved unanimously. Ward Cllr David Wells departed the meeting immediately following the vote.
Free Independent Review Proposal: Cllr Favell explained that following discussions with ERNLLCA, an independent role review was recommended to ensure the Clerk's pay scale accurately reflects current job responsibilities. She emphasised that the service is provided at no cost to the council:
"It is free to Goxhill Parish Council... I cannot ask ERNLLCA to carry out this without the support of Goxhill Parish Council so I ask you to support me in allowing this to happen please." — Cllr Katrina Favell (1:26:55)
Clarification on Job Responsibility: Cllr Jones proposed and Cllr Gorbutt seconded. In response to an inquiry from Cllr Elliott asking what the review entails, Cllr Favell clarified ERNLLCA's positioning:
"...they don't feel that it marries up to the pay scales. So they're advising now that most, that a lot of clerks are put on higher up pay scales to reflect the responsibility involved in the role." — Natasha (1:27:30)
Vote Outcome: The motion carried with 9 votes in favour and 1 abstention.
Public Request & Compliance Concerns: Chair Sam England opened the item to silence, asking who had placed it on the agenda. Cllr Favell confirmed it was requested by a member of the public following the distribution of the July 2026 Internal Audit report. She emphasised the urgent need for a unified effort to address compliance risks across village assets and charity trusts:
"We all need to look at it and we all need to look at some action going forward... and all councillors make a conscious effort, ALL councillors, to try to support some of these... for the good of the village." — Cllr Katrina Favell (1:28:55)
"Red Dots" Remediation Plan: Pointing to highlighted risk flags ("red dots") covering charity trust funds and Charity Commission requirements, Cllr Elliott pressed for an action strategy:
"Well it's full of red dots, so the question is how are we going to get rid of them red dots... Are we proposing that Natasha looks at the red dots and comes forward with a plan to get us out of that red hole" — Cllr David Elliott (1:30:15)
Vote & Editorial Context: Cllr Favell formally proposed tasking Clerk Natasha with drafting a detailed remediation action plan, which was seconded by Cllr Jones. The motion passed with 9 in favour and 1 abstention (Cllr Elliott). (Note: A comprehensive review of this audit report—including points of law and prioritised action suggestions—was provided in draft form to GPC for review prior to publication in The Gander.)
Date Clarification & Monthly Planning: Chair Sam England initiated the item by double-checking the event date (18th September), noting initial confusion regarding the usual monthly rota between village organisations. To prevent ongoing scheduling misalignments, Chair England proposed making the café support a standing agenda item each month or assigning a dedicated lead councillor. Both Chair England and Cllr Trudy Snell noted they would struggle to attend regularly due to work commitments.
Organisational Lead & Expenses: Clerk Natasha offered to take on the management of the café rota and attend regularly. While Chair England expressed concern over her expanding workload, members confirmed support. Natasha was advised to keep all baking expense receipts and reminded that a Co-op card loaded with funding could be sourced via Ann Carter (Chair of the Memorial Hall).
Volunteer Roster: Following good-natured banter across the table, the council confirmed its volunteer roster for the upcoming 18th September event:
"So who's going to the café on the 18th then? ... Val, Charlie, Natasha, Tony, we've got loads of you, absolutely brilliant." — Chair Sam England (1:36:00)
(Editorial Note: The Gander team welcomes the date clarification; the shift in the Friday schedule to start on the second Friday of the month rather than the third had caused initial public confusion following the hall's re-opening.)
Immediate Dismissal: Item 2613/24 was listed on the agenda under the premise of Ward Cllr David Wells raising concerns regarding votes of no confidence being held in open session. However, as established earlier during Item 2613/04 (Ward Councillor's Report), Ward Cllr Wells had explicitly distanced himself from the item, stating he had not requested it and that the wording did not accurately reflect his position.
Procedural Outcome: Following Ward Cllr Wells' earlier departure from the room, Chair Sam England dismissed the item in just 17 seconds without further discussion or debate.
(Editorial Note: This marks the sixth agenda item identified as being directly requested by Cllr David Elliott, consuming administrative time and council space without yielding any substantive or positive outcome for the parish.)
Procedural Confusion & Withdrawal: Chair Sam England opened the item noting the P&D Committee currently held three members (Cllrs Katrina Favell, Val Gorbutt, and Trudy Snell). When Cllr Favell clarified the deferred item was placed on the agenda following Cllr Elliott's prior request to join, Cllr Elliott repeatedly questioned who placed it there. Upon learning Cllr Ruddy was also interested, Cllr Elliott abruptly withdrew his application while raising allegations of bias:
"Who put this on and what would you like to discuss... First of all, who put it on?" — Cllr Elliott (1:37:15)
"Well you go on Tony I'll let you have that, I withdraw... So I'm being slightly, sort of, discriminated against." — Cllr Elliott (1:38:10)
Committee Limits & Capacity Reached: Chair England explained that under the Terms of Reference (TOR), the P&D Committee is capped at five members (unlike the Cemetery Committee which allows up to ten), requiring a vote only if applicants exceed capacity. Following Cllr Elliott's withdrawal, Cllrs Ruddy and Rob Snell joined the committee, bringing it to its full five-member quorum without needing a formal vote. Cllr Trudy Snell queried potential conflicts of interest with two married councillors serving together, which Natasha confirmed was permissible provided specific interview/case conflicts are managed.
(Editorial Note: This marks another agenda item initiated by Cllr Elliott that yielded no constructive outcome. Contextually, his push to join the P&D Committee aligns with earlier attempts to probe confidential HR and ACAS files during Items 2613/02 and 2613/09.)
Venue Support & Public Engagement: The proposal to permanently relocate GPC meetings to the Chapel Rooms received broad support from councillors. Members noted the improved layout facing the public, higher turnout, and the success of informal tea and coffee sessions beforehand:
"To open it up for tea and coffee and biscuit before, I thought was a really great idea, and it's nice to have that time to talk to members of the public..." — Cllr Katrina Favell (1:42:10)
Cllr Favell suggested expanding the pre-meeting opening times to improve councillor accessibility for working residents, acknowledging it would incur slight costs.
Scheduling Conflict & Rota Options: A motion by Cllr Jones to move meetings to the Chapel Rooms was seconded and met with enthusiasm. However, Val Gorbutt highlighted a venue clash: the Goxhill singing group holds a long-term contract for every Wednesday evening. As the council agreed it would be unfair to displace the group, Chair Sam England indicated that relocating venues would require changing the meeting day from Wednesday.
Meeting Day Considerations: Members informally discussed options, including returning to Thursdays (the council's historical meeting night). Cllr Favell noted that Ward Councillors also have existing Wednesday commitments. Chair England clarified that while the venue change was supported in principle, the final decision on meeting dates/times would need to be made later. Former Cllr Ged Kirwan highlighted that the Ward Councillors have historically always kept the first Thursday of the month free, for GPC Meetings.
PCC Grant Opportunity & Asset Protection: Cllr Rob Snell presented a Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) grant opportunity offering up to £35,000 (requiring a 1% parish match of £350) to install CCTV at the play park following persistent anti-social behaviour, broken glass, damage, and unauthorised vehicles. Initial enquiries with NLC street lighting and security officers were positive, with Cllr R. Snell seeking permission to complete formal grant documentation.
Data Control & Safeguarding Regulations: Responding to Cllr Favell regarding footage access, Cllrs R. Snell and Ruddy explained that system access is strictly regulated. Options include local downloads via a designated data controller or direct integration with Scunthorpe's central monitoring centre—a route strongly recommended by local police to relieve the parish council of data handling liabilities.
Privacy Concerns vs Park Safety: Cllr Elliott raised objections regarding filming children without prior parental consent, prompting spirited debate:
"Has anyone considered what the parents of the children that use this park think, before you start installing CCTV..." — Cllr Elliott (1:50:30)
"You're not filming the children, you're filming the park, you're filming the damage." — Cllr Rob Snell (1:51:10)
Cllrs Ruddy and Chair England noted that CCTV operates routinely in public spaces for safety and deterrence, though Chair England suggested consulting primary and secondary schools as enquiries progress.
Vote & Public Input: Cllr Favell proposed authorising Cllr R. Snell to progress enquiries and draft the grant application, which was seconded and passed unanimously. Following the vote, member of the public Mr Lawtey cautioned the council to factor in electrical power infrastructure costs across the playing field, which Cllr R. Snell confirmed would be assessed with street lighting engineers.
Transparency Challenge: Following a seconding by Cllr Leaning to exclude the press and public for Items 29–31, Cllrs Rob Snell and Tony Ruddy challenged the motion, demanding greater openness regarding legal costs and public expenditure:
"Everything seems to be going on behind closed doors with public money... We are accountable for all the money we spend, and where it goes..." — Cllr Rob Snell (1:55:00)
"Transparency... and we are not doing that because we are doing things behind closed doors..." — Cllr Tony Ruddy (1:55:40)
Advice & Boundaries: Chair Sam England sought guidance from Clerk Natasha Wilkinson, who outlined the statutory framework while confirming the final decision rested with members:
"The advice would be to exclude, but obviously you can choose not to. They have to be aware of not discussing personal, personnel, litigious matters that are occurring. So that is ALL councillors that have to bear that in mind..." — Clerk Natasha Wilkinson (1:56:36)
Cllr Favell acknowledged the delicate balance between openness and maintaining legal confidentiality, urging members to act responsibly if public session was maintained.
Recorded Vote Defeat: Chair England called for a recorded vote on excluding the public. The motion was defeated (3 For, 6 Against, 1 Abstention), forcing Items 29–31 to be conducted in open session:
- For Exclusion (3): Chair Sam England, Cllrs Charlie Leaning, David Elliott.
- Against Exclusion (6): Cllrs Rob Snell, Tony Ruddy, Katrina Favell, Val Gorbutt, Jones, David Carnell.
- Abstention (1): Cllr Trudy Snell.
Member Departure & Pecuniary Interest Rules: As Item 29 was called, Cllr David Elliott announced he was recording the segment, refused to answer questions from members, and abruptly exited the meeting at 1:59:56. Members noted that Cllr Elliott had not formally declared a pecuniary interest at the start of the meeting. Chair Sam England also declared a personal interest in upcoming Items 30 and 31, stating he would sit as a member of the public in the audience rather than leaving the room given the public exclusion vote failed.
Nature of Claim & Standards Assessment: Councillors Trudy Snell, Rob Snell, and Katrina Favell reviewed the details of the claim—which cited four separate grievances across the 20th July and 12th August meetings, including alleged missing minutes and administrative delays. Members noted that the points raised constituted a standards complaint rather than a valid financial liability, with Cllr Favell noting that the chair/acting clerk had already confirmed administrative requests had been fulfilled.
Outrage & Formal Refusal Vote: Members expressed strong disapproval over a sitting councillor seeking monetary damages against council funds:
"I'm shocked that a member of this council would drop that low. For what reason." — Cllr Charlie Leaning (2:04:20)
"I propose we do not pay the £150 compensation... We're setting precedent, we've done nothing wrong. We are councillors here together to work together. If the individual isn't willing to work with everybody... and wishes to have a financial gain from the council I think it's unfair." — Cllr Katrina Favell (2:04:30)
The motion proposed by Cllr Favell to refuse the compensation claim was seconded by Cllr Jones and passed with one abstention.
Declarations & Temporary Chairing: As Item 30 was called, Chair Sam England vacated the chair position and moved to the public seating area after declaring a personal and pecuniary interest. Vice chair Val Gorbutt stepped in to chair the meeting as the two-hour mark was passed. Cllr Trudy Snell also declared a personal interest and moved to the public seats, requesting that members maintain discretion regarding individuals' names during discussions.
Insurance Review & Legal Support: Cllr Katrina Favell provided an update on the council's ongoing legal proceedings and court documentation, confirming that all relevant files had been passed to the parish council's insurers:
"...the information and timeframe... have been forwarded to the insurance people, I have yet to hear a response from them and we are in the current situation of... legal support to respond to correspondence received and sent... until we get a response on those, there is no further update." — Cllr Katrina Favell (2:06:20)
Status Outcome: Members noted the update, agreeing that no further substantive action or vote could take place until official formal guidance was received back from the insurers and legal counsel.
Prejudicial Declarations: Having previously declared a personal, pecuniary, and prejudicial interest, Chair Sam England remained seated in the public gallery while vice chair Val Gorbutt and Cllr Katrina Favell managed the bench.
ACAS Process Closure & Legal Position: Cllr Jones, who had placed the item on the agenda, updated the council on the status of the ACAS conciliation process regarding the claimant's increased compensation demand:
"Well I did this, it's done its course. It's gone in to be registered that we will fight the case and... from there ACAS respect of this is closed and it awaits to see whether err, the individual concerned wishes to take it further." — Cllr Jones (2:07:30)
Procedural Outcome: Members acknowledged that the formal response rejecting the increased claim had been lodged. With early conciliation via ACAS formally closed, the matter rests pending any further steps by the claimant.
Future Agenda Requests: Councillors proposed several key items for inclusion on the upcoming agenda:
- Audio Streaming for Transparency: Cllr Favell proposed introducing public audio streaming for parish council meetings so residents unable to attend in person can listen online, emphasizing her full support for open recording to reach the wider community.
- Precept Alternatives & TORs: Acting Cllr Gorbutt requested an item to evaluate precept planning alternatives. Cllr Jones requested reviewing and formally agreeing the Terms of Reference (TOR) for all council committees.
- Minutes Remediation: Cllr Favell highlighted the need to approve minutes from the 12th August meeting and resolve outstanding queries regarding the 20th July minutes. Clerk Natasha noted two sets of historical minutes remain missing—the Extra-Ordinary meeting (25th March) and the Annual Meeting (13th May, where the Chair was elected) — and will query members for copies.
Public Input & Requests: Following an invitation from Cllr Favell, members of the public submitted specific requests:
- Financial Transparency: Member of the public Mr Lawtey requested web publication of the Quarter 1 budget reconciliation, full monthly accounts from April to date, and current bank balance/reserve statements.
- Highways Safety: Anglea Weeks raised a safety concern following an incident involving a child on horseback on Thornton Road, requesting official "Horse and Rider" warning signage (noting previous informal signage had disappeared).
General Notices: Cllr Leaning queried traffic concerns at Southend, with Chair England noting the commercial property had been sold to a Turkish firm with reduced heavy transport expected. Finally, members were reminded that the legacy Gmail address is now decommissioned and all official correspondence must strictly use the official .gov.uk address.
Next Meeting Details: The council provisionally agreed scheduling for the October full council meeting, incorporating the proposed day shift discussed earlier during Item 2613/26 to avoid venue clashes:
- Date: Provisionally Thursday 8th October 2026
- Time: 7:30 pm
- Location: To Be Confirmed (subject to Chapel Rooms booking availability)
The meeting closed at 2:15:20 (total duration: 2 hours, 15 minutes and 20 seconds).
The Good:
Positive Progress for the Village
Well, a little bit anyway. When the council was able to focus on parish business, members delivered a solid package of practical upgrades, community support, and staff safeguards in under a total of 35 minutes:
29 New Trees Secured for Goxhill: Thanks to groundwork led by Cllr Tony Ruddy alongside NLC Tree Officer Paul Beaton, North Lincolnshire Council and Paul & Angela Weeks, grant funding was approved for 21 cherry trees alongside 8 Hawthorns. The parish secured the hawthorns for £1,056 (£880 + VAT, fully recoverable) while negotiating the cherry tree deposit down to £252. Despite Cllr Elliott voting against the measure due to the council voting "blind" without clear budget line balances in front of them, the motion passed to ensure the village didn't lose out on seasonal planting.
Exploring up to £35k Play Park Security: Cllrs Rob Snell and Tony Ruddy led the charge to pursue a Police and Crime Commissioner grant for secure CCTV to tackle broken glass and vandalism. Despite Cllr Elliott interrupting to demand formal parent consultation over "filming children", a point Cllr Rob Snell dismissed as irrelevant given strict data privacy regulations, the council voted unanimously to authorise Cllr Rob Snell to start the application process.
A New Home for Council Meetings: The council agreed in principle to permanently move monthly meetings to the Chapel Rooms so councillors can face the gallery directly. Cllr Katrina Favell proposed opening earlier to serve tea, coffee, and biscuits beforehand to make members more accessible, though the exact meeting night may have to change from Wednesday to avoid clashing with a long-standing 10-year booking by the local singing group.
Community Spirit: The council unanimously accepted a donated Christmas tree for the village entrance from local residents Andy and Tracy Broom, while volunteer councillors and the new clerk, Natasha, who offered to home-bake flapjacks, stepped up to staff thier monthly slot of hosting Community Café.
Operational & Staff Upgrades: Practical steps were taken to equip and safeguard the new clerk, including evaluating MYSOS emergency pendants for lone working, approving a £20/month mobile phone package, splitting £140 FILCA training costs with Flixborough Parish Council, and initiating a free ERNLLCA salary review. Even these routine measures faced minor friction from Cllr Elliott, who attempted to deflect employer safety responsibilities onto the clerk, questioned basic phone data needs, and was the lone abstention on the free pay review.
The Bad and the Ugly
The Elliott Toll: Estimated 56% Time Impact
When you look across the entirety of this 2-hour-and-15-minute marathon, the cumulative time drain caused—directly and indirectly—by Councillor David Elliott was staggering.
Based on detailed transcript analysis, his interjections, attributed agenda items, and procedural stalls swallowed an extraordinary 76.5% of floor time in Part 1 (55 minutes, 55 seconds). That shadow stretched straight into Part 2, where an estimated 56% of the remaining meeting was consumed by friction—whether through direct debate, pedantry over tree grant lines, battling CCTV protocols, questioning phone data, pushing email deletion, or navigating the debate over his legal letter following his door-slamming exit at the two-hour mark.
It's not even that he's wrong, he often isn't... I agree with his position on several occasions, we should consider parents thoughts before installing CCTV, for example, but we should investigate whether we can even get the grant first! We should know what budget we have left before voting on things, but when you're currently arguing for the council to give away £68k in precept, £880 (for 8 Large Hawthorn Trees) won't break the bank! My issue is with the way in which he chooses to raise his points, in a confrontational manner, in full council, almost like he's trying to say 'gotcha' with every point he makes. Cllrs are all volunteers, none of them are getting paid to spend that 2 hours sat in the meeting, they're all just doing their best, if they get something wrong, offer to help before we get to a meeting, if you disagree with something, bring it up with the Clerk, who can advise on whether it is proper procedure, or not.
Stripping away this estimated ~76 minutes of direct and indirect friction reveals that under half the meeting was spent on unhindered council business. Without these constant procedural roadblocks, this bloated 135-minute marathon could have been a crisp, productive meeting wrapped up in roughly an hour.
Conflicts of Interest & Legal Pressure
However, Elliott was not acting in a vacuum. Chair Sam England played a central role in driving the late-stage drama surrounding personal conflicts and legal claims against the public purse:
The Recruitment Shadow: Context surrounding previous votes of no confidence resurfaced, linked to Chair Sam England’s alleged failure to step away from a clerk recruitment process that involved an application from a close family member.
Litigation & Gallery Tactics: Following an extended absence that coincided with the initiation of legal action and ACAS conciliation proceedings against the council, Chair Sam England returned to declare personal, pecuniary, and prejudicial interests in those very court papers. Yet he refused to leave the room, and we still don't know much more than we already knew.
Parallel Grievances & Legal Threats: Adding to the friction, it would appear that Cllr David Elliott pushed for financial compensation of £150 (although £350 was mentioned) alongside threats of legal action against the parish, though his submission was ultimately categorised as a standards complaint rather than a valid legal claim.
The Battle:
What truly defined Part 2 was not just the disruption, but a series of calculated, "mutinous" acts of solidarity by the bench to uphold transparency and protect council governance:
Blocking Access to Confidential HR Files: Cllr Favell placed Cllr Elliott’s deferred request to join the Personnel & Disciplinary (P&D) Committee on the agenda for a public vote. Clearly agitated that the item had been brought to the floor, Elliott—supported by Chair England—had evidently expected the appointment to be accepted quietly upon request, without public scrutiny. During the debate, Elliott withdrew his application, citing "discrimination." Cllrs Ruddy and Snell then stepped forward to fill the remaining vacancies in public view, bringing the committee to its full 5-member limit and resolving the appointments.
The Legal Reality: When a councillor (or a close associate acting in tandem) is involved in litigation or formal grievances against the council, their "need to know" is entirely superseded by legal professional privilege and data protection (UK GDPR). Granting that member, or their proxy, a seat on a Personnel & Disciplinary Committee to view private files related to their own conflict represents an obvious conflict of interest and a breach of administrative law.
The 6–3 Exclusion Defeat (Accountability in the Open): The absolute turning point of the evening. Cllrs R. Snell, Jones, Gorbutt, Ruddy, Favell, and Carnell defeated the motion by England, voted by Leaning, and Elliott to hide legal and compensation matters behind closed doors, forcing all remaining discussions into full public view.
Protecting Democratic Safeguards: This same solid block of councillors continues to hold the line—reversing past attempts to stifle public participation, defending proper voting protocols, and currently battling to overhaul flawed Committee Terms of Reference. We owe this coalition a debt of gratitude for the earlier revolts that finally ended an 18-month paralysis to recruit our new Clerk—even as the fallout from past HR disputes and ongoing legal battles continues to shadow the desk.
Push for Future Audio Streaming: Building on the momentum of the revolt, a proposal was initiated in the final minutes to place live audio streaming of future parish council meetings on an upcoming agenda, aiming to ensure permanent, open access for all Goxhill residents.
Blowing Up the 2hr Window
Whether by accident or design, the agenda content all but guaranteed the meeting would blow past the two-hour window.
Ordinarily, clearing Item 1 (apologies) and up to 15 minutes ofpublic participation takes roughly the first 20 minutes, leaving just 1 hour and 40 minutes (100 minutes) for actual business. Cramming 32 remaining items into that window established a mathematically improbability of 3 minutes and 7.5 seconds per item.
Cllr David Elliott’s submission of 6 individual agenda items, combined with 2 further directly attributed items (his financial claim and his attempt to join the P&D Committee), instantly swallowed 25% of the entire meeting’s available time, and that is before accounting for a single second of his constant disruptions, cross-talk, or procedural stalling.
The Selective Pedantry:
The fundamental flaw in this tactical pedantry is that it only ever applies when it suits their agenda.
Consider the staggering revelation that the official minutes for the May Annual Meeting are completely missing.
Yet, where is the frantic concern about the technical reality that the parish currently has no officially recorded Chair—with the May Annual Meeting minutes missing for over four months? Nowhere. Instead, procedural rules are selectively weaponised. Some of the things we can highlight in this meeting alone are:
Ignoring the Majority Will: When 7 out of 10 sitting councillors passed a vote of no confidence in England’s leadership, he simply shrugged it off and refused to step down—ignoring basic ethics that would dictate a Chair who has lost his bench must resign to prevent administrative paralysis.
Sabotaging Emergency Business: In Item 6, Cllr Elliott branded the August 20th Extraordinary Meeting "illegal" under Standing Order 6—despite it being urgently called to protect the village from massive Carbon Pipeline traffic disruption. He pushed to invalidate the entire session simply because three councillors had decided to bypass the usual process of requesting Chair Sam England call one and waiting 7 days, as he had proven to be uncontactable for the previous month or so and there were urgent items that needed addressing. Interestingly, the minutes for the March 20th Extraordinary Meeting concerning planning, are also completely missing.
The Pattern of Unresponsiveness: Part 1 directly exposed this exact pattern: It would appear that Chair England habitually ignores formal requests to convene extraordinary meetings. In the most recent case, this unresponsiveness meant the council failed to meet, prior to what is believed to be Cllr Elliott’s legal threat deadline, expiring on the 8th September.
The Frozen Bank Accounts: The alarming revelation that all three council bank accounts had been frozen was quickly passed over, leaving the public entirely in the dark as to why access to parish funds had been restricted in the first place, or what steps were taken to restore access.
Guised as Generosity: The chairmans £50 contribution from the "chairmans fund" toward the WI Memorial Hall hire fees for VJ Day (for which he is booking secretary) glossed over the fact the GPC allowed a £250 VJ day grant from NLC, to be forfiet, whilst charging full rates for a Memorial event in the Memorial hall, leaving the WI over £85 out of pocket.
Open Contempt for Enforcement:
Conflicts of this magnitude fall directly under the authority of the Monitoring Officer who investigates standards complaints regarding breaches of the Code of Conduct but any lingering illusion of accountability at that end of the table was shattered during Item 10.
Cllr Leaning openly boasted:
“If anybody wants to report me to North Lincs, get on with it, cos I couldn't care less, cos I know they're not going to do anything.”
Cllr Elliott doubled down:
“The people that are getting complained about are just going to carry on doing what they were doing.”and, as also revealed during this meeting, Councillor England had 34 standards complaints against him once, last year, and only half of one was enforced, so I don't think he is overly concerned... do you?
Auditor & Legal Injunctions: A parish council facing improper governance or unauthorised access to sensitive files can seek formal advice from ERNLLCA/NALC, instruct independent legal counsel, or report governance failures to the External Auditor. Speaking of the external auditor... while other councils surrounding us are currently recieving completion certificates for their external audits for 2025/26, Goxhill Parish council are yet to recieve theirs for as far back as 2024/25. We don't expect it to fair well, considering the disgraceful result of the Internal Audit.
You know how to contact us to let us know what you think. As before, I have attached the raw unedited notes made during audio transcript that I have used. Again, I cannot offer you the audio recording at this time, without seeking permission from the relevant parties, but I can provide you with a transcript of the proceedings. Naturally, both the GPC and the Monitoring Officer have been provided with the original recording of the full meeting as a courtesy. BOTH have confirmed gratefully.
Hopefully, should Cllr Favell’s proposal to live stream the proceedings be successful in upcoming meetings, you will be able to listen for yourself.
Exploring Collection: GPC Watch
