Agenda and minutes

Councillor A Burgin declared a personal interest as an employee of Ashfield District Council.

NOTED            that no intention to record the meeting was declared apart from through the usual web platforms.

The Minutes of the Meeting held on 2 September 2021 were approved as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

The report provided an update on staff and the current operation of the Crematorium.  Also in attendance at the meeting were Supervisors Martin Clarke and Nada Colclough, who would be assisting until a new Manager was in post.

The Crematorium and Cemeteries Manager and Registrar would be leaving his role at the end of the week and he went through the report highlighting the staffing, Covid-19, new proposals, commercial innovation and cremation data.

As part of the green agenda to reduce carbon emissions the grounds machinery are now electric mowers, electric strimmers, hedge trimmers, chain saws and leaf blowers.

The report also informed the Members that the new Memorial options have been procured to provide the client with more options when remembering their loved ones.

The Crematorium had been approached by a local Funeral Director to see if the Crematorium was interested in taking the direct cremations from this Funeral Director on an annual basis. This would involve every direct cremation from this Funeral Director coming to Mansfield Crematorium and would be reviewed annually. This would generate further income for the service as well as providing a highly dignified and local cremation service to the residents of each Authority. The amount of direct cremations would be on average 85 per annum and to provide an offer of £360 per cremation would generate in excess of £30K per annum additionally to what is currently being achieved.

AGREED      (unanimously) that:

i)          the contents of the report be noted.

ii)         Members approved Appendix 1 as a new Memorial Information and Policy for the Crematorium to be used sensitively where required by staff.

iii)       Members agreed the direct cremation offer of £360 per cremation for the direct cremations from the Funeral Director that had approached the Crematorium for this work as described in 6.3 of the report.

The report provided the Committee with options on the future development of the Crematorium as requested at the 2 September 2021 meeting.

A summary highlighted alongside the replacement of the cremators and associated equipment programme temporarily suspended due to structural issues and that the existing building does need significant refurbishment to meet modern day requirements.

Two options to meet the requirements were considered:

a)      Option 1 – a new build Crematorium

b)      Option 2 – to replace all existing furniture and fittings of the Crematorium building including major structural works to provide a more modern and up to date facility.

The Chairman enquired when considering Option 1 how the site would function and it was confirmed that the existing site would continue to operate whilst the new build was taking place.

AGREED      (unanimously) that:

i)          the Committee approved Option 1 – a new build crematorium - as the favoured option from the choices provided in the report, and in line with the Officers recommendation in the conclusion of this report, to progress preparatory work on the future development of the Crematorium on this basis. For Officers to bring further reports to the Joint Committee for approval and update as necessary.

The report provided the forecasted year end position for the 2021/2022 financial year for the Mansfield Crematorium as at 30 September 2021.

Table 1 provided a summary of the income and expenditure to 30 September 2021 and the variances to revised budgets expected at year end.

Table 3 Short Term Debtors broke down the value outstanding per period for invoices outstanding as at 30 September 2021.  A Committee member was concerned as not wanting to get in a position of debt again, referring to the delay in some Funeral Directors making payment.  The Chairman referred to 2020/2021, the Head of Finance suggested providing a comparison, the Chairman asked if this could be provided in an explanatory email.

AGREED      (unanimously) that:

i)          the financial information provided in Appendix 1 and Table 3 be noted.

ii)         the revenue budget realignments provided in Appendix 2 be noted.

The report provided the proposed fees and charges to be introduced from 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.

The fees and charges as set out in Appendix 1 of the report highlighted to the Committee the proposed fees and charges for 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023.

The types of cremation fees listed in Appendix 1, included only those types of cremation in demand. These still include the option to have either a peak, off peak, weekend or direct cremation.

Table 1 provided a comparison for the 2021/2022 adult standard cremation fees and the number of cremations in the region for 2019 and 2020.

AGREED      (unanimously) that:

i)          the proposed cremation fee as shown in Table 2 for the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 be approved.  The proposed for 2022/2023 is £858, which is an increase of £41 (5%) on the 2021/2022 standard cremation fee.  The medical referee fee £18.50 will be added to these proposed standard cremation fees.

ii)         the proposed standard cremation fees as shown in Table 2 for 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 be approved in principle.  The standard cremation fees proposed are: 2023/2024 £901 and for 2024/2025 £946, being an increase of 5% in both years.  The medical referee fee £18.50 will be added to these proposed cremation fees.

iii)       the proposed fees and charges for 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023, as set out in Appendix 1 be approved.

The report provided the revenue and capital budgets for 2022/2023 and the proposals for 2023/2024 and 2024/2025.

It was highlighted that the report had been written on the basis that whichever option the Committee approved with regard to the future of the Crematorium buildings and fixed plant, the budget proposals had included the estimated maximum development costs.

Table 1 in the report summarised the revenue budget information provided in more detail at Appendix 1.

The Vice-Chairman put to the Head of Finance if the possibility of any grants available had been considered, the response to the Committee was that this could be looked at for the both the shorter and longer term.

AGREED      (unanimously) that:

i)          the proposed revenue and capital budgets for 2022/2023 be approved, as per Appendix 1.

ii)         the proposed revenue and capital budgets for 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 be approved in principle, as per Appendix 1.

iii)       in 2022/2023 an annual surplus of £875,000 be approved.

iv)       in 2023/2024 and 2024/2025 an annual surplus of £875,000 be approved in principle.

The Members noted the Committee Work Programme and to update the report author for the Crematorium and Cemeteries Manager and Registrar, until position filled.

To consider resolving that, under section 100A (4) of the Local

Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the

following items of business on the grounds that they involve the likely

disclosure of exempt information as defined in Part 1 of Schedule 12A of

the Act.

That, under section 100A (4) of the Local Government Act 1972, the public be excluded from the meeting for the following items of business on the grounds that they involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in of part 1 of Schedule 12A of the Act.

This report contains information relating to the financial or business affairs of a particular person (including the authority holding that information) which is a category of exempt information under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972, Paragraph 3 under which the Committee has the power to exclude the press and public if it so wishes.

RECOMMENDED that under Section 100(A) of the Local Government Act 1972, the press and public be excluded from the meeting during discussion of this item of business on the grounds that it involves the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraph 3 of Schedule 12A of the Act and that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

It is considered that the need to treat the information in this report as exempt outweighs the public interest in disclosure because of potential to prejudice the commercial interests of the contractor, if the financial details were to be put into the public domain thereby becoming available to competitors.

Monday, 21 February 2022 at 10 am, to be held at Newark & Sherwood District Council Offices.