Obituary for Nettleham Parish Councillor Allan James Bonney

Nettleham Parish Councillor Allan James Bonney , born Monday, 18th September 1939, passed away on the morning of Friday, 3rd October 2014. 

Allan was by trade a Builder and Civil Engineer having served his apprenticeship under John Laing & Sons Ltd. After his retirement he came to Nettleham in October 2006 and settled in Highfields, Nettleham with a smaller and more manageable garden than he had been used to.

Allan James Bonney 1939 - 2014

Before moving to Nettleham he had been President of the Middlesex Bowling Association and a member of the English Bowls Association Committee. He was a member of the Nettleham Bowls Club where he collected old newspapers on their behalf to raise funds and was the ‘Greens Advisor’ for Bowls Clubs in Lincolnshire.

He was first elected to the council in 2010 where he filled one of three vacancies following the retirement of councillors Meg Davidson, Alf Frith and Ray Sellars. It was not long however before he would have to seek re-election to council the following year. He was successful and continued his service to the parish.

In 2011 Allan was appointed by the council to the Skate Park Steering Group and served as a Deputy on the Property Committee, Planning Committee and Mulsanne Park Users Committee. In 2012 he was appointed to the Nettleham Neighbourhood Plan Steering Committee and became a full member of both the Planning Committee and the Mulsanne Park Users Committee. He was also appointed as one the the parishes first two Snow Wardens, along with the Vice-Chairman of the Council, Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton.

In 2013 he came off the Musanne Park Users Committee and was promoted by the council to be the lead Snow Warden, also becoming one of the parish's Flood Wardens. Finally, in 2014, with his health impaired, he stepped back to be a deputy again on the Planning Committee and relinquished his roles as a member of the Neighbourhood Plan Steering Committee, and both the Flood and Snow Warden roles.

Allan's four year service to the parish of Nettleham was characterised by a determination to ensure the best for local people, that the council's resources were properly spent and represented value for money. He was never afraid to challenge and enquire about the actions of other authorities and bodies which affected the lives of people within the parish.

Allan was no stranger to the local Domino and Cribbage Club where he was an active member. He served on the Committee of Nettleham Garden Club and helped at their Saturday morning store.

The flag at the Old School, Mill Hill, Nettleham is expected to be flown at half mast on Monday, 6th October 2014. A service of Cremation will take place at 11:10 on Friday, 17th October 2014 at Lincoln Crematorium. 

Allan is survived by his wife Teresa, daughter Hazell and son Ian, together with his seven grandchildren

'Planning Win' for Parish Council

Members of Nettleham Parish Council have been pleased to learn that planning permission was refused, last night, by West Lindsey District Council's planning committee, for a substantial development on Greetwell Lane.

Nettleham Parish Council objected to this proposed development; the council maintained its strong opposition to the application, which fails to address the reasons for rejections previously made (Section 3 (PP3), Section 6, Section 7 and Section 8). 'In principle the Parish Council supports the provision of Sustainable properties; however, the design, intensity and siting of this development is not in keeping with the other properties in this rural location.' The council also felt that the development did 'not respect its close proximity' to the Bishops' Palace, an scheduled ancient monument, site and ignored the open aspect to the east of the site. The parish council stated that such an extensive development of this site would not respect the Nettleham Village Design Statement. If this application were to be approved it would, in the opinion of the council, set a precedent for future intensive tandem developments in this location.

The Parish Council also noted that West Lindsey District Council's own report (PL24 10/11 dated 17th November 2010) by the Director of Strategy and Regeneration states that 'the authority has exceeded the required 5 year deliverable housing supply and that residential development in primary rural settlements should be resisted unless material considerations indicate otherwise' which removes the pressure on the Planning Authority to achieve set targets.

Cllr. John Evens made representations on behalf of the parish council at the Development Management Committee meeting whilst members of the public from Nettleham also Spoke against the scheme. Cllr. Evan praised the work done by Cllr. Malcolm Leaning, Liberal Democrat (Nettleham Ward) who spoke against the proposal, saying:

"Malcolm Leaning did an outstanding job as our ward member speaking against the proposal, clearly having done a lot of preparation on the various planning policy reasons and put such a strong case across that the vote was unanimous to reject the application. The site visit of a couple of weeks ago also had a big impact on the members appreciation of the setting."

The development in question was an amended version of a previously rejected proposal to site a number of homes on land abutting the ancient scheduled monument of the Bishops' Palace. Cllr. Evans continued:

"I was also personally very pleased to hear the Nettleham VDS referenced on many occasions by Simon Sharp and Members, it is being taken notice of and was clearly a worthwhile project which will benefit our community for years to come."

Parish Council Summary of Appointments

Nettleham Parish Council, at it's Annual Parish Council meeting, on Wednesday evening, made a string of both internal and external appointments. First off was the re-election of the Chairman and Vice Chairman, Cllr. Terry Williams and Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton respectively.

The council undertook a new system of electing councillors to the various committees and outside bodies.

In previous years there had usually not been sufficient interest from members of the council and so positions were filled without a contest. Last year however, after a somewhat difficult set of exchanges, the committees were eventually decided. It was therefore agreed that for the current year as ballot would be held to determine committee memberships.

The members of Nettleham Parish Council's Committees for 2010/11, as elected at the meeting, are:

Property Committee

• Cllr. John Downs
• Cllr. Alf Frith
• Cllr. John Hill
• Cllr. Giles McNeill
• Cllr. Mike Spencer

Planning Committee

• Cllr. John Downes
• Cllr. John Evans
• Cllr. John Hill
• Cllr. Giles McNeill
• Cllr. Mike Spencer

Field Path Committee

• Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton
• Cllr. Mrs. Susan Harland

Parish Plan Action Committee

• Cllr. John Evans
• Cllr. Joe Siddall

Mulsanne Park Users Committee

• Cllr. John Downs
• Cllr. Mrs. Susan Harland
• Cllr. Giles McNeill

Nettleham Parish Council also made a number of appointments to outside bodies for 2010/11, as elected at the meeting, they are:

Village Hall Committee

• Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton
• Cllr. Giles McNeill
• Cllr. Joe Siddall

Nettleham Infant School Board of Governors

• Cllr. Giles McNeill

Nettleham Twinning Association

• Cllr. Mrs. Susan Harland

Flood Wardens

• Mrs. Frances Buckle
• Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton

Skate Park Steering Group

• Cllr. Joe Siddall
• Cllr. Alan Bonney
• Cllr. Mrs. Susan Harland

New Nettleham Parish Council Elected

The following twelve persons have been elected as Parish Councillors for Nettleham Parish Council, to fill twelve vacancies:

 

1. Cllr. Allan Bonney, Re-elected.
2. Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton (Vice-Chairman of the Council), Re-elected.
3. Cllr. John Downs (Chairman of the Property Committee), Re-elected.
4. Cllr. John Evans (Chairman of the Parish Plan Steering Committee), Re-elected.
5. Mr. Alf Frith, Returning after a one year absence.
6. Cllr. Mrs. Susan Harland, Re-Elected.
7. Cllr. John Hill (Chairman of the Planning Committee), Re-elected.
8. Cllr. Malcolm Leaning, Re-elected.
9. Cllr. Giles McNeill (Chairman of the Mulsanne Park Users Committee), Re-elected.
10. Mr. Joe Siddall, NEW
11. Cllr. Michael Spencer, Re-elected.
12. Cllr. Terry Williams (Chairman of the Council), Re-elected.

The following persons will retire from the Parish Council:

• Cllr. Mrs. Valerie Darbyshire, after five years of service.
• Cllr. Mrs. Stephanie Rouse, after one year of service.

EXCLUSIVE: New Nettleham Parish Council Elected

The following twelve persons have been nominated for election as a Parish Councillors for Nettleham Parish Council, to fill twelve vacancies:

1. Mr. Allan Bonney, NEW
2. Cllr. Mrs. Janice Clayton (Vice-Chairman of the Council), Re-elected
3. Cllr. Mrs. Valerie Darbyshire, Re-elected
4. Cllr. John Downs (Chairman of the Property Committee), Re-elected
5. Cllr. John Evans (Chairman of the Parish Plan Steering Committee), Re-elected
6. Mrs. Susan Harland, NEW
7. Cllr. John Hill (Chairman of the Planning Committee), Re-elected
8. Cllr. Malcolm Leaning, Re-elected
9. Cllr. Giles McNeill (Chairman of the Mulsanne Park Users Committee), Re-elected
10. Mrs. Stephanie Rouse, NEW
11. Cllr. Michael Spencer, Re-elected
12. Cllr. Terry Williams (Chairman of the Council), Re-elected

The following persons will retire from the Parish Council:

• Cllr. Mrs. Meg Davidson
• Cllr. Alf Frith
• Cllr. Raymond Sellars