For the past seven days a statement “Extraordinary Meeting” (dated 5 June 2023) has been posted on the Parish Notice board and on the Geldeston Parish Council website.
The document, signed by four GPC councillors who reached a decision to resign collectively at an Extraordinary Meeting of the Parish Council on Monday, 5 June 2023, is libellous and unlawful and should be removed forthwith. A fifth signatory and councillor, the acting GPC chairman John Ashfield, had already resigned (see “To Whom it may Concern”) the day before.
The 5 June document (Extraordinary Meeting) is libellous because no attempt has been made to substantiate the claims made therein about another recently-elected councillor.
To date, no official Complaint about the named individual has been submitted to South Norfolk District Council, and no detail has been provided of alleged incidents involving fellow councillors or parishioners. As the five former councillors / signatories are now well aware, I have submitted a detailed formal Complaint about fundamental breaches of the Code of Conduct in March 2022 by two former GPC members (chairman and clerk) to senior officers and elected officials of South Norfolk Council (SNC) after waiting months for an apology from both persons. My Complaint was submitted as a document for information: it has not yet been actioned.
The 5 June document (Extraordinary Meeting) is unlawful for several reasons.
One, those who called the extraordinary GPC meeting on Monday, 5 June 2023, did not notify or invite the named individual. This is irregular and renders decisions taken at that meeting null and void, although SNC would not regard an attempt by the Five to reverse their resignations with any favour.
Two, the libellous statement by the Five councillors was posted on two outlets that should be made accessible to the remaining GPC member and the future council. On resignation, the keys and website access codes (along with other GPC property) should have been passed promptly to the person who is still an elected member of Geldeston Parish Council so that with freshly coopted members he may resume as quickly and smoothly as possible the running of GPC on behalf of the inhabitants of the parish of Geldeston.
Three, I shall soon receive a dog-mess bin and a grit bin that the previous GPC chairman (Mr Ian Ansell: resigned Thursday, 25 May 2023) has not yet found the time to install. Those in possession of keys to the Geldeston Parish Notice Board (acting chairman John Ashfield, resigned 4 June 2023) and the access codes to the GPC website (former parish clerk, Mrs Tina Newby, who supposedly resigned “at the start of May” 2023) should follow suit promptly.
By their own decision the Five signatories of the above libellous and unlawful document are no longer GPC councillors, nor do they represent the inhabitants of the parish.
Common sense and law demand that they hand over without further delay the keys, the website codes and any other GPC property still in their possession to the one remaining councillor so that, with the assistance and advice of SNC officers, he can set about forming a new parish council,
John Crowfoot
Geldeston Parish Councillor
2002-2006 (compiler of Parish Plan);
nominated 2019-2023, elected 2023-2027
Parish Tree Warden, 2013 onwards
Geldeston resident since 1950s
A Geldeston Miscellany 