Agenda and minutes

County Councillor Martyn Groucutt was elected as Chair.

County Councillor Phil Murphy was appointed as Vice Chair.

None received.

The minutes of the previous meeting were confirmed as an accurate record.

In matters arising, it was requested that an aide memoire is provided to assist Committee Members when awarding grants for commonly requested items such as laptops to recall previous amounts awarded.  The Finance Manager agreed to compile a suitable document for consideration at the next meeting [ACTION].

The Committee received the Monmouthshire Farm School Endowment Trust Fund Annual Report for the year ended 31st March 2025.

In doing so, it was noted that £28,413 was made from investments. An investment of £206,000 has matured and Arlingclose Treasury Advisers have been contacted with a view to re-investment. Some additional funds in the region of £50,000 may be added to the new investment. £512 interest was made from the Roger Edwards Trust.

£7,474 was spent on grants. Other expenditure included audit fees and £200 for the support provided by Monmouthshire County Council.

It was discussed whether to increase the amounts spent on grants. It was agreed that this should be aligned to the aims and objectives of the Council, and should be considered in a structured and organised way.  It was agreed that this point should be reviewed at the next meeting.

Trustees agreed that these can be passed to external auditors for an independent examination.

We resolved accordingly.

We discussed the Monmouthshire Farm School Endowment Trust Travel Policy and agreed that the overriding principle for sustainability reasons is that public transport should be the first choice. It was accepted that the rurality of Monmouthshire will sometimes preclude this option. It was agreed that the application process should request some justification when public transport is not used.  This will be added to the policy.

We resolved to endorse the policy with the amendment suggested.

We excluded the press and public from the meeting during consideration of the following item of business in accordance with Section 100A of the Local Government Act 1972, as amended, on the grounds that it involved the likely disclosure of exempt information as defined in Paragraphs 12 and 14 of Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Act.

We considered 2 applications received against the Trust Fund, presented on behalf of the Chief Officer for Children and Young People.

The Trust resolved that:

(i) awards be made to both applicants, subject to appropriate receipts and evidence being received.