MEETING MINUTES
77 CLUB ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Saturday 18th October 2008
Whepstead Community Centre,
Whepstead
Bury St. Edmunds
Suffolk
The meeting commenced at 2.35 p.m. Everyone present was welcomed to the AGM and the Officers of the club there present were as follows:-
Syd Morrell – Chairman Bill Dawson – Vice Chairman
Harry Braybrooke – Bookings Secretary Jennifer Nicoll – Treasurer
Kevin Cairns – Rally Officer Penny Broadway – Membership Secretary
Gill Avis – Magazine Editor Karla Cairns – Catering Officer
Derek Howell – Sports Officer Derek Lawler-Jones Committee Member
Apologies for absence were read out by the Chairman
Fred Nicoll proposed acceptance of the 2007 Minutes – seconded by Janet Morrell Chairman gave his review of the year
§ February Dinner Dance – great success, excellent food and enjoyed by all in attendance. Karla Cairns was Lady of the Year, Joe Hamilton Man of the Year – he also managed to win the Yellow Jersey for most attended rallies.
§ Spring Bank Holiday at Rivendell in the Peak District – excellent and enjoyed by all who participated. Weather could have been better but did not spoil our overall enjoyment. We managed a bike ride on the Tissington Trail on one of the few sunny days, but also found lots of interesting places to see and visit. Rounded the week off with the communal roast dinner cooked by Karla & Helpers – excellent.
§ Membership and Rallies – membership down as some of our non-active members have drifted away. In spite of the poor weather this season, rallies have generally been well supported by our regular members. Kevin will confirm the exact figures.
§ Hosts – On behalf of the committee I would like to thank all members who hosted – some were planned, some not. We still need rallies to be hosted and look forward to new and old members perhaps having a go next year.
§ Finance – We have made investments this year in new equipment and our Treasurer will give you all the details.
§ Thanks to all the committee members for their support this year. Special thanks to Bill Dawson who is resigning.
§ Thanks to Auditors – a job which generally goes unnoticed but is a very necessary task – Thank you Joe Hamilton and Terry Fisher.
§ There are two members who do jobs voluntarily. Penny Broadway does the children’s birthday cards (not part of her committee job) and Janet Morrell announces and sings the Birthdays every rally – thank you to them both for their contribution.
Officer Reports
Treasurer – Jennifer Nicoll
“I have changed the presentation format of the accounts this year to best represent them in relation to how the club runs”. Jennifer went on to explain the accounts (copies of which had been issued to all members). The front sheet shows exactly how much money the club currently has available in the bank accounts. They no longer include equipment value as all equipment is really an expense rather than an asset. On Page 2 the AGM expenses have been taken out of the rallies as this should be shown as a separate expense. By looking at the figures on Page 2 it would appear that we have made a loss of £943. However, we have invested £1252 in new equipment. The last page shows the general running costs which have significantly increased. These should be covered by your Membership Fee, but with costs increasing and member numbers decreasing, the Membership Fee is no longer covering the running cost. “I therefore propose that the Membership Fee is increased to £25”.
Finally, the Treasurer explained why she had withdrawn her resignation.
Questions from the members followed and Gary Webb asked why Easter appeared to have made such a large loss. The Chairman gave a short explanation.
The Treasurer’s Report was accepted by the floor.
Auditors – Joe Hamilton and Terry Fisher
Joe stated that they found the accounts to be present and correct, and added that the way they were presented helped make auditing very easy. Terry concurred with this and went on to explain that the presented accounts were not just for the members to view but also for “the Taxman” should he wish to see them. Therefore, they have to be in pristine condition. One observation was that they would like to see a copy of the Rally Officer’s Rally Sheets, just to “dot the I’s and cross the T’s”. Nothing more to add. All were in favour of acceptance of the Audited Accounts.
Rally Officer – Kevin
Average 17.6 vans per rally (18 units), the same as last year but with a smaller membership. Not a lot to say but the job is getting easier. Still little instances which could put him in an embarrassing position would he have to raise it with the offenders rather than turn a blind eye, (i.e., rubbish disposal; waste water pipes directly into a ditch). Please ensure you have a waste water container. Spacing not too bad. Thanks to Derek Lawler-Jones for being the early-bird, which helps. Please try not to make it awkward – we have to be right for ACCEO and DEFRA. Has been Rally Officer for fourteen years and if alright with members he will carry on.
Catering Officer – Karla Cairns
Thanked everybody for their help. A really easy job, Kevin does the heavy work. Enjoys doing the teas and coffees: just ask if you want to help. If anybody else wants to do the Catering Officers job they are welcome, otherwise Karla will carry on.
Membership Secretary – Penny Broadway
First year coincided with the upheaval of moving home. Haven’t rallied as often as we would have liked but are catching up now. Membership is just 53 – drop from 58 last year. Members have given up for various reasons but our newest members joined last month. Had some problems crating a membership list which was clear and easy to read (we ask for and store a lot of information). However, plan to devise a briefer list that will be available to members on request. This year’s list was available but nobody asked for a copy. Thank you for your support and look forward to serving you on our committee for another year.
Magazine Editor – Gill
Thank you to all those who have sent in articles and features for the magazine. Please keep them coming and I will endeavour to fit them all in. We have purchased a new colour printer which should now help greatly with quality and costs, etc., I hope everyone still finds something of interest in the magazine but if you have any ideas for improvement please come and talk to me. Thank you.
Bookings Secretary – Harry
The end of the 2008 Season and, in spite of the often inclement weather, hopefully along the way members have found some places to enjoy. The 2009 programme is complete (a copy of the list has been given to all members attending). On the wall is a full list and location map for members to put their names down to host rallies.
In future we are going to see more rallies like this one with halls having a licensed bar. The Licensing Laws changed in 2005 and many places are installing licensed bars in their village halls in order to get the maximum usage from their premises. I am not entirely sure how this all effects us, but I will try to find out as much as possible and report back to the Committee. I am happy with the way things are and hope you are too.
Vice Chairman – Bill Dawson
I am resigning this year. Had another enjoyable year as your Vice Chairman. Over the last 5 years have especially enjoyed standing in for Syd when he has been on holiday. Also enjoyed hosting a few rallies with friends. Would like to see others try hosting – you might enjoy it. Now feel it is time to let someone younger have a go.
Bill wished his successor every success and hope they have an interesting and enjoyable year.
Sports Officer – Derek Howell
Thanks to those who have carried the sports equipment for me – it was out on 12 rallies. My apologies for not getting in a children’s sports rally.
Committee Member – Derek Lawler-Jones
As Kevin has already said, I help out and site people at the start of rallies. I think this has worked fairly well and will carry on doing this next year and wish you all the best for next year.
Election of Officers
Officers who had decided not to stand down were re-elected.
Two nominees for Vice Chairman – Pat Lawler-Jones and Peter Eusden. A secret ballot was held. Peter Eusden was elected Vice Chairman by a majority vote.
Terry Fisher and Joe Hamilton were prepared to re-stand as Auditors.
Motions/Questions/Proposals
Regarding a question about Minutes of Committee meetings, this was basically discussed as follows:-
- Minutes or notes are taken at committee meetings and where relevant a summary issued in the magazine.
- There was one particularly unpleasant meeting which took place as Shotley back in March, which the Chairman described as the worst he had ever attended, and he would not have liked words from that meeting put into print. No official Minutes were taken and none issued.
- The Committee do not have a problem with reporting on what happens at a meeting. However, at times some circumstances are a bit more delicate.
- Michelle Cooper stated that members vote the committee in on trust, so why do we need to see the minutes of their meetings. We should trust them to run the club in the best interests of the members.
- Generally we do take notes and a summary of the salient points of Committee meetings are given in the magazine where possible. This will continue in the future. There has not been a magazine issued since the last meeting took place.
- The Chairman asked if the members present wanted to vote on this issue. This was carried out and in future we will endeavour to ensure a brief summary of meetings are provided.
- Kevin concluded the discussion by stating that we do try to do our best.
The next issue was proposed by The Chairman – that we have Membership Cards. This means that the Rally Book will not then be proof of your membership: a ‘credit card sized’ membership card will take over from this. The Chairman asked if anyone had a problem with this. Beryl Hyde did not have a problem but pointed out that people do lose cards. The Chairman responded that equally people lose Rally Books too; the card will be easier to replace. With no objections it was agreed to go ahead and commence as from renewal 2009.
Next, ‘Animals in Gazebos’ – The Chairman observed that apparently there was a Motion or Rule Proposal made a long time before he became a member of the club that ‘Dogs would not be allowed in hall’. He understood that Bob Wood re-raised this issue again back in 1989 and the ruling was re-iterated. Personally, the Chairman does not like the use of the word ‘Dogs’ and thinks it should be changed to ‘Pets’ and would like members now to accept his proposal that ‘Pets are not allowed in halls or gazebos’. The Proposal was carried (with the exception of Guide Dogs).
Terry Fisher added that it was also previously proposed that the lead length should be a maximum of 10-feet, so it should be re-iterated that ‘Pets be kept on a lead – maximum 10-feet’.
Any Other Business
The Chairman informed members that Gary Webb is now employed by SH Caravans, London Road, Marks Tey, who are pleased to announce a fixed price service, a special price to 77 Club members, i.e. £180 for a single axle and £220 for a twin axle, plus a 10% discount on all other work, parts and labour.
Gary has assumed the job of Workshop Manager. They are NCC Workshop approved and are actively seeking other approvals and Manufacturer approval, i.e. for warranty work.
The Chairman on Gazebos:
He cannot remember how old they are but believes it to be around 6 years. Some are now not as waterproof as they were. Personally he would like to see the tops replace, at least on some if not all. He would appreciate some help from Terry on this. Bob Maskell also commented that as it is possible that we could have to use them more, their upkeep is even more important. Kevin felt that they are probably good for another year. Their cost was approximately £150 each, (i.e. £4 per head over 6 years). We do use them considerably and do require them to be waterproof. Derek Lawler-Jones suggested that if we hang on to these for another year then perhaps we could acquire something better. The Chairman stated he would prefer to upgrade by purchasing new, provided members do not mind club money being spent. Harry Braybrooke suggested that as we have something like 4-6 months before we need to use the gazebos, we perhaps could review the position nearer that time. The Committee will consider these options.
Spring Bank Holiday – some options have been researched. A suitable venue will be found as soon as possible.
The Chairman thanked Bill Dawson for all his help over the years, often bringing him back to earth when needed and supporting him all the way.
A final word from Terry Fisher to the Committee: “These Guys up front, regardless of whether they have good or bad meetings, give up their time for the club, and on behalf of the club we thank them very much”.
The Chairman thanked everyone who attended the meeting and officially closed the 2008 AGM at 3.50 p.m., before handing over to the Vice Chairman who proposed the toast to the 77 Club.
