WOODBOROUGH BRIDGE CLUB

Minutes of the Annual General Meeting 5 July 2018

1. Present:   A total of 45 members were present at the meeting

2. Apologies:  Jim Kirkwood, Jane Hall, John Glass, Keith Spencer.

3. Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on 20 July 2017: The minutes had been circulated previously and were approved as a correct record; they were signed by the Chairman.

4. Matters Arising:  There were no matters arising.

5. Chairman’s Report: Ray Furlonger welcomed all members to the meeting. He outlined that the club has had a successful year with numbers being maintained on a Thursday night; 3 teams having competed in the county leagues with the “A” team gaining promotion to Division 1. The club’s financial position had improved and a successful charity event had been held; he thanked all members who had contributed to these successes.
He outlined the difficulties faced by the committee over the last year – the requirement for new privacy laws, the need to update disciplinary procedures and the club’s constitution, reviewing the new method of running teams which had operated for the 2017-18 season and determining a different method for the forthcoming year.
He hoped that, having got some difficult issues behind them, the committee could now concentrate on moving the club forward in more conventional ways.

6. Treasurer’s Report: Phil Dale presented the Accounts. He informed the meeting that the year had been very successful from a financial point of view, with a surplus of £!675 being achieved, resulting in a cash balance slightly in excess of £3750 at the year end. He advised that, subject to numbers being maintained on Thursday bridge nights, similar results would be anticipated in future years, resulting in funds raising to une.cessary levels. As a result he advised members that the committee had decided to put sum of £300 aside to help the training of additional directors over the next year.
He recommended that the subscription for the forthcoming year be reduced to £5 per head, and that table fees remain at £2 per member and £3 per guest.
These recommendations were unanimously approved.

7. Thursday Playing Arrangements: Toni Smith outlined the options available for play on bridge nights resulting from the regular increase in tables to 11 or 12. In order to maintain a policy of always finishing before 10 p.m. the options available for board movements were limited and would often lead to a maximum of 22 boards being played, or less if there were a half table. It was felt that this number of boards was insufficient for a sensible drive. EBU have limits on the number of boards and movements to ensure a balanced drive. To increase board movement options and play a reasonable number of boards,  may result in the playing time extending beyond 10 p.m.
The members present were asked whether they would always want play to end no later than 10 p.m., or whether it could continue for up to 15mins after that time at the discretion of the director for the night. This extension would only be for those nights where the number of players meant there was a difficult movement.
The meeting unanimously agreed that it would be acceptable for play to continue for a short time beyond 10 p.m. in these circumstances.

8. New Constitution and Disciplinary Procedures: The proposed new Constitution, including Disciplinary Procedures had been circulated previously.
The meeting unanimously approved the adoption of new Constitution, which would come into force at the conclusion of this meeting.

9. Election of Committee: The following members were elected en bloc to the Committee:-
Ray Furlonger, Phil Dale, Jane Hall, Keith Spencer, Steve Fordham, Keith Spencer, Julia Furlonger, Andrew Spence, Tony Trevethick.

The meeting closed at 7.05p.m.