MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB AGM HELD ON 16.02.24

APOLOGIES.

Debbie Lea, Marie Jones and Linda Spiri.

2023 AGM MINUTES AND MATTERS ARISING

The minutes were agreed as a true record, proposed by Vida Halford and seconded by David Newman.

Glyn pointed out that Gareth Jenkins should have been mentioned as remaining on committee when the Officers and Committee were elected en bloc.

TREASURER'S REPORT

The audited accounts and Treasurer's report were tabled showing a bank balance of £8115 and total financial assets of £9088.Tony confirmed a small profit before depreciation of the dealing machine. The committee have agreed to pay £5 towards this years Welsh Bridge Union subs ,which has increased to £20, and keep table money at £2.50 subject to a review later in the year.

Chris Rawlings queried why the Club kept £8000, Tony explained that a reasonable balance was required to protect against having to replace the dealing machine and other items. However, a minimum balance of £5000 would be acceptable.

Chris Rawlings brought up the Welsh Bridge Union accounts and there was a discussion around Honorariums and funding international events. The accounts were accepted as a true record.

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

Mike Williams was pleased that the Club was doing well, he hoped the new members were enjoying playing at the Club. Mike thanked Glyn for all the work he does for the Club. Bridge lessons would be great if they could be held in the future. We have a comfortable hall, free tea, biscuits and even occasional wine for the £2.50 table money.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Chairman - Dr. Mike Williams

Secretary - Glyn Williams

Treasurer - Tony Disley

Committee – Debbie Lea, Leila O'Hagan and Gareth Jenkins

The above were elected en bloc proposed Stewart Norton and seconded by Dee Finch.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Glyn Williams read out an item from Dilys Bowser “ I would like to propose that next January we hire a caterer to provide lunch for our New Years Party. The cost to be shared between the Club and the members”. After a discussion the majority of the members indicated their approval for the Committee’s guidance.

Glyn thanked everyone who helped set up and take down all the equipment.

The meeting closed at 2.11pm.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD BY ZOOM ON 01.02.24

PRESENT

Mike Williams (Chr), Glyn Williams (Sec),Tony Disley (Tre), Leila O’Hagan and Gareth Jenkins.

APOLOGIES

Debbie Lea

MINUTES OF LAST MEETING AND MATTERS ARISING

Minutes of Zoom meeting held on 05.10.23 were agreed as a true record of the meeting. There were no matters arising.

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Tony confirmed Club funds at the end of 2023 were £8,115 with £315 Hall Hire outstanding. There was a surplus of £120 before depreciation of the dealing machine was taken into account.

AGM

Glyn confirmed that the usual Agenda would be produced for the AGM.

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

All Officers and Committee members are happy to continue.

SET CLUB SUBS AND TABLE MONEY

Glyn confirmed that the WBU subs this year were going to be £20 of which £2 goes to WWBA.

The increase was discussed and it was agreed to keep the Club’s subs at £15 (£10 if WBU subs paid at another Club) and fund the £5 difference from Club funds. Table money would also remain at £2.50 subject to a review if player numbers were to fall.

CORRESPONDENCE

An email from Chris Rawlings had been received on 06.01.24 and immediately forwarded to all Committee members. The email wanted a change to the Club’s Constitution so that the Club would not have to be registered with the WBU and would then not register with the WBU. There was a lengthy discussion and the Committee were against not being a WBU registered Club. Glyn would email Chris to let him know and also advise him of the decision (above) about this year’s subs and table money.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

None

Date of next meeting to be confirmed in due course.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD BY ZOOM ON 05.10.23

PRESENT

Mike Williams (Chr), Glyn Williams (Sec),Tony Disley (Tre), Debbie Lea and Gareth Jenkins.

APOLOGIES

Leila O'Hagan was unable to log into the meeting.

MINUTES OF LAST MEETING AND MATTERS ARISING

Minutes of Zoom meeting held on 19.01.23 were agreed as a true record of the meeting.There were no matters arising.

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Tony confirmed Club funds stand at £8,090 with £240 Hall Hire outstanding. The room hire had increased from £10 to £12 per hour from 01.09.23.Around 5.5 tables are required to just about break even.

Glyn confirmed that the increased room rent would mean an extra £416 over the year. The WBU are also increasing the cost of master points from 25p to 40p from 01.01.24 costing an extra £60 a year.The WBU may also increase the subs by £2 but this has not yet been confirmed. Any increase in table money or subs to be discussed at next meeting before the AGM.

CHRISTMAS/NEW YEAR PARTY

It was agreed to have wine and mince pies on 15.12.23 and for the New Year party to be held on 12.01.24 with the Club providing the drinks and the members to bring the food, as per last year.No table money for the New Year Party.

SET DATE FOR 2023 AGM

It was agreed to hold the AGM on 16.02.24

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Following the closure of Porthcawl Bridge Club we may have some of their members coming to play at our club and they may want to join our club and we could be responsible for paying their WBU subs.

All Officers and Committee members present confirmed their willingness to continue in their roles.

Date of next meeting to be confirmed in due course.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB AGM HELD ON 24.02.23

APOLOGIES.

None

2022 AGM MINUTES AND MATTERS ARISING

The minutes were agreed as a true record,proposed David Newman and seconded

Dave Crompton. No matters arising.

TREASURER'S REPORT

The audited accounts and Treasurer's report were tabled showing a bank balance of £7968 and total financial assets of £9292.Tony explained that the depreciation of the Duplicate machine had been reduced to take into account the lower usage.There were no queries. The accounts were accepted as a true record, proposed Dee Finch and seconded by Chris Rawlings.

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

Mike Williams was pleased that the Club was thriving and numbers were increasing.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Chairman - Dr. Mike Williams

Secretary - Glyn Williams

Treasurer - Tony Disley

Committee – Debbie Lea and Leila O'Hagan

The above were elected en bloc proposed Mari Jones and seconded Dian Jones

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Glyn Williams pointed out that there was a need to improve Bridge etiquette.

Chris Rawlings asked for more help to run the Bridge session as Glyn is doing it on his own.

Glyn thanked everyone who helped set up and take down all the equipment.

The meeting closed at 1.54pm.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD BY ZOOM ON 19.01.23

PRESENT

Mike Williams (Chr), Glyn Williams (Sec),Tony Disley (Tre), Debbie Lea, Leila O'Hagan and Gareth Jenkins.

APOLOGIES

None received.

MINUTES OF LAST MEETING AND MATTERS ARISING

Minutes of Zoom meeting held on 20.10.22 were agreed as a true record of the meeting,

There were no matters arising.

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Tony Disley confirmed Club funds stand at £7,968 with invoices for hall hire of around £350 outstanding.

 AGM

Glyn confirmed notices for the AGM have been done and Tony confirmed the accounts would be ready.

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

All Officers and committee members present at the meeting confirmed they were prepared to continue in their roles.

SET CLUB SUBS AND TABLE MONEY

It was agreed to keep subs and table money unchanged. The WBU subs have not yet been confirmed but were likely to rise  from £10 (the reduced covid rate) to £15 including £1 for WWBA

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

It was agreed not to charge table money for the New Year party on 20.01.23.

Date of next meeting to be set after the AGM.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD BY ZOOM ON 20.10.22

PRESENT

Mike Williams (Chr), Glyn Williams (Sec),Tony Disley (Tre), Debbie Lea, Leila O'Hagan and Gareth Jenkins.

APOLOGIES

None received.

MINUTES OF LAST MEETING AND MATTERS ARISING

Minutes of Zoom meeting held on 24.02.22 were agreed as a true record of the meeting,Proposer Mike Williams and seconder Leila O'Hagan.

There were no matters arising.

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Tony Disley confirmed Club funds stand at £7,876. The Friday session was just about breaking even with five to six tables.

CHRISTMAS/NEW YEAR PARTY

It was agreed to have wine and mince pies on 16.12.22 and for the New Year party to be held on 20.01.23 with the Club providing the drinks and the members to bring the food, as we were not allowed to make full use of the kitchen.

Mid Glam Bridge Club had invited our members to their Christmas Party on 7.12.22 details to be announced at next Club session.

SET DATE FOR 2023 AGM

It was agreed to hold the AGM on 24.02.23.

CLUB COMPETITIONS, SIMS AND CHARITY EVENTS.

It was agreed to hold the usual Club competitions in 2023 with the Teams subject to enough members registering prior interest.

No simultaneous pairs to be held. No intention to hold the Children in Need Charity sims unless strong interest shown when members are asked at the next Club session.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

We were advised by Whatsapp message, to Debbie Lea from Mabyn, that there is a winter heating charge of £3 per hour. This would effect our room rent from 30.09.22.

Date of next meeting to be 19.01.23 by Zoom.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB AGM HELD ON 18.03.22

APOLOGIES.

Tony Disley and Dilys Bowser

MINUTES OF 2020 MEETING AND MATTERS ARISING

The minutes were agreed as a true record of the meeting,Proposed Dave Lea and seconded

Emer Disley. No matters arising.

TREASURER'S REPORT

The audited accounts and Treasurer's report (see Appendix 1) for the two year period were tabled.

There were no queries. The accounts were accepted as a true record, proposed Debbie Lea and seconded by Teresa Griffiths.

CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

David Newman brought up playing evening bridge as a suitable venue in Bryntyrion was available on a Friday evening and Wednesday afternoon. There was a discussion and various points of view were expressed. It was agreed that the new committee would look at the matter and the members would be emailed to gauge the numbers likely to attend.

ELECTION OF OFFICERS AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Chairman - Dr. Mike Williams

Secretary - Glyn Williams

Remaining Committee and Officers had agreed to remain in post.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Glyn Williams thanked David Newman for all his hard work as Chairman during difficult times.

The meeting closed at 2.05pm.

APPENDIX 1

TREASURER'S REPORT

Although the accounts cover a period of 2 years, in reality bridge was played 3 sessions a week until 13/3/20 and 1 session a week from 15/10/21 to 17/12/21.

In cash terms,expenditure exceeded income by £128 largely as a result of paying 2 years of licences and insurance. Adding the depreciation of the Duplimate machine increased the loss to £776.

The situation regarding subscriptions is complicated: a majority of members paid a subscription for 2020 early in that year and some had not paid before the Covid closure. The WBU did not collect a subscription for 2020. The Club paid a subscription to the WBU for its members in 2021. However, some of the members also paid directly to the WBU.

We will collect the unpaid 2020 subscriptions and reimburse those members who paid direct in 2021 at the same time as we collect the subscriptions for 2022. Clearly this means that differing amounts will be owed by members.

The Balance Sheet remains strong with £7447 in the bank account which will enable us to steer through the still uncertain times until hopefully we can return to normality.

Tony Disley 16/3/22

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD BY ZOOM ON 24.02.22

PRESENT

David Newman, Tony Disley, Debbie Lea, Glyn Williams, Leila O'Hagan and Gareth Jenkins.

APOLOGIES

None received.

MINUTES OF LAST MEETING AND MATTERS ARISING

Minutes of Zoom meetings held on 11.06.21, 09.09.21,16.09.21 and 17.09.21 were agreed as a true record of the meetings,Proposer David Newman and seconder Tony Disley.

There were no matters arising.

FINANCIAL UPDATE

Tony Disley confirmed Club funds stand at £7,300. The Friday session was just about breaking even with six tables.

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

It was agreed to hold the AGM on 18.03.22 at 1.45pm prior to our normal Bridge session. GW to arrange appropriate notices.

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

David Newman confirmed he was standing down as Chairman at the AGM and Steve Burgoyne had stood down as Secretary since moving to Ireland. Replacements will be requested.

SET CLUB SUBS AND TABLE MONEY

It was agreed that subs to remain at £15 if we pay the members WBU subs or £10 if we do not.

Table money to remain at £2.50 for members and £3.50 for visitors.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Debbie Lea asked for the Bridge session start time to be shown on the website. GW to action.

Leila O'Hagan to take on partner finder role after the AGM.

Bridgend Duplicate Bridge Club

Zoom Committee meeting 11.06.21

Present

David Newman (Chairman),Tony Disley (Treasurer),Steve Burgoyne,Glyn Williams,Debbie Lea and Gareth Jenkins.

Discussed situation with Nolton Hall. They are no longer able to accommodate us (Blaming us for Door Damage?) only taking smaller groups.

Agreed to send out bulk email to ask members for their opinions on reopening Face to Face,number of club sessions and future of Club etc.

Agreed to pay this years WBU subs for members using funds/subs collected in January to March 2020.

Zoom Committee meeting 09.09.21 

Present

DN,TD,SB,GW,DL,GJ,Leila O'Hagan and Mike Williams

Mike Williams advised that when he spoke to the Hall organiser she had confirmed that we are not going to go back to the Hall as they blame us for the security door damage.

Various possible venues were mentioned and DN,DL,LO,GW and MW would make relevant enquiries and another meeting was agreed for Thursday 16.09.21 at 2pm.

GW advised there were rumours that the Club had been wound up. It was agreed that GW should send out bulk email and update website to let the members now that we are actively looking for a new venue.

Zoom Committee meeting 16.09.21

Present

DN,TD,GW,DL,GJ and MW

DN,GW,DL and MW reported on the venues they had looked at and it was decided that Coychurch Memorial Hall on Friday afternoon was the best.

DN and DL to visit tomorrow and report to another zoom meeting on Friday 17.09.21 at 2pm for a final decision to be made.

Zoom Committee meeting 17.09.21

Present

DN,TD,GW,DL,GJ and MW

DN,DL,and GW had visited Coychurch Hall all OK. We will get key and code for the door (DL) and can move some of our equipment in before 01.10.21. TD to sort out risk assessment based around Swansea's and when done copy to be sent to Mabyn (Hall caretaker). GW to email members and update website. GW to purchase hand sanitisers,Tea,Coffee and Biscuits.

Bridgend BC – Committee Minutes 18/02/2020

Present: David Newman, Debbie Lea, Glyn Williams, Jeff Barnett, Tony Disley, Steve Burgoyne, Gareth Jenkins

Apologies:  Leila O’Hagan

Matters Arising from the last minutes:

No action yet taken on the need to involve more members in technical issues (duplimating/directing).

New Equipment:  

Bridgepads: Advice has been taken from Chris Rawlings and Dave Lea, who is trialing a system at home and will report back in due course.  The was a generally favourable view of the Bridgepads system in principle and there were no apparent problems with storage and charging.

Noticeboard:Steve agreed to buy a new magnetic board – slightly smaller size.

Calendar:  Glyn Williams volunteered to maintain the calendar and ensure it is updated on the website, a task previously carried out by John Evans to whom much thanks, and also to Glyn for undertaking yet another task.

Open Evening: The Chairman proposed that there should be an open evening to encourage more players to come to Bridgend.  After a full and frank discussion about the issue of declining numbers, it was agreed that we should find a date to run this, probably on a Friday evening. There would be no elaborate refreshments, just tea and cake.

New Year Party:  While some present had enjoyed the catering, there was a general feeling that our traditional meal, catered by Jane Morgan, was not value for money and that we should try something different next year. No action agreed at this stage.

Champion of Champions:  It was agreed that the club will pay the table money for our representatives at this event.

Locking Up:  With the code system in place there is no longer a need for us to lock up after sessions, but we are retaining the key in case the system fails, as it did on one occasion.

Meetings: It was agreed to hold meetings every two months and that Steve would propose a list of dates.

The meeting closed at 6.56.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB AGM HELD ON 24 JANUARY 2020

APPENDIX 1

TREASURER’S REPORT 2019

The points I would highlight are the purchase of a new Duplimate machine and its treatment , the decline in Table Money and the reduction in Hall Hire costs.

The Duplimate was purchased in January for £3240 . It was decided to write this cost off over 5 years , although the expected life is far longer. The depreciation meant that a small excess of income over expenditure for the year was reversed resulting in a deficit of £427.

The decline in Table Money resulted from the smaller number of players as highlighted in our Chairman’s Report . There is no appetite to increase charges for table money or subscriptions as we wish to encourage more players rather than the reverse . We need more members and existing members to play more , perhaps on times of the week when they do not now do so.

An absence of a caretaker in the evenings and our assuming responsibility for locking up [thank you Glyn] led to a reduction in Hall Hire charge for the evening sessions . Going forward we have negotiated a rate for all sessions that is an increase on the previous afternoon rate but a substantial discount on the evening rate .

CONCLUSION

The Balance Sheet is strong and we have sufficient cash in reserve to cover future expected Capital Expenditure together with a number of years of modest deficits . However the vibrancy of the Club does need bigger table numbers .

FUTURE EXPENDITURE

The Bridgemates are in poor order . The Committee are considering the merits of a.repairing existing b. Buying new bridgemates c. Replacing with new system using tablets .

I apologise that I will not be at the AGM but please do not hesitate to ask if you would like further elucidation on any point.

TONY DISLEY

APPENDIX 2

Chairman’s Report 2020

Although 2019 was a challenging year for the club, with numbers dropping on both Wednesdays and Fridays, there were some excellent individual and team performances by club members during the year. Julian Pottage and Tony Ratcliff, our club champions, won the inaugural National Champion of Champions event, pipping another club member, Tony Howarth, who came second with Rob Charlesworth, representing Pencoed.  Tony Haworth had a good year as, playing with Kevin Maddox, he won the West Wales Open Swiss Pairs as well as the Area Mixed Pairs, playing with Emer Disley. 

Bridgend players were also well represented in the Western Area Teams contest (The Laidlaw-Murray) which was won by Liam Sheridan, John Beard, Mike Best and Kevin Maddox, with Keith Davison a member of the second place team and the outfit of Club President Bill Turner, Marjorie Morris, John Evans and Steve Burgoyne coming third.

In other National Competitions, David and Norma Newman were part of the West’s successful President’s Cup team, with Jenny Vaughan in the winning Spickett sextet.  In the National Teams of Eight we were unable to repeat our triumph of a couple of years ago, but, after a slow morning, we came back strongly in the afternoon to finish second.  In the British Summer Simultaneous Pairs, Julian Pottage and Tony Ratcliff came second in a field of over 500 pairs.  They were also part of the winning team at the summer congress in Newport.

The most recent National success was recorded by Tony Disley, playing with Adrian Thomas, who won the top rank of the graded masters in a very strong field. 

Tony Disley has also been successful in local congresses, winning the Men’s Pairs at Porthcawl, also with Adrian Thomas, The Swiss Pairs with Mike Best, and also being part of the victorious team in the Swiss Teams.  Another fine achievement for Tony was to come second in the pairs at the Cheltenham Congress, playing with Somerset’s Eric Cummings.  Just to prove that club members can flourish across the border, Debbie and Simon Richards triumphed for the second time this year at the Malvern Congress.

It was also good to see that four of our players recently emerged from beginner’s classes, Hilary and Peter Rowley and Viccy Andrews and Rosemary Gold, coming joint second in the no fear event at Porthcawl.

We have a very enthusiastic group of learners, who are now on the second year of the course, and already four players from the last two years are playing on Thursday afternoons.

As I retire from the Chair the two main issues facing the club are not that different from when I joined the committee over ten years ago – declining numbers, largely as a result of the demographic, and establishing a balance at club nights between the highly competitive players and the social players.  The new committee will have to look at the situation on Wednesdays in particular, a night on which we had to abandon two sessions in the days leading up to Christmas.  It may be necessary to devise a system to identify likely low numbers to prevent players making unnecessary journeys to the club.  Even on Fridays, traditionally a strong night in terms of attendance, numbers have dropped and social events, such as the wine and cheese and the dinner, no longer seem to attract the crowds of revellers they once did, which is an issue of opportunity cost for those running these events, as well as a financial concern.

It looks as though afternoon Bridge, or even morning Bridge, may be the way to go in the future, with some of our members now reluctant to emerge in the evenings, especially during the winter.  It is certainly time for a fresh hand on the tiller and for some thinking outside the box if we are to realise the full potential of the club, so I would urge more members to come forward with ideas and to be prepared to commit, either formally or informally, to moving the club forward over the next decade. 

I must end by thanking those who go the extra mile for the club, be it officers, or those who, while not on the committee, still undertake tasks such as getting cup engraving done, organising social events or producing the club calendar.  Special thanks to Teresa Griffiths, who is leaving the committee this year after serving three years as Club Secretary, and also Irene Thomas, retiring after nearly three decades on the committee, much of which was spent as Club Treasurer.  At present we have nobody willing to take on the secretary’s role, so, I reiterate the appeal I made in the paragraph above for somebody to come forward and take on this vital role.

We have a good venue, no financial issues, a superb director and some hard working officials, so let’s get behind them in 2020.

Steve Burgoyne   January 2020

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 27 NOVEMBER 2019

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE; TERESA GRIFFITHS; GLYN WILLIAMS; GARETH JENKINS; IRENE THOMAS; TONY DISLEY; DEBBIE LEA

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 15 MAY 2019

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, TONY DISLEY, GLYN WILLIAMS, LEILA O’HAGAN, DEBBIE LEA, GARETH JENKINS; IRENE THOMAS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 25 SEPTEMBER 2019

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, GLYN WILLIAMS, LEILA O’HAGAN, GARETH JENKINS; IRENE THOMAS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 25 SEPTEMBER 2019

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, GLYN WILLIAMS, LEILA O’HAGAN, GARETH JENKINS; IRENE THOMAS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 13 FEBRUARY 2019

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, TONY DISLEY, GLYN WILLIAMS,  LEILA O’HAGAN, DEBBIE LEA

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB AGM HELD ON 25 JANUARY 2019

APPENDIX 1

BRIDGEND BRIDGE CLUB CHAIRMAN’S REPORT 2019

In terms of trophies, 2018 was less successful for the club than 2017 as we were unable to retain the Welsh Teams of Eight title. Nevertheless there were some notable achievements by club members, including Norma and David Newman’s triumph in the John Isaac, as well as Alan Heath and Rob Forman topping groups 2, 3 & 4 nationally in the Graded masters. Tony Disley and Simon Richards were in the team which won the Laidlaw-Murray, Mike Best and Kevin Maddox won the Green pointed Swiss Pairs in September and Tony Howarth, playing with Rob Charlesworth, won the equivalent event played last January, not to mention a successful raid on Cardiff by several club members playing in the Patrick Jourdain Teams.

Numbers on Wednesdays and Fridays continue to disappoint, especially Fridays, where there has been a significant decline in attendance over the past few years. In contrast Thursday afternoons continue to flourish, and this seems to point the way to a need for more afternoon Bridge –several local clubs have introduced such sessions with some success.

Bridge lessons continue to flourish. We have one regular beginners session on Monday afternoons with a dozen learners on the books, plus another group of even less experienced learners meeting when we can fit it in. We also run an improvers session on Thursdays at 1.00, before the afternoon play session, and this is usually well attended.

As always, our ability to continue enjoying our Bridge depends upon the commitment and selfless contribution of committee members and office holders, as well as other members who “muck in” and make sure things happen. I would like to thank all of them for their work, and to mention in particular John Evans, who is stepping down after over a decade of service, which has included many roles, including re-energising our teaching programme. Also Emer Disley, who has been very active during her time on the committee, but is now also stepping down. It is important that we do not rely too heavily on a small number of willing helpers and that we spread the load as much as possible if we wish the club to flourish. All of us have something to give and I would like to think that all club members will offer something towards the general good, either formally or informally at some point while they are members. We need more people who are capable of directing and using the technology, including our new dealing machine, to relieve the burden on Glyn Williams in particular, who shoulders a huge responsibility as TD for ensuring our events runs smoothly, as they always do thanks to his expertise. Thursday afternoons in particular would benefit from more members prepared to join the rota of helpers and organisers.

Fortunately we have nominees to replace John and Emer on the committee and all the other members and officers have agreed to remain for 2019, though Teresa as Hon. Sec. and myself as Chair had intended to retire this year, but we have agreed to serve one more term. After that you will really need to find a new Chair and a new Secretary – this is definite, so the search needs to start now. We need new blood and ideas to take the club forward.

SGB Jan 2019

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 28 NOVEMBER 2018

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, EMER DISLEY, TONY DISLEY, GLYN WILLIAMS, GARETH JENKINS, JOHN EVANS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 12 SEPTEMBER 2018

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, EMER DISLEY, TONY DISLEY, GLYN WILLIAMS, GARETH JENKINS, IRENE THOMAS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 16 MAY 2018

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, EMER DISLEY, TONY DISLEY, GLYN WILLIAMS, JOHN EVANS, GARETH JENKINS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 21 FEBRUARY 2018

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TERESA GRIFFITHS, EMER DISLEY, IRENE THOMAS, GLYN WILLIAMS, JOHN EVANS, GARETH JENKINS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB AGM HELD ON 19 JANUARY 2018

APPENDIX 1

BRIDGEND BRIDGE CLUB CHAIRMAN’S REPORT 2018

The highlight of the year was the club winning the National Teams of Eight championship in June, having qualified first from the West. I hope that we will be able to enter two teams at least this year, as there are a number of pairs capable of playing at this level and who would benefit from playing more teams events. Individual successes were mainly recorded by Vida Halford and Glyn Williams, who won the Western Area Mixed Pairs in November and shared the Fishguard Multiple Teams Championship with fellow club members Irene Thomas and Jenny Vaughan in May.

Thursday afternoon sessions continue to flourish, and it may be that afternoon Bridge is the future, as numbers at the evening sessions have been disappointing, especially on a Friday, which used to be well supported.  Social events are generally well attended, so it may be that we need to organise more of these occasions in the future.  I don’t think that friendly, social bridge and competitive Bridge are necessarily incompatible, and it is that balance which the committee has been trying to strike for some years now.

I would like to thank all the members of the committee for their hard work during the year, especially Glyn, our director who seems able to solve almost any problem.  As David Newman is retiring from the committee at this meeting I’d like to give special thanks to him for all his service to the club over the years, as chairman, Press Liaison Officer and cellarman – I hope he may be persuaded to at least continue with the last role as he seems able to source some excellent wine at reasonable prices for our “dos.”

Once again this year we have had to note the sad passing of some dear and long standing members of the club in Dennis Smith and Ray Smith, both of whom are sadly missed in the local Bridge community, as is Terry Evans, who used to be a Friday regular here until a few years ago.

Finally, I’d like to give notice that I will be standing down at next year’s AGM.  This is partly because of other commitments, and I intend to continue with the teaching and tidying up the website if the club wishes me to, but partly because I think the club needs new leadership to arrest the decline in numbers and provide fresh impetus and ideas for the years ahead.  By the end of this year I will have been involved in the running of the club for nearly a decade, and, despite my efforts, we have not shaken off the image of a club where it is quite tough to play.  Only a small number of the players who have passed through our classes are now playing regularly in the evening sessions, though many come on a Thursday, and I think this is in part to do with perceptions about the reception they may receive.  I’m not convinced that the criticisms levelled at the club are fair, but it is very difficult to overcome an adverse reputation, deserved or not, and to build a positive one.  I feel that I have failed to build such a positive reputation here in Bridgend, and I don’t believe that, after ten years, I have anything fresh to offer, so I would lie to hand over to a more forceful and dynamic Chairman, hopefully with excellent marketing skills, who can restore the fortunes of the club in terms of playing numbers.  You have a year to find such a person.

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 22 NOVEMBER 2017

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TONY DISLEY, TERESA GRIFFITHS EMER DISLEY, IRENE THOMAS GLYN WILLIAMS, JOHN EVANS, DAVID NEWMAN

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 27 SEPTEMBER 2017

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TONY DISLEY, TERESA GRIFFITHS EMER DISLEY, IRENE THOMAS GLYN WILLIAMS, JOHN EVANS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 21 JUNE 2017

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TONY DISLEY, TERESA GRIFFITHS, DAVID NEWMAN, EMER DISLEY, IRENE THOMAS GLYN WILLIAMS, JOHN EVANS

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 12 APRIL 2017

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE ( SB), TONY DISLEY (TD), TERESA GRIFFITHS (TG), DAVID NEWMAN (DN), EMER DISLEY (ED), IRENE THOMAS (IT), GLYN WILLIAMS (GW), JOHN EVANS(JE)

MINUTES OF BRIDGEND DUPLICATE BRIDGE CLUB COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON 8 FEBRUARY 2017

PRESENT

STEVE BURGOYNE, TONY DISLEY, TERESA GRIFFITHS, DAVID NEWMAN, EMER DISLEY, IRENE THOMAS GLYN WILLIAMS, JOHN EVANS

Bridgend Bridge Club AGM Friday 20^th. January 2017 Nolton Church Hall

The meeting stood in silence before business commenced in memory of two very long serving members of the club, Mildred Trigg-Knight and Ray Smith, who had passed away during the year.

Apologies were received from Linda Pinnock

The minutes of last years AGM were agreed and there were no matters arising.

Treasurer: The treasurer presented the accounts, noting that there was a deficit of £386.49 during the year, largely due to a fall in attendance.  This was a year with no significant capital expenditure, so, while the reserves are healthy, it is clearly important to try to boost attendance to avoid a steady diminution in the club’s finances. She pointed out that the WBU is raising its subscription, so the club would need to do likewise.  The proposal that Subs. Should go up to £15 was passed unanimously.  This was Irene’s last report, as she is retiring after many years service as treasurer, which was greeted with sadness and grateful applause.

Chairman:  He praised the work of Irene as Treasurer, who had made such a major contribution to the club over many years.  He also thanked the other members of the committee for their hard work and support, as well as commending those who taught lessons and supported the Thursday afternoon sessions,  resulting in new players joining the club.  He praised Tony Disley and the team of eight for winning the area heat and wished them all the best for the final. He urged members to be positive about the club at all times and to bring any issues they might have to the attention of the committee. He also urged members to arrive in good time so that we can be seated at 7:00 ready for play, which should enable us to get organised more quickly and play more boards.  He ended with a quote from Times Bridge Correspondent Andrew Robson:  Don’t underlead an Ace in a suit contract is not a rule, but a guideline.  The only rules are, “Follow to the suit led and be nice to your partner and courteous to your opponents.”

Charity:  Last year we supported the Samaritans.  This year it was felt appropriate to support a charity which addresses Dementia or Parkinson’s Disease, with the majority of members favouring the former, though several felt we could split the funds raised between two charities.

Drinking Receptacles: There was a proposal that we do not use the cups in the kitchen on health grounds.  There was divided opinion as some members prefer to use cups.  Experience from another club indicated that it was possible to purchase bio-degradable polystyrene cups at £30 a thousand, so it was agreed that we would do so and offer drinkers a choice of container.

Subsidising of the Annual Dinner: The Chairman explained that the Annual dinner had been heavily subsidised even with the rise in price this year.  It was agreed that the club should charge a more realistic price next year (£14 per ticket), and that we should try to secure the services of the same caterers.

The prizes were then presented and the present committee was re-elected.  The Chairman and Treasurer were standing down, and failing other nominations or volunteers, Steve Burgoyne was prepared to resume the Chairmanship and Tony Disley to take over as Treasurer, with Teresa Griffiths taking on the Secretary’s role.  This was agreed by the meeting.  As neither of the ex-officers was leaving the committee, there was no need for any further members to be elected.  The Chairman pointed out, however, that it was good to get fresh blood onto the committee and he hoped that we would have some new members next year.

There being no other business, the meeting closed at 7:30.

Bridgend Bridge Club AGM   Friday 20^th. January 2017

Agenda

1. Welcome and apologies
2. 2016 Minutes and Matters Arising
3. Treasurer’s Report - including subs recommendation
4. Chairman’s Report
5. Charity Events
6. Use of plastic/polystyrene Cups
7. Subsidising of Annual Dinner
8. Presentation of Prizes
9. Election of Officers and Committee Members
10. AOB

Present:  David Newman, Irene Thomas, Emer Disley, Teresa Griffiths, Tony Disley, Glyn Williams, John Evans & Steve Burgoyne. 

The Minutes of the last meeting were agreed.

Matters Arising:

• Having looked into the programme for next year, it had been decided that we would not enter the British Sims, so that SIMs event would be better spaced out in 2017.
• Tony Disley was in the process of finalising the team for the Teams of Eight Competition.
• The Monitor is currently being stored by David Newman as it is not presently required for lessons.  At some point we will need to devise a better storage and transportation system for the monitor when we require it at the club.
• The New Duplimate Boards have been bought.
• It was agreed that the Presidents Cup & Charity evening had been a success and that we should retain the same format for next year.
• Irene will action the transfer of funds from Premium Bonds into a savings account.
• The Hall is available for Bridge throughout the Christmas Period.  It was agree we should ask members whether they wish us to open on 28th. December, which we will do if there is sufficient interest.

Financial Update:

We have operated at a small loss this year and there is concern about declining attendances.  It was agree that we should use the mailing system more often to advertise club events.

Dinner:

There was a wide-ranging debate about the subsidy currently offered to those who attend the Dinner.  As we have charged £10 per ticket up to now, and we are being charged £14:50 per meal by the caterer, it is clear that, once you add on the cost of hiring the hall, as well as the cost of drinks, then the subsidy per ticket is relatively substantial.  While there is an argument that clubs should not run up a large surplus because the money should be spent on the members, this needs to be balanced against the consideration that members who are unable to attend this function, or, indeed, who cannot attend because numbers are limited to 52 and it becomes oversubscribed, may feel aggrieved.  In view of the range of views expressed, it was decided to raise the price of tickets this year to £12.50 per person, and to consider the format and pricing of future events at a subsequent meeting.  It was hoped that Bill Turner will again agree to print the tickets and they will go on sale from 1^st. December.

AGM:

• David again undertook to collect the trophies and have them inscribed.
• Tony agreed to take over as Treasurer if nobody else wishes to do the job.
• Teresa was considering taking over the role of Secretary.
• David will reluctantly stay on for another year if nobody can be found to take over as Chair.
• Irene was prepared to stay on the committee after relinquishing the Treasurership.
• We are likely to need at least one additional committee member.
• Annual Subs.  In view of the increase in WBU subscriptions, it will be necessary to raise annual subs to £15.

Beginners/Improvers Party:

It was agree that a small cheese and wine party for the Thursday groups would be arranged in December.

The meeting closed at 6:55

Present:  Emer Disley, Irene Thomas, Teresa Griffiths, Glyn Williams, Tony Disley, John Evans, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman in the Chair.

Matters Arising: 

• John and Glyn to look at the calendar and resolve the issue of Sims events which came too close together.
• Tony Disley was re-appointed captain of the Teams of Eight – Area Heat on 11^th. December this year. Tony to select the team.
• Steve reported that lessons for beginners had started again with 15 students, some of whom were returning to repeat the course.
• After some problems with the loss adjusters, the monitor has now been replaced, but is not currently needed for lessons or club sessions.

Table Money for Sims Events:  This should be put on Web-site: £5:50 -Visitors +£1

Duplimate Boards:  As a result of some recent difficulties, it was agreed to purchase a new set of boards, which could be used in the duplimator.

Presidents Cup and Charity Evening:

• Emer agreed to obtain glasses and arrange the food
• David to arrange the wine
• Teresa to arrange the raffle
• Steve to email all members to publicise the event and ask for raffle prizes
• Event format to be pro-am, partners drawn on the night

Attendance:  Concern was expressed about lower attendances.  While it was felt this was a general problem, caused by a mixture of issues, there was still a question of whether the occasional behaviour of some members may put off some potential newcomers.  While it was impossible to substantiate, as there had been no official complaints, there had been a suggestion that some of the beginners had not found the attitude of one or two of the regular members helpful.  It was felt that it was difficult to deal with this issue without concrete evidence, other than to reiterate to members the need to be patient with less experienced players and to remember the usual niceties in their dealings with partner and opponents.  It was pointed out that it is frustrating for those who have put a lot of time and effort into promoting Bridge through lessons and the afternoon sessions if those they have been teaching and enthusing are put off coming to regular club sessions.

There was also some discussion about how to encourage more of the better players in the area to attend on Wednesday nights. Various suggestions were made, including special events, though it was pointed out that the Dragon Night in Swansea has limited support.  It was agreed that club, and indeed Western Area events, need to be better publicised.

Club Officers:  In view of the impending retirement of David Newman and Irene Thomas, notification will be placed on the website seeking replacements.

AOB:

• Charges for matches played by visiting teams:  It was agreed that if private league/cup matches were played at the club, table money of £10 per table would be charged.
• Premium Bonds: It was agreed that the Premium Bonds should be sold and the money place in a suitable bank account.
• New Years Dinner: This is fixed for Friday 13^th. January, Jane Morgan again catering.  Emer will liaise on the arrangements.  It was pointed out that we started the ticketing process early last year and allocated places on a first come, first served basis.
• Christmas: Steve to check when the Hall is not available over yuletide.
• 25^th. November:  David will be available to run the club session on this evening  - several members will be away playing in Porthcawl.

The meeting closed at 6:50

Bridgend Bridge Club Committee Minutes 6/7/2016

Present: David Newman, Irene Thomas, Emer Disley, Glyn Williams, John Evans & Steve Burgoyne. Apologies were received from Tony Disley.

The Minutes of the last meeting were agreed.

Matters Arising:

• There were still issues over the accuracy of the invoices for the hire of the hall, and the Chairman and Treasurer would resolve them.

• There had been an issue with the Sims competitions coming close together. The TD said that, if this was a concern, then we need to make a decision on which one to drop when we do the calendar for 2017.

• Our team had come 7th. in the National Teams of Eight Final

• The question of awarding averages on boards was not on the agenda as it had been raised by Tony Disley and he was unable be present at this meeting.

Lessons: This years beginners course finished in June. Some of the beginners are now playing on a Thursday afternoon, and short lessons are being run prior to the play sessions so that there is an opportunity for the improvers to develop more and wider knowledge. It is not clear whether there would be a demand for a full improvers course, nor whether we have the capacity to run one. Steve Burgoyne will run another beginners course starting in September if there is a demand – some of this year’s beginners may wish to repeat the course.

Charity Evening: The Chairman stated that the fact that we had not run the charity evening as intended had caused some embarrassment. It was agreed that it should now be run in conjunction with The Presidents Cup on Friday 14th. October. We will ensure that it is well publicised in advance and it will become a special event in the club’s calendar. It was agreed that the format of the Presidents Cup would remain the same. The Secretary had consulted the President on the format and he was happy with the idea of High-Low partnerships as he liked the idea of club members mixing up for this occasion.

The John Raymond Transport Cup: Like the Charity Evening, this had slipped by this season. It will now be run on Friday 16th. September. Several members of the committee said they would be prepared to go home if there was an odd number of pairs.

WWBA Meeting: • The Secretary reported on the WWBA meeting of 5/7/2016. Unfortunately, several committee members were unhappy with a couple of rulings from recent events, and, despite the Chairman stating that it was not a matter for the committee, the ill feeling persisted and threatened to derail the meeting. It was eventually agreed that the WWBA should issue further guidelines about the conduct of tournaments, directors’ rulings and appeals, in the hope that this would clarify the correct procedures to be followed when players are unhappy with rulings and allow WWBA events to be conducted in an efficient and, hopefully, pleasant and measured atmosphere.

• The Area Tournament organiser has resigned because he felt he could not work with one of the other officials. Tony Howarth agreed to do the job for one year and Steve Burgoyne agreed to take on the role after that. • Forthcoming events were publicised-EWBA/WWBA Congress in Newport. Porthcawl Congress. Celtic Congress. It was thought that Bob Alderdice would again be running the Western Area Leagues. The dearth of entries for Novice events was noted, and it was suggested that calling the events "For Club Players” might make them more appealing in an effort to attract more experienced players who might like to dip their toes in the water of Area Competitions or Congresses.

• The Carmarthen Representative expressed concern about the WBU insistence on all members of affiliated clubs being members of the WBU, which might put severe pressure on small clubs like theirs if several members refused to join. There was sympathy for this position, but it was difficult to envisage an easy solution.

• Mention was made of a WBU fund to help clubs smaller clubs who might be in financial difficulties.

• Dates were proposed for next season’s events and will be posted on the WWBA site.

• The new Secretary, Anthony Stevens has agreed to take on the role of Webmaster and undertook to ensure the minutes were posted promptly on the website.

Monitor: The secretary reported that he was in ongoing discussions with the loss adjusters as to the level of excess we would be required to pay if we claim for the damaged monitor. It was suggested that we look at whether a larger monitor would be sensible when we do replace. There was also a suggestion that we purchase a more stable trolley. Storage might be an issue with a larger screen and/or trolley. It was decided to sort the insurance issue first before making any further decisions.

AOB: The Chairman reported that he, John Moore and Debbie Richards had gone to play Bridge with Mildred in her Rest Home, but that, sadly, it had not been possible to play because Mildred couldn’t see. The meeting ended at 6:55

Bridgend Bridge Club  Committee Meeting  24.02.2016

The Chairman began the meeting by welcoming Tony Disley to the Committee.

Present:  John Evans, Irene Thomas, Emer Disley, Glyn Williams, Tony Disley, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman (Chairman). Apologies: Teresa Griffiths.

Minutes: of the meeting of 9^th. December were agreed.  Matters Arising:

• It was agreed that the format of the Presidents Cup should be discussed at the next meeting.
• The confusion over hall hire invoices had been resolved.
• Three people had had to leave the beginners group, but it was still flourishing with 15 members on the books.

Sims:   

• EBED Sims:  This was not on the calendar, but we did play it last year under a different name. As the response of members in the questionnaire regarding Sims events had been inconclusive, it was decided to play the event this year and monitor the response to it.

• Children in Need Sims:  It was agreed to continue to run this event on two evenings, despite the cost to the club.  This was the only Sims run on a Friday.

Teams of Eight:

After some discussion about selection criteria and process, it was agreed that the team should be selected by the Chairman, Secretary and Captain (Tony Disley). Any club member would be eligible, selection to be based on ability and form, not on attendance at club sessions.  It was agreed that the club would enter a second team if there was enough interest from members.

Committee Structure:

Emer Disley has agreed to take over Marjorie’s role in organising the social events. Next year’s dinner has already been fixed for 13^th. January, and Emer will liaise with Marjorie about the details and contact with Jane Morgan.

Irene Thomas is intending to step down as treasurer at the next AGM, when she will have done 21 years in the post.  She is willing to stay on the committee, which will mean we do not lose her experience and she will be able to support her successor. Some consideration should be given as to whether aspects of this job could be shared in the future – for example, by appointing a membership secretary.  As David Newman announced his intention to resign from the Chairmanship and the committee at the next AGM, some concern was expressed that we would be losing two officers at the same time, and that we should look at succession planning.  It was agreed that there was no need to seek to alter the size of the committee.

AOB:

• The Chairman showed the meeting a certificate which he had produced which will be presented to Marjorie Morris to mark her appointment as a life member of the club.  He also read out a letter of thanks which Marjorie had written on learning of her election to Life membership.
• John Evans raised the issue of where statistics should be shown on the website.  After some discussion the Chair suggested that, in view of the time, Glyn and John should get together to look at options.
• Tony stated that he would like the issue of awarding averages on boards to be raised at the next meeting.

The meeting closed at 6:50

Bridgend Bridge Club AGM 2016 23/01/16 Nolton Church Hall 7:00

Apologies: John Beard, Tony Disley, Rob Forman, Teresa Griffiths, John Hillman, Linda Jenkins, Marjorie Morris, Norma Newman, Glenda Roberts & Liam Sheridan

The minutes of the 2015 meeting were approved, with no matters arising.

Treasurer’s Report: There had been a very small loss on the year, but we had incurred unusual expenditure in updating some of the IT equipment, which we had obtained at a competitive rate thanks to the efforts of Dave Lea. There were no questions and it was proposed by Alan Grant, seconded by Dave Lea, that the report be accepted. Agreed unanimously.

Chairman’s Report: The Chairman thanked the committee for its hard work during the year, singling out the expertise and hard work of the club’s Tournament Director, Glyn Williams, and also the Secretary. He pointed out that Marjorie Morris was retiring after many years service on the committee and as an officer, and it was agreed that she be appointed an Honorary Life Member of the club in recognition of this service. He mentioned the success of the lessons this year and thanked the team of helpers who run the lessons and the Thursday Afternoon Duplicate sessions. He emphasised that lessons over the past few years had brought new members into the club and that we need to continue to encourage new members, while, at the same time, catering for the many experts we have among our membership. In this context he listed the successes enjoyed by club members over the year, highlighting the International selection of Simon Richards and Julian Pottage for The Camrose and sisters Irene Thomas and Jenny Vaughan for The Lady Milne. Winners of Western Area events were John beard and Tony Haworth (Vince Bevan) , Linda Pinnock and Vida Halford (Ladies Pairs), Julian Pottage and Tony Ratcliffe (Porthcawl Teams) Tony Disley and Roger Penton (John Isaac), and the last four combined to win the Laidlaw Murray Teams.

Charity Events: £1,170 had been donated to charity last year. No specific charity had yet been nominated for this year, but it was agreed, on the Chairman’s suggestion, that we once again support The Samaritans.

Presentation of prizes as follows: Handicap Pairs: Emer Disley and Debbie Lea. Max Powell Rosebowl: Ann Fox and Steve Burgoyne.  John Raymond Transport Cup: Glenda Roberts, Liam Sheridan, Dave Reed, Jim Jim Hume.   Summer Competition: Liam Sheridan.  Club Teams: Rob Charlesworth, Tony Haworth, Julian Pottage, Simon Richards.  Presidents Cup: Eileen Mahoney and John Evans.  Mixed Pairs: Jenny Vaughan and Tony Disley

Elections: The Committee and Officers were re-elected en-bloc, with one vacancy.                                                   The meeting closed at 7:20

Bridgend Bridge Club  Committee Minutes Wednesday 9^th. December 2015

Apologies:  Marjorie Morris, Emer Disley. John Evans

Present: Glyn Williams, Irene Thomas, Teresa Griffiths, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman (Chair)

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

Matters Arising:

• David and Steve to finalise the team for the Teams of Eight
• It was felt that both the Presidents Cup and Mildred’s Party had gone well, though it was understood that there was a feeling in some quarters that we should look again at the format of the Presidents Cup, which the committee determined to do in 2016.  The Children in Need Sims events (Three this year as an annex of the club played in Somerset) raised £420.

Future Events:

• Party: David has bought the wine, which Steve will store and dispense at the party as David will be away.  Teresa will purchase some soft drinks and Irene some Rose wine.  Irene will organise a raffle – members to be asked to bring prizes.  Teresa will also collect the glasses from Sainsbury.
• AGM:  David to ensure the trophies are available and inscribed.  Irene reported that it might be difficult to complete the audit as there was some confusion over the hall billing.  David agreed to see Angela to resolve the matter.

Lessons: 

There are 17 students enrolled in the class.  The first course of lessons will end on 17th. December, and a new set begins on 7^th. January.  Steve is using the WBU Acol Course to provide a structure, and has had help and advice from Keith Butler, the WBU teaching co-ordinator, as well as from Dave Barwood. and is very grateful for regular help on Thursdays from Dave Lee, who also set up the new equipment, John and Christine Evans, and Teresa Griffiths, as well as to Ann Fox, Marjorie Morris and David Newman who have  helped when the regulars were not available.  There was some discussion about the future of classes.  Steve felt that his present group would need a great deal more tuition and does not want to abandon them to start a new beginners class next autumn. It was suggested that a possible solution might be for the class to have supervised play, with their own movement, on a Thursday afternoon, once their course of lessons is complete.  If a new beginners group starts next September, in addition to two Thursday pm groups, it might be necessary to try to involve more club members in supporting these ventures.

Financial Update:

The increased numbers on Thursdays and Wednesdays have produced a more healthy income this year, though Friday numbers are down.  There has been expenditure on new equipment to help with the teaching. The laptop, of course, is available to replace the old PC when necessary/appropriate. The uncertainty over the hall billing makes it difficult to assess the overall financial situation at this stage.  Full report at the AGM.

Term of office of Club Office Holders:

David proposed that there should be a limit on the number of years members should hold official positions in the club.  He believes it is healthy if there is a regular influx of new blood, and he has agreed to serve only two years as Chairman.  He felt the only exception should be the Tournament Director, as this was such a specialised position.  There were mixed feelings about this idea, as there was concern that some of the posts, such as Treasurer, would be difficult to fill.  It was agreed that the issue should be an item on the agenda of the AGM. 

AOB:

David raised the issue of the name of the club.  He felt that we should consider calling it “Bridgend Friendly Bridge Club”.  There was again a mixed reaction, and committee members agreed to think about it and discuss the idea at a future meeting.

The meeting closed at 6:45

Bridgend BC  Minutes of Committee Meeting 23/9/2015

Present:  David Newman (Chair) Glyn Williams, Marjorie Morris, Emer Disley, Irene Thomas , John Evans and Steve Burgoyne.  Apologies were received from Teresa Griffiths.

The minutes of the last meeting were agreed.

Matters Arising: 

• Presidents Cup – had been purchased and presented by Bill Turner and the competition arranged – on the agenda.
• IT equipment – to be discussed under lessons as an agenda item
• Storage boxes – extra purchases had not been necessary because Glyn had tidied up the cupboard.
• Tony Disley’s seminars.  Sec. agreed to discuss with Tony.

Agenda items:

• Lessons – Steve reported that he might have a class of up to 12. It was agreed that these numbers warranted expenditure on IT equipment to enable effective presentations.  A laptop would need to be capable of running club events when the current PC can no longer do so.  Steve agreed to look into the purchase of the equipment and would seek advice for experts such as Andy Robertshaw and Dave Lea.  Steve also agreed to put the lessons schedule on the website.
• Teams Competitions – Steve reported that we had three Bridgend teams in the West League and one in the East league.  He hoped we would enter at least one team in the Teams of Eight again this year – Area Qualifying being on 31^st. January.  Agreed he and the Chair should liaise on selecting the team.
• Forthcoming Events:

Presidents Cup – 23^rd. October.  Will be a pro-am, with partner allocation on the night.  Members will be welcome to play with their regular partner if they prefer, but will not be eligible to win the cup if they do so.  David has organised the wine and Marjorie the cheese for this event.

Mildred’s 100^th. – November 13^th.  Will also be a cheese and wine.  We will also need to have a cake and a bouquet of flowers. Irene agreed to source the cake and Marjorie the flowers.  Irene will produce one of her special cards for the occasion.  Mildred says she wants to play with John Moore rather than the President of the Welsh Bridge Union, so it was suggested that the latter might play with our President on the night.  David to discuss with Gareth at the weekend.  Steve to raise with Bill.

Children in Need – There was some discussion about whether we should continue to run this event on two days, but it was decided to continue for the present, especially as it was on the calendar.  All proceeds to go to the charities this year.  It was suggested that attendees should be asked to pay £5 for the event.

New Year’s Party  - The caterer has been booked, and we must stick to the maximum of 50 diners.  This means a max of 48 in practice on 12 tables, unless two people do not wish to eat, so they could make up the 13^th. table with the 49^th. and 50^th. diners, but this seems a difficult one to organise.  There was considerable discussion about the allocation of tickets and concern about long standing members missing out, but it was eventually agreed that the only fair system was first come first served, and that diners will not be put on the list until they have paid for their ticket, the price remaining this same this year at £10.  Bill will be asked to print the tickets early so we can give people plenty of notice and start selling them.

• Financial Report – Irene reported increased table money because of increased numbers, and also good savings on refreshments, but we had had no premium bond winnings this year.  In view of the fact that we had a very small profit last year, she was still cautious about our financial position.
• Report from WWBA Meeting – Steve had presented a written report, which was accepted.
• AOB :

a)The success of the summer competition was called into question, and also whether only one bottle of wine should be presented.  It was felt that it was early days for the competition and we should persevere for now.

b)John will produce next year’s calendar along the lines of the present one.

c)Marjorie reminded the committee that she intends to stand down at the AGM, so we will need to look for another committee member.

The meeting closed at 6:45

Bridgend BC Committee Meeting – 24/6/2015  Minutes

All committee members were present, plus the club President, Bill Turner.

The minutes of the last meeting were agreed – there were no matters arising.

Agenda Items:

1.  Presentation of a cup by the President, Bill Turner

The committee was highly appreciative of Bill’s generosity in offering to buy a new trophy for the club, and felt that a decision on what sort of trophy would be appropriate should be left to Bill, though he was clearly keen to sound out opinion.  The Chairman asked each member of the committee to express a view on what the cup should be named and for what it should be contested.  There were a variety of views around the table, but, on the issue of an appropriate competition, a consensus emerged that the new Summer Competition would not be the best one to have a prestigious cup awarded to it because of the nature of the event and its timing in the year.  On the matter of what the trophy should be called, Bill’s original proposal was “Presidents Cup”, with the names of the two presidents on the plinth, which was supported by the Chairman, though there was a feeling expressed that, as Bill was presenting the trophy, it should be named after him.

Bill then explained that the inspiration for his idea came from an event held in Porthcawl, a social night with refreshments where players competed for a cup.  It was agreed that this was a good idea and also that it would be good if the event was a “pro-am” with a draw for partners before the start of play  Further details about how the event would be organised and when, were left to be decided at a future meeting.

The Chairman thanked the President for his generosity once again, and it was left to Bill to determine the exact nature of the trophy after further research, settle on the inscription, and, together with the Secretary, place an order.

2. IT Equipment 

The possibility of purchasing a laptop and projector for teaching purposes was discussed.  The laptop would also replace the desk-top computer as a means of managing club Bridge events (scoring, duplimation etc.).  Glyn stated that work he had done on the current PC had made it quicker and more efficient, so there was no urgency to replace it.  Steve suggested that a decision be made in principle at this point, but that no purchase be made until it was clear there were enough students to run a class this autumn – he was hoping to start classes on September 24^th.  It was agreed in principle to make a purchase, which the Chairman would research, seeking the advice of Andy Robertshaw, but that no expenditure would be incurred until the situation regarding classes was clear.

3. AOB

• John raised the issue of entering the lead on Bridgemates.  While he found this innovation helpful, several members had mentioned that they found it irksome.  Teresa stated that she had requested this change as it was helpful to those who wished to analyse hands in order to improve their play.  It was stated that this had been introduced for a trial period, which the Chairman suggested should last until the end of the year, when it would be reviewed. It was felt that there needed to be renewed encouragement to people to use the Bridgemates more efficiently (entering the contract/allowing others to see the results) but that another card on the table was not the best way forward.

• The Treasurer was asked about the financial situation.  She replied that numbers were slightly down.  There was a need to try to encourage people  who no longer attend to come back.  She urged committee members to look at the minutes of the WBU AGM.

• Talk of lessons raised the issue of Tony Disley’s seminars, which those who attended had found very helpful.  The Secretary stated that he now had some ideas for possible seminars, which he would put to Tony, and which might be the basis of a new series in the autumn should Tony be available.

• Glyn suggested the purchase of some new storage boxes to tidy up the club cupboard, which was agreed.

The meeting closed at 6.:50 pm.

Present:  John Evans, Marjorie Morris, Teresa Griffiths, Irene Thomas, Glyn Williams, Emer Disley, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman in the Chair.

Matters arising from the minutes would be covered by the agenda (Thursday afternoons; publication of minutes).

Expert Players:  The secretary presented some ideas which had been put forward by Tony Disley, who was unable to attend the meeting.  He explained that Tony believed that the club’s efforts to improve behaviour and to foster new players had been helpful, but that the interests of the better players was not being so well catered for.  He also felt that, while the idea of being welcoming had generally been taken on board, this did not always apply when expert players came to the club.

There was sympathy for the points Tony was making, and it was pointed out that a lot of the people who did not observe procedures, such as correct use of the stop card, were in fact long-standing members rather than newcomers.  Glyn, as director, was already trying to instil good practice, but this was not always well received.  It was agreed that we should re-iterate expectations more regularly, and ensure that all members had copies of the ideas which were produced in the booklet for members a few years ago, but which, along with the Chair’s welcoming letter, had fallen into disuse.  The Chair agreed to produce some more of these booklets and ensure all new members have them. It was agreed that, while the essentially friendly nature of club nights must be maintained, so should the competitive element, and it should therefore be re-iterated that calling the director to resolve issues such as hesitations was good practice and not a hostile act.

There was some discussion about how to attract/win back some of the good players who no longer come to the club, and another of Tony’s ideas, having more teams events, was discussed.  It was agreed that we should consult members about whether they would feel happy to have regular teams sessions, and also look into having a special event designed to attract expert players, rather along the lines of the Dragon Event in Swansea.

It was also agreed that members should be encouraged to use time more efficiently when operating the Bridgemates, taking coffee breaks and discussing hands, which should only be done if there is time at the end of the round.  Standards of Bridge will not be improved if players have to rush to complete rounds because of unnecessary delays at other points.

Another suggestion was that we should look at putting a card on the table explaining the best ways of operating the Bridgemate machines.

Publication of Minutes:  It was felt that financial details should not be published with the minutes.  The Secretary agreed to remove the Treasurer’s report from the website. If members who were not at the AGM wish to know the financial situation they can always ask the Treasurer.  In addition, it was agreed that, in future, draft minutes should be sent to all committee members to be agreed before publication.  Any comments should be returned immediately to avoid delays in publication.  The Secretary expressed mild concern that committee minutes written by committee might end up being a cumbersome process.

Lessons and the Development of New Players:  Thursday afternoon sessions continued to be well supported and Steve intends to start beginners’ classes in September.  However, he expressed a concern that, now that Thursdays was just play, developing players were not being given any fresh input to enable them to enhance their knowledge and skills.  He was not sure how many of the Thursday group would want additional sessions – he did not believe many of them wished to sacrifice playing time on a Thursday.  Teresa agreed to sound out opinion among the Thursday group.  Steve stated that Dave Barwood ran very good sessions for developing players and that he (Steve) had advertised those to members of the Thursday group.  Dave was quite happy to accept people from Bridgend in his classes and, if we do not have the capacity to run such classes, it seems sensible to take up this offer, if the demand is there.

One idea suggested by John Evan was to hold “pro-am” tournaments on some Thursdays, when the developing players can play with an experienced club member and receive advice accordingly.  Marjorie said she was now more available on a Thursday and would be happy to help.

Post meeting note:  Marjorie Morris and Bill Turner have arranged to work with Teresa and Linda on a regular basis, which might be a platform for the development of improving players.

The meeting closed at 6:45pm

Bridgend BC  Committee Minutes Wednesday 11^th. February 2015 6:00pm.

Present:  David Newman, Irene Thomas, Glyn Williams, Emer Disley, Marjorie Morris, Teresa Griffiths, John Evans and Steve Burgoyne – so no apologies.

The Chairman started the meeting by welcoming our new committee member, Teresa Griffiths, who has taken on the role of Press Secretary

The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as a true record.

Matters arising:

• The secretary has not yet agreed suitable subjects for further seminars from Tony Disley- suggestions appreciated.
• The recent AGM and the Annual dinner had been considered successful.  The issue of long standing members being turned away was raised, but, after some discussion it was agreed that, short of engaging a caterer who was prepared to accept higher numbers, we would have to stick to the system of first come first served, and make it clear to members in plenty of time that this was the system in operation.
• There had been a recent appeal and it was thought that the process had worked well.

Thursday afternoon duplicate:

Some concerns expressed by regular Thursday afternoon players were brought before the committee by Teresa.  The underlying issue was that the new format, involving masterpoints, endangered the essentially friendly and relaxed nature of the session.  In particular it was felt wrong that the sessions should be used by experienced players to practice for major events, and it was conceded that this had been a mistake.  Bearing in mind that some of those taking part were relatively inexperienced, they should not be exposed to complicated systems and conventions.  On this point, it was agreed that members should be asked whether they would like an agreed “simple systems” format to apply on a Thursday.  It was a worry that the better players, previously less inclined to penalise mistakes by the relative beginners, were now quicker to double for penalties.  It was also considered that those running the sessions need to be more aware of the dynamics of potential pairings.

Those running the Thursday sessions felt that they were aware of these issues and were trying to address them.  Getting the balance right is always difficult, but it will be particularly important when the lessons end and the “beginners” join the Thursday afternoon sessions on a regular basis (see below).  It was agreed that the principle of assistance being available during the bidding, but not the play, should be continued.  There was some concern that the “tutoring” element of the sessions had been lost, and some thought needed to be given as to how this can best be handled.  The bottom line is that the new format is an experiment, which will be reviewed when it has been going for a few months.

Lessons:   These are about to come to an end and John explained that most of the group would now like to come on Thursday afternoons.  Three of the ten were regular attenders anyway, so it was likely that there would be an extra one to two tables.  Ideally John would like to pair each new player with a mentor for the first session, on March 5^th., but he would be asking them if that was what they wanted.  It was suggested that a separate movement or teams could be organised for the less experienced players if they found the going too tough.  It was hoped, however, that the experienced players would be empathetic about issues such as slow play, remembering the position they were in some 18 months or so ago.  Clearly thought needs to go into how this is managed and expectations of all concerned need to be clarified.

Computer:  David had taken advice from Andy Robertshaw about possible replacements.  Glyn did not feel there was a need to replace yet, though he said the updates sometimes caused a problem – he would have a word with Andy to see whether these could be speeded up.

Calendar:  John explained how this worked and it was agreed to keep the pattern of the year and plan a year ahead – avoiding Rugby match nights when there is a club competition.

AOB:  It was reported that Tony Disley and Roger Penton had won the Trials for the Welsh Seniors Team.

The meeting closed at 6:45.

1. Aplogies

2.Minutes and Matters arising

3.Thursday Afternoon Duplicate (TG)

4.Introduction of class members to pm session on 5^th. March (HJE)

5.The Computer (DN)

6.Hours of hire (DN)

7.Calendar – future events (if time and if needed)

8.AOB (If time)

Bridgend Bridge Club AGM  Minutes  19.00  23/1/15

Apologies:  Teresa Griffiths, Ray Smith, Tony Disley

Minutes of 2014 AGM:  Proposed by Dave Lea and seconded by David Newman, these were accepted as a true record of the 2014, nem. con.

The only matter arising was the recognition of the average annual by members as recorded on Scorebridge.  Once again the Chairman had not been able to highlight achievements before they were obliterated at the start of the New Year.  He would try to do better next year.

Treasurer’s Report ( For Balance Sheet, clickek on menu to the left ): 

Table money had increased as a result of the Thursday afternoon sessions, resulting in a small surplus for the year. The club had raised a large amount for charity, enabling us to donate £800 to our charity for 2014, The Samaritans, as well as £207 to Children in Need.  She highlighted the contribution of John Henson’s drinks service to the charity figure.  The club has healthy reserves, the majority being in Premium Bonds.  The Treasurer’s report and accounts were approved nem.con.– proposed by John Evans and seconded by Alan Grant.  There were no questions on the report

The Chairman thanked the Treasurer for all the work she does throughout the year, and also to Davis Lea for auditing the accounts.

Chairman’s Report:

What has been a generally good year for the club was brought to a sad end by the passing of Mel Humphries.  Mel was one of the longest standing members of the club, a very good player, but above all a gentleman against whom and with whom it was a pleasure to play.  He is sadly missed here, but I hope his memory will inspire those of us still struggling with this most difficult of games to play in the right spirit so we all enjoy our evenings around the green baize, treating triumph and disaster as equal bedfellows, even though most of us are far too familiar with the latter. 

While I have frequently stressed that the club is here primarily to facilitate friendly competitive club Bridge; club members have experienced considerable success in the world that exists outside Nolton Hall.  We have had three international representatives, Liam Sheridan and John Beard playing in the Welsh Seniors Team, captained by Laura Woodruff, in the European Championships, and, more recently, Tony Ratcliff as part of the Welsh team that enjoys a narrow lead over Ireland in this year’s Camrose, after the first weekend in Northern Ireland in early January. Tony Haworth and Rob Charlesworth have won two Western Area events, The Vince Bevan and the National Pairs qualifiers, in which they were also top of the national rankings, while Tony Disley and Roger Penton won the Welsh Seniors Congress Pairs.  It is a source of some satisfaction that our club supplied 7 of the 24 pairs who contested the recent National Pairs qualifier, five of whom have qualified for the 14 table National final in March. I’m also pleased that, after a gap of several years, we are entering a team in the National Teams of Eight this year, Western Qualifying being on 1^st February, so good luck to them.

Perhaps the greatest successes of the year were in the development of our Thursday afternoon “Gentle Duplicate Sessions” as well as a new beginners class, run by John Evans on a Thursday morning.  We have decided to run the Thursday sessions, between two and five thirty with masterpoints, as an experiment for a few months.  We believe there is a demand for afternoon Bridge, and the response so far has been encouraging, but we are aware that we must not abandon the supportive and developmental features of this session, and also that, when this year’s beginners’ class comes to an end, we need to give serious consideration to recruiting more beginners for 2015-16. Tony Disley ran some seminars on more advanced topics on several Fridays before the duplicate sessions, which were well received, and we hope to run some more in due course. It was good to see the mix of experience, improvers and beginners at the successful New Years Party a couple of weeks ago, an event that is now so popular the Chairman couldn’t even get a game, though it was worth coming just for the meal.  These developments would not have been possible without the hard work of a dedicated band of members, led by John Evans and supported by Glyn Williams, David Newman and John Henson.  Ensuring the Thursday sessions are staffed is quite a commitment so we would very much welcome offers of help and volunteers to join our rota, which currently has three members running Thursday sessions in turn.  It is good to see that a significant number of current players have come through the ranks of our classes in recent years, and we believe we need to sustain this development programme, while mindful of the workload of those involved, who are, of course, unpaid volunteers.

While, as we have heard from the treasurer, we seem to have weathered the financial crisis which loomed over us a few years ago, numbers on Wednesday evenings have again been in decline, and the viability of this session will be called into question if attendance does not improve in 2015, so if you are in a position to encourage some of the regulars to return, please make use of your persuasive powers.

The large gaps between income and expenditure of a few years back caused us to take some drastic action, which some described as panic measures, I know, but I suppose it is generally true that people tend to be even more cautious with other people’s money than their own – I can vouch for the fact that school bursars certainly do.  As well as increasing table money and charges for some of the social events, we ceased to subsidise charity evenings, by deducting hall rental from our donations, and ended the practice of club officers having a free ticket to the annual dinner.  We probably should have reviewed these measures, particularly in relation to charity donations, about which some members expressed concern, in the light of the fact that we have arrested the fall in our reserves.  At our most recent committee meeting we decided that we should return to the practice of giving all money collected on the evening to the charities, and that we would backdate this to the Children-in-Need event, subject to there being no objections at the AGM.  There is a slot on the agenda to discuss this further should you wish to do so.

It only remains for me to thank all the officers of the club, the committee and other members, who do so much behind the scenes to ensure we can all benefit from membership of this club, which, I believe, offers remarkably good value for money.  It is difficult to persuade people to undertake office, and, I suppose, you could argue that this doesn’t matter as long as the jobs get done somehow and those in place keep on going until they drop.  However, it seems to me that lack of succession planning could leave the club severely exposed in the future, and one way to tackle this is for people to give us plenty of notice of when they wish to end their term of office.  This is what Marjorie did a few years ago and we were fortunate that John Whateley was primed to take over, and he was doing an excellent job until his personal circumstances forced him to relinquish the post, which I have been temporarily combining with the Chairmanship.  Because we have not found anybody who wishes to take on the secretarial role, I am prepared to do so, subject to the decision of the AGM, and David Newman has kindly agreed to stand to replace me as Chairman, again subject to your approval when it comes to the election of officers.  In the light of what I have said about succession planning, we will take on these roles in the expectation that we will do them for two years, subject to next year’s AGM, which gives the club plenty of time to groom replacements.   While continuity is important, so is fresh blood and new ideas. There were no questions on the report.

Charity Events

This year’s charity is to support a Bridgend teenager to have a potentially life changing operation in the United States (Details on Club noticeboard)  Club Charity evening this year is on Friday 8^th. May.  The meeting supported the committee’s decision to include hall hire fees in future in the charity donations (see Chair’s Report above)

Prizes were presented as follows:

Handicap Pairs; John Henson and Terry Dolan

Max Powell Rose Bowl: Irene Thomas and John Whateley

Club Pairs: Julian Pottage and Tony Ratcliff

Club Mixed Pairs:  Debbie and Dave Lea

Club Teams: John Henson, Geoff Tinkler, David Bowen and David Crompton

John Raymond Transport Cup: Eleanor Jones, Barrie Jenkins, Linda Pinnock, Denis Mottram

The Summer Competition was won by David Lea, but there is no trophy for this as yet.

Elections:

It was proposed by David Newman and seconded by Alan Grant that Irene Thomas and Glyn Williams be re-elected as Treasurer and Tournament Director respectively

It was proposed by John Evans and seconded by David Newman that Steve Burgoyne by elected as Secretary.

It was proposed by Alan Grant and seconded by Colin Lewis that David Newman be elected Chairman.

It was proposed by Steve Burgoyne and seconded by Alan Grant that John Evans, Marjorie Morris and Emer Disley be re-elected to the committee and that Teresa Griffiths be elected to the committee.  All the above agreed nem con.

The meeting closed at 19:15

In addition to the increase in table money, the committee has also decided to cease the practice of granting free membership to those reaching 80 years old.  This concession will not be withdrawn from those already enjoying it, but will not be applied to those reaching 80 from January 2013 onwards.

SIMS events.  We agreed to maintain the SIMs events at the current level, and to favour Welsh/Celtic events over EBU ones where possible.  When there are the same hands on Tuesday/Wednesday, we will alternate with Pencoed as to which club runs the SIMs in question.  There will only normally be one SIMs event on a Friday (Children in Need) and will will give reminders of Wednesday SIMs so that those who do not wish to participate can avoid them.