STAFFORD BRIDGE CLUB Minutes of Annual General Meeting at the Club on 17th May 2009 at 2 p m WELCOME The Captain commenced the meeting by welcoming 34 members. A get well card was circulated to be signed by those present in respect of Tony Aspras who had a major operation on Saturday. George Gould had spoken to the hospital this morning and had been told that Tony was poorly. APOLOGIES Apologies for absence were received from Pam Allen, John Eaves, Freda Greaves, Carys Catchpole, Anne Hidderley, Pat Andrews, Linda Laughlin, John Hartley, Deidre Newsome, John Sheppee, Peter Collier, Beryl Metcalf, Glyn Pugh, Michael Metcalf, Malcolm Roberts, Eileen Greenwood, Dennis Greenwood, Sheila Palmer and Jim Palmer. MINUTES The minutes of the previous AGM had been circulated and on a proposal by Michael Seavers which was seconded by Iain Simpson they were accepted unanimously as a true record. PRESENTATION OF ACCOUNTS BY TREASURER Copies of the accounts had been circulated and a report (which is attached) from the absent Treasurer was read to the meeting. Question from Sylvia Ullmer - Why has telephone bill increased by £70? Answer from Captain - The treasurer had been concerned about this and without careful analysis of the bills it could not be answered. The captain himself said that he had made an international call with regard to the repair of the duplimate machine. Question from David Alderson asking about the assets of the club. Answer from the secretary that the full accounts were on the notice board and he went to the notice board and read out the appropriate items. Question from Ann Sleightholme asking why the electricity was much higher. Iain Simpson explained that in the past some of our electricity costs had been paid by the Showground. Iain also explained that he understood the treasurer had changed suppliers to obtain the electricity cheaper but that we had to bear in mind that all electricity costs had increased in recent times. The captain also thanked Iain for the considerable amount of work that he had done monitoring our electricity consumption. The President then pointed out that the county contribution which is just over £1000 per annum was not just for rent but was for electricity, stationery, use of cards, equipment, etc and it had been the same amount for a number of years and should perhaps be reviewed. The captain said this would be considered. The captain then thanked Cliff Tayar for auditing the accounts. The accounts were then accepted on a proposal from Iain Simpson, seconded by Geoff Davies. The captain then asked Cliff Tayar to audit the accounts again next year and he accepted. CAPTAIN’S REPORT A copy is attached. This was adopted on a proposition from David Alderson, seconded by Mike Sherriff. Geoff Davies said he would like to record that the Captain had done a good job in difficult circumstances and this was wholeheartedly agreed. ELECTION OF OFFICERS At this point the Captain handed the meeting to the President. The President explained to the meeting that we needed members to take the positions of vice-captain and treasurer before we could proceed. Ann Sleightholme said she may volunteer for the treasurer’s job but she needed to know what was involved. Shirley Elphick asked what was involved with the vice-captain’s position. Explanations took place concerning these positions and the meeting was adjourned for refreshments after Janet Drinkwater said that she felt we needed more committee members as the constitution only allowed for four. During the break voting took place for the committee positions as although we had vacancies for officers the committee had more names proposed than we could have according to the constitution. After the break we had proposals for each position and the following were elected:- Captain - David Drinkwater Vice Captain - Ivor Clarke Secretary - Pauline Goggin Treasurer - Ann Sleightholme Committee Members Pat Andrews Pam Ewan Rose Jessop Mike Sherriff The President said the committee could co-opt additional committee members for example: Beryl Metcalf Shirley Elphick MOTION PUT TO THE AGM Copy attached - proposed by Iain Simpson seconded by Arthur Bloxham and supported by a number of members Iain Simpson addressed the meeting and explained the reasons for his proposal. (copy of his address attached) There followed a lively debate which lasted for a considerable time. This included the reading of EBU contract that was read to the meeting by the Captain. David Alderson then asked the Captain to put the motion to a vote. The voting was 14 in favour of the proposal with 18 against the proposal and one abstention. The Captain said that he would take the contract to the next committee meeting. ANY OTHER BUSINESS None The meeting then closed at 4.30 p m. Captain |