Ian opened
the meeting by welcoming all attendees and asked that they write their name and
signature on the list provided, as all attendees would gain a match credit
point for attending.
Ian
introduced the committee:
ChairmanIan
Lawrence
Vice
ChairpersonChristine Lawrence
TreasurerRichard
Beale
SecretariesClark
Campbell, Chris Williams, Paul Richards, Angie Lewis
Ian asked
if there were any objections to the committee members, to which there were
none.
It was
agreed that there was no need to read out last year’s AGM minutes, as paper
copies were available.
Treasurer’s
Report
Ian pointed
out that the Club had been affected by the recession and that membership was
down last season by 18.32% and in fact, since the 07/08 season, membership was
down overall by 29.6%. Ian then introduced Richard Beale to provide an overview
of the Club accounts.
Copies of
last season’s club accounts, containing details of Assets and Liabilities, were
provided to all attendees. Richard reported that the club was in a healthy
financial position and that the cumulative value of the club at the end of last
season was £5,273. This was a drop of around £600 in value from last season but
was still considered to be healthy in this financial climate.
There were
a number of queries from attendees asking if the Assets and Liabilities could
be provided in more detail eg the actual numbers of badges, key rings,
confectionary items etc. Richard pointed out that to keep such detailed records
would be extremely time consuming and the Club would need to employ an
Accountant to analyse the data.
There was
also a query why the Club were paying the Press Association to publish the
fixtures on our website. Richard confirmed that we were legally bound to and
would be taken to court if we did not pay.
It was agreed that there was no
benefit to publishing more detailed Accounts and it would in fact cost the Club
a significant amount to do so. Therefore the Balance Sheet provided at each AGM
would be sufficient.
Club
Rules
Ian read
out the Club Rules and stated that he would like to reiterate the following
Match tickets rule:
·Match
tickets provided by the Club should not be reallocated without the Club’s
consent. If the member for whom the ticket was obtained cannot make a fixture,
then he/she should inform Ian to find out if there is a waiting list. If there
is, and 14 days notice is provided, the member who cannot attend may be given a
refund. For cancellations less than 14 days before the fixture, Ian still
requires at least 24 hours notice in
order to reallocate the ticket.
Ian asked
if anyone would like to make any amendments or additions to the rules, to which
there were none
Coach
prices
Ian
confirmed that the bus company (Watts) had increased the cost of bus hire by
around £20 per journey. This would not currently affect the ticket package
prices. The standard of the buses was raised and it was agreed that if any
member was not happy with the standard eg temperature, toilets or cleanliness,
they should inform Ian or Chris at the time and they can inform the driver the
same day.It was agreed to remain with
Watts as they were generally the most reliable and cost effective.
Other
business
·Arsenal
have again asked for ideas for articles to be published in the Supporters Clubs
Culture page in the programme. Any suggestions/ideas for this or for our
website should be sent to Ian.
·Ian
suggested that, whilst on the bus, if people want vents open, volume turned up
etc they should either do it themselves or personally ask the driver instead of
asking Ian & co who are also trying to collect the money and hand out the
tickets.
·It had
been agreed in previous seasons for travellers on the bus to have a choice of
the radio or DVD for the return bus journey. It was further proposed to cease
playing DVDs on all bus journeys. This was agreed by attendees.
·The
benefit of advertising the Club was raised. This was proposed in order to try
and increase membership and awareness of the Club. Suggestions put forward were
free advertising on Facebook, issuing of flyers and business cards, and word of
mouth. It was also proposed to advertise in the Bristol area eg the Bristol Evening
Post. These ideas will be considered.
·Ian
reminded attendees of the friendly game against Treforest on 08 August 2010. At
the time of the AGM players could still register to play if they made a £75
charity donation.
·The
Club has two Season Tickets for sale this season. Anyone interested should
contact Ian.
·Orders
and payments for shopping must be submitted to Ian no later than 7 days before
the shopping date.A discount of 20% is
given to all club members; this does not include programmes or magazines. Ian
confirmed that he would be collecting shopping on the following dates: 19 &
31 Jul, 30 Aug, 4 & 18 Dec, 8 Jan, 23 Apr and 21 May (if required). Orders
for the new home shirt would also include a free polo shirt, while stocks last.
Raffle
The raffle
was held and the results were as follows:
