Members and guest socialise at the AGM in the White Hart
Our annual general meeting was held on 22 September 2009 starting at 7pm in the White Hart in Whitchurch, Hampshire, UK.
Twenty-three people attended in all, and enjoyed a social start to the evening while enjoying a delicious platter of ham, cheeses and other finger foods (to say nothing of some real ales and (real) wines from the bar).
Thank you to all who attended this public meeting, in celebration of our first year, and to get stuck into the formal matters of the AGM. And, a special thank you to Andy at the White Hart for letting us take over his dining room, and for his scrumptious food.
These scribbles are the minutes for our AGM.
1. Welcome
Graham Burgess, chair of Whitchurch Arts from September 2008 opened the evening’s meeting. He started by introducing Rob Morris, a member, who got the evening off to an artistic start by reading some of his award-winning poetry (you can see it posted on the finger sign opposite All Hallows Church). Graham then directed people’s attention to the agenda and proceeded through each item.
There were 23 people attending – some were visitors, and a couple signed up as new members during the AGM:
Members present: Andrew Reeves-Hall, Graham Burgess, Eric Dunlop, John Buckley, Chris Garlinge, Jean Titchiner, Aldo Galli, Geoff Kelland, Julie Roase, Steve Miller, Jude Price, Kevin Longstaff.
2. Apologies for absence
Sally Startup (member)
Sir George Young, MP (invited guest)
Denyse Coles (invited guest)
Bethany Wright (invited guest)
Sarah Peters (invited guest)
3. Adoption of Constitution
Graham read out the draft constitution. One amendment was proposed by Graham, seconded by Jean Titchiner and agreed unanimously. A vote to adopt the constitution was taken – it was unanimous.
4. Annual Reports
Graham read his chairman’s annual report.
Monthly views of WhitchurchArts.org.uk
Eric stated in his report that the accounts for Whitchurch Arts were audited externally by the treasurer of Whitchurch Association – they were approved with two minor comments.
Eric stated that there is £1158.14 in our bank account. Further details came in the next agenda item (see below).
Andrew, the Secretary, stated that 25 members signed up to Whitchurch Arts over the past year. Aside: two more joined up at the AGM, and Andrew renewed his membership as it was due on the 25th.
Most viewed web pages for the year ending 22 September 2009
Andrew then showed a graph of the number of visitors to the Whitchurch Arts website, and a breakdown of what pages were most viewed – congratulations to Chris Garlinge to be the highest-viewed artist!
Andrew also showed the press clippings that he had collected over the year, from the numerous events covered by the local media.
There were no ‘others’ giving reports (although Graham did try to get John Buckley to say a word or two about the promotion work he had done; there was unanimous agreement that the promotion material had been well done.)
5. Adoption of Accounts
Eric presented the financial statements to the AGM and reiterated that there is £1158.14 in our account. The money is in cash with the local HSBC branch and collects simple interest. The accounts were adopted unanimously.
6. Election of Officers
The following were all correctly nominated, seconded and voted into position…
| Director of Arts: | Graham Burgess |
| Chairperson: | Andrew Reeves-Hall |
| Vice Chairperson: | Graham Burgess |
| Secretary: | Andrew Reeves-Hall (acting*) *Andrew tried to encourage another member to come forward to fill this role, and hopes one does in the near future! |
| Treasurer: | Eric Dunlop |
| Membership Secretary: | Eric Dunlop |
| Publicity Officer: | John Buckley |
| Committee without portfolio: | Jude Price |
| Chris Garlinge | |
| Elizabeth Miller | |
| Auditor: | Sandra Smith |
7. Motions for Consideration
All but one of the motions were adopted unanimously. The motion for the meeting dates was not seconded; and alternative proposal was made, which was adopted unanimously.
| The ~ symbol (in various artistic forms) should be adopted as the official logo | Proposed by Andrew Reeves-Hall seconded by Brian Garlinge |
| The meeting dates should be set as “the third Thursday in every month” | Proposed by Andrew Reeves-Hall there was no second |
| The meeting dates should in the third week of every month, alternating between Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays | Proposed by Geoff Kelland seconded by Andrew Reeves-Hall |
| The new Committee create a standard Agenda for ‘business’ gatherings with ‘AOB (Any Other Business)’ towards the top in order to give priority to the discussion of new ideas and initiatives | Proposed by John Buckley seconded by Jude Price |
8. Any Other Business
8.1 Off the Walls
Jude Price reminded members of the upcoming Off the Walls show at the Gill Nethercott Centre on Saturday, 3rd October 2009 starting at 11am (setup at 10am).
Andrew said he would set up a special email address to contact Jude: otw <at> WhitchurchArts.org.uk
A question was asked about the length of time that art is left at a venue; currently each piece is reviewed after 6 months; a suggestion was made to reduce this to 3 months. Jude will consider the suggestion.
A question was asked about who determines the price that a piece of art will have. The artist will set the price; although feedback from venue managers should be sought and taken under advisement. The artist and Jude can discuss individual pricing and settle on an agreed amount.
A proof-of-concept version of the Off the Walls project management website was discussed. Graham Burgess will seek funding to advance its development further. Andrew would like to see it incorporated within the existing website (Wordpress); alternatively, it could be created as a complete replacement for the current website. Further discussions will be had on this topic before full development gets underway.
8.2 Screens
There are some used screens available from Basingstoke Art Class. Graham will investigate and see if he can secure them for a reasonable price. There may be screens available to rent from the Hungerford Camera Club. John has already received permission from the Committee to purchase some screens.
8.3 Hallowe’en Event
Whitchurch Arts is having a pumpkin carving competition, and a Guy competition. (A separate meeting with other local organisations was agreed to after the AGM — it is nice to see so many groups working together on an event).
9. Dates of Next Meetings
The meeting dates for the rest of 2009 were set in our July meeting:
- Wednesday, Oct 21, 7:30pm (White Hart)
- Tuesday, Nov 17, 7:30pm (White Hart)
- Wednesday, Dec 16, 7:30pm (White Hart) – perhaps a Christmas arty dinner?
Mmmm!
Andrew will set the 2010 dates at the next meeting (October).
The AGM finished at 20h56. The tasty ham, cheese and other snacks were devoured and bubbly conversations ensued for the rest of the evening. Thank you once again to everyone who attended.
Tags: AGM, Meetings, Reports, Scribbles, White Hart