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See Below for Minutes of Previous AGM in 2008
WHITCHURCH WATERWAY TRUST
NOTIFICATION
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF THE WHITCHURCH WATERWAY TRUST
The Annual General Meeting will be held in the Edward German Room at the Civic Centre, Whitchurch on Wednesday 18th March 2009 at 7.30pm
AGENDA
1. Apologies for Absence
2. Minutes of the last AGM
3. Matters Arising from the Minutes
4. Yearly Report
5. Treasurer’s Report
6 Election of Auditor
7. Election of Committee - Members due to retire and willing to seek re-election are Mr Ray Hatton and Mr Andrew Richardson
Nominations for election to the Committee may be received by the Secretary up to seven clear days before the date of the meeting. Nominations must be in writing and signed by the proposer and by the nominee, confirming his/her willingness to be elected. Only paid-up members are qualified to vote at the meeting, may make nominations or stand for election. No proxy votes will be accepted.
Contact details: Hon. Sec., Chemistry Farm, Whitchurch SY13 1BZ
T: 01948 662779 E:
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WHITCHURCH WATERWAY TRUST
MINUTES of the NINETEENTH Annual General Meeting held at the Civic Centre, Whitchurch on 19th March 2008
The Hon. Secretary Mrs Lindsay Green welcomed 23 members to the meeting.
1. Apologies for Absence: Mr & Mrs R Squires, Mrs K Coddington, Mr & Mrs Ward, Mr & Mrs J Farmer, Mr I MacTavish, Mrs C Butler, Mr & Mrs R Wyatt, Mrs C Luffman, Mr Booth, Mr M. Mortimer, Mr K Tidy, Mr & Mrs I Priddy and Mr C Goodwin.
2. Minutes of the Previous Meeting: Mr D. Fitzjohn proposed the Minutes be accepted as an accurate record, seconded by Mr P Brown. All agreed and the Minutes were signed by Mrs Green.
3. Matters Arising from the Minutes: None
4. Yearly Report: The Hon Secretary reported that the Whitchurch Waterway Trust is governed by its Memorandum and Articles of Association and was incorporated on 26th July 1988. The Trust is a Company limited by guarantee and is also a charity.
The Articles state that we can have between eight and sixteen ordinary and nominee members. At present we have thirteen, so have room for another two members on the committee if anyone is interested.
The Trust’s objectives are to promote the construction, restoration and preservation to navigable order and condition the Whitchurch Arm of the Llangollen Canal from its junction with the main Canal at Whitchurch to Chemistry and an extension thereof to Sherrymill Hill for the use and benefit of the public. To promote the fullest use of the Waterway by all forms of waterborne traffic and for all forms of water related commercial, local amenity, tourist and recreational activities for the benefit of the public.
We achieve these objectives by the restoration of the canal to Chemistry Bridge which enables us to offer long term moorings, winter moorings and visitor moorings. The towpath, which is part of the Sandstone Trail, is kept litter-free and the grass is mown to provide a pleasant area to walk and is accessible to all. We have the boat gathering each year in September to promote the canal and lake and hopefully make some money. It is a good opportunity for networking. In the past it has gained us new members, advertising and offers of help. Work parties are held to clear the debris that flows in from the main line of the Llangollen canal. Litter-picks are held once a year to clear the path into town of litter. This year we collected eight bags of rubbish, a piece of carpet and yards of barbed wire. Bob Sumner, Joe Hathaway and Ken Green also cleared from the culvert at Greenfields Rise a bicycle and part of a farm gate. Bob Sumner had previously taken out three shopping trolleys.
The making of the lake is the next stage. A visitor survey by the Heart of England Tourist Authority, as part of the Better Welcome initiative, highlights the need for an attraction such as this in Whitchurch. A copy of the survey is available for you to look at. The lake will be of great benefit to wildlife and conservation and will benefit the human populace also. We will be able to offer fishing, boating, cycling and walking and just sitting with a picnic admiring the view. We are at present working on a business plan and sourcing funding opportunities. Mr Sumner has made some interpretation boards and will be erecting them in the area of the lake.
The committee continue to work for the benefit of the people of Whitchurch by achieving our objective of putting a water-park in Whitchurch to aid in the prosperity of the town.
5. Treasurer’s Report: May I take this opportunity of apologising for not being at the AGM but I had a prior engagement that I could not break.
As you will see from the Accounts for 2007, there has been an increase in Assets of WWT of over 20%. This was despite a substantial reduction on income derived from mooring fees. One factor contributing to this was the fact that the 2007 insurance premium to the IWA was paid at the end of 2006, whilst this years (2008) premium has been paid in January 2008. Income from the Boat Rally was down, even though the weather was decidedly better in 2007, but membership subscriptions and donations improved slightly. Could I ask all members to check that they have updated the amount to pay on any Direct Debits, and also that they have filled out a gift-aid form, if applicable. If you’re not sure, please fill another one in.
We were very grateful to receive a bequest of £1000 which will in part by used to purchase a display board so that we can publicise WWT at more events.
Our main purchasing expense last year was a small laser printer. In fact, this will lead to a reduction in our costs as it means that we no longer have to pay printing or photocopying costs when we produce brochures or newsletters. The other continuing cost which we are incurring is the ongoing border dispute which involves payments to solicitors, land registry, etc. Hopefully this will be concluded this year, and I will provide a breakdown of the costs involved at next year’s AGM.
I hope that you will find these accounts in order and will accept them as a true record.
Mr P Collins proposed that the accounts be accepted, seconded by Mr A Richardson. All agreed.
6. Election of Auditor: Mr G Thomas has agreed to audit the accounts. Mr P Wagstaffe proposed that Mr Thomas be re-elected, seconded by Mr R Hatton. All agreed.
7. Election of Committee: Mr Goodwin is not standing for re-election to the committee. Mr A Richardson proposed a Vote of Thanks to Mr Goodwin for all his hard work over the years. All voted in favour. Mr A Richardson proposed Mrs K Mitchell be re-elected to the committee, seconded by Mr P Wagstaffe. Mr R Sumner was nominated to stand for election to the committee by Mrs J Crump. All agreed his election.
The Secretary declared the nineteenth Annual General Meeting closed.
