MK LETNET AGM 24th September 2022 – Westbury Arts Centre
MINUTES
Welcome: Valerie welcomed everyone to the meeting and thanked all for attending.
Minutes of Last Meeting: We reviewed, a couple on minor amendments made to spellings of names of those attending.
Matters Arising: The main matters arising would be discussed in the meeting, it was reported that members had received help that had been requested, other matters were website and IT system which sadly neither have been progressed.
It was noted that Orla had expressed a willingness to take on Membership Secretary work but had found this to be too much and Emma and Valerie had kindly maintained things over the year.
Chairperson’s Report:
I’d like to take a moment to remember one of our members, Fred, who sadly died recently, Fred actually attended our last AGM held on Zoom and was a long-standing member of Letnet.
I can’t believe that two years have passed since our last AGM. Members have been reluctant to get back to meeting in person, however we have still managed a few events. We had a small gathering at Westbury last Christmas, several of us met for Tea and Trading at Westbury in April, Camphill lunches have continued on an informal basis, along with other gatherings at Dobbies and occasional breakfasts at Wetherspoons.
Letnet has been represented at other local events, for example continued to collaborate with other local groups and we attended events at Climate Café, Transition Town and the Green Fair and some members also attended a quiz in aid of iPeace.
So I am delighted to say that Letnet is thriving and that our wonderful community is still supporting each other both informally and with trading and events. When I joined Letnet about 30 years ago I joined for the trading aspect of the group, what I didn’t realise was that I was joining the wonderful community that we have; some of my closest friends are Letnet members, we are a community and we support each other and I think we should be really proud of that.
We continue to recruit new members, many of the referrals come from existing members but quite a number also come through our Facebook page.
I am so grateful for my friends in the Admin Group who keep the group running and if you wish to join us, there will be an opportunity to do so later in the meeting, so please do consider whether you’d like to be more involved in the running of our group – this is not an arduous task!
Sterling Treasurer’s Report: At the AGM in September 2020 (held on Zoom) we had £341.80 in the bank and today we have £114.18. The main expenses being room hire, postage and printing (although most things are now sent by email). We have also paid small fees to have a stall at other events to publicise Letnet and to pay for the website.
Trevor proposed that we should ask the membership for a small fee and after discussion we decided that this should be £5 or £10 and that the membership fee would last for a number of years, so in effect maybe paying £2 per year to join. The Admin Group will work out the final details of how to administer this.
CC Treasurer’s Report: Attached. We worked out that Michael and Susan have done the most trading over the past year – well done to them! Trading is what keeps us going. If you notice that someone has a large commitment please see if they can do something for you!
Membership Secretary’s Report: Emma reported that membership numbers are stable. Two people have joined in the last two years and two have sadly died. Many people enquire about joining but then don’t do so. The admin group should look into why this is and also how we can attract more younger members.
Any other questions/Reports: We discussed publicity. Members were encouraged to take flyers and to distribute them around Milton Keynes. Valerie had written a small article which was put into the local paper and did generate some interest. The article was also put onto Next Door and Facebook. Many of our enquiries are coming from Facebook. Members are encouraged to write articles and send them to Valerie.
Susan wishes to come off the Admin Group but is happy to undertake small tasks.
Gail wishes a paper Directory and is willing to pay for the printing of this.
Jenni said that she has not received anything, including a Directory, since re-joining. Apologies were given and we will rectify this.
It was noted that the Website is very out of date and Jenni has agreed to meet with Valerie to see what can be done to update.
We also noted that the MK Letnet flyer is now out of date and in need up updating.
Election of Officers: All members of the Admin Group stood down and were willing to accept offers or nominations for new members. No one was forthcoming and all members agreed to stand again, however it was made clear that anyone is welcome to attend Admin Group meetings, and is also welcome to join us and a notice to this effect will go in the next newsletter. A reminder that all members can claim 5cc an hour for work undertaken on behalf of Letnet.
Carol kindly offered to take on the role of Membership Secretary and Emma agreed to support Carol with this. The database is currently held in Microsoft Access.
Any Other Business:
We noted that we need to:
- Update the Directory
- Charge members sterling and 20 cc for annual membership
- Update the flyer
- Update the Website
Jenni suggested asking members why they were not trading – this could be incorporated into the membership update
Valerie thanked everyone for attending and the meeting finished at 16.35
Trading happened and wonderful tea and cakes were consumed and we had a lovely gathering!
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