Officers in attendance
- Doreen Green (Secretary)
- Joan Franklin (Treasurer)
- Lorna Storr (Bookings)
Committee members in attendance
- Clodagh West (Acting Chair/Vice Chair)
- Jacky Free (Arts Group)
- Ann Kennedy (All Saints Church)
- MaryAnn Williams (Parish Council)
- Sheila Wyatt (Women's Institute)
No formal representatives attended from the Bowls Group, Youth Group, Nocton Community School, Nocton Social Club or Nocton Park Management (all Affiliated Groups).
Ten members of the public were present for the meeting.
The meeting was convened at 7.00pm and was concluded at 8.10pm.
Meeting
This is the 35th AGM of the Management Committee of the rebuilt Village Hall. No Chairperson's Report was available as the former Chair had resigned in 2015. A formal acknowledgement of appreciation was recorded at the meeting for Nigel Tomlinson's involvement with the Village Hall.
The forthcoming year is now anticipated to involve less disruption than first thought. This is mainly due to grant funding being more difficult to obtain, so it is less likely that work will commence on rebuilding the Village Hall. Overall, the building is somewhat in decline, especially the bar area where the floor slab is deteriorating with large cracks in the concrete.
A copy of the Annual Accounts to 30th September 2015 were made available for the meeting, with the Treasurer's Report being read out. A specific 'thank you' was mentioned for the Open Gardens event, as this provided a welcome boost to income for 2015.
A query arose over the large increase in 'Rates', however this was adequately explained. It appeared this entry related to 'Water Rates' and the increase had been due to a leak that had gone unnoticed. It was suggested that a reduction in the bill can usually be applied in these cases, if an organisation makes an application to the water authority. It was agreed this will be investigated further.
There was a short discussion over whether or not to boost the Fundraising account, by transferring monies from the general Working account. It was agreed that £1,000 would be a suitable amount to transfer. The Fundraising account demonstrates exactly what the community is contributing to the refurbishment/rebuilding plans. This is an important criteria when making formal applications for grants/loans.
Whilst on the subject of funds, a change of signatories to the bank accounts will be required, as a result of the resignation of the Chairperson in 2015.
Agreement was sought to reappoint Miss T Bannister to prepare the Accounts for Year ended 30th September 2016. However, there was a suggestion that an approach be made to a retired Accountant who actually lives in the village, to see if a pro bono service could be provided, thus saving the Committee £300 per annum. It was agreed this enquiry would be pursued. There was also a query as to whether a full audit of the accounts was necessary - this matter will be investigated further too.
Election of Committee for 2016
Only one valid nomination had been received - that was from Clodagh West for the position of Chairperson - and she was therefore appointed.
A proposal was put forward that in light of the shortage of nominations, the role of Vice Chair be appointed on a rolling basis at each and every meeting. After some discussion this was agreed.
In relation to the Affiliated Group representatives, there was a proposal put forward to relax the number of attendances required to maintain Affiliated Group status. This will require a reduction in the minimum numbers of Committee members to establish a quorate meeting. However this constitutional change will require authorisation from the Parish Council. It was agreed therefore to submit an application to reduce the numbers of Committee members from five to three for a quorate meeting.
The current representatives from the Affiliated Groups are:
- Art Group - Jacky Free
- Bowls Group - Ian Green
- All Saints Church - Ann Kennedy
- Social Club - Lorraine Chapman
- Women's Institute - Sheila Wyatt
- Youth Group - vacant
- Community School - vacant
- Nocton Park Management - vacant
In view of infrequent attendances throughout 2015, it was suggested that Nocton Park Management would be asked if they still wish to retain their Affiliated status. The Youth Group will not be fielding a representative, as this would involve extra hours income being paid to the Youth Group leader.
Licenses
A review of the necessary legal Licenses for the Village Hall showed these were all up to date and current.
Hire Charges
In general, it was proposed that the hire charges would not be increased. However, there are two instances where the charges require an increase.
A review needs to be undertaken to examine the Autism Care fee, where they are currently charged £35 for a period of rental 9.00am to 4.00pm which results in just £5 per hour. This appears low in comparison to other rentals, especially when the electricity usage and other overhead costs are taken into account.
The other increase needs to be applied to rental for elections for political purposes e.g. Local Authority elections, National elections and Police Commissioner elections too). A full commercial rate will in future be charged to take account of the actual hours required for opening up the premises for this purpose.
Extra information relating to the accounts
Bookkeepers and Accounting Technicians
Various bodies, e.g. the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB), offer what used to be considered lower-level qualifications in bookkeeping and related skills.
The Association of Accounting Technicians (AAT) (designatory letters MAAT or FMAAT, standing for 'Member of the Association of Accounting Technicians' or 'Fellow Member of the Association of Accounting Technicians', respectively) is the UK’s leading body offering a qualification at a level between that of 'bookkeeper' and that of the Recognised Qualifying Bodies.
After passing exams and obtaining relevant experience, its members can apply for MIP (Member in Practice) status and are then licensed and regulated by the AAT to provide practice accounting, tax and financial advisory services, although they are not entitled to undertake audit or insolvency work.
Practising Accounting Technicians are entitled to refer to themselves as 'accountants', as the term is not protected in law (unlike, say, 'solicitors' and 'doctors'). However, they cannot present themselves as being of Chartered status, which is only awarded through the RQB's.
Recognised Qualifying Bodies
The five RQBs in relation to company auditing under the Companies Acts are:- Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
- Association of International Accountants (AIA)
- Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI)
- Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW)
- Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_qualified_accountants
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