Annual General Meeting 2010

The Rules of the Association

   This year’s AGM will start the process to revise the Rules of the Association (see news item "Changing the Rules").   The AGM will be invited to approve a proposal for a complete revision of the Rules which, having been proposed, will stand referred to the following year’s AGM (in accordance with Rule 7), to enable the matter to be given the fullest possible consideration at Branch Meetings throughout the Association during the coming year.

Annual Elections

   Another important part of the AGM will be the elections.   Remember it is you, the members, acting through the meeting, who decide who you want to act for you and to represent you for the next year.  Nominations are needed and, duly signed by candidate, proposer and seconder, must be received by the General Secretary before the meeting.
   This year, the normal annual elections of all the officers will be supplemented by the election of a number of Trustees, and also the Association’s representatives on the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers.
   Nomination forms are obtainable from the General Secretary.

Trustees

   The role of Trustee is assuming increasing importance (see news item "Trustees") and this year the Association will be looking for no less than eleven members to become Trustees.
   This is partly because the Standing Committee has acted under Rule 16(c) to anticipate the proposed changes in the Association Rules which will increase the number of Trustees of the Association itself.   Instead of filling the two vacancies that arise this year, the Annual General Meeting will be asked to elect eight Trustees to create a body that is better able to carry out the governance which the Charity Commission’s regulation requires.
   The election of the two Trustees of the Nolan Golden Education Fund is also due this year and, because of the sad loss of Paul Cattermole, there is also a vacancy for the position of Trustee of the Bell Restoration Fund.
   In addition to the elected Trustees, the annually elected President, General Secretary and Treasurer are Trustees of all three charities, ex officio.

Central Council Representatives

   Election as a representative on the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers at the 2010 AGM will make you a member for the triennium commencing in May 2011.   The Council holds its annual meetings on the Spring Bank Holiday Monday.   The meetings in 2011, 2012 and 2013 will be hosted by the Hereford, Chester and Guildford Diocesan Guilds respectively.   The size of the Association’s membership entitles it to four representatives on the Central Council.   From the current representation only Peter Adcock intends to seek re election, so again, the search is on for members to take on this responsibility.
   As well as membership of the Central Council, representatives also become members of The Ringing World Ltd and of the The Ringing Foundation.   Although the main requirement is to attend a day of annual meetings for these bodies, the event also has a social side, with the host association providing a weekend of entertainment, with plenty of opportunities for ringing.   Members of the Council are also encouraged to join its various Committees to assist with the detailed work of the Council during the year.
   For those interested, full details of the Central Council and its activities can be found at:

http://www.cccbr.org.uk

   Finally, for anyone contemplating Central Council membership, the Association’s Rule changes include a revision of the expenses for attendance.    It is proposed that representatives may claim for up to a maximum of two nights’ accommodation and for mileage for travelling to the meeting venue, at rates to be determined from time to time.

Your Support

   The President, the Association Officers and the Standing Committee hope that members will give their full support to the important business to be considered at this year’s Annual General Meeting.

Trustees

   The Association’s proposals for rule changes (see news item "Changing the Rules") explain the increasing emphasis on the position of Trustees.   There is also a news report about the number of Trustees to be elected at the next Association AGM (see news item "Annual General Meeting 2010").
   We are looking for volunteers and, to help you make a decision, a lot of helpful information about trusteeship can be found on the Charity Commission’s web site:

http://www.charitycommission.gov.uk

   For prospective trustees there is a particularly useful link direct to “The Essential Trustee”:

http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/publications/cc3.asp

   This contains full details about the role and responsibilities of today’s trustees.   The office is no longer just an honorary position.   The publication’s foreword points out that “The trustees have the ultimate responsibility for running a charity”, and its contents will be helpful to all those considering nomination as an Association Trustee.

The Association’s Trustees

   This year the Association will be electing:

• Eight Trustees of the Norwich Diocesan Association of Ringers Charity
• Two Trustees of the Nolan Golden Education Fund
• One Trustee of the Bell Restoration Fund

Changing the Rules

   Members will be aware that, for some time, the Standing Committee has been wrestling with major changes to the Association Rules.   This began with a review of the Association’s role in bell restoration which has now been considered, at length, by both the Belfry Advisory Committee and the Standing Committee, and from which, happily, a solution has now emerged.

Belfry Advisory Committee

   The Association now has a reinvigorated Belfry Advisory Committee.   It is presided over from the elected office of Chairman of the Belfry Advisory Committee, supported by Branch Technical Advisers elected by each Branch, assisted by the participation of members who have accumulated a wealth of the practical experience in bell maintenance and restoration, and backed up by the presence of the elected Trustees of the Bell Restoration Fund.

Charity Obligations

   Meanwhile, nationally, charities are facing increasing obligations through the regulation of their activities by the Charity Commission.   The Association has charitable status (and actually operates more than one charity), from which it derives important financial benefits, notably relating to tax and gift aid.   In turn, it must formally recognise the increased role and responsibilities of those members who serve as Trustees and this has significantly affected the revision of the Rules.

The Rule Changes

   Up to now, the Association’s Rules have provided a structure through which, subject to the overall authority of its General Meetings, the Association has been governed by the Standing Committee, with support from the specialist work of the Belfry Advisory Committee.   This has to change to reflect the responsibility for the Association as a charity, which is placed on the Trustees.
   Because it was not considered realistic or practical for the entire membership of the Standing Committee to become Trustees, the Standing Committee has settled on the alternative of increasing the number of elected Association Trustees from two to eight.   At the same time, the revision of the Rules aims to keep a balance between the Trustees and the Standing Committee, so that it can continue to act as an important and essential link with the membership at large.

Association Charities

   The Association is responsible for the following charities:

• The Norwich Diocesan Association of Ringers Charity
• The Norwich Diocesan Association of Ringers Bell Restoration Fund
• The Northrepps Bell Maintenance Fund
• The Nolan Golden Education Fund