BSAC 18 - Huddersfield Sub Aqua Club

14th February 2005, 7:30pm Huddersfield Sports Centre

Minutes from AGM:

To view and download the minutes from this AGM, please 'Right Click Here' and select 'save target as' (Microsoft Word File - 75Kb). Otherwise, please find as follows;

1.

Apologies

Sarah Churchman, Andy Waugh, Lee Copley, Kate Falkingham, Andy Warhurst

Other members present;

President: Steve Hepworth
Chairman: Pete Edwards
Secretary: Stewart Leahy
Diving Officer: Apologies received
Membership Secretary: Helen Briggs
Treasurer: Richard Robinson
Equipment Officer: Andy Briggs
Training Officer: Ray Dawson
Ordinary Committee Members: Steve Hill
Club Members Present: Brenda Pearson, Marilyn McNeil, Richard Manning, Andrew Eastwood, Syd Farrow, Matt Corder, Fred Jaffeux, Mike Cursons, Martin Charlesworth, Ian Allcroft, Helen Knutton, Julia Clark, Richard Farrier

2.

Matters Arising

The minutes of the last AGM (9^th February 2004) were approved as correct. Proposed Richard Manning and Seconded Diane Hepworth.

No matters arising

3.

Chairman's Report

· Reported on the difficulties we had experienced this year with the Sports Centre regarding increased fees and the compressor being taken out of action for some time. Specifically on the compressor, it was explained that the Sports Centre had now approved our risk assessment and we were waiting for a Council Approved Contractor to reinstall.

4.

Membership Secretary

Since taking over in September 2004 from Andy Booth, I can report that we have had 15 new members join the club; some are of a diver grade already & others 'new trainees'... quite a few of the new trainees are as a result of a successful "try a dive".

We currently have on our records;

66 diving members (trainee thru to FCD
28 snorkel members

Breakdown of the diving members is as follows; 15 Trainees (various stages) 10 Ocean Divers 22 Sports Divers 13 Dive Leaders 5 Advanced Divers 1 First Class Diver ... of which there are 5 Assist Club Instructors, 7 Open Water Instructors & 2 Advanced Instructors)

We also keep records of the past members which has proven very useful for contacting past members regarding the 50th celebratory dinner (on Sat 26^th Feb)

New procedure implemented in October was to have a "meet & greet" service for any persons participating in a Try a Dive. This has worked very well and we have been able to "recruit" new members this way. Also introduced was an 'Information Booklet' that we can provide to any one interested in the club & scuba diving in general, and to give to the try a dive people so they have the contact details for key people.

Plans for the coming year;

To record the number of try a dives & the conversion rate as well as reasons for members not renewing so we can look in to possible reasons to increase our membership numbers.

5.

Diving Officer's Report

This has been an excellent year. We have had a very healthy steady intake of new members – some of these are new to diving, some are crossing over from PADI or have moved into the area.

Our own members have been working steadily upwards furthering their knowledge and skills and achieving higher qualifications. I am eternally grateful to Ray Dawson for taking over the onerous task of Training Officer and managing it so well. Ray has helped with ploughing through the horrors of risk assessments and is a person who has organised dive trips and kept us in order when on them. Ray is one of those people who just gets the jobs done, is always totally dependable and the epitome of the ideal Club member. At the Anniversary Dinner, Ray will be awarded the Naismith Trophy.

The Ann Eaves Trophy is traditionally awarded to a female member. We are lucky to have a female member who has put a huge amount of time and enthusiasm into making sure we all pay our membership fees, creating information leaflets, helping with the Anniversary Dinner and grabbing your money at the desk. At the Dinner, the Anne Eaves Trophy will be awarded to Helen Briggs.

Finally, in awarding the Gary Brook Trophy, I found someone who has kept going through difficult times. He has kept our books in impeccable order, even when suffering from ill health. Recently, against the odds, he has returned to diving and we all wish him well. The Gary Brook Trophy will be awarded to Richard Robinson.

It was difficult deciding who to give the trophies to. So many people have worked hard for the club and I feel a really good number of members have pulled together this year. In particular I would like to thank Diane Hepworth who continues to do a fantastic job of organising visits to St Abbs as well as, this year, organising our 50^th Anniversary Celebrations.

Many thanks also to Pete Edwards, Richard Farrier and Andy Briggs and anyone else who has organised a trip, and Gary Exton for working so hard to sort out the future legislation regarding training young and vulnerable people.

All the dive trips have been superb and we have had no serious incidents. Most trips have been blessed with excellent weather and even when not, we have managed to have a really good time. This year members have visited a record number of different places, proof, if we needed it, of how accessible all these dive sites now are.

The cold water trips have included 32 visits to Capernwray, and several to Stoney Cove, Eccy Delph, Ullswater, Coniston, Scapa, Swanage, the Clyde, Oban, the Farnes, and a fabulous week’s stay at Doune Marine, diving the Western Isles. Added to all these we have visited St Abbs six times and never tire of it. Billy makes sure we have good diving and we enjoy the walks and the local taverns when diving is off the agenda.

Just in case we hadn’t suffered sufficiently cold and murky water, a large group braved the elements at Redbrook on Boxing Day. Again this was part of our 50^th celebrations and we were watched by one of the club’s earliest members who was delighted to see the tradition still being upheld.

Further afield, I had a brilliant trip to the Galapagos Islands and Stephen and Diane Hepworth sampled the wonders of the Great Barrier Reef and Papua New Guinea. Other members have dived Mauritius, Tenerife, the Red Sea, Malta and Gozo, Turkey, Florida and Menorca. I total of 1094 dives were recorded on the dive sheets, representing 42,301 minutes underwater! Twelve members also visited the York Diver Training College and enjoyed fits of narcotic giggles in the recompression chamber. Thank you to Richard Manning for organising that.

Once again, Stephen Hepworth did the most dives but was closely pursued by Lee Copley.

Everyone who has dived abroad has returned with tales of fantastic diving and ever more luxurious hotels and liveaboards. The early members of our club must wonder where on earth it will end having already witnessed such immense changes. In celebrating our 50^th year we have all become more aware of the amazing advances in knowledge, equipment and facilities. At one time, divers were much like astronauts, exploring places where no man had been before. Such exploration continues – often at great depth, under ice or in caves.

Sadly, many of the easily accessible dive sites are over-dived and suffering from damage. It is more important than ever to perfect our diving techniques and to respect the undersea world before it is ruined. I hope that in celebrating our 50th year, BSAC 18 can take pride in being a club whose members truly value the uniqueness of the world beneath the surface.

Kate Falkingham, Diving Officer

6.

Training Officers Report

· Thanks to all the trainers and those who make training possible. Whilst singling out individuals does mean that I will miss others I still feel the need to do so.

So particular thanks to :
Pete Edwards for all the lectures he does.
Andy Briggs, Steve Hill, Richard Manning, Dave Colley and Kate Falkingham for the practical training and Try-dives.
Helen Briggs and Andy Waugh for organising potential trainees.
The lifeguards, without whom we could not train at all.
Andy Briggs for making sure we have functioning equipment always available.

The pool has been occupied by trainees for most of the year - which is a visible indication of the level of training being undertaken.
We have newly qualified Ocean Divers and Sports Divers this year.
We have members in training to become both (Ocean and Sports Divers) as well those planning to progress to Dive Leader and beyond.

I encourage everyone to get involved with training - be it attending courses, as an instructor or a helper - it will enhance your own skills.

If anyone who would like to become involved in training please contact me.

7.

Welfare Officer’s Report

Gary Exton explained that over the last 6 months he had taken on the role of Welfare Office as he had a 14 year old daughter who wanted to take up Scuba Diving. Gary has been in regular contact with BSAC Head Office and has studies their guidance and rules for the training of all Vulnerable People.

In essence, there is a deadline of 2006 whereby we will have to adopt policies aimed at protecting the welfare of vulnerable people. However, these policies also provide a level of protection to the volunteer instructors and members of the club who all have ‘significant contact’ with vulnerable people. There are two options at the moment, firstly to use the minimum procedure and gain self-declarations from people who may have ‘significant contact’ with vulnerable people…..secondly is to make use of the BSAC Head Office connection with the Criminal Records Bureau and gain a CRB Police check instead.

The Huddersfield Committee had discussed and debated the various merits of these two routs and have decided to adopt the more stringent approach of the CRB check. Therefore, point 14(ii) of this meeting will be a vote to amend our constitution to allow these checks to be performed.

8.

Treasurer's Report

Let me start by saying that this year's accounts are heavily, primarily by the proceedings of the 50th Anniversary Dinner function, which is overlapping the accounts year end. If the figures are adjusted by removing the 50th do's monies, then instead of showing a small increase in funds, there is a real deficit for the year of £2003.78.

The main reason for this deficit can clearly be seen to be the purchase of diving kit. The opportunity to purchase some or all o f a substantial quantity of god quality second-hand (almost new) kit at a very reasonable price occurred late in the year. Our Equipment Officer and Chairman, having viewed the kit, took the agreed committee decision to purchase it all as the price was right. Details will be provided by the Equipment Officer. As the purchase of more kit was something that was starting to demand our attention, the opportunity was welcome, and we got much more kit than we were considering at perhaps not so much more money than we would have spent elsewhere.

It is pleasing to see that the subscription income, both annual and through the door, has increased back to the level it was the year before last (2002), and that the fee increases we made did not adversely affect membership in any way, or recruitment for that matter.

Countering the increased subscription revenue, which we felt compelled to try and make due to the substantial increase in pool costs imposed by KAL Trust - up by nearly 40%, a considerable stock-up in training packs, more qualifying instructors justly reclaiming their course expenses, and increased administration costs.

A difficult year to sum up, but one which has confirmed our commitment to diver training, and left us well set-up equipment-wise. It should leave us not needing to spend much on replacement/new kit for several years to come, though maintenance expenses may increase somewhat with obligatory testing requirements.

Richard Robinson

9.

Auditors Report

The auditors confirmed that the above balance sheet and accompanying income and expenditure account were certified correct.

10.

Equipment Officer's Report

Compressor – As per the Chairman report, the compressor should be reinstalled in the next couple of weeks. All members willing to act as compressor operators will also need to undertake some basic Health and Safety training from the Sports Centre to ensure their understanding of the hazards involved in the boiler room environment.

Club Kit – All the existing club kit has been gradually deteriorating and, although still in use, it has started coming to the end of its ‘serviceable’ life. A few weeks ago, we were approached by a Butlins PADI school looking to close down and the Huddersfield Committee approved the purchase of this ex-school kit. This essentially comprises of 10 complete sets of open water kit, approximately 2 years old, and a large number of pool fins, masks and snorkels. Therefore, the old kit will be offered to existing members first, but sold on an ‘as seen’ basis and any kit left over will then be sold on E-Bay. All income from this sale will be returned to the club funds. This new kit will be made available to all club members as per our constitution.

Finally, many thanks especially to Ray for his help and support in ferrying cylinders to and from the dive shops to keep them filled.

11.

New Committee Appointment

The new committee were appointed (unopposed) as follows;

President: Steve Hepworth
Chairman: Pete Edwards
Secretary: Gill Pickup
Diving Officer: Kate Falkingham
Membership Secretary: Helen Briggs
Treasurer: Richard Robinson
Equipment Officer: Andy Briggs
Training Officer: Ray Dawson
Ordinary Committee Members with responsibility as Welfare Officer : Gary Exton
Ordinary Committee Members: Stewart Leahy, Syd Farrow, Steve Hill

12.

Presentation of Club Trophies

The announcement of recipients for the Club Trophies was covered in the Diving Officers report and the presentation of these trophies will take place at the Anniversary Dinner of the 26^th February 2005.

13.

President's Address

At last year’s AGM I had held the Post of President for only a few weeks and found myself writing my speech the day before the AGM. I decided then that when I had a whole 12 months I would give myself more time to prepare, however, time passes very rapidly and so this last weekend I once again became faced with writing the president’s address.

Looking back to last year I talked about visiting more inland dive sites.

Well, despite having done a lot of diving throughout the year I only managed to take divers to one new inland water site – that being Ullswater. Although over about four visits several different sites were dived.

A more positive part of last years speech was my reference to our 50^th year of which we are now completing.

Last summer a sub-committee was formed to come up with ideas for ways we could celebrate our 50^th year. Quite a few ideas were thrown into the hat and I’m pleased that some of them came to fruition.

In September the Examiner ran an article about our 50^th year which incorporated several photos from the early years. One of the photos was of the founder Secretary John Lawton in his home made suit. A few days later John Lawton phoned me after seeing himself in the newspaper, asking how he could join our celebrations. This was the start of many other past members contacting us.

In November Richard Manning organised two trips on successive Thursdays to the Diver Training College in York. Here divers in groups of six entered a recompression chamber and were pressurised to 50 metres depth. The effects of depth varied from person to person but I think everyone who attended enjoyed themselves and I look forward to doing the same thing again. So we had 20 plus divers at 50 metres in our 50^th year and all with the blessing of the DO!!

In December Steve Hill thought of a novel way of making our annual Redbrook visit more fun, with a view to getting more divers and spectators. A line was attached between two buoys in the reservoir and divers took it in turns to drag an SMB with a 50^th balloon attached between the two buoys at a depth of 2½ metres. Sixteen divers managed 50 lengths in 1hour 51minutes. Shall we see if we can do 51 lengths in less time next year – our 51^st?

During the day Paul Raynor - a past member from the early 60’s called at Redbrook and was impressed to see such a large number of divers still diving the site – which has been a branch dive since the early days.

This lead to our second appearance in the Examiner along with a mention in this month’s Dive Magazine.

The highlight of the celebrations is in just less than two weeks on Saturday 26^th February when we will hold our celebratory dinner at the Galpharm Stadium. A lot of time and effort has gone into trying to contact as many members both past and present with the result that we have over 150 people attending. There are a few days left to order tickets if anyone else should be interested.

Looking back to last year’s speech again ----- my suggestion for the year was to award tee shirts to all members who logged 50 dives with the branch in our 50^th year. I am pleased to announce that ten branch divers logged 50 dives or more with the DO within the last 12 months. They are

Andy Briggs, Martin Charlesworth, Lee Copley, Ray Dawson, Gary Exton, Kate Falkingham, Richard Farrier, Diane Hepworth, Stephen Hepworth and Steve Hill.

Tee shirts are on order and will be available for distribution shortly.

I would like to thank everyone for their input throughout the year especially the outgoing committee for their time and effort over the past 12 months and welcome the new committee and wish them well in the coming year.

Finally special thanks to Richard Manning for organising the dry dive, Steve Hill for organising the Boxing Day Relay Dive and Diane Hepworth and Helen Briggs for their time and effort in organising the Dinner.

14.

Any Other Business

Club Marketing

Training Vulnerable People

14.i

Club Marketing

Stewart Leahy has volunteered to take on central responsibility for the marketing of BSAC 18. This will involve maintenance of the club web site, co-ordination of press releases and a reporting function at committee meetings.

14.ii

Training Vulnerable People

A unanimous vote approved the adoption of the following amendment to the club constitution:

5.a Members applying for new or renewed membership of the Branch (in any or all of the capacities listed below) will be required to give their permission for their criminal record to be checked through the Criminal Records Bureau. Original results will be sent to the member in question. A copy will be sent to the BSAC Welfare Officer, or other nominated person, who will then provide a “yes/no” answer to the question:

“The applicant will have significant contact with children and vulnerable adults. Is there anything within this person’s criminal record that suggests that they are not suitable for BSAC membership?”

Branch Officers & Committee Members:

Diving Officer, Training Officer, Welfare Officer, Membership Secretary

All Instructors (Those who have attended the ITC/IFC and wish to act as instructors within the branch)

The continuation of this amendment will be voted upon every year at the AGM.