ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2007

The Annual General Meeting of Trustees was held on Wednesday 26th September 2007 in the Village Hall, 12 Trustees attending, with Mr. E.C. Abrahams in the Chair.

The Chairman paid tribute to the work over the last 9 years of Brian Barrow – the retiring Booking Secretary; not only had he kept an excellent Diary but he had done a lot of general maintenance around the Hall. The Chairman then presented him with a gift of a Monocular. In thanking the Trustees for the gift Mr. Barrow stated that he had enjoyed his time as Booking Secretary and had met a large number of delightful people from the Village as a result.

The following are summarised extracts from the Annual Report of Trustees and the Accounts for the Year to 31 August 2007. Copies are available from the Treasurer:-

During the year the Hall was used on 551 occasions – some 20 fewer than in 2006. The changes to our Hire Charges from 1st September 2006 did not produce the expected increase in Hire Receipts as the revenue from Parties (both for Adults and Children) were lower than in 2006 by some £500 and Clavering Players did not put on a Spring Production which would have increased our income by a further £250. The actual increase in Income was £203 while total costs were lower than last year by £231 – a combination of a significant reduction in Light and Heat costs (down £474) and increases in Wages and Water Rates.

Of the two major fund raising events – the Art Show and the Fete – the latter was cancelled due to extremely bad weather; the Art Show raised £3,236 (compared with £4,934 in 2006). A legacy of £908 was received from the estate of Miss Betty Johnson, a former member of the Council of Management.

During the year £5,511 (2006: £22,966) was spent on Improvements to the Hall, the main items being £3,156 on replacing some of the curtains and curtain tracks and £2,355 on repainting the Hall.
In addition, a total of £1,017 was spent on new Equipment for the Hall (2006: £504).

In his report the Chairman paid tribute to the Members of the Council of Management, the Caretaker and all the other people in the Village who had worked so hard during the year to ensure that the high standards of the Hall were maintained. He thanked all those involved with the successful Art Show and the cancelled Fete.

At a Council of Management meeting held immediately after the Annual General Meeting the following officers were elected:
Chairman Mr. E.C. Abrahams
Vice Chair Mrs. B. Weatherup
Treasurer Mr. M.H. Gruselle
Secretary Mrs. J. Berriman
Booking Secretary Mr. M.H. Gruselle

The 12 organisations who appoint member Trustees were requested to reconfirm their representatives for the coming year.

The following co-opted Trustees, being willing to serve, were re elected:-
Mrs. A. Pearce; Mrs. N. Smith; Mrs. R. Smith; Mrs. H. Verity; Mrs. K. Newsome; Mr. G. Hicks and Mr. M. Starr.