Hullavington Village Hall Management

Committee

Minutes of Hullavington Village Hall Management Committee Meeting

held on

Wednesday 6^th January 2010

PRESENT:  Bob Fenner, David Hunt, Paul Hadley, Roger Gee, Nick Fry, Julian Greenman,  Liz Parry-Williams, Peter Parry-Williams, Joan Shaw

 1.    Apologies: Anna Durrant, Rachel Hurst, Fraser Haffenden, Alan Henson

2.    Minutes of the last meeting held on 4^th November 2009 were reviewed and signed.

3.    Matters arising:  There were none.

4.    Financial matters

4.1.  Roger presented, and commented on, the current financial report as of 31st December 2009.  He reported that the annual income predicted by the end of the current financial year at 31^st March 2010 might be less than the £15,900 figure budgeted

4.2.  The general trend of the hall’s finances is satisfactory

4.3.  Roger reported that the CAF Fixed Interest Bond was due to mature in February 2010 and that he needed the committee’s advice as to what to do with the £15,000 (plus interest) on its maturity.  Roger also pointed out the very low interest rate currently being earned by the CASF Deposit Account and also sought the committee’s guidance about what to do with these funds.

It was decided to delay decisions about these investment matters until the “AOB” agenda item of the current meeting.  Several other agenda items had financial implications that need to be considered before future investment decisions and policy could be decided.

4.4  Re-evaluation of annual Lease Rental Payment to the PCC:  Nick Fry (PCC Representative) will remind the PCC that it is their responsibility to present to the hall management committee a request for an annual variation in the Lease Rental payments (based on the annual RPI figure) made by the committee to the PCC.  In practice, because the RPI figure for the end of December is not published well into January the PCC cannot put in a request for a variation in Lease Rental payments until later in January.

4.5  Late, or very late, rental payments:  Two cases were reported and discussed.

·         The Treasurer reported that Line Dancing owed £52.50 for use of hall during November 2009.  Bob reported that he was dealing directly with this matter and that Tina Fletcher had claimed that she had paid the rental, although on several previous occasions the Treasurer reported that no payment had been received.  This non-payment appears to be due to administrative errors on the part of the hirer rather than devious attempts to avoid payment.

·         The very overdue payment rental payment for £382 covering Splash Dance’s use of the hall from September to December 2009 was discussed.  The conclusions and decisions of the committee are recorded at minute (5.4)

4.6    It was proposed that the hall committee make a donation of £63 to Mount Zion Church to cover the cost of the rental of the village hall on Friday 4^th December 2009 when Mount Zion provided the Christmas Dinner for village residents.

5.    Hall bookings update

5.1.  New bookings – None reported

5.2.  The concert in the hall to be put on by the Chippenham Light Opera Group (CLOGS) on Friday 21^st May 2010.  The committee supported this proposal even though it meant that the regular Dog Training Class would have to be “bumped”. If successful this event could raise more funds for the hall than would be gained through applying the normal hiring rates.  ACTION – BOB TO LIAISE AND PROGRESS

5.3.  2010 national and local elections.  The Wiltshire Council Electoral Office has now formally requested the use of the hall on Thursday 6^th May 2010 for elections.  The committee agreed to this use and the subsequent “bumping” of regular hall users on that date – on the basis of major community interest.

5.4.  Proposal to ban Splash Dance from future use of the hall because of persistent very late rental payments.  A long and details discussion took place on this matter.  In the end it was accepted that Charlotte Henson should be given one last chance, with the following provisos:

5.4.1. That Paul Hadley would meet Charlotte Henson at the hall on the date of her first use of the hall in 2010 on 12^th January and explain to her the extreme seriousness of the situation she is in, and how close she came to being an “ex-hall user”.

5.4.2. That Charlotte Henson would from now on be required to settle her rental payments on a “month in arrears” rather than on a “term in arrears” basis.

ACTION – PAUL TO LIAISE WITH CHARLOTTE HENSON

6.    Current Temporary Event Notice Applications.  No new ones reported for 2010, although one would probably be needed for the next RAW event (see item 7 below) and possibly for the CLOGS concert (see item 5.2 above).

7.    Hall related social events

7.1.  Next RAW event.  This will be on Saturday 10^th April and will be a dance performance. ACTION – ANNA DURRANT/THE COMMITTEE TO MAKE DETAILED PLANS AND ARRANGEMENTS.

8.    Reports and Updates

8.1.  Bob reported on the successful completion of Stage 1 of the audio-visual upgrade - the installation of the Surround Sound System.  Initial trails suggest that there is a marked improvement in the sound quality from the new equipment that has been installed.

8.2.  A new front door lock had been fitted and duplicates keys issued to core users.

9.    Quotation received for work on the tarmac in the car park to deal with water pooling.  A quotation for £5,790 (before VAT) had been received from Coatstone Surfacing.  The quotation appeared to be based on very thorough proposals.  The ideas put forward by Frank Birlison were discussed.  It was decided that a second quotation should be obtained from another operator. 

ACTION - BOB TO CONTACT A SERVICE PROVIDER RECOMMENDED BY WILLIAM HARMER.

10.  Minor projects and repairs

10.1.    Clean up and paint the external porch area: Roger Parnaby in the village has expressed an interest in carrying out this work and will provide a quotation in March/April 2010 – when he has returned fro travelling and when the weather is better.

10.2.    Clean the fascia and soffit boards and treat with anti-fungal liquid:  Wayne Morris, a window cleaner in the village, has indicated that he would be interested in providing a quotation for carrying out this work. 

10.3.    Internal decoration:  Committee members were asked to put forward their proposals for any internal decorating that they thought needed carrying out during 2010.  ACTION – COMMITTEE MEMBERS TO PROPOSE DECORATING WORK

11.  AOB

11.1.    Paul Hadley to progress action of presenting bottles of wine for Alan Jones.

11.2.    Paul Hadley reminded the meeting of the Area Board Meeting to be held in the village hall on Monday 11^th January. (This meeting was subsequently cancelled due to bad weather)

11.3.    Flickering fluorescent lights were reported in the foyer.  Peter P-W outlined a proposal for replacing all fluorescent lights in the hall with LED/Polymer LED ones. An expensive outlay but one that would result in major savings in electricity costs and bulb longevity. Perhaps a grant could be obtained to cover part of the cost.  More research needed.

11.4.    Peter P-W reminded that the floor is now in urgent need of cleaning and re-surfacing.  Dates around half-term in February or during the Easter period would be sought.

11.5.    Investment proposal:  Following discussion it was agreed that the Treasurer would take out for a further six months a Fixed Interest Term Bond with CAF for £20,000.  This would comprise £15,000 from the existing bond and £5,000 from the CAF Deposit Account.

11.6.    It was confirmed that the gates to the car park were locked during the Christmas period: 25^th-26^th December 2009 to comply with the requirements of the Lease and Trust Deed

11.7.    Bob reported on a thank-you card he had received from Andrew Evans in recognition for the book token the committee had given him on his recent departure from Hullavington.

12.  Date of next meeting Wednesday 3^rd March 2010.

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