Minutes of an Extraordinary General Meeting
Held on 30th March at 8.30pm
Present
- Jill Field
- Linda Pullan
- Linda Briars
- Lucy Benton
- Tunja Stone (Chair)
- Tamsin Stone
- Mary Johnson
- Kitty Webber (minutes)
- Maureen Smith
- Maureen Webber
- Sally Kerr
Apologies for absence
Apologies had been received from: Nicky Coombes, Jacqueline Barclay, Amanda McEntaggart, Christine Chambers, Jenny Chaplin and Ayer Djengiz.
Chairperson's Introduction
The Chair welcomed those present and explained that this meeting was necessary to elect a committee and to complete other business held over from the AGM on the 18th January 2000.
Election of Officers
Tunja Stone having been elected as Chair at the AGM held in January, the nominations for the remaining posts on the Committee were:
| Post: | Nominee: | Proposer: | Seconder: |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secretary | Maureen Webber | N Coombes | M Smith |
| Treasurer | Jenny Chaplin | T Stone | N Coombes |
| Committee | M Smith | N Coombes | A McEntaggart |
| Committee | N Coombes | A McEntaggart | J Barclay |
| Committee | Mary Johnson | M Smith | Maureen Webber |
| Committee | Fiona Bonham | M Smith | Maureen Webber |
A question was raised from the floor regarding the eligibility of parents to be nominated for the Committee. The Chair confirmed that this was allowed by the Constitution.
There being no further nominations, the nominations for the Officers and Committee were approved en-bloc.
Changes to the Constitution
To introduce this topic, the Chair, noted that changes to the Constitution were necessary to bring the Association into line with the current recommendations of the NCMA. One benefit of the revised constitutions is that it meets the requirements of registration by the charity Commissioners. Future registration as a Charitable Organisation may be beneficial when applying for grants.
Copies of the proposed constitution, with explanatory notes provided by the NCMA, were circulated to those present at the meeting.
There followed a discussion on the differences between the current constitution dating from 1986 and the current newer revised NCMA constitution. These differences were covered section by section with discussion on all relevant details. The following topics received particular attention:
Tenure of Officers
There was a lengthy discussion on the period of tenure for committee members and it was then unanimously agreed this should for a period of six years. Nominations to continue as previously.
Committee Meetings
There will be a minimum of three committee meetings per year as detailed in the new constitution.
AGM Agenda
Proposals for discussion at future AGM's must be submitted to the secretary at least 28 days before, to enable them to be included on the agenda and received by childminders 21 days before an AGM as specified in the new constitution.
Group Name
It was decided by the meeting to retain the group name as the Leighton Buzzard Childminding Association.
Financial reports
Details of spending will now be raised at all meetings as recommended in the constitution and the financial year will continue to end on December the 31st.
The revised constitution, with further revisions as noted above, was approved by the meeting. Four master copies of the constitution were signed by the Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.
Any Other Business
Treasurer's Report 1999. The treasurers report for the year ending 31st December 1999 had been prepared by Heather Taylor who had also kindly updated all of the outstanding accounting figures. It was noted that the outgoing committee had only left the sum of £54 in the current account. The accounts were approved by those childminders who were present.
First AidTraining The LBCMA setting up its own first aid course was discussed and considered to be a good idea. Several names were also collected of childminders who would be interested in attending such a course.
Vacancies. The lack of success of the CIS in filling childminding vacancies was brought to the attention of the new committee. Those present expressed a desire for the committee to solve this problem of a lack of children.
Grant Application A grant for £420 was submitted to the local town council in March. (Note: Unfortunately we have since heard our application was unsuccessful.)
LBCMA Website The web launch was discussed and the date agreed was the 9th May.
There being no other business the meeting closed at 10.15pm. However our host invited us to stay longer, supping on an excellent wine or drinking homemade fruit punch (non alcoholic) and munching an assortment of tasty snacks. Thank you Maureen. Can we come again please?
