Brackley & District Allotment & Garden Holders Association Ltd.
Minutes of the Committee Meeting held on Wednesday 26th November 2014 at 7.30pm at The Manor Public House, Brackley.
The Chairman opened the meeting at 7.30pm and welcomed the committee.
1) An apology for absence was received from Mike Smith.
2) Minutes of the meeting held on 24th September 2014 were circulated and it was proposed by Bob Hodson, seconded by Steve Rush and unanimously agreed that they were a true record.
(i) Paul Macer advised the committee that the Egerton church wall minor repair was imminent
and just waiting for weather conditions to improve.
(ii) From AOB of previous minutes: It was agreed by the committee at the last site inspection to
leave plot sizes as they are until such plots are vacated. Any remedial sizing will be done then.
(iii) Item 14 of previous minutes – The land was not available to us as it had already been sold.
The Chairman then signed the minutes as a true record.
3) The Chairman said that once again Rent day had been a great success and he thanked everyone
on the committee for another superb team effort. He also thanked the ladies for providing the
tea and cakes which again many members enjoyed as a social part of the proceedings. The
raffle and tool stall also did very well and made significant contributions to our funds.
It was proposed by Paul Macer, seconded by Jeremy Partis and unanimously agreed that the
Secretary should book the Town Hall again for next year.
.
4) The Treasurer gave a brief report on the Association’s financial status viz:-
The Bank balance stood at £5,965.01 at 31st October and all bills received to date have been
settled. Rent Day increased this balance to £8,678.03 This was made up of: Rents £ 2,042.50,
the raffle raised £82, tool sale £43, coffee stall £25.80, a donation of £200 from Mike
Pattinson, seed orders a net £261.28. A brilliant effort by all concerned!
I have still not received an invoice for our share of the cost of water at Cemetery site and they
have not yet replied to my email.
In summary, the Association’s financial position remains very sound.
It was proposed by Alan Styles, seconded by Mike Cook and unanimously agreed that as from
next year, any members who have not paid by the close of Rent day will be expected to post
their payment, membership card and an SAE to the Treasurer who will post the membership
card back in the SAE. This to be done within the seven days specified in Rule 11.1.
5) The committee unanimously agreed a vote of thanks to Mike Pattinson. The Chairman said
that he will write a letter of thanks to Mike, who has recently given up his plot, for all his time
and hard work as the previous Treasurer and committee member and also for the donation of
his greenhouse to the Association.
6) Update on the Church wall is as in 2(i) above.
7) The next quarterly inspection date was agreed as the 11th January 2015 to be done in reverse
order this time i.e. starting at 9 am at SPM site and finishing at the Castle.
8) AOB:
Following a request to erect a shed on an Egerton plot, the committee agreed that there is no
problem with this as long as the rules regarding sheds are complied with. (Rule 8.6 applies).
A vote was taken regarding the termination of Jim Adams’ Castle plot tenancy. The result was
7 for, 1 against and 1 abstention to continue with this course of action and that the Secretary
shall write to Jim advising him that he still has to vacate his plot by the end of the year.
It was agreed that the Secretary and the Castle reps would draft a letter to Mr Carl Maggs
about the tardy clearance of his plot and also to try and come to an agreement about the
disposal of his greenhouse.
It was unanimously agreed by the committee that if the council use the old Piggeries site as
new allotments for the town we would not be prepared to take on the administration of that
site.
It was proposed by Colin Wills and seconded by Mike Cook that the Town Council be
approached with regard to the compulsory purchase of the land adjacent to the Castle site,
owned by Mr Rayner.
It was proposed by Jeremy Partis, seconded by Paul Macer and agreed by the committee that a
letter should be sent to our MP Andrea Leadsom regarding the allotments situation in
Brackley and ask if she can help.
It was agreed that the Secretary keep note of a motion for the next AGM regarding a common
standard for any new sheds that are erected on the sites in an effort to try and improve the
appearance of our sites.
The Secretary also put forward a suggestion that association funds be used to try and improve
the Castle site roadway so that it can be made useable for more of the year especially during
the wet weather period when members would be more likely to want to transport manure etc
on to their plots. This was left for committee members to ponder on for the time being.
Next meeting:- It was agreed that we would arrange the next meeting at a suitable time in the
new year.
There being no further business, the Chairman thanked the Committee for attending and closed the meeting at 9.00 pm.
Website: www.brackleyallotments.btck.co.uk
Email: