Canoeing Victoria Annual General Meeting for 2006

Canoeing Victoria Annual General Meeting for 2006

Sunday 5 November 2006

Fairfield Canoe Club

9 The Esplanade, Fairfield

MINUTES OF MEETING

1. Meeting Opened:

The meeting opened at

The agenda was distributed to all attendees.

2. Present:

Gary Flanigan / President / Canoeing Victoria
Tom Hirrschoff / Chair / Canoeing Victoria
Geoff Hindle / Board Member / Canoeing Victoria
Ross Stevens / Board Member / Canoeing Victoria
Andrea Boothroyd / Co-Executive Officer / Canoeing Victoria
Sharon Swoboda / Co-Executive Officer / Canoeing Victoria
Joe Alia / Delegate / Fairfield Canoe Club
Michael Kane / Delegate / Fairfield Canoe Club
Robert Schram / Delegate / Cobram Barooga Canoe Club
John Wiseman / Delegate / Cobram Barooga Canoe Club
Roy Farrance / Delegate / Canoes Plus Racing Team
Eric Davidson / Delegate / Sherbrooke Knox Canoe Club
Brian Cooper / Delegate / Melbourne Canoe Club
Mark Cronan / Delegate / Kirrinari Canoe Club
Margaret Buck / Club Member / Fairfield Canoe Club
Neil Grierson / Club Member / Fairfield Canoe Club

The Chair thanked those present for their attendance, and thanked Fairfield Canoe Club for providing the venue and facilities for the AGM.

3. Apologies:

Ron Burke, Board Member, Canoeing Victoria

Richard Howard, Board Member, Canoeing Victoria

Richard Lawrence, Board Member, Canoeing Victoria

Mark Murray, Board Member, Canoeing Victoria

Glen Rose, Sherbrook Knox Canoe Club

Graeme Bowes, Geelong Canoe Club

Bendigo Canoe Club

Deniliquin Canoe Club

The Chair apologised to the Geelong Canoe Club for scheduling the AGM on the same day as one of the club’s major events (the Bridge to Bridge marathon race).

4. Minutes of the Previous Meeting:

The minutes of the previous meeting were distributed to all attendees.

Motion: That the minutes of the previous AGM be accepted as a fair and true view of the previous meeting.

Moved: Michael Kane

Seconded: John Wiseman

The motion was accepted.

5. The Canoeing Victoria Board:

The Chair informed the meeting that, since its formation in April 2006, the Board, with the support of the Canoeing Victoria Administration, has already made significant changes to the ways in which Canoeing Victoria operates, particularly in the areas of strategic direction, financial management and office efficiency. The Chair thanked the Board for its work to date.

6. Annual Report 2005/06:

The Annual Report was distributed to all attendees.

President’s Report

The President thanked the delegates for attending the AGM, and thanked the Board for its work to date.

The President highlighted three main areas in which the Board has achieved significant financial savings for Canoeing Victoria, namely:

· Ross Stevens’ work in assisting Canoeing Victoria’s auditors,

· the Board’s fundraising efforts by conducting BBQs at Bunnings Stores, and

· the Co-Executive Officers efforts over the year, especially to achieve a balanced Administration budget.

The President acknowledged the positive mix and range of Board Members skills, and emphasized that one of the longer term aims of the Board was to make Canoeing Victoria less dependent on Government funding.

The President gave an overview of the response (to date) from other states and from the Canoeing Victoria Board to the Australian Sports Commission (ASC) review into canoeing in Australia. (Refer to later section in Minutes).

Financial Report

The Chair acknowledge the time and effort of Ross Stevens, Sandra Reaburn (CV Bookkeeper) and the Co-Executive Officers to develop and implement financial management and reporting processes that have resulted in significant cost savings for Canoeing Victoria. He also acknowledged the Board’s efforts towards implementing procedures to enhance the financial accountability of the Discipline Technical Committees.

Ross Stevens (a chartered accountant with significant audit experience) presented the financial report. Ross explained that Canoeing Victoria’s financial accounts have been restructured and that he has introduced a better (easier to understand) financial recording system and tighter financial controls.

In his report, Ross highlighted several adjustments made in the 2005/06 accounts that resulted from his review of the previous two years audits, and noted that Canoeing Victoria has cleared its outstanding debt to Australian Canoeing.

During discussions, it was noted that the classification “Donations” would be better labeled as “State Team Support”.

Motion: That the 2005/06 Financial Report be accepted.

Moved: Roy Farrance.

Seconded: Eric Davidson

The motion was accepted.

Executive Officer’s Report

Sharon Swoboda presented the Executive Officer’s report, and highlighted that the focus of the office was on:

· establishing a sound financial base for the office/administration,

· assisting disciplines, clubs and members.

Sharon thanked the Board for their time and support during what has been a very busy and challenging year.

Motion: That the 2005/06 Executive Officer’s Report be accepted.

Moved: Roy Farrance.

Seconded: Mark Cronan

The motion was accepted.

Motion: That Canoeing Victoria’s Annual Report 2005/06 be accepted.

Moved: Michael Kane

Seconded: John Wiseman.

The motion was accepted.

The Chair noted that the Annual Report including Financial Statements would be available on the Canoeing Victoria website shortly after the meeting.

7. Whitewater Stadium

The Chair acknowledge the efforts over many years of Max Parsons in developing and promoting a proposal for a whitewater stadium in Victoria. Roy Farrance presented an update on the current status of the proposal. The response from the State Government is very positive, and also from the Melbourne City Council following a presentation a few weeks ago. The Council has given approval for a site-specific feasibility study to be conducted. The current proposed site is the Docklands in Melbourne. Public support is now extremely important and attendees were encouraged to support it. Details on how to support the proposal can be found on the Canoeing Victoria website.

8. Life Membership

No nominations for life membership were received.

9. Australian Sports Commission Report on the Review into Canoeing in Australia:

The President stated that the Board is planning to host a series of open forums in Melbourne and key regional locations to further canvas members’ opinions in order for the Board to develop a formal response to the recommendations contained in the review. Members will be informed of dates/locations for the forums, and of the process for submissions shortly. The response is due by the end of November 2006.

The Chair thanked attendees for their comments today.

10. General Business:

Insurance:

· Age limits – At the last AGM, clarification was requested on any age limits imposed by the AC insurance policy.

Action: Co-Executive Officers to follow up with AC on insurance age limits and reply to attendees.

· Certificate of Currency – Andrea Boothroyd confirmed that AC has negotiated and renewed its public liability insurance and that a new certificate of currency would be sent to clubs early next week (if not already sent).

Action: Co-Executive Officers to follow up with AC on Certificate of Currency and ensure it is sent to clubs early next week.

11. Volunteer of the Year Awards:

Sharon Swoboda announced the Volunteer of the Year Awards:

– Volunteer of the Year – Glenrose Rose, Sherbrooke Knox Canoe Club

– Coach of the Year – Dita Pahl, Canoes Plus Racing Team

– Committee Member of the Year – Roger Birchall, Essendon Canoe Club

– Junior Supporter of the Year – Robert Schram, Cobram Barooga Canoe Club.

Details on their achievements are available on the Canoeing Victoria website.

12. Meeting Close:

The meeting closed at 1.10 p.m.

AGMMinutes06 Last modified 6/11/06 Page 2 of 4