AREA NOTICES
NORTHERN AREA MEMBERSHIP NUMBERS AS AT1ST APRIL 2015
CELEBRATION OF THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN
This year sees the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain and the RAF Association is leading the Nation’s thanks to the brave men and women involved. To honour those involved the Northern Area will be holding two concerts in the north of England, the first of these will be at 19:30 hrs on 5 June at Durham Cathedral. This concert features the Band of the Royal Air Force College, (the band plays by permission of the Air Force Board of the Defence Council). Tickets are available from the Northern Area Office by e-mail one 01772 426930, or mail 1-4 Sterling Court, Leyland, Preston PR25 3GR. Details of an additional concert to be held in Liverpool will follow shortly.
NORTHERN AREA COUNCIL MEMBERS 2015-2017
PresidentAir Commodore H R Corney OBE BA
Vice-PresidentMr J H Allison BEM
Vice-PresidentMr M J Watkins
ChairmanMr J H Allison BEM
Vice-ChairmanMr B W Murphy
Central Council Member for the Northern Area –Mr M A Clulow
Deputy Central Council member for the Northern Area – Mr M J Watkins
Council Members –
Mr M J Blackman
Mrs J A Boothman
Mr T Feeley
Mr J Froggatt
Mr S Graham
Mr V VJones
2015 NORTHERN AREA CONFERENCE, 13TH- 15TH MARCH 2015
Branch members from all over the Northern Area descended on Blackpool for the new and revamped Northern Area Conference. The conference was very well attended with over 100 delegates representing 36 Branches.
The guests of honour during the weekend were the Lord Mayor of Blackpool, Councillor Val Haynes and the Deputy Mayor Councillor Chris Ryan and their partners. Other honorary guests and VIPs included the Station Commander from RAF Fylingdales, Wg Cdr David Keighley MA, Secretary General of the RAF Association, Mr Nick Bunting, Mr David Prowse, Director for Membership and Operations at Leicester and Dr Bryan Pattison OBE, Vice-Chairman of Central Council.
With the traditional formal opening ceremony completed it was time for official conference business to begin and Saturday saw presentations by Wg Cdr Keighley (seen here taking a conference “selfie”), the Royal Air Force Today and RAFA Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow by the Secretary General of the RAF Association, Nick Bunting.
In a break from tradition Friday evening featured entertainment from comedian Bob Lawrence and Saturday’s evening entertainment began with the Reunion Dinner and performances from GI Joe and Heather and Flt Lt Matthew Little.
The weekend proved to be a resounding success and we received extremely positive feedback such as “Best Conference Ever!!”
NORTHERN AREA CONFERENCE AWARDS & PRESENTATIONS
AREA TROPHY WINNERS
Congratulations to the following Branches on being awarded the following trophies:-
TROPHYBRANCH
Highest Wings Appeal Collection Per Head / OrmskirkHighest Gross Wings Appeal Collection / Erewash
Highest Wings Appeal Collection ATC Unit / 1224 (Wharfedale) Sqn ATC
Runner-Up Wings Appeal Collection ATC Unit / 473 (Hartelpool) Sqn ATC
Membership Recruitment Trophy Full & Associate / Birkenhead
Increased Membership – Branches without a Club / Oldham
Increased Membership for Branches with a Club / Birkenhead
Branch Efficiency for Branches with over 150 Members / Newcastle
Branch Efficiency for Branches with fewer than 150 Members / Ryedale
JUNIOR STANDARD BEARER COMPETITION
Saturday afternoon saw an extremely high calibre of ATC cadets from North Manchester (1832) Sqn, Woolton (2359) Sqn, Knotty Ash (1913) Sqn, Huyton (1982) Sqn and Northwich (146) Sqn taking part in this increasingly popular competition.
The competition proved to be very close indeed, however our congratulations go to Sgt Benjamin Barnshaw from North Manchester (1832) Sqn for taking first place.
YOUNG PERSON OF THE YEAR 2014
The winner of the 2014 Young Person of the Year competition was Sgt Anna Culshaw from the Ruthin (1918) Sqn.
Congratulations go to Anna on winning this much deserved and prestigious award.
Anna is seen here being presented with her trophy by Wg Cdr Keighley, Station Commander from RAF Fylingdales.
If you would like further information on how your Branch can nominate either a Junior Standard Bearer of the Year or Young Person of the Year please e-mail or alternatively please telephone 01772 426930 option 2.
Pictures from the 2015 Northern Area Conference are available for purchase at the following link:-
HELP SHAPE THE ASSOCIATION’S RULES, REGULATIONS AND BYELAWS
As reported in the January issue of Air Mail, the group set up by Central Council to ensure that the Association’s Rules, Regulations and Byelaws are ‘fit for purpose’ is looking for submissions.
The Governance Task and Finish Group, chaired by Dr Bryan Pattison, Vice-Chairman of Central Council has two objectives: to examine and comment on the Rules, Regulations and Byelaws of the Association and produce recommendations suitable for debate by Council, which can then be recommended to Conference 2016.
The group will make recommendations following a three phase approach. The first is evidence gathering, to which all members are encouraged to contribute. The second phase is deliberation, reporting and recommending amendments to Council. The third phase will be consultation with Areas and Branches on these recommendations.
The first two phases will be carried out this year, with the final submission to Council being circulated for discussion at Area Conferences in February 2016. Any necessary resolutions will be submitted to Conference 2016.
If you would like to make a submission to the group, you can email:
or write to:
Rules Review Group
FREEPOST NEA 15647
117 ½ Loughborough Road
Leicester
LE4 5ND
This is your chance to influence the Association’s Rules, Regulations and Byelaws for the benefit of members and our welfare beneficiaries, so please do take the opportunity to have your say.
ANNUAL SERVICE OF REMEMBRANCE AND DEDICATION OF MEMORIALS 2015
Every year the RAF Association, along with service families and local branches, celebrates the lives of those RAF personnel past and present honoured in our Garden of Remembrance based at the National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas, Staffordshire. This year’s annual Service of Remembrance and Dedication of Memorials to be held on Friday 19th June 2015.
Royal Air Force personnel and their families dedicate their lives to the service of their country. Sometimes they pay the ultimate sacrifice in service, while some succumb to illness and others pass away in the fullness of time, leaving behind comrades, friends and their loved ones.
The service will honour all of those remembered in our garden and will dedicate the crosses and stones placed in the Remembrance Garden during 2014/15
Details of the service are as follows:
Location: RAF Association Remembrance Garden
National Memorial Arboretum
Alrewas
Staffordshire
DE13 7AR
Date:Friday 19th June 2015, 10:30 to 13:00 approx
If you have any questions regarding the event, please contact Vinny Manak on 0116 268 8791 or email
VOLUNTEERING UPDATE
We have been busy over the last month progressing with the Pilot, to recruit five new Caseworkers in the South East, working on the Recognition Policy for all volunteers and working on the plans for Annual Conference.
A report recommending ways to recognise our volunteers, will be submitted to Central Council on 18 April. We want to be able to credit your tireless work, as well as make plans for how we will thank new volunteers joining the team, alongside you. From the feedback we have gathered so far from you, we appreciate that many of you desire no recognition and a simple and genuine ‘thank you’ is enough. However, we want to be able to suggest to Areas and Branches a range of ways they can thank and recognise their volunteers. Examples include: certificates for Cadets, thank you cards for volunteers who you know will appreciate it and Area/regional celebrations to help welcome new volunteers. It will be down to individual Areas and Branches to decide what would work best for their volunteers.
At the Area Reunion for Wales, Midlands and South Western Areas, in Torquay on 21 March we ran a workshop and met many active and enthusiastic members. Thank you for all the comments, suggestions and questions about how we take volunteering forward over the next year. We hope all of your respective Area Conferences and Reunions were enjoyable, whichever one you attended, and that you are looking forward to Annual Conference, where we will meet many more of you, next month and share some of our work with you.
A word cloud created by members at the Wales, Midlands and South Western Area Reunion. ‘Why do you volunteer?’
I’ve been speaking to some of you recently and a couple of the more common questions I have been asked by members include:
‘Will the new volunteers we are recruiting become members?’ The answer to this is ‘We hope so!’ We will certainly be asking our volunteers if they would like to be members, at an appropriate point in their volunteer journey and after they have completed their induction and training. We want to grow our membership as well as the number of people that volunteer for us and appreciate the fact that so many of you are keen to help us do this. One of the ways you can help is to make new volunteers feel welcome, part of the RAF family and a valued part of the Branch.
‘Can you help me find volunteers for my Branch?’ We can help you to try and find volunteers for your Branch. We are developing role profiles and forms so you can seek help with recruitment. Any interested volunteers will then be pointed in your direction and then it will be up to you to induct, train and welcome them. Contact Katharine Montgomery on or on 0116 268 8794 if you need help with finding volunteers.
REVISED SOFA FIGURES – Please find attached to this Newsletter the revised Statement of Financial Activities for the Northern Area (SOFA) for period ending 31st December 2014. These replace those featured within the Northern Area Annual Review due to a calculation error, please accept our apologies for this.
NORTHERN AREA LADIES TANDEM TOUR 2015 – UPDATE
We had a short break in training to attend The Northern Area Conference in Blackpool, we of course took the bike with us for members to have a look and raise funds and awareness of our trek. Thanks you for those members and Branches that sponsored us. Training started again and we have upped our on the road training to two days per week now so if you come across two ladies laughing their way along the long lanes of Lancashire please give us a quick toot and don’t forget to sponsor us!
If you don’t already know there are several ways of showing your support you could send a cheque to the Northern Area Office made payable to RAFA, using the link below or you could text NLTT75 with £1, £2, £3, £5 or £10 to 70070.
We thank you for your support!
DONATIONS:- We would like to thank Doncaster Branch for the following donations:-
£250.00 to Richard Peck House
£250.00 to Rothbury House
PONTEFRACT BRANCH & CLUB SOCIAL NIGHT – The Pontefract Branch is hosting a “Fish & Chip Night” on Saturday 18th April 2015 at 2030 hours at the Pontefract RAF Vulcan Club. The evening is open to all and will be featuring entertainment by Andy Lloyd a 50’s & 60’s vocalist and the usual game of Bingo.
Tickets are priced at £4.00, for further information please contact the club secretary Colin Willock on 01977 701780.
DATES FOR THE DIARY 2015
2nd-3rd MayMorecambe Carnival, Morecambe
23rd MayLlandudno Air Show, Llandudno
5th June RAFA 75th Anniversary Battle of Britain Concert , Durham Cathedral
19th JuneAnnual Service of Remembrance & Dedication of Memorials 2015,
National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas, Staffordshire
19th-20th JuneWhitehaven Air Show, Whitehaven, Cumbria
27th JuneNational Armed Forces Day
6th JulyTynwald Show, Isle of Man
25th JulySunderland Air Show, Sunderland
9th-10th AugustBlackpool Air Show, Blackpool
14th - 17th AugustWhitby Regatta, Whitby
15th – 16th AugustLytham 1940s Weekend, Lytham
27th AugustFamilies Day, RAF Boulmer
7th – 12th SeptemberNorthern Area Ladies Tandem Cycling Tour
19th SeptemberBradford Branch 75th Anniversary Battle of Britain Ball, Midland Hotel
19th SeptemberScarborough Branch 70th Anniversary Dinner
19th – 20th SeptemberSouthport Air Show
26th SeptemberRAFA 75th Anniversary Battle of Britain Concert, Liverpool Anglican
Cathedral
Attachments:-
- Revised SOFA figures
- Veterans Knee & Hip Surgery Leaflet
- Turn to Starboard Poster
- Union Jack Club Offer Poster
- London Eye Offer Poster
To contact us, please use one of the following methods:
By Letter:
The Royal Air Forces Association
Northern Area Headquarters and Leyland Office
Sterling Court, Offices 1-4
Leyland Business Park, Leyland, PR25 3GR
Tel: 01772 426930
Email:
Website:
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