Minutes of ACF AGM, Civic Centre

Tuesday 16th August 2011

Present: – Wendy Farmer (Chair), Ruth Andrews, Brian Bailey, Vi Bailey, Rose Boden, Lisa Cook, Kevin Davis, David Donaldson, David Guy, Gary Hackett, Arthur Kingsley, Paula Kinsella, Sue Lane, Bob McClelland, Tony Morris, Bridget Orman, Ron Pope and Ann Seldon.

Adur D.C: – Barry Maxey and Sue Tubb.

Adur D.C. staff and councillors were invited to a social gathering before the AGM. Those attending: – Cllr. Boggis (Chairman of Adur D.C.), Cllr. Hamblin, Sue Hart, Tim Ivamy, Alex Marsh, Val Macleod, David Millard, John Mitchell, David Pannell and Charlie Strong.

1. Welcome and apologies

Wendy Farmer welcomed everyone to the meeting.

Apologies were received from Bruce Andrews, Fred Bathurst, Bill Bone, Patricia Crowdy, William Guy, Richard Letchford, Alison Morganfield, Sylvia Page and Tania Page.

2. Minutes of 2010 AGM and matters arising

The minutes were agreed.

• Ruth mentioned that AIP no longer exists.

• She also passed on a message from Bruce saying that, due to work commitments, he has not been able to spend much time working on the ACF website recently but that he will resume this once his contract finishes. Wendy acknowledged his contribution and said how much ACF members appreciate the work he has done.

3. Chair’s report

Wendy thanked all ACF members for their time, energy and support during the past year and for their continued attendance at meetings and training courses. She said there would be a lot to do in the coming year, with the emphasis likely to be on Local Offers, Resident Scrutiny and Fire Risk Assessments.

4. Secretary’s report

Bridget said she appreciated the support she has received over the past year and that the ACF would not exist without members playing their part. She thanked everyone for this and said it has been a pleasure working with them.

5. Treasurer’s report

Copies of the balance sheet to 31st July 2011 were distributed, which showed total funds of £2,365.51. Ruth said the ACF do not do much in the way of fund-raising, so she is grateful for people supporting the raffles at each meeting.
6. Changes to the ACF constitution

In the absence of Richard, Barry explained that he had submitted the following proposed amendment to clause 5.2 of the constitution: -

‘The term of office for officers, committee members and representatives shall be one year and may only serve for a maximum of three consecutive years if re- elected in the same post.’ (Amendment in bold italics)

As the constitution requires at least 28 days notice of proposed changes, Barry said this could not be voted upon at the meeting but if it is something that members wish to debate more fully, a Special General Meeting could be called for this purpose. This would require the support of at least six people.

In the discussion that followed, concerns were raised that if this proposal is adopted, it may result in a situation where there are no eligible people willing to take on the officer posts. Some also felt that this could leave the Management Committee with insufficient experience to deal with some of the issues facing the ACF. Only five people were in favour of holding a Special General Meeting to debate and vote on the proposal so, as it stands, this will not go any further at the moment.

7. Nominations for election of ACF Officers and Committee Members

Chair: Wendy Farmer proposed by Gary Hackett seconded by David Guy

There were no other nominations and Wendy was re-elected.

Vice-Chair: Paula Kinsella proposed by Ruth Andrews seconded by Bob McClelland

There were no other nominations and Paula was re-elected.

Secretary: Bridget Orman proposed by Paula Kinsella seconded by Ann Seldon

There were no other nominations and Bridget was re-elected.

Treasurer: Ruth Andrews proposed by Wendy Farmer seconded by David Guy

There were no other nominations and Ruth was re-elected.

ACF Management Committee: This committee consists of the Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer and four other full members. Nominations were: -

Kevin Davis – proposed by Wendy Famer and seconded by David Donaldson

David Guy – proposed by Tony Morris and seconded by Ron Pope

Gary Hackett – proposed by Paula Kinsella and seconded by Bridget Orman

Lisa Cook – proposed by Tony Morris and seconded by Kevin Davis

Arthur was also nominated but declined to stand, so Kevin, David, Gary and Lisa were elected.

Nominations for Overview and Scrutiny Committee rep:

David Donaldson – proposed by Sue Lane and seconded by David Guy. There were no other nominations and David was re-elected.

Compact Monitoring Group: This group is made up of tenants, leaseholders, council officers and councillors. Five tenant and leaseholder volunteers were sought.

It was agreed that Kevin Davis, Ruth Andrews, Lisa Cook, Paula Kinsella and Wendy Farmer would serve on this group.

(Rose Boden and Ron Pope agreed to act as reserves for tenants and leaseholders respectively. It was suggested they may wish to attend some meetings as observers to gain experience of the group.)

Forum: The editorial panel will consist of the following volunteers: – Bruce Andrews (wordsearch), Ruth Andrews, Rose Boden, David Donaldson, Wendy Farmer, David Guy, Gary Hackett, Paula Kinsella, Arthur Kingsley and Sue Lane.

8. Any other business

• Wendy reported that Lovell Respond are no longer carrying out the gas servicing contract and that in the meantime, BSW will be covering all of the district. David Donaldson spoke highly of BSW and the quality of their work.

• There was much discussion about the sale of the Civic Centre and questions were raised about how Adur Homes Services will keep a presence in the area. Barry suggested some council staff (though not necessarily from Adur Homes Services) may be based at the Pond Road site when it is redeveloped.

Tony said it is important to ensure that the quality of council housing in Adur is retained and that it is not allowed to be run down to put pressure on tenants to transfer to a housing association. He also thought access to Adur Councillors has deteriorated since the Housing Committee was disbanded. It was stated that council tenants and leaseholders want to keep an Adur identity and that once a local presence is lost, it may be gone forever. It was therefore agreed to send a letter to all Adur District councillors and to the Chief Executive of Adur and Worthing Councils to reflect these concerns.

• Ann reported the communal cleaners at Pashley Court having been subjected to abuse recently from a resident. Barry suggested, if they wish to take this further, they should give details of the incident to their manager/employer and ask him or her to raise it with the council’s Contract Manager.

• Lisa stated that she had obtained a lot of useful information from attending the workshops at the TPAS Conference recently and that it had been a very worthwhile event.

• The evening raffle raised £30 for ACF funds.

The date of the next meeting is 22nd September 2011 at 7.00pm at Kingsfield Close, Southwick.