NRA Adjourned AGM Notes

[HeatherW762]

Notes on the NRA Meeting held on 15th June 2012

As most members will know, the AGM has been officially adjourned until Saturday 30th June at 8.30 pm in order that as many members as possible will be able to attend. Nevertheless, the Chairman gave those members who attended on 15th the opportunity to ask questions and make their views known at the meeting. Since it was not a formal meeting, minutes were not taken but these notes describe the topics discussed.

Accounts
The delay in the accounts was as a result of the need to change the auditors after the previous auditors stepped down. The time to get up to speed and the fact that there have been changes in the accounts staff and therefore some loss of knowledge around the systems in place meant that it took longer than previously expected to produce the accounts for sign off.

Communication
Many members made comments that the NRA does not keep the members informed as well as they might and this actually creates more rumours and problems. The Association was encouraged to be more open about its current situation (including maintenance, accounts and recruitment). This may need to encompass social media (particularly Facebook and Twitter) as well as through the more traditional website and by email. Comments were also made with regards to the Journal, which is generally seen as inferior to its predecessor and some members felt the NRA's recent tone in communications was not appropriate. The Chairman accepted these comments and promised that the Association would work harder to improve communications.

NRA Vouchers
Several members asked questions with regards to vouchers and their expiry dates. The Chairman explained that this had been raised with the Trustees and for a number of reasons, there has been a need to change how the NRA issues vouchers and for what purposes. It has become clear that vouchers cannot be given out as payment in kind because tax and National Insurance must be paid by the NRA and by the recipient. Further, vouchers have generally been issued with an expiry date and those dates need to be enforced to ensure that they can be accounted for. As part of these changes however, voucher expiry dates will be standardised on a 12 month expiration date from the date of issue.

Imperial Meeting
Whilst it was noted that there has been some loss of institutional knowledge with the departure of a number of members of staff, the NRA is confident that the meeting will run as usual. Entries for the meeting currently stand at around 1100 and are in line with previous years. The recent wet weather has prevented some areas of the ranges from being mown, but the NRA is confident that this will be resolved in time for the meeting. The urgency to check out firing points and ensure they are in good condition has been stressed and recognised by staff.

Ablutions
A number of comments were made regarding the state of ablutions. It was reported that the number of staff employed to clean the ablutions had been increased and extra staff would be working on this during the Imperial meeting.

New Chief Executive
Members were told that the Trustees were at an advanced stage in the selection process for a permanent Chief Executive. It was confirmed that the recent sign-off by Derrick Mabbott as Chief Executive (not acting) was made in error.

Coaching Courses
The Chairman highlighted a significant increase in the number of training courses being run, especially for training RCOs given the availability of a subsidy from Sport England.

Robin Pizer
Chairman

[dodgyrog]

Interesting that the final note is at variance with experience. It has been impossible to book a Club Coach course recently 'pending recruitment of a new membership and training manager'.

[HeatherW762]

That's not the only course we do!

Heather