Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Photographic Collectors Club of Great Britain held at the Three Swans Hotel Market Harborough on Sunday October 21st 2012 at 10.30 am.
Present:- Ian Baxter (Chairman), David Balfour (Treasurer), George Schoenmann(Secretary). and 49 members as shown on the signatures on the attendance sheet. (NB. Many people may not have signed the sheet)
Apologies:- Apologies have been received from Neville Wilson: G.B.Spence: John Stannard: John Lewis: Tim Campbell: Anne and Mike Kinder: John Pearce: Bob Lindsay:
Minutes of last Annual General Meeting;- These had been printed in Tailboard, and it was proposed by David Woodrow, and seconded by Jonathan Hill that they be accepted. This was unanimously agreed.
Matters Arising:- Danielle Wilberforce-Eke asked why no apologies were mentioned in these minutes, and the Treasurer and Secretary apologised for this omission.
Chairman's Report;- A printed report had been sent to all members.
Treasurer's Report;- This had been covered in detail in the October issue of Tailboard under the heading of Club Finances, and David added that it had been a good year for membership numbers, in so far that the rate of decline had slowed, and also that the Club's income was satisfactory. The expenses incurred however were more worrying. The main area of concern are the postal costs. The increase shown in the accounts only reflect 3 months at the new rates, and for a whole year the increase would be fourfold. He also explained why the administration costs were unusually high, due to an extra committee meeting being held during last year. He said that we must deal with the resolutions on the Agenda.
Resolution 1. It was unanimously agreed to accept the Reports and Accounts.
Resolution 2. In order that all proxy votes should be taken into account in deciding this important issue the Chairman called for a poll, and before voting took place, members were invited to make comments. There were many suggestions of ways the Club might save money to avoid the rescheduling of Photographica World, but many had already been considered, and none were considered to provide a practical or feasible alternative to the resolution. After much discussion, Ian said that we must come to a decision, and the vote was taken. The resolution was carried by a majority of 119 in favour to 22 against.
Resolution 3. Because resolution 2 had been carried, it was not necessary to consider resolution 3.
Resolution 4.With the exception of Vic Rumak, who was standing down, all the existing Officers agreed to continue their duties, and so were re-elected en bloc.In the absence of any candidate to replace Vic, the post of Photographica Chairman remains vacant. The Chairman offered thanks to Vic Rumak for his work in organising Photographica for the past several years, and hoped his input would still be available to the Photographica sub-committee, who are all continuing.
Any Other Business;- David Woodrow proposed a vote of thanks to all the officers of the club for the work they do in keeping the club running, all of which is voluntary and unpaid. He also suggested that people who have web-sites, could have a link to the club's. David Balfour mentioned the letter the committee had received suggesting that the entrance fee for members of the public to Photographica should be doubled to help decrease the club's deficit, but Wally Morley was not in favour of this, as whilst it may be successful for one year, it would be disastrous in the future. A member had suggested to David Balfour that there could be a space for Additional Voluntary Contributions from Members on the renewal forms, if anyone felt inclined to make donations to the club. Don Baldwin said we should try to attract younger members by offering reduced rates for students, and send our leaflets to Universities and colleges. He also felt we should have a Facebook presence. This should be dealt with by the committee.
The meeting close at 11.30 am