MINUTES OF THE YCBA MANAGEMENT
COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON WEDNESDAY 26 AUGUST 2009 COMMENCING AT 7.15 P.M. AT
THE HOLIDAY INN, GARFORTH.
PRESENT: P G Mason (Chair), G
L Millet (Treasurer), S Davies, A Dean, P Godfrey, I
Rodger and D Waxman
On opening the meeting the Chairman welcomed Julia
Staniforth and Alan Dean to their first formally convened management committee
meeting.
1)
Apologies
The apologies of Janet Latham (Assistant Secretary)
were received.
2)
Minutes of the Meetings held on Friday 19 June 2009
The minutes of the Management Committee meeting were
agreed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman. The minutes of the AGM
and Council meeting on the same day were agreed as correct to present for
signature to the next meetings.
3)
Matters Arising from the Minutes of the Council
Meeting
Item
5 – Report on the Northern Counties League
The Vice-Chair reported that the
4) Secretary’s Report/Update on Affiliated
Clubs for 2010/2011
The Secretary proposed that the Treasurer provided
the update on affiliated clubs as she was in receipt of the latest information.
The Secretary reported on the receipt of the annual
EBU voucher. It was agreed that Stuart
Davies be awarded this for his work as Tournament and Yorkshire League
Secretary.
Arrangements were being made with the webmaster to
establish an archive of minutes and results on the website for additional
access. Alan Dean offered to assist the
webmaster if help was required with this.
5) Treasurer’s Report
The Treasurer spoke to her written report and the
following issues were raised;
a) Current Financial Position – This was satisfactory
in spite of considerable expenditure and helped considerably by the profit from
the Yorkshire Congress which included the receipt of £300 sponsorship from
Yorkshire Building Society.
b) Future Funding – It was requested that a special
meeting be arranged to consider the administrative arrangements for Pay 2 Play as
a number of issues needed clarification. It was felt this should be arranged
following the next meeting of the EBU National Clubs Committee scheduled for
November 2009.
The actual number of EBU members was anticipated to
rise significantly and revenue would be in line with that currently received
from subscriptions. The additional work
and cost created by an increase in membership would need to be addressed.
c) Expenses Claims – A request was made for claims to
be submitted on the pro-forma produced and for a review of the current mileage
rates. It was agreed that mileage rates should be 36p for tournament directors
(other than for northern league matches which have an all inclusive fee) and
25p per mile for other journeys. The
Vice-Chair requested his vote against the proposal be recorded.
d) Stationery – It was agreed that no printing of
letter heads or compliment slips be undertaken at the present time and the amended letterhead that had been
circulated electronically be used.
e) Bridgemates – It was agreed that the hire costs
would be £25 for
f) Pay 2 Play Update – The following clubs had
indicated their intention not to affiliate under the new arrangements from
2010; Allerthorpe, Dewsbury, Guiseley, Hornsea, Middleton Tyas, Northallerton
and Ossett. Bramhope, Brighouse and
Hallam Community Youth were to make the decision at their future AGMs. It was
noted that Dewsbury and Brighouse currently participated in the
It was not
clear that individuals clubs were aware of the element of Pay2Play that would
be directed to the county and the Secretary was asked to notify clubs of the 5p
levy.
6)
Tournament Secretary’s Report
A copy of the report of the Tournament Secretary was
circulated for information and reported that the Keighley team that had
withdrawn from the Waddington Cup competition would be expected to pay for the
cost of catering. The Yorkshire
Newcomers event had made a loss but this was expected as it was intended to
encourage new players.
The Tournament Secretary confirmed that he would no
longer be running the David Boston Simultaneous Pairs after the 2009 event and
it was hoped that another person would be willing to take over the running of
this event. If this was not the case it
was felt consideration could be given to
7)
Membership Secretary’s Report
A report was tabled at the meeting and no specific
issues were raised.
8)
Roles of Secretary and Assistant Secretary
The Secretary reported that the issue had been
discussed with the Assistant Secretary and it was proposed that the Assistant
Secretary would be responsible for the administration of the Northern Bridge
Leagues, for new and retiring members and to deputise for the Secretary at
meetings as may be necessary. The roles were agreed pending any review that may
be necessary.
9)
Consideration of a Conduct Sub Committee
Report
D Waxman spoke to the paper he had prepared and the
supporting annexe stating that in view of some procedural issues arising that
had been referred to the Conduct Sub Committee it was felt necessary to clarify
the role of the Conduct Sub Committee.
It was accepted that where a tournament director was present most issues
could be resolved however in private matches and league matches this was not
necessarily the case.
Clarification was sought on the remit of the
Conduct Committee and it was agreed that this related to the behaviour and
attitude of individuals and not to any procedural issues that may arise. In order to address any procedural issues
arising that could not be addressed by the Tournament/Yorkshire League
Secretary it was agreed that a special sub committee to be known as a Yorkshire
League Panel would be convened comprising the Chairman (Vice Chair to
substitute as required) and two members of the management committee.
The procedures for meetings of the Conduct
Sub-Committee were agreed as contained in Appendix 1 (enclosed).
Discussion also took place on the appendix
attached to the report pertaining to additions and amendments to Yorkshire
League Rules and it was agreed that the information contained within paragraph
one could be referred to for reference.
10) Terms
of Reference of Sub Committees
The Secretary outlined the
fact that no written terms of reference existed for sub-committees and in view
of issues arising it was proposed that terms of reference be drawn up for
adoption. The Vice-Chair agreed to produce a draft for consideration at the
next meeting based on the EBU model.
11)
Procedures for future AGMs
The issue of an overlap between meetings was raised
and there was a proposal that a short AGM be held followed by a Council meeting
containing the reports from officers. Concerns were raised that members
attending the AGM may have to travel some distance for a short meeting and if
ineligible to attend the Council meeting would receive only a minimum of
information. The Chairman explained that
12) Appointment of Congress Secretary
Graham and Pat Jepson kindly volunteered to act as
Joint Congress Secretaries and were thanked for their willingness to undertake
the role from 2010.
13) Review of
The Chairman reported that the Cairn Hotel had
indicated that there would be no increase in the rates for hiring the venue in
2010 but there would be a need to assess the costs payable to EBU in view of
Pay2Play. It was agreed that the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Treasurer consider
the matter with a view to keeping the fees the same and a decision be ratified
at the next meeting.
The Chairman raised the receipt of correspondence
from a NEBA member who had raised the following points in connection with last
year’s event;
1) It was felt that the timing of the breaks between
sessions should be revised as there was insufficient time on the Saturday and
excess time on the Sunday. As no other
comments had been received it was agreed that the session times be unchanged
and that it may be helpful to provide details of venues for refreshments
between sessions as part of the information issued.
2) There had been a conduct issue where a pair had
been fined for inappropriate behaviour but this had not been brought to the
attention of YCBA at the time. The
Tournament Secretary was asked to remind TDs to notify the Secretary of any
conduct issues arising from events.
3) Some players had received scores prior to the completion
of play through the Bridgmates. It was
agreed that this was inappropriate and that no players should be given scores
in advance of the final results being issued.
14)
Request for support to undertake a
Consideration was given to a request for financial
assistance to under take a
15)
Review of Advertising Charges in YCBA
Publications
Discussion took place on the charging arrangements
and how these were undertaken and that the Treasurer pursues any recent
outstanding payments. The cost of
advertisements was agreed as £100 per page in the Competition Brochure with
pro-rata charges for half and quarter pages applying to both the Competition
Brochure and Yorkshire Bulletins.
16)
Review of Tournament Director Fees for
Northern League Matches
Discussion took place on the current level of fees
which included travel cost and that some Directors appeared not to have been
aware of this and that the fee may be insufficient to cover any extensive
travel required if a local TD was not available. It was agreed that the Northern League
Sub-Committee would consider this in November.
17)
Correspondence
a)
Notification
to EBU of Green Point Events for 2011
It was confirmed that this would be the two one day
events of the Yorkshire Congress and the Secretary will notify the EBU
accordingly.
b)
Request
from a Member to Seed Pairs in the Waddington Shield and to Review the Format
of the
Discussion took place on the two issues and it was
agreed that the semi-finalists of the Waddington Shield event would be the four
seeds for the subsequent year’s events assuming comparable teams entered and two
would be placed in each half of the draw with the winners and losing finalists
in opposite halves. With regard to the
format of the Yorkshire Pairs event it was noted that the issue had been
discussed a number of times and it was agreed that whilst the one day event may
not be the most ideal it was felt that the current format worked well and that
it was not feasible to revert to qualifying heats via clubs or a qualifying
session as part of a one day competition.
18)
YCBA 75th Anniversary
Celebrations
It was confirmed that this was due to take place in
2010 and that the NEBA were also approaching the same anniversary and that
there had been a proposal to consider holding a joint event in September 2010
subject the agreement of NEBA. In order to progress the matter it was agreed a working
party be established comprising Chair, Vice-Chair, D Waxman L Millett, R
Garthwaite, and T Bond to formulate recommendations.
19
Any Other Business
a) Licence
Levels For
Correspondence had been received requesting
clarification on licence level 4 events as the information contained on the
YCBA website was different from that appearing in the competition brochure. It
was agreed that the website information was correct and that it appeared that
the competition brochure had not been amended to reflect agreed changes. It was felt that possible further amendments
to those denoted on the website may be appropriate and it was agreed that P
Godfrey in consultation with R Turner determine events to recommend as level 4
as soon as possible. The Chairman agreed
to clarify the position in a future
b) Waddington
Shield - Eligibility of Competitors
Correspondence had been received from a member of the
winning team who had reported that a competitor in an unsuccessful
20
Date and Time Of Next Meeting
The next meeting will take place in
Friday 27 November 2009 at Bradford Bridge Club immediately following the
Council meeting. It was agreed that refreshments would comprise a glass of wine
along with soft drinks and light accompaniments and the Secretary will notify
the Secretary of Bradford Bridge Club.
J A Staniforth
(YCBA Secretary)
Signed:----------------------------------------------------------
(Chairman)
Dated:------------------------------------
APPENDIX 1
Conduct Sub-Committee procedures
·
Raising an issue
Any member raising an issue of
conduct must provide a written statement setting out the matter in sufficient
detail to allow fair consideration of the concerns raised. This statement
should be forwarded to the Convenor of the Sub-Committee by post or e-mail
within 7 days. Concerns may be forwarded through a suitable third party i.e. another
member of the YCBA Management Committee.
·
Processes
-
On receipt of the complaint the Convenor of the Sub-Committee will
make an initial assessment as to whether the matter should be dealt with by an
individual member of the Sub-Committee, by any combination of the threesome or
possibly by another member of the YCBA Management Committee.
The actual parties concerned
in the issue and their particular home clubs will be an influence on who is
involved in dealing with the matter. In particular, no person who is a member of any Club that is involved
in the complaint on either side of the matter shall take part in the process.
-
The Convenor, or specified Adjudicator, will contact the
complainant to clarify any points of doubt and to ensure that they understand
the points raised as fully as possible within three days of receipt of the
complaint.
-
The detailed complaint will be forwarded to the individual (s)
against whom the allegations have been made within 3 days of receipt of the
complaint.
-
Both parties will be asked if they wish to provide the names of
witnesses and/or witness statements.
-
In
the first instance the Adjudicator will attempt to
effect an immediate conciliation but should the matter require further
investigation the individual (s) against whom the allegations will be asked to
provide a detailed response within seven days.
-
The response will be conveyed to the complainant as soon as
practicable and again this may lead to conciliation.
-
Where conciliation, i.e. outcome mutually acceptable to both
parties, is found the matter will be considered resolved.
-
If the matter remains unresolved the Sub-Committee will ask for
witness statements.
-
The member (s) of the Sub-Committee will then consider all of the
available evidence and determine an outcome.
-
The outcome will be forwarded to both parties in written form.
· Hearings
-
In some circumstances, though this will be unusual, the
Sub-Committee will hold a hearing with both parties present at a mutually
agreed venue.
-
In a hearing the complainant will present their arguments first.
-
The party who is being complained about can ask questions.
-
The members of the Sub-Committee can ask questions.
-
The party who is being complained about will then present their
arguments.
-
The complainant can ask questions.
-
The members of the Sub-Committee can ask questions
-
Both parties will then provide a short summarised argument.
-
The
Sub-Committee will then recess to decide whether they can give an instant
decision.
-
If
the Sub-Committee decides that time for reflection is required they will
determine an outcome which will be conveyed in writing to both parties within 3
days.
·
Appeals
Where the Sub-Committee has
determined an outcome, with or without a hearing being held, i.e. wherever
conciliation has not proved possible, both parties shall have the right of
appeal.
This must be lodged within 10
days of their receipt of the decision.
Appeal shall be forwarded to
the Chairman of the YCBA who will form a Conduct Appeals Sub Committee of three
members of the Management Committee not previously involved in the complaint in
question and not connected to
any club directly involved in the complaint.
Any further appeal shall be to the English
Bridge Union.