Present:

Barry Jobling Chairman

Eric Nash Treasurer

Fiona Shirley Committee Member

Clive Thompson Committee Member

Richard Storey Secretary

Other Members 14 (Please see attached names)

Visitors 2 

Apologies:

Les Button Committee Member

Judith Armitage

Wendy Thelwall

Item 1.  Apologies for Absence

Apologies for Absence were received from Les Button, Judith Armitage and Wendy Thelwall.

Item 2.  Minutes of the Previous Meeting

The Minutes from the previous AGM, 6th June 2018, were recorded as a true record.  The motion to approve the minutes was proposed by Pam Siddall, seconded by John Thelwall and voted unanimously by the Members.

Item 3.  Matters Arising

There were no Matters Arising from last year.

Item 4.  Chairman’s Report

The Chairman reported with great sadness the loss of Robin Gibson very soon after our last AGM and paid tribute to the immense contribution that Robin made as Chairman, Senior Editor of the Society’s book and his overall enthusiasm for the story of Buckden and its villagers.  The Chairman welcomed the new Secretary, Richard Storey, and reported that Richard Dickinson may be stepping down as a member, meaning that we would lose his skills in promoting the Society on social media. Barry appealed to anyone with social media awareness to assist the committee.  The Chairman advised that the Committee proposed to purchase a new laptop computer to replace our current aged model and a new slide projector to improve presentations by visiting speakers.  He thanked all Members for their support throughout the year.

Item 5.  Secretary’s Report

The Secretary reported that the new programme of talks for 2019/20 had been compiled and is attached at Annex B.  He reported that the Society would again be awarding a Buckden history book to a boy and a girl in Key stages 1 and 2 and presented by the Chairman week of 15 July 2019 (Date TBC).  The Buckden Local History Society will be represented at the village festival on 6 July, when it will be an opportunity to advertise forthcoming events.  The Secretary asked that if any Members were willing to assist with supporting on the day to contact him.  The Society will be visiting Harlington Hall on 9 July.  The cost of the bus will be paid by the Society and entrance fee subsidised by £5 per head.  

Action.  The Secretary was to contact the bus company to confirm departure at Buckden Towers at 10 am.

Item 6.  Treasurer’s Report

The Treasurer reported on the Income and Expenditure Account for 2018/9, a copy of which is at Annex C. He reported that membership was down by 3 on the previous year and that a surplus of only £35 was made.  The Treasurer’s Report was proposed by Fiona Shirley, seconded by Christine Creighton and accepted unanimously by the Members.

Item 7.  Election of Committee Members

The chairman handed over proceedings to the vice chairman who proposed the chairman for re-election, which was agreed by members present. The chairman then proposed all current committee members, who were prepared to stand for re-election.  There were no other nominations or oppositions from other members, so all committee members were re-elected by acclamation of those present.  The committee members are as follows:

Chairman: Barry Jobling

Finance : Eric Nash

Secretary: Richard Storey

Members: Fiona Shirley

Les Button

Clive Thompson

Item 8.  Membership

On behalf of the Committee and all members the Chairman offered Honorary Life Membership to Gwen Gibson as a recognition for all the work Robin and she had done for the Society over the years.  Gwen gratefully accepted.   The Chairman reported that the visitor fees charged by the Society at £4 per head were the highest in the local area and advised that the Committee suggested reducing them to £3 to encourage new members; however, the widespread feeling amongst the Members was that visitor fees should remain at £4.  Annual membership fee would remain at £16. 

Item 9.  Any other Business

Francis Farmer offered a vote of thanks to Clive Thompson who gave a talk on family history at very short notice after cancellation of the speaker in January.  Eric Nash recommended a leaflet drop around the village to attract new members but recognised the difficulty of achieving it.

Actions.  The Secretary was to: 

Consider circulating the new bi-fold programme with raffle tickets for the Village fete.

Put posters and the 19/20 programme in the library.

Utilise the Buckden Roundabout editions for July and August to attract new membership.

The Chairman thanked members of the Committee for their hard work and all members for their attendance and continued support.

Following the AGM, our member Mr. John Thelwall gave a very interesting talk on his time as a volunteer during the archaeological excavations on the A14 construction site.

Richard Storey

Secretary

6 June 2019

Annexes:

1. Members Attending

2. 2019/20 Programme of Talks

3. Income and Expenditure Account for 2018/9

Annex A

Attending Members:

Christine Creighton

Audrey Gill

Jan Jobling

Gwen Gibson

David Ray

Francis Farmer

Anne Petty

Pam Siddall

Gillian Thompson

Peter Rees

Albert Jackson

Brian King

Ann Brittain

John Thelwall

Visitors:

Ann Williams

Jane Beattie

​

Annex B

Programme of Talks 19/20

Sep 4 2019

Myths of the Battle of Britain

Mark Bunting

Oct 2 2019

The Royal Observer Corps above and Below Ground (including local sites)

John Shere

Nov 6 2018

Horse Tram talk 

David Stubbings

Dec 4 2019

100th Anniversary of the R34 Airship's Transatlantic Flight 

Terry Haywood

Jan 8 2020

Night Watchmen of Huntingdon

Karen Aspinall

Feb 5 2020

Cootes, Constables and Chickens, the history of Houghton Grange

Bridget Flanagan 

Mar 4 2020

The History of Chivers Jam Factory at Histon. 1873-1960

Dr David Oates

Apr 1 2020

The History of Papworth Hospital 1918 – 2018

Becky Proctor

May 6 2020

The History of the Manor at Hemingford Grey

Diana Boston

Annex C

Income and Expenditure Account for 2018/9

INCOME

Members' subscriptions                                                     448.00

Visitors' fees                                                                      188.00

Sale of books                                                                       45.00

                                                                                           681.00

EXPENDITURE

Room hire                                                       275.00

Speakers' fees                                                 305.00

School book tokens                                          40.00

Sundry expenses                                                6.00

HACT subscriptions                                        20.00

                                                                                           646.00

SURPLUS                                                                   £     35.00

ACCUMULATED FUNDS

Balance brought forward                                                3027.50

Surplus for the year                                                            35.00

Balance carried forward                                             £  3062.50