Old Hands in New Roles - 2024 AGM
The 2024 AGM of the club sees two former stalwarts return to new board positions, with the remainder of the board unchanged for the coming year.
Brad Connor was unanimously elected as the 19th President of the club, having served previously as both Vice President and Secretary, while Andy Llewellyn makes a comeback as a general trustee, with particular responsibility for major events, having previously overseen the technicalities of evolving the club to be a charity.
The 2025 board is: President – Brad Connor; Secretary – Paul Hammond; Treasurer – Dave Godfree. Trustees – John Heaton, Andy Llewellyn, Bryony McLeod, Steve Scott.
Many of the non-board positions remain the same as last year, but we're looking for a Local events co-ordinator and a Volunteer Co-ordinator to fill our roster of key people. Alex Tijhuis has taken over from Paul Hammond as kit co-ordinator, while Lewis Taylor has announced he will be stepping back as Night event co-ordinator at the end of the season.
Outgoing president Jen Leonard was unable to be present, due to family circumstances, and vice president Neil Polwart chaired the meeting, which heard of a wide range of successes, both on and off the playing field during the past year, including a further increase in overall participation at local events to an average of 87 runs per race, and a significant increase in the number of maps available for use.
Dave Godfree's treasurer's report highlighted an overall deficit for the club in the year of around £6500, due in the main to a considered decision to scale back the major events calendar for a year in order to focus on the World Championships, and the production of two new maps for events in 2025. However, this deficit is roughly equivalent to the profit made in 2023, while the newly-mapped areas will impact positively on the year's balance sheet. The 2024 Annual Report and Accounts can be viewed here
The meeting approved an increase in club membership fees for 2026 (as we plan 12 months in advance) to £15 for adults and £8 for juniors, while the committee is considering raising the cost of entry for local events by £1 across the board, to offset another increase in levy charges by BOF.
The Jim Heardman Trophy, for outstanding service to the club over an extended period, was announced for presentation to David Nicol, in recognition of more than 20 years service as club webmaster. David wasn't present at the meeting, and his trophy and an appropriate gift will be presented at a future date.
Two “Spirit of the Club” awards were made, to Peter Owen, for establishing an orienteering club at his school off his own initiative, and to Jason Inman, for continued work in bringing juniors into the club.