August 3rd 2022
Glassford Village Hall
Attendees
Lisa Webb, James Newall, Lynn Webb, Martin McManus, Peter Coll, Fiona Coll, Clare Miller, Morag Walker, Les Hoggan, Stevie Urquhart, Steven Hefti, Donna Hefti, David Kilby, Sandra Kilby
Minutes of AGM 2021
Approved
Chair’s Report
The pandemic brought fundraising to a halt, however events have restarted almost once a month since November 2021. We completed work on the Community Garden in 2021 based on funding from the Spirit of Lanarkshire Fund, with a working group in place to keep it in shape.
In December the Community Asset Transfer of the Glassford Village Hall was approved along with funding through a Renewable Energy Fund application to cover the purchase cost and ongoing costs for around 9 months. Our third Beer and Gin Festival was highly successful with over 700 people attending. We are currently undergoing a feasibility study for redevelopment with the aim of having the work costed by a quantity surveyor and to get sketch drawings that would allow us to put out a tender for architects to redesign the hall based on community priorities.
Various groups are looking to restart bookings for the hall and we have had a few enquiries about bookings for parties. We have three further bookings for the remainder of the year for fundraising events.
Secretary’s Report
We were successful in a renewable energy fund grant of £41,000 to cover the cost of the purchase of the hall and the ongoing costs for the first nine months. Our business plan meant that SLC gave us a 63% discount on the purchase cost leaving a net cost of around £32,000. We also are working on an application for fees to cover legal, consultancy and architectural costs.
We are looking to implement a booking system for the hall allowing us to book individual rooms or the whole hall. This is estimated to cost between £170 and £350 per year.
We applied for a regeneration grant under a Scottish Government scheme for around £700,000 as a first step towards the refurbishment costs. Our application was well received but we were advised to reapply in 2023 when the work is scheduled to start as that fits better with the working of the scheme. SLC was very supportive of our application.
Treasurer’s Report
The bank account currently has around £10,300. Events are bringing in between £400 and £1300 depending on attendance, which has been good for most acts. There is a core bar stock in place after it having to be refreshed after the pandemic. The group has bought a number of items of sound equipment to support events including lights, speakers, amps, etc. the five latest events brought in £3999.71 with the bar the main profit area followed by the raffles. The Beer and Gin Festival generated £2927 for the group’s finances and there was £40 received through Amazon Smile. The charity return is due to be submitted by early October 2022.
Martin McManus
Martin took the meeting through a presentation on the background to the Community Asset Transfer including the community consultation and the development of the Business Plan that supported the application. He highlighted the need for the community to get involved in the next steps which will be crucial to the success of the transfer of the hall. He proposed that we move on with the establishment of the five sub-groups covering Operations, Building, Funding, Collaboration and Community Comms & Marketing. It was also confirmed that a full condition survey had been undertaken which didn’t show up any major structural issues.
Next Steps
It was suggested that the Business Plan should be uploaded to and available on the website and it was agreed to do so. The website will be updated with images and video from recent events and that a blog should be added summarising the current position and the way forward. This would include where we are with the Asset Transfer and proposals for redevelopment, ideas for funding, plans for the year ahead, etc. We should also look to promote the website as the place to go for information.
There are also plans to see how Glassford Community Group can assist people over the winter.
Future events planned for the hall, outwith parties and community bookings, will feature Deacon Blue/Simples Minds tribute act on November 26th and the Soundsational Choir on December 17th.
Election of postholders
It was proposed that James Newall remain as Chair, Les Hoggan as Secretary and Lisa Webb as Treasurer, with Stevie Urquhart continuing to take responsibility for managing the group’s social media. It was agreed that this be put in a post on the Group’s Facebook page asking for the views of the wider community.
The meeting ended at 8.15pm
Glassford Community Group 