Decision:
Letchworth Rugby Club
Richard Sell, Membership Secretary and Schools’ Coordinator at Letchworth Rugby Club thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee regarding their grant application.
2nd Baldock Scouts
Ed Hartley from 2nd Baldock Scouts thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the committee regarding their grant application.
Baldock Allotment & Leisure Gardeners Association
Richard Winter from Baldock Allotment & Leisure Gardeners Association thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the committee regarding their grant application.
Minutes:
Audio Recording – Start time of Item – 1 minute 47 seconds
Richard Sell, Membership Secretary and Schools’ Coordinator at Letchworth Rugby Club thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the Committee regarding their grant application.
Richard Sell informed Members of the following:
· Letchworth Rugby Club was closer to Baldock town centre than Letchworth town centre and 50% of the members of Letchworth Rugby Club were from Baldock and the surrounding villages. Knights Templar was the closest secondary school.
· The grant application was to help grow the delivery of rugby coaching undertaken in Baldock schools. At Knights Templar a previous 3 year satellite grant of £2,000 was awarded by Sport England and was about to run out.
· Part 1 of the application request was for £500 to allow the club to deliver another 20 coaching sessions at Knights Templar in 2019.
· Primary schools grant of £300 required to offer discounted sessions to coach during PE lessons. Primary schools in Baldock keen to take up this offer.
· Children would benefit and this would promote active and healthy lifestyles.
· All children would be given the opportunity to learn to play rugby and staff would gain valuable knowledge and the confidence to teach the children how to play.
· Strong links would be built with the schools so that children could enjoy playing rugby both in and out of school.
· The Club would offer the schools ‘rugby scholarships’. PE staff would identify suitable candidates and there would be guidelines for selection of talented children or from families whose circumstances meant that the membership fee would preclude them from participating. Scholarship would waive the first year’s membership and then it would be £60 (half price) for subsequent years.
In response to questions from Members, Richard Sell advised that:
· The £1,100 for matched funding would be the cost of the membership fees which would be waived as part of the ‘scholarship scheme’. In Baldock nine scholarships would be given to the schools. The club would also contribute towards the cost of the kit and on occasion would even provide some children with kit if that were the reason they were prevented from playing.
· Sport England reviewed their funding model and the satellite grants were no longer available.
· The grant money would allow services to be delivered at Knights Templar in 2019 up to February half term and then from September/October and also enable the PE lessons at primary schools to be provided.
· At the end of 2019, Knights Templar would need to source other grants. With the primary schools, given the incentives of discounted sessions they may be able to contribute to the PE lessons going forward or would be to seek further grants.
· The club was aware that it would not be able to approach the Baldock Area Committee again until 2020 and the funds requested were sufficient to last for two years.
The Chairman thanked Richard Sell for his presentation.
Audio Recording – Start time of Item – 13 minutes 20 seconds
Ed Hartley from 2nd Baldock Scouts thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the committee regarding their grant application.
· Scout movement 65 years in December.
· Grown by 40% in all three sections. Number of scouts grown from 14 to 30 this year due to change of days and increase in activities.
· Won County Orienteering Competition.
· Restricted by lack of equipment and what was offered in terms of camping.
· Shortage of tents, so fewer scouts were able to go camping at any one time. Were having to borrow tents but difficult with larger camps.
· Camping as a patrol to allow scouts to gain confidence and various skills required was inhibited by lack of equipment. Scouts would be able run their own sessions if more stoves, tents, etc were available.
· Cost to fund new patrol would be £2,000 and taking into consideration tents, shelters and equipment, the grant application would be £1,800 approximately. Money was raised at Octoberfest – scouts cleaned and set up for Baldock Charity Beer Festival.
· Grant required for more tents and equipment - £600 requested but seeking £1,500 in total which they were trying to raise through fundraising.
· Fundraising subsidised scouts and supported disadvantaged children in the area.
In response to questions from Members, Ed Hartley advised that:
· Raising funds ready for 2019 camping season would be difficult as it started January 2019. Fewer scouts interested in camping over winter. Various fundraising events.
· Funds of £6,252 held. Financial year ended in December. Membership fees (? of funds) paid in January. The remaining funds were reserved for trailer and also fundraised for contained purchased in 2018.
· Age range 10½ to 14.
· Scout numbers: 26 – Baldock
1 – Ashwell
2 – Weston
1 – Letchworth
Similar numbers in beavers and cubs
· Volunteers – 3 leaders in Scout section, Cubs – 2, Beavers 1
· Committee made up of parents but trying to increase numbers
· Special needs/disabled capabilities were available. No disabled children were present at the time of this meeting but some had ADHD/autism.
The Chairman thanked Ed Hartley for his presentation.
Audio Recording – Start time of Item – 23 minutes 25 seconds
Richard Winter from Baldock Allotment & Leisure Gardeners Association thanked the Chairman for the opportunity to address the committee regarding their grant application.
· The Association wanted to encourage more individuals to be green fingered.
· More notice boards required as the present ones did not cover the top of the fences which had been refurbished and were in a poor state of repair.
· £2,250 needed to replace four notice boards and updates on older boards.
· 281 members, 10 vacant allotment sites unlike other areas which have waiting lists. This is due to lack of publicity. Different initiatives tried to encourage new people.
· Money in the pot reserved for replacement of leaky asbestos roof.
In response to questions from Members, Richard Winter advised that:
· At the request of Councillor Michael Muir, Richard Winter agreed that he would email Andrew Mills/David Charlton and the other Councillors to notify them of the problem with the asbestos roof as this was a council issue.
· The Committee were advised that NHDC had intimated that they had another Client to take over the building but that would raise the question as to where they would move. Feedback was awaited from Stuart Izzard with his discussions within the Council as to what the outcome was and Richard Winter would email him.
· Four, lockable notice boards were required with aluminium posts and a wooden board with double-sided Perspex cover. It was planned that there would be a notice board located at each gate on Clothall Common and 1 on North Road. Quotations calculated online.
· Councillor Weeks queried whether Andrew Mills might know of anyone who could supply these and whether Council’s purchasing account could be used. Richard Walker asked whether there might be a possibility, if this were the case, of being refunded some of their money. Richard Winter was trying to build up a contingency fund of £5000 in the event of an emergency e.g. water leak as monies were needed for replacing rotting fence posts.
· Fundraising quiz on 9th March 2019.
The Chairman thanked Richard Winter for his presentation.