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Minutes of the Inaugural AGM

Venue: The Kabin, Dalgety Bay, Tuesday 15 January 2008.

Those present:
Bob Henderson, John Holmes, Kirsty Holmes, Paul Holmes, Iain Johnston, George Smith, Caroline Thomson, Val Valiant, Brian Wright, Sean McLanaghan.

Introduction
Introduction by Paul, in which he stated the agenda points and said that he would be acting as Chair, and Kirsty would be acting as Secretary, for the duration of the inaugural AGM.

Constitution
The proposed Constitution has been available for review on the website since December 27th. Bob moved to adopt, seconded by Iain. The vote was carried unanimously.

Election of Committee
The five posts were named, and there was some discussion about the division of duties between the Committee members. It was decided that, at least in the short term, the website and membership list would be managed by the Chair.
There was one candidate for each committee post, as follows:

Chair - Paul Holmes
Treasurer - Brian Wright
Secretary - Caroline Thomson
Officer Without Portfolio - Brian Henderson (in absentia)
Officer Without Portfolio - Iain Johnston

The vote was carried unanimously.

Opening of Club Account
Paul proposed that the club open a bank or building society account, preferably a Treasurers' Account with the Dunfermline Building Society, or if that should turn out not to be feasible, then with another bank or building society.
(It was suggested that the club look into registering itself as a charity, as this would have tax advantages. This was deferred to AOB.)
It was noted that cheques or cash would be acceptable for membership fees.
Paul moved, and Bob seconded the motion: “The committee is hereby authorized to open a bank or building society account for the club. Cheques shall require two signatures, from any two of the Chair, Treasurer and Secretary.”

Subscription Levels
It was proposed that annual Subscription should be as follows:
Concession (Student, Senior) - £6
Full - £10
Family - £15
Honorary (by invitation only) - Free

Discussion: The cost of hiring the Kabin was discussed – this is £3 per hour, or £6 for a typical 2-hour session. Assuming one meeting per month in the Kabin (i.e. excluding the cost of outings), this would amount to £72 per annum. Ten members at £10 per year would provide enough money to cover this, although there wouldn't be much to spare for speakers' expenses. Outings would be charged separately, at cost.
The possibility of seeding money, i.e. founding members making interest-free loans to the club, was also raised.
Brian asked how membership would be policed : Paul suggested it would be done informally.
Amendment 1: Sean proposed that Family Membership be extended to three children (which implies that the Constitution should be altered to reflect this).
Amendment 2: Kirsty proposed that the concession category be extended to include unwaged members.
Paul called for a vote on the subscription levels, as amended above. Bob moved and Iain seconded. The vote was unanimously carried.

AOB

Long-term objective
Bob queried the long-term objective of the club. Paul said that according to the Constitution, it was “To promote and advance education and interest in the science of astronomy and to provide facilities for the encouragement and pursuit of observational astronomy.” Paul said that this was quite consistent with the club having its own observatory as a long-term goal.

Charity Status
Brian volunteered to investigate the practicality of the club becoming a registered charity.

Minutes
Minutes of committee meetings will be posted on the club website. Access to minutes can be restricted to paid-up members only, by creating a forum group for paid-up club members, and making a minutes thread visible only to members of this forum group. Paper copies could also be made available for perusal at meetings.

Exhibitions
It was suggested that we might set up an exhibition at Dunfermline Building Society, and it was noted that significant advance notification might be required.
It was also suggested that we have a stall at the next Dalgety Bay gala day.

Membership Management
It was suggested that we might create a separate committee post of Membership Secretary. This was deferred, and it was decided that, in the short term at least, membership records would be kept by the Chair.

Publicity
George asked how we should publicize the club. Ideas included astronomy magazines, websites, Fife Extra, Dalgety Bay Diary, Dunfermline Press, company noticeboards, BBC astronomy website, sharing web address with other clubs, the Scottish Astronomers Group, the Federation of Astronomical Societies, and the Fife Direct website.

There being no other business, a vote of thanks was proposed to Paul for his Chairmanship of the AGM, and to Kirsty for the provision of refreshments. The meeting was closed.