2011 Annual Conference - Change of Date - The date has been moved back to Saturday, 19th November, 2011
The date for the 2011 Annual Conference for Conservative Clubs in Yorkshire has been moved from Saturday, 8th October, 2011 to the new date of Saturday, 19th November. The venue will again be The Gomersal Park Hotel, Gomersal, West Yorkshire - midway between the Junctions on the M62 serving Bradford and Leeds. More details will be posted later in the year. Please book the date in your diary now.
The main theme of the conference this year is "The Role of the Conservative Club in the Local Community". There will be an open discussion session in the afternoon on this theme, in which we hope that clubs which have made an effort to extend their role in their local community can say how they have gone about this and tell the conference about the resulting impact and benefits to the club itself. We feel that club committees must now, more than ever, take a pro-active role in making the community aware of the presence of the club and what it can offer, as a way of turning round the general decline in membership and use of clubs.
This conference will be the next opportunity for Conservative Clubs in the former County of Yorkshire to get together and discuss the problems and practicalities of managing clubs in the face of ever worsening economic conditions for clubs. The Secretary of the Association of Conservative Clubs will be present as usual to report on what the ACC is doing on behalf of Conservative Clubs and answering questions from delegates. Other speakers are currently being invited, and a range of ACC approved services and suppliers will also be present.
There is no charge for attendance at this conference, a hot lunch is also provided free as well as coffee, tea and biscuits at various times through the day. We hope that Heineken (formerly John Smiths North) will also be present as usual and offering free samples of their products. The conference starts at 11am and finishes at 5pm with a break for lunch between 1pm and 2pm. Refreshments will be available from 10:30am. These timings and a Saturday date make it reasonably easy for all clubs within Yorkshire to get to the hotel within a reasonable travel time due to it's proximity to the M62 and access from the A1, M1 and A650. If you haven't been to one of these conferences please make an effort to get to this one. Everyone who has ever been to one before has found them very worthwhile.
AGM, 20th April 2011
The AGM was held at Shipley Conservative Club and addressed by Philip Davies, MP, and Philip Smith, the Secretary of the Association of Conservative Clubs. A report of the meeting with photos can be seen here.
Pilot Training Seminar at Girlington Conservative Club
This pilot training seminar for club officials was attended by 24 representatives from 11 clubs and was regarded as highly successful by all who attended. Feedback on the exercise will now be considered by the Council of the Association of Conservative Clubs with a view to seeing how the training syllabus will be tailored to meet the specific requirements of Conservative Clubs and how it is to be funded. Thanks to all those who attended and took part in this event.
Clubs: Monitor your financial situation closely and frequently
It is easy for clubs, in the prevailing economic climate, for clubs to quickly get into financial difficulty and failure. It is essential that club committees closely monitor the financial status of their club at committee meeting held at least monthly. Committees need to ensure that costs are not exceeding takings, that bills are being paid on time, cash that is supposed to banked is appearing on their bank statements, that bar stock is not excessive and money needlessly tied up in it. Control of all costs be supervised by the Committee and its Officers and not left to the discretion of hired staff. Staffing and wages need to be regularly reviewed so that they are properly related to the income from bar sales. If conditions are not met, action needs to be taken swiftly to remedy the situation. Advice and support is freely available at all times from the Association of Conservative Clubs and its regional representatives on the Yorkshire Region Conservative Clubs Council (telephone John Tempest on 01274 639379, or email john_tempest@blueyonder.co.uk ). All matters referred are treated with confidentiality.
This page was last modified on Monday, July 11, 2011 09:31:48 AM