Hawkhurst Community Trust 2018 Minutes of a Virtual Annual General Meeting held on 17[th] November 2020
Trustees Present
Joss Brushfield (JB), Janet Clark (JC), Harvey Cobbold (HC), Tina Cobbold (TC), Eddie Coombs (EC), Ruth McChesney (Chair)(RM), Jacqueline Schalburg (JS), Anita Stevens (AS), Sally Thomson (ST), David Veale (DV)
Eight residents attended
1. Welcome
Ruth McChesney (RM), Chair of Hawkhurst Community Trust (HCT) 2018, welcomed everyone to the AGM. She explained that the meeting would cover the Trust’s activities over the past twelve months, the annual accounts and the election of Trustees.
2. Apologies for absence
None received.
3. Minutes of the previous meeting
Minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting held on 5[th] September 2019 were approved.
4. Presentation of the Annual Report 2019/20
RM expressed her sincere thanks and appreciation to the other Trustees for their enthusiasm and hard work over the past year. They are David Veale (our Vice-Chair and Secretary); Harvey Cobbold (our Treasurer); Anita Stevens, Sally Thomson, Jacqueline Schalburg, Joss Brushfield, Janet Clark, Eddie Coombs and Tina Cobbold. It had not been an easy year for the Trust – or for anyone, but we have worked together really well as a team and made steady progress. HCT 2018 decided to look at what it could do this year, instead of regretting what it couldn’t do.
HCT 2018 wished to express their gratitude to Ellen Neville, who reluctantly stood down as a Trustee. Ellen has made a substantial and enthusiastic contribution to the Trust; she was one of the first Trustees to come on board, became our first Treasurer, created the website, a huge undertaking, and was inspired to set up the Hawkhurst Community Fridge, for which she is still doing a great deal of work.
On a sadder note, we lost a dear friend and Trustee, Margaret Skeet, in February as the result of a road traffic accident. Margaret was passionate about life in Hawkhurst and a joy to work with, with her cheery smile and positive attitude to life. We all miss her and her contribution to the Trust.
RM briefly explained the role and purpose of HCT 2018, including working closely with the Parish Council to help deliver a new Community Centre which HCT 2018 would run. RM summarised events held during the past year despite Covid 19. These included a mixture of free and money-making events. Free events (such as Playday and our Christmas event for children) are funded from sources such as the Tesco Community Fund or other charitable donations from local people and businesses. HCT 2018 is extremely grateful for these donations.
HCT 2018 have continued to work with the Cranbrook Children’s Centre which, until March this year, has had a free, monthly session at the Sports Pavilion for its activities. HCT 2018 helped with fun activities for the children including:
- Halloween lantern making
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Hawkhurst Community Trust 2018
Minutes of a Virtual Annual General Meeting held on 17[th] November 2020
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Pancake tossing on Pancake Day
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A free craft table for local children at December’s Christmas Fete, where they could make beautiful baubles to be hung on the Christmas tree.
In June, HCT 2018 held a scarecrow making competition in the village, to provide a bit of cheer in difficult times. People across the village joined in with great enthusiasm and creativity, making the judges’ job really rather tricky. There were six worthy winners who received prizes donated either by the Trust or local businesses.
The Trust originally wanted to hold the very first Hawkhurst 10k and 5k Run at the end of June, in collaboration with experienced partners. The decision was taken to postpone the Run to next year. HCT 2018 are most grateful to several generous local sponsors who are prepared to assist us with the costs of putting on this large-scale event and are very much looking forward to seeing all our plans come to fruition in June 2021.
In 2019 the Trust held its first Hawkhurst Playday, which was a tremendous success and we had hoped to do even more this year, but that was not to be. As an alternative in early August a low key, socially-distanced version of this national event was held. Our “Playday Lite” involved preparing materials for a “scavenger hunt” for children to enjoy, plus a wonderful storyteller on Zoom.
In September the Trust worked hard to organise another new event for Hawkhurst, a Makers and Crafters Fair on The Moor. Our efforts paid off in a very successful event with 34 high quality stalls and a steady stream of socially-distanced visitors. Both the stallholders and the visitors enjoyed a great day out and we plan to do “Makers @ The Moor” again next year.
The Hawkhurst Community Fridge, the brainchild of Ellen Neville, was another first for the village and was formally opened on 29[th] June. The Fridge sits under the umbrella of the Trust but is managed and operated on a daily basis by Ellen and an enthusiastic team of volunteers. It is supported by a wide range of donors, from the Co-op to Stevens Farm to local allotment holders, and has also received financial help from several sources, including Hawkhurst Parish Council and the Green Shop.
The Fridge is making a real difference in Hawkhurst, especially in such difficult times. In its first three months of operation the Fridge redistributed over 3,200KG of food: all the food is intended for any household regardless of circumstance or background. The Fridge’s first objective is to reduce food waste and it is clearly achieving this goal.
HCT 2018 has also continued to work closely with the Parish Council’s Community Centre Working Group to help refine the design of the Community Centre, which will now be called the Hawkhurst Community and Sports Centre to better reflect the wide range of activities that will take place in and around it.
During the public consultation events in January and February this year, the Trustees were on hand to help answer questions and to talk with local people. Work is also ongoing on our part of the Business Plan for the Community Centre.
Over the summer HCT 2018 worked on the content, distribution and analysis of a questionnaire designed to find out how village families and children envisage the new children’s playground which will be constructed on the KGV site. All of this great feedback will go towards the design of this new play space.
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Hawkhurst Community Trust 2018 Minutes of a Virtual Annual General Meeting held on 17[th] November 2020
In summary, it’s been a busy year and RM was quite sure 2021 will not lack for interest. After a year like this one, nobody will be making any predictions, but RM felt confident in saying that the Hawkhurst Community Trust 2018 is up for the challenge!
5. Presentation of Accounts 2019/2020
Harvey Cobbold, Treasurer for HCT 2018 gave a summary of accounts. A slide summarising the accounts was displayed and can be found on the HCT 2018 website. HCT 2018’s financial year runs from 1[st] October to 30[th] September.
For the financial year 2019/20, the opening balance was £1,557.70. There were donations totalling £1,704, by far the largest sum of £1,166.00 was donated by Tesco Community Collection, £500.00 from the Police Property Fund and £38.00 from general donations. Events generated income of £1,709.38, expenditure amounted to £629.91 giving an overall net income of £1,079.47. Of income generated, £648.24 was from sponsors for the 10k and 5k run which would be carried over to next year. Other expenses for things such as newsletters amounted to £213.04 giving a balance at the end of the financial year of £4,128.13.
The account for the Community Fridge is held separately from that of HCT 2018. Total income for the Fridge was £1,136.00 with expenditure of £714.57 giving a closing balance of £421.43.
6. Election of Elected Trustees
Under HCT 2018’s constitution, 3 Trustees are nominated by the Parish Council for three year terms and the rest are elected for one year terms. RM asked DV to read out proposers and seconders for each elected Trustee which are summarised below.
----- Start of picture text -----
Trustee Proposer Seconder
Joss Brushfield Ruth McChesney David Veale
Harvey Cobbold Peter Hoole Jane Hoole
Tina Cobbold Peter Hoole Jane Hoole
Janet Clark A Clark J Poole
Eddie Coombs J Poole A Clark
Jacqueline Schalburg P Martin S Armstrong
Sally Thomson Philip Richardson Anne Steans
----- End of picture text -----
Those present approved the list unanimously and consequently the Trustees named are reelected for another year.
7. Any other business
RM confirmed that there had not been any notifications of any other business. She asked if there were any questions. One resident asked what progress had been made with the proposed Community and Sports Centre. RM said that documents to submit a planning application were being compiled with likely submission in December. It would take about 20 weeks before it was known if planning was approved. There were no further questions.
8. Closing Remarks
RM thanked those attending and said that concluded the 2020 AGM of HCT 2018.
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HAWKHURST COMMUNITY TRUST 2018
Income and Expenditure 1st October 2019 - 30 September 2020
| Item | Income | Expenditure | Subtotals |
|---|---|---|---|
| OPENING BALANCE | 1557.70 | 1557.70 | |
| GENERAL INCOME | |||
| Police Property Fund | 500.00 | ||
| Tesco Community Collection | 1166.00 | ||
| General donations | 38.00 | ||
| Total General Income | 1704.00 | 1704.00 | |
| EVENTS INCOME AND EXPENDITURE | |||
| Christmas event 2019 | 7.65 | 67.05 | |
| Pancake day supplies | 12.49 | ||
| Scarecrow Competition | 205.72 | ||
| Playday | 124.50 | ||
| Makers @ The Moor | 1053.49 | 220.15 | |
| 10k&5k Run 2021 | 648.24 | ||
| Total Events | 1709.38 | 629.91 | 1079.47 |
| OTHER EXPENSES | |||
| Newsletters | 30.00 | ||
| Membership of Action with Communities in Rural Kent | 52.00 | ||
| Public Liability Insurance | 131.04 | ||
| Total Other Expenses | 213.04 | -213.04 | |
| BALANCE AT 30 SEPTEMBER 2020 | 4128.13 | ||
| Community Fridge account 1/4/20 - 30/9/20 | |
|---|---|
| Income | |
| Hawkhurst Parish Council | 550.00 |
| Waitrose Community Collection | 166.00 |
| Iddenden Charity | 250.00 |
| Private donations | 170.00 |
| Total | 1136.00 |
| Expenditure | |
| Fridge, locks, other cupboard materials | 498.37 |
| Cleaning materials, petrol costs, etc | 187.40 |
| Health & hygiene courses | 28.80 |
| Total | 714.57 |
| Balance at 30 September 2020 | 421.43 |
12/11/2020
Treasurer: Harvey Cobbold
Chair: Ruth McChesney