Lincoln area cssc committee meeting date 16th November 2016

It was noted that the Golf Event would now be attracting a £100 subsidy, not £200, but this figure had been correct at time of going to press.

Alastair Smart’s survey was discussed, and the actual value to CSSC of providing this retrospective information – as it is not compulsory, we would not be giving feedback on this.

Gill thanked Jules Close-Mitchell for organising the Whitby Trip, and Ian for his assistance; 24 had attended, from 28 places available. A good day out was reported, despite the weather it had been very enjoyable.

Five people attended the Greek Night at The Plough, Nettleham, and reported that it was a good meal with every possibility of a return trip in the future.

Thanks also to Averil for her efforts with the Chatsworth Trip, as only six people had booked the trip was not deemed viable. We may try again next year.

Julie reported that the 2017 Grant Statement had been received, which Sue would cover in more detail later. We currently have 557 members for the Lincoln Area, which are shown by a breakdown of the various Departments and Agencies. DWP has the majority, with HMRC, the Prison Service and M.O.D. also well represented, along with a large complement of retired members. Our contribution to Region looks like reducing for 2017 to approx. 2.5%-3%.

The Region’s Pool Tournament on 2^nd December is being held in Nottingham, and late entries are still being accepted – details on the CSSC website.

Julie echoed Gill’s comments about the Whitby Trip, which had run smoothly and was tailored to our needs: a success.

Steve mentioned that the Facebook newsfeed is showing growing interest, raising our profile and reaching a wider audience for Lincoln CSSC. The Twitter feed however has now gone, as it had proved fairly limited in use.

Sue reported that the ‘What’s On’ reminder to prompt late claims has reaped rewards, helping to reduce our balance which stood at £3,705.82 as of 15/11/16.

The Golf Event has been budgeted for £340, with a cost to us of £200. After running through other forecast items, we are still looking at just over £1,000 remaining for this year.

Updating our 557 members’ details remains a priority, particularly with current e-mail addresses to refresh our database. Funds of £200-£300 can be set aside for this, with an incentive of a £200 M&S voucher as first prize, and others, in order to generate interest. All updated details i.e. name, address and e-mail address to be forwarded to us by 31/12/16 latest. A further Prize Draw may then use any remaining funds.

With no meeting planned for December, our next meeting in January at Gill’s will outline an informal 2017 agenda.

___________________________________________________

Gill and Sue had attended, along with reps from Birmingham, Malvern, Telford, Leicester, North Staffs, Nottingham/Derby, Wolverhampton and Coventry. Also, four Head Office and two Welsh Area reps were there. Simon Lee’s update had focused on Membership Retention and Data Management, Modernisation of Services, low voting rates and getting our messages out. A Leavers Survey had proved useful, and a review of Leisure Scene asked if people are less likely to read the electronic copy; low voting could be addressed possibly by videos of various candidates addresses for members, to help their choices. Public Services were looked into as an untapped area for potential new members. A £20k investment is earmarked for chasing/surveying leavers. A digital Membership Card via smartphone app is being considered for 2018 also.

The 2017 Conference will take place on 12^th/13^th June at the Birmingham Hilton. The CSSC Games will be a one day event, on a Friday in September, with a maximum prize of £90. Andy Shaw confirmed that any Area officials with recognised access to the H.O. membership database will be able to issue information to its members. Ray Parker advised that upto £10 travel can be claimed for public transport costs to/from Christmas Markets, via the Region website. ( It was mentioned that there appears to be a problem again with our subsidy form links via ‘What’s On’, which will be looked into.) Sue had received the Chairman’s Award, and Gill and Sue had jointly received the Volunteers Award, well done to them both. The current posts of Chair, Treasurer and Secretary are nearly at the end of their 3 year tenure, with postholders being appointed, not elected. CSSC are looking at a general reorganisation for 2017-18 – Donna Edwards gave a presentation showing some of the subsidies and offers provided: some areas offer upto 50% subsidies; Telford Area have a group offer including the Ironbridge Museum and 7-8 others. Nottingham Area are looking at an offer based around Chatsworth, and other profile raisers include HHA tickets possibly having wider access/availability.

DIARY DATES

Newark Ghost Walk – Friday 18^th November, 7pm start at the Gilstrap Centre in front of the Castle. Parking available at the railway station. Ian has 13 definites confirmed.

10 Pin Bowling, Washingborough Road, Canwick – Friday 25^th November, 7.30 pm start. Steve has 10 definites and one provisional booking for this, with 2 games ( 90 minutes) bowling, plus a meal for £12 members/£20 non-members. This is with a 40% discount.

Chatsworth Christmas Fayre - Saturday 26^th November. Confirmed that this trip is now cancelled, due to lack of numbers.

Birmingham Christmas Shopper – Saturday 3^rd December. Sue confirmed bookings have been a little slow, with 20 to date for a 49 seater coach. She will chase up Dawn Snowshall (DWP) at Lincoln City Hall, to enquire if HASSRA are interested in making this a joint event with us, to boost numbers. Prices are £7 members and £12 non members; we may offer a deal with this trip with one child per member being offered at a subsidiised price.

Doddington Hall Christmas Party – Saturday 10^th December. Gill confirmed 19, possibly 20, bookings for this at £26.40 for members and £44.00 non members giving us 2 full tables. Again, we may approach HASSRA to see if any members of theirs wish to join us.

Steve confirmed we will be running a second Zombie Apocalypse event at some point, with Archery/Axe Throwing etc.

ANY OTHER BUSINESS

Regarding the Spring Ball for 2017 – we may look at giving this event a year off, but possibly buy 2-3 tables at another event instead to reduce costs for our members – with a subsidy, these may be available at around £25-£30 per head. Other possibilities include tickets for ‘Strictly Come Dancing’, and various other shows.

We are still offering a deadline of upto 15^th December (31^st at the very latest) for members to claim under the Extravaganza Offer for upfront purchase of any tickets for Shows or Concerts; subsidies to be claimed via Sue with the usual claim form and with all receipts/proof of purchase attached – see ‘What’s On’.

Julie confirmed she will see out the 2016/17 year, upto our AGM, before standing down as Secretary so we will need a replacement volunteer for this role. Any early expressions of interest to either Gill, Sue or Julie please.

With no meeting in December, our usual informal meeting to draw up a calendar of possible events for the coming year will be at Gill’s on 11^th January 2017 at 6.30 pm.

The Annual General Meeting of CSSC Sports & Leisure held on Tuesday 14 June 2016 approved changes in the rate of membership subscriptions with effect from 1 January 2017. The 2017 membership cost will be as follows: Monthly - £3.95 Quarterly - £11.85 Annually - £47.40 Retired rates for members in receipt of a pension will be: Monthly - £3.56 Quarterly - £10.68 Annually - £42.66 Please contact our Customer Support team should you have any questions. 01494 888444 headoffice@cssc.co.uk