The 92nd Annual General Meeting took place on Wednesday 1st November from 8:30 pm at Chester Road Sports and Social Club, hosted by President David Slater.
The meeting was opened with President David Slater in the chair. The minutes were read and approved, and there were no matters arising. The President reported that he had had a very interesting and enjoyable year. He thanked everyone for their support and said that some good hard work had been done by the Committee, especially John Booth, who had been very helpful. He had a 'soft spot' for the Old Elizabethans' annual dinner, which he had particularly enjoyed – it was something for Keith Bowkett to look forward to. There had been a good turnout for the Committee supper, and great weather for the barbecue had contributed to its success. He was, however, disappointed with the numbers supporting the social functions, and felt as though there were still work to be done there. He mentioned the Secretary's work overload and said that reorganisation had been necessary, but a solution had been found. The introduction of a system of Senior and Junior Vice-Presidents would be a great help in establishing continuity and the Association should benefit. The website had been recovered and started up again, and was working well. He believed that it would be very important in years to come in collaboration with the Magazine. It was hoped that they would encourage new members to join. He thanked Tim Gulliver and Davina Bason for their work in developing communication with the School and sat down to thunderous applause.
Treasurer Peter Picken thanked the auditor, Tony Kidd, for his work with the accounts, and reported that the Association had achieved a good deal, although the financial figures, on the face of it, did not read that well for 2005. There had been a delay in the arrival of advertising cheques owing to administrative complexity; we had made a donation to the Pacific Tsunami Fund; and we had bought the lapel badges. We had made a small loss on the Annual Dinner. These were exceptional items that had diminished our resources a little, but, in general, the Association was in a sound financial condition. There was some discussion on the problem of the Association's AGM being well out of line with the financial year on which it was reporting, but the meeting decided to leave well alone, and stay as we are. The accounts were approved unanimously. Martin Easton then reported on the Harry Train and Old Carolians Leaving Scholarship funds. Interest generated for school-leaver funds had increased significantly in recent times, which was very heartening.
Keith Bowkett was unanimously elected President by the meeting, and took the chair. Peter Vaughan and Colin Lloyd were elected as Senior and Junior Vice-Presidents, respectively, and the Committee was confirmed in its position.