Present were: Cathy and Martin Houghton, Chris Jackson, Peter Miller, Hilary Moorhouse, Bob Newton, Mat Peacock and Tim Williams, plus Claire Roberts, who was co-opted onto the Committee during the meeting. Apologies for absence were received from Nick Talbot and Bob Shell.
What follows is a summary of the draft Minutes.
No progress had been made with the artist-drawn map project. Tim Williams and Joe Stevens had been making an inventory of the Society-owned 7.25″ track which, it is hoped, can be used regularly on Platform 2 at Llanuwchllyn.
This year’s AGM will take place on 17th May. The Meeting itself will be at 2.30 in the Llanuwchllyn Heritage Centre (joining remotely by Zoom will also be possible). As in 2024, there will be a second engine in steam, shunting wagons at Llanuwchllyn and possibly offering cab rides. There will be a Members’ Special Train after the Meeting.
There will be only a light buffet this year, as in previous years much of the food provided has gone to waste. It is hoped that attendance at Llanuwchllyn will be higher than in recent years and an advertising leaflet was put in the Spring issue of the Llanuwchllyn Express to this end. The Company, which pays for the special trains, has expressed a concern about low numbers of members attending AGM day in person, and if this continues it will probably not be possible to justify special trains in the future.
If you would like to put a specific item on the Agenda for the AGM, please contact the Secretary by May 3rd, or if possible by the middle of April (so that your proposal can be discussed at the end-of-April Committee Meeting).
The posts up for (re-)election at this year’s AGM are President, Treasurer (to take over from Dave Fildes, who is standing down) and Llanuwchllyn Express Editor. There are also some vacancies: Vice-Chairman; Vice-President (in addition to the three Vice-Presidencies currently filled) and several for regular Committee members. If you would like to join the Committee, you will need to make an application by May 3rd and provide the names of two other members who have agreed to be your proposer and seconder. We would very much like to hear from you.
Peter Miller will be standing for re-election as President, for three years. Dave Fildes will be standing for election as Vice-Chairman, for two years (this is so as to maintain the three-year rotational system). Nick Talbot will be standing for re-election as Editor, for three years. Claire Roberts will be standing for election as Treasurer, for three years. She was co-opted onto the Committee at this meeting to fill the temporary role of Financial Assistant.
Hilary Moorhouse has decided to step down from the Committee. She was thanked by everyone present for her work. Although she will continue to keep an eye on the Accommodation when she can, the Committee would really like to find a new person to be Accommodation Officer. This person would, ideally, be someone who stays regularly at Llanuwchllyn. Full committee membership is optional.
Mat Peacock had published details of proposed new constitutional amendments in the winter Llanuwchllyn Express and online via the no-login-needed-to-view Members’ Area front page. The idea is to make secret ballots compulsory at the AGM for elections. No objections were received and so a motion will be presented at the 2025 AGM. It is hoped that ensuring secret ballots will recognise the importance of all members’ views, make elections genuine rather than rubber-stamping exercises and also make committee members more accountable. Given that only a third of posts are elected in any year, thanks to the three-year rotation system, a secret ballot will not take long.
Significant progress has been made on regaining control of the Society’s accounts since the death of Dave Scotson but there is still a little way to go, particularly with regard to getting a certain bank to authorise access to all the people who need it.
The President’s Appeal (for signalling upgrades on the existing line and for signalling equipment for the Extension) has now raised about £1500. Please support, if you can, two upcoming sponsored events – a Pump Trolley Challenge and a sponsored trek up Kilimanjaro – and for more details, please look in the May 2025 edition of Llanuwchllyn Express. It is also possible to donate via JustGiving or the Society Stand, and a Facebook appeal advert will soon be launched.
The Society Stand will appear at approximately half-a-dozen events in the first half of 2025, including the anniversary gala at Statfold (8th & 9th March) and the 7mm Narrow Gauge Association Annual Show in Burton-on-Trent (14th June).
Replacement of the flooring in the volunteer kitchen has been delayed by the discovery of damp, possibly due to leaking pipes. These will need to be unearthed and checked before new materials can be laid. The damaged clock and washing machine / tumble-dryer are to be replaced.
No progress had been made with the “Funded with the Help of the Society” plaques or the proposed Society Storage Building, but these projects will be pushed forward in the early Spring. No progress had been made with the memorial area or with applying for funding for defibrillators, on behalf of the Railway Company, but plans were put in place to push these projects forward. No progress had been made with the Accessible Toilet project, which the Society has offered to co-fund with the Company. This was due to pressure of work on the Company Staff and the lack of available builders locally, due to a major project in the Llandderfel area (!) taking up all of their time.
It is proposed that there should be one more Committee Meeting before the AGM, probably in late April. Please get in touch if you would like anything discussed at that meeting.
