The Bristol Exploration Club, The Belfry, Wells Road, Priddy, Wells, Somerset.
Editor: Dave Turner

Annual General Meeting - 1st October 1988 at 10.30

There will be an election for the Club committee this year and voting forms are being sent with this BB. Please either send them to Bob Cork or bring them to the AGM.

Annual Dinner - 1st October 1988

As everyone already knows the dinner will be held at The Star, High St, Wells - 7.30 for 8.00.  Tickets £11 from Trebor last date for booking is 25th September, choice is veal or beef.  At the last count Trebor has already sold 105 tickets.  The coach from The Hunters ts being organised by Mr. Nigel as usual.

Thanks

Thanks are due to Roger Dors for supplying the sleepers for the Chariot Race and for organising the bar.

Treasurer’s Report 1987/88

Again we have had a very busy financial year with considerable turnover, generated by such events as the Wessex Challenge, Dinner, advance sales of the Cuthbert’s Report and repayment from our insurers for part of the cost of the tackle store roof. Also a ‘donation' from the MRO for their share of their part of the roof.

1. EXPENDITURE

a)       As far as expenditure is concerned, this has mainly involved the purchase of more library units, continued Belfry improvements, the provision of more fire prevention measures and of course the usual bills.  We still have to persuade the Electricity Board to come around and check the equipment for fault to try and explain our high bills.  I suspect we will have to re-arrange and consolidate our electricity system as per Pat Cronin's recommendations to try and get the bills down.

b)       The Belfry has not quite been self-financing, but not far from it.  It shows a deficit of only £184.  Considering we have spent a lot on Library units and Belfry units we've done pretty well and under 'normal.' circumstances it would finance itself quite easily.

c)       Last year the BB cost £753 to produce, this year it is £930, due in part to more BB' s, inflation and the change in printers.

d)       There is only one more library unit to purchase - just as well as they seem to be taking longer and longer to churn out. This large drain on resources will thus soon evaporate.

e)       The telephone cost us £342 this year against £8 income.  This is another slight anomaly which is being investigated.

f)        As set out during the A.G.M. last year, we have spent much more on 'caving' this year i.e., tackle £400 instead of £182 last year.  This was made up of SRT rope bought cheap in America, ladders, ladder making gear etc.

g)       £540 has been 'spent' on the Cuthbert’s Report, that is a transfer of £400 to the account from our General Account to help bolster it up, plus sundry expenses such as computer equipment to allow Dave Turner to set up the production.

h)       Last years expenditure on Tackle Store repairs has been partly offset by an insurance cheque and MRO donation, but we still have a deficit of £625 which will have to be written off.

2. INCOME

a)       On the income side, the main item is of course Hut Sheets/Bednights.  The main problem this year has been the gradual collapse of the Hut Sheet system.  Members seem incapable of filling it in properly.  Names and other detail is either illegible or in 3 ft high letters.  Failing to put 'M' for Member and 'V' for visitor means we cannot monitor increases in bednights and the Hut Warden cannot tally the money in the box with what’s on the sheets.  The situation has not been helped by the change over in Hut Warden or the theft in the Spring when 3 Hut Sheets and at least £100 vanished.

I regret that I cannot therefore return any meaningful analysis on the numbers that have stayed at the Belfry nor the exact monies derived from bednights.  Not exactly satisfactory, i.e., will tighten up the situation with the new Hut Warden.

Bednight income last year was some £2226, this year it is about £1820 (taking into account the theft).  Oddly member and guest bednight income is almost exactly the same as last year (as far as the garbage written on the Hut Sheets can tell us) the difference being the income we don't now get from the Army and Navy who we have succeeded in frightening off.  A salutary lesson?

b)       We made a profit of £18 on the Dinner last year - should we make more?

c)       The Wessex Challenge profit was £188 - an acceptable level?

d)       We sold more Tee and sweat shirts so our excess of original expenditure over income is now down to £92.

e)       I have not included advance sales of Cuthbert Reports here as this 'income' will soon become expenditure in due course when the report is printed.

f)        The St. Cuthbert’s Cave fees only amounted to £22.  Did only 73 people go down this year?

3. IAN DEAR MEMORIAL FUND

This is still bumbling along but no takers in 1988.  The fund is now £308 with another injection of £100 due in November from our General Account.

4.         Our General Fund Building Society Account currently stands at £790.

5.         Our financial priorities I feel are as follows for this year:

a)         Complete drying room.

b)         Sort out telephone and electricity expenditure.

c)         Finance the Cuthbert’s Report.

d)         Sundry repairs and Belfry improvements.

6.         I can find no justification to raise Subscriptions or Hut fees this year. Please, please help cash flow by paying both on time and when required.  The Membership Secretary this year will rigorously enforce the situation this year and Subs are due by Jan 1st 1989.  Non-payers by this time risk having their BB’s withheld - it's only £12 for heavens sake.  Why should we spend money on postage etc chasing non-payers?

7.         Advance sales of The Cuthbert’s Report is now £804, including a £400 BEC injection, thus £404 divided by £5 equals about 80 pre-sales.

M C McDonald (Trebor) 6.9.88

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