Kilmun Community Council
Annual General Meeting – 8thth February 2022, online via zoom @ 7.00 pm
PRESENT
Diane Nicholson (Acting Convenor), vacant (Vice Convenor), Janet Holm (Secretary), Graham Revill, , Lachlan Macquarie, Mandy Grout and Dale Mallin.
Also Present:, Councillor A Reid, Bruce Marshal, Gordon Holm and June McDonald
APOLOGIES: Russell Humphreys (Treasurer), Fraser Smith, Bob Darracott (LATNP ), Councillor Y McNeilly, Councillor G. Blair
MINUTES OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING HELD ON 14TH MAY 2019
The minutes of the last AGM (14th May 2019) were accepted as a true record of events
Proposed by: - Diane Nicholson
Seconded by:- Dale Mallin Carried
CONVENER’S ANNUAL REPORT + ANY QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Diane Nicolson, acting convenor since Brian tester resigned said that we had a report from Brian which is posted below. She gave a brief synopsis of his report for those at the meeting. The full report is included below.
Report from Brian Tester former Convenor February 2022
“Hi, good people of Kilmun and our surrounding areas. As it’s AGM time finally, I have put together a few lines to update you on the work and undertakings of our/your committee.
Well, what can we say…Covid! Whilst just about every organisation you speak to will give Covid as the excuse as to why they can’t, won’t or haven’t, but realistically it has had a massive impact on organisations like Community Councils. It has been almost 2 years now since we met ‘in person’ each month, so KCC are trying to find their feet again now, whilst complying with the legislation and guidelines provided.
When Covid kicked off, we were proactive in the background. We offered prescription deliveries for Riverbank Surgery and any support that was needed to any resident throughout this time. As a community organisation that is mandated by our local Council (Argyll & Bute), we have to follow the advice and processes that are provided by our Governance Officer. When we made enquiries about whether or not we should hold virtual meetings, we were clearly told that this was not supported by our Governance Officer, because a virtual meeting precludes the involvement/attendance of each and every resident (some people don’t have the facilities to attend such meetings), and even if we did hold such meetings, decisions could not be made because not every resident would have had the opportunity to make their opinions known. I passed this information on to our committee, and we were in unanimous agreement that we would not hold virtual meetings. So, instead of holding meetings, I made regular contact with our committee to ensure that if any urgent matter were to arise, we could act immediately. It is worthy of note that other Community Councils had met virtually within a few months of Covid ‘lockdowns’ etc’, so when I discussed this with our Governance Officer, I was politely reminded that such meetings could have no legal basis, and no decisions that affected their community could be made during such meetings.
We received some criticism from one or two residents that we ‘were not doing enough’, but the fact that we had already offered our services to local organisations, we had increased our vigilance towards vulnerable people within our Community and we were following the guidelines provided by A&BC, we felt that we were providing the service that the restrictions imposed allowed us to do….were we frustrated by this….yes, of course we were!
Over the last few months, we have met ‘face to face’ as soon as the regulations and guidelines allowed us to, but some people have felt very uncomfortable with such ‘in person’ meetings, so KCC have decided, at present, to meet virtually. Unfortunately, this is without me, as I resigned from my position as Convener and Committee member. I feel that KCC deserves a Convener that can help in taking us forward, and now is the time for someone else to assume the position of Convener and help our Community to emerge from the restrictions that had been imposed by Covid.
So, other than Covid, we still have Community issues. The new high voltage power line has been subject of much discussion. We have met with local residents from the Glen Massan area who have requested our help, and also attended meetings with SSEN and Savills (the scheme coordinators) in trying to minimise the impact that the works will have in our community. We will continue to offer our assistance to any resident who is likely to be affected by the proposals. We have also been involved in much discussion with Forestry and Land Scotland/ Forestry Enterprise Scotland, regarding many issues, including the works at West Loch Eck and the larch tree disease, to mention but a few. We now have a much stronger and robust level of support, following changes in staff positions within Forestry. We have worked closely with our local agencies and have been supportive in facilitating requirements for the recent inoculations…which includes provision of Younger Hall and email circulations. Argyll Rally….ran successfully last year and is due to run again this year with ‘public road’ stages in our area. Not wishing to single out individuals, but Fraser has played a blinder in his work behind the scenes in representing KCC. The Holy Loch plays a massive part to all who live by or near, so when we were approached by Michael Breslin in his request for us to support the preservation of the Holy Loch from some industrial fishing methods, we were happy to support ‘The Friends of the Holy Loch’. As such, we formed a sub-committee that includes several members of our committee and a geological expert who is very close to KCC. We have received support from all our surrounding Community Councils, and more is to follow, so please help to support Michael in his work. Likewise, in order to best monitor Forestry issues, we formed a sub-committee from members of our main Committee.
So, even though you might think that your Community Council is ‘sitting idle’, nothing could be further from the truth. Your Community Council is working on your behalf behind the scenes…but please remember…IF YOU NEED SUPPORT ON ANY ISSUE, OR YOU NEED TO BRING ISSUES TO OUR ATTENTION, PLEASE CONTACT ONE OF YOUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE…..WITHOUT YOUR SUPPORT AND INFORMATION FLOW, COMMUNITY COUNCILS CAN’T BE EFFECTIVE.
Finally, a massive vote of thanks to our Local Councillors…Alan, Yvonne and Gordon. They work tirelessly for our Community in unison, and without their continued support, our Community Council could not function properly….thanks good people
I will end this report by saying a massive thank you to all of our community, who continue to support your Community Council, and on a personal note, thank you to all members of the Community and those on the Committee who have assisted and supported me during my time as Convener…cheers guys.”
Brian Tester
TREASURER’S SUBMISSION OF BALANCE SHEET & ANNUAL ACCOUNTS
Account have been done to the 31st March 2021 but because of the pandemic there was not much movement in the finances.
The committee thanked Russell for always keeping KCC accounts up to date and giving an accurate summarisation each month at the committee meetings.
The Treasurer’s report was presented (as above) and accepted as a true record.
Proposed by: Diane Nicolson
Seconded by: Janet Holm Carried.
The meeting was taken over by Councilor Alan Reid in order to Elect the convenor. He said that KCC and its committee were working well.
ELECTION OF OFFICERS
Convener: Diane Nicolson was proposed by Janet Holm for this post seconded by Mandy Grout Carried.
The Vice-Convener: Dale Mallin was proposed by Diane Nicholson for this post seconded by Lachlan Macquarie Carried.
Secretary: Janet Holm was proposed by Diane Nicholson for this post, seconded by Mandy Grout
Carried
Treasurer: Russell Humphries was proposed by Janet Holm for this post, seconded by Diane Nicholson
Carried
The next AGM will be in 2023 on a date to be agreed after the community council elections in October 2022. It will be online or in the Younger Hall, Kilmun.
As there was no further business, the meeting closed.
