Minutes of BOC Meeting held 2nd

July 2017 Page 1

BRITISH ORCHID COUNCIL Registered Charity Nº 1002945

Web Site - www.british-orchid-council.info

Minutes of Ordinary Meeting held at 2.30 p.m. on Sunday 2n d July 2017 at The Baddesley Room, Greswolde Arms Hotel, High Street, Knowle, Solihull, West Midlands, B93 0LL.

1. Attendance & Apologies for Absence

Officers and those in specific Roles

President Max Hopkinson Present

Vice Presidents Ian Parsons Present

Sue Lane Apologies received

John Spires

Chris Barker Present

Chairman Arthur Deakin Present

Vice Chairman Vacant

Hon Secretary Pat McLean Present

Hon Treasurer Robert Orrick Present

Minutes Secretary Thelma Orrick Present

Chair Conservation Working Group John Spires

Chair Communications Working Group Ian Parsons Present

Chair Judging Working Group Jean Barker Present

Slide / CD Librarian Robert Cant Present

Lecturers List Manager Celia Wright Present

Societies and their delegates

Birmingham & Midland Orchid Society Bob Grove

Birmingham & Midland Orchid Society Alan Luckman

Bournemouth Orchid Society Graham Smith

Bristol & West of England Orchid Society Walter Barker Apologies received

Bristol & West of England Orchid Society Ian Parsons Present

British Orchid Growers Association Claudia Whales

British Orchid Growers Association Ray Creek

British Paphiopedilum Society Brian Walker Present

British Paphiopedilum Society Jo Walker Present

Cambridge Orchid Society Peter Johnson Apologies received

Cambridge Orchid Society Ron Pearson

Cardiff & Vale of Glamorgan Orchid Society Liz Britton-Cumming

Cardiff & Vale of Glamorgan Orchid Society Anthony Cumming

Central Orchid Society Mike Bull Present

Central Orchid Society John Spires

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July 2017 Page 2

Cheltenham & District Orchid Society Tom Price

Cheltenham & District Orchid Society Rod Wells Present

Cheshire and North Wales Orchid Society Denys Morten

Cheshire and North Wales Orchid Society Iain Wright Present

Chester Zoo Philip Essen

Cornwall Orchid Society Nichola Ingram

Croydon & District Orchid Society Michael Penney

Cumbria Orchid Society Tony Britton Apologies received

Darlington & District Orchid Society Bob Orrick Present

Darlington & District Orchid Society Thelma Orrick Present

Devon Orchid Society Sue Lane Apologies received

East Anglia Orchid Society Colin Thorburn Apologies received

East Anglia Orchid Society Min Kennison

East Midlands Orchid Society Celia Hopkinson Present

East Midlands Orchid Society Steve Pask Apologies received

Eric Young Orchid Foundation Chris Purver

Essex Orchid Society Moira Tarrant Apologies received

Fenland Orchid Society Pat Sones Apologies received

Fenland Orchid Society Tony Taylor

Glasgow Botanic Garden Ewen Donaldson

Hardy Orchid Society Iain Wright Present

Hardy Orchid Society Celia Wright Present

Harrogate Orchid Society Malcolm White

Hinckley & District Orchid Society Keith Bates Apologies received

Hinckley & District Orchid Society David Beasley Apologies received

King Charles 1 School Phil Seaton Present

King Charles 1 School Vacant

Lea Valley Orchid Society Gillian Radley Apologies received

Lea Valley Orchid Society Michael Radley Apologies received

Lincolnshire Orchid Group Tony Taylor

Lincolnshire Orchid Group Richard Baxter Apologies received

Mid Sussex Orchid Society Maria Firth Apologies received

North Bucks Orchid Society William Dickins

North Bucks Orchid Society Barry Bramham

North East of England Orchid Society Robert Cant Present

North East of England Orchid Society Angela Cant Present

North Hampshire Orchid Society Tricia Gray Apologies received

North Hampshire Orchid Society Lawrence Gray Apologies received

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July 2017 Page 3

North of England Orchid Society Malcolm White

North of England Orchid Society Trish White

Orchid Society of Great Britain Betty Barber

Orchid Society of Great Britain Neville Dunn Present

Pleurothallid Alliance Alan Luckman

Pleurothallid Alliance John Spires

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew Vacant

Royal Botanic Gardens Kew Lara Jewitt

Royal Horticultural Society Johan Hermans Apologies received

Royal Horticultural Society Clare Hermans Apologies received

Scottish Orchid Society Jean Barker Present

Scottish Orchid Society Chris Barker Present

Sheffield & District Orchid Society Vacant

Sheffield & District Orchid Society Silvia Maunder Apologies received

Solihull & District Orchid Society Caroline Reid Present

Solihull & District Orchid Society Vacant

Somerset, Wiltshire & Dorset Orchid Society No Delegate

South East Orchid Society Neville Dunn Present

South Wales Orchid Study Group Jenny Minet Present

South Wales Orchid Study Group Christopher Squire Apologies received

South West Orchid Society Ian Parsons Present

South West Orchid Society Marian Saunders

Southern Counties Orchid Society Pauline Mottershead

Southern Counties Orchid Society Peter Mottershead

Suffolk Orchid Society Angela Exworth Cook Apologies received

Suffolk Orchid Society Janet Parsons Apologies received

Thames Valley Orchid Society Barry Cook

Thames Valley Orchid Society Betty Barber

Wessex Orchid Society Jonathan Watson

Grahame Coleman

Graham Coleman in his place

Wessex Orchid Society John Dennis Apologies received

West Cornwall Orchid Society Ron Lindsay Apologies received

West Cornwall Orchid Society Kit Lindsay Apologies received

Writhlington School Orchid Project Zoe Barnes

Writhlington School Orchid Project Jacob Coles

Visitor - Writhlington School Orchid Project Simon Pugh Jones Present

Visitor - BOC Judging Group Mel Stephen Present

Standing Action: All delegates are reminded that if you are unable to attend a meeting would you please send your

apologies prior to the meeting to the Hon. Secretary mcleanpatriciaw@yahoo.co.uk

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1.

Apologies for absence not recorded on attendance list: John Spires, Marian Saunders, Tom Price.

2.

Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting held on 5

th March 2017

2.1

Accuracy: The minutes having been circulated were agreed as an accurate record and signed by the Chairman, Arthur Deakin.

2.2

Actions not covered elsewhere on Agenda: None

2.3

Matters arising not elsewhere on agenda Devon will not hold a mini congress but intend to have a large event in 2019. Ian Parsons reported that he had removed York & District and Sussex from the database but enquired whether anyone had news of North Bucks.- Max Hopkinson had had a letter from them stating they would be disbanding. Ian would confirm and remove from database. Ian also enquired about South East as they had been having difficulties. It was confirmed that South East are still in operation.

It was proposed by the Chairman that the agenda be rearranged so that ‘Communications’ would be the penultimate item and ‘Societies, what is the future?’ would be the last item. The minutes reflect the order of reporting by officers and delegates and not as seen on the Agenda.

3.

Hon Secretary’s Report Contact - Pat McLean E-mail: mcleanpatriciaw@yahoo.co.uk Pat reported as follows:

I have been informed by Richard Baxter that Lincolnshire Orchid Group has decided to disband at the end of the year. Apart from answering a few queries I have nothing further to report. Arthur reminded delegates that Pat’s term of office ends in March and asked Societies to put a candidate forward to take over this role. He also reminded delegates that the role of Vice Chairman was still vacant.

4.

Hon Treasurer’s Report Contact – Robert Orrick E-mail: rj-orrick@hotmail.co.uk Bob reported as follows:

Report Period: 1st March 2017 – 30th June 2017

Opening

Closing

CAF Cash Current Account

440.02

244.14

CAF Gold Account

30.83

30.87

Virgin Money Deposit

23,665.20

22,777.15

Totals

24,136.05

23,052.16

Recorded Income Burnham Nurseries £ 110.00 Deposit Acc. VM (Interest) £ 111.95 Deposit Acc. CAF (Interest) £ 00.04 Subscriptions – 2017 £ 40.00 £ 261.99

Recorded Expenditure: BOC Judging Costs £ 16.57 Room hire (Greswolde Arms) £ 154.70 Photographic Competition £ 70.00 Bank Charges £ 15.00 Speaker Costs (Deposit Acc.) £ 800.00 £ 1,345.88

Cheques in Hand Subscriptions – 2017 £100.00 Final Balance £ 23,152.16

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July 2017 Page 5

Current Assets/Liabilities Debtors (Subscriptions, Year Book) £ 900.00 Creditors (Photo Comp., Burnham N.) £ 115.00

Income: Burnham Nurseries: It would appear that Burnham Nurseries have overpaid for an advert and extra copies of the 2017 Year Book. Sara at Burnham’s has agreed that the simplest solution is to repeat their advert and book order, without charge, next year. Subscriptions: Due to the problem with the account transfer a reminder has only recently been sent out advising members that subscriptions have remained at the same level and that payment can be made by Standing Order. Year Book 2017: There is still a payment outstanding for the year book. Expenditure: Speakers Costs: An amount of £800 has been set aside to cover Tom Mirenda’s travel costs,this was withdrawn from the Virgin Money account. Actual costs are expected to be less. Transfer of Accounts: Due to further problems, the transfer of the CAF accounts has not yet been made. This will be discussed later in the meeting.

5.

European Orchid Council report: Contact – Arthur Deakin E-mail:arthurlomasdeakin@yahoo.co.uk Arthur reported as follows: Chris has just informed me that as chairman I am the delegate for EOC representing BOC. I did not therefore attend the meeting held in Gdansk on 13

th May.

Chris had received the minutes and the main information was about the Congress in Paris about which he would give more info later in the meeting.

6.

CITES Contact - John Spires E-mail: johnspires@mac.com John reported as follows:

As is normal these days I have nothing concrete to report. From the tone of correspondence and meeting minutes from DEFRA, I think their attention is increasingly occupied with Brexit!

7

Working Group Reports

7.1

Judging Working Group Contact – Jean & Chris Barker E-mail: cjbandjb@ntlworld.com

Jean reported as follows: BOC Judging Scheme Provisional, Future Plans Before doing anything else, our first task is to compile a list of judges and trainees who are still committed to the scheme and to consult them for ideas. These are our initial thoughts - We are not re-inventing the wheel and much of what we have in mind is already written into the scheme or a modification of what is already there. Trainees The table judging at symposiums is an important part of the training experience but we would like to expand the learning experience by adding the following –

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(a) Trainees should be involved in stewarding at both local shows and major shows while training. Attached is a document (Appendix A) that trainees could get signed off by show organisers each time they are involved with the judging at a show. As an incentive this evidence could be rewarded with the equivalent of passing 1 table by stewarding at two local shows and one table for major shows such as a BOC Congress, EOC Congress or Malvern Show. It is the responsibility of the trainee to return the form to claim the points. This is the real world when it comes to judging and must be a valuable learning experience. We would hope all societies would encourage trainees to attend their shows and qualified judges would discuss with and advise the trainees. Naturally the trainees should learn while stewarding and not just act as scribes. (b) We would like to see more talks/presentations given by experts at most symposiums. This adds interest for both trainees and qualified judges. (c) At some point in the later stages of training all trainees could be invited to give a short presentation (digital or written) on an orchid topic of their choice at a symposium. Again, as an incentive this could be rewarded with the equivalent of passing 1 table. (d) When a society nominates a trainee they also allocate a mentor and it is important that the mentor does this job when a trainee is starting. Not just at symposiums, but also at local shows and monthly table displays. If the mentor is not available for a symposium then they should find a substitute to look after the trainee until they have gained in confidence. Judges The learning experience never ends with orchids and we feel it is important that qualified judges stay involved. It is a concern that there might be people on the list of qualified judges who have not attended a symposium for many years and are not even judging at their own local shows or involved with their own society any more. Because of this we would like to see – (a) A three-year rule introduced. If a judge has not attended a symposium for three years they will be sent a warning letter and then removed from the list if they miss the next symposium. Removal from the list does not prevent them from judging at their own society shows and they could apply to re-join by attending and successfully doing table judging at a symposium. The current wording in the Handbook page 2 says a 'reasonable number' of training sessions before they will be contacted this would be modified to ‘3 years’. An extension would be made if people contact us with a bona fide reason such as illness etc. (b) Associated with (a), it is incumbent on us to make sure that the symposiums move around the country in any three-year period so that all judges have reasonable access to at least one symposium. (c) We would like to have ‘added value’ for qualified judges (and trainees) at symposiums. e.g. –

i. The next symposium is at the London Show (Sat. 7th April with a speaker).

ii. If space is available it would be good if a society could invite us to join their show for a symposium

iii. Possibly invite a trader to sell and talk at a symposium.

iv. We are invited to have a symposium at Writhlington School that could include a greenhouse tour and ‘hands on’ in the flasking lab.

The judging working group would appreciate any ideas/suggestions from any judge or trainee or society before we have a re-write of the Handbook. After a number of responses which were noted by the Working group Arthur gave thanks to Chris, Jean and the Working Group for their work on the BOC Provisional Judging Plans. Actions: The proposals for judging scheme would go out to every Judge and trainee and would be included in the Minutes. Depending on the response to the consultation then a decision would be taken at next BOC meeting as to whether to adopt or alter. Chris would contact judges he had on lists but asked that delegates find out from their societies who they knew were active judges and get info back to Chris and Jean with contact information.

Jean stated that another symposium could be arranged for Oct/Nov 2017 possibly in the Midlands as the earlier two had been at Jersey and Glasgow. It would be a one day event with opportunities to discuss the plans.

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Judging Report Past Events: A successful symposium took place the Botanic Garden, Glasgow. 9 trainees and 26 judges attended. There was an excellent show in the Kibble Palace and many BOC judges took part in the judging on the Saturday morning. The weather was glorious and many cool growing orchids did not enjoy being under the glass of the Kibble Palace. Many thanks to Alan MacKenzie for the organisation and his wife Trish and members of the Glasgow branch for their wonderful hospitality. New Judges: No new judges qualified at Glasgow. New Trainees: Six new trainee judges have been enrolled as members of the judging scheme since the last BOC meeting. Bob Cant and Angela Cant, NE Orchid Society, Kim Solomon, OSGB, Archie Smith, South West OS, Charles Ford, Sheffield OS, and Alan MacKenzie, Glasgow OS. Resignations: Richard Baxter has resigned from the BOC Judging Scheme since the last BOC meeting. Future BOC Judging Events The following judging event have been organised for 2018 - Saturday 7

th April - BOC Judging Symposium in association with the London Orchid Show which is on the 6

th & 7

th

April 2018. More to be confirmed later. Sue Lane, Devon OS has requested - “I would like to confirm that the Orchid Weekend will take place on either the 4th-6th or the 11th-13th October, 2019. I will confirm the exact dates when the Committee has made a decision. I would be pleased if you could let me know whether a Judging Symposium would be possible as obviously it does help attendance.” Jean confirmed that a judging symposium would be held on one of the dates.

7.2

Congresses Chris reported as follows: EOC Congress Paris 23

rd - 25

th March 2018

My plan is to have a double decker coach with 48 people on the top deck and the lower deck for plants. The 48 people would have to promise at least one plant each and hopefully more. I have enquired about the staging to be provided in the EOC area. If staging could be provided for a ‘personal free stand’ then we could consider this; I get the impression they would prefer us to have a separate display. Bringing staging restricts the number of plants that we can take. I am also getting interest from people just wanting to come to enjoy the show and Paris; we hope to have enough to fill a second single decker coach. Registration Early Bird (before 30/11/2017) is 120 euros Website - https://eocce2018.com The organisers have also asked if we can provide BOC Yearbooks for the registrants’ bags. I have been contacted by Régis Brunod and he states: For the year-book a number between 150 and 200 will be fine. We could give you a more precise number at the beginning of March. For the staging I hope I can give you an answer at the end of August.

7.3

27

th Congress Report Contact - Simon Pugh Jones Email: spughjones@wsbeorchids.org

Simon reported as follows: The date has been finalized for the next British Orchid Congress. It will be held at Writhlington School, Radstock, near Bath, Somerset BA3 3NQ. From 2

nd – 4th November 2018.

It will not be called Congress but The British Orchid Show. This will show its link to BOC.

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The outline program is:

Set up Thursday 1st Nov, Friday 2nd Nov,

Preview Friday 2nd Nov,

Show open to public 3rd and 4th November,

Science Symposium Sat 3rd Nov.

We have an extra building available that also contains our large propagation laboratories and so space available for societies will be flexible. As in 2012 we will have a wide range of trade attending including all the UK trade, European regulars and possible South American/Asian We expect large numbers of the public (2000 visitors in 2012) There will be two lecture programs A science Symposium on the Sunday with early careers scientists, researchers presenting their work – As well as delegates this will be sold as a separate ticket targeted at university students and others interested in conservation and orchid science. A public lecture program on Saturday and Sunday will focus on orchids, culture, hybridization etc. Food will include a luxury buffet on preview evening, a grand Congress dinner on Saturday and a range of food option during the day on set up and show days. Accommodation – I will again be circulating information on nearby hotels – We are fortunate to be near to the very attractive medieval town of Frome and Georgian City of Bath. Newsletters – we will again be sending out monthly newsletters as information develops and online registration via paypal. The school would produce their own trophies, screen printed bags etc made by the students. Lanyards will be given out containing information about the event. There might be a craft display of orchids made of wood, sugarcraft etc. At this early stage we would welcome suggestions and ideas.

8

Other Reports

8.1

Lecturer’s Panel Contact – Celia Wright E-mail: celia.boc@windmill.me.uk

Celia reported as follows:

The document listing the Lecturers willing to speak has now been updated with all speakers except one contacted. I am now able to upload a PDF of this on to the BOC website whenever I need to, so there should be no delays in altering details as I receive notice of any changes. More speakers would be welcome. Please speak to me if you can help.

Arthur gave thanks to Celia for her work and for putting useful info on the database. Celia stated society members could access the List of Lecturers through Services.

8.2

Slide/CD Library - Digitisation of Library Contact – Robert Cant E-mail: bobcant@hotmail.com

Rob reported as follows: There is nothing major to report, I am continuing to work through the remaining slides. The work is slow and laborious. I have taken some time off from them this year so as not to sicken myself. There is nothing else to report.

8.3

Conservation Contact – Philip Seaton E-mail: philipseaton@gmail.com

Philip reported as follows: There had been no response to the Consultation document on Conservation sent out with the minutes. I have been talking to Simon and we would both like to encourage members to pollinate plants and send the seeds

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July 2017 Page 9

to us for propagation. I know people do not know how to do this so suggest I produce 2/3 sheet illustrated document which could be added to the Year book. I would like to encourage the cultivation of plants rare in nature and get seeds from them and propagate. I appreciate that this is one area of conservation but it is not the same as keeping plants in their own habitats. There are areas of reserves where funds would help conserve plants but we would need to find trusted individuals. Celia stated that cutting of wayside verges by councils was a problem for British Native Orchids and suggested that the OSGB wrote a document which BOC could fund to produce to explain how best to conserve them. Simon stated that people not plants were the most important thing for him in conservation as students/delegates in countries where many Orchids in our collections grew could not afford to attend conferences etc. But funds should go to individuals not Governments. Action: Arthur asked the delegates to please go back to their societies and find their response to how we can help in Conservation using the document sent out last meeting.

9

BOC Sponsored Lecture Tour 2017 Contact - John Dennis Email: jwd303@btinternet.com

John Dennis sent the following report: The BOC Sponsored speaking tour for Tom Mirenda seems to be going like clockwork. In fact Tom is now on his way to Suffolk and we are expecting him at the BOS and the WOS on the 30th of this month and the 1st. of July respectively, after he talks at the SWOS on the 28th. He also plans a trip to Writhlington, wild orchids in Hampshire and a trip to the EYOF. He ought to need a rest after this, he spent a great time with Alan Mackenzie and Chris and Jean Barker. Chris added: I have heard nothing but glowing reports about Tom Mirenda’s tour and Tom is also thoroughly enjoying himself. We were worried about his full itinerary and I now understand how easy it was for this to happen. His enthusiasm is infectious and he wants to do and see everything that he can. Just in case you thought his itinerary was too full you might like to know that since he arrived he has added a visit to Writhlington and also plans to visit Darwin at Downe House. Even so, I would not like to see this as the norm for future tours. Arthur gave thanks to John Dennis for his work getting the Lecture tour organized. It had been very successful and enjoyable to all those who had listened to Tom’s talks. .

10

BOC Trophies Contact – Chris Barker E-mail: cjbandjb@ntlworld.com Richard Baxter tried to trace all our trophies many years ago and we only managed to get our hands on six. It seems that most now feel that it is better to give trophies that can be kept by the winner after congresses. I think nobody would thank you for some of these. Chris posed the questions- should we return to appropriate societies or give to societies who would use them or should they be scrapped? Decisions were as follows: Cheltenham Rose Bowl – claimed by Rod Wells Canterbury Trophy – offered to BPS if South East do not want it returned. Sheffield Punch bowl – Chris to take to Sheffield OS to see if they would like it returned. Frank Griggs Salver – Confirmed at the meeting as having no financial value. Peterborough Trophy – Confirmed at the meeting as having no financial value. BOC Silver Dish – will be raffled at future meeting for one winning societies use. Pat asked if a Banner owned by BOC but very large and old could be destroyed. Agreed.

Communications Working Group BOC Yearbook Contact – Chris Barker E-mail: cjbandjb@ntlworld.com Iain Wright has kindly offered to continue doing the DTP work for the Year book. I expect few changes to the format of the Yearbook

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It may be a bit harder to find people to advertise this year but I would propose no increase in advertising charges. We could get away with 4 pages less this year; we gave 3 pages to the WOC last year.

Non BOC members BOC members(get a discount, one only for BOGA)

One A5 page - £100 One A5 page - £80.

Half A5 page - £60 Half A5 page - £50.

Quarter Page - £40. Quarter Page - £30.

Target Deadline Dates Friday 1st September for adverts.

Friday 16th September for all other items. *** PLEASE NOTE Societies must update their details on the BOC website by this date! *** Friday 8th October - deadline for requesting free copies and any additional copies Friday 15th October - Final copy ready to go to the printers followed by batching for societies to be ready for the November BOC Meeting. Please try to collect from the meeting or get a representative to collect for you and save on postage. Number of Copies Maximum of 50 per society, with extra available at 50p per copy. I suggest that we print 2500 copies this year; this can be modified depending on the orders for extra copies. I would like to propose that we offer a free one-page advert for the Paris EOC in March. Vote taken: Unanimous

11

BOC Bank Account Signatories Bob reported as follows: II still have not succeeded in changing the CAF accounts. Suffice to say it is not as simple a process as for a personal account. Aside from bank branches closing, a block in the attempt to change to Santander, is caused by our constitution. Santander will allow multiple signatories, but then state that any single signatory can operate the account. Our constitution requires the use of two signatories. Although Santander stipulates that any one signatory can sign a cheque, I do not wish, at this moment to go down that path, therefore banks operating this system will be discounted. As treasurer, I personally prefer to maintain two signatories when dealing with a current account. (The Deposit Account, Virgin Money was set up on this principal). Santander prompted me to re-read the constitution. Clause 8.1 states “Any bank account maintained by BOC must be in the name of BOC. Signatories to any BOC bank account will be any two from the three officers: Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer.” Clause 8.1 only allowed for the officers of the committee to sign cheques. Chris as Vice President is no longer able to do so. So, currently obtaining a second signature on cheques is not as easy as before because Chris, as a now ex-local signatory, is no longer an officer of BOC. This is inevitably going to cause delays in cheque payments. What I would like to do today is to raise for discussion how members feel about adding a fourth signatory. Adding a fourth signatory would require an amendment to the constitution. Amendments to the constitution can only be made at an EGM, as stated in Clause 9.1 “The constitution may be amended if seventy-five per cent of votes cast are in favour of such a proposal at a properly notified Annual or EGM of Council.” Fortunately, under Clause 6.9.3 “An EGM may be held on the same day as an ordinary meeting.”

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Acting under Clause 9.1, I would like everyone to consider, given the required due notice, that at the end of the next meeting we hold an EGM to amend Clause 8.1 to include a fourth person, such person to be elected annually. Such an amendment would help facilitate a prompt execution of cheques in the future. In changing bank accounts the receiving bank asks for a copy of our constitution and the committee minutes which record approval of the change of banks. Therefore, at the same EGM I would like to ask for re-approval to change banks. As some time has passed I feel it would be more appropriate to present a recent agreement to the bank. The Chairman responded by stating that there are three meetings a year for me to sign cheques and in the interim, if Bob posted them to me, I would countersign them and send them on to the appropriate place. Hopefully this will mean little or no extra work for Bob, but does away with changing the constitution etc. .

BOC Website Contact - Ian Parsons E-mail: ian.parsons@virgin.net Ian gave a short demonstration of the BOC website and data base and reported as follows:

The BOC website and database can be found at www.british-orchid-council.info Just to reiterate that Members are urged to make sure that the information is checked regularly, and brought up to date when required. A new website is being developed. This has been approached with a new view taking into account the recent prevalence of mobile devices; these now exceed the use of PCs in the ratio of 4 to 1. The development of the new website is based on being “Mobile First”, adopting the current jargon of web programmers. This has required the use of “Responsive Web Design” – techniques that allow the web pages to react and adjust to varying screen sizes and orientations. The bulk of this work is now completed and can be seen via the following link www.british-orchid-council.info/BOC2017 that will take you to the new site. From there, it is possible to navigate to all the pages on the site, and these are very similar to those on the existing main website. There are several options shown regarding colours for page decoration, and these can be changed easily in the style sheets adopted in the building of the site. Colours and decoration have been separated from style and layout in the style sheets for ease of maintenance. Associated with the use of a simple linked menu system that does not rely on drop-downs, flyouts or any other techniques, has resulted in a very simple and reliable navigation through the pages, and that works in all browsers tested so far. The use of simple layouts has enabled a much more basic approach to the design of the site, and this should make it easier for maintenance in the future. No special tools have been used in the construction, unlike the current website that relies on the use of WebPlus (that is no longer available, and is not supported). There remains just the database to re-style using the current developments, and this is not a trivial matter! There being some 75 web pages to alter, check, and test. This compares with 34 pages in the new site. This work will be done as and when time is available. He gave thanks to Chris, Rod, Iain and Celia Wright for their help in testing on their mobile devices and special thanks to Iain for arriving at a solution to caching problems when browsing. Chris stated that he was very happy as he now knows that Iain could, if necessary, take over the running of the website in an emergency for the short term. He suggested that Iain be co-opted onto the Communications working group. Iain agreed. Arthur gave thanks to Ian for his work on the database and to Celia and Iain for their help in helping to iron out problems. Iain suggested that we get a broader panel of testers to comment on the database and give feedback with any issues found and stating which device they were using. This idea has been taken up and a request for any societies’ members to test the Website& database on mobile devices is on the next page.

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We need Volunteers to help test the new BOC website. A volunteer should have a mobile phone, notepad, tablet or Phablet capable of displaying the BOC website at http://www.british-orchid-council.info/BOC2017 and be able to see the pages in both portrait and landscape modes. Testing requires that you can navigate through the site and note any problems or difficulties, and report back to me at ian.parsons@virgin.net . Any comments and suggestions are welcomed. In order to become a Tester please email me with

your details (Full Name as a minimum)

and a list of your devices (Make, operating system and version, Browser name and version). As there are in excess of 15 different browser versions in common use on phones alone, it is important that we try to pinpoint any problem areas and resolve them before releasing the website to the general public. I shall email the Testers when I update aspects of the site when resolving problems, and ask for a response. You may expect to be asked to retest the website on several occasions!

12

Due to the meeting taking longer than expected the Chairman proposed that the last item to be discussed – ‘Societies, what is the future?’ - should be put back to the next meeting. All present agreed.

There being no other business the meeting closed at 4.40pm.

Date of Next Meeting - Sunday 5

th November 2017 at 1.45pm

at the Greswolde Arms Hotel, High Street, Knowle, Solihull, West Midlands, B93 0LL. Standing Note from Minutes Secretary The Attendance List circulated for signing (recorded in ‘Attendance & Apologies for Absence’) is constructed from the online BOC database. Apologies can also be recorded on the Attendance List or emailed in advance to the Secretary at mcleanpatriciaw@yahoo.co.uk. Please ensure that attendance is noted by signing in or apologies are given at the meeting if not before.

Minutes Secretary

Thelma Orrick 1, Hazelmere Close, Billingham,TS22 5RQ

Tel: 01642 554149 E-mail: thelma_orrick@outlook.com

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Appendix A

BOC Society Shows - Stewarding /Judging Record Sheet

Trainee’s Name: _____________________________________

Please keep a record of any BOC Society Shows where you have been actively involved in the

stewarding/judging process. They will count towards your qualification, see below.

Society Show: ________________________________________ Date: _______________

To be signed by a committee member of the organising society –

Signed by: _____________________________

Society Show: ________________________________________ Date: _______________

To be signed by a committee member of the organising society –

Signed by: _____________________________

Society Show: ________________________________________ Date: _______________

To be signed by a committee member of the organising society –

Signed by: _____________________________

Society Show: ________________________________________ Date: _______________

To be signed by a committee member of the organising society –

Signed by: _____________________________

Society Show: ________________________________________ Date: _______________

To be signed by a committee member of the organising society –

Signed by: _____________________________

Please return this form to Jean & Chris Barker at the end of each year.

Email: cjbandjb@ntlworld.com

Address: 17, Surbiton Road, Stockton-on-Tees. TS18 5PZ

During the period of your training we hope you will be involved in stewarding/judging at shows. This is an

important part of your training. Two local shows will count as passing the equivalent of one table at a symposium

and one large show e.g. a BOC Congress, EOC Congress or Malvern will count as one table.