Minutes of Annual General Meeting 2025

Held at 7.00pm on Wednesday 23rd April 2025 at Wotton Hall Social Club

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Monica Carter (County Captain), Clive O’Gorman (Woodmancote), David & Pauline Moss (Tewkesbury), Jim Oates (Wotton Hall)
A full list of those attending is appended to these minutes.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF THE 2024 AGM

The Secretary had circulated the minutes of the previous Annual General Meeting (24 April 2024) with the agenda. No comments or questions were raised, so the Chair signed the minutes as a true record.

MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES OF THE 2024 AGM

There were no matters arising from the minutes of the previous AGM.

OFFICERS’ REPORTS

Chairman – Chris Evans

I would like to start by thanking all the officers of the GSMBA for carrying out their responsibilities throughout the past year in a professional and friendly manner. With their help, support and advice I have been afforded by them all, I have managed to survive the year as Chair of the GSMBA.
Along with the elected officers there is also the members who contribute to the running of the GSMBA namely Webmaster, fixtures, safeguarding etc. Again, thanks to all of you..
Thank you also to all the Clubs, their officers and members who continually support the GSMBA throughout the year.
County Venue now being at Kingsway has proven to have been worthwhile. In its central location for the County, the size and facilities that it provides, and most of all for the financial gain that has been achieved. Comments and feedback from our visiting counties and our county clubs that have played at Kingsway have been very favourable. Disappointing though, we still hear” mats are too fast, floor not level, too hot, too cold”. These are the comments you hear from every venue played in, throughout the year, so we must be ok.
There has been throughout the year the usual moans and groans which is expected within all organisations. All I wish to say on this matter is if you feel you have a just concern then please direct all concerns via the County Secretary not to individuals. All officers are fully aware of the procedures that have to be followed and, if need be, will deal with in the correct manner.
Finally, within the coming months the County League rules need to be looked at. A small group of members will be invited to look at these rules. If anyone is interested in getting involved, please contact Mike Sparrow or myself.

Secretary – Andy Todd

As signalled at the last AGM, the officers carried out a full review of the Association’s Constitution, which was last amended in 2019. Much has changed since that update: the way in which the Association operates has evolved and the Constitution needs to reflect that; our governing body, ESMBA, has provided new guidance, particularly with regard to safeguarding, diversity and inclusion, which we cannot ignore. All the amendments you will be voting on in the next few minutes have been thoroughly debated and approved by the full Management Committee and we hope you will accept them.
During the year I also spent a lot of time trying to track down 4 County trophies, which were conspicuous by their absence at the last presentation ceremony. Unfortunately, we had no success in these efforts, so, reluctantly, we had to accept that we could not recover the missing trophies and decided, albeit reluctantly and with some sense of injustice, that we had to purchase replacements. These new trophies will be presented after this meeting.
As noted elsewhere the move to a new venue at Kingsway Community Centre has proved mostly successful, especially financially. We recently signed a contract with our new landlords, which provides a formal basis for our hirings and makes our position as a user of the facility more secure.
For many of you the ESMBA, as a governing body, may seem remote, but they have recently appointed a new supplier for their group scheme insurance from 01 September this year. It is reasonably priced, and they are recommending it to clubs. I have already circulated the information about this to club contacts.
Finally, I would like to thank the other officers of the Association and Committee members for their support and hard work over the year in keeping the GSMBA running effectively.

Treasurer – Jenny Carter

The Treasurer proposed the adoption of the accounts for the year ending 31 March 2025, which had been independently examined. There were no questions and the meeting unanimously accepted the accounts, which are attached to these minutes (Attachment B).

Membership Secretary – Barbara Bubb

With the two new registered clubs I am very pleased to say we now have 340 registered members this season.
This year’s registration fee was £7.00 and included personal accident insurance for bowls related incidents through the ESMBA insurance broker. I now wait to see how the personal insurance will work with the new insurance firm.
I don’t yet know what next year’s registration fee will be until after the ESMBA AGM. I will be sending out the usual information about registering members about the end of August.

League Secretary – Mike Sparrow

Winter League 2024–25

Division 1: Winners: Westbury Martins | Runners-up: Defford
Division 2: Winners: Bishop’s Cleeve Cougars | Runners-up: Yorkley B
Promotions: Bishop’s Cleeve Cougars and Yorkley B → Division 1
Relegations: Forest of Dean and Yorkley → Division 2

Knockout Trophy

Finalists: Yorkley vs Defford
Winners: Defford (16 pts to 2)
The score in no way reflects the course of the matches: both sides bowled very well, befitting of a cup final.
Defford had the rub of the green in both games, though Saul Featherstone and Mike Dooley were both outstanding. Everyone contributed to two competitive and enjoyable evenings.

Generally, things have run quite smoothly: a couple of weather issues occurred but alternative dates were found and games were completed. The matches that I played in were certainly very competitive but played in the right spirit. Talking with other clubs I get the same feedback.
I have to thank both Mike Wall and Mike Edginton for their help and encouragement early on. Chris
Evans has been a huge help in guiding me to the correct decision when I was unsure which route to take. Julian Kellett has kept the website updated so well and lastly the clubs for sending in the result sheets so promptly.
I have enjoyed my term as League Secretary, thank you all for making it a pleasant experience.

Q&A:
21. David Bubb asked about relegation if a club dropped out. Mike said it would be handled at the time.

Competitions Secretary – Chris Evans

County Championships & National Qualifiers
22. Thank you to all members and friends who helped out on each day of the disciplines whether getting out and putting away equipment, helping out in the kitchen etc. The competition for the County Championships & National Qualifiers was a success. All teams showcasing competitive spirit and enthusiasm. The whole championships were a testament of the skill and camaraderie within the bowling community of Gloucestershire.

23. Congratulations to all the teams that entered on their achievement throughout the six disciplines.
Thanks to Andy Todd we look forward to being able to present trophies to all winners and runners up at this
year’s AGM.

24. Entry numbers for the competitions were slightly up on previous years, but analysis showed that only
5.5% of our affiliated members had taken part. Disappointing when you look at entries and you notice that
most entries came from three clubs, although players from 60% of registered clubs had at least one entrant.

25. The County’s allocation for the ESMBA Nationals were disappointing. Unfortunately, ESMBA fails to recognise this and at present refuses to change its allocation process.

County Team Captain – Monica Carter

ICC Competitions
26. Gloucestershire finished 2nd in their group and went on to meet Cheshire in the knockout stage, played in Solihull: Cheshire won 30 points – 10 points. The county team did very well this year and I want to thank all those players taking part.

Brunel Cup
27. The home and away matches with Avon resulted in Avon winning the cup this year. In a fitting tribute to
Judith Sawyer, the Avon team are adding some text to the cup, acknowledging Judith’s longstanding support of the Brunel Cup. Judith was able to see the presentation of the cup to the Avon team via video. We hope to see her at the matches, next season.

Bill Mackay Cup
28. Again, no matches have taken place with Herefordshire this year

Two Shires Trophy
29. Gloucestershire and Worcestershire have played the home and away fixtures for the trophy. 24 players took part in 2 rounds of 3 bowl Triples games. The final result is Worcestershire 43 points, Gloucestershire 37 points.

Double Rinks Fours (ESMBA)
30. Gloucestershire entered a team into this inaugural competition played in Melton Mowbray.16 teams from
around the country took part and the competition received favourable responses from all the teams involved.
Gloucestershire were unable to progress beyond the round robin stage this year.

County Team
31. Of the 45 people putting their names forward to play for the county last July, 5 have been unable to play due to health issues. Everyone else has had the opportunity to represent the county in either the ICC or Cup and Trophy matches. Many thanks to Phil Jennings for all the work he has done to arrange fixtures and venue bookings.

Finances
32. All monies collected on match days (playing fees and county kit sales) have been paid into the GSMBA
account and accounts for each match have been submitted to the Treasurer. A small expenditure of £44.90 supported the home match catering needs.

Declaration
I am happy to put my name forward for the position of County Captain for the 2025/2026 season.

PROPOSALS

Andy Todd introduced proposed amendments to the Constitution, which had arisen from a review by the Officers, taking advice from ESMBA and account of changes in our procedures since 2019, when the current Constitution was adopted. He explained that all the amendments had been debated and approved by the Management Committee.
Andy read out and outlined the rationale for each amendment, then the Chair asked for a formal proposer and seconder. The meeting duly resolved to accept all the amendments excepting only of that to Para 4a, which after a short debate, was changed to clarify that club subscriptions must be paid by 31st August each year All the amendments are listed in Attachment A together with the proposer and seconder.

Election of Officers

All incumbent officers were willing to stand for re-election. No other nominations were received by the Secretary.

On the proposal of Rebecca Finch, seconded by Veronica Baldwin, the following officers were re-elected to serve for a further year:

Chair: Chris Evans
Treasurer: Jenny Carter
Secretary: Andy Todd
Membership Secretary: Barbara Bubb
League Secretary: Mike Sparrow
Competitions Secretary: Chris Evans

Additionally:

County Captain: Monica Carter
Monica Carter, the incumbent, confirmed her willingness to continue. As there were no other nominations from the floor, her appointment was confirmed by the meeting.

Appointment of Independent Examiner of Accounts

Jan Jennings agreed to continue in the role.
The meeting unanimously approved her appointment.

Closure of Meeting

The Chair, Chris Evans, thanked all present for attending and formally closed the meeting at 7.55pm.

Following the closure of the meeting the Chair invited delegates to raise any topic or issue that they thought
should be addressed, either by the Management Committee or the officers. See Attachment C for a summary
of the topics raised and the subsequent discussions..

Finally, Mike Sparrow (League Secretary) presented the trophies to league and competition winners.
See Attachment D for a full list of winners.

List of Attendees

Clubs Represented: 10
Total Attendees: 22

Neale Bird (Winstone)
Wendy Barr (Winstone)
Val New (Bishop’s Cleeve)
Maureen Stephens (Bishop’s Cleeve)
Stuart Liddington (Bishop’s Cleeve)
Veronica Baldwin (Wotton Hall)
Clive Baldwin (Wotton Hall)
Jill Dooley (Ripple)
Rebecca Finch (Ripple)
Mike Dooley (Defford)
Peter Taylor (Yorkley)
Mike Edginton (Westbury-on-Severn)
Yvonne Jones (Westbury-on-Severn)
David Bubb (Forest of Dean)
Richard Clemens (Defford)
Tony Smith (Kingsway)
Pam Belton (Kingsway)
Phil Jennings (Kingsway)
Paul Murphy (Bishop’s Cleeve)
Barbara Bubb (Membership Secretary)
Mike Sparrow (League Secretary)
Chris Evans (Chair)
Jenny Carter (Treasurer)
Andy Todd (Secretary)

Signatures

Minutes prepared by:
Andy Todd, Secretary

Signed as a true record:
Chris Evans, Chair

Here is the updated version of Attachment A: Amendments to Constitution, now including the Secretary’s introductory statement, with formatting and clarity aligned for formal presentation:

ATTACHMENT A: AMENDMENTS TO CONSTITUTION

Secretary’s Note:
The Constitution of the Association was adopted in 2019. Since then, there have been a number of minor changes, but no full review. At the AGM in April 2024, the Chair announced that the officers would undertake a thorough review of the Constitution. The purpose was to ensure that it aligns with current practice, ESMBA recommendations, and new requirements. This review was carried out between June and October 2024. The officers then presented their proposed amendments to the Management Committee in November 2024. Following discussion and some revisions, the Management Committee approved the amendments. These were subsequently ratified by members at the AGM on 23 April 2025.

In the list below, section and paragraph numbers refer to the 2019 Constitution. Any wording changed or added is shown in bold; words to be removed are shown with a strikethrough. Each change is accompanied by a brief explanation in italics.

Section 3 – Membership

Amend Para 3b to read:

“It is a condition of membership of the Association that clubs must admit people of all ages, either sex, regardless of disability or sexual orientation, shall be eligible for membership of the Association upon receipt of a correctly completed application form and appropriate membership fee.”

Clarifies eligibility and reinforces inclusivity in club and Association membership.

Amend Para 3c to read:

“Individual members must register with the Association via one club only, must conduct themselves properly at all times and must not cause any disrepute to fall on the Association or any of its member clubs.”

Clarifies single-club registration and behaviour expectations.

Proposed: David Bubb | Seconded: Stuart Liddington

Section 4 – Fees & Subscriptions

In Para 4a, amend final part of first sentence to read:

“…paid before 31st August of each season.”

Specifies a clear and consistent payment deadline.

Proposed: Rebecca Finch | Seconded: Mike Dooley

Section 5 – Administration

Amend Para 5a to read:

“Officers of the Association shall consist of a Chairman, Honorary Secretary, Honorary Treasurer, Membership Secretary, Competition Secretary, and League Secretary and County Captain, each elected annually at the County Association’s AGM.”

Adds County Captain to the list of officers.

Delete Para 5b.
Obsolete or unnecessary clause removed.

Para 5c:

Delete reference to team captains in the first sentence.

Insert new Para 5e:

“The Committee shall have the power to interpret the provisions of the Constitution and to deal with all matters not specifically provided for therein.”

Gives the Committee authority to interpret the Constitution.

Move Paras 5f & 5g to Section 8.

Proposed: Mike Dooley | Seconded: Stuart Liddington

Section 6 – Changes to the Management Committee or Officers

Add clause to end of Para 6b:

“…subject to ratification at the next AGM.”

Ensures changes are confirmed at the following AGM.

Proposed: Jill Dooley | Seconded: Paul Murphy

Section 7 – General Rules for Meetings

Delete clause 7a and replace with:

“A quorum for any meeting, except the AGM, shall consist of at least 9 members of the Management Committee, including officers, each entitled to one vote. In the event of a tie in voting, the Chair shall have a casting vote.”

Clarifies quorum and voting procedures.

Proposed: Mike Edginton | Seconded: David Bubb

Section 8 – Annual and Extraordinary General Meetings

Insert new clause 8e and renumber subsequent clauses:

“Any Officer position with no nominee by the date prescribed by the Management Committee for the close of nominations will be open to proposals from the AGM floor as per the Association voting rights.”

Allows for nominations from the floor if no advance nominations are received.

In Para 8g, replace “Association rule changes” with:

“changes to this Constitution”

In Para 8h, after “AGM” add:

“or EGM”

Insert new clause 8i:

“An Honorary President may be appointed at the AGM for the following year.”

Proposed: Phil Jennings | Seconded: Pam Belton
Proposed: Rebecca Finch | Seconded: Veronica Baldwin

Insert new Section 10 – Safeguarding

10a. The Association commits itself to the Safeguarding policies and procedures for the sport of bowls established by the Bowls Development Alliance (BDA) and endorsed by ESMBA. It will follow their guidelines and promote best Safeguarding practice in all its activities.

10b. The Association will provide assistance and training to support its member clubs in implementing Safeguarding policies and guidelines, which they should adopt as a condition of membership of the Association.

10c. The Management Committee shall appoint a County Safeguarding Officer and ensure that s/he has the appropriate training for the role.

Reflects modern expectations for safeguarding across all affiliated clubs and Association activities.

Proposed: Paul Murphy | Seconded: Phil Jennings

Section 11 – Disciplinary Matters

In Para 11a, after ‘and/or’, delete:

“‘such of those members or’”

Removes ambiguity in reference to disciplinary action.

Proposed: Stuart Liddington | Seconded: Mike Dooley

Section 14 – Alteration to Rules

In Para 14b, delete second sentence:

“All such changes to be ratified at the next AGM.”

Aligns with revised procedures for constitutional changes.

Proposed: Mike Dooley | Seconded: Jill Dooley

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Attachment C: Discussion Forum

Slow Play & Match Timings

Rebecca Finch asked whether Summer League rules could be amended to limit matches to a specified time e.g. 40 minutes, rather than specifying the number of ends, as she felt that matches were taking too long
- Mike Sparrow responded that, as mentioned in his report, a full review of all league rules would be taking place before the next winter season begins.
- While rules on speed of play existed, like many others such as dress code, foot faulting, no penalty was set out. The review would attempt to find some means of enforcement which would be fair and not give rise to grievances, nor discourage players from playing in league teams.
Mike Edginton, who chairs the Forest League, had found that simply talking to and advising players who were taking up too much time, was more effective than any particular rule. Players were generally receptive to advice offered reasonably, rather than compelled by rules.
- Tony Smith commented that Summer League matches took similar time to Winter League ones and could not see a particular problem in this area.
Mike Sparrow concluded by asking all clubs to make contributions on this and any other aspect of the league rules to the planned review.
- Initially, a small sub-committee will be set up to perform the review and will then put any proposed changes to the full Management Committee for approval.

Qualifying Rules for National Competitions

Mike Dooley asked about the qualifying rules for ESMBA National competitions, specifically why Gloucestershire received so few allocations overall and none in the National Pairs
- Phil Jennings noted that at the ESMBA’s AGM last July there had been a proposal to automatically allocate places to every County with a qualifier, but this had been rejected.
- GSMBA was encouraging more teams to enter for the National stages by reducing its fees to £5 and paying the supplementary fee.
- Our allocation had increased from the previous year but still lagged well behind other counties of similar playing strength.
Andy Todd explained that ESMBA used an algorithm to calculate the number of places for each county, which he understood was complex.
- However, he undertook to write to the ESMBA competitions organiser to ask for an explanation of how it worked.

Trial Ends

6. Phil Jennings suggested that the trial ends before league matches, abandoned a few years ago, should be reintroduced, which he believed would improve the standard of bowling in the matches.

He realised that in view of the previous discussion on timings that this might not be welcomed
Several members pointed out that trial ends are not permitted in any higher-level events, from ICC matches, right up to international and world championships.
Moreover, most league players had played several times on away mats and should know from experience how they were likely to play..
Mike Edginton said that he made notes on how mats played and briefed his team on what they might expect before playing at any venue.
Perhaps all clubs should adopt this more professional attitude.
Overall there was little if any support for resuming trial ends.

ATTACHMENT D: LEAGUE AND COMPETITION WINNERS, 2024-25

Competition	Winners	Runners-Up
County Leagues
Winter League Division 1	Westbury-on-Severn Martins	Defford Diamonds
Winter League Division 2	Bishop’s Cleeve Cougars	Yorkley B
Summer League	Yorkley Kestrels	Kingsway Swans
League Knockout Cup	Defford	Yorkley
County Competitions
Open Singles	Saul Featherstone	Julian Kellett
Open Pairs	Rose & Derek Wilson	Jan & Phil Jennings
Open Triples	Trevor Clark Jo Featherstone Saul Featherstone	Glynn Wrigh tGill Johnson John Glass
Open Fours	Michael Sparrow Michael Dooley Saul Featherstone Jo Featherstone	Rose Wilson Derek Wilson Peter Hesling Fred Lawson
Mixed Fours	Carol English Michael Dooley Saul Featherstone Jo Featherstone	Mike Wall Lin Clulee Marlene Tippins Julian Kellett
Over 55 Pairs	Pam Belton & Tony Smith	Ian Broderick & Phil Jennings
Brunel Cup (Glos v. Avon)	Avon	–
Two Shires Trophy (Glos v. Worcs)	Worcestershire	–