Minutes of the AGM April 2013

Welcome and introductions.
The present BRUG committee members were introduced.
Robyn Dasey- secretary/chair
Emma Calder - Facebook & blog
David Duncan - membership survey, new activities in Rec
Peter Lennard - Energy
Caroline Christian - youth/ teenagers/ community relations
Overview of BRUG activities last 6 months
BRUG started when the Rec was closed for 6 months in 2007closure without notice and it was feared it would be permanent. The threatened closure in October last year led to BRUG becoming active again. The campaign that followed led to the Council commitment to retaining and improving Rec in consultation with BRUG.
Improvements being pursued to date:
Ø Lighting, visibility and cleaning on the access ramp and entrance has improved.
Ø A disability audit has been done. The Rec comes out well, except for the major issue of the steps at the front and the ramp being too steep... A lift is needed to get from ground level to level 3. Apart from that the other issues are minor.
Ø The energy use survey has not been done yet.
Ø We are pursuing with the Council better external signage to Rec. e.g. on the railway bridge over |Brixton Rd.
Rec users’ survey.
About 370 people have completed the survey, mostly when visiting the Rec over the Easter period...
Most had learned about the Rec activities from internet, the reception desk and word of mouth.
Nine out of Ten users live in Lambeth.
More women than men filled in survey. The lowest response was from men aged 25 to 40. Apparently this is not unusual for surveys- younger men are not that keen on filling out forms.
Improvements suggested included better reception, more classes for children, families and older people.
The Rec’s diverse tolerant atmosphere is a common reason why people consider Rec important
The café is considered to be dreadful.
AGM attendees’ views included.
· Criticism that seating in café area is reserved only for those buying food from café.
· The food/ drink dispensing machines did not have a "green" choice.
· The reception/ entrance has queuing problems. The reception software is too complex, out of date and crashes. The automatic machines do not work for swimming only membership. People trying to use the Rec in their lunch hour waste time queuing.
· GLL/ Better do not respond when you use their complaints procedure
· It was suggested that as well as BRUG bringing issues up people write individually to Jeremy Lake the general manager, jeremy.lake@gll.org
BRUG .Consultation with GLL and Lambeth Council
Brixton Rec Improvement Group has been set up, comprising the Council, BRUG and GLL/Better.
It meets once every three months. BRUG also pursues matters directly with them between these formal meetings and see GLL separately on Rec operational matters.
The work is divided between Committee members according to their interests. .
BRUG committee elections.
Committee can be up to 10 people. The officer posts are Chairperson, Secretary, and Communications officer.
The following were elected:
Sandra Springer, Caroline Christian, David Clarke, Emma Calder, David Duncan, Robyn Dasey, Peter Lennard.
BRUG also encourages other people to contribute without necessarily being on the committee. e.g. Kavita who helped set up and run the BRUG Blog. It was suggested that the committee increase coordination with people who run clubs and sportspeople, such as one of the roller blade girls. They had won competitions and had said in support of keeping the Rec that it was the only place they could train.
New activities and developments in the Rec: Boxing
A boxer trained at Brixton Rec. GLL/ better sponsored some of his training. He was recently profiled in the Brixton Blog. However a visitor to the Rec would not know. We should continue to press for displays of achievements and activities in the Rec. The Wellness games video was a good example.
Nelson Mandela in Brixton & at the Rec 1996: preparing a tribute.
Nelson Mandela visited Brixton in July 1996 and a welcome concert was held in the Rec. This was very significant for Brixton people and thousands filled the streets to see him. BRUG is planning a tribute to him.
It was suggested that we:
· Collect memories from those who were there via the noticeboard, Facebook, Blog.
· Have a display in the Rec.
· Musical tribute. Reassemble the choir who sang the South African national anthem.
· Get in touch with Cllrs about it
· A new plaque at the Rec.
On-going issues. Including signage, internal displays, cleaning.
Promote healthy food/ living. One person at meeting runs a class teaching health on a voluntary basis. He said there was scope to use more space in the Rec for classes like this.
Badminton classes could be extended to include classes for young people to learn.
Casual users. The Rec had higher proportion of pay as you go users than Clapham or most leisure centres. The Council and BRUG support casual membership as it encourages people who are not dedicated to fitness or sport and/or cannot afford membership payments.
There is very little in Rec programme for teenagers.
The Rec activities could be celebrated and promoted more through photo displays. This has to be done with care. Age must be taken into account. Also the people must give permission.
There is a Community Development Officer employed by GLL. They need to be contacted to see what they could do for Rec.
Over 55s events are not promoted or celebrated enough.
A.O.B.
The Bowling Club officers came to meeting. This Club has been in Rec since 1984. They said there is nothing for them at the Rec. GLL do not clean the toilets downstairs. Nor do they maintain the bowling area properly. They feel the Rec management are not interested in them. It was suggested that they take matters up directly with Jeremy Lake

You can contact the BRUG committee at brugcom@googlegroups.com
or write to BRUG Secretary Robyn Dasey at recusergroup@btinternet.com

Find BRUG online at
http://brixtonrecusersgroup.blogspot.co.uk
http://www.facebook.com/brixtonrecusersgroup
https://twitter.com/brixtonrecuserg




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http://brixtonrecusersgroup.blogspot.co.uk/