Kennet and Avon Boating Community Website

The next Kennet and Avon User Group Meeting will take place at Devizes Wharf on Thursday 29th April 2010 at 7pm. Lifts may be available from Bath, Bradford-on-Avon, let us know if you need one.

We have been sent the ‘notes’ from the last meeting. With an agenda for the next meeting.

Questions and ‘Answers’ posed before the November meeting

Notes of the last meeting

Agenda for the coming meeting

Despite the almost unanimous call from the floor for a properly minuted, and therefore accountable, meeting this has been ignored. The answers the questions posed before the meeting are offhand and derisory, the notes make no mention of any of the comment or debate from the floor and read like a BW press release.

In particular there was no mention or debate on the moorings consultations that potentially effect all our lives. This despite the number of BW people there, at our expense, with expertise on the subject.

Whether this meeting will be any better is anyone’s guess but our presence will at least point these omissions out to Mark Stephens, general manager of the Kennet and Avon who has so far reneged on all his undertakings to report and consult at the last meeting.

Here are two responses to BW from Andrew Colyer, NABO Southwest rep and Posh, concerned boater of this parish.

Anyone else who wished to make their feelings known should contact Jenny Maxwell at the email below.

To: jenny.maxwell@britishwaterways.co.uk
Subject: RE: Kennet & Avon User Group Meeting – 29 April 2010
Date: Fri, 9 Apr 2010 05:56:09 +0000

Dear Jenny,

Many thanks for the documents and invitation to the next UGM.

I have a few comments. Please could you pass them on as needed.

1. As discussed at the meeting, the term “minutes” is an important one in the recording of the matters discussed at a meeting. I thought it was agreed that this term was to be used. I notice that the term “notes” has been used as part of this mailout.
Could it be confirmed that the term “minutes” is correct and will be used in the future, and the “notes” altered accordingly.

2. I do not feel the “notes” truely reflect the occurances at the meeting. In particular, the Mooring Consultation section is not reflective of the evening’s discussion. Input from non BW members in the room are not represented on any issue.

3. A list of the attendees is missing from the notes/minutes.

Many thanks. I look forward to attending on the 29th.

Kind regards,

Andrew Colyer

Dear Jenny,

thank you for submitting the documents to me. I have some comments of the ‘notes’ from the previous user group meeting. Please could you pass these comments to Mark Stephens.

Dear Mark,

I hope you have a good winter and are settling into your new role on the Kennet & Avon canal.

I would like to raise some concerns regarding the ‘notes’ from the last user group meeting. 

These notes fail to record the discussion that took place at the meeting. I think that if the meeting is to reflect the democratic principle and indeed offer any accountability of parties engaged in the discussion, then details of the discussion need to be included. Otherwise what we are left with is a one-way conversation i.e. BW presenting to users without receiving their feedback. It negates the whole purpose of the user group meeting.

The last meeting included some discussion on this very point. We have now ended up with an incomplete and thus inaccurate record of what took place. Do you feel that this is satisfactory? As a canal user and member of the meeting, I do not.

I would like to hear your opinion on this.  

Warmest regards

Richard Annetts

Tags: Mark Stephens, user group meeting

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