SENA - Notes of Meeting Held on 11/07/2011

From 7cdf9288cee197a3dba0f3be03e1efa1800cc1ef Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Matthew Vernon Date: Sun, 24 Jul 2011 18:02:19 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] Minutes of meeting on 11/07/2011 --- meeting20110711.html | 157 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 157 insertions(+) create mode 100644 meeting20110711.html diff --git a/meeting20110711.html b/meeting20110711.html new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5180b6c --- /dev/null +++ b/meeting20110711.html @@ -0,0 +1,157 @@ + + + + + + SENA - Notes of Meeting Held on 11/07/2011 + + + + +

Notes From The SENA Meeting of 11 July 2011

+ +

Introductions

+ +

Cynthia Barnes and Kevin Noble were welcomed to this second + meeting of SENA.

+ +

Other Earlsdon Neighbours Associations â their issues and + organisation

+ +

Cynthia outlined the development of Rochester Road Association, + initially founded in 1990 in response to the proposed development + of the light railway.

+ +

RARA has a constitution and all residents are members unless + they opt to withdraw.
The associationâs regular activities are an annual general + meeting (with wine and cheese and invited speakers) and three + annual fundraising activities â carol singing, open gardens and + a garage and garden sale.
Communication is via two newsletters a year and the annual + general meeting at St. Barbaraâs Church hall. AGM guest speakers + have included, for example, the city architect, city council + representatives, the police.
Recent issues raised by RARA have related, for example, to + planning, licencing, parking, traffic calming and neglectful + landlords.
RARA also seeks to work with other local groups such as + Friends of War Memorial Park + and ECAD on Earlsdon-wide + issues.

+ +

Cynthia drew our attention to some of the risks of a + well-established group â sustaining momentum, recruiting new + members and, in RARAâs case, a small number of people doing most + of the work.

+ +

Kevin outlined some of the key features + of North + Earlsdon Residents Association which was formed eighteen + months ago.

+ +

Residents become members by "declaring an interest" and + joining the mailing list. There is no fee to join.
Communication is via e mails two or three times a month, via + street representatives and sometimes also via knocking on doors, + depending on the issue.
NENA meetings are held every two months at + the Criterion + Theatre with guest speakers. There are also regular + meetings of the street representatives and committee meetings + (chair, vice-chair, events co-ordinator, secretary, Treasurer, + fund raising officer)
Kevin emphasised the importance of a diverse range of + activities and initially, residents were canvassed about what + they wanted to be involved in. Many of the street + representatives are active on particular issues â not everything + is organised by the committee. In June, NENA held a picnic in + the park and a (second) very successful street sale.
Longer term developments have included tree planting (and + developing an inventory of trees with the city council) and the + redevelopment of Spencer Park. The biggest ongoing issue at + present is the impact of Friargate. Like RARA, NENA seeks to + work collaboratively with other groups on Earlsdon-wide + issues.

+ +

Kevin offered to help SENA in its initial setting up process â + an offer gratefully accepted.

+ +

SENA â setting the agenda

+ +

Following these two very helpful presentations there was a + general discussion on what the implications might be for SENA. We + donât have a definable centre or social area â a village green or + a park - nor do we have a unifying issue. However, we have had a + good response to the first mailshot (better than the initial + response from NENA residents for example) and an encouraging + number of residents seeking active involvement.

+ +

From the responses to the first mailshot and the first meeting + it was clear that there were positive things that residents + wanted:

+ +

A voice
A listening ear (delegates to go to meetings such as of the + neighbourhood forum, the police, NENA and report back to + residents
A social network
Opportunities to be more inclusive; welcoming new neighbours + in their neighbourhood; involving students
Working collaboratively with other Earlsdon + associations

+ +

We agreed we need an executive/management group and street + representatives (preferably two) for every street. Initial + volunteers for street representatives are

+ +

Styvechale Ave: Moya and Deryck Horton, Sally Vernon
Warwick Avenue: Mary and Nigel Lee
Berkeley Road South: Simon Shaw
Osborne Road: Ray Wilson
Beechwood Avenue: Judith Hyman

+ +

Other streets do not as yet have a rep.

+ +

Communication

+ +

Early communication structures have been put in place. Simon + has constructed a Facebook page, and Matthew has set up a SENA + website.

+ +

Next Steps

+ +

It was agreed that we now needed a second maildrop to ask + residents to:

Opt in to membership
Evaluate the issues already suggested following the first + mailing and the first two meetings
Contribute to a skills bank

+ +

A working group of Deryck, Simon, Ray, Matthew and Sally, Mike + and Helen agreed to meet on Monday 18th July to shape the + newsletter.

+ +

+ SENA webmaster
+ Coventry, England +

+ + -- 2.30.2