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Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on Tuesday 23^rd May 2023

Members

Mrs K Creese took the chair, all committee members were present with a further 20 society members present.

Minutes

Minutes of the previous annual general meeting held on 14^th June 2022 were confirmed and signed, proposed by Mr M Cort and seconded by Mr G Baker.

Matters Arising

None

Chairman’s Report

Good evening everyone.

Before we begin, I need to inform you that this meeting is being audio recorded for monitoring purposes. Please save any questions you may have until I have finished the report.

Please can I ask everyone to stand for 1 minute of silence in memory of members and friends who passed away during the last year.

Firstly, I’d like to begin by thanking tenants for their help with the rent payment date transition in February and ensuring that rent was paid on time.

We still have a few tenants persistently in arrears or regularly late with rent payments. These tenants are in the minority, but with ever-rising costs, and in order to protect the society and its shareholders, the committee has to and will take action if tenants repeatedly fail their obligations.

The 3 main things we ask tenants to do are pay rent on time and keep the house and garden in good order. If you are experiencing financial difficulties and struggling to pay rent, please get in touch with the office in the first instance. We prefer to discuss problems and find a solution to try and help. The issues cannot be solved if you bury your head in the sand, as they just multiply.

The last year has been busy with the usual maintenance and repairs, along with 2 properties completely renovated and re-let to new tenants. We hope they will be very happy on the estate.

Forthcoming work for this year includes the final phase of electrical work and boundary work next to the Netherhall allotments, where we are reclaiming and securing Anchor Tenants’ land for the future.

A few notices for tenants -

Repairs/Emergencies

If tenants need any repairs, please do not visit committee members at home, stop them in the street or ring their personal phone numbers. Please follow the correct 1procedure and send all requests in writing or email to the office to be discussed at the weekly Tuesday committee meetings. If not placed in writing, problems will not be addressed.

If you have an emergency outside of office hours that cannot wait until the next working day, please call the emergency mobile number. A committee member will be on call and will be able to help you. Tenants should not give out the emergency number to anyone. It is for our use only.

Grass verges

Many of the estate’s grass verges look messy and churned up. The recent gas works in the area haven’t helped, but please can tenants be mindful when parking. Parking is available in the hall car park for tenants. Please speak to the secretary if you are interested. Gate keys are available for a refundable charge on the return of the key.

Trees A reminder to tenants that they have a duty to maintain the gardens as well as their property, and this includes trees. Large trees, particularly conifers, should be kept under control and trimmed regularly. As a matter of course, we remove large trees when properties are renovated and if trees are diseased or dangerous, but to do so costs thousands of pounds. If you are considering planting trees in your garden.

Please make sure these are native trees. The planting of conifers and Leylandii is forbidden. We ask that trees are not planted too close to properties as, in future years, the roots can do a great deal of damage.

Bonfires

Please be mindful that bonfires should be lit at dusk and not earlier. Bonfires should not be lit in the daytime. Please respect your neighbours on pleasant evenings and weekends when they have windows open, washing out, or just sitting in the garden after being at work during the day.

The coronation get-together a few weeks ago was a big success. We hope you have all received your commemorative mugs; if you haven’t, please visit the office to collect one per house. Extra mugs are available to purchase for £7 each.

We are still holding coffee mornings every Tuesday in the hall at 10.30. You can find a selection of books and jigsaws that you can swap or borrow or just come for a natter and catch up with neighbours and friends. The coffee mornings are being supported, and our numbers are increasing. It would be lovely to see a few more residents coming and joining us.

Attending meetings also shows support, and I thank you for coming this evening.

This concluded the Chairman’s report.

Result of the Committee Ballot

The voting was as follows:

Name	Votes
Mrs K Bagnall	216
Mrs E Allen	174
Mrs K Creese	152
Mr M Carter	82

There were 2 void papers.

As there are three positions to fill, Mrs Bagnall, Mrs Allen and Mrs Creese are elected to the committee. Mrs Walker was thanked for her time on the committee.

Auditor’s Report

Mr Smith began his report by saying that the accounts for the year ending 31st January 2023 showed a satisfactory outcome and a slight loss of £7,939. In terms of turnover, the overall rental income was £341,048, a very modest increase from the previous year at £340,370. The cost of running the properties, repairs and maintenance have fallen year on year by £54,000 from £328,205 in the year ending 2021/22 to £274,508 in the year to 31st January 2023.

Within the administrative expenses or overheads, there is a total cost of £74,479, an increase of £13,000 from the previous year. However, a significant part of that is due to an anomaly in the insurance figure. You cannot fail to notice an increase from £10,372 to £26,368, which is basically of the £26,000 in the current year £6005 prelates to the previous year, which was understated by that amount. So we should have £20,363 in 2022/23 and an increase from £16,377 the year before, which in turn is in line with the year before that. The other item flagged up in income is that there is no figure showing for church rent this year. Church rent of £200 was received, which has been included in the hall rent this year which is why that seems to have dropped off.

That shows the year as a whole a small loss of £7,939. In reality, with the £6,005 insurance adjustment, there was a very modest loss of less than £2,000. Last year’s loss was £49,713.

Fixed assets stand at £72,293. £70,000 of that is the cost of the estate when it was originally built. So all of the houses are a total cost price on the balance sheet of a whisker over £70,000. The remaining £2,000 is furniture and computer equipment.

Current assets are items that are or are expected to become cash going through the bank account. Debtors are outstanding rents due by tenants at the year-end of £1336, and there was £78,355 cash in the bank. So we have current resources of £79,691, a drop of £10,500 from the previous year. Out of that, there were outstanding liabilities at that point of almost £13,000, which is a mixture of items. The largest item is £8,500 rent deposits. The balance comprises a mix of regular ongoing costs such as PAYE, pension contributions, and items to be paid in arrears principal upon which provision is the costs for preparing the accounts and audit.

The net current assets tell us what you would have left in the bank if the rent arrears had been paid and the outstanding liabilities had been paid. Leaving a figure of £66,776. We then add into the equation the property etc. We have net assets in the society of £139,069 compared to £147,038 the year before. The reality, of course, is that the figure is astronomically higher than that if you were to put the real value of the properties in, but there is no purpose in doing so unless you were to actually sell them, which is obviously not on the agenda at all.

Members have subscribed £16,973. That is shares held in Anchor Tenants, and we have accumulated profits from day one to 31st January after settling all taxes, etc., of £122,000. So we have shareholders’ funds for this value that belongs to the members collectively of £139,069.

In terms of the systems, processes etc., they are the subject of our audit report, which is a standard clean audit report. When we carry out an audit, we test systems and procedures, we test transactions, and based on the testing we’ve done, we are happy and confident that the records of the organisation are accurate, the accounts are well kept, and you are complying with the financial regulations.

Mrs Creese then asked if shareholders had any questions for Mr Smith.

A shareholder asked what the amount of £1700 for rates listed were for. Mr Smith replied they were rates in relation to properties.

Mr M. Franklin proposed that the accounts were accepted as a true record, seconded by Mrs J. Taylor.

Mr M. Osborne proposed the re-election of Cunningtons & Co. as auditors for the coming year; this was seconded by Mrs E Geary.

Arbitrators

Not required

Remuneration of Committee

It was agreed that members fees will remain the same as in the previous year at £2.50 per week.

General Business

A shareholder stated that due to the rent increase in February 2023, their rent had increased by 9.5%, whereas newer tenants’ rent increase was only 2.5% which they thought was wrong. They continued that other bills, such as council tax and many others, are calculated in percentages, and Anchor Tenants do not do this. They felt this was wrong and punitive to the older tenants, especially when newer residents have insulated properties that cost considerably less to run than the older properties that have not been renovated.

Mrs Benning replied that a percentage increase was not brought up when the rent increase was proposed. The shareholder informed Mrs Benning that they had raised the topic. Mrs Benning replied that a percentage increase was not voted on.

The shareholder continued that the only reason rent amounts had been fixed was for ease of cash rent collection, which is now irrelevant.

Another shareholder stated that they thought rent had been increased as a percentage and was informed it was a fixed-amount rent increase.

Mrs Osborne explained that if a tenant is on a low rent and a percentage increase is used, that will not be as much as a percentage increase on a higher rent. She continued that the monetary gap between low and high rents would widen as the years passed.

The shareholder stated that due to the current cost of living crisis, tenants need to know the exact amounts due and pointed out that with a percentage increase, tenants on higher rents would pay more. They continued that the ethos of the estate is that tenants live in the best and cheapest way possible, but using percentage increases makes it punitive and unfair to newer tenants, which is not the ethos of Anchor Tenants.

A vote was taken. Members voted almost unanimously for further increases to be kept in pounds rather than percentages.

A shareholder stated that at the last general meeting, the committee had informed them that they had yet to receive any communication from the environmental health department. Mrs Creese replied that nothing has ever been received from environmental health to date. The shareholder continued that they had supplied the previous secretary with communication and believed that this had not been dealt with.

Mrs Benning assured the shareholder that she and Mrs Osborne had worked in the office in the interim period between secretaries. Communication from the shareholder or the environmental health department was never found. The shareholder then accused the committee members of hiding something, to which Mrs Benning replied that the committee do not do that.

The same shareholder then raised another point about flooding in their rear garden and that the committee had been informed about 12 months ago. The maintenance contractor had visited and said he would report to the committee, but the shareholder stated further communication had yet to be received. They continued that their garden is flooded for four months of the year, and nothing has been done about it.

Mrs Creese enquired if the query was concerning the shareholder’s neighbour’s garden. Mrs Creese suggested that the committee take another look at the concerns about the neighbour’s garden, but ultimately the responsibility for the tenant’s gardens lies with the tenant. Mrs Creese continued that the flooding problem in the shareholder’s garden will be assessed again.

The same shareholder stated that the over 60’s New Year party was very good but informed the meeting that they had later been accused of stealing wine from the party. They were unhappy and wanted to know who had made the accusations. Mrs Creese replied that she did not understand what the shareholder was discussing and asked other committee members if they knew. Mrs Osborne stated that, as far as she was concerned, people took home any wine left. The shareholder replied they would not be attending any future parties.

This concluded the business of the meeting, and Mrs Creese thanked members for their attendance before declaring the meeting closed at 7.33pm.

These minutes are the official record of what happened, not a verbatim account.

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