Fencing North Annual General Meeting 2019
Onehunga Community Centre
2pm, 1^st December

Meeting Opened: 2:11pm.

Present:
David Elder
Amanda Hopkins
Katie Logan
Maja Saran
Ryan Yan
Sunnie Sun
Daniel Shi
Mary Black

Apologies:
Sam Kenney (proxy: David Elder)
Peter Butler (proxy: Maja Saran)
Andi Liu (proxy: Katie Logan)

Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: Sunnie moved that the minutes from the 2018 AGM be accepted as correct. Katie seconded. Carried with all in favour.

President’s Report: David gave the President’s Report. Mary seconded David’s report. The report was accepted with all in favour.
The report will circulated to all members via email.

Treasurer’s Report: Amanda presented and discussed the financial statements for 2019. The society has made a significant loss this year. Amanda recommended some areas where expenditures could be decreased, as well as that Fencing North should seek funding to offset hall hire in 2020.
Katie seconded Amanda’s report. The report was accepted with all in favour.

Election of Executive Officers: One nomination was received for each executive position:

• President: David Elder
• Vice President: Sunnie Sun
• Treasurer: Amanda Hopkins
• Secretary: Katie Logan

Mary moved that the nominees be elected as a bloc. Maja seconded. The officers were elected with all in favour.

Amendments to the Constitution: A proposed set of amendments to the Fencing North Constitution was tabled by Katie Logan (second: Amanda Hopkins), for the purpose of creating the new executive position of Head of Tournaments. This is to be an appointed position charged with running Fencing North tournaments.

Following some discussion, some minor changes to the wording of the initially proposed article 12.5 were made. The full text of the amendments is attached.

David moved that the amendments to the constitution, with the changes noted at this meeting, be accepted altogether. Katie seconded. The motion passed with all in favour.

The meeting discussed further the possibility of rewriting the Fencing North Constitution entirely to bring it into the modern day. However, Amanda noted that the Incorporated Societies Act is likely to be completely replaced c. 2021, and it would be counterproductive for us to change our constitution before knowing the stipulations of the new Act.

Setting of Affiliation Fees for 2020: In recent years, the cost to affiliate to Fencing North has been free for all membership tiers. Although Fencing North has lost money this year, increasing affiliation fees would likely only bring in a fraction of what is earned through events. Further, Fencing New Zealand will be increasing its affiliation fee in 2020. Fencing North remains dedicated to reducing barriers to entry by retaining a low affiliation fee.

David proposed that the Fencing North affiliation fee remain at $0 for all membership tiers. Maja seconded. The motion was carried with all in favour.

Meeting Closed: 2:49pm.

Appendix: Amendments to the Fencing North Constitution

Amendment to Article 10.1
Current Text: The management of the business and affairs of the Council shall be vested in the Executive which shall consist of a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Minute Secretary (if required), Treasurer and Delegates.
Proposed Text: The management of the business and affairs of the Council shall be vested in the Executive which shall consist of a President, Vice-President, Secretary, Minute Secretary (if required), Treasurer, Head of Tournaments and Club Delegates.

Amendment to Article 10.2
Current Text: The Officers shall be elected at the annual general meeting of the Council and shall hold office until the conclusion of the next annual general meeting when they shall retire.
Proposed Text: The President, Vice-President, Secretary, Minute Secretary (if required) and Treasurer shall be elected at the annual general meeting of the Council and shall hold office until the conclusion of the next annual general meeting when they shall retire.

Addition of Article 10.7
The Head of Tournaments shall be appointed by the Executive at any meeting of the Executive, and shall hold office until the conclusion of the next annual general meeting when they shall retire. The Head of Tournaments may be removed from that position at any meeting of the Executive by a majority of at least three-fifths of the Individual Members present, in person or by proxy.

Addition of Article 12.5
The Head of Tournaments shall ensure the organisation of all tournaments for which the Council is responsible.

Fencing North Committee Meeting – 25^th November 2019

Meeting Opened: 7:15pm.

Present: David Elder, Katie Logan, Amanda Hopkins, Maja Saran, Peter Butler, Ryan Yan, Sunnie Sun.

Apologies: Mary Black (proxy: David Elder).

Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: Katie moved that the minutes from October be accepted. David seconded. Motion carried.

Matters Arising: David reported that the referee development course announced at the last meeting was now underway.

Health and Safety: There were no health and safety incidents or issues reported this month. Action point: David will talk to Neil Young (FeNZ Health and Safety Officer) regarding Fencing North’s obligations for health and safety.

Treasurer’s Report: Amanda gave the treasurer’s report for November. She noted that Fencing North owed Oliver Agnew $865 for website fees over the past three years. David seconded her report. The report was accepted.
There was also discussion of the society’s liability insurance and whether it was possible to decrease our insurance fees by contracting independently rather than through FeNZ. David pointed out that Trusts required a high level of liability insurance. Action point to Amanda to look into alternative insurance models.

Competitions:

Tournament Calendar: The committee inspected the draft calendar for 2020, which is largely booked with Trusts and almost ready to release. However, we are currently still missing venues for both of our National events; David is looking into options.

Head of Tournaments/Tournament Team: Maja as prospective Head of Tournaments presented her plans for putting together a tournament team for 2020. She mentioned that she had discussed some of her plans with the Head of the NZ Fencing Officiating Commission and gained his approval.
The committee discussed the need for a Head of Referees for the region; this person would not necessarily be the Head Referee at each competition, but would be largely involved in coordination of referees in the region as a whole.
There was also some discussion around ensuring the availability of first aid-trained officials at competitions, and doing stocktake and repair of competition equipment before the end of the year.

FeNZ News: David and Amanda reported the FeNZ news.

FeNZ has produced and will soon be circulating an affiliation spreadsheet to clubs. All clubs will be requested to affiliate all of their members to the free social affiliation tier next year.

Judit Fliszar is currently attending a coaching development course being held in Christchurch as part of the FeNZ High Performance Development program.

Fencing North would like to express its congratulations to two fencers from our region: to Lena Jacob, who has been selected to attend the OFC Junior Worlds Training Camp; and to Rebecca Jameson, who has achieved the Oceanic Olympic qualification for Modern Pentathlon.

Other Business:

Fundraising – Trillian Trust: David moved the following:
Fencing North shall apply to Trillian Trust for UKP 13,898 (est. NZD 27,935), that being UKP 10,157 towards the cost of four new Sectional Pistes for running tournaments, and UKP 3,741 towards the cost the associated piste trolleys to carry them.
Peter seconded. The motion was carried.

Meeting Closed: 9:12pm. 

Fencing North Committee Meeting – 29^th October 2019

Meeting Opened: 7:07pm.

Present: David Elder, Katie Logan, Andi Liu, Murray M^cGuire-Barnes, Sam Kenny, Amanda Hopkins, Maja Saran, Frank Saran, Peter Butler.

Absent: Sunnie Sun, Ryan Yan, Mary Black.

Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: Katie proposed that the minutes from September be accepted. David seconded. Motion carried.

Matters Arising: There were no matters arising from the previous minutes.

Health and Safety: There were no incidents to report this month.

Treasurer’s Report: Amanda gave the Treasurer’s Report, the last one before the end of our financial year. She reported that Fencing North has made a loss of roughly $5000 this year.

The committee discussed methods for preventing such losses in the future. There was agreement that while an increase in fees may be necessary, Fencing North would strongly prefer to keep the sport affordable for our competitors, especially younger fencers. We will instead attempt to tackle these issues by focusing on reducing operational costs and fundraising. Murray suggested that Fencing North prepare a budget for the 2020 competitions so that we can make financial decisions on a firmer basis; Sam agreed to work on this.

Amanda moved that her report be accepted. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

Competitions: The last Fencing North competition of the year was North Opens, held on the 12^th of October.

Tournament Organisation: A very well-attended meeting was held earlier this month to discuss the organisation of tournaments for 2020. One key result of this meeting was recognition of the need for a person or group responsible for running tournaments. The committee discussed what structure would be best for long-term and efficient running of tournaments.

One key option that was discussed was that a new position on the Fencing North executive be created: the Head of Tournaments. This would be an appointed position with voting rights on the Fencing North committee, who would have responsibility for managing Fencing North regional and national tournaments (e.g. putting together a team of organisers and officials, communicating with the NZ Fencing Officiating Commission, monitoring equipment, etc). 

Katie proposed that at the upcoming AGM (1^st December) an amendment to the constitution be tabled, with the effect of creating the Head of Tournaments position as described above. Amanda seconded. Motion carried.

There was also a suggestion that the Vice President role be altered such that they explicitly have some responsibility for competitions.

Tournament Calendar: David reported that Mark Rance has proposed a national tournament calendar to the FeNZ board, which should be finalised and released on the Fencing New Zealand website soon.

FeNZ News: Amanda and David reported that FeNZ had agreed to raise its competitive affiliation fee to $55 next year, but keep the social and novice affiliations as free tiers.

Other Business:

Referee Development: David announced that he had organised a referee development course alongside Fencing North’s qualified referees. The course is designed to act as a qualification for experienced referees so that they can act as officials at national events. This would make Fencing North more self-sufficient and save on the significant costs of flying in officials from other regions. However, he noted that we have not yet secured the agreement of the Officiating Commission that this qualification will be accepted.

Fundraising Officer: David proposed that Rhys Greensill be appointed as the Fundraising Officer for Fencing North. Murray seconded. Motion carried.

Fundraising Projects: David sought the approval of the committee to embark on a number of fundraising projects, which are as follows:

David proposed that Fencing North seek funding to establish a permanent venue in the Auckland region, for use by Fencing North and associated clubs for training and the running of tournaments. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

David proposed that Fencing North seek funding for the purchase of four sectional metal pistes and four material pistes, in order to replace our current worn-out pistes and increase the number of pistes available for the running of tournaments. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

David proposed that Fencing North seek funding for video refereeing equipment, so that Fencing North may meet the the Fencing New Zealand standards for the running of national and international tournaments. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

David proposed that Fencing North seek funding for an advanced scoring box with bluetooth, so that Fencing North may meet the the Fencing New Zealand standards for the running of national and international tournaments. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

David proposed that Fencing North seek funding for a wireless spool adapter, in order to replace and reduce maintenance on our current wired spools. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

David proposed that Fencing North seek funding to cover some of our tournament operational costs, including hall hire and other expenses. Katie seconded. Motion carried.

Congratulations: Fencing North would like to congratulate all of its fencers who competed in Open Nationals this month. In particular, congratulations to our North regional teams, who were very successful overall.

Meeting Closed: 9:01pm.

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Fencing North Meeting – September 30^th 2019

Meeting Opened: 7:16pm.

Present: David Elder, Amanda Hopkins, Katie Logan, Sunnie Sun.

Apologies: Mary Black, Ryan Yan.

Confirmation of the Previous Minutes: Amanda moved that the minutes from August be accepted. David seconded. Motion carried.

Matters Arising: As discussed in the previous meeting, David presented a letter to the FeNZ committee on behalf on Fencing North expressing, among other issues, our concern that no member of North had been appointed to the Officiating Commission.

Amanda reported that as a result of that discussion, she would present a proposal for the terms of reference of the Officiating Commission. Her proposal is a compromise position, suggesting that the Officiating Commission should set the standards for National competitions and the regions would act to meet them. This would make it easier for regions to meet the requirements without the difficulty and expense of relying on the Officiating Commission to personally qualify every aspect. The North committee reviewed the proposal and agreed that it would be an effective solution to some of the issues.

Health and Safety: There were no incidents reported this month.

Treasurer’s Report: Amanda gave the Treasurer’s report. She confirmed again that Fencing North is heading for a significant loss this financial year. Competitions are Fencing North’s main source of income: in general we broke even or made some money on regional competitions this year, but suffered considerable expenses in the two National competitions. Katie seconded Amanda’s report. The report was accepted.

The committee discussed ways to either increase income or decrease expenditure in the following year. Amanda’s proposal above is expected to decrease the cost of National competitions. Increasing income from competitions will be one of the focus points of the upcoming Tournament Operations Meeting (see below). Katie further suggested that Fencing North open a new subsidiary bank account to handle incoming competition fees and similar, which should make it easier to track; Amanda will draft a new mandate to change the bank account.

Purchase of Pistes: Fencing North is currently looking into buying new sectional pistes, both to cycle out old equipment and to allay concerns over taping roll-out pistes to the floor at Trusts. David is seeking quotes for purchase.

David moved that Fencing North apply for funding from charities for the purchase of pistes. Amanda seconded. Motion carried.

Competitions: The final competition held in the region this year is North Opens, to be held on the 12^th of October.

Tournament Operations Meeting: Katie announced that she plans to chair a meeting on the 13^th of October, with the aim of organising the operation of tournaments for 2020. This year tournaments have been unevenly organised, due to the job falling on inexperienced organisers. Therefore, it is vital that next year there is a defined team of tournament organisers who have the knowledge to put together all of the moving parts involved in a successful competition. If you have knowledge to share about running tournaments or are interested in getting involved next year, please email Katie on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

FeNZ News: David and Amanda reported the news from FeNZ.

At the previous FeNZ meeting there was a promise to announce the selections for the National U20 Development Squad, but as of the time of this meeting the squad had not yet been announced. The first development camp (invitation only) is to be held in Christchurch at the end of November.

Notice has been given of a FeNZ Special General Meeting, to make minor adjustments to the constitution. David has offered to host anyone who wishes to join the Skype meeting; please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you wish to attend.

Dr Steve Fish has been appointed as the FeNZ Medical Officer.

A draft calendar for national competitions in 2020 and onwards has been tabled for discussion.

By resolution of FeNZ, the regions will now be responsible for covering the Paypal fees accrued from affiliation payments.

Other Business:

Fencing North Dinner: David has booked a dinner at Tasca, Mt Eden to celebrate the end of the year. The cost will be $65 per person, plus drinks. All are welcome but spaces are limited, so email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to RSVP.

Fencing Commercial: The independent commercial starring fencing discussed in previous meetings has been produced, with the help of Fencing North in exchange for a small profit.

North Teams for Open Nationals: Fencing North has been invited to send teams to Open Nationals at the end of October. Following an email vote, we have followed the same procedure as last year: we accepted nominations from individual fencers, then passed them on the a selector to make any final choices.

Fencing North Referee Committee: Last year in August Fencing North appointed a Referee Sub-committee of Laura Harvey, Neil Young and Anya Kamynina; this year in April Ryan Yan was appointed to the committee. The committee will draft the terms of reference for the referee committee’s activities following the Tournament Operations meeting.

Fencing North Annual General Meeting: As an incorporated society, Fencing North must hold an Annual General Meeting each year to discuss matters which apply to the entire membership, such as affiliation fees. The AGM for 2019 has been set for the 1^st of December, 2pm at the Onehunga Community Centre. Notice will be sent out in due course.

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