Details

Article Index

Page 6 of 8

 

 Email from Dave Woods (Secretary) which had an attached letter from Mike Carr (Chairman)

 

Email from Dave Woods. To NEC & County Secretaries

 

Good Afternoon All.

 

Following on from all the talk regarding the greens at Skegness a meeting was called between the group and the ELDC. After a few negative issues with the business plan put to East Lindsey, their approach became more positive.   Finance was one topic that ELDC needed some more detail on.  However, it does look likely that they are going to use Duncan to do the Autumn and Winter work on the greens. 

 

  Also, Heritage England have agreed that the greens can be fenced and again EL are looking at the cost of this and are expected to fund it.  EL have also agreed that they will still be responsible for the up-keep of the buildings the new group will just have bear the cost of the greens.  In addition, subject to a lease being assigned EL will contribute funding on a decreasing scale for the next 5 years.  The amount of this funding has still to be determined.  Another meeting will be called when the detailed business plan has been completed, but it is anticipated this will be in only a few weeks time. 

 

i have attached a letter from our Chairman who attended the meeting today.

 

Regards
Dave
E.B.F. National Secretary
 

 


Letter from Mike Carr  To NEC & County Secretaries

 

4th September 2024

 

Dear Fellow Bowlers,

 

Proposal to the AGM regarding the future funding of Skegness Bowling Greens

 

Hopefully those of you who were present at our recent National Finals, have now recovered from the weeks festivities and have reflected on the successes or otherwise of your county bowlers.

 

I have decided to write to all County Secretaries as the NEC will be putting forward a proposal to increase the National Levy from the next financial year (2026). The reason for this proposal is purely to help secure the future of the Skegness Bowling Greens, and to become a stakeholder / partner in the North Parade Bowling Greens Association the new organisation taking over the running of the bowling greens from East Lindsey District Council, hopefully from April 2025.

 

Some of you will have heard Steve O’Dare who spoke at the special meeting held in June to discuss the future of Skegness, and at that meeting all Counties present gave their full support for what Steve and his colleagues are doing, and following on from that, at a Finance meeting held during Skegness week it was unanimously decided to propose to increase the National Levy by £1 to help finance the ongoing work required to, first of all get the greens back to pristine condition and then to ensure they are kept in a condition worthy of our National Championships.

 

It is certainly my opinion that we must now take this opportunity to be fully part of the future of the greens and in some degree, be in control of our own destiny. I am sure you will all agree that Skegness is integral to the future of the EBF, without Skegness I would fear for the long-term future of EBF bowling. The proposal will also include that we will set aside the sum raised by the additional levy purely for the Skegness project, and we will give the new organisation a sum initially of £10,000 per annum as our contribution to the budget of this body, but on the understanding that it would be specifically used as funding for the maintenance of the greens.

 

In return, the EBF will become the major stakeholders in the new organisation, and I will become a member of the new Committee set up to run the greens, and as such I will ensure that the money we pay over will be used for the purpose intended. Any additional money from the special levy, will also be ‘set aside’ in our accounts and shown as a separate item in the accounts.

 

I hope like me you will feel that anadditional levy of £1 is a small price to pay, to help get the greens at Skegness back to what they should be, great work was done by the contractor we hired to improve the greens and I am confident his good work will, in time reap rewards for all who play on the greens in the future hopefully in partnership with the EBF.

 

The NEC would therefore ask for the support of your County at the AGM to enable the addition levy to be raised.

 

Yours sincerely
Mike Carr. Chairman English Bowling Federation.

 

 

Attachments:
Download this file (Save our Bowling Green Petition.doc)Save our Bowling Green Petition.doc