Weir Quay Community Watersports Hub Club

The joint development group was formed in 2009 with a remit from both sailing club and gig club to explore options for a joint shore base.  Both clubs were represented on this group in equal proportions, under the independent chairmanship of Peter Key.

A working constitution was agreed.

Draft plans were developed and agreed with the committees of the two clubs, and the committees kept regularly informed.

In November 2010 a not for profit company limited by guarantee was formed.  This is called Weir Quay Community Watersports Hub Club Limited.  The Board has agreed this should be known as Weir Quay Community Watersports.

The Hub Club is controlled by the Sailing Club and the Gig Club through the nomination of Directors and ‘Members’ (see more below).

It enables the Sailing Club and the Gig Club to work together in doing those things which are best done in partnership.  In particular these are to:

• Secure and manage shared shore-based facilities
• Promote watersports within our local communities
• Raise funds

We applied to the Charities Commission to register as a charity. This was granted in June 2011. Our Charity Registration number is 1142195. This changes some of the detail, for example directors of the company become trustees of the charity.

The initial ‘Subscribers’ to the company became its legal ‘Members’ on incorporation. They control the company through their votes at Annual and Emergency General Meetings (AGMs and EGMs), at which Directors / Trustees are appointed and changes may be made to the Memorandum and Articles, which control how the company operates. These ‘Members’ of the company are the formal representatives of the gig and sailing clubs and control the company and composition of the board on the clubs’ behalf. (Note, this concept of a legal ‘Member’ of a legal body has nothing to do with ordinary membership of a club, and is more akin to being a shareholder).

 

Board Members & Biographies

(Correct as of November 2013)

• Simon Howes – Chairman – T&TGC
• Stephen Kirby – WQSC
• Chris Dill – T&TGC
• Chris joined the gig club in autumn 2003. He became the men’s vice-captain around 2009 / 10 and took on the role of captainship in 2011.   He has now completed one full season as the men’s captain and has enjoyed the challenge of improving and training the squad harder, producing steadily improving results.

  Chris graduated in 2000 with an Hons degree in Architectural Technology and became a member of the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technology in March 2003.   He now has over 12 years of experience working within the private and public sectors, mainly in the public sector, having worked for Plymouth City Council in their Corporate Property section for over 10 years. During this time he has been involved in and managed a vast number of projects, for example – libraries, bus interchanges and swimming pools with the bulk of the work for schools. In these projects Chris take the ideas of the client from inception though all of the statutory undertakings and administrates and runs them to completion.  He hopes to be able to apply this experience to the development of the new club facilities.

• David Conn – T&TGC
• David Conn studied at Lancaster University and then The College of Law,Chancery Lane.   Following that he opted for a commercial career and worked in publishing, advertising and international event management. David has worked at Director level in companies ranging from plc’s to his own business.

  With his wife, David runs a sales and marketing business in Tavistock ,managing to service large companies across the UK, Northern Europe and the States and Canada. He has been a member of T&TGC for 2 years and has competed for both the men’s and vets teams as well as enjoying social and training rows 3 times a week. He is extremely passionate about what TTGC can offer to people of all ages and ability across West Devon.

  David believes that his passion for things rowing combined with his extensive commercial and managerial experience will add some extra commercial focus to the Hub Club.

• Cate Taynton – T&TGC
• Cate lives in Horrabridge and is an active rower with T&T Gig Club. Before taking early retirement in October 2010 she worked for the last thirty years in various posts within the civil service, in later years at director level. Her specialism is human resource management and she has extensive experience of working with the voluntary and community sector. She has represented her organisation, the Skills Funding Agency, at board level on various groups and partnerships. She will take up a part time post as a Project Manager with Plymouth Chamber of Commerce in September 2012.
• David Semken – WQSC
• David lives in Walkhampton and has been a member of Weir Quay Sailing Club for the last 18 years (approximately), including a short spell as Commodore. He started sailing  at age 6 and has been at it continuously for the last 50 years.  Having rowed for Newcastle University in an earlier life he was pleased to be an early member of the Gig Club and enjoyed assisting, in a small way, with the construction of the first Gig. David is currently employed as Marine and Technology Division Strategy Director for Babcock International Group.  A shipbuilder by profession, his employment in the South West started 20 years ago with DML, and his work experience includes leading the building of  two yacht-building enterprises, and the delivery of naval construction and support both in the UK and overseas.
• Mick Johnson – WQSC
• Mick Johnson is currently  president of the sailing club which he has been a member of for 25 years. In that time he has served on the sailing club committee for more than ten years, twice as commodore. He has been sailing since his early teens. Originally a dinghy family member his two grown up sons learned to sail on club courses at Weir quay as boys and at one time the family had three dinghies between them. He has successfully undertaken dinghy , coastal skipper and yachtmaster courses  and he and his wife Liz are now busy with their with third cruiser.  Mick started out working for a university consultancy in applied psychology and ergonomics, later worked in the transport industry on accident data and passenger vehicle safety and then moved to a 25 year career in educational psychology in Cambridgeshire and Devon undertaking consultancy and training  in addition to casework, eventually retiring as Deputy Principal Educational Psychologist for Plymouth having been manager of the  Plymouth service.  He has lived in Mary Tavy for 26 years.
• Graham Coiley -WQSC
• A local of 20 years, Graham enjoys some pottering on the Tamar, a sharp contrast to the several ocean passages he has undertaken with his wife and 3 sons aboard their live-aboard yacht Doublewaters. Running a successful IT business as Business Director, Graham brings his business planning and bid writing skills to the team.

 

All directors of the hub club are volunteers from the local community, each with interests, skills and experience that are relevant to the project. There are usually four nominated by the Tamar and Tavy Gig Club and four nominated by the Weir quay sailing Club, operating under the guidance of an independent chairman.

The board has benefited from the considerable combined expertise and commitment from both past and present trustees in reaching our present position. There has been the inevitable turnover of trustees as other demands are made on them, and the board has been recruiting new trustees as required.

The first Members of the Company were:

• Simon Howes – T&TGC
• Hilary Jane Bussell – T&TGC
• Robin Riddett – WQSC
• Stephen Kirby – WQSC

Simon has since resigned as a member to take up an appointment as a trustee, to replace Rod Atkins, who retired on health grounds.

The first Trustees were:

• Peter Key – Independent  Chairman
• Rod Atkins – T&TGC
• Mike Street – WQSC – Co Secretary
• Caroline Dawe – T&TGC
• Pete Silcock – WQSC – sites and plans
• Mike Poole – WQSC – funding
• Bob Turner – T&TGC – Treasurer

Councillors Robin Musgrave (WDBC) and the Chair and Commodore of the Gig and Sailing clubs are invited to attend the Board.  They are not Directors and do not vote.

From the first development group meeting Friends of Weir Quay participated in our meetings, and were invited to the early Board meeting.  They did not vote.

The Board meets monthly

The first AGM was held in May, within 18 months of incorporation.  See the News section

Read the current Weir Quay Community Watersports Articles of Association.