Aug 03

Committee Meeting on 3rd August 2020

Committee Meeting 3rd August 2020

Minutes

Attendees : Steve Baker, Andrew Collins,  Kevin Pretorius, Chris Reed, John Rees, Roberta Smyth

Apologies: Eric Grieve

Open actions from last meeting

 

  1. Review PLI whether FAS supplied PLI provides sufficient cover – DT

JR contacted FAS for details of PLI Insurance cover. The insurance is generic and intended for any society or charitable organisation. Which, considering the activities of the society it is probably sufficient. However, we may need to take more precautions when providing buffets to avoid any possible litigation. – Complete

 

  1. Non-members attending observing events – KP

“Guide to Observing Etiquette” to be added to observing invite. – Complete

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  1. Website not up to date – EG

Action: DT will train CR to update website and post minutes this week.

 

  1. Do we need to pay a retainer to ACC to ensure future use? – DT

Action: ACC is open but restricted to 24 people so currently not a viable venue. It is unlikely that the society will resume meetings in the next 3 months. JR to assess whether to offer a 50% fee to reserve slot  – JR

  1. Do we need to postpone membership renewal? – DT

Action: Decision will be made at November committee meeting whether to delay the renewal date or reduce the fees. Any new members will be charged as normal for 2020. – All

  1. Continue with online meetings (speakers/discussion groups/demos) – DT

Action: Online meetings may provide the opportunity for talks from remote speakers – KP

Action: Some users experiencing difficulties with MEET.JIT.SI, Microsoft Meeting requires all attendees to have a Windows and an account, ZOOM has mixed reviews. We will experiment with ZOOM on Tuesday evening – AC

Topics for discussion

  1. Health and Safety

Action: JR forwarded COVID Members Risk Asessment Form for forwarding to members to assess their likelihood of attending meetings, observing events, etc. -JR

  1. Loan equipment agreement and insurance – KP

Action: EG to confirm current loan equipment hand over procedures. Loan equipment largely low value so insurance probably not required.

  1. Summary of Saturday’s online SAGAS meeting – DT

 Action: All societies are adopting a very cautious and risk averse approach. Most face to face meetings are suspended for 2020. Most Observatories are closed. Any face to face meetings require pre-booking and recording details for track and trace. Many using ZOOM for online meetings with mixed reviews, it incurs cost, microphone issues and occasional gate crashers. – DT

  1. Do we need ground rules for Facebook page – DT

Action: Facebook intended for sharing observing experiences etc. any negative issues should be resolved offline – KP

 

Any Other Business

 

  1. Next Committee Meeting host for 2nd November

Action: Online meeting.