July timeline
Speakers Meeting 13th July – No business discussed tonight. We welcomed ex-Shaftesbury Rotarian Neil Howcroft and his wife Rita. Neil gave a brief talk to the club on protection and insurance in Southern America and worldwide. Something that we would usually only read about in the news, novels and fiction, but we were reminded of the reality for those living, working and travelling the world. A pleasure to welcome Neil and Rita this evening.
Shaftesbury Fringe – Congratulations on your 10th Year. We acknowledge the work of The Fringe Team to pull the event together, the hosts, venues, performers and the public who attend. A Fantastic weekend for the town and community and we wish you continued success. It was great to see the local performers getting awarded the “Best in Fringe” awards. www.shaftesburyfringe.co.uk/best-in-fringe-2026
Business Meeting – 27th July 2026
Guests - Kees Schuten, Varvara Underwood. Greetings from Fordingbridge
Swimmers and Special Olympics - £100 grant – proposed by Council and agreed by all. A list of other grants to be discussed pending a review of the budget and new fiscal rules.
Fiscal rules 2026/27 – to spend up to half of the funds raised and to keep half in reserve. Unless earnings rise, grants and expenses must be restricted.
Social - Future Meetings – September – Lamb at Hindon – Boules and meal. October- Shoebox working session. November – Bingo working session – Members accounts would be charged £10 each to allow the purchase of prizes. Agreed by all.
Directory - Grant from Foundation has been declined as it was considered outside Foundation’s remit, but we were encouraged to reapply from different funding streams. An application to “Grow Rotary” has subsequently been made.
Youth Competitions - Local clubs and schools have expressed provisional interest in running 2027 competitions as per 2026. There may be an issue if southern clubs wish to run the same competitions. David WM to liaise with Group ADG. I now know this is Judith Hooper.
Website - There is general agreement that the main website is satisfactory. There are some issues with areas which need to be updated and corrected in the near future.
Directory – Members worked through a selection of entries in the Directory with a view to gaining an impression as to whether entries were accurate and appropriate. Work is in progress and nearing completion, but it is imperative that entries and searches are checked and tested to destruction to eliminate any errors.
