The Ramblers’ Association – Dorset Area Annual Report – 2007/2008 General Overview As stated in last years report membership numbers in the Dorset Area have continued to decline and, although it is mirrored in the national statistics it is nonetheless worrying. There is, however, an initiative at national level which hopes to identify the reasons for the trend and then reverse it. In parallel with this Area Council have been studying methods of making their activities more obvious to the membership and also explaining the relationship between Central Office, Areas, Groups and Members. It is hoped that the fruits of this will be seen in subsequent issues of Dorset Footnotes . Coastal Access As previously reported this has been on the agenda of the Ramblers’ Association for some time but the latest proposals by Natural England have given it a new impetus. At the heart of Natural England’s recommendations is a coastal corridor that will enable the public to walk all the way around the coast, an impossible feat at present. Currently access to the coast is patchy at best and many walking routes are unnecessarily diverted inland. Our vision for the English coast is for the general public to have right of access on foot to coastal areas, including beaches, cliffs and foreshore. Currently, no general right to walk on the coast exists. Obviously there would need to be common sense restrictions to address nature conservation and safety concerns and to take account of private and/or commercial developments but this should not be an insuperable problem. This is the next significant improvement to the public’s right of access following on from the Freedom to Roam Legislation and we ask for your support in this . General Council 2008 General Council this year was held at the University of Winchester and was attended by Jim Scott (myself) and Cynthia Whyte (representing Dorset Area) and Brian Panton and Jan Wardell as guests. This was my first visit to General Council and my first impression on arrival was how much College Accommodation has improved since I was there a long time ago. The organisation was excellent and we started with a walk around Winchester seeing the significant historical landmarks. This included King Arthur’s Round Table, which was unfortunately hidden by scaffolding, and the remnants of the roman city walls. During informal discussions I was very impressed by the dedication and enthusiasm of the other delegates and Central Office staff. Area Secretary In addition to the normal activities we have completely revised the Area Constitution. This required a lot of work by a small sub-committee. First let me make it clear that there is no hidden agenda nor things hidden within it. The main reason we have done this is that the Board of Trustees have brought out a new Model Constitution replacing the 2003 version which no longer accurately represented the way Area’s operate within the Ramblers’ Association. It also included technical changes to budgeting and financial control. Since we needed to incorporate these changes it was considered that rather than make changes to the existing constitution we should, in effect, start from scratch combining the wording required by Central Office with the intent from the existing constitution to produce a coherent and clear document for your approval. This new constitution is available on the website for download but can also be obtained from myself by post. The Ramblers’ Association is a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales. Company registration number: 4458492. Registered Charity in England and Wales number: 1093577. Registered office: 2nd floor, Camelford House, 87-90 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7TW Page 1 of 6 Support your Area Council We really do need your support and you will see from the last newsletter that we are badly in need of volunteers to help us either as Individual Members or Officers. The most critical posts are Newsletter Editor and Publicity Officer as these roles are most important in promoting the Ramblers’ Association in Dorset generally and to our membership in particular. We would sincerely request that any persons who feel they have the time and expertise to assist contact myself or one of the other officers. Treasurer Finances in the Dorset Area remain healthy even though the Area’s main bank account is showing a loss of nearly £2000. This is in keeping with the policy that Areas and Groups with high cash reserves should contribute to budget funding by Central Office rather than claim the full amount estimated for the following year. The Jubilee Trail Book Fund also shows a deficit of over £1600, this is continuing the Area’s policy of reducing the balance in this fund by between £1000 and £1500 each year in making payments to Dorset County Council (DCC) on a matched funding basis to effect improvements to the surface and furniture on the Jubilee Trial. This year £1500 was again paid to DCC for improvements. It was pleasing to note that the Area was able to finance the reprinting of the Jubilee Trail Guide during the year and sales of the new guide are reported as going well. It was thought at the beginning of the year that grants to Groups in Dorset, which had not increased for some 7 years, were too low. Whilst most Groups had been able to exist within the level of grants paid out in previous years, it was decided to increase all grants in this financial year by 25% (as mentioned in last year’s report). However, the East Dorset Group (the largest in the Dorset Area), whose funds were still at a low level at the end of the 2006/7 financial year, was again awarded an extra £200. During the year the South Dorset Group was helped with a similar amount to help fund their opposition to the proposed Weymouth Relief Road. The Area has again made a contribution to the budget in the coming financial year and the special fund, initially set at £1000, to enable Groups to develop their own websites or additional pages within the Area website will still be available in the coming year – the funding for this coming from Area reserves. Membership Secretary The total membership at the end of the year was some 18 members less that at the start of the year. In the past it was possible to measure any decline or increase with any national trend, as we were in receipt of Area wide statistics. With advent of the new CRM system introduced at Ramblers’ HQ this is no longer possible, for the moment we are told? So the normally interesting statistics that make up part of the annual report, such as retention rates, membership level per 100,000 of population etc is absent. One must be concerned by the problems on introducing the new membership software in that for a period of three months this year we were unable to get any figures or details of new members. Even now, when we have been informed that many of the problems have be resolved, the integrity of the data must be brought into question. Members are marked as overdue, even though they have indicated they have paid or have standing orders or direct debits setup. This whole episode has been marked by the lack of communication from HQ and to get explanations for the errors that are reported to them. One can only hope that over the coming months things improved and we can begin to trust the information the system is producing. Editor – Dorset Footnotes As usual three issues of Dorset Footnotes has been published during the year although it is disappointing that reports from some groups have been sparse, however, articles from individual members have been plentiful and all received have been printed. From time to time the need for a newsletter such as Dorset Footnotes has been questioned, mainly on the grounds that printing and distribution costs could be saved if it was discontinued. I Page 2 of 6 have from time to time posed these questions to members and whilst replies have been low, the general consensus is that the newsletter is read and valued by some members. As an experiment, the last issue of Dorset Footnotes was printed on white paper and includes colour on the front and back covers advertising the new Jubilee Trail guide and the members discount at Cotswold Outdoor in Bournemouth. I think it is an improvement, perhaps members would like to comment at the AGM. It will give the new Editor something to build on, and improve. Area Footpath Secretary Although the number of applications, orders and notices was down a little on the previous year it has, as always, been a busy year for the Area FP Committee. The number of orders processed by Dorset County Council has been the main reason for the reduction. This has been due to staff shortages. The new “fast-track procedure” agreed more than a year ago seems to have floundered. In last year’s report we mentioned the consultation on DEFRA proposals under the CRoW Act 2000 on the right of certain landowners to apply for extinguishment and diversion orders. These proposals were considered by the RA to be a totally unnecessary, costly and bureaucratic procedure. It is pleasing to report that this idea is not going to be pursued by the government. It is disappointing to have to report that the Dorset Rights of Way Improvement Plan has still not been published, a year after the government’s deadline. The considerable work on this document and submissions by stakeholders seems to have stalled because of internal politics at County Hall.