Christmas greetings and Office hours

Merry Christmas to all our readers and a prosperous  New Year. 

The County Office will be closed over the Christmas period from  24th December to 1st January inclusive but we will be picking up e-mails remotely.  

 

 We have decided not to send out Christmas Cards this year and have donated the money  that would have been spent to the

 Ghurkha Association, a charity which was actively supported by our recently deceased Middlesex Life Vice President, David Hudgell. 

Presidents Awards

The Presidents VII Awards will be announced in the next few days. The idea is to parallel the RFU Presidents XV awards by running a similar set of awards but localised (?) to reflect the Middlesex interests.

From the Secretary December 2009

You should all by now have heard of the recently launched RFU Core Values “This is Rugby” campaign with the key words Teamwork, Respect, Enjoyment, Discipline and Sportsmanship. I suspect we all subscribe to these values without thinking but they have been made part of the campaign because there are times when these values are not adhered to. I’m talking especially about the occasions when decisions go against one or other of the teams and exception is taken. This particularly applies to the lack of respect paid to the referees without whom we wouldn’t have a game. Please make an effort to have a look at the campaign on the RFU website and, if applicable, attend one of the Group meetings where a short DVD will be shown at the next round of meetings. We will also be maintaining a presence with the literature at the various Mini and Youth Festivals this Spring.

Similarly we had started a campaign to make sure that all our clubs running Mini and Youth Section had either completed or have made a significant start on the RFU Seal of Approval accreditation process. It is important that the youngsters coming into the game do so in the knowledge that their clubs provide a safe environment and follow the guidelines necessary for their sustainability. By the start of the 2011 season we hope that all our clubs are so accredited.

There are three new Middlesex initiatives taking place at the moment:

· Our Treasurer is undertaking a complete review of all our expenditure and income given that we are now running at a deficit and our reserves are not infinite. All areas of expenditure will come under examination

· Our chairman has set up a task group led by Peter Baveystock to look at the way we communicate with our clubs, patrons and players. All aspects of the communication channel will be examined including the Informer, the e-Former, the diary, the website and the soon to be launched Middlesex Blog (I never thought I’d use that phrase!)

· The Middlesex Presidents VII awards which will parallel the RFU Presidents XV Awards but with a more local emphasis. The categories have been announced and the winners will be announced at the “Valuing the Volunteer” event at the end of the season, the date has not been finalised before going to press.

All of these initiatives are in line with our Strategic Plan which came out of the Management Committee Planning meeting held last March and also scheduled for review in the Spring.