Page 5 - QARANC Vol 15 No 1 2017

THE GAZETTE QARANC 3
Chairman’s Report
Welcome to the Spring Edition of ‘The Gazette’. I trust when this arrives with you, wherever you may be, the worst of the cold and wintery weather will have passed and we are welcoming spring and the wonderful warmer summer months ahead. It is a year to be jubilant as the Association celebrates its 70th Anniversary and offers thanks to its founder Dame Louisa Wilkinson for establishing our special organisation in 1947 acknowledging the importance of ‘‘Friendship’, our motto, that is held true and dear.
The last six months have been busy as the critical post of Regimental Secretary/General Secretary has remained vacant. I am delighted to inform you that a successor has been appointed and although not in post at the time of this edition going to press, I suspect that by the time you receive this, their feet will be well and truly under the table. The lack of our Secretary has presented a number of challenges and I must apologise if you have not received the level of service and support you both deserve and need. I must acknowledge the assistance we have received from those who have stepped into the ’breach’ for their support and assistance provided on top of their already busy roles and responsibilities especially our colleagues from the Regimental Headquarters who with other posts and appointments already gapped have been significantly stretched. I also wish to thank Maj (Retd) Alison Spires who has kept on top of some of the specific Association business during this turbulent time and Lt Col Jayne Cummings who has managed the Regimental issues. This period has confirmed great difficulties in the ability to communicate with our members and although we have worked hard with a recently commissioned database, we have found that this falls well short of our needs. To that end the Association intends to initiate its own management programme which will, of course, be fully compliant with all data protection legislation and best practice. It is hoped that within a year there will be a facility, for those able, to view and update membership details through the membership area of our website. This project will start with the ‘non-serving’ membership and in due course encompass both retired and serving members, the latter who are only eligible for membership through their contribution to the Charity through the Days Pay Scheme. However worthy of note, despite the concerns over the validity of data available, it is very evident that the level of subscription through the Days Pay Scheme is not as would be expected from serving Officers and soldiers especially reservists. Although incumbent on us all to encourage and promote membership, this is an issue that the Chief Nursing Officer/Association President wishes her senior Officers and Warrant Officers to address in the next few months.
The pace does not appear to have relented over recent months and the Association continues to manage its business through the Board of Trustees who continue
to meet on a regular basis. The
accounts as a new Charitable
Incorporated Organisation were
audited in June 2016 and a copy
of the Financial Statement and
Audited Accounts submitted to
the Charity Commission (page 8).
We have continued to work with other
Service charities to offer benevolence and support, where appropriate, to former and serving members. In addition, the Association has supported individual and unit sporting and adventurous training activities and social gatherings with financial grants. By way of example, we were delighted to support Lt Col Jo D’Arcy as the QARANC representative on the Cycle Challenge undertaken by Her Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex who was raising funds for the 60th Anniversary of the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme.
The Association has continued to develop its website and has recently completed a project which has recorded all previous copies in a digital format of our Gazette since its inception. Hopefully this will assist those who may wish to search for a specific historical or personally memorable event. It might also give great pleasure to those who just would like a trip down ‘memory lane’. The last six months has seen us adding to our Chattels with the commissioning and purchase of a painting to commemorate the contribution made by QARANC personnel on Operation GRITROCK, titled ‘What Matters Most’ which Her Royal Highness the Countess of Wessex as Colonel In Chief of the Corps and Association Patron kindly unveiled last November. The Trustees have also commissioned a further book recording some of the Corps history during World War 2.
The Association is marking the 70th Anniversary with the commissioning of a First day Cover. More details about this can be found in this edition. It is anticipated that demand will exceed supply and therefore a ballot will be undertaken and the successful applicants notified. There are also plans to hold a Celebratory Garden Party in June this year. This will be a ticketed event and transport will be provided from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. Tickets will be limited and will only be available for Association Members and it is hoped that serving members (both regular and reservists) and retired members will be represented proportionally. More detail and an application form will be sent to members and it is anticipated that you will have received this information prior to the arrival of this Gazette. Successful applicants will be notified by mid May 2017.
To conclude, I wish to thank all the Trustees for their hard work especially over recent months and to the Branch Chairmen, Secretaries and Treasurers who all work hard on behalf of our members to ensure we fulfil our duties, meet our charitable objects and respect our motto of ‘Friendship’.
Col S Bush RRC