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Minutes of Business Meeting April 2026

Minutes of the SI Ilkley Club Meeting on Thursday 9 April at St John’s Church Hall Ben Rhydding.

  1. The Vision and Mission was read by Margaret
  2. Apologies were received from Angela, Janet M., Julia, Felicite, Marian
  3. The Minutes of the Club Meeting  12 March 2026 were agreed. There were no Matters Arising
  4. The Secretary noted a blue notebook had been left on the trolley at the last meeting.
  5. The Treasurer reported on current finances. These will be circulated to members
  6. The Charter Lunch: Gill reported 44 members and guests were expected: Margaret will liaise with Pauline over vases, 3 flowers and ribbons for 6 tables. Margaret will say Grace; Julie will light the Friendship Candle and name our Friendship Links;  Anne will give a welcome to guests and propose the Loyal Toast;  On Arrival, Anne will greet Cllr Amanda Simmonds Deputy Town Mayor , Joy will meet Mrs Thelma Pacsoo President of Ilkley Inner Wheel, Margaret will  meet Martin Smith President of Ilkley Rotary Club, Libby will meet Mrs Judith Clark President SI Yorkshire Region Loraine will provide Anne and Julie with informed notes, Loraine will set out the Presidents Book and Chain. Gill will contact Jane at the Golf Club re table seating and Napkins, Gill will let Jenny have the table plan with names, Gill will sort out the background music, Jenny will produce and display the seating plan, Jenny will produce and set out the placenames.
  7. Club Programme Action: Libby drew attention to World Environment Day 5th June. Libby will contact Litter Free Ilkley re borrowing equipment and a focused area.; Sue stressed the need for crafters to offer a session for the Together Women Project. There are 8 Soroptimist volunteers and more are needed not necessarily crafters.; Margaret noted money available from the Safer Communities Fund but this round is too short notice; Sue and Libby reported on packing the Easter Hampers. Less food had been donated this time Becky Malby thanked Soroptimist Knitters for the beautiful presentation of the chicks. Nell Bank- Sue and Chris had attended a Thank You Barbecue with limited tickets. Chris reported on the Government Funded Easter event for low income families. It had been a remarkably successful event. Soroptimists were thanked for donating the crème eggs for each attendee. The next event is 6 August and 6 volunteers are needed. It was confirmed SI Ilkley will be supporting Nell Bank in the coming year as part of Programme Action. Offering a team of 6 for 2 events was a practical and worthwhile contribution. Sue is also involved in Bid Writing for Nell Bank. Chris explained the Nell Mountain Project to replace a closed Adventure and with initial costings.  Club Programme Action fundraising is still to be agreed as to which charity and causes are supported.  One request was to also include a focus on women and girls.  Chris thanked members who had volunteered and the club thanked Chris for her organizing skills and liaison with Nell Bank.
  8. The Carnival; Mary Moore had met with the volunteers prior to the formal meeting. Chris would like some members to act as a reserve and both Rachel and Libby said they would be on the field for longer periods than the allocated slots.
  9. Yorkshire Region; The next Regional Council Meeting will be at Askham Grange Open Prison. Regional President Judith is encouraging members to attend the event at Sewerby Hall £47 on 1st August. Margaret and Anne are interested to attend.
  10. Preparations for the AGM:  Vacancy- we still need an Assistant Secretary. Re the  Archives, Joy suggested a copy of the Programme Focus Report would show what SI Ilkley had done rather than Press cuttings. The West Yorkshire Archives are now at Bradford Central Library and a visit to see the historic records of SI Ilkley would be helpful. Loraine agreed to take over the archives if no one came forward for the AGM. It was agreed for 2026-7 the Executive would consist of the Chair for the month, 1 person from Programme Action, a Secretary and a Treasurer. However, any club member could also attend if they wished to do so. Libby would organize wine for after the AGM.
  11. Diary of Speakers 2026-2027. Jenny reported speakers were needed for November and spring 2027. Sue suggested Angela Edwards and would contact her to ascertain her preferred time of year.
  12. Care and Concern: Jo reported she had visited June with a card from the club. June is well settled at Mayfield and sends her best wishes to members.
  13. Any Other Business:  Jenny’s lunch is at Airton on Thursday 7 May Names to Jenny. All welcome including partners.; The New Projector – it was agreed Sue should purchase a case for the projector. Joy, Chris, Libby and Gill were interested in being able to use the projector in meetings. Sue suggested chairs of speaker meetings needed to liaise with speakers and ask them to download files ahead of the meeting. It was agreed Sue would dispose of the old projectors, along with the leads either to The Thingery or the Tip; Julia’s file on club talent- This was seen as a valuable resource to be consulted more regularly and kept in the cupboard at St John’s. Admin.- Due to lost information of previous decision making it was suggested a paper set of Minutes in a ring binder be kept for one year to aid a quick referencing of fairly recent decisions and avoid any repetition of discussions. Julie suggested we should move to Action Minutes to ensure the person responsible for action is clearly identified.  Julie suggested the final item on the club Agenda should be noting women who have recent achievements to celebrate. Club members agreed the celebration of womanhood at the end of a meeting would be a positive and inspiring reminder of the aims of Soroptimism.