Mercurial > hg > rsof

--- a/7vt/fmh_2009-02-08.xml	Tue Jan 27 17:24:57 2009 -0500
+++ b/7vt/fmh_2009-02-08.xml	Mon Feb 09 15:13:43 2009 -0500
@@ -7,22 +7,130 @@
  <head>
   <title>Future of 7 VT working group: Third meeting</title>
   <author>This informal summary by Henry S. Thompson, Convenor</author>
-  <date>Held at 7 Victoria Terrace, Edinburgh on 26 January 2009, 7:30 p.m.</date>
+  <date>Held at 7 Victoria Terrace, Edinburgh on 8 February 2009, 7:30 p.m.</date>
  </head>
  <body>
   <div>
    <title>Attendance</title>
    <p>Present: Alison Burnley, Anthony Buxton, Madeleine Harding, Ken Jobling, Phil Lucas,
- Brian Mayes, Laurie Naumann,
+ Brian Mayes, Laurie Naumann, Rufus Reade,
 Eileen Schott, Henry Thompson (in the clerk's chair)</p>
-   <p>Prevented: Rufus Reade</p>
   </div>
   <div>
-   <title>Input from the co-Warden</title>
+   <title>Input from the co-Manager</title>
+   <p>Looking back, at the time of the original purchase, of the projected 250KGBP spend only 150KGBP
+was spent, and again in 1993 a review suggested some major work which wasn't done.</p>
+   <p>Lettings have gone down this year because of the loss of two major lettings: The Traverse, who
+moved to their own premises; the other the City of Edinburgh who have cut back on external training.
+Prospects this year don't look great on that front.</p>
+   <p>At interview, we were asked to "be a Quaker presence".  Our day begins at 0745, and the Meeting
+House is often open until 2130 or 2200.  Sue and Anthony average about 60hrs/week, although only
+contracted for 37.5.</p>
+   <p>Staff costs increased this year in part because of the necessity of allowing for holiday pay for
+part-time staff (in arrears).</p>
+   <p>The Buxtons' vision for 7VT is as a centre for Quakers in Edinburgh or even in Scotland.  The
+increase in visibility we have worked for is part of this:  making the entry to the ground floor and
+the Festival Cafe more evidently Quaker.</p>
+   <p>The Festival venue doesn't actually net any money: we're closed for six weeks as far as bookings
+is concerned -- if we were not a venue, we <emph>might</emph> get income from e.g. rehersal space
+lettings.  It has provoked the food hygiene changes, and are leading to the upgrade.  For tea and
+coffee only, we could do without the kitchen upgrade.  A redesign there would enable a new letting
+space.  So overall we lose money for that six weeks, even though staff costs are lower, as we have four
+venue managers (Sue, Anthony, Tom and Tam [as convenor of the Festival C'ttee], one of whom is always
+on duty.  Only when Tam is on do we have staff cover as well.</p>
+   <p>The kitchen upgrade is currently estimated at 30KGBP, the toilets 50KGBP.  Replacing the cookers
+means adding ventolation, all stainless-steel.  Decomination requires pressure hoses, with more impact.</p>
+   <p>The kitchen does not play much into the lettings business, that is, not having a kitchen would
+not have much if any impact on the lettings.  Anyone who wants lunch has a buffet (usually cold)
+catered in.  The refreshment business is for teas and coffees.</p>
+   <p>Cooking is crucial watershed: the "no kitchen" option would still allow dishwasher(s) and fridge(s).</p>
+   <p>Alternatively, consider running a cafe continuously during the year.  This would of course have
+an impact on the library.</p>
+   <p>We are hopeful that the Victoria Terrace pavement will be re-opened through to GIVB by around Easter.</p>
+   <p>Opening up access to the creche directly from the library would be about 5KGBP, we could also
+look at breaking the internal wall down, adding built-in cupboards and a window.</p>
+   <p>The toilets would be aiming for five lady's (plus basins), two cubicles and two urinals for the men's</p>
+   <p>Basic fabric and roof are in good state.  The windows are pending.  The hall is in good state,
+and proving attractive to lettings.</p>
+   <p>The meetingroom itself has access issues wrt catering, and we have been trying to get most
+catering done on the 1st floor -- not all groups like this.  There is no water or drainage.</p>
+   <p>We could service/manage more letting with existing staffing levels if we had more rooms.</p>
+   <p>Heating bill for the whole building was about 8KGBP last year, some heaters lack local
+thermostats.  Solar or roof-based heat exchanger might be possible.  No costings are available for this.</p>
+   <p>Fire regulations are now becoming an issue:  strictly speaking the maximum occupancy of rooms
+above a single staircase is 60.  A safe refuge and lift sealing are also in the offing.</p>
+   <p>The overall regulatory situation means anytime we do anything, we now have to do it to the top
+standard demanded by fire, safety, health etc. regulations.  We are sometimes put in a difficult
+position by this, for example, with respect to young Quaker residential groups, to whom strictly
+speaking we should be saying "no" to.  If we break the rules, and an accident happens, we will be in
+serious trouble.</p>
+   <p>Staffing: Tom does 3 days a week, one of which is maintenance, and he covers for Friday
+(Managers' day off) and holidays.  There are a further 8 0-hours contract staff who fill the rest.  We
+do lose money if we open the building for one group who are only using the Bow Room, for which the
+charity rate is 10GBP/hour.</p>
+   <p>The recession may be having an impact, with things quite quiet since Christmas, except for some
+weeks when we are over-subscribed.  Wednesday is the busiest day of the week, somewhat hampered by
+midweek meeting.</p>
+   <p>We can't compete with the big hotels and conference centres, and we don't try.  Our primary
+lettors come from the voluntary sector.  Although they have been hit by the recession, and the
+shrinkage of Lottery funding consequent on the Olympics, we are looking at some hopeful prospects as well.</p>
+   <p>We do have some groups with whom we have long-standing regular bookings, although not in the form
+of say an annual contracts -- there are weekly discounts.</p>
+   <p>6VT have enquired about letting the Bow Room on a long-term basis.</p>
+   <p>We're not in a position (as say Dundee is) to do commercial lettings of a part of the building.</p>
+   <p>Possible comparators: The Methodist Church in Nicholson Square; St. Mary's RC Cathedral</p>
+   <p>We are now considered a "Quaker Centre".  Manchester, Liverpool, York, Sheffield, Manchester, Swarthmore, Woodbrooke, Oxford (but they don't come) are
+others.  We are the only one in Scotland.  Glasgow and Dundee do some lettings, but without the overall
+approach of a Centre.</p>
+   <p>There are still ways we could be making more of the building, more signage, more window displays.
+We don't have a permanent place for worship, which is unfortunate.  Not enough use is being made of the
+Meeting House <emph>by and for Quakers</emph>.</p>
+   <p>The windows project: it should be possible to get double-glazed vertically-hinged windows in the
+Meeting Room and Hall, which
+would mean we could get rid of the secondary windows and have proper ventolation.  We're hoping to have
+this redesign done soon so that if we must do </p>
+   <p>Trading Company to run the business: Friends House have done that, the Priory Rooms (Poole
+Street, Birmingham) have done this.  Anthony would not like to go that way: it's now just a business.</p>
+   <p>Dundee Property Trust own the tenement in which the Dundee Meeting House, and the property agent
+on the ground floor.  Laurie Naumann has just become a trustee.</p>
+   <p>Deciding what the right model is depends on what footprint we want, whether we want a presence.
+Setting up a trading company when we're running at a deficit seems like a non-starter.</p>
+   <p>Why aren't we running more Quaker study groups here? Why aren't more of our members doing more of
+their Quaker-related business here? Our regular bookings do stop us being adventurous: we could have
+had the whole Middle-Eastern festival here, if we hadn't had the load of our ongoing bookings.  We
+could change the way we do bookings, shift from regular slots to blocks.</p>
+   <p>Anthony was dismayed at the questionnaire which was headed for lettings, at a time when the
+client base is delicate, indeed frightened that it might scare people off.  None of the questionnaires
+included anything about who the group is and what our remit is, or included the question of vision.
+Eileen mentioned that the goal was to find out more about what made people come back, or not.  There
+already is a satisfaction evaluation for letting clients.</p>
+   <p>Brian suggested that the timing might be better once we have a better sense of what path we are
+going down.</p>
+   <p>Anthony thought that asking people about alternative visions is the best way to get people's input.</p>
+   <p>Anthony recommended only having <emph>one</emph> questionnaire, so that the results are
+comparable.  Alison agreed that many of the questions should be the same, but the some questions were
+only appropriate for some groups.</p>
   </div>
   <div>
    <title>Input from the Convenor of Fabric and Maintenance
 C'ttee</title>
+   <p>Ken is a trustee as well.  Trustees have decided that no major spending commitments can be made
+(except for urgent matters) until this Working Group has reported and AM has come to some conclusions.
+This puts real pressure on getting recommendations and decisions out of this review exercise as quickly
+as possible.</p>
+   <p>Trustees have passed two things as matters of priority to F&amp;M: ongoing roof access above the flat (e.g. wrt
+gutters) and priorities arising from the quinquennial review, which had to be done very soon, for
+example some of the West windows.</p>
+   <p>At a Quaker Centres meeting last week we heard many similar stories to what Anthony said above</p>
+   <p>The possibility of establishing some official GM use of building was explored in 1995.  The
+operation of Quaker Link Scotland from 7VT also happened around then.  The appointment of an admin.
+assistant to GM was at first thought of as feeding into this, but partly because of the IVS lease on
+the Bow Room, and partly because of opposition from elsewhere in GM, nothing came of it.</p>
+   <p>There is a danger of getting bogged down in costs, while losing sight of the benefits of the place.</p>
+   <p>We have been running on low reserves since, roughly, the establishment of the Kelso Meeting
+House.  We can't look at the Meeting House in isolation.</p>
+   <p>Other Quaker Centres have emphasised the need to have a clear vision in service of which the
+financial plans are framed.</p>
   </div>
   <div>
    <title>Status of survey preparation</title>
@@ -36,6 +144,10 @@
    </list>
   </div>
   <div>
+   <title></title>
+   <p>Need a tour of the building, next time (when Rufus is here).</p>
+  </div>
+  <div>
    <title>Next Meeting</title>
    <p>Our next meeting will be at </p>
   </div>