Club Secretary Noticeboard
Safety Audit 2014
An update from the CASC Working Party
British Rowing vacancy – Independent Director
Invasive Species Alert – Check, Clean, Dry
Umpiring Seminar – slides
Club Safety Audit 2014 open for online completion
Has your club completed its safety audit? Clubs have until Wednesday 31 December to complete the online audit process.
An email has recently been sent to the Club Rowing Safety Adviser of every British Rowing-affiliated club to announce the launch of the 2014 Club Safety Audit.
As a recognised part of each club’s affiliation, the audit must be completed, submitted online, and accepted by the Regional Rowing Safety Adviser no later than Wednesday 31 December.
The audit is now available for Club Rowing Safety Advisers to complete online at https://apps.britishrowing.org/audit/.
If you are a new Club Rowing Safety Adviser and have not yet received an email with full information on the audit please contact [email protected].
An update from the CASC Working Party
Following the 2013 Club Consultations, the HMRC CASC Working Group has met on various occasions since mid 2013 to discuss, clarify and define workable, and where possible, acceptable positions with HMRC, on the key areas of the changes in CASC legislation, which was amended in the March 2013 Budget.
The key areas include Participation Costs and Definitions, Eligible Sports for CASC Status and the relationships of Non Eligible Sports and Organisations to registered CASC Clubs, Payment of Participants, Travel and Subsistence Payments, Accounting for Member Income and Non Member Income, etc.
Many of these areas have been complex, and in addition, vary widely from sport to sport.
Understandably, despite several meetings which have taken place and feedback from both NGB and HMRC, many of these areas are still under negotiation/ review.
NGBs are now seeking final guidance for their clubs on the various definitions, so that they can in turn give guidance or supplementary guidance on whether to apply for CASC Status, or whether existing CASC clubs should retain CASC Status.
In some cases, clubs may decide that the new rules (which have lacked definition, but have actually been in effect via legislation since March 2013), are now impossible to comply with, and that it is not desirable or possible to continue within the CASC framework).
De-registration will also present problems, in that, following the circulation of final guidance and clarification documentation by HMRC, clubs wishing to de-register from CASC will need to convince HMRC that they have been compliant with the CASC regulations during the period that they have been CASC registered (and received CASC subsidies), and that they are applying to leave the scheme, merely because the new amendments will make the club non-compliant. There will be limited time period for such action.
Current position on Timing of the Further Guidance Notes from HMRC:
It is hoped that following the further consultations in September/October 2014, the final HMRC drafts for Parliament will be ready in December 2014 and that Guidance Documents for Clubs will be issued by February/March 2015.
Current Guidance:
In the meantime, it is generally agreed between most, if not all of the (approx. 10) NGBs in the HMRC CASC Working Party that the only current NGB Guidance can be given is that clubs continue to hold current applications, pending the final HMRC Guidance Documents, unless they feel that CASC Status is a current imperative.
British Rowing vacancy – Independent Director
British Rowing is seeking to appoint an Independent Director for its Board, who will also act as Chairman of the Audit & Risk Committee. British Rowing is therefore seeking candidates who are experienced in finance, audit and risk management matters; an understanding of their application to the sports sector would be an advantage.
If you or someone at your club might be interested in this opoprtunity, please visit the British Rowing jobs section for more information: www.britishrowing.org/about-us/jobs.
Invasive Species Alert – Check, Clean, Dry
Following the discovery, for the very first time, of the invasive, non-native Quagga Mussel in UK waterways last month, please remember the following advice, and ensure that it is followed at your club:
Boats
- Wash down boats after every outing
- Boats should be washed down with clean water if available, or water from the watercourse that has been used
- Boats should be positioned so that the water flows back into, or towards, the watercourse
- Boat should be completely dried off with a towel or similar, and ALL water should be drained from the cockpit and buoyancy cavities (previously called ‘canvasses’)
Kit and cloths/towels
- Wet kit or cleaning cloths/towels should be dried (or isolated in transit) and inspected carefully
- This is another way that the species can easily be transferred to other watercourses as these species can live for several days in wet materials
Visiting boats
- In the case of visiting boats, boat trailers should be completely dry and free of loose water. All clubs should be vigilant and aware of these procedures.
- Clubs and event organisers should be aware of Defra’s Check, Clean, Dry procedure, as well as regularly checking www.nonnativespecies.org for further updates.
Umpiring Seminar – slides
On Saturday 25th October 2014 sixty umpires attended a Multi-Lane Umpiring seminar in Oxford.
The seminar, which was run by the Multi-Lane Umpiring Panel, covered a variety of topics including umpiring time-trials, static umpiring, the ‘Start’ procedure and various umpiring scenarios.
The slides can be found on the Umpiring page: www.britishrowing.org/sites/default/files/pages/15521/2014_MLUP_%20Seminar.pdf.
