Chairman’s Letter April 2021
Hello everybody……………The big news of the day is that the club has recently received a second government grant for just over £10,000 to help us restart our activities. Obviously, this is most welcome considering our expenditure of 38K on a new RIB. Speaking of which, our latest understanding from Humber is that it will arrive around the middle of May after which the old Viking disposed of.
Our thanks go out to Dave Edwards and Vince Clegg for putting on the recent BBQ on the lawn outside the club. The great news is that we took around £600 over the bars, but above all it was wonderful to see so many of our members after so long, your support was much appreciated.
Bay diving has now recommenced with a group venturing out to the Alarm a week last Sunday. In truth, the viz was a moderate 4/5 meters and the water somewhat grainy however, it was sunny and it was just great to be back in the water. There is a second trip out to some of the further wrecks this coming weekend, but due to their slightly increased depth is limited to Dive Leaders and above. I would mention that there now seems to be a dearth of available vehicles capable of towing the club boats and this needs to improve if disappointment is not to follow i.e. ‘restricted diving days through lack of towers’.
On the training front, no date has been set for the reopening of swimming/diving groups and classes, though I understand that there is a notice in the staff room at Guinea Gap Baths which states that things will be back to normal by June. It goes without saying that I will continue to make the enquiry on your behalf. As far as the club house is concerned, this will reopen on Thursday 20th.May, social distancing will appy.
Review of Club Policies (Bullying, Social Media and Discrimination) – Following an ‘unofficial complaint’ by a member that the club is institutionally sexist in everything that it does, the club’s Welfare Officer, Monty Smith, formed a sub-committee that has conducted a thorough review of all our policies to ensure that they are still relevant and fit for purpose in 2021. These will now be posted on the club’s Facebook page and also sent to every member vie email in PDF format. We would ask that you take a few minutes to examine these documents so that you may not only gain an understanding of their content, but also the club’s position on these subjects. Most importantly, if you are aware of any sexist or discriminatory behavior that have not been brought to the attention of the committee and dealt with previously, do let Monty or I know. An early response would be much appreciated.
That’s it folks, keep well and safe diving……………..AJ
Policies Updated April 2021
