Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of UK Serials Association
held on Tuesday 8 April 2003 at Heriot- Watt University, Edinburgh
1. Chair’s Introduction and Confirmation of Quorum
The Chair welcomed members and confirmed that the meeting was quorate.
2. Apologies for absence
Apologies were received from Sue Hill Recruitment & Services Ltd.
3. Minutes of the 24th Annual General Meeting of UK Serials Group held on 16 April 2002
The minutes of the previous meeting held at the University of Warwick were accepted as a true and accurate record of the proceedings.
4. Matters arising
There were no matters arising.
5. Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the then dormant company, UK Serials Association, held on 16 April 2002
The minutes of the previous annual general meeting of UK Serials Association held at the University of Warwick were accepted as a true and accurate record of the proceedings.
6. Matters arising
There were no matters arising.
7. Annual Reports of the Officers
The Officers’ reports had previously been circulated to the members. The officers highlighted certain items as follows:
7.1 Chair
Christine Fyfe referred to her written report, previously circulated to members, and highlighted key points. She noted the fact that it was encouraging to see that membership had remained at a level of almost 600, particularly bearing in mind the level of consolidation within the industry. New members were still being attracted to join from related sectors.
CF thanked committee members for their hard work and dedication to the group which had contributed to a lively and enjoyable three years for her as Chair.
7.2 Secretary
Jill Taylor-Roe also thanked her colleagues on the committee for their assistance over the last three years. She noted that it was very encouraging to see that so many people were prepared to stand for nomination to the committee.
7.3 Treasurer
Keith Courtney gave particular thanks to Alison Whitehorn and Ally Souster for their support during his three years as Treasurer. He highlighted the fact that the 2002 accounts had ended with a deficit, which had been planned, as additional funds were put into the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the group. He pointed out that over the past years costs had been rising steadily for conference venues and for the production of Serials and Serials-eNews.
KC said that he was looking forward to the continued support of the membership in attending conferences and seminars, and he was pleased to be able to report that the group is able to continue to maintain a low membership fee.
7.3.1 2004 Membership Subscription Rate
Keith Courtney proposed that the current rate should rise by £3.50 to £75.00 (+ VAT of £6.88 on 55% of the membership fee) for 2004. This proposal was seconded by Anthony Watkinson and carried unanimously.
7.3.2 Appointment of Auditors
Keith Courtney proposed that Bowman & Co Chartered Accountants be re-appointed as the Group’s auditors. This proposal was seconded by Richard Gedye and carried unanimously.
7.4 Education Officer
Paul Harwood thanked all the members of the Education Subcommittee and speakers who had given their time at UKSG seminars and roadshows. He reported the Research Award winner this year was Sally Brown from the ISSN Centre at the British Library.
7.5 Marketing Officer
Ian Middleton referred to the launch of the new website and gave particular thanks to Taylor & Francis for their significant contribution to this. He noted that other efforts had been concentrated on the marketing of Serials and Serials-eNews. IM then thanked all current and past members of the Marketing Subcommittee.
7.6 Serials Editors
Hazel Woodward reported that Serials consumes a significant portion of the group’s funds, but is a key benefit to all members of the group and is developing a more international framework with an active and committed Editorial Board. HW referred to the redesign of the journal and gave thanks to Ally Souster for her assistance in this. HW noted that the fortnightly Serials-eNews has been well received and that additional features are still being added. HW informed the meeting that Serials is planned to go e-only from 2005 and that any comments from the membership would be considered throughout the year. Print on demand is currently being investigated.
8. Appointment of the Honorary Officers for 2003/4
One nomination only had been received for each of the three Honorary Officer posts and the following appointments were now confirmed:
| Chair | Keith Courtney (Taylor & Francis) |
| Secretary | Lesley Crawshaw (University of Hertfordshire) |
| Treasurer | Paul Harwood (Swets Blackwell) |
9. Announcement of the Results of the Election for Members of the Committee for 2003/4
The elected members of the Committee for 2003/4 were announced as follows:
Richard Gedye (Oxford University Press), Tony Kidd (University of Glasgow), Alison McNab (University of Nottingham), Ian Middleton (EBSCO Information Services).
Continuing their tenure on the committee will be Frances Boyle (Oxford University Library Services), Jayne Everard (Manchester Metropolitan University), Nancy Gerry (Blackwell Publishing), Ross MacIntyre (MIMAS, University of Manchester), Lyndsay Rees-Jones (CILIP) and, as ex officio members, the editors of Serials, Helen Henderson (consultant) and Hazel Woodward (Cranfield University).
10. Any Other Business
None.
Christine Fyfe declared the meeting closed.