The eight Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The Monarchs Fans Trust (Trust) will be held on Tuesday 29 November 2022 at 7:30pm. The meeting will take place via a Video Conference online using the Zoom platform. All members are welcome and encouraged to attend. The formal notice of the AGM has been sent to all members this afternoon, if you have not recieved it then please CONTACT US.
Just a short update to say that the minutes from the 2021 Monarchs Fans Trust AGM were sent out to all members last night. If you are a member and have not received an email please get in CONTACT so we can make sure our records are up to date and you get all future correspondence.
Through 2021 the Trust made contributions totalling £8,100 to Edinburgh Speedway, thank you to all our members for making this possible. We know how vital this is to the future of speedway in the east of Scotland and the Edinburgh Monarchs. We also thank everyone for continuing to support the Trust throughout the calendar year as we continue to receive monthly subscriptions over the winter. This helps the Trust finances to be in a relatively healthy position today but as British Speedway and society struggles to recover from the effects of 2 years of Covid we know there are challenging times ahead. As usual the Trust committee will work with the Club to tackle these challenges and push everyone forward to hopefully a brighter future on and off track. If you would like to get more involved or help with any Trust initiatives please let us know.
Following on from the exciting announcement of the 2022 Edinburgh Monarchs and the racesuit opportunities the countdown has now started for the new speedway season. Hopefully the latest Covid restrictions will be long gone before the first meeting in April and we can look forward to some exciting racing and everyone getting back a lot closer to normal this year.
If you have any questions on the AGM minutes or anything else Trust related please let us know.
The seventh Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The Monarchs Fans Trust will be held tomorrow night (Friday 26th November 2021) at 7:30pm. The meeting will take place via a Video Conference online using the Zoom platform.
An invitation with all the details of the meeting including how to connect has been sent to all members, if you did not receive an email then please CONTACT US as soon as possible and we will send the details.
All members are welcome to attend. To join the meeting a PC, Tablet or Smartphone and an Internet connection is required to hear and see the presenters and the presentation. It is recommended to download and install the Zoom client before the meeting, visit www.zoom.us or click the relevant option: PC Zoom Client, Apple devices, or Android devices. If you already have Zoom installed it is worth checking for updates ahead of the meeting so you don’t experience any problems or delays on the night itself.
Hopefully see as many of you as possible tonight.
The Monarchs Fans Trust committee and Club representatives have been meeting weekly throughout Lockdown. The discussions have been wide a varied and served as a little morale boost whilst everyone navigates their way through the current COVID situation.
As you will all be aware the Club and Trust are keen to keep improving; every aspect of the Edinburgh Monarchs race night experience, the approach to retaining current supporters, attracting new supporters, anything else that will ensure the survival of the Club.
With the above in mind a Monarchs Supporters Focus Group is being set up. The group itself, will have a couple of Monarchs Fans Trust committee members on it, but its aim is to attract any Club supporter (not just Trust members) that feels they can positively contribute.
Whilst there will be a couple of hot topics to prompt initial discussion, we would really welcome any new idea that you may have or perhaps even a new twist to an old idea. No idea will be ignored. The Club has also indicated that they would like to use this group as a sounding board for some of the exciting new ideas it has that are currently in development.
The first meeting will take place on Monday 15th February 19:00 UK time via Zoom, and monthly thereafter on the third Monday of each month.
It would be fantastic to welcome you into the group and should you wish to join please CONTACT US or speak to a committee member and we will forward you a Zoom link.
We appreciate not everyone will be comfortable with using Zoom, so will happily get you up and running in the days prior to the first meeting. Should you require assistance please just ask we will be happy to help.
Please do not hesitate to join and share your idea (if you already have an idea in mind please forward it via email so that we can give it suitable air time), it may just be the one that makes a huge positive difference to the Club’s future. Plus, participating may help as a distraction from those COVID blues.
Thanks for taking the time to read this article, looking forward to hearing from you and hearing new ideas.
The sixth Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The Monarchs Fans Trust will be held tonight (Friday 27th November 2020) at 7:30pm. The meeting will take place via a Video Conference online using the Zoom platform.
An invitation with all the details of the meeting including how to connect has been sent to all members, if you did not receive an email then please CONTACT US as soon as possible and we will send the details.
All members are welcome to attend. To join the meeting a PC, Tablet or Smartphone and an Internet connection is required to hear and see the presenters and the presentation. It is recommended to download and install the Zoom client before the meeting, visit www.zoom.us or click the relevant option: PC Zoom Client, Apple devices, or Android devices. If you already have Zoom installed it is worth checking for updates ahead of the meeting so you don’t experience any problems or delays on the night itself.
If you click on the link early you may enter a waiting room at first, everyone will be admitted by 7.30 at the latest and before the meeting begins. Many of you will be familiar with Zoom after the last 8 months of lockdown but if it is new to you have a look at the zoom website help pages and test your audio and video ahead of the event. Your device will require a webcam, audio output and a microphone to fully participate in the meeting, almost all devices have this all built in these days. When you start up the meeting Zoom will give you the option to Test Audio and Video, this only takes a few seconds. On the night all participants except the presenters will be muted to keep unnecessary noises to a minimum however if any member has a question they are encouraged to unmute their own mic and speak or alternatively pose any questions in the Chat window. If it does not work at first we would also recommend disconnecting from the meeting closing down Zoom and trying again.
Hopefully see as many of you as possible tonight.
The sixth Annual General Meeting (AGM) of The Monarchs Fans Trust will be held on Friday 27th November 2020 at 7:30pm. As a result of the coronavirus pandemic and the current Scottish Government restrictions it is not possible for this meeting to take place in person. The meeting will therefore take place via a Video Conference online using the Zoom platform. All members are welcome and encouraged to attend.
An invitation with all the details of the meeting including the how to connect to was sent to all members last weekend, if you did not receive an email then please CONTACT US as soon as possible and we will send the details.
As always if anyone would like to volunteer to join the Association Board we would love to hear from you, if you would like to join or just get more involved then please reply to this email or speak to a committee member. If you have anything you want added to the agenda then let us know as well.
The meeting will follow the same format as previous years and whilst there is not a huge amount to talk about in 2020 it is important that we keep in contact with our members and meet the obligations of our constitution. It is also difficult to predict what will happen next year but we have to plan for the best scenario. We are grateful that John Campbell and Alex Harkess have agreed to attend the AGM and will give an update on the latest information about the club after the formal meeting is completed.
The Monarchs 100 have an auction today at 2pm with many incredible articles taking centre stage.
They have over 100 items assembled offering a huge variety of lots for speedway fans and beyond. From a car to Sam Masters bike covers, from a Speedway rider trophy to the book Speedway Through the Lens of Mike Patrick.
Hosted by Scott Wilson this fast-paced and fun social event aims to boost Monarchs funds and help the the Club with preparations for returning to speedway and making Armadale Stadium Covid-secure.
Click on this LINK to see more details on how to watch on Zoom, how to bid or just to get involved with the banter.
The Away video night last Friday signaled a ramp up in preparations for the 2020 speedway season and the bikes will soon roar into action at Armadale later this month. We also heard the great news that What The Fork will sponsor the Monarchs and Stellar will sponsor the Dale Devils, we welcome both to the speedway family and we hope it is the start of long and fruitful relationships. Sponsorship is key to the future of our club and if you know of any companies or individuals who are interested in the Platinum memberships or any other advertising/sponsorship then contact the club.
The Fans Trust committee continue to meet monthly, at the first meeting of the year we confirmed that the main positions in the committee will remain unchanged for 2020:
They will continue to be supported by the rest of the committee: Craig Beveridge, Stuart Coates, Dave King, Alan Paterson, Greer Robson, John Scholan, Jim Smith and Paul Strachan. As always if you would like to get more involved and help with the committee please get in touch. We are always looking for help and fresh ideas.
The Trust funds were boosted over the winter thanks to the regular donations from our members, thank you for your continued contributions as they are vital to the continuance of Edinburgh Speedway. Even with all the latest sponsorships the Monarchs Fans Trust is still key to the future of the club. At our latest committee meeting we agreed to give the club £800 to help with pre-season preparations. This is something we have done the last few years and the club have indicated that this season they intend to use the money to build boarding on the road next to the stadium to advertise the speedway. As always there are a few things around the stadium that need a little TLC and they are determined to finish painting the back fence blue. On that note they are looking for volunteers for the next few Saturdays to help with the work. Check out the website and/or contact the club for more details.
GoCardless
GoCardless are the direct debit partner of the Monarchs Fans Trust, we have been using their service since we launched in 2015 as they enable us to collect contributions from our members easily. They have recently increased their transaction fees to 1% +20p for every transaction (capped at £4). Previously it was 1% capped at £2 so an increase in 20p per transaction. We will continue to use GoCardless but will also investigate the best way to keep all running costs to a minimum so we can maximise the contributions we receive from our members. You can also contribute regularly to the Fans Trust by standing order details, just ask us to send you a form.
The committee will continue to work with the club to help promote speedway in the east of Scotland by developing and attending the Community Initiative, the Saltire Motorcylces Demo Day on 28th March, gala days throughout the region and various other occasions and events. If you have any questions or would like any more information then do not hesitate to get in contact.
Merry Christmas everyone from all involved in the Monarchs Fans Trust. Thank you for all your support.
Thank you to everyone who attended last night’s Monarchs Fans Trust Annual General Meeting on a cold night at Armadale stadium. Full details of the AGM including the board report and minutes will be sent out to all members when available.
The Trust would like to thank the Cochrane family for taking the time to open the stadium for us and allowing us to use the bar. John Campbell and Alex Harkess gave us an insight into the BSPA AGM and an update on the club, we look forward to potential team announcements at next weeks video night.
Finally thanks to all our members and everyone who has contributed to the Fans Trust over the last year, every penny is crucial to keeping the Monarchs going forward and sustaining speedway in the east of Scotland.
