State of Play in the BCA

[BCA Secretary]

State of “play” in the BCA​

Some concerns have been expressed lately about the lack of publicity from BCA, regarding key dates in the run-up to the 2023 AGM, which will be held via Zoom on Sunday 11th June, details to follow. The key date of recent concern was 9th March for the receipt of nominations, proposals etc. for consideration at the AGM. Information about key dates has in fact, been running in all the BCA Council meetings in the form of a timeline and recorded in the minutes of each meeting since the last AGM in 2022 and indeed, at meetings before that. All BCA documents including minutes, can be found on the website at this link Official Documents - British Caving Association (british-caving.org.uk)

Following the 2022 AGM, BCA Council adopted a timeline to identify key milestones leading up to the 2023 AGM, recorded in the minutes and rolling on from one meeting to another to ensure we met our obligations under the Constitution and simply did not “forget” to act at those key dates.

Currently, BCA is heavily reliant on its Constituent bodies and Council representatives to disseminate information from its work, largely due to the Publications and Information Officer (P&I) role being vacant who would ordinarily have undertaken this task. We have been unable to recruit a volunteer for the position since the last incumbent resigned which clearly increases the work load of those remaining; as someone once reminded me, “how much time do you think volunteers have?” Answers on the back of a fag packet please.

If there is anyone interested in volunteering for the position, do get in touch with either myself chair@british-caving.org.uk or secretary@british-caving.org.uk Whilst the role entails more than publicity, marketing would probably be a better description, any little help would be most appreciated.

There does appear to be a reluctance among the caving community, to step forward and volunteer to help run BCA, a legacy, in my opinion, of what I would describe as “the troubled years” which tarnished BCA’s image and understandably, may put people off getting involved. However, I can categorically state now, that BCA functions in a completely different atmosphere of co-operation, support and respect for those currently active within the Association which could not be more opposite to that of the troubled years. We are very much focused on getting the business of the Association, done.

All meetings are now held on Zoom which has led to an efficient and business-like approach to achieving outcomes from the matters and issues arising from the Association’s activities. I can reassure our members, that BCA continues to function well but we are just not in a position to publicise it as well as we might, for lack of a P&I Officer to drive that function.

Other vacancies, within BCA, have largely been filled, the last key position filled being a convenor for the Conservation and Access Working Group. However, a key vacancy, which we will need filling at the AGM, is that of Treasurer, as the current incumbent, Howard Jones, has served two terms of office over the last 5 years and intends to stand down. Do get in touch if you are interested.

Finally, please rest assured that BCA is alive and kicking.

Russell Myers

Chair

BCA

30th April 2023

 

[nearlywhite]

Wow.

There does appear to be a reluctance among the caving community, to step forward and volunteer to help run BCA

Good to see the inabillity to admit your own shortcomings hasn't gone away.

They kind of have to know what needs doing. The only reluctance I can see is working with a highly dysfunctional executive. We could fill all the positions if you step down

 

[Badlad]

Russell. Thank you for communicating something to cavers from the BCA. Communication is hugely important for any organisation so despite not having a dedicated P&I officer I'd suggest you divert some other of your limited resources to communicating more. Remember BCA has plenty of its own social media outlets as well as external ones like Ukcaving, Descent magazine and others. The organisation should make it a priority to communicate more somehow.

Observing as I do from afar these days there does appear to be little of substance going on at BCA. Providing insurance and funding regional councils, Y&D, BCRA library etc are valuable services but they hardly require a council of 30-40 members to manage. A much smaller council and a larger exec perhaps is the way forward. As all clubs who wish to be covered by insurance have to include all their members as members of BCA this brings in a substantial sum of money each year. Something over the 100K mark if I remember correctly. Insurance used to run at around 40K so there is plenty left to support other aspects of British Caving and that is being done well. However the organisation should be cautious that its success and indeed, its very being, is totally reliant on offering insurance to maintain a membership of any scale. If clubs ever found that insurance wasn't available or that they didn't need to insure all members then BCA membership would drop off a cliff.

If you have left behind the so called 'troubled years' it is because you have reverted to sitting on your hands. Doing very little but maintaining the status quo. At one point BCA had a raft of mostly younger cavers getting involved wanting to modernise and drive change. They were rejected and several very good people had an appalling experience. It is not surprising that recruitment has become difficult since then. I don't particularly agree with Rostam's comments above, not the way that he says it anyway, but I am absolutely sure of one thing, if he had made chair as he hoped, he would have all the contacts amongst a more dynamic caving demographic to fill all the positions and drive forward much needed change.

I still hold out hope that BCA could become an organisation cavers could be proud of and want to volunteer for rather than one cavers must join in order to be insured. Thanks for posting and good luck.

 

[nearlywhite]

Yeah it was somewhat flippant. My bad. I'm aware this statement was written specifically to trigger me rather than to communicate with the members.

There are many problems with this statement:
1) 'Publications and Information Officer (P&I) role being vacant who would ordinarily have undertaken this task.'

P&I's role for most of the last decade was not marketing, it was to manage a non existant publication. When I was in role I did some of the 'marketing' but was more interested in the information - surveys, demographics etc. Sadly the person I had lined up for it didn't want to take up the role due to the way BCA was managed. But the role of communication with the members chiefly lies with the secretary and if they are overloaded then it's the chair's role.

2) The whole being unable to recruit volunteers? Have they tried? It really doesn't look like it.

3) 'BCA functions in a completely different atmosphere of co-operation, support and respect'
This isn't true, sadly. The executive doesn't take note of what was voted through - for example being instructed to write 'thank you's' for people service and then not even bothering to do that. This combined with an attitude of treating the non exec as employees has resulted in the complete erosion in the non council volunteers; Y&D, IT and P&I.

And as far as I can make out the unfilled roles are:
Treasurer
Publications and Information
IT Working Group Convenor
Youth and Development Officer
2 Group Representative Roles
2 Individual Roles

The problem is that you don't know if they are still open or not as if someone has applied then you can't run.

In the past week I've tried to convince 3 people to either stay or join BCA despite my apparent opposition to it. I'm aware of how thankless a job it can be but I'm also aware of what caving can do together. So I'm grateful for the communication but it would make my life easier if it came with a bit of contrition and acceptance of how bad the situation is.

 

[Pitlamp]

I'll certainly be remaining as a member.

And speaking of thank yous, thank you to those volunteers who are presently our Council members.

 

[Badlad]

Worth pointing out that both Rostam and I, in different capacities, spent a lot of our time volunteering for BCA.

It is probably because we still care about British caving that we are critical of the organisation I guess. Anyway i reckon we have earned the right to have a say.

 

[Ian Ball]

Hi Russell, any job descriptions floating around?

 

[BCA Secretary]

Hi Russell, any job descriptions floating around?

Afraid not or at least not upto date- another job to do. However you can get a feel for the key areas of work by working groups at this link https://british-caving.org.uk/about-bca/working-groups/ with a description of what the group does, terms of reference and detail to indicate what someone wishing to get involved may expect to be undertaking.

 

[Tseralo]

The fact that a membership-based organisation has no way to contact its own members tells you a lot about the competence of the people running it.

 

[aricooperdavis]

The fact that a membership-based organisation has no way to contact its own members tells you a lot about the competence of the people running it.

The BCA can contact (almost) its entire membership base by email, as evidenced by the online voting every AGM. It just doesn't really do it for any other reason at the moment.

 

[Tseralo]

The BCA can contact (almost) its entire membership base by email, as evidenced by the online voting every AGM. It just doesn't really do it for any other reason at the moment.

Im not out to fall out with you Ari, as your are one of the few to do something good with their BCA post. But as far as I'm aware, the BCA is still missing huge amounts of contact details for members that are not DIM? It does need to be a lot more proactive in contacting its members. The last AGM was a crap shoot where huge amounts of CIMs were not even aware there was an AGM or how to vote.

It does almost feel on purpose as it seems to suit the current regime.

 

[Ian Ball]

Marketing position available Tseralo, give it a go with a 100% email sign up manifesto?

 

[Tseralo]

Marketing position available Tseralo, give it a go with a 100% email sign up manifesto?

One of the open positions I do for a living. I have no interest in going into the BCA solo. I've seen too many friends try it, get treated atrociously by certain bitter old men, and burn out.

The only way ill ever stand is if, en mass, the right group of people all stand effectively performing a coup, then sit there for a year dealing with the inevitable shit storm only to have to do it all again to get rid of the other half of the posts.

But why bother anyone who is competent and cares is either already burned by it or too busy with work and expeditions.

 

[JoshW]

Im not out to fall out with you Ari, as your are one of the few to do something good with their BCA post. But as far as I'm aware, the BCA is still missing huge amounts of contact details for members that are not DIM? It does need to be a lot more proactive in contacting its members. The last AGM was a crap shoot where huge amounts of CIMs were not even aware there was an AGM or how to vote.

It does almost feel on purpose as it seems to suit the current regime.

i believe the issue stems from the difference in how data is obtained, and to *totally* fix would require a fundamental change into how membership is signed up for.

A while back I floated the idea of seperate t club membership from BCA membership, where you sign up for BCA, and then separately sign up for clubs. *Theoretically* this could lower the workload for club secretaries, whilst also ensuring that each member can give the BCA the exact details it needs to be able to contact them.

 

[JoshW]

Although I believe, as ari says, the issue isn’t that the BCA couldn’t contact people, but perhaps that there was an active choice not to… or it was something that was just forgotten about 🤷🏼‍♂️

 

[Tseralo]

Or the BCA could just require that clubs provide an email address as part of the individual member's renewal/signup. Which is totally reasonable under GDPR as part of providing a service.

 

[aricooperdavis]

That's very kind Tseralo, but I've gone quite off the boil in the last few years I'm afraid! Where's that membership database built into the website I promised 3 years ago?

In hindsight my post was quite abrupt, sorry, I didn't mean to come across as sharp!

I think we're in a better position than we have been for a few years now, but I'll check with Katie. We decided we were going to require that clubs give a contact email or a postal address for their members, which I think most have honoured.

 

[aricooperdavis]

Ah, I missed your updates, I think we do now require, as you say, some way of contacting all our members. This isn't necessarily an email address, as not all of our members have one!

 

[mikem]

Ari did at least post on the BCA website back on 2nd Feb that the AGM was coming up. Most club cavers don't care what happens, as long as they can go caving.

 

[Ian Ball]

Interesting Tseralo, are the bitter oldies aware they are seen as such? And how do they wield their influence? The BCA seem a good bunch to me.

Someone with your skills would be seemingly a great appointment.