In mid-June it is planned to undergo a refit of the bar area. This will include work to improve the look and practicality of the behind bar areas as well as changes to the front elevation of the main bar. This work is planned to take no more than 2 weeks and during this time, a full bar service will not be possible yet it is hoped that a restricted service can be offered in the members lounge.
Coupled with these much needed improvements we will be refining the products and services that are on offer, members will see a gradual change to the product range over the next few months.

INTRODUCTION OF A MEMBERS CARD

As part of the bar refit we also plan to introduce a new till system which incorporates the use of a membership card that subject to the member having sufficient credit and having paid their membership for that year, will give discounts to all members on drinks purchased at the bar. Each member will receive a card that can be presented at the club when buying drinks, this card can also be topped up remotely as well as in the club at quiet times. We will also have the ability to charge a little extra to non-members who attend functions.
The support of a number of members has allowed us to finance these schemes and the Executive is grateful to them for their financial contribution.

CLUB MANAGER

It is with great pleasure that I welcome Rob Milligan as our new Wirral Club Manager taking over from Rose who retired after many years of dedicated service on 4th June.
The role of Wirral Club Manager is one which the Wirral Club Executive attaches great importance to, this role is particularly important in the current difficult environment; we must ensure sustainability by maximising our income in whatever way we can.
Rob will be working with the Executive to provide high quality bar and catering services for the club and all of its members. In the short term Rob will be managing the two projects outlined earlier, as well as recruiting and training staff, inevitably he himself will be involved behind the bar at some times. His bar involvement will be greater in the short term whilst systems and plans are implemented.
In the long term, Rob will further develop the role of Club Manager, working with volunteers from each section and outside hirers to ensure the delivery of a quality service for all, whilst managing the bar and catering operations. Rob will raise the profile of the Wirral Club and has indeed been instrumental in increasing the number of hirings and events since his involvement began last year.
I am sure that you will join with the Executive in wishing Rob every success in this new role and we hope that all members will work with him to ensure an excellent quality of service in all that we do.

COMMUNICATION & CO-ORDINATION

Pivotal to the success of all of these plans and aspirations is effective communication.
A new electronic booking system will be introduced where all events will be sanctioned through the Club Manager and if appropriate the Executive. If you/your team/your section have any suggestions for events or indeed plan to run events then Rob will be involved in helping you plan for maximum success. All events will be sanctioned through this one system ensuring that there are no clashes and conflicts as well as making sure that the opportunity is developed to the maximum for both the organising section and the Wirral Club as a whole.
Any other requests such as putting up posters/advertising/pictures (outside of noticeboard space) must also be handled by the Club Manager.
The Wirral Club will be marketed in a way that members know what events are on thus increasing turnover and the use of the club throughout the weeks and months.

DRAINAGE

After a difficult winter it is reassuring to see the grass growing and the spring repairing the drainage work that was much needed. It is imperative that this work is not undermined and I would remind all members to heed the signage and not use areas on all fields that are earmarked for renovation and repair over the summer.
I would also like to thank the members of the Cricket section in particular for their patience and understanding in this area. The cricket season has already been a difficult one due to the elements and coupled to the temporary arrangements it has been even harder.
It will be fantastic in September to return to the main field and the Executive would like to record its thanks in particular to John Ayre, Dave Van Der Zwan and Richard McNeill for their considerable work in this area.

PITCH/FACILITY USAGE

We are very fortunate to have a large area of land available for playing and training. It is, however, vitally important to ensure that we manage the land properly so that we get the full use out of our pitches and, as the season progresses and the weather worsens, we can ensure that we still play as many of our games as possible. The responsibility for the pitches rests with Wirral Club Ltd not with the individual sections. Clearly, however, we cannot have a committee meeting to decide at short notice whether or not a particular pitch is playable. We therefore need a set procedure for dealing with that.
The person responsible for making decisions about pitch usage is Dave Van der Zwan. Normally decisions about pitch usage for the weekend will normally be made on a Thursday night and conveyed by email to the relevant sections by email no later than 10am on a Friday morning. If therefore a particular section has any specific requirements for a particular weekend they should let Dave Van der Zwan know before Thursday evening.
Inevitably there may be occasions when a particular section is not happy about the decision. That section can then appeal to the Executive Committee. In that event the section should email Leighton McKibbin setting out their concerns. Provided there is sufficient time available Leighton will endeavour to contact the rest of the committee by email so that a final decision can be made on the Friday. If, however, that does not prove possible the decision will stand for that particular weekend.
We will always consider any particular requests from the sections. Ultimately, however, the general rule will be that the Executive committee will always follow the advice of Dave Van der Zwan. It would be nonsensical to pay thousands of pounds to someone to maintain our grounds and then to constantly ignore his advice.
We do need some specific rules for the various sections and these are as follows

1. Rugby

The general rule will be as set out above. If a decision is made on Thursday night to take a particular pitch out of action, Dave Van der Zwan will email Graeme Phelan and Andy McKinney by 10am on Friday.
Obviously as the season progresses and the weather deteriorates; there may be occasions when decisions have to be made at short notice. If, for example, the weather is very bad on a Saturday or Sunday morning, there may not be sufficient time to follow the above guidelines. In that event Dave Van der Zwan will contact Graeme Phelan and/or Andy McKinney direct.
The arrangements for training in winter have always been a problem due to the fact that we only have a relatively small floodlit area available to us. It is simply not possible for that one area to be used every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night throughout the season. Whilst we always try to treat all sections fairly, priority for use of the training area will be given to the senior club. The senior teams play virtually every Saturday and do not therefore get chance to train over the weekend. On the other hand, the junior sides do not play every Sunday and do therefore get chance to train.
Inevitably there will be occasions when training has to be cancelled because the training area is unusable. Dave Van der Zwan will contact Graeme Phelan and /or Andy McKinney. There will, however, be occasions when decisions have to be taken at very short notice. This does sometimes cause a problem with the Junior Section. In that event Dave Van der Zwan will contact Andy McKinney so that he can contact the various coaches. Where possible a Notice will be placed on the Club Website notifying everyone that training has been cancelled. Unfortunately in the past there have been occasions when coaches have ignored requests not to train. Such action will not be tolerated in the future. For the sake of clarity, the Junior and Senior colts will be the responsibility of Andy McKinney.
Irrespective of the weather conditions, routine training exercises/drills should not be carried out on the pitch. There is ample space off the pitches to do this. It is appreciated that some of the Junior sides may occasionally need to use a pitch to run through set moves. They can use half of one of the pitches (but not the front pitch or Twickenham) for this purpose.
If any team wants to use the pitches outside of the normal times (eg if they want to train on a Monday night) they should let Dave Van der Zwan know in advance.
We do also get requests from Cheshire RFU to use our pitches for training. All requests to use our facilities should be made in the first instance to the Secretary of the Rugby Section who will then liaise with Dave Van der Zwan to check that pitches are available and usable. We must reserve the right to cancel such training sessions at short notice if the weather is bad. Our priority is to maintain our pitches for the use of our members!

2. Cricket

Hopefully cricket should not present too many problems as, save of course for rain, cricket is less affected by weather conditions. Cricket training generally takes place in the nets and does not therefore affect pitch usage. Decisions to call off cricket matches are normally made on the day of the game and are therefore made by the cricket section. If, however, Dave Van der Zwan has any particular concerns ahead of the weekend he will contact Leighton McKibbin or Andy Procter.
If the cricket section wants any additional work carried out on the pitch over and above that which Dave Van der Zwan is contracted to carry out, the secretary or chairman of the section should contact Dave Van der Zwan direct.

3. Football

Our facilities are currently used by 2 football teams. Both teams provide Dave Van der Zwan with full details of their fixtures; this is emailed to Leighton McKibbon and Dave Van der Zwan. Problems should only arise if a game has to be called off at short notice. In that event Dave Van der Zwan will contact the football teams direct.

4. Archers

The Archers are aware that, during the rugby season, they cannot use Ocean Field on a Saturday afternoon or before 12.30pm on a Sunday

5. Car park

The overflow car park on Ocean Field, is only be used on Saturdays and Sundays. The main gate must be kept locked at all over times although the pedestrian side gate may be kept open. The last club representative to leave should ensure the gate is securely locked.

6. General

Each section is responsible in making sure that all equipment is removed to a safe and secure location and the grounds are left in a clean and presentable condition. We all have a responsibility under “Duty of Care” and should be vigilant at all times towards the condition of our facilities.
Equally it is the responsibility of all members that if they see club facilities being misused to try to deal with the persons causing the misuse in a non confrontational manner or if they feel unable to deal with the misuse it must be reported to a member of a section or executive committee at the time.

Dogs are not permitted on any of the clubs grounds or in the clubhouse at any time.

FINALLY……………………..

If you have any questions or views on any of the information given then please contact me to discuss them.

Very best wishes to all,

Andy Procter

Acting Executive Chairman