Date	9th January 2021
Time	12:35 – 13:40
Location	Virtual (Zoom)
Chairing	Colin Bootle
Minutes	Sankofa Small

Present

Aileen Hamdan	chair, instructor	AH
Ewa Nevisandah	treasurer	EN
Colin Bootle	secretary	CB
Sankofa Small	director	SS
Marilyn Moseley	volunteer	MM
Jason Monero	volunteer	JM
Eileen Monero	volunteer	EM
Daniela Garlashelli	volunteer	DG
Ann Faal	student	AF
Louise Holloway	student	LH
Zuby Skinner	student	ZS
Delia Heather	student	DH
Yvonne Thomas	student	YT
Anne Carpenter	student	AC
Belinda Calaguas	student	BC
Catherine Furlong	student	CF
Pat Cutler	student	PC
Hemma Kalra	student	HK
Lola Talbot	student	LT
Shephali Kala	student	SK

Apologies received

Joe McPhoy (JM), Aaron Whittaker (AW), Itricia Byer (IB)

2. Welcome and introduction

3. Acceptance of Minutes from last meeting

proposed by: CB

seconded by: AH

vote: PASSED

4 Updates from Action Points

4.1 CB to continue creating the Dao Lu App

Covered by 7.1, below

4.2 All to recommend Covid-19 suitable and affordable indoor venues

Comments received: Aileen informed the meeting that St Barnabas Hall was no longer available due to the change in nursery opening times and they had offered us use of a container building beside the church. The space was not suitable. Another venue was found in Leyton at £100 an hour – too expensive.

Action point: continue to look for suitable venues

4.3 All to continue giving feedback on the current and upcoming programme

Covered by 7.2, below

3 Business matters

no items raised for agenda

4. Projects

no items raised for agenda

5. Events

5.1 Awards and CNY

Proposal: Awards Ceremony and Chinese New Year celebration to be held on Saturday, 27th February.

proposed by: AH

seconded by: SS

comments: AH outlined the background to this event and suggested there is a red theme for CNY and SS requested nominations for the awards this year.

modifications, if any:

vote: PASSED

action points: Directors to plan the event

5.2 World Tai Chi Day

Proposal: World Tai Chi Day to be held on Saturday, 24th April 2021

proposed by: AH

seconded by: SS

comments: SS gave a background to this event – Timber Lodge at Olympic Park was booked last year and the booking should have transferred to this year (due to Lockdown in April 2020). AH would like to plan for an outdoor event, as well as have a contingency plan for Zoom.

PC suggested there may be a lot of planning for two events within 2 months of each other.

modifications, if any: LH suggested that Lloyd Park could be the alternative outdoor venue for this year (local with access to the public, toilets and café) as social distancing restrictions may still be in place and planning time limited.

vote: PASSED

action points: SS to check the status of our booking with Timber Lodge.

The board will plan the event.

6. Training

6.1 Qi Gong Instructor Training

Proposal: Qi Gong instructor training. Costs? Details?

proposed by: AH

seconded by: EN

comments: AH will not vote due to conflict of interest.

The Health Qigong training is offered by the British Qigong Association (headed by Tary Yip and Faye Li) and will cost £1460 for all 4 units (which can be taken in sets of 2 @ £730 each). The course runs over 9 weekends from March 2021 to July and the training has to be updated every year for £65. A deposit is required of £250 per instructor.

MM made suggestion of using already qualified external Qigong instructors.

modifications, if any: current price is too excessive for Dao Lu to subsidise. Proposal modified to investigate further.

vote: PASSED

action points: AH will find out if Dao Lu can be given any reductions on the fees.

7. Finances

Report from the Treasurer

Proposal: acceptance of the treasurer’s report

proposed by: EN

seconded by: CB

comments:

AH informed the meeting that from the total of 40 registered paying members, some are paying the full amount, whilst others are subsidised in different ways.

BC suggested that Dao Lu could fundraise to meet extra costs like the instructor training.

modifications, if any:

vote: PASSED

action points: BC to look into fundraising through funding bodies.

8. Media and communication

8.1 Dao Lu App

CB has been creating a web-based app for registration, classes and emergency information.

Proposal: That CB be paid for this work

proposed by: AH

seconded by: SS

comments: CB absented himself and did not vote due to conflict of interest

CB to be paid £500 (£300 initially then £200 January 2022). The webapp and Mobile app will be completed over the coming months, followed by a review of how useful it proves to be. An annual review will follow every January. Hosting and maintenance will be £100 per year, payable on 1st July each year.

modifications, if any:

vote: PASSED

action points: CB to continue developing the app

8.2 Feedback form

SS and CB have created a feedback form.

Proposal: That the feedback form be made permanent on the website

proposed by: SS

seconded by: CB

comments: SS explained the purpose of the form – ongoing feedback and if a student decides to leave.

modifications, if any:

vote: PASSED

action points:

8.3 Waltham Forest Feel Good Accreditation

EN has submitted paperwork for Feel Good accreditation.

This is a requirement to use LBWF controlled facilities as an organised sport.

Proposal: Thanks to EN for doing this work

proposed by: AH

seconded by: BC

comments: AH explained that the Feel Good Mark is now required in the borough if an organisation wants to use its greens spaces, as it acknowledges that groups are meeting specific standards of practice.

EN thanks AH also for her input into the completion of the application.

vote: PASSED

modifications, if any:

action points:

9. Any other business

(the following have not been raised for the agenda, but may be covered if required, or discussed outside the board meeting)

– T-Shirts CB – they will be delivered soon. Quality of stock was raised as an issue by YT. CB answered that the new delivery is better quality and more expensive.

– Theory on website – to be discussed in the informal part of the meeting.

– Adjustments to timetable for lockdown-2 – to be discussed in the informal part of the meeting.

– BCCMA (insurance, qualifications) – AH – all up to date

– DBS CB – not an issue at the moment.

action points:

10. Time minuted meeting ended

Meeting started at 12.35 and ended at 1.40.

The meeting was followed by an informal discussion (non-minuted)

Summary of Action Points

All to continue to look for suitable venues

Board to plan CNY/Awards event

SS to check the status of our booking with Timber Lodge

Board to plan World Tai Chi Day event

AH to find out more info on the course (why so expensive) and possible discount options for Dao Lu.

BC to look into fundraising through funding bodies

CB to continue developing the Dao Lu App

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Next meeting

Saturday 10th June, 12:30 – 2pm, virtual.

Date	5th September 2020
Time	12:30 – 14:15
Location	Virtual (Zoom)
Chairing	Sankofa Small
Minutes	Colin Bootle

Present

Aileen Hamdan	chair, instructor	AH
Ewa Nevisandah	treasurer	EN
Colin Bootle	secretary	CB
Sankofa Small	director	SS
Marilyn Moseley	volunteer	MM
Jason Monero	volunteer	JM
Eileen Monero	volunteer	EM
Daniela Garlashelli	volunteer	DG
Flavia Columba	volunteer	FC
Wendy Saville	volunteer	WS
Ann Faal	student	AF
Louise Holloway	student	LH
Zuby Skinner	student	ZS
Delia Heather	student	DH
Yvonne Thomas	student	YT
Anne Carpenter	student	AC

Apologies received

Catherine Furlong (CF), Hemma Kalra (HK), Karolina Melendez-Strzelbicka (KMS), Belinda Calaguas (BC)

Minutes of previous meeting

The minutes of the previous meeting, held on 16th May 2020, were accepted and agreed.

Matters arising from minutes

AH has contacted those who need insurance and this is now completed.

CB reported that due to classes being virtual and no volunteers being active, there is no need to check DBS status at this time. When volunteering restarts, volunteers should have their DBS status re-checked.

The Dao Lu App

CB reported on and demonstrated the admin area of the “Dao Lu App” – name changed slightly from “Registration App” as it does more than registrations. In particular:

• Students can input their own information into the app, dispensing with paper forms
• Information includes emergency and medical conditions
• There are roles so users only see the information they are allowed to see (admin, director, instructor, volunteer, student)
• Personal information is kept private, as per GDPR
• Compliance with GDPR is simplified by having a single location for personal information, so students can request a report of what information we have of them, to correct it or delete it (as required by GDPR)
• A single place where we can keep preferences for email, sms, WhatsApp and photography
• Concept of “home class” for monitoring viability of classes
• “Reports” to be generated, e.g. monthly student lists, so treasurer can cross-check whether students who have not paid monthly have attended any sessions – giving us a chance to follow up
• Transmission of personal information by email to be strongly discouraged, as insecure and difficult to trace and delete all copies
• It is a work in progress, so functionality will be added continuously
• Planned enhancements include metrics (age, gender, ethnicity, disabilities etc) required for funding applications and for us to ensure inclusion.

Suggestions raised:

• Confirmation by email that the form has been completed (but not containing any personal information)
• Add Dao Lu logo and developer link
• Add access needs, support worker fields

Participants’ initial feedback was positive. WS commented that she was so happy to see this happening after discussions in the past year

Autumn/Winter programme

AH gave a summary of the Spring/Summer programme, particularly in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. All Dao Lu classes have been kept running, and moved online. Extra classes have been added (fitness, yoga, Pilates, salsa) either included in regular fees or on a donation basis. We also hosted a weekly class for a North Yorkshire group, giving Dao Lu students an additional class. Social activities have gone online, with two active chat sessions.

Since 1st August, we have started returning to physical classes. AW and AH have kept one online class each. In bad weather, physical classes have moved online at short notice, instead of being cancelled. New social activities (with social distancing) have been added – walks and trips.

The autumn/winter programme is being planned now. Normally we move indoors from 1st September, but not all locations remain available, so changes are being made. Our session time at St Barnabas is now required for sanitisation, therefore no longer available. The Bowls Green pavillion requires us to sanitise the toilets before and after the sessions, which is not practical. We plan to use the outside area (gated) only. Triangle-House GP is no longer suitable due to Covid-19 restrictions – we are currently seeking a new home for this class. WTJC on Friday mornings cannot use the Bowls Green pavillion as is fully booked; we plan to move to the Aveling Centre, which also has a small outdoor covered area.

MM suggested that the Tuesday evening class revert to online during the autumn/winter terms. This would mean students not having to travel to class in the dark, and save Dao Lu room hire costs. The class could take place outdoors in a local park during Spring/Summer when there is sufficient daylight.

Theory Development

SS presented on proposals for theory development. They cover the first two years, on a term by term basis.

We have recognised that theory is an important part of training. A questionnaire was produced online to collate responses. The results of this questionnaire and a theory development proposal were circulated before the meeting.

Theory Development considered the following areas:

• Forums and events
• In classes
• Alternative platforms (social media, website, videos etc)
• Qi Gong practice and theory to be developed
• Beginner students’ theory development
• Intermediate students’ theory development
• Curriculum development

Finance

EW (treasurer) reported on our financial situation. The latest part-year accounts were circulated before the meeting.

Dao Lu CIC accounts can be considered to be healthy. Covid-19 has not had a significant affect on Dao Lu finances, despite the overnight change from physical to virtual classes; the reduction in fees from students and the reduction in hall-hire expenses. Remarkably, these changes balanced each other out well.

WS queried whether return to physical classes, with possibly fewer students, would affect finances in the near future.

AOB

We have succeeded in winning a small funding for “Milling Around”, to take place over September and October 2020. This is to provide four Tai Chi sessions, two online (Zoom) and two physical, outdoors (e.g. at Walthamstow Wetlands). A key part of the award is that all sessions will be recorded and made available online for five years.

Next meeting

The next meeting will be held on Saturday, 9th January 2021, 12.30pm, online.

Chair of next meeting: AH

Minutes to be taken by: CB

Action points

CB to continue creating the Dao Lu App

All to recommend Covid-19 suitable and affordable indoor venues

All to continue giving feedback on the current and upcoming programme

End of meeting

The meeting closed at 14:15