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Annual Report 2011 CHAIRMAN’S REPORT As our first year of operation as Bowls Scotland nears completion, we have much to look forward to in this exciting chapter in the development of our game. Lawn Bowls has enjoyed many successes and boasts a proud tradition and our move towards unity at the end of last year is recognition of our desire to consolidate our position whilst embracing the changing needs of our sport. We are presently developing our strategic plan, setting targets which will drive forward our new organisation over the next four years. However it is fitting as we near our first anniversary at the 2011 AGM that we take time to take stock and reflect on our progress and many achievements both on and off the greens. As one of Scotland’s most successful sports and as a newly unified organisation, our single strategy approach has already reaped financial rewards attracting a title partner for our national championships for the first time as well as a number of commercial partners. Securing new sponsors and more funding is vital yet extremely challenging in the current economic climate. As a new organisation we have responded to our changing internal and external environment by adopting a stance of prudence and strict budgeting for the coming years, whilst balancing this against priorities and initiatives within the Strategic Plan which will allow our organisation to grow and fulfil its potential. Our membership drive and marketing campaign is one such programme introduced this year which will help us to address the challenges to our membership and those faced by our member clubs. We regularly update our members on our new initiatives and new policies that can improve the running of club businesses as well as benefits from our new relationships with our partners and supporters that we are able to pass on to our members. Our new Bowls Scotland website launched at the end of last year has proved to be a popular asset, helping to improve communications by keeping the bowling community informed of our activity. Our new identity has also been well received and we aim to increase the brand awareness of Bowls Scotland through continued marketing activity and the addition of an online shop and increased online activity in the next 12 months. The following Annual Report will outline much of our activity in more depth with each Director reflecting on their area of responsibility. Further information is also available from the Bowls Scotland website. Articles of Association The Articles of Association have been looked at and revised in accordance with the company as we progress and grow. I would ask you to support the amendments put forward to you by the board for the 2011 AGM. With Thanks On behalf of Bowls Scotland I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge with grateful thanks the many individuals and partner organisations that contribute to the smooth day to day running of our office, events and overall sporting and business activity. Thank you to our Board, staff, coaches, umpires and volunteers for their efforts and hard work and to the District Secretaries for their continued support as well as to those retiring from their posts - for all their time and dedication to our new organisation, as well as previously to the Scottish Women’s Bowling Association and the Scottish Bowling Association. And finally, thanks also to our member clubs for their inspired vision in voting to bring Bowls Scotland into existence, and in doing so securing the future of lawn bowls.
PLANNING
Strategic Plan 2012 - 2015
The Strategic Plan for the four year period 2012 - 2015 is currently being prepared which will enable the organisation to focus on its aims for the future of lawn bowls in Scotland.
Each Director will submit recommendations from their respective area of responsibility and District Secretaries have also been invited to offer their input into the Strategic Plan. The wider membership will also be invited to input into this process and have their say on the future of bowls in Scotland
Business Plan
An annual Business Plan will be implemented to ensure that all tasks identified for each period have been carried out in accordance with the Strategic Plan.
Board Meetings
Each board meeting has been run in a more strategic manner with key action discussed and confirmed to allow for those with the responsibility to deliver the action to be clear on the scope of all actions set out to them. It is anticipated that there will sufficient board meetings each year to discuss and decide on the key strategic actions to be taken.
District Secretaries’ Meetings
Meetings will be held with District Secretaries as required. There may be additional meetings in 2012 to progress the discussions and implementation of restructuring the Districts.
District Boundaries Committee
The process of exploring the restructuring of Districts has begun and the renumbering of the current Districts has initially been proposed, however, the committee will be seeking additional input to move this area of work to the next level.
A paper will be presented to the Board for discussion and following due consultation with the District Secretaries and member clubs it is the aim of Bowls Scotland to have the new Districts in place for January 2013. The Board will decide the naming and numbering of Districts.
Statistics Showing Bowling As A Health Enhancing Sport
Bowls Scotland has outlined a number of new key messages about the game including:
FINANCE Financial report for the period ending 31 August 2011 Following the first 8 months of operation the Bowls Scotland accounts show a surplus of £117,300. This figure is inflated, as whilst the income received was in the main mostly for one year, the expenses only related to the 8 months since 15 December last year. The remainder of the costs were borne by the SBA from 30 September until 15 December and by the SWBA from 31 August until 15 December.
We received £190,371 in funding from sportscotland. This covers the costs of our elite players as well as a large contribution towards staff costs, including our national development officer and investment towards minor equipment.
There was additional expenditure incurred this year due to the re-branding of the new organisation, such as Bowls Scotland clothing for our international teams as well as other items and incidentals purchased to promote the new brand.
The number of club members has declined but is being addressed by initiatives led by Development and Marketing.
As you will see the board have proposed an increase of 3p on the membership fee to offset the direct increase in capitation from World Bowls. In relation to the development of the Strategy for the company, we will be looking to produce detailed financial forecasting which may mean increases in membership fees over the next four years. However the board are committed to investigate other avenues of investment to offset the demands of the strategy and delivering quality services.
POLICY Following the amalgamation of the two governing bodies, the Scottish Women’s Bowling Association (SWBA) and Scottish Bowling Association (SBA) at the Annual General Meeting on 15 December 2010, the new organisation Bowls Scotland undertook responsibility for the future of lawn bowls with immediate effect. Every stage of the unification process was carefully considered and having been involved in the committee for several years, I would like to thank all of the member clubs who voted in favour of unification. It was particularly gratifying to witness the motion towards unity being endorsed by such a large majority. Much hard work had taken place behind the scenes that led towards the smooth and successful transition to the new governing body and I would like to thank all of those involved, as well as the staff, for their tremendous endeavours and hard work during times of change. We have learned many lessons from our first months as a centralised administrative set up and we will continue to develop and progress as a more unified, inclusive and streamlined governing body for the betterment of the game for years to come. Given the many changes and additional pressures placed on our staff, we identified the need to employ an Office and Finance Manager who would ensure the smooth running of our Head Office. In late February, we appointed Sheena Moore to the new role and she has proven to be a valuable addition to our staffing complement. Policy is an area of continual change and a number of our policies have been updated as soon as required. When both Associations changed to limited companies a number of years ago, it was necessary to look at our decision-making processes and areas of responsibility. Since becoming a single organisation, a further review of the role of District Secretary was required for clarification. As a result, a policy outlining the role of District Secretary has been formulated to help both the individual and member clubs understand the importance of their this role to the success of our clubs and Bowls Scotland and the future of the sport. The District Secretary Policy and Protocol will be distributed to all member clubs and we will continue to keep you informed of further policy updates or additions pertinent to our member clubs and bowling community. New Policies in 2011:
ELITE PROGRAMME Bowls Scotland has appointed David Gourlay as Head Coach to develop its elite plan and lead our top players to success at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014 and beyond. The Bowls Scotland Elite Squad was announced in October naming14 men and 12 women as the core players who will represent Scotland at key international events leading up to selection for the 2014 Commonwealth Games. The squad demonstrates a healthy mix of experience and youthful exuberance including many past and present world and Commonwealth champions in the squad. We look forward to preparing the national squad in the build up to the world championships in Adelaide in 2012 and Glasgow two years later. As the world championships are being hosted in Australia the Scottish team will face a number of challenges in particular the playing conditions and speed of the greens. However we will address this by adequately acclimatising the players and they will compete in an international test event in Adelaide prior to the world championships and this addition to the players schedule will prove invaluable in our preparations. As well as overseeing the national squad’s preparations we will create and introduce new pathways for aspiring players, providing a clear route for existing coaches to work with our international players. The new framework for progression will enable us to identify and develop talent at an early stage and help with the long term sustainability of elite bowls.
2011 Elite Squad:
CHAMPIONSHIPS AND EVENTS Bowls Scotland National Championships The 3rd Joint Championships now called the Bowls Scotland National Championships (27 -31 July) was hosted at Northfield and once again proved to be a major success. The event attracted large crowds throughout the finals week who witnessed excellent bowling within all disciplines involved and positive feedback was received from players and spectators alike. We are very grateful to: South Ayrshire Council for the use of their facilities, St Andrew’s Ambulance First Aid Crew, the clubs that are associated with the Northfield complex, volunteers from local clubs, District Secretaries who assisted from the first stages through to the finals and to the umpires who officiated - all of whom contributed to the smooth running of the tournament. We are indebted to all of the commercial partners of our National Championships. Congratulations to all of the winners and runners up from the finals:
Mixed Pairs For the first time all district winners (32) qualified for the finals (19-21 August). The sister and brother team of Gillian and Scott MacIntosh from London Road Foundry were the eventual winners and the plate competition was won by Margaret Letham and Gerry Sullivan from Burnbank Hamilton. Two Bowl Triples In spite of challenging weather conditions the championships (6-7 August) went ahead and produced worthy champions in Ella Robinson, Julie Sword and Lynn Stein from Kennoway Bowling Club. Our thanks to Bainfield and Sighthill Bowling Clubs for all of their assistance over the three days. Torrance Purves The final stages were played at Grangemouth Bowling Club (18 August) with Stirlingshire County East Ladies winning the Torrance Purves title. Scottish Cities and Counties (Andrew Hamilton Trophy) We acknowledge the help and assistance from all of the bowling clubs who hosted games throughout the season and would like to extend our grateful thanks to the Cities & Counties Secretaries for their organisation of the matches and venues. Their help and assistance is invaluable to Bowls Scotland.
Acknowledgement must also be paid to the umpires who volunteered for each game, providing a valuable role in the running of the tournament.
Some difficulties were encountered in the course of the event and the Bowls Scotland Board is addressing those to ensuring greater clarity regarding the rules in the future.
Our thanks also to Townholm Bowling Club for hosting the final (24 July), which saw East Lothian crowned the 2011 Scottish Cities and Counties Champions.
B. I. W. B. C. (Ladies) Juniors The B. I. W. B. C. Junior Championships and International series were held at Bainfield Bowling Club (24-25 July). The Pair of Natalie McWilliams (Crookston) and Gaynor Blair (Eskmills) won the Junior Pairs while Mandy O’Donnell (Bainfield) won the Junior Singles. Scotland finished 2nd in the International Series.
Seniors The Senior Championships and International series were held at Llandrindod Wells, Wales (19-20 June). Caroline Brown (Bellshill and Mossend) won the Singles title. Scotland won the International Series bringing home the Eve Trophy.
B. I. B. C. (Men) Bowls Scotland would like to extend our congratulations to Gordon Logan (Kirkliston) upon his appointment as President 2011-12 and to Duncan McLaren (Edinburgh West End) who was appointed to the role as Secretary. Juniors The Junior Series was held at the Worthing Pavilion Club, Worthing (10-11 September) where Scotland proved the best all round team, earning them the Sealy Trophy.
The B. I. B. C. Championships and International series were hosted at Sighthill Bowling Club (2-3 July). Kevin Anderson (Dumbarton) won the Junior Singles to claim the Gateway B. S. Trophy and brothers David and Stephen Fisher (Anchor) took the Pairs title and Tom Yeamen Trophy. Both successes helped Scotland to win the team trophy. Scotland also retained the trophy for the International Series. The Scotland team were joined by members of the other participating nations in marking the retirement of Willie Wood MBE from the international outdoor game by providing a Guard of Honour on the greens as he collected the International Series Trophy, as well as a signed and framed international shirt as a gift from Bowls Scotland.
Michael Aston-Phillips International Cup U. S. A. Robert Marshall (Slateford BC) finished runner up and Jim Meikle (Lesmahagow BC) came third in the Singles event. The compatriots then combined efforts in the Pairs to maintain Scotland’s good record in the event by retaining that title (9-15 October). Atlantic Rim Championships At the first international event overseen by new Head Coach David Gourlay, Scotland’s Ladies claimed a brace of gold medals at the end of the first week of the championships hosted at Athena Beach, Paphos, Cyprus (17-30 October). Claire Johnston and Margaret Letham completely dominated the Pairs event winning all of their round robin matches on the way to the knock out stages while the Triples title was lifted by Anne Dunwoodie, Mandy O’Donnell and Lorna Smith. In the Mens Triples Martyn Rice, Alister Kennedy and Graeme Archer took the silver medal whilst there was a bronze for the Pairing of Grant Logan and David Peacock. At the time of going to print the following events are still to take place: Atlantic Rim Championships – Singles & Fours (24-30 October) European Team Championships (5-12 November) World Champion of Champions (4-13 November) On behalf of Bowls Scotland the Team Managers would like to thank the players for their continuing commitment and efforts.
DEVELOPMENT
Club Seminars In March this year Bowls Scotland held the first ever series of Club Seminars at nine venues across Scotland. In total 472 people attended with 88% of those indicating that they would attend future Bowls Scotland seminars. Those in attendance were given an update on Bowls Scotland’s development work, a policy update following the release of new legislation and relevant information from their local authority or sports council.
In addition attendees were also given the opportunity to take part in group discussions to hear about the work of other local clubs and to share ideas on the development of clubs and increasing participation in bowls facilities locally, regionally and nationally. We are grateful for all of the feedback received which has been carefully considered during the formation of our new strategy and many of the ideas have already been implemented.
Club Membership Drive On Tuesday 3 May Bowls Scotland launched the Club Membership Drive at St Vincent Bowling Club in Glasgow. The campaign was launched with the help of Scotland’s leading bowlers and was aimed at galvanising clubs to engage with their local community and open up the doors of their clubs to potential new members.
During the course of the season thirty clubs signed up to take part in the campaign and ran various events including open days, ‘come and try’ sessions, and member and non-member competitions. All clubs who participated are encouraged to complete an evaluation form which can be downloaded from our website and returned to Bowls Scotland. This information is extremely useful for all of our clubs as well as our organisation when building on this concept for future years.
Plans are already being put in place for the 2012 campaign and the relevant dates will be circulated to all clubs as soon as possible. The Club Membership Drive concept will be further enhanced with the addition of an adult participation initiative focusing on integrating new members into the sport.
Child Protection Following the introduction of the Protection of Vulnerable groups (PVG) scheme in February 2011 Bowls Scotland have been working closely with Safeguarding In Sport and the Central Registered Body In Scotland (CRBS) to update our policy and procedures and to ensure we can fully support our clubs in understanding their obligations for Child Protection.
In addition to the policy update issued to clubs in the summer, we are updating the policy section of our website as new resources are made available for clubs. We will continue to add to this section before the start of the 2012 season.
Bowls Scotland are now able to process PVG applications for volunteers within member clubs and are training verifiers to provide support in the processing of applications around the country. The PVG scheme is only for individuals who are doing ‘regulated work’ with children or vulnerable adults. All clubs requiring PVG applications to be processed will be required to have in place a Child Protection Policy and a Child Protection Officer (CPO).
Only those volunteers who are taking on a new role involving regulated work with children or vulnerable adults are required to join the PVG scheme at this time. Volunteers who were checked under the old Disclosure system and have an Enhanced Disclosure for their role are not required to join the PVG scheme yet. Volunteers in this position should await further instruction from Bowls Scotland as they will be phased onto the scheme over the next three years. Equality Throughout the 2011 season Bowls Scotland has been working with numerous clubs to help them ensure they are meeting the legal obligations of the Equality Act 2010. In addition to the information distributed to clubs in the policy update, our website also has downloadable guidance notes which all clubs are advised to read.
Bowls Scotland is continuing to work towards achieving the Foundation Level of the Equality Standard for Sport which will be achieved by April 2012. As part of this work we issued an Equity Monitoring Survey which was available for all our members to complete between June and September. In total we received three hundred responses which represents less than 1% of our total membership.
Coaching Audit Bowls Scotland will soon be co-ordinating a coaching audit which will require the assistance of all our member clubs to ensure accurate information is recorded. The audit will help to establish the current position of coaching in Scotland and will give us a foundation to work with the Scottish Bowls Coaching Committee to develop the structure of coaching within our sport.
In turn this will help us to ensure we have a coaching workforce in place which can ably assist clubs throughout the country to increase participation in our sport and ultimately to drive up membership. Please ensure that your club secretary is aware of this audit and all completed forms are returned within the required deadlines.
PARTNERSHIPS We have continued to be supported by sportscotland through direct investment. This has meant a slight increase in overall investment for 2011 as well as continued support over and above this through access to expert resources. We hope to continue our close and valued relationship with sportscotland to improve our delivery to Scotland's bowlers.
We were able to secure backing for our ever growing National Championships through a partnership with Prostate Cancer Charity Scotland. This partnership allowed the charity to add value to the Nationals and spread awareness of a highly important cause. There was also a significant increase in commercial partners all of whom contributed to improving the experience of the Nationals Championships and we aim to increase the commercial presence in future years, making the event more enjoyable for all.
The Bowls Scotland website is continually updated to keep you informed of our activity as we continue to engage with commercial partners who can offer clubs and club members beneficial rates and deals through their partnership with Bowls Scotland. We will endeavour to extend offers available to our members throughout the coming year.
While we are at the early stages of developing our partnership base, within a challenging economic environment and fierce competition for sponsorship and funding, we will continue to develop relationships that benefit Bowls Scotland and our members.
We would like to thank all of our current partners for their invaluable support and look forward to working with them in 2012.
MARKETING The new brand identity of Bowls Scotland was launched at the 2010 AGM at Edinburgh’s Corn Exchange, which marked the soft launch of the new website and the new logo was unveiled with a number of branded give-aways produced to help spread the new corporate image. The new logo has been widely deemed a success and helps to provide a strong visual presence for Bowls Scotland on all of our marketing and communications tools, and the website especially has been pivotal in reinforcing our new image and key messages as a unified and modern governing body. Clothing is an area which is helping to address the image crisis that has long been associated with Lawn Bowls. The Board led the way towards a more modern image in the game, assisted by a new Dress Code for all Board Members and District Secretaries which was instituted earlier this year. The business look now adopted helps to reinforce the professional, progressive and modern image of the new organisation moving forward, whilst also challenging pre-conceived ideas or misconceptions about the sport ‘being an old man’s game.’ On the greens there have also been significant changes to the dress code for those competing in our national championships, whilst our international team kits have also helped to introduce more colour to the game - with the men’s blue international saltire tops particularly well received by the players and the bowling community. Plans are already underway for next year’s team kits, with Team Managers and a selection of players invited to be part of the decision making process in selecting a kit provider and kit design. Kits provided for Warilla, Cyprus, Portugal, Hong Kong and MAP championships will help us to make informed choices about apparel and the needs of the team in different climates. We will also aim to provide a corporate consistency across the branded range for both men and women, again following feedback from players at a number of international events this season. Providing practical, comfortable and popular team kit for international travel and competition will hopefully lend itself well to the concept ‘look good, feel good, play good’. We also hope to produce a replica kit for online sales. Medals, pennants, flags, score cards, car stickers, pens, jute bags and landyards are among the range of branded items produced for 2011 with a broadening of this range being considered for online sales in 2012 for generating potential revenue. Additional marketing tools and branding will be required for our events in 2012 subject to additional funding or sponsorship being sourced. A new marketing strategy has been implemented for the next four years in line with the Strategic Plan, outlining a number of initiatives to help our member clubs and our organisation. Following the inaugural Club Membership Marketing Campaign launched earlier this year, Marketing will again work closely with Development to roll out and expand this programme next year.
COMMUNICATION Regular and meaningful communication with our member clubs, members and the bowling and sporting community as a whole is vital to the success of our new organisation. The new Bowls Scotland website which was under development earlier this year has provided a much improved platform for promoting the sport and offers effective and immediate communication with our supporters. One of the key objectives of the new site was to provide a one stop shop for bowlers, increasing access to news and activities within Bowls Scotland as well as club development information and advice on the services available to Bowls Scotland member clubs. Regular updates on club seminars, club membership drive ideas and changing policies are just a number of items readily available through the site as well as application forms for schemes and funding and empty belly posters also available in a downloadable format. The website also provides a conduit for our partners and commercial partners to communicate to our members preferential services, rates or offers available to them. The site provides up to date Bowls Scotland notices and news updates on championships and events, particularly the National Championships which received thousands of hits during the course of the event. Good photography published on the site has helped to raise awareness of the popularity of the nationals as well as the profile of up and coming players. Links to other championship results services are also provided if we do not have any other means of relaying results and information about our players progress in domestic and international tournaments. We hope to increase our news service on events as they happen in the coming months and years. Planning of the second stage of website development is already underway and will be phased in over the coming months with a new look home page as well as the addition of a member’s sign up for automatic newsletter updates. There will also be a change to how we show news and official notices as well as an enhanced information service on the elite squad player biographies and profiles which will be a useful addition for media contacts. Copies of the first Bowls Scotland Newsletter were distributed to all clubs during the summer updating members on our latest announcements as well as providing information on our flagship event, the National Finals. Further newsletters have been planned for circulation next year. We have maintained strong links with the bowls media as well as engaging with other staff sports writers which has resulted in an increase in column inches. Whilst the downturn felt among the Scottish media outlets continues to reflect the general downturn in traditional media across the UK as well as overseas, we must endeavor to attract increased interest among the sporting, news and business press, nationally and locally as well as in bowls specific magazines and other publications produced by government, local authorities, councils and partner organisations. Bowls Scotland and our players have been the subject of very positive articles regarding the inclusive nature of our sport, some of our high profile bowlers, as well as daily coverage of the National Championships for the duration of the event. The retirement of Willie Wood MBE from the international scene also attracted significant publicity in the written press as well being featured on STV news. Utilising our high profile players and new Head Coach David Gourlay as assets of the game helps us to raise the profile of lawn bowls, as recently demonstrated by an interview opportunity for our Head Coach on the John Beattie Sport Nation programme for Radio Scotland. The build up to the Commonwealth Games in 2014 will also provide further opportunities for lawn bowls as part of a large multi sport international event which will in turn help us to communicate with a wider target audience. Bowls Scotland is working closely with Glasgow 2014 and Commonwealth Games Scotland to ensure that we play our part in promoting and supporting the Games in Scotland. Looking to the future, we hope to provide ‘live streaming’ from events such as the National Championships as well as circulating regular e-bulletins and newsletters which is in keeping with the diligent approach to our budgets in the coming years. As part of our new Communications Strategy we will also explore new media and social networking sites to further promote Bowls Scotland and communicate with a broader audience.
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