Newsletter Coordinator's report for 2006/7

Another 'Runner' year

By Jackie Fuller, NLCA Newsletter Coordinator

The year 2006 marked the 30th anniversary of the NLCA and also therefore of the North Laine Runner, since a newsletter (originally called the North Road Runner) was started very soon after the Association itself was first constituted in 1976. During this anniversary year we were pleased to include special articles both by Ken Fines (who first revived the 18th century name for our area when he was Borough Planning Officer and had North Laine designated as a Conservation Area) and by Kelvin MacDonald (Secretary of the NLCA in its first year). Also to mark the 30th anniversary we were able to introduce a second colour on the front page starting with the May/June 06 issue and this has now become a regular feature of the Runner.

Costs

We managed to cover the Runner printing costs from our advertising revenue during the past year. The small surplus which shows in the NLCA accounts is not actually a 'profit' though, as we also have to cover other newsletter related costs which are included in the general NLCA expenses headings, including computer supplies as well as envelopes and stamps for our mailing list. There was actually a big increase in postage costs during the year when new rates were introduced for 'large' letters, a jump from 37p to 55p in one go! It now [2007] costs just under £8 per year to keep someone on the regular mailing list (cost of printing one copy of the Runner plus envelope and stamp) and so we are grateful to those who feel able to contribute this sum to help cover the costs involved.

Advertising

Since no-one came forward to help Paley O'Connor with the advertising after Kevin Daly stood down, she and I have been doing it together over the past year. In the light of experience we've managed to streamline some of the procedures and paperwork and all the records are now kept on spreadsheets. However, we could still do with some extra help in seeking new advertisers, as we do find dealing with all the renewals quite time-consuming in itself, which doesn't leave much time to look for new ads. Is there someone out there who might like to help us with this side of things?

Content

Apart from articles relating to the early days of the NLCA mentioned at the beginning of this report, topics covered in the Runner have ranged quite widely over the year. The Nov/Dec 06 issue in particular contained two long features to which many residents contributed. The first was about the Tidy Street Photo Project and many residents from that street contributed background information about the photos that had appeared in their windows and which were reproduced in the Runner. The second was a debate started by one resident about the trading hours and parking problems associated with the Upper Gardner Street Market.

It may be worth reminding residents that the Runner does rely for its content on items submitted by you, the readers, and it's always disappointing therefore if we discover that something interesting has been happening around the streets of North Laine but nobody has thought to tell the Runner about it! Unlike a commercial newspaper we have no paid reporters. (It is for this reason that there's no separately designated 'Letters' page, which normally distinguishes items submitted by the readership from those written by a paper's own staff.) Our aim is that everyone should find something of interest in the Runner. If you don't, then maybe it's because you haven't yet submitted anything on topics which you find interesting - so the remedy is in your own power!

In particular we would like to have more regular items of interest to younger people, including students and children, so this is a special invitation to those of you in those age brackets to consider sending us items for the Runner.

Some thanks

Some well deserved thanks go to:

(i) All our advertisers and especially those who have supported us for many years, most of whom do so as much to support the NLCA as for purely commercial reasons. Please recognise their contribution by using their services whenever you can (and don't forget to mention that you saw their advert in the Runner).

(ii) Paley O'Connor, who - as already mentioned - has continued to share the work on advertising with me over the past year

(iii) Gabrielle Villermet, who continues to organise the Runner distribution via the Street Reps and to our regular mailing list

(iv) The Street Reps themselves, without whom we couldn't hand deliver the Runner to every address in the area every two months

(v) Sandy Crowhurst, who continues to help me with the final headline writing and proof checking

(vi) All of you who have contributed items for the Runner over the past year, and especially our current Officers: Peter Crowhurst (Chair) and Sara Bragg/Mark Erickson (joint Secretaries), who have been a pleasure to work with in ensuring that core NLCA matters have been covered in your local community newsletter.

Welcome pack

A few years ago when she was NLCA Secretary Maureen Brand researched and wrote up a 'welcome pack' for new residents. Initially it was printed as a supplement to the Runner, but extra copies were also produced so that it could later be used separately. By 2006 this leaflet had become seriously out of date, so could no longer be used. In particular many of the useful telephone numbers for local services had changed and the map didn't yet show the new Jubilee St. So during the latter part of last year I managed to update this leaflet, while still preserving Maureen's original format. This involved checking each of the useful telephone numbers and amending them where necessary; meanwhile Barry Leigh prepared an updated copy of the map. Copies of the revised leaflet have now been printed and a few given to each of the Street Reps to hand out when they notice new residents moving into their streets. Additional copies are available on request.

[Previously published in the North Laine Runner, No 185, March/April 2007]