We celebrated our second century!

Jackie Fuller

AGM report on the North Laine Runner, 2009/10

By Jackie Fuller, NLCA Newsletter Coordinator

Our 200th issue

The North Laine Runner has had an exciting year. In September/October 2009 we celebrated our 200th edition with a special issue in which current and former residents, as well as others who had known the Runner in its early days, reminisced  about ‘then’ and ‘now’. We also reproduced some early photos from the ‘old days’.

A new masthead

Many thanks to Henry Bruce, who designed a new masthead for us to mark the event, incorporating the NLCA’s houses logo. Henry also designed the whole front cover for this special issue and it was certainly very eye-catching.

Subsequent editions

We had very positive feedback about this special 200th issue, with many people requesting that we should keep the glossy paper and an element of colour.  So we have done just that!

Costs

However, we have not been able to sustain this solely through the advertising. The 200th issue was subsidised by an allocation from the Warburton Fund and was dedicated to the memory of Joan and Ted Warburton. They both loved our community newsletter and frequently contributed to it.

Earlier in the year our March/April (AGM) issue was subsidised by Southern Water, who were at that time digging up many of the roads in North Laine to lay new pipes, so our grateful thanks to them.

Advertising scheme

Very many thanks to all our advertisers during the past year and especially to those who have been loyal to us over a number of years. Please show your appreciation of them by using their services whenever possible (and don’t forget to say that you saw their advert in the North Laine Runner!).

However, our income from advertising has suffered because we have had no permanent Advertising Coordinator for about two years now, although a few people have occasionally given a bit of temporary help with particular issues.

Can you help?

I’m afraid it’s just too much for me to run the advertising scheme without help as well as putting the Runner itself together. (In the past the advertising was always handled by someone other than the editor/layout person.) What is desperately needed is a team of three or four people (or even more) who would each undertake to visit just two or three of the traders when their adverts come up for renewal – or even one or two, whatever they feel able to manage – and perhaps negotiate the occasional new one. Please consider whether you could offer a bit of help in this way. With a team of people it wouldn’t be too much work for anyone and it would be easier to cover for holidays etc. I could still manage all the record keeping, invoice preparation etc, so you wouldn’t need to do any paperwork.

Unless I get some offers along the above lines, the Runner may not be able to continue as a bi-monthly free community newsletter as at present, as I am just not able to continue doing it all on my own. I have really enjoyed building up the newsletter over the years, but will step down some time this year unless I get some help with the advertising scheme.  So please contact me as below so that I can tell you more about what is involved....

Distribution

Very many thanks to Ruth Goodall, who continues to handle the Runner distribution by counting out each issue into bags for the Street Reps to collect, as well as posting or delivering the Runner to people outside North Laine who are on our mailing list. This is a vital job and Ruth handles it all with great efficiency.

Another vital job is that of the Street Reps, who deliver to everyone in their allocated streets. I’m pleased to say that I had a good response to my plea for new Street Reps in the last Runner and have now filled all the vacancies. (No doubt more will appear from time to time though, as inevitably people sometimes move away from the area.) So thank you to all the Street Reps for your important work. Just one request – if you’re a Street Rep, please write the Runner collection date/time in your diary when we email you the information so that Ruth doesn’t still have to phone and remind you again - thanks!

Change of deadline

For some years the Runner deadline has been the second Monday in the month every other month, coinciding with the monthly community meeting. This seems to confuse some people and also, depending on how the dates plan out, sometimes it only gives me a bare two weeks after that to put the issue together. (The date the artwork goes to the printer is fixed to enable the Runner to be distributed at the beginning of the month following.)

Therefore from now on the Runner deadline will always be the 8th of the month preceding publication, regardless of which day of the week that falls on.  I hope that will be clearer for everyone and it will certainly help me!

Content

During the past year the content of the Runner has covered a wide range of topics. These have included:

• Advance information about as well as subsequent reports (with photos) on a wide variety of events in North Laine (NLCA social events, street parties, Festival events,  Heritage Weekend in North Laine with associated tours etc)
• Articles about planning, licensing, communal bins and other aspects of our environment
• Local history and memories of and by people who remember the North Laine as it once was
• Features about present day North Laine people
• An obituary
• Art (Festival Open Houses, free exhibitions in Brighton Museum & Art Gallery etc)
• New books with a local connection
• Information about other voluntary groups and charities
• North Laine Traders Association news

If the North Laine Runner is to continue to fairly reflect life in the North Laine, as editor I rely on YOU to keep me informed about what is happening in your neck of the woods, including street parties, child-friendly events etc. Also what about a Births, Marriages and Deaths column (I hope not too many of the last of these though)? The Runner is here to foster and encourage that community spirit that pervades the North Laine and you, the residents, are its ‘reporters’. 

Conclusion

So please continue to send me your contributions for the North Laine Runner and if I can also get some offers from you to help with the advertising scheme, we will be able to look forward to another good year for our community newsletter. Click here to go to a page where my email address is listed.

[Previously published in the North Laine Runner, No 203, March/April 2010]