Royal British Legion, Sedbergh & District Branch
Minutes for the monthly meeting held in the White Hart Club
On Tuesday 12 May 2026
Those Present:
David Parratt, Tony Reed Screen, Keith Birbeck, Rupert Follett, John Pease and Rose Pease.
Apologies:
Stephen Moore, Martin Gray, Peter Seymour and Myles Ripley.
Minutes of the last meeting:
The minutes of the meeting held on 10 March, having been circulated by email, were approved as a true record.
Matters Arising:
· Membership / Recruitment. Chris Hicks has recently joined taking adult membership to 56. It is hoped that some other members of Sedbergh School CCF will also join.
· Artisan Market. To enhance branch visibility and encourage future recruitment, the branch has applied for a stall at the 29 Aug market. With reduced stall availability, owing to moving the event to St Andrews, we will not know if our bid has been successful until nearer the time.
Treasure’s Report
Branch balance as of 01 May £1195.25.
Branch Community Support:
BCS team continue home visits to support our Sedbergh veteran. Sadly, he is currently suffering from an infection in his left eye post a cataract operation. This has resulted in a temporary sight loss in the left eye and a prescription for antibiotics following a review at Carlisle Infirmary. Not being able to drive, the BCS team are monitoring the situation and standing by to assist as required.
Social Events
· Sedbergh Branch Annual Dinner was held at the Sedbergh Golf Club Friday 8 May 26. The event was a huge success with 28 members enjoying a wonderful meal and good company. It was particularly pleasing to welcome several new branch members. The raffle raised £159. Great thanks must go to RP for organising a very successful dinner.
· A reminder that the following dates have been confirmed with the St Andrews Coffee Morning co-ordinator for 2026 events:
o Wednesday 10 Jun – for Branch Fund
o Wednesday 05 August – Rawthey Project
o Wednesday 28 October – Poppy Appeal
Poppy Appeal
· DP outlined feedback from RBL HQ on the 2025 Poppy Appeal:
o 30m poppies distributed
o 1900 school packs delivered
o 135, 000 wreaths distributed
o 16,000 grants worth more than 9m issued
o 115,000 enquiries through the Contact Centre
o £6.3m in grants to partner organisations
o Supported 1400 households through our Admiral Nurses
o Care for more than 700 residents in care homes
o Access £13.9m or war pensions and Armed forces Compensation scheme funds
o £50m raised nationally for the Poppy Appeal involving over 2000 branches
· DP reported that regrettably the new counting machine was still out of stock. Should it not be available to support the next Poppy Appeal, DP has reviewed an alternative machine that would cost £300 + VAT.
AOB
· RBL ‘Discover System’: Learning Management System is available to all members, who are encouraged to register on line. Once on the system you can self-enrol on various courses. The next availability of the Branch Management module is 09 Jun 1830-2030 and 10 Jun 1830-2030.
· National Memorial Arboretum {NMA}: from Sep 26 the NMA will be known as the RBL National Remembrance Gardens. The name change has been inspired to bring society together to recognise, remember and support the Armed Forces Community and firmly places Remembrance at its heart.
· Registration for the Festival of Remembrance {Royal Albert Hall} ballet, will open on the RBL website 27 May 26. Members will have 4 weeks to enter the ballet to ensure that as many membersas possible have a chance to secure tickets.
· Branch Admin Fees to stay at £1 from 01 Oct 26 to 30 Sep 27.
· Annual Membership will increase to £24 from 01 Oct 26.
· MPR reminded the meeting that the last post was first sounded at the Menin Gate on 02 Jul 1928 and questioned whether we should consider sounding the last post in Sedbergh on the 02 Jul 2028 to mark the centenary. All agreed this local recognition would be fitting.
· Branch Crisis Grant – to align with the increased cost of living, the grant has been increased from £200 to a max of £500 per year, per beneficiary. The crisis grant is only to be used in emergencies when the normal process through the Call Centre will not provide funds in time.
· National Conference 2026 – the Motions Results from the conference can be viewed on the branch site.
· Chair of Branches tenure – the maximum time a branch chairman can be in post has been qualified as 3 x 3yr terms. DP started his tenure 10 Feb 2022.
There being no other business, the meeting closed with the Kohima Epitaph at 7:45 pm. The next meeting will be held on 14 Jul 2026 at 7:15 pm in the White Hart Social Club.
