46th Annual General Meeting
On the 17th of September we held our 46th Annual General Meeting at Merthyr Tydfil Football Club. The night was attended by over 50 attendees, these being tenants, staff, board members and wider partners. The event was an opportunity for us to celebrate the official business of the organisation, celebrate staff milestones and the achievements of our tenants.
During the meetings, our CEO, Karen Courts, gave an overview of our achievements for the 2023/24 financial year. As part of the meeting, our accounts were formally approved by our stakeholders, and Bevan and Buckland were reappointed as our external auditors. During the meeting Ann Batley and Gary Colston were reappointed for a further three years to our Board, and Natasha Applasamy and Eve Wilkins were elected to the Board. We said goodbye to Ian Bell, who stepped down from our Board after nine years of service.
You can read our 2023/24 Annual Report here:
The AGM is also an opportunity for us to celebrate our staff and our tenants. During the event, the following staff were recognised for their length of service to the organisation:
- Andrew Howells – 5 years
- Natalie Keating – 15 years
- Tim Macdermott – 10 years
- Lee Roberts – 5 years
- Bethan Thomas – 15 years
- Alex Williams – 5 years
- Wyn Clements – 25
At each AGM we award our Desley Reynolds Award. Desley was an active member of our Tenant Voice Group, that was then known as the TSSG. Desley served the group for many, many years and in 2009 she became an elected Tenant Board member. Desley was a lady who championed the voice of the tenant, sharing her experiences and acting for the greater to good to support Merthyr Housing to make sure that tenants have a voice in shaping our services for the better. In January 2011, Desely sadly passed away, leaving a legacy behind her. The Desley Reynolds Award was set up in her memory to celebrate and recognise individuals or groups who have gone above and beyond to support their community or have triumphed with their personal development. So, the Desely Reynolds Awards rightly remembers this champion of the people and provides us, Merthyr Housing, with the opportunity to celebrate our residents and their communities.
This year, we have asked our tenants and residents to nominate their Desley Reynolds Champion. As well as advertising the nominations on our social media accounts, we promoted the nominations in our resident groups, and at our community activities.
This year, we had several nominations for one special person. This person has been a tenant of Merthyr Housing for nearly 25 years. They have been an active member in their community, often checking on neighbours daily to make sure that they are all safe and well. They have been an active member of the Georgetown Residents Group and up until very recently, held the treasurer position. As well as this, this individual was often the minibus driver, taking the group on many day trips to places such as Abergavenny, Brecon, and Cardiff Bay. This person has been key in organising a range of social activities for the community, not just day trips and outings, but also organising meals, and especially their annual Christmas meal celebration for their group. Some of the reasons people have nominated this person includes the following quotes:
A big part of the Desley Reynolds Award is looking at the difference that a person has made. The consistent feedback that we have had for this person is that they are always there to help, or as one of the nomination forms simply says, “Keith just helps everyone that needs it.”
It is our pleasure to award this year’s Desley Reynolds Award to Keith Estebanez.
