Derbyshire Caving Association
Information Circular 2004/3, May/June 2004
NEXT DCA MEETING
DCA Council - Sat. 17 July 2004, at 10am, Monyash Village Hall
The Hall will be open from about 9.30am with tea, coffee and biscuits on tap. The Old Smithy Cafe, next to the Pub, does an excellent breakfast from about 9am.
Next DCA Meetings:
DCA Council Meeting -
Sat. 27 November 2004, 10am. Monyash Village Hall
DCA AGM 2005 - Sat. 19th.
February 2005, 10am. Monyash Village Hall
DCA WINS GREENWATCH AWARD
DCA Conservation
Officer David Webb submitted an entry to the Greenwatch Environmental Awards
Scheme on behalf of DCA. The entry was based upon the work we have done in the
Cave Conservation Monitoring Scheme, illustrated by a 20 page booklet produced
by David with photos and completed forms, plus copious reference to all the
hard work you all do for the underground environment. This must have caught the
judges eye as DCA won FIRST PRIZE in the "Wildlife " Section - PLUS A CHEQUE
FOR £1000!! Thanks again to all cavers who helped with the Cave
Conservation Monitoring Scheme as, without your commitment, DCA would not have
had an entry to complete.
CONSERVATION / ACCESS
If you have any queries or problems relating to access or conservation in the region you can e-mail all the DCA Conservation and Access team members on access @ theDCA.org.uk. Team members are:
Derbyshire Dales District Council Proposals To
Require A Licence For All Groups Wishing To Abseil On Council Owned Land
DCA Secretary Jenny Potts has been made aware of proposals by DDDC to
require a Licence/Insurance and to place other restrictions on groups abseiling
on Council owned land. Although this appears to refer in the first instance to
High Tor, Matlock, it could also apply to other sites.
Jenny has a copy of the Council Report and the draft Licence and the consultation period ends on 25th. June - extremely short notice! DDDC approached NCA, BMC and AALA for comments in the first instance so the information has come via NCA.
If you use High Tor, or any other DDDC owned site,
for abseiling or any similar activity, please contact Jenny and she will
forward copies of the documents she has. DCA would like to coordinate responses
to this and also to coordinate our responses with those of the Climbers who use
the site(s).
Note - This information has already been e-mailed to all
DCA members for whom we have an e-mail address.
The same access arrangements apply, cavers must meet at the TSG caving hostel, pay the usual fees and be in the cave by 9-45am, following the usual rules that apply. If you want a trip, contact one of the following keyholders with at least a weeks notice to see what their plans are and maybe they can let you into the cave. The keyholders won't change their plans if they have alternate arrangements made.
The following keyholders have agreed to run trips: Wayne Sheldon - 0794 121 1209 Ralph Johnson - 07779 797388
Please note that there is no weekly rota and trips can only be undertaken with prior arrangement with a keyholder. Turning up at the TSG hostel on a Saturday or Sunday won't guarantee you a caving trip, as a keyholder won't turn up without prior arrangement.
Bookings for Sunday trips, from October through to March will again have to be arranged through John Beck at the usual address: 01433 631732 or email on johnbeck @ classicfm.net
Your co-operation with the keyholders will be very much appreciated. Wayne Sheldon (Peak Cavern Keyholder)
TRAINING
D.C.A. Training Officer, Nigel Atkins , Wharfedale House, Springfield Close, Midway, Derbyshire, DE11 0DB Tel: 01283 210666, Fax: 01283 210777, Mob: 07831 449919, E-M. nigel @ pennineorganisation.com
CAVING CLUB TRAINING SCHEME - Date: Sunday July
25th 2004
One of the attractions of caving,
potholing and exploration of abandoned mines is its adventurous nature. The
accident rate in caving is thankfully low but from time to time serious and
fatal accidents do occur. It is therefore important that beginners who seek to
go caving are aware of and accept the element of risk and take responsibility
for their own actions.
I will run another one day training workshop this year to 'train the trainers' and I would encourage any future training officers and potential NCA award candidates to get involved.
SRT TRAINING COURSE - Date: Saturday & Sunday
July 10th & 11th 2004
There is another 2
day SRT training course for those who may not be able to get training through
their clubs. I have will get some more new Petzl toys to give away (or sell off
depending on my mood swings!)
PRE-ASSESSMENT DAY FOR CAVE LEADERS
This is an excellent opportunity for DCA members
to test themselves out. There is no formal charge for this day to DCA members,
however I will be expecting a donation made payable to DCRO. Please phone me
for availability.
FIRST AID COURSE
Nichola Pickering now has a number of first aid courses
running every month. These are designed for people undertaking outdoor
activities and I have just attended her last one which was good fun as well as
being very informative. Nice one Nichola! She can be contacted on 01298
85688.
POSSIBLE GRANT AID FOR CAVING CLUBS
As reported in Speleoscene No 54, two recent initiatives have the potential to be of financial aid to clubs; be it in the form of capital grants or tax relief.
Community Amateur Sports Club (CASC's)
Clubs can benefit from registering as CASC's
with the Inland Revenue. CASC registered clubs with huts can claim a mandatory
80% rate relief, amongst other benefits.
There are specific conditions associated with registering as CASC's and information on these plus application forms can be found on www.inlandrevenue.gov.uk/casc_guidance/htm
Lottery Funding for Sports Clubs
There are several initiatives in place, offering various
types of grant from under £500 to £300,000 that can benefit caving
clubs. An information document on this topic, sent out by Derbyshire Dales
District Council and posted on the web by Nick Williams, can be found at
www.hucklow.net/DOWNLOAD/Lottery_Funding.pdf
Other sources of information: www.sportengland.org.uk
www.awardsforall.org.uk
www.community-fun.org.uk
www.lotterygoodcauses.org.uk
Note - If anyone is unable to access these
documents on the web, Jenny can provide copies.
FOR YOUR NEWSLETTER / NOTICEBOARD
www.theDCA.org.uk - dca @ theDCA.org.uk
22nd June 2004