Bulletin December 2013

This is the sixth NABO Bulletin. 
* The AGM was held n November, and reports are on the web site and the next NABO News.
* The next NABO News is now aviaaible on the web sirte, and will be posted before the end of the month.
* NABO has responded to the Towpath Mooring Plan for the K&A Canal West of Devizes. (see website)
* David Fletcher, Mark Tizard and Mike Rodd met with Richard Parry at Milton Keynes on the 15th of November for detailed discussions regarding the relationship between CRT and NABO.
* Mike Rodd participated as the NABO representative at the 2-day BSS working group meeting undertaking the Navigation Authority Hirer Safety Review, and the attended in Oxford one of the 5 follow-up consultations with hire-boat operators.
* David Fletcher (Chairman) and Mike Rodd (NABO representative) attended the BSS Technical Committee at Hatton on the 26th of November.
* David Fletcher and Mike Rodd (standing in for NABO representative Trevor Rogers) attended the BSS Advisory Committee on 5th December.
* Mike Rodd attended the K&A Users Forum on the 28th November in Devizes and the annual meeting of the K&A Waterways Partnership in Newbury on the 5th December.
* The next Council meeting will be on Saturday 23rd january, at the Wolverhampton Boat Club.
We would like to wish all our members a very happy Christmas and a wonderful New Year. This will be a crucial year for our waterways as the new CEO of CRT starts to undertake the very necessary changes to the way the organisation works with its' prime  and most passionate customers - us boaters!
Richard Parry has already stressed the vital need to re-engage with the boating community and has opened many doors to enable this to happen.
But there are still deep cultural changes within CRT that are necessary if this is to be successful - and failure is not an option - there is no "Plan B"! We all have to get on board and work with CRT to make it happen.  NABO has every opportunity to help make these changes happen - but to do this, we must get stronger and take on even more than we do at the moment. We can only do this with more members to demonstrate our strength and also more members actively engaged with your Council. If every member persuaded their close boating friend(s) to join, we would soon be far and above the strongest, and hence, most influential body on the waterways!
David Fletcher and Mike Rodd