Great news, the club continues to flourish! We are currently sitting at 217 paid members! 👬👭👬👭👫 Of course, with higher membership comes more work for the committee. I can’t thank the committee enough for all the time and effort they put into the club voluntarily.

It’s been mentioned recently that not everyone knows the committee each get a day where they are on ‘duty’ - this means taking payments, organising coaching or other activities, running the session by peg board or otherwise, and generally keeping an eye out to ensure everyone is keeping to the ethos. It’s a big task and often thankless! For that work, when the committee are on duty, they don’t pay the £3.50 for that session.

Your committee on duty:

Mondays: Mitch, Dean, Ritchie, Brandon, Gary, Will
Wednesdays: Keith
Thursdays: Sarah, Oliver, Raj, James, Temi
Saturdays: Kirs, David, John, Shoeb, Charles

Once per year I try to thank the committee for the work they do. It’s often a meal or similar. We discussed the above at the AGM along with budget plans for the coming year. We are working hard to ensure all members benefit as equally as possible. We had a mini budget review recently and have decided to increase budgets in the following areas:

Coaching - expect more of it! 🏋️
Shuttles - expect newer shuttles more often. 🏸
Socials - expect more socials, subsidised to make them affordable. 🍷
Welfare - we have trained new first aiders and will be increasing first aid kits. ⛑️
Christmas - expect a bigger and better tournament and after party than ever before! 🎄
Club birthday BBQ - expect a bigger BBQ with even more to offer. 🍗

FREE SESSIONS!
In celebration of the clubs 7th birthday, we are offering our Wednesday sessions completely free of charge for the entire month of July! Following this, we are offering a week-long celebration by offering a full week of free sessions in the lead up to the summer BBQ on the 8th August. That’s the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 6th of August for free! 💰

For those who don’t read my messages, I’ll be happy to accept payments from those who offer it 😉 Of course, the committee is always open to members who want to step up and help. We work as a team ❤️ Those not on the committee, if there is anything above you strongly disagree with, get in touch - I’m always happy to talk things through. ☺️

Pete - Club Chairman

Our annual general meeting (AGM) is being held on Thursday 9th April 2026 at 8pm, right after Badminon session at the Velodrome.

The AGM gives the committee the opportunity to report back to members on the club’s progression over the last year and the plans for the future. It’s an open forum, so the perfect environment for members to discuss topics they may currently feel strongly about. You’ll receive an update on each of the committee roles, detailing what has progressed this year and what the plans are for the coming year.

One of the key points of an AGM is that it gives the official opportunity for current committee members to step down and for other members to step up into the committee. Northern Cocks grows year on year, and this year has been no different! The size of the club has brought with it a lot more work for the committee. With that, I have drawn up a list of committee roles and responsibilities which will distribute the workload evenly and give lots of people an opportunity to contribute.

Committee Roles
All committee members are expected to complete the following:

• Encouraging, defending, and insisting on compliance with the club ethos at all times.
• Taking payments at at least one of the weekly sessions.
• Assisting with the peg board when required.
• Being that friendly welcoming face at sessions, ensuring to say hello and having a game with all new members.
• Contributing to discussions in the committee chat.
• Voting on issues in person or in the chat.
• Reporting back to the Chair on any issues/bad behaviour you witness or is reported to you at the club.
• Setting the example we insist the membership to follow.
• Organising or assisting with at least one social per year.

Chair

• It is the chairs responsibility to oversee the general running of the club, any major decision making, and general dispute resolution.
• Check in with all other committee on their responsibilities.
• Tournaments organising.
• Spring, Summer, Winter major socials.
• Liaise with sponsors and associates.
• Blog posting and general club communications.
• Lead on WhatsApp community group.

Vice Chair

• It is the vice chair’s responsibility to assist the chair in their duties and stand in for the chair when necessary.
• Vice chair generally takes on a second role as detailed below.

Treasurer

• Lead on financial decisions.
• Venue liaison, court bookings, room bookings.
• Shuttle purchase and distribution.
• Printing.
• Invoicing/expenses in and out.

Secretary

• Call and lead committee meetings and AGMs.
• All meeting points to discuss should go to the secretary so that they can collate agendas.
• Take minutes from meetings and distribute to committee / club when necessary.
• Coaching organisation.
• Lead on email communications.

Legal

• Lead on privacy policies, legal documents, GDPR, constitution.
• Ensure the club has relevant policies relating to all of the LGBTQ+ sub-communities.

Website and Digital Admin

• Ensure the website is updated and accurate.
• Endeavour to create new and engaging content on the website.
• Lead on digital admin which includes emails and Zettle.

Health and Safety

• Act as primary first aider when available.
• First aid advice and support at all events and socials.
• Ensure the club has up to date safety policies and practices.
• Health and safety communications.

Social Media Lead

• Run club social media accounts.
• Liaise with club contacts through socials.
• Lead on designs for socials.
• Generate hype, interactivity, and excitement.
• Ensure social output aligns and promotes the club ethos.
• Run social campaigns which include: ‘meet the committee’, ‘award/medal winners’, and ‘meet the club member’.

Welfare Officer

• Primary contact for member support and welfare issues, including mental health issues.
• Ensuring policies and practices of the club are aligned with the club ethos.
• Proactively introducing inclusive initiatives wherever possible.
• Ensure all parts of the LGBTQ+ community are represented and welcomed.

Northern Pride Officer

• Northern Pride is a collaborative endeavour, bringing together all LGBTQ+ sports clubs in and around Manchester.
• Organise joint events and socials with each other sports club at least once per year.
• Organise joint socials with one or more of the other clubs throughout the year.
• Run social media accounts for Northern Pride.
• Primary liaison for other club contacts.

Social Secretary

• Have a general overview of all social activities relating to the club.
• Create/update an ongoing social calendar which club members can view.
• Run club socials throughout the year which cater for our eclectic mix of members.
• Assist all other committee members in their social organising.

Event Secretary

• Researching national and international events which would be good for the club to participate in.
• Liaise with event contacts, creating schedules and approximate costs.
• Eurogames/Gay Games involvement and organising.
• National and international tournament organisation.

Membership Secretary

• Have overall control over membership data.
• Ensure regular players have signed up as members.
• Speak to non-members about the benefits of membership.
• Bring fresh ideas to member benefits.

Engagement Officer

• Run engagement activities, votes, competitions, polls, etc.
• Lead on feedback, trends, and suggestions.
• Proactively look at ways in which the club can keep membership and committee engaged throughout the year.

General Committee

• The general committee role is as important as every other. The general committee are responsible for assisting all other committee members when required, bringing collaboration, and being a point of contact for new members. This role is often filled by newly joining committee members who want to give general help.

I would usually recommend new joiners to the committee join as general committee before taking on a named role. This gives you the opportunity to see how the club runs and what role you would enjoy filling. However, with the committee restructure, several roles are currently empty and we are looking for people to fill the following roles:

• Welfare Officer (female/non-binary to work alongside our male Welfare Officer)
• Northern Pride Lead
• Social Secretary
• Event Secretary
• Engagement Officer
• General Committee

If you think you could fill one of the above roles, would like to challenge for one of the filled roles, or would otherwise like more information on anything, get in touch with Pete before Thursday 2nd April 2026 so that everything can be put in place before the AGM. Likewise, if you would like anything specific discussed at the AGM, bring it to the attention of Pete or Ritchie before 2nd April.

I hope you can make the AGM and I look forward to seeing everyone there.

Pete Barnes
Chair, Northern Cocks Badminton Club

At Northern Cocks LGBTQ+ Badminton Club we play three times a week. 🗓️

🕕-🕗Mondays 6-8pm at Moss Side Leisure Centre
🕕-🕗Thursdays 6-8pm at the Velodrome (aka National Cycling Centre)
🕒-🕔Saturdays 3-5pm at Moss Side Leisure Centre

Each Session runs slightly differently, but every session is open to all levels from complete novice to A grade players. EVERYONE is welcome. None of our sessions require you to sign up before hand, you can turn up on the day. 🕰️ Here is how each session works:

Thursday
We have 8 courts available, and for this reason, it is a free play session. Each player self regulates and joins courts as they wish. It is still important to allow other players the opportunity to play, so it is important that once you complete a game, you leave the court and allow time for others to play.

Saturday
We have 5 courts on a Saturday. These sessions vary significantly in turn out, and for that reason we run a ‘rally tally.’ Upon arrival, ensure you write your name on the board. Then, after each of your games, mark a tally dash next to your name. You should take note of how you compare with other players each time you do this. If you are ahead of most, take a break and allow them to catch up. If you are behind, be a little keener and get yourself on for another game. 📈📉 Saturday sessions are also self-regulated, but committee members may ask you to take a prolonged break if they notice you have played more than your fair share. 🫸

Monday
Monday sessions are usually our busiest sessions and we have 5 courts. For this reason, we use a peg board on system. The peg board regulates games and ensures a fair amount of games for every player. Here’s how it works…

At the beginning of the session, put your name on the board, choosing between A/B+, B-/C+, C-/D. Then, at each 8 minute interval, you will be notified to check the board to see if a number is next to your name. That number correlates to the court numbers. If it’s a blank space, take an 8 minute break ☺️ Within 8 minutes you may not get to 21, or you may get to play a little past 21. In either case, play for the full 8 minutes and then exit the court.

We have 5 courts which means 20 players on court at any given time. We VERY rarely have fewer than 40 players on Monday sessions. This means you will likely have two games off in a row at times. There may even be times where you have three games off in a row to facilitate better mixing up of games. By the end of the session, each player will have had the same number of games +/-1. The math will not allow for everyone to have the exact same number of games, but the committee always try to ensure the rotations are fair and balanced. ⚖️

8 minutes is not a long time to create the next set of games, and not all committee members are as fluent with the board system as others. To ensure a smooth session, when a committee member is preparing the following games, please do not interrupt them by requesting games or striking up a conversation. If you need to speak to someone, find a different committee member or wait until the games have been set. 👩‍💻📊

It is important to note that Northern Cocks has always been a social club and each player should expect to play a couple of very well balanced games, a couple of games with stronger players, and a couple of games with weaker players. This is non-negotiable and an important part of the club ethos. It is imperative that you enter the appropriate section of the peg board. This ensures balanced games are created. It does not mean you won’t get competitive games. Should weaker players be in the A/B+ category, it will result in unbalanced games which is unfair to all players. For clarity, we often mix abilities on court by assigning two A players with two B players. Or two B players with two C players. Northern Cocks runs three tournaments per year and the committee use the peg board and where you have placed yourself to help decide on your grading and/or handicap. For this reason, it is beneficial to yourself to ensure you are in the appropriate grouping.

In summary, Northern Cocks is a social club with a strong club ethos. The above information is a strong part of that ethos. We are a very strong, friendly community of players and we all want everyone to enjoy the sessions and get a good number of games. The committee appreciate how much support we get during the busier sessions and look forward to facilitating those sessions going forward.

Thanks all and see you on the courts! ☺️🏸❤️