Yorkshire RFU has two Representatives who are elected by the Clubs in the County to sit on the RFU Council. They also participate in Sub-Committees of the RFU which report to the Community Game Board. Keep checking back on a monthly basis as your Reps keep you up to date with relevant matters from the RFU.

November 2019


RFU Council met on Friday, 29th November with the next meeting scheduled for Monday, 24th February. Community Game Board will meet on 5th December.


Adult Male Competition Structure Review Group – this group has been established at the behest of Community Game Board and is chaired by Stephen Pearson (RFU Board & Oxford University). Community Game Board has been alarmed by figures which showed a large increase in the number of games being called off, large numbers of players being utilised in 1st XV squads and the results of the National Rugby Survey where players expressed a desire to have fewer games during the season. This is also allied to Sport England figures showing a decline in the number of adult males playing the Game (NOTE: this trend is echoed across all team sports).
The group has met three times and, at its last meeting, established “listening groups” to consider some options across the structure of the season.  It must be stressed that these groups will NOT make any decisions but were small groups (not exceeding 20 people) who would be used as a sounding board for the ideas put forward. The Review Group had already considered season re-structures put forward by the Scottish RFU, England and Wales Cricket Board and the French Federation and these formed the basis of the structures exposed to the meetings.
The Review Group will next meet on 9th December to consider next steps.  Any proposals that come out of these meetings will be widely distributed to the Game for their comments.  Again, it must be stressed that currently NO PROPOSALS have been drawn up and nothing has been decided by the Review Group.

Project Light – this is the name given to the process of all 6 Nations members to re-negotiation of media rights across international rugby.  The hope is that by working collaboratively the value of media rights can be raised bringing more income into the Game. A great deal of negotiating has already been undertaken with a partner company being identified.  Currently a process of “due diligence” is being carried out and, it is hoped that this will be completed in the near future.  At that point the terms of the deal will be made public.

National Rugby Survey -  this has now closed and the findings are, currently, being compiled. Approximately 21,000 responses were received to the survey and they have highlighted a number of areas for concern across the game.  Full analysis will be available shortly with this then being broken down by CB (County) which should be available in February 2020.

Diversity and Inclusion Working Group – this group, of which Sally Burns has been a member, made its final recommendations to RFU Council on 29th November. The group was established in the wake of the Code for Sports Governance which called for all Governing Bodies to “recruit and engage people with appropriate diversity, independence, skill, experience and knowledge to take effective decisions that further the organisation’s goals”. Council accepted and adopted 10 recommendations from the Working Group and agreed that these should be acted upon. Initially the work is centred around the RFU but it will extend to CBs and, eventually, clubs.

RFU Finance – the Annual Report for 2018/19 will be published on Tuesday, 3rd December.  And will be widely distributed.  Until publication the results must remain confidential but we hope you will take the time to look at and read the report which looks at the performance of the RFU in all aspects of its operation.




Activities in November (Jim Chapman)

Date

06
YRFU Competitions Sub-Committee (County Office)
13
Yorkshire West District (Old Brodleians RUFC)
14
Adult Male Competitions Structure Review Group (London)
15
North Division v All-Blacks 40th Anniversary Dinner (Otley RUFC)
16
President’s Lunch (Wetherby RUFC)
20
England Colleges RFU Board Meeting (Twickenham)
27
Area 6 Forum (Darlington)
29
RFU Council Meeting (Twickenham)



Activities in November (Ted Atkinson)

Date

13
Conference call ref. Yorkshire Academy
20
Play Development Sub-Committee (Twickenham)
26
Meeting ref. Yorkshire Academy (County Office)
28
Education & Age Grade Sub-Committee (Twickenham)
29
RFU Council Meeting (Twickenham)


Ted Atkinson & Jim Chapman
December 2019
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