NFR Annual General Meeting 2026: Celebrating Achievements and Looking Ahead to Another Great Year

On Friday 6th November, members of NFR came together for the club’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), an evening dedicated to celebrating the achievements, dedication and community spirit that have made the past 12 months so special.

With a look back at another successful year, exciting plans for the future and plenty of well-deserved recognition, the evening was a fantastic reminder of what makes NFR such a special club.

Looking Back and Planning Ahead

The evening began with an address from Club Chair, Steven MacDonald, who welcomed members and reflected on the year’s achievements.

Members were also reminded of the upcoming NFR Red Run, taking place on Sunday 29th November at Jesmond Dene in support of World AIDS Day.

This year, NFR will be collaborating with Out North East, who will be joining us alongside Pride Radio. The run will finish with hot drinks and a cake stall, with all proceeds going to the Blue Sky Trust.

We would love to hear from anyone who would be happy to bake something for the event, as all contributions would be greatly appreciated!

Following the Chair's briefing, members enjoyed the traditional NFR year-in-review video, celebrating the many events, races, social occasions and achievements from the past 12 months.

The results of this year's members' survey were then discussed, with members considering how the feedback and recommendations could be incorporated into the club's plans for the year ahead. Congratulations to Jinxuan Cui, who was the lucky winner of the survey prize draw!

Celebrating Our Members

One of the highlights of every AGM is recognising the people who make NFR what it is, and this year was no exception.

The first award of the evening, Volunteer of the Year, was presented to Jocasta Williams, in recognition of her contribution and dedication to the club.

The Newcomer of the Year award brought a lovely surprise, with the committee deciding that one winner simply wasn't enough! This year's award was shared by Angie Okell and Michael Humes.

The Special Recognition Award was presented to Richard Salked from Lumo, in appreciation of his fantastic support for this year's Pride Run and his continued commitment to being an incredible ally to NFR and the wider LGBTQ+ community.

Our running achievements were also celebrated through the three Running Performance Awards:

• Red/Orange Running Performance: Rebecca Diss

  
  

• Yellow/Green Running Performance: Deborah Greaves

  

  
  

• Blue/Violet Running Performance: Alan Lamberton

Next came the NFR Ambassador of the Year award, which was presented to Vanessa Nair for representing the club and its values so brilliantly.

Finally, the much-loved Member's Member Award was presented to a firm club favourite, Stuart Forsyth. A fantastic way to round off this year's awards!

Membership Fees for 2027/2028

An important item of business was the proposed membership fees for the 2027/2028 membership year.

Following discussion, the proposed fees were put to a vote and successfully passed.

The agreed fee structure is:

Membership category	Fee
NFR First Claim / Non-Affiliated Renewal	£48
NFR First Claim / Non-Affiliated New Member (includes subsidised club top)	£60
October to December 2027	£50
Second Claim New Member and Renewal	£24

The fees will be made up of the following contributions:

• £24 to England Athletics (EA) or the Equity & Inclusion Fund.

• £24 to NFR.

• £12 towards a subsidised club top for new members (the actual unit cost is £22).

Thank you to everyone who took part in the discussion and vote.

Out North East Named NFR Charity of the Year 2027

One of the key decisions of the evening was selecting NFR's Charity of the Year for 2027.

Three fantastic organisations made the shortlist:

• If U Care Share

• Out North East

• Rainbow Homes

Members were given the opportunity to cast their votes during the evening break, alongside some food and refreshments.

Following the break, the results were announced, with Out North East receiving the majority of votes and being named NFR's Charity of the Year 2027!

Out North East plays an important role in advancing education and raising public awareness of the issues and challenges affecting LGBTQ+ people, their families, friends and allies.

Through inclusive education programmes, public campaigns, events and creative media, the organisation works to challenge discrimination and harmful attitudes, including homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. Alongside its direct support and education work, Out North East also campaigns for positive change.

We look forward to working together throughout 2027 and supporting the fantastic work they do.

Pride Run: Celebrating Another Incredible Event

The AGM also provided an opportunity to look back at this year's Pride Run.

Members were treated to an amazing highlights video, which truly captured the atmosphere, energy and spirit of the event.

Following the video, the Pride Run leads, Andrew Melville and Patrick Gorey, gave an event debrief and shared their plans for the future.

They also announced the new 2027 Pride Run Sub-Committee, who will work alongside the Pride Run leads to help plan and deliver next year's event.

The committee members are:

• Tracy Fitzpatrick

• Deborah Greaves

• Stuart Forsyth

• Michael Hummes

• Leo Morantes Africano

We look forward to seeing what the team can achieve together as preparations begin for the 2027 Pride Run!

NFR Grand Prix Results

It was then time to recognise the members who have been putting in the miles and collecting points throughout the year in the NFR Grand Prix.

Congratulations to everyone who took part, and especially to this year's top performers:

Position	Member	Points
1st	Claire Chadwick	147
2nd	Vanessa Nair	126
3rd	Lee Beckett	120
4th	Andrew Melville	116
5th	Rachel Smith	108
6th	Deborah Greaves	99
Joint 7th	Cathi Biggin	90
Joint 7th	Alison Davison	90
Joint 7th	Adam Moxley	90
Joint 7th	Steven Mac	90
Joint 8th	Sarah Capes	87
Joint 8th	Laura Cummings	87
9th	Jocasta Williams	84
10th	Stuart Forsyth	81

A huge congratulations to Claire Chadwick, who takes the top spot with an impressive 147 points!

London Marathon Club Place Draw

Another exciting moment of the evening was the draw for the NFR London Marathon club entry.

At the time of the AGM, the club was still awaiting confirmation from England Athletics regarding the number of places allocated for next year's London Marathon.

Based on the usual allocation arrangements, clubs with at least 40 England Athletics-affiliated members can generally expect to receive at least one place. With NFR's membership continuing to grow and next year's London Marathon taking place over two days, there is the possibility that the club could receive multiple places.

The decision was made to proceed with the initial club place draw during the AGM .Congratulations to Tom Cameron, who was the lucky recipient of the first NFR club entry!

Should the club receive additional places, members will be notified through Spond and a further draw will take place at an upcoming Rainbow Run. This draw will include the remaining names from the original entry list.

Committee Updates and Elections

The AGM also provided an opportunity to recognise the work of our committee and look ahead to the year to come.

It was announced that Jonathan Morrell (Non-Portfolio) and David Nevins (Socials) would be stepping down from their committee roles.

We would like to thank both Jonathan and David for their time, commitment and contributions to the club.

The committee nominations for 2026/2027 were then presented to members and put to a vote. The nominations were successfully passed.

The NFR committee for 2026/2027 will be:

Role	Committee Member
Chair	Steven MacDonald
Treasurer	Clare Chadwick
Secretary	Neil Moseley
Membership	Adam Moxley
Grand Prix	Cathi Biggin
Welfare	Richard Boggie
Communications	Steve Hails
Socials	Tara Hill
Training	Jo Morrisey
Training	Stephen Garbutt
Pride Run	Andrew Melville
Pride Run	Patrick Gorey

Looking Ahead to 2027

As the evening drew to a close, there was plenty to celebrate and even more to look forward to.

From recognising our amazing volunteers and members, celebrating another successful Pride Run and welcoming Out North East as our Charity of the Year, to agreeing our future membership structure and confirming the committee for 2026/2027, it was an evening that truly reflected the strength of our club.

Most importantly, it was a reminder that NFR is about so much more than running. It's about friendship, inclusivity, community and creating a welcoming space where everyone can be themselves.

A huge thank you to everyone who attended the AGM, everyone who has contributed to the club over the past year, and all those who continue to make NFR what it is.

Here's to another fantastic year of running, racing, fundraising, Pride and friendship.

Here's to NFR and an exciting 2027!