The HBN committee have made great progress this year, but with only a few weeks before the next AGM, we have a few goals to put in the back of the net. Namely finding willing nominees for the new committee and helping our membership secretary reach his utopian target of 100 members. With such a strong membership base, I have no doubt that we will achieve this allowing your network to continue to develop and meet the needs of the business community, but at the end of the day HBN is successful and vibrant because it is member driven.

HBN is working for you and your business, adding value and providing support have you considered how you could add value and provide support to HBN? If it is not quite meeting your needs are you prepared to help make changes? You will be surprised at how rewarding a little investment in HBN can be.

During the six years I have served the HBN committee I have carried out three different roles, learned and developed many business skills that have complimented my career and built confidence and professionalism, earned friendship and support from fellow members and most of achieved a sense of belonging. I am very proud of what HBN has achieved in the past six years and I very much hope that continues through the next six years and beyond.

So do you have skills to offer HBN? Do you have aspirations and innovative ideas to help HBN flourish? Would you like to HBN being driven in a slightly different direction? This is your chance.

Many of the long term committee members are retiring from the committee at the AGM in early November for a number of reasons. This is an opportunity to refresh HBN from the top - so what are your waiting for? All you need to start your election campaign is a nomination from one other HBN member. If you would like to review the 'terms of reference' for a particular role, these can be downloaded from our website, or you can request them by email secretary@hbn.org.uk. Better still, contact me or the relevant incumbent and we'll explain what is involved.

If the a committee really isn't for you, you can still contribute to HBN's success by bringing guests to meetings, sharing your experiences, supporting others and contributing to this magazine. We have just two months to increase the membership by 10% and make Mr Downing a very happy man and by far the most proficient membership secretary the organisation has seen. With best regards, Toni Hunter FCCA, HBN Chairperson 2006 & 2007