Dick Miles wrote:-
"if you want teenagers to come to folk clubs, ban people over 25 from ruuning them, get rid of vic smith, get rid of clive pownceby, out with the old, In with the new,
doesnt matter if they dont have a clue how to organise anything, nothing must stop the pursuit of worshipping youth."

I would rate this comment as "not helpful". We are where we are in folk clubs in 2011. When I started to run folk clubs, I was regularly booking people who were old enough to be my grandparents, Packie Byrne, Ron Copper, Willie Scott etc. Decades later, I am regularly booking people that are young enough to be my grandchildren - Jim Causley. Askew Sisters etc. If ageism is a problem in folk clubs then it needs to be addressed in a positive way. In fact, I'd like the whole forum/discussion at Sidmouth.... and this thread... to have a positive mood so that we can move forward.

Much earlier in this thread, I wrote something that I feel I now need to repeat:-
My intention is that the meeting should be positive and forward looking in tone and as chairman, I will not want time devoted to moaning or backward-looking negativity.