The band has undergone several personnel changes in the last 12 months due to work and other commitments. We have been extremely lucky to have replaced our ” leavers ” by restructuring the band from within our existing ranks, and by attracting some quality new members. Nevertheless, it was an unsettling time which is hopefully now behind us, although we are aware of one or two pending departures due to relocation and family commitments. However, we are prepared, and will only carry forward vacancies for a Solo Cornet player and Bb Basses, which is not uncommon amongst a lot of bands at present. We will also rely on the continuing progress of our younger players who have shown excellent potential so far. We consistently get great feedback from our concert audiences, and have already been rebooked at several venues for the forthcoming year. Anyone connected with banding knows the vagaries of contesting, and the only thing we can do is to strive for quality performances (not necessarily a guarantee of success!! ) and hope good results will follow. 9th from 19 bands at last years Area Championships was a respectable result in such a strong 3rd Section, and we are aiming for higher this year……..let’s see!!!!