Winchester Heritage Centre - Trust Annual Report 1991
The year has been one of intense activity. In the Annual Report for 1990 it was reported that an agreement had been reached with Winchester City Council under which the City undertook to undertake repairs to the heritage Centre and to grant the Trust a licence to occupy the building for three years at an annual rental of £3,000 per year which reflected the cost of the repairs. The City, generously, awarded the Trust an annual grant of £3,000 for the same period. Subsequently, following tenders for the repairs, it was decided by the City that it would be necessary to charge a rental of £5,000. This caused some anxiety but it is a pleasure to report that the City rose to the occasion and increased the grant to £5,000.
The repairs, comprising work on the roof and the chimneys, rehanging the tiles, repointing, and repainting the exterior woodwork, was carried out on behalf of the City during the first half of this year by Messrs. Finch & Co. As soon as it was possible to gain access to the building the Trust undertook substantial alterations to the interior. The permanent exhibition "Discover the City" has been moved to the first floor leaving the ground floor open for the exhibitions which will be held on a variety of subjects and providing greatly improved facilities for the volunteer stewards who man the Centre. In addition (a new feature) display boards kindly donated to us by the Royal Hussars Museum, will be used for news items of the various Committees of the Trust. Gas heating has also been installed, so we and our visitors look forward to a more comfortable winter.
All of this has involved a great deal of voluntary effort and substantial expenditure. The Trust has contributed £5,000 towards the alterations and additionally we have received donations of £500 and £250 respectively from British Gas and from Shell UK for which we are extremely grateful. As a result of great efforts on the part of all concerned it was possible to open the Centre to the public on 2nd July 1991, and the numbers of visitors and their reaction to the improvements has been most encouraging.
We feel that the renovation of the Heritage Centre which follows several years of uncertainty has been an example of successful co-operation between the City and the Trust, and the reopening of the Centre was marked by a party held in September and attended by the Mayor of Winchester, Councillor Captain R. J. Bates, RN.
This has been an important year for the Heritage Centre and we look forward to the future with confidence, not least because new ideas are constantly being explored both as to potential uses for the Centre and for fund raising. Some have already born fruit including a successful and highly enjoyable fete held during August.
When so many have worked so hard and contributed so much it may seem invidious to mention names but none of these achievements would have been possible without the enthusiasm and effort of the Management Committee of the Centre under the Chairmanship of Jeffrey Smith, Chris Webb the Vice Chairman, Rosemary Kinnaird Smith and other members of the "think tank" which has generated so many ideas, and of the indefatigable Manager of the Centre, Alan Cooke and his band of volunteer stewards.