Your company has experienced a busy and productive year. Board meetings have been held bimonthly with consistently good attendances.
Alwyn Ogborn retired from Council after many years of service to the Society including the editorship of Pennine Link, our quarterly magazine. Eric Crossland retired having been involved in the restoration and maintenance for many years. We thank both these members
for all their work on our behalf.
for all their work on our behalf.
Three new members were co-opted during the year: Alan Stopher, an expert on canal construction who led the Huddersfield Canal Company Limited during the final stages of our restoration; Patricia Bayley, a volunteer on our Marsden water ferry who was for a time our Marketing Officer and Graham Birch who has been involved professionally with our canal for many years as a senior officer within Oldham MBC. His retirement has allowed him to use his expertise to the benefit of the Society on a voluntary basis.
There have been no staff changes and
Dr Bob Gough, our Administrator and
Ms Clare Bebbington, our Marketing Officer have continued to work conscientiously on your behalf.
Dr Bob Gough, our Administrator and
Ms Clare Bebbington, our Marketing Officer have continued to work conscientiously on your behalf.
Membership continues to hover around the 600 mark and we have continued to recruit new members throughout the year.
A successful Family Fun Day was held on Easter Sunday at the Brownhill Centre in Saddleworth. Our thanks are due for the support we received from our partners in Oldham MBC and British Waterways.
The year 2011 marks the bicentenary of the opening of the canal to boats from Ashton under Lyne to Huddersfield and during 2010 plans began to be made to mark this special anniversary. We are grateful once again to councillors and officers of Oldham MBC who have been towers of strength to us in so many ways during the year.
During the year, British Waterways announced their plans to convert to charitable status and we await with interest the changes which will take place in this connection which is due to take place in 2012. Our relationship with British Waterways remains good.
Our magazine, Pennine Link has continued to be distributed on a quarterly basis. Thanks are due to Bob Gough for his desk top publishing work. Since the retirement of the Editor its future issues are to be edited by volunteer Council members who will each have the opportunity to put their own points of view.
The Marsden Shuttle, our boat taxi service from Marsden railway station to the visitors’ centre at Tunnel End on the Yorkshire side has continued to operate during weekends and bank holidays throughout the season. Our thanks go to organiser, Andrea Fisher and her team of trained volunteers.
I offer my personal thanks for the unstinting support of our partners, volunteers, members and staff for their contribution to the continuing success of the Huddersfield Canal Society.
Neville Kenyon
Chairman
