The Wendover Society needs Your Help

Clubs and Societies, Community

The Wendover Society was set up more than 50 years ago to protect the charm and character of Wendover. It is a registered Charity and has about 500 members. With the plans for HS2 and the development of the site at RAF Halton it needs to continue as much as it ever has.

The charity is currently operating with a Committee of six. We have had no Chairman for almost a year and another member is due to stand down at the next Annual General Meeting. If there are not enough people on the Committee the Society will be unable to function.

The BBC Radio 4 You and Yours programme recently did a piece which said that small Charities are closing faster than they open. In the last year 570 Charities closed and only 370 opened up. This is likely to be an underestimate as many Charities just ceased to function and the above figures are only those that have registered their closure with the Charity Commission.

I have very real fears that at worst The Wendover Society will close or at best we will no longer be able to do as much as we have done in the past. I would remind readers of what the six members of the Committee achieve every year.

  • Social Functions to include
  1. Jazz Picnic
  2. Harvest Supper
  3. AGM and Supper
  4. Four coffee mornings with speakers
  • Monitoring planning applications
  • Maintaining the Pursell Path
  • Monitoring HS2 – currently we are working on opposing the viaduct design, giving views on noise mitigation and supporting the Parish Councils pressure for a mined tunnel
  • Attending consultations on the RAF Halton Site – although this is not in Wendover, what happens will impact Wendover considerably
  • Maintaining records of members and ensuring the Charity remains financially viable
  • Advising members of issues that affect Wendover as a whole
  • Producing at least two newsletters a year
  • Monitoring the Local Plans to be produced by the Parish Council and the Vale of Aylesbury District Council and making representations where necessary

As you will appreciate, this is an enormous amount of work for just six volunteers. If the Committee had a Chairman and a full contingent it would ease the burden on everyone. I therefore urge anyone (whether or not they are a current member of the Society) who has some time to spare and cares about the future of Wendover to come forward so that the Society can continue for the next 50 years. If you would like to know more please email the society on thewendoversociety@outlook.com.

Jane Campion