Chairman's Annual Report for 2006
Martin Easteal, 17 April 2007
I am pleased to make this second report as your Chairman, and to set out another very successful year for the Friends. We have seen the completion of the restoration of the whole Hylands Estate, a major achievement indeed by all concerned. Our activities have remained at a high level.
We were very pleased to be invited by the Council to the Official Opening of the Stable Block and Park last month, which was a very memorable occasion. Indeed, it is a milestone for us all, and the culmination of the strenuous efforts of the Friends over the years to see the House and Estate restored to their condition around 1800. A marvellous new facility has now been provided for the people of Chelmsford and Essex, the like of which has not been seen before. I understand that they have been flocking here in considerable numbers and that, as they say, is the proof of the pudding! We should all be very proud indeed of what has been achieved. Many of you will remember the state of the House years ago when it was derelict, and perhaps you thought that it would never recover. Now it has risen, phoenix-like from the ashes, to be a remarkable House and Estate which will be with us for many generations to come.
Your Society has played a major role in this. It has acted as a pressure group when necessary, and as a support group throughout, raising money to furnish the House and keeping local interest alive. Hylands now enters a new phase and so does your Society.
Fortunately the Friends are in good health! All our many and varied events in and around the House during the year have been well supported. These have ranged from an evening of magic to concerts of a very high musical standard. The Christmas Party was a great success and for the first time for many years we managed to accommodate all the Friends who wished to come by arranging an 'overflow' in the Dining Room. I should like to thank Ceri Lowen and her staff for helping to make our Christmas Party so enjoyable.
Sadly, we had to stop providing monthly teas in the House with the opening of the cafe in the Stable Block. Our last 'teas' was in January when all the tea team were thanked by Sue Ireland for their hard work over the years. Incredibly the tea team has raised some £30,000 for our funds in the last six years alone. These teas go back to the start of the Friends, and the tea team built up, deservedly so, a loyal clientele. The teas in the House are already sorely missed by Members and others, and we feel that they should be reintroduced. There seems to be plenty of demand to satisfy the needs of the proprietors of the cafe, and we shall continue to press the Council to bring back teas in the House.
To mark the ending of the teas we have produced a book of cake recipes by members of the team. This booklet was prepared by Wendy Hibbit to whom we are most grateful, and its sale has proved a welcome boost to our funds. Barbara is currently working her way through all the cake recipes, but this has produced an unwelcome boost to my midriff! The recipes are truly delicious ...
Membership has continued to increase and now stands at 553 - over 600 when the 'family' memberships are taken into account. Our funds too are in excellent shape with assets of nearly £35,000 although against this must be set commitments of £15,000. We are, however, beginning to see the diminution in our income that I mentioned last year. First, the monthly income from the teas stopped in February and, second, the net receipts from our social activities have also fallen because of the increased hire fees imposed by the Council. Your committee will continue to seek ways of boosting our income for the benefit of the Estate.
We have made a significant number of purchases for the House and Estate this year. We restored some antique mirrors which now hang upstairs in the House, and purchased the nineteenth century French mantle clock that you can see here in the Banqueting Room. We have also purchased a Regency-style torchere (that's a stand to you and me) for the Dining Room. Outside the House we bought three new-style benches for the Park, one in memory of Betty Woods. Our major expenditure has been to restore the clock over the Stable Block, so it's chimes now ring out over the House and grounds as they last did over seventy years ago. Lastly, we have commissioned a new ornamental gateway to the 'One World' garden which the Council is building to commemorate the Scout's International Jubilee which will be held in the Park this summer. This is a very impressive list of purchases and we can all be proud that we are able to make such a tangible contribution to 'our' House.
The Newsletter has continued to provide information, both topical and controversial, for Members. We are very pleased that our Editor's particular campaign for an exhibition in the House to show it's links with the wartime SAS Regiment is about to bear fruit. Our website is now up to date and packed with information, thanks to the efforts of John Fildes.
We were very pleased to host a visit from members of the Friends of Valentines Mansion, Ilford which is about to be restored. They learnt a great deal from our experience, and we wish them well in their project.
I should like to record my appreciation of the work of all my fellow Committee members, and also, of course, for the active interest which you, Madam President, continue to take in our affairs. They all work very hard to make the Friends the sucessful, and enjoyable society that it is today. Sadly, we say goodbye to one of our newer members, Marian Williamson, and my best wishes are extended to her.
The major work to rescue and restore Hylands is now complete. The Friends can claim a major role in this success. But it is never time to rest on our laurels. We shall need to seek alternative sources of income, and continue to provide a broad and popular programme for our members. We have a vital role as Friends to protect what we have gained, to promote the use of the House and Park by all, and to provide funds for the inevitable 'extras' which others may not be able to do.
I, and all the members of the Committee, thank you and all our members most warmly for your continuing support.