October Newsletter 2026 Part One

1. Welcome to October’s newsletter. We have now almost completed the exterior work on our Shed now and have the clearing up to do. Charlie ‘The Tip’ Farnes has already made one visit to the local tip with rubbish and am sure there will be more. Any help loading for the next trip would be appreciated. We are considering not returning the work bench in the exterior recreation area, but any suggestions as a replacement would be appreciated. With what left over materials we have, the ground leading round to the container workshop will be finished to match the new pathway. Am sure Bob Dickens will be pleased to return to his gardening and tidy up for the winter months and begin again in the spring. We have to be proud of what we now have as a building. There are still some interior projects outstanding including, most importantly, the flooring in the main workshop.

2. September 1st saw us meet for our AGM. Regret out of our membership only 16 with 4 apologies turned up. It is important to have an AGM as it gives the Committee a feel of how the Shed is running. After the formal meeting and coffee and biscuits we held an informal gathering and a few valid points came out of this for the Committee to consider. The consensus of those members present however; was they were happy with the way the WMS was being conducted. There was only one resolution and that was to raise the annual membership to £50:00. This was an item deferred from 2025 AGM. The vote to raise the membership fee was unanimously agreed by all in attendance. The make-up of the Committee was also changed. John Bowden, a staunch supporter of the Shed for many years in various roles, stood down as joint Vice Chairman however he stated he was happy to continue with his tool sales and fund raising via car boot sales and eBay. We thank him for the amount of work he has put in over the years. Paul Hale was voted unanimously to step in to the role of Vice Chairman.

3. For those new members who may not be aware of the Committee members I will list them:-

Chairman:- John Skerratt

Joint Vice Chairmen:- Paul Turner & Paul Hale

Treasurer:- Mark Taylor

Secretary:- David Allport

Social Secretary: Vacant. However, Peter Sanders is happy to continue to assist with a social programme, along with his

position as Almoner.

Co-opted Members: Derek Rustell and James Beacher

A new position, H&S advisor: Colin Donnelly