Society Minutes
Minutes of 2025 AGM – 7:00 p.m. 24th October at St Nicholas School Hall
71 attended.
Apologies were received from Victor Boardman, Gaby Hoekstra and Nick Willson.
Welcome and Intro
Ivor Fiennes, Chairman, welcomed those present.
He spoke of the importance of having a strong sense of community, at a time when the overall political and international scene was so poor and hope for improvements were hard to find.
The main role of the Society was to support village activities and fill gaps, if appropriate – VE Day, Easter Event and the Cricket Match were 2025 examples.
The Society remains committed to helping to protect Hurst from inappropriate developments. He thanked Lou Robinson for the work that PHAG had done over the last 5 years and gave credit to WBC for their support to the village.
The Society did not intend to build up funds. It would keep a small reserve for emergencies but would otherwise use surplus fund to make small contributions to support the village.
He thanked those present and encouraged everyone to use the open session at the end to let Committee members know if they supported the approach that was being taken.
Membership & Finance
Richard Boyden said that membership numbers are just under 180 and are increasing gradually. More members would be welcomed and he encouraged any non-members to leave their name and email address.
He stressed the excellent value of the £10 membership which went towards the newsletter, the website, email tools, liability insurance and donations to village causes.
The Skills Register is important and he encouraged new people to join the 10 businesses already on the Register. The cost of £35 covered exposure on the website and in the newsletter and the Society is open to finding other ways to promote them.
Robin West, as Treasurer, presented key points on income and expenditure from the accounts for the 9 months to September which are available for all to see on the Society website. As expected, membership was the main contributor to Society funds, with £1,640 received by end September. Events, covered in the What’s On section, had brought in a net £677. These had been used to make £700 recent donations to the School, Bowling Club and Hurst Hookers, and to fund the printing of the village magazine which cost £858. The balance had enabled the Society to pay the deposit for the Christmas Dinner Dance which was being organised again with the School PTA, and would be repaid with the income from the evening.
What’s On
Rob Savage told the meeting about the Society’s activities in 2025, including CPR training, Easter trail, VE day celebrations, Archery at the Hurst Show and the charity cricket match. Special thanks to Anja Lamond for all she did on promoting and organising these. The last event of the year will be the village Dinner Dance on 13th December – with the majority of any profits going to the PTA. Tickets are still available.
He congratulated Jacqui Watts on the recent excellent Newsletter. The copy deadline for the January 2026 e-zine is 12th December. Jacqui would be happy to help write any contributions.
The Society is keen to work with all village societies and groups with cooperative fund-raising. We have an ambition to create a shared calendar for the main village events.
Plans for 2026 were to repeat a number of the successful 2025 events. A race night was planned for February, in the Village Hall.
Rob and Pippa gave heartfelt thanks to all who volunteered this year.
WBC Finances & Planning – Stephen Conway, Leader of WBC
A comprehensive update was provided by Stephen Conway on the current financial position of Wokingham Borough Council. There is a proposed cut of £47m in the central government grant. The Council are trying to persuade the government to moderate their approach to the restructure and have formed a strategic coalition with other councils and Reading University (to assist with data).
The two recent appeals affecting Hurst were touched upon; on the Tape Lane appeal, all the reasons submitted by the council for refusal were endorsed by the Inspector. On the appeal for the proposed 9 dwelling development on Whistley Green, the Inspector took cognizance of the evidence provided by residents. Ecology and wildlife corridors were a factor in both appeals.
A 5-year plan for housing supply is currently being drafted by WBC, as required by Central Government. There would be some negotiation on the proposed Local Plan, but progress so far was good. Under the current and the new plan, Hurst is one of the areas with heightened levels of protection to protect green belt, recreation and open countryside.
Election of Committee
Our rules state that the Committee should be reappointed at least annually. All current Committee members were willing to continue. The vote to appoint was proposed by Penny Curry and seconded by Richard Wilton. The vote was passed unanimously.
AOB and Questions
A question was asked about the parking problems on the A321 caused by rail travellers. Stephen Conway explained the actions that were currently being taken.
During the open session, it was suggested that microphones should be used next year.
Conclusion
Ivor Fiennes thanked the Committee and all the volunteers. He encouraged anyone who wished to join the Committee or volunteer to make their interest known
Members were thanked for their support and the positive atmosphere at the meeting.
The formal part of the meeting ended and those attending were encouraged to remain to talk to
Minutes of 2024 AGM – 7:00 p.m. 18th October at Hurst Cricket Club
85 attended of whom 11 were non-members
Apologies were received from Robin West, Treasurer
Welcome and Intro
Ivor Fiennes, Acting Chairman, welcomed those present and outlined the format of the meeting.
He spoke of the contribution that the Society could make to the sense of community in Hurst. There was an impressively large range of groups and activities in the village and the Society’s main role was to support these in any way it could.
The intention of the society is to reflect members’ views on planning and he spoke of the depth of skills that were available within the village and the need to cooperate effectively.
He drew attention to Tony Robinson’s role on the Committee as liaison/non-voting for the Parish Council and the importance of co-operation of all those involved in village affairs.
What’s On
Rob Savage introduced himself and the rest of the What’s On group – Gaby Hoekstra, Pippa Boyd and Anja Lamond.
The group planned to host 3-4 events each year, including the Dinner Dance. It would try to avoid clashes with other events and respond to as many requests for help as it could.
The Society would support all village activities – on the NHVS website, Newsletter and emails.
The group was looking for help with the production and co-ordination of the six-monthly newsletter; the first one would be electronic, with subsequent ones printed.
The group was looking for more volunteers and welcomed everyone’s involvement.
Planning
Nick Willson introduced himself and the other two planning group members, Clare Woodward and Russell Phillips.
He said that NHVS is the membership, not just the Committee. Consultation was a priority. The Planning Group would be led by the WBC plan and provide guidance on developments accordingly. The Group would consult with the Parish Council, PHAG and other interested parties.
The group was meeting key people better to understand the technical aspects of planning.
Membership & Finance
Victor Boardman stated we’ve had an excellent response to membership sign-up with 132 households registering already. Our goals was 150 by the year end. He thanked those who have registered and asked that members promoted the new society to all their neighbours.
The cost of annual membership had been set at a very reasonable £10 per annum payable 1st Jan every year. Payments had been received from 79 members so far. He thanked those who had made an additional contribution. The Society now has £1,355 in the bank, including the £525 raised from the Hurst Show archery stand. Members with payments outstanding would be contacted by email. Expenditure to date is £90. These details will be available on the website by the end of October, as would be the AGM minutes.
Richard Boyden encouraged any local businesses to contact him about joining the Skills Register. The intention of the Society is actively to promote local businesses in the coming year on our website and in the newsletters. The Skills Register annual fee is £35.
Election of Committee
The Society’s rules state that the Committee should be reappointed at least annually. The vote to appoint was proposed by Duncan Kendall and seconded by Lou Robinson. The vote was passed
.
Vote on Aims & Rules
At launch, a vote to adopt the Society’s Aims & Rules was promised. The vote to adopt was proposed by Ken Curry and seconded by John Penney. The vote was passed.
AOB and Questions
Ivor Fiennes asked that one of the Committee be contacted if anyone was willing to act as Secretary, to help organise meetings, take minutes, make sure members’ emails were answered and odds and ends of admin. Additional support was needed from people who could help with spreadsheets, Mailchimp, WordPress and Website design.
There was no AOB from the attendees.
Conclusion
Ivor Fiennes thanked the Committee and Planning Group. He also gave particular thanks to Duncan Kendall for his excellent work in setting up the website and Russell Phillips for its continuing development.
Members were thanked for their positive support and the great atmosphere at the meeting.
The formal part of the meeting ended and those attending were encouraged to remain to talk to Committee and Planning Group Members in a ‘break-out’ session.