The AGM of Maidenhead Heritage Trust was held on 28 September.  Trustee Harry Wale deputised for Chairman Richard Poad and reported a year of substantial progress.  On the all-important financial front, income and expenditure, and the balance sheet were all in good shape. Curator Nick Forder’s report showed good progress towards having our Accreditation status renewed by Arts Council England and told us that the Heritage Centre includes over 6000 accessioned objects on our database. The Education Officer Jon Dance-Groom reported increases in our schools, families and youth groups programmes, with 35 school sessions delivered in 2015/16.   The ATA Gallery meanwhile has seen growth in visitors and income, and  competitive Spitfire simulator events are being introduced for corporate and private groups.

Looking ahead, the York Road development scheme gives us the prospect of a substantial increase in floor space, in a newly constructed building. Initial thoughts on the vision for our new Centre call for an expansion of our current Maidenhead Timeline exhibition, plus a themed Transport and Maidenhead displays. These could cover the River Thames and the town’s origin as Maiden Hythe; rail with the links to the bridge, Brunel and the GWR; road with the stage coach station, the Vanwall racing car and other cars made in Maidenhead; plus, of course flight, with our Air Transport Auxiliary and White Waltham links and the Spitfire simulator. Plans are underway to develop this vision both in written and concept design form to further our discussions on the York Road scheme with the Borough and its 5 short-listed development partners.

Christopher Hobbs was elected as a new Trustee. Christopher has a background in marketing and is a keen car enthusiast. He owns several classic cars and was one of the people who curated our popular exhibition about Maidenhead’s Motor Industry in 2014.  The photo shows him at the wheel of the 1930s car the Crossley Burney, based on the Maidenhead built Burney Streamline.

Warmest congratulations to all the Maidenhead athletes who took part in the Olympic and Paralympic Games at Rio – and brought home an amazing haul of medals.

In the Olympic Games, Helen Richardson-Walsh, Kate Richardson-Walsh and Hannah MacLeod took Gold in the Women’s Hockey. On the water, Helen Glover took Gold in the coxless pairs with Heather Stanning and Liam Heath won gold in the men’s 200m canoe sprint.  Liam also took silver with Jon Schofield in the men’s K2 200m and Katherine Grainger, rowing in her fifth successive Olympic Games, took Silver in the women’s Double Sculls with Victoria Thornley.

In the inspiring Paralympic Games, golden success came for dressage rider Sophie Christiansen (winning THREE golds)) and canoeist Jeanette Chippington (participating in her sixth Paralympics at the age of 46)), while single sculler Tom Aggar won a bronze medal in the ASM1x single sculls.  On wheels, Katie-George Dunleavy, who competed for Ireland but lives in Maidenhead and is visually impaired, won gold in the women’s B 30km tandem road trial alongside pilot Eve McCrystal and silver in the women’s B 1000km tandem road time trial.

That’s an awful lot of medals for a single town!  Let’s hope the Mayor gives all the athletes a civic reception at the Town Hall.

On Thursday 18 August between 10am and 3pm volunteers from Maidenhead Heritage Centre will be at the Friends of Maidenhead shop in the Nicholsons Shopping Centre in the middle of Maidenhead.  In particular we want to discover what people who have never visited the Heritage Centre would like to see in their local museum.  If you are one of our ‘non-users’ please call in and talk to us!  From 1pm to 3pm our learning officer will be running FREE craft sessions for children.