7pm in Droxford Church
Chairman: Revd Tony Forrest
All are welcome to this public meeting on Thursday 6th October, which will be an opportunity to learn about the progress on the Heritage Lottery Fund project to restore the church, and plans for the creation of a Community Hub and Heritage centre for Droxford and the Meon Valley.
Open Meetings were held in March and June 2015 in Droxford Church. Further details are available on request to info@friendsofdroxfordchurch.org.uk.
The presentations on the future of the church building and the Heritage Lottery Fund application were well received and were followed by a full question and answer session.
Our beautiful Norman church is in need of urgent repairs, and our success in attracting Heritage Lottery Funds to restore it depends on our ability to demonstrate its value for the Village as a community hub and heritage centre, as well as continuing to host traditional church services, weddings and funerals.
We invite everyone who cares for the future of this Grade-1 listed building in the heart of our village to register as a Friend on this website to keep in touch with the project, and share their ideas for future activities in the Church.
Chairman: John Symes
Executive Committee: Tony Hoile, John Dryden Brownlee, John Jack, Michael Profit, Peter Richardson. (Apologies – Nick Capon) Attendees: approx 35
Introduction
The Rector, Stuart Holt, gave a brief introduction and apologised for being unable to stay for the whole meeting. He emphasised the need for the whole community, Church and lay, to work together to secure the future of our historic church, and to consolidate our efforts around a single project encompassing both the repairs and the additional facilities as recommended by the Diocese.
Agenda
The Chairman introduced the Committee and gave a slide presentation, which can be viewed here “FODC Update May 2013” and which features the achievements in the past year since the Launch in May 2012. Members of the executive committee spoke to their respective sections:
+ Who we are
+ Our Vision – The Project
+ Restoration Phase and Faculty update
+ Community Hub (incl Plans and Drawings)
+ Membership and Website
+ Events and Fund-raising
+ Looking Forward
The full presentation is available on our website at www.friendsofdroxfordchurch.org.uk.
Discussion
The presentation was well received and a number of points were raised in discussion. The Chairman confirmed that FODC funds could be used for restoration projects as well as enhancements, provided that they fitted in with the overall objective of increasing community use of the church. It was suggested that a business case would be needed before the PCC made decisions on the new facilities, and this should include maintenance costs. The Chairman confirmed a draft business case was already in preparation. It was strongly recommended that FODC apply for charitable status, and this is being investigated by the Treasurer. A question was raised about potential loss of revenue to the Village Hall, and the Treasurer of the Village Hall committee said that this was not a major concern, and there were ongoing discussions with the FODC. In response to a question, the vice-Chairman of the PCC confirmed that the Faculty application for the restoration works had been rejected by the Diocesan Advisory Committee on the grounds that the specifications of the work were not supported in detail by a Church Architect, and that the DAC wanted to see one complete project including the addition of facilities to secure the long term future of the church. He advised that the PCC would discuss next steps at their meeting on 24th June.
FODC May 2013
