The History of Wells Evening Society
Concept
During the spring of 2005 three individuals Rodney Dodds, Chris Hann and Sara Whitehouse floated an idea amongst themselves concerning the formation of a new National Association of Decorative and Fine Arts Society (NADFAS) based on the City of Wells. All three were (and two of them still are) members of one of two NADFAS societies which continue to hold regular monthly lecture presentations at the Royal Bath and West Showground near Shepton Mallet, about 12 miles from Wells.
There was a perceived need to provide an opportunity for those with little or no knowledge of NADFAS, and especially young people who would normally be unable to attend traditional NADFAS Society meetings, to enjoy such events. In the case of the two local societies to which reference is made, meetings take place during the working day. Hence the idea of an Evening Society was born.
From the outset, there was the desire to create a society in which members were encouraged to socialise and this was among the criteria in mind when looking for possible venues. Wells Town Hall was eventually chosen because of its central position, the seating capacity of its fine meeting chamber and the existence of a large foyer in which members could meet and converse before each lecture. There were known to be some further advantages as well as several disadvantages in this choice.
'Market Research'
During the summer of 2005 plans were laid to make extensive soundings amongst the population of Wells and the surrounding area. These included the compilation of lists of friends and acquaintances who might be interested and the preparation of an information sheet outlining the proposed objectives. It was highly fortuitous at this stage that the initial three were able to engage the interest of a fourth member – Gordon Mills – whose enthusiasm and expert knowledge of business, computers and audiovisual systems has proved invaluable.
The Way Ahead
By the late autumn, it was becoming clear that there was likely to be sufficient support to make the proposed society financially viable. This was judged on the basis of a minimum membership of 120 (meeting minutes 10th November 2005), an annual membership fee of £30 per person (comparable with similar societies in the locality) and a programme of six lectures. Once the group had accepted that the scheme was likely to be successful, a number of rapid decisions and actions followed. First, the preparation of a lecture programme with a starting date of autumn 2006 (Appendix 1). This had involved deciding and booking dates for the use of the Town Hall and identifying and booking lecturers – a process much helped by the experience the group had had within Mid-Somerset DFAS. Second, the refinement of objectives and agreeing the kind of charitable organisation to be formed, including the structure of what, at this stage was termed a 'Steering Committee'. NADFAS headquarters, which during the summer had been informed of the intention to form a new society, was helpful in providing advice and encouragement.
For a variety of reasons the meeting day for the society was chosen as the first Thursday in each month. Early in 2006, invitations were sent out to over two hundred postal and e-mail addresses seeking a commitment to join the society later in the year. Copies of the invitation were handed out at meetings and some were placed in local libraries (Appendix 2).
Economics
Initial planning, based on a projected membership of around 140 and a £30 membership fee, would yield an annual income of £4,200. This would need to cover hall hire, lecturer's fees and expenses, the organisation's running costs, insurance and any necessary capital expenditure for projection and other equipment. Assessment of the equipment available within the Town Hall and of items that might be borrowed or hired revealed gaps and a potential need to spend in excess of £1,000 in order to ensure presentations of an acceptable quality. While some help in the form of grants from NADFAS was likely to be available, negotiations with this organisation ran into difficulties because of a requirement that, in addition to a registration fee, the society would have to pay an affiliation charge of over £1,500 in January 2007 i.e. within four months of its inaugural lecture. Following a careful cost / benefit analysis and failed efforts to get this ruling modified, the steering committee decided to abandon its NADFAS membership application – although not ruling out reapplication at a later date. This decision cut the society off from some benefits, particularly a valuable source of detailed information on potential lecturers. However this resulted in a development of skills within the committee using a range of other information sources, including the internet. One benefit of independence has been to enable development to proceed outside the constraints that NADFAS membership would have imposed – another has been to release around one third of the membership fee to support and enhance services for members.
Consolidation
In the spring of 2006 one of the founding trio, Rodney Dodds, was in the process of moving away from the locality and subsequently he took no further part in the organisation. At this time a society logo was designed and refined, some press publicity was obtained and a bank account was opened in the society's name. Detailed assessments by Gordon Mills confirmed the need to acquire a suitable equipment. It had also become obvious that that available projector screens were too small for the sizes of audience that were expected. Efforts to encourage the City of Wells Town Council to fit a large pull-down screen, or to agree an installation of such a screen largely financed by the society, failed. This resulted in the decision to purchase a 12 ft x 12 ft portable screen that would need to be erected for each lecture and disassembled afterwards. Fortunately, the Town Hall management helpfully agreed that this, and other purchased items of equipment including a slide projector, stand and lectern. could be stored within the Town Hall.
Those who had responded to the invitation to become founder members were sent invoices during May and June and, as subscriptions were received, membership cards were dispatched. By the date of the first lecture (October 3rd 2006), membership stood at 223. A cautious approach was needed on membership numbers because of a maximum seating capacity for Wells Town Hall of about 240. For this reason a membership waiting list had to be established.
To help meet one of the objectives of encouraging a friendly social atmosphere within the society the steering group laid plans to sell wine and soft drinks in the Town Hall foyer prior to each lecture. Fortunately the Town Hall had the necessary facilities and license and the society was able to find willing helpers within its membership.
The first season
During the summer, the first speaker on our programme had to withdraw, however he was able to suggest a suitable substitute. This, together with the discovery that the date of the second lecture had to be put back by a week because of an annual fair in the town square (just in front of the Town Hall) resulted in the need to send an appropriate letter to each member. The revised programme is shown in the revue of lectures for 2006-07.
In the lead up to the first meeting, practice sessions were conducted to test equipment and work out logistics. Use was made of the Town Hall's audio equipment, but the projector stand and lectern had to be adapted to suit our needs. The erection of the portable screen proved an initial challenge and, although over time helpers have come forward to assist before and after each lecture, the task is a continuing one.
The first lecture (October 5th) was given by David Battie (a frequent member of the BBC Television Antiques Road Show programme). This well presented PowerPoint presentation entitled My favourite things – Antiques attracted an audience of 176 and set the society off to a good start.
As the season progressed, the attendance pattern became more predictable and the society was able to allow more to join. Membership reached a total of 263 by January 2007.
Although repeatedly assured by staff that societies such as ours were covered by the Town Hall's Public Liability insurance policy, it was eventually discovered not to be the case. Consequently, Wells Evening Society took out a policy that met its needs and complimented the policy held by the Town Hall.
With the first AGM set for the 1st March, 2007 the steering committee worked on a constitution during the autumn and winter of 2006. One objective was to ensure wider scope for diversity in future programmes than would have been possible as a NADFAS member organisation. Thus the term cultural heritage was adopted to define the society's area of interest. Other objectives included eventual formal recognition as a charity, the embodiment of both 'not for profit' and democratic principles and in making the society open to all.
Other activities during the autumn and winter were the finalisation of the programme for the second season, see Lecture Reviews for 2007-08, the planning of a spring visit to London, Trip Reviews 2007, and a summer visit to Cothay Manor, near Taunton, Trip Reviews 2007.
The papers for the first AGM, including the first year's certified accounts, AGM folder, confirm the success of the venture and the establishment of an adequate financial reserve. The self appointed steering group became formally elected as the society's committee.
The three-day visit to London proved very successful, as did the later one-day visit to Cothay Manor. In both cases experience was gained and led to the preparation of a checklist to help those involved in the organisation of future visits.
The second season
One of the steering group's initial ambitions was to stage a series of eight lectures, so the 2007 08 programme was based on a sequence from October to May. In the event, options to meet in May had to be abandoned and the eighth lecture was brought forward into late April.
Over the first season the audio system provided by the Town Hall had failed to meet expectations and it had become clear that the society should purchase its own more powerful and up-to-date loudspeakers and a sound control system for a further expenditure of over £1,000. This has proved an excellent investment and enabled the quality of the sound to equate with the high quality of the visual images that could be projected.
As reported in the papers for the second AGM, the season was judged very successful, with sustained membership and modest progress in building a reserve. A disturbing factor was discussed at the meeting, namely the reluctance of members to offer to serve on the committee. The existing committee was anxious that the future of the society should be safeguarded by ensuring that there was a proper succession and that the terms of office for committee membership set out in the constitution should be observed. To date there had had to be considerable doubling up of functions placing extra responsibilities on some members. At the time of this report, the limited response has given encouragement, but not enough to fully alleviated the situation.
Two visits were again organised – three-day visit to Stratford on Avon, Trips Review 2008, and a day visit to Ugbrooke House near Exeter, Trips Review 2008. Both were well supported and very successful.
During the autumn an approach to the Charity Commission and the subsequent advice resulted in the society needing to make changes to the constitution. Eventually a mutually acceptable revision was prepared and this was finally agreed at an Extraordinary General Meeting of the society on April 24th 2008, see Constitution folder. Charity status was finally granted on 3rd June, 2008 (Charity number 1124321) and subsequently the society's reserves were invested with COIF Charity Funds.
The future
The prospects for the next season look good with membership renewal up to expectations. The outstanding problem, referred to in the preceding section and currently being experienced by many similar organisations, is that of finding members willing to serve on the committee.
Chris Hann
Hon Sec July, 2008