July 3rd 2010

When I prepared last year’s annual report, it was not clear what would happen to the civic society movement following the demise of the Civic Trust. Of particular concern was the future of NWacts, given that it no longer had a regular income. In the event, we have been able to continue with the help of a number of generous donations from various sources.

As anticipated, the past year has been dominated by the efforts of the Civic Societies Initiative to establish a new organisation for local societies. Regrettably, it was not considered desirable, by those putting the proposals together, to incorporate regional associations and they were largely disregarded. The recently-created Civic Voice does, however, make provision for them to join as non-voting members. The result is that the movement has become fragmented, and many societies remain unsure whether to join Civic Voice and pay an increased registration fee, the Regional Association for an agreed smaller amount, to join both, or have no involvement whatsoever. This is the kind of uncertainty which the chairmen of the established regional associations had foreseen, and is why they did not attempt to create an alternative organisation which could have caused even more confusion.

While there was so much discussion and debate about the future of the movement, it was not easy to determine what role the regional associations could and should play. In the prevailing circumstances, your committee has tried to be impartial and provide a stable organisation capable of supporting and representing local societies. This is similar to the situation in at least four other regions that are properly constituted, with an elected committee and an on-going programme of activities. However, it is understood that several of the newly-elected trustees of Civic Voice are sympathetic to the situation for regional associations, and it is hoped that its constitution can in due course be amended to provide an acceptable working relationship with them.

As in previous years, we held an Autumn Gathering, this time in Lancaster and Morecambe, so it had a special emphasis on coastal towns. It was particularly interesting to visit both the restored Midland Hotel and the unrestored Winter Gardens, which are equally worthy of similar investment. The other main event of the year was organised jointly by the regional association and the Association of Small Historic Towns and Villages (ASHTAV). It dealt with the urgent need for homes and jobs in rural areas and how existing buildings of character may be re-used for this purpose. These are not necessarily listed buildings, since there are many that are not on any list, yet they enhance the character of both rural and urban areas. This is very clearly spelled out in the recently-issued PPS 5 Planning for the Historic Environment, with which all societies will need to become familiar.

Work on the Regional Integrated Strategy (RS 2010) has been progressing and through our membership of North West Environmental Link (NWEL) it has been possible for me to participate in efforts to retain the important environmental policies that we worked hard to have incorporated in the present Regional Spatial Strategy (RSS). It was intended that the process of integrating the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategies would be completed later this year, but until more information becomes available, it is not certain what status the document will have, if any, given the outcome of the general election and the uncertainty surrounding the future of various forms of regional and sub-regional administration. The whole structure is becoming more complex with the establishment of City Regions and Multi Area Agreements, and civic societies will need to be alert to these changes and how they will affect their locality.

In the present period of transition, it is important for the association to help provide societies with the information and support that they want. To enable us to do this, the association has now registered with Civic Voice, has become a member of the Heritage Alliance and Urban Forum and also has links with the Rural Service Community, so that we can access the wide range of services provided by these bodies. Our membership of North West Environmental Link and North West Heritage Environment Forum makes it possible for us to work with other like-minded groups, so that our views are taken into account by decision-making bodies. We are also hoping to develop our contacts with the other various built environmental organisations in the region, such as the Victorian Society, in order to create a network for the exchange of information regarding events, meetings, conferences, exhibitions etc. This, like working with CPRE, ASHTAV, and the Historic Towns Forum, is not the kind of activity that would be easy for individual societies to undertake.

There is inevitably a cost incurred in fulfilling this role, and it is therefore necessary for the association to ask member societies to pay an annual subscription. Last year, it was suggested that £40pa would cover our anticipated expenditure and, since this is similar to that which is being levied by other regional associations, this is the proposal which will be recommended for adoption at the forthcoming AGM. We are endeavouring to keep the cost as low as possible because we are aware that many societies have a limited income, and we wish to offer those that decide not to join Civic Voice a way of maintaining contact with the rest of the movement. We have also investigated various alternative insurance packages, and can suggest a number of reasonably-priced options that societies could purchase independently until such time as sufficient numbers permit putting together a group policy.

Maintaining contact with all the local societies in the region is an ongoing challenge, even with modern communication technology. We have a website and wherever possible use e-mail to reduce the cost of postage. Over the past few months, a number of Bulletins have been issued to help keep societies up to date with the rapidly-changing situation and, as I mentioned last year, each member of the committee has been asked to establish personal contact with a group of local societies. However, it is important that societies do respond, so that we know whether you are getting the information that is interesting and useful to you or whether you would prefer the association to provide something else – after all it is YOUR association.

Peter Colley Chairman 2009/2010