Newsletter
August 2012
Guided Tour of Farnham, Tuesday 11 September
This visit gives members and guests the opportunity to
meet members of the Farnham Society and hear about
the way Farnham Maltings have been saved and new
uses found for buildings no longer required for their
original purpose. This is where we have lunch.
On our way back to Rye we will visit the Farnham
Pottery at Wrecclesham, now one of the best
preserved examples of a working Victorian country
pottery left in England. It is the home of a number of
potters with work for sale and also where Smith &
Causey have a Coffee Shop and sell fresh local food.
More details and a booking form are with this
newsletter.
Society’s 40th Anniversary Tuesday 18 September
To mark our 40th anniversary this year, the Society is
sponsoring a talk which will take place as part of the
Rye Arts Festival on Tuesday 18th September at 3 pm
at the Methodist Church.
Dr David Heathcote will speak about The Shell Guides
to Kent and East Sussex and tickets for his talk can be
obtained from the Festival box office at Phillips &
Stubbs.
That evening, Dr Heathcote will be our guest of honour
at an anniversary dinner to be held at The Mermaid
Inn, and we are delighted to say that our President Sir
Donald Sinden will also attend.
Details and a booking form are with this Newsletter
Lion St Buildings Saved For Public Use
Rye Conservation Society is delighted that the long
saga of the former FE Centre in Lion Street has finally
drawn to a close, with the exciting and very welcome
news that the purchase of the site by St Mary’s Church
and the Fletcher in Rye group was completed in July.
This much loved and historic group of former school
buildings in a prime site in the citadel are set to return
to community use having been left empty for well over
a year.
The Church plans to use buildings in the front half of
the site as a church hall, which it hopes to have up and
running in September, with rooms once again available
for hire to user groups, many of which were
unceremoniously kicked out of the buildings over a
year and a half ago. At the time of writing the Church
was still finalising its plans, but it is expected that there
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will be wide availability of rooms to hire and the pricing
will be competitive.
And the Fletcher Group can now proceed with its
exciting plans to turn the buildings at the rear of the
site, including the former Library, into a state of the art
digital cinema, which will see ‘the pictures’ returning to
Rye for the first time in over half a century. It is
understood that once building work has been
completed, running of the cinema will be by the Kino
group, which has enjoyed considerable success in its
operation at Hawkhurst, which is in a sympathetically
converted historic building.
Over two years ago the Principal of Sussex Coast
College Hastings, which had bought the buildings and
site for just £1 from East Sussex County Council,
announced the FE Centre was to close without public
consultation and that it was to be sold for redevelopment as luxury housing, involving the
demolition of the Victorian art room block at the rear of
the site. “It is done and dusted,” the College Principal
told the Rye Town Meeting. Objections came from all
quarters of the town, and Rye Conservation Society
formally objected in the strongest possible terms to the
plans, which would have involved the destruction of
historic buildings and loss of public amenity.
“We welcome the return to public use of these historic
buildings in the civic centre,” says John Griffiths. “And
we wish the Church and the Fletcher in Rye group
every success in their ambitions which should benefit
all the community”.
The Rye Fund
The Rye Fund played an important and valuable role in
the purchase of the freehold at Lion Street by Fletcher
in Rye. £35,000 was channelled through the Rye
Fund, with donations from individuals attracting gift aid
that would otherwise have been unavailable should the
donors have given the money straight to the Fletcher
in Rye Community Interest Company.
The Rye Fund is a charity which was set up by local
people as a method of raising money that is then
channelled to voluntary organisations in Rye and the
surrounding district. It makes annual awards to a wide
range of local bodies with grant funding up to a
maximum of £1,000 for each individual application.
Rye Fund Chairman Kenneth Bird says: “Through
generous donations we have built an endowment fund
that now stands at £90,000, which is held by Sussex
Community Foundation.
“But we also act as a conduit for organisations such as
Fletcher in Rye, which enables donations to be made
tax-efficiently directly to the stipulated organisation.”
The Rye Fund is grateful for all the support it has
received so far, but its objective is to grow the fund so
more and larger Awards can be made to help voluntary
organisations doing valuable work in and around Rye.
Therefore, it is always looking for generous donors in
order to develop the fund and thereby help its work.
Periodically the government announces match funded
initiatives, whereby donations are increased by 50%
plus gift aid through the ‘Community First’ initiative.
And Sussex Community Foundation is participating in
the Sussex Match Challenge for Local Giving.com,
which enables donors to support local charities by
online giving. To find out more about these initiates go
to the SCF website www.sussexgiving.org.uk.
Another way to support the Rye Fund is to make a
bequest and advice can be sought from Janet
Ormerod at Sussex Community Foundation – call her
on 01273 409440 or email
Janet.Ormerod@sussexgiving.org.uk
At the same time as seeking donations, the Rye Fund
is eager for more organisations to come forward to
apply for Awards – just go to www.theryefund.org.uk
for more information.
The Rye Conservation Society appreciates and
endorses the work of the Rye Fund because the
Society is not itself a fund raising organisation while
much of the conservation of Rye relies upon sufficient
funds being available of which the saving of the FEC
buildings is an excellent example.
Winchelsea Bridge Building
John Spencer, the chairman of Winchelsea
Conservation Society, recently accepted an invitation
and then attended a committee meeting of Rye
Conservation Society. He talked informally about the
WCS and its aims and concerns, and the RCS
committee members in return provided him with
information about your Society.
After a very engaging and informative exchange, it was
agreed that John Spencer would report back to his
committee and hopefully gain their agreement that
both Societies will engage to work together in the
future in areas of common interest.
John Griffiths, chairman of Rye Conservation Society,
says: “Clearly, our two towns share a very close
relationship but nevertheless fiercely independent
status going back hundreds of years, and I am glad
that John Spencer agrees that our two Societies,
which have so much in common, should work together
more closely in the future.
“This isn’t a formal arrangement; it is more a case of
creating closer links so that when an issue arises that
has an impact on both towns we will talk to each other
and, where appropriate, take independent but linked
action.
“In addition, it provides both Societies with an
increased chance to share knowledge, experience,
contacts and ideas. This could prove extremely
valuable in the near future as the Government’s new
but very unclear planning rules come into effect.”
The Winchelsea Conservation Society is arranging a
public meeting on 13 October for its members to
discuss planning matters with representatives of
Rother District Council and members of the Rye
Conservation Society Committee have been invited to
attend. If you wish to attend please telephone John
Spencer on 07957 971332.
Planning Matters
Advertising Signs
We are still frustrated by the interpretations placed by
the authorities on legislation governing commercial
advertising on both listed buildings and unlisted
buildings within conservation areas. An example is the
Globe Inn in Military Road, where signs that we regard
as unacceptable have recently been erected. As they
are less than 1.2 square metres in area, they are
regarded by Rother as having "deemed consent", as
they relate to "...any hotel, inn or public house...". We
are querying this interpretation, but are not hopeful of
any satisfactory outcome.
Another example of this problem is The White Vine in
High Street, where we are awaiting- and have been for
some months - the verdict of Rother's conservation
officer regarding the two plastic signs at either side of
the entrance, plus the replacement of a granite paving
step.
Road Signage
After negotiations with East Sussex County Council's
Highways Office, the sign at the top of Tower Street
which effectively compelled HGVs to go through the
Landgate Arch has been replaced by one which is
marginally more acceptable, but which still does not
prohibit such movement. The out-of-date sign at the
approach to Landgate has been retained. This problem
will not be resolved until the width restriction in
Landgate has been removed, to which end we are still
in negotiation with the Council.
Meanwhile, we are still awaiting a "Spring Inspection"
of the Arch by Rother; we have had an apology for the
delay, due to "staff cuts".
Land South of Rock Channel
Alleged unlawful activity at the river bank south of
Rock Channel has been reported by members, and we
have Rother's assurance that the area is being
regularly monitored before enforcement action is
taken. We will continue to monitor Rother's monitoring!
This is an excellent example of members' involvement
in reporting any development which is regarded as
being detrimental to the town's character and
ambience, and we would urge members to continue to
be vigilant.
_____________________________________________________
Published by Rye Conservation Society
Honorary Secretary: Judith O’Connor,
The Mill House, Beacon Lane, Rye, TN31 6PJ
email: ryeconservationsociety@sky.com
www.ryeconservationsociety.org
Registered Charity No 283888
Editor Andy Stuart
Publicity and Membership Secretary
Little Orchard House, 3 West Street, Rye TN31 7ES
email: nikiandandy@hotmail.co.uk