Please note that Minutes have been incorrectly

numbered since 2006, so 2014 is now correctly

termed the 62ndannual meeting

MINUTES OF THE 62ndANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

OF THE FRIENDS OF ST PAUL’S CATHEDRALHELD

ON WEDNESDAY 2nd JULY 2014IN THE “OBE” CHAPEL

  1. PRAYERS

The Chairman, the Very Reverend Dr David Ison, Dean of St Paul’s, welcomed everyone and opened the meeting with prayers for the Cathedral and for the Friends, using the Friends Prayer.

  1. APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE

Some150 Friends attended. Apologies for absence were received from:

The Lord Mayor of LondonMalcolm Pomeroy

The Lord Bishop of LondonPenelope Rafter

Robert AldousLinda Shepherd

Caroline BarnettMieko Shimada-Hamada

Dr Thomas & Dame Beulah BewleyJane Sladdin

Maureen Bonanno-SmithRodney Taylor

Anne BovettMargaret Thornton

Andy BrookesRichard Wildash

Patrick BuckinghamDr David Wright

Margaret HaynesRoger & Janet Jeal

Keith HuttonMr Don Lewis

  1. MINUTES OF THE 61stAGM HELD ON 3 JULY 2013

The Minutes were approved unanimously and signed by the Chairman.There were no matters arising.

  1. SECRETARY’S REPORT

RW welcomed everyone and asked for thoughts and prayers in particular for one absent Friend, Rodney Taylor, a member of Friends Council and a Wandsman, currently undergoing medical treatment, and hoped for his swift return to impart his usual wisdom upon deliberations. RW also confirmed that HRH The Duchess of Gloucester would beat the Festival evensong and recital and recorded that a card from the Friends for her recent birthday had been sent. She had also visited on 7 April to meet the volunteer needlework ladies working on the World War One altar frontal, soon to be displayed and will be hostingthe fundraising recital and reception in aid of the choristers, in Old Bailey, on 15 October (tickets £75 each).

He also welcomed our new Vice-Chairman, Canon Tricia Hillas, who has succeeded Bishop Michael Colclough as Canon Pastor here. Her smiling presence is most welcome, and he was sure her training and experience in conflict resolution would be useful! Bishop Michael continues as an assistant bishop in the London diocese but also in the Europe diocese - literally a flying Bishop!

On behalf of the Friends RW bade au revoir, but not farewell, to Maureen Bonanno- Smith as her period on the Friends Council had ended, thanking her for her help and interest in this, and as a Guide here. He also thanked Jackie Ross for her help as a member of Council until she had to resign on medical grounds last autumn, and wished her well. He then thanked all members of Council for their contributions and help throughout the year, and paid tribute to Ben Nikolay for all he does in the office for the Friends on events, memberships and general efficient dealings with all of the Friends – he is another of the Cathedral’s hidden treasures!

Over 230 Friends attended the wonderful Battle of the Organs evening here last October and this year’s second Friends lecture at Stationers Hall, given by Adrian Tinniswood on Wren, was a complete sell-out at just over 220. Two tours of Charterhouse and Founders livery hall, and back here for evensong, this May, were also full to capacity and further such trips are planned next year - but to bigger venues in order to accommodate the clear demand!

Still to come were trips to Royal Hospital Chelsea in September, a spirituality- themed talk by Canon Hillas in the Wren Suite on 8 October, a kind of “Desert Island Discs” here with Andrew Carwood and BBC Radio 3 and Proms presenter Katie Derham in conversation under the Dome on 17 November and then the Advent service and supper on Sunday 30 November.

RW then referred to Friends’ grants, often made possible by windfall legacies – a past significant one from Margaret Planner of some £350,000 largely enabled the fantastic £500,000 commitment by the Friends to the Chapter House top floor. Staff would be moving in the new year back into the newly-restored, almost re-built, Chapter House with its new top floor, known as the Friends Floor in view of the Friends’ magnificent contribution to the project. In 2013 a further £25,000 arrived from gifts in the Wills of kind Friends. The cathedral was most grateful to them for doing this and RW commended it to all Friends as a way of helping the cathedral in the very long-term and thereby leaving something of themselves in the cathedral.

The rolling annual grants to Schools & Families and to the choristership are tangible ways in which the Friends are bound in to the whole mission and outreach of St Paul’s. The Friends’ chorister Gabriel Ali would be reading one of the intercessions at the service. He wrote a charming thank you letter to the Friends last Christmas, as all the boys do to their benefactors. The Friends also help the Chorister Trust by taking the collection tonight in its favour – in 2013, that generated £1,555.

RW reminded Friends of the of the official criteria set out as long ago as 1957 and still followed by the Council today as they authorise grants:

  1. To assist the Dean and Chapter in maintaining the fabric of the Cathedral and its associated buildings
  2. To contribute to agreed measures for the improvement of the fabric or the ornaments and furnishings of the Cathedral
  3. To help maintain the musical foundation of St Paul’s
  4. To contribute towards the Library or other Cathedral activities
  5. To promote interest in St Paul’s and knowledge of its history and work

Membership numbers continued to be just under 3,000 with a general slight tendency downwards. RW pointed out that an increasing number others support the cathedral valuably in other ways without actually being Friends, whether as donors or patrons, or even as new text-givers. So, overall support was well up, which was pleasing.

RW described some new Friends’ recruitment and retention methods, including advertising on the back panel of the main visitor leaflet, and in more service booklets; inviting new Friends to an evensong and reception each January is working well and encourages their continued support for a second year and beyond.

Last year at the AGM, some time was taken to describe the Governance review and update initiated and unanimously approved by the Friends Council. RW summarised the key points:

  • The Friends’ constitutional documentation is now fully up-to date in terms of charity law and best practice;
  • The Chair need not always be the Dean but a member of Chapter will either be Chair or Vice-Chair and the strong link between Cathedral & Friends perpetuated;
  • The Chair and Treasurer will each serve for 2 years and can continue for 2 further years; members of Council each serve for 3 years which can be extended by a second term of 3 years;
  • There will continue to be 9 other members of Council, 3 nominated by Chapter and 6 elected by Friends; a Council meeting quorum will require one member of Chapter, 2 nominated members and 3 elected members;
  • Among the Council’s jobs are to review subscription levels, and assess and make specific grants to the cathedral from any net funds available;
  • Clear role specifications will soon now exist for the posts of Chairman (currently the Dean), Secretary (currently RW), Treasurer (currently the Registrar) and Assistant Treasurer (currently a colleague from the cathedral’s Accounts Department, Jack Henderson).

RW hoped Friends were reassured that they are represented by a body ensuring that their support and goodwill is in very safe hands.

Finally, he mentioned the issue of Dome (the second issue bearing that name, as it was for the first ten years known as A Record) of 50 years ago, 1964 - when subscriptions were just £1. The new pulpit, funded by the Friends and designed by the then Surveyor Lord Mottistone, with the canopy funded by the OBE, had just been installed and dedicated by the Bishop of London in the presence of The Queen Mother on 11 June. At the 2014 Festival service, during the final hymn, the new curtains in the side aisles would be dedicated by the Dean with the Bishop (Joint

President) in the presence of HRH The Duchess of Gloucester. These too were part-funded by the Friends.

He thanked the Friends for their Friendship and support. There were no questions.

  1. CHAIRMAN’S REPORT

The Dean firstly covered People, and Canon Tricia Hillas briefly introduced herself as new Canon Pastor, and Vice-Chairman of the Friends, and looked forward to meeting everyone. The cathedral community had welcomed Mrs Pim Baxter (Deputy Director of the National Portrait Gallery) and had said farewell to Ruth Moore after 19 years as Head of HR, and to Janet Marshall after 4 years as Head of Schools and Families, to be replaced by Donna McDowell. Money had been raised for a new full-time Director of the St Paul’s Institute, Barbara Ridpath, with a brief to develop further our social engagement with the world and the City. Jonathan Coore, the Succentor, is to become Vicar of Christ Church, Blackfriars. The Dean thanked all volunteers for their invaluable work in visitor welcome, guiding and befriending people.

As regards the Strategic Plan, the Dean described how Chapter now meets once a month rather than fortnight, and in the intervening fortnights visits a different department and chairs one of 4 sub-committees to encourage better inter-departmental work and prioritisation. The Collections department, for example, now organized lunchtime talks and pop-up exhibitions such as the one of WW1 memorabilia, to show and inspire people about aspects of the cathedral’s life, telling the story not only of the cathedral but also the Christian faith in London. With one-sixth of the population having some disability it is also felt to be important to build a stone ramp on the north side to improve access. The Library and Triforium will be opened up for educational interest and an aspiration is to move ticket sales out of the cathedral. The drains are at present the top priority for renovation.

The Friends’ funding of the hoist at the west end had greatly helped the work of the Works Department, and for paving sections of the Whispering Gallery had improved visitor access.

The Dean referred to the use of external screens in Paternoster Square relaying live Christmas services and the recent 20th anniversary of Women Priests service to greater numbers than the cathedral itself can hold. He also described some new initiatives such as the St Paul’s in your Pocket scheme through which people can now donate £5 a month by texting the gift to St Paul’s.

He had encouraged Council through the year to consider how we can engage with more people in different ways. Financially it had been a good year for the Cathedral with a net surplus helping reduce the Pension Fund deficit. Withdrawal from the London Pass scheme had had the double benefit of increasing income to the cathedral from fewer visitors, thus creating less stress on the cathedral from fewer visitors now entering. There were no questions.

  1. PRESENTATION OF ANNUAL REPORT AND ACCOUNTS

Jack Henderson (JH) presented the annual accounts for the year to 31 December 2013. He drew Friends’ attention to the pleasing increase in voluntary income from legacies and donations. Gift Aid had reduced owing to the need to claim onlyon donations. The 2013 events income figure included some £1,350 of 2014 event income which will be adjusted in the 2014 accounts. The significant direct debit bank charge for 2012-13 was a one-off. In all, some £599,500 of the figure shown was already pledged to the cathedral, and £40,000 to the Chorister Trust, from grants approved by Council.

Peter Chapman asked if Council planned for each social event to break even and RW confirmed that this was so, though sometimes additional costs made this impossible, such as unforeseen print and hospitality costs. The aim was for them to break even.

The Dean as Chairman asked the meeting formally to receive the 2013 Accounts which they did unanimously, proposed by Tony Bennewith and seconded by Ray Jewkes. The Dean thanked Jack Henderson for his presentation and all his work on the Friends accounts. The approved accounts will be uploaded on to the Friends page of the Cathedral website.

  1. APPOINTMENT OF INDEPENDENT EXAMINERS

JH recommended that West Wake Price LLP (WWP)be reappointed as auditors. This was proposed by Peter Chapman FCA and seconded by Brian Lovell and carried unanimously.

  1. DONATIONS TO THE CORPORATION OF THE CATHEDRAL CHURCH OF ST PAUL IN LONDON (DEAN AND CHAPTER)

The Dean noted and, on behalf of Chapter, was grateful for the grants already offered by the Friends (as per notes 13&14 to 2013 Accounts):

£500,000 for Chapter House now drawn down

£20,000 Whispering Gallery repaving now drawn down

£15,000 West end hoistpaid

£5,000 towards Aisle curtains paid

£4,500 archaeological researchpaid in part

Continuing grants:

£15,000 in each of 2013-17 towards the Schools & Families department

£10,000 in each of 2013-17 for a Friends choristership (and £500 medal)

Council recently approved further grants for 2014:

£10,000 to help defray extra costs of St Matthew Passion 26 March 2015

£15,000 for further choir stall mock-up experiments, if necessary

The Registrar confirmed that the Chapter House project was proceeding on time and on budget and that staff would gradually go back into it in the early spring; opportunities to thank donors and contractors are being planned.

  1. RETIREMENTS FROM COUNCIL

The Dean added to thanks to Jackie Ross (Chapter nominee) and Maureen Bonanno-

Smith (elected by members) for their work on Council, and was delighted that Ray

Jewkes was staying on for a furtherterm as a Chapter nominee, and that Patrick

Buckingham had agreed to take over asanother Chapter nominee. He thanked them

both.

  1. ELECTION OF TWO NEW MEMBERS OF COUNCIL

By the given deadline only two candidates had offered themselves, duly nominated and seconded, for election to Council. The Dean asked them both to identify and say something about themselves at the meeting::

Dr David LesterLife Friend, Music Patron, retired dental surgeon living in East

Sussex; his wife is also a Music Patron

Dr Phillip RiceFriend, soon to retire from HMRC, Diocesan representative

on General Synod, Londoner; his wife is a volunteer broderer

The Dean welcomed and thanked them both. There were no other comments.

  1. ANY OTHER BUSINESS

No items had been submitted by the given deadline. The Dean then introduced Oliver Caroe, Surveyor to the Fabric, to tell the assembled Friends some of the highlights and projects on which he is now working around the cathedral including improvements to the toilets, shop, visitor flow, stained glass for the OBE Chapel to mark their centenary in 2017, Library, Whispering Gallery, weather damage to the Thornhill paintings, and the Bill Viola video art installation. Sarah Radford, the cathedral’s archivist, had also brought a display of WW1 memorabilia from the Cathedral’s collections for Friends to peruse.

Next year’s AGM will be on Wednesday 8 July 2015 at which the preacher will be the Very Rev’d Philip Buckler, Dean of Lincoln Cathedral since 2006 and previously, from 1999, Canon Treasurer at St Paul’s.

There being no further business, the meeting closed at 1550.

......

______

The Very Rev’d Dr David IsonDate

Chairman