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Spelthorne Museum Press Release:
Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service 2016

Spelthorne Museum volunteers, based in Staines, have been recognised with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service for 2016

The volunteers who run Spelthorne Museum have been honoured with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK.

Spelthorne Museum was founded in Staines in 1980, and since then the volunteers have run the museum themselves, with financial support from Spelthorne Borough Council. Approximately 40 people are involved, the longest-serving having been involved since the museum opened 36 years ago. Besides staffing the museum, the volunteers plan and mount exhibitions, both at the museum and at external events, run family friendly events in the museum, provide an educational service to local schools, host visits from community groups, publish books on local heritage, and answer queries from the public. A Young Archaeologists Club also meets at the museum.

Nick and Sue Pollard from the Spelthorne Museum Volunteers were invited to represent the group at a garden party at Buckingham Palace on 19th May, in the presence of Her Majesty the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.

Nick and Sue Pollard at Buckingham Palace

Spelthorne Museum Volunteers are one of 193 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups to receive the prestigious award this year. The number of awards given to groups this year is slightly higher than last year, showing that the voluntary sector is thriving and full of innovative ideas to tackle community challenges.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service is the highest award given to local volunteer groups across the UK to recognise outstanding work in their communities. The awards were created in 2002 to celebrate the Queen’s Golden Jubilee and winners are announced each year on 2 June – the anniversary of the Queen’s Coronation. ?

The Spelthorne Museum Volunteers will receive the crystal award from the Lord Lieutenant of Surrey later this summer.

The Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service Committee Chair, former broadcast journalist Sir Martyn Lewis said:

“I warmly congratulate all of the inspirational voluntary groups who have been rewarded for their community work with a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. The judging panel for this year’s awards were struck by the quality and breadth of all the successful groups.
The thousands of volunteers who give up spare time to help others in their community and to help solve problems demonstrate the very best of democracy in action.”

Minister for Civil Society, Rob Wilson, said:

“I would like to congratulate all groups who received this year’s Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, in recognition of their fantastic achievements. The huge amount of work and commitment these organisations put into their local communities is surpassed only by the passion and motivation of the individuals who volunteer. I hope these groups continue to inspire others to get involved and make a positive impact so that we can continue to build a more compassionate society.”

Julia Gibbs, Chair of Spelthorne Archaeology and Local History Group which runs Spelthorne Museum, said:

“We are tremendously proud to have been honoured in this way. It’s a real recognition of the countless hours of unpaid work that have been put in by our volunteers over the last 36 years. We are very much focused on sharing the history and archaeology of the Borough of Spelthorne, and we hope that members of the community will feel inspired to join us and carry on this fascinating and worthwhile work”

New May - June 2016

Our exhibition on the Blue Boards in the Elmsleigh Room has been put on by the Heathrow Branch of the Royal Aeronautical Society, and is marking the 150th Anniversary of the Society which was founded in 1856, and the 70th Anniversary of the opening of Heathrow Airport in 1946.

The display tells the story of the Royal Aeronautical Society, how it was founded and the work it does, as well as landmark events in the history of Heathrow. These landmarks include the first jet passenger aircraft, the de Havilland Comet in May 1952, the introduction of the Boeing 747 Jumbo Jet in 1969 which revolutionised the economics of air travel, and the birth of supersonic air transport with the first passenger flight of Concorde in 1976. This photo shows some of the first passengers in 1946 boarding an Avro Lancastrian (converted Lancaster bomber) operated by British Overseas Airways Corporation

The exhibition runs from now until the end of June.

Our next talk will be in September 2016. Details later in the year.

Our latest Exhibit is 'Crime & Punishment in Spelthorne' by Christine Mitchell

Christine standing next to the Exhibit

Happy 90th Birthday to Queen Elizabeth 11 on April 21st.

At 5:30 pm on September 9th, 2015 Queen Elizabeth 11 became the longest reigning Monarch of the UK/Britain, overtaking Queen Victoria's record of 63 years and 216 days. Congratulations to her Majesty from all at the Spelthorne Museum.

Coronation Page

Woolly mammoths tusks from the Ice Age, tools from the Stone Age, a large collection of Roman artefacts, a 1738 fire engine and Victorian memorabilia, Spelthorne Museum has the whole history of this area we know as Spelthorne.

From its original home in the Old fire Station, in 2006 Spelthorne Museum moved into a more central location with its entrance through Staines Library, Friends Walk, Staines. It is in two halves, the first half, The Elmsleigh Room is open during Library opening hours and follows the river of time from the Ice Age to modern times, perfect for a quiet browse.

The second half, The Thames Room, opens when volunteers are on duty. (opening times) Spelthorne Museum is entirely run by volunteers. The friendly, trained volunteers on duty will attempt to answer any queries you may have, if they cannot then there is an Enquiry System which takes your question forward.

The museum is fully wheelchair accessible. Riverside and Tothill car parks are nearby, both with disabled parking spaces. The bus station is 100m away, the railway station about ½ mile away and there are ample public moorings for river users.

Admission is free and all are welcome! Please contact us if you would like to arrange a group visit or come to the museum during alternative hours. There is a museum shop stocking local history publications, postcards and small collectables.