Thursday 28 May 2009

Minutes of Meeting of Friends of St Nicholas, 28/05/2009 - (St Nicholas Kirk, Holm, Orkney)

Minutes of Meeting of Friends of St Nicholas, 28 th May 2009 

Present:
Molly Aim Andrew Drever Irene Drever Alfie Flett (Chair) Erlend Flett Hazel Goar Jimmy Goar Ida Gorn R Jamieson Bertie Johnston Joyce Johnston Gracie Laughton John Livitt Joy Livitt Marlene Mainland(minutes) Jack McIntosh John Muir Helen Paterson Rhoda Shearer Billy Sinclair Jean Smith Margaret Smith Lilian Sinclair Freddie Tait Vera Tait Mike Tilley Athole Thomson

Minutes
Minutes of the previous meeting were circulated and approved. proposer : Andrew Drever, seconder: Helen Paterson

Matters arising
As the previous minute stated the intention to expand membership of the management committee, nominations were invited.
Erlend Flett was proposed by John Muir and seconded by Lilian Sinclair.
Athole Thomson was proposed by Helen Paterson and seconded by Ida Gorn.
This takes the committee number up to six, leaving space for specialist input in the future, if necessary.
Mr Flett then referred to the context one month previously when there was an expectation that St. Nicholas Church would be advertised for sale. This had now happened, and the purpose of this meeting was to clarify our intentions and decide how to progress fro m this point.
There was some discussion on the implications of category B listing, and whether de ‐ listing would be possible. There was also discussion on the stability of the building, with the implications for future maintenance and expense, and it was felt that a site visit would be ne cessary to inform opinion on the structural quality of the building.
There was also some concern about the consecrated status of the ground beneath the building, and a desire to have this clarified.

Decision
To lodge a declaration of interest in the property with the Church of Scotland, George Street, Edinburgh.
To request permission to make a site visit to view the inte rior of the building.
To discuss with the local planning authority and Historic Scotland the possibilities of delisting.
To investigate the implications of burials within the footprint.
T o seek advice on insurance premiums for this type of property

Monday 27 April 2009

AGM minutes - Spring 2009

Minutes of meeting held in Holm Community Centre on 27 th April, 2009

Present :
Brian Aim Councillor Andrew Drever Alfie Flett (chair) Erlend Flett Hazel Goar Jimmy Goar Ida Gorn Ken Hambly Fraser Henning Shirley Henning Reg Jamieson Gracie Laughton Marlene Mainland(minutes) Kenny Marwick Jack McIntosh Jan Moar Douglas Paterson Helen Paterson Margaret Smith Vera Tait ( It was noted that apologies had been re ceived from several people with a prior engagement)

Purpose of meeting :
To establish a proactive group committed to acquiring St Nicholas Church, in order to ensure the sanctity of the church site and the surrounding churchyard. To form a management committee to progress the business of the group.

Background
Mr Alfie Flett expla ined that according to Church of Scotland policy, redundant churches are put for sale on the open market. This had already happened in St Andrews and Deerness, and now St Nicholas in Holm is due to be advertised for sale in the near future.
The B listed building is surro unded by the cemetry, the property of Orkney Islands Council. The building has no services or independent access. The historic listing imposes restrictions on development or alteration. However there is concern about who might acquire the building and how this would affect the sanctity of the churchyard.
With a view to forming a support group for the acquisition of St Nicholas Church, Mr Flett had sought advice from Voluntary Action Orkney in drawing up a constitution, which was based on that of the friends of St Ninian’s in Deerness.

Discussion
The meeting was opened for discussion and the issue of listing featured prominently as this has implications both of restriction of development , and expense in upkeep. The roof appears quite sound, but there is no guarantee to its safety. It is not known whether it can be de ‐ listed, but th is possibility will be explored.

Decision
The majority of those present (17) wished to form an action group, which would be known as The Friends of St Nicholas. There were three abstentions.
According to the constitution, initial members of the management committee were nominated and seconded. Andrew Drever (n. J Goar s.I Gorn)Alfie Flett (n.A Dreve r s. H Goar) Marlene Mainland (A Drever H Goar) Freddie Tait in absentia ( V Tait H Paterson)
There will be a further meeting to complete committee membership, but the group can now be registered through VAO as a formally constituted body.