Court and Livery Dinner

As President of the Society I was invited to a Court and Livery Dinner by the Worshipful Company of Dyers on the 23rd April as one of the guests of honour. The dinner was held at The Hall in Dow Gate London. For those who haven’t been, The Hall is truly magnificent and if you want to read more about the Dyers Company please go to their web site www.dyerscompany.co.uk. I was made so welcome initially by the Prime Warden James Chambers, who I met on the 18th, then the Renter Warden and The Clerk. I spoke to members of the Court and the Liverymen, two of whom are Peter Diggle and Peter Lockett. Our own David Blackburn was a previous Prime Warden and Mike Bartle, our President Elect will become Prime Warden in the near future. The dinner was absolutely scrumptious with the most delightful wine. At least I could have a drink on this occasion! It really makes me feel very proud to be British with such wonderful traditions as the Dyers Company which was formed in 1188! I am pleased that I decided to wear a long dress and felt really grand sitting next to the Prime Warden. The evening ended at about 11 pm so Cinderella safely returned home before midnight!

The second day

Well what a day, I have just learnt that as President, I have been invited to meet the Queen on July 15th at a garden party. What a privilege. I will keep you informed.

The first working day as President

I had a tremendous day on the 18th when I was inaugurated as President. I went on to chair the AGM and except for one small mistake, it went according to plan. I want to thank Adrian Abel again for his contribution to last year's activities. The award ceremony in the afternoon is really what the Day of Celebration is all about. It was my privilege to open the ceremony and introduce our guest speaker Ann Priest, Dean of Nottingham Trent. I really enjoyed watching the diplomas and medals being presented to such distinguished scientists and designers. It was my honour to present the medals together with Peter Duffield, our Honorary Secretary and Ann Priest awarded the diplomas introduced by Dr Jim Nobbs the Examination and Accreditation Board Chairman. The evening was tremendous fun, starting with a fashion show. I talked about the year ahead and my intentions of promoting and delivering a new range of courses and qualifications. The Society had a tremendous year last year and all the staff, trustees, members, and committees deserve a great thank you. SDCE moved successfully to new buildings without disrupting their business and is now in control of their own fabric production. We presented the award to the winners of the innovation and global design winners as well as the 50 year member awards. You will hear all about it later from Carmel. I would like to thank the staff and all my friends and colleagues in supporting this day. Speak to you soon.