To receive such announcements as the Chairman may wish to make to the Council.
Minutes:
The Chairman reported that since the last Council meeting, he had attended some functions including the annual dinner at the Beaulieu Estate of Lord Montague and that the County Council had held its Remembrance Day Service on 11 November 2021.
On 10 February, the County Council was delighted to be able to support the Licoricia Trust to celebrate the unveiling of the statue of Licoricia, a medieval Jewish businesswoman, and her son, Asher following 5 years of fundraising by the Licoricia Trust. The statue is sited on County Council land outside The Arc (formerly the Discovery Centre) in Winchester. The Trust had also invited HRH Prince of Wales to unveil the statue, however he was unfortunately unable to attend due to contracting Covid therefore the Lord Lieutenant for Hampshire stepped in. The unveiling was attended by many senior representatives of all parts of the Jewish faith, including the Chief Rabbi, along with representatives from six other major faiths. For Hampshire, it was a wonderful way to mark the beginning of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee year, with a truly inspirational event celebrating religious tolerance, inclusion, equality and diversity and the role of women and mothers in our society. The Chairman thanked the many County Council staff and partner organisations such as the Hampshire Cultural Trust, the Police and Winchester City Council, who worked, with very short notice, to make the event such a success. It was hoped that the HRH Prince of Wales would be able to visit at a future date.
It was with pleasure that the Chairman announced that two of Hampshire County Council’s most recently completed new primary school buildings had received national awards for their designs. Firstly, Stoneham Park Primary School has been recognised for its quality, innovation, and sustainability as the national Winner of LABC Building Excellence Award 2021: Best Public or Community Building, and secondly, Barton Farm Primary School was a Winner in the 2022 Civic Trust Awards. The Civic Trust Awards are for the very best in architecture and environmental design, to improve the built environment through design, sustainability, inclusiveness, and accessibility. This project has been recognised by the Civic Trust as one that also offers a positive cultural, social, and environmental benefit to its local community. Both projects were successfully delivered on time, on budget and to a very high standard despite the numerous challenges because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Chairman also announced that the Royal Victoria Country Park had successfully achieved the 'Investing in Volunteers Award' in recognition of good practice in volunteer management. The country park benefits from the support of many dedicated volunteers who help keep the park maintained and help visitors to learn more about the history of the site.
It was with pleasure that Chairman announced that Kate Steels, liaison officer between the County Council and the Armed Forces, had just been named as the 2021 World Open Water Swimming Woman of the Year. Kate had achieved the Ice Sevens that required her to complete seven different Ice Miles at below 5 degrees centigrade in Europe, Oceania, Asia, North America, Africa, South America, and a Polar location. This included a zero-ice mile swam at below 1 degreecentigrade. Kate had also been inducted into the International Ice Swimming Association Hall of Fame and raised money for suicide prevention.
It was with much sadness that the Chairman reported that former County Councillor Chris Curtis had passed away. Chris represented the Kingsclere & Tadley Division from 1981 to 1989 and was Leader of the Liberal Group, later the Alliance Group throughout that time. Councillors Peter Chegwyn, Adrian Collett and Derek Mellor paid tribute and Councillor Mellor gave thanks to Chris for the tremendous work he had done for the people of Tadley and Baughurst. The Council observed a moments silence as a mark of respect.