Newsletters

January 2021
​
​Wishing you a happy and creative new year!

2020 has been a year like no other, and like everyone, we have had to change and adapt our way of working. Change can be a positive experience and here at Kingshill House we have created relationships with new partners and strengthened our existing connections with the community of Cam and Dursley.

2020 - A Year Like No Other
Our aim was to encourage people to reconnect socially and to build resilience and trust, in what is for many of us, an altered world.
Our normal business restarted in the summer and lasted until the start of the second lockdown in November, with workshops and classes running at 50% capacity. Autumn classes included stained glass, acrylics, watercolours, drawing, photography and flower arranging.
 
Our year in review...
We adapted our way of working and created new community links, established partnerships with national organisations and secured key funding to enable the growth and success of Kingshill House.
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Dance Outdoors
 
Working collaboratively with the NHS, World Jungle and Kelly Hogg, our dance instructor, we ran a popular dance class for those over 60 years of age and who have been shielding. The first session took place in our large garden here at the House and as a result of the successful class we set up an indoors Dance session at Sharpness village hall and each week  there was a full house of 15 energised and happy people.
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The Brighter Side - Community Postcard Project
 
We revisited the postcard project, which initially ran during the first Lockdown. We asked Year 6 pupils of the local primary schools to design a postcard which reflected a moment of joy they have had during time spent at home. We gathered all of them and printed them onto boards, which were then shown around the community. Then in October, all the boards were placed together in our grounds and shown as an exhibition in conjunction with Tyndale Arts Week. We are planning to run a third and final postcard design project, and will add these to the ones created last year, culminating in an exhibition at the House, showing all the cards. This is a fantastic opportunity to capture living history and to document how young people felt during a tumultuous and challenging 12 months.
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Art Exhibitions

Two art exhibitions were hosted in September, one with the theme of ‘Coast’ and another titled ‘The invisible woman made visible’, by Krystyna Dembny.

This particular showing strayed from usual themes that are shown at the house, as it centred around a post-menopausal naked woman called Sally who  suffered from cancer. The work portrayed optimism, resilience and the power of great friendship, and the exhibition raised over £600 for Macmillan Cancer Support.

Feedback from attendees to this exhibition clearly demonstrated how powerful the art was and how it moved them:

'A stunning and profound body of work. Emotional depth, laughter, sadness, poignancy and friendship all in two rooms. The placing of the pieces was genius – the first room light, fun, friendship, the second colder, sombre, departing, sadness, memory, fading. Brava.'
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Hallowe'en at the House

During October Half Term we ran a Creative Pop Up café which was aimed at families with primary aged children. This event was free to all and we were thrilled that on the two days that it ran, we reached capacity within an hour of the doors opening.

On the 2nd morning we had the added bonus of hosting the travelling storyteller Bill Church. He regaled five different groups of families out in the marquee with spooky tales.

In total, we saw 101 families through the house, gave away 197 goody bags to children and offered 127 parents tea, coffee and cake! Of the 324 people through the house, 214 came from the GL11 postcode – that’s 70 families from the local community. Half of the attendees to the Friday session had never been to the House before – this was a fantastic event introducing the community to the venue.
We took in more than £120.00 in donations and had wonderful feedback – KH is ‘the lifeline link to the community’.
Past Newsletters
November 2020 - Onwards and Upwards
October 2020 - October Newsletter

Kingshill in the Press...

Notice of Annual General Meeting of Kingshill House - 28 November 2019
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the twenty third Annual General Meeting of Kingshill House Limited will be held at Kingshill House, Kingshill Lane, Dursley, Glos GL11 4BZ on Thursday 28th November 2019 at 7 p.m.

Business to include:

1. Apologies
2. Notice convening the meeting
3. Approval of the Minutes of the AGM held 26th November 2018
4. Approval of the Annual Accounts for year ended 31st March 2019
5. Election of Officers
6. Appointment of Examining Accountants
7. Chairman’s Report
8. Any Other Business
9. Date, time and place of next meeting

By order of the Board

Dennis Andrewartha
Chairman of Board of Trustees 13th November 2019

All Members of the Company are welcome to attend the meeting.

​If you are interested in becoming a member of Kingshill House Limited and being involved in the exciting future of this Grade II* listed Georgian Arts & Meeting Centre, a not for profit Registered Charity, please contact the main office on 01453 549133 or email admin@kingshillhouse.org.uk for more details.

Bird Lovers will be delighted at Latest Art Exhibition

A collection of spectacular Bird themed works of art by local artists are coming to Kingshill House, Dursley in an exhibition during September.  

The exhibition will feature a collection of mixed media art including paintings, wire sculptures, textile art, glass, resin and enamel jewelry and forms part of an ongoing series of events in support of emerging artists in Gloucestershire. The exhibition will run from 14th to 28th September, commencing with a launch event on Saturday 14th September between 11am - 1pm, all welcome! Entry is free and members of the public are warmly invited to attend both the launch and the exhibition. 

Arts Centre Hosts ‘Killer’ of an Exhibition

A collection of stunning portraits by local artists has opened in an exhibition in Dursley and which will run between July and September.
The exhibition at Kingshill Arts and Meeting Centre and is part of a program of events in support of emerging artists in Gloucestershire and will run from 15th July to 6th September 2019. Entry is free!
Last month, Kingshill Arts and Meeting Centre saw huge success with a ‘Countryside’ exhibition and hopes for similar success with this range of alluring art from local artists such as Paul Normansell, Kayleigh Almara, Andrew Kirk and Casey Rogers.
The collection features an assortment of amazing portraiture works of people, celebrities and animals, in a range of unique and thought-provoking styles and media. The artists all live and work nearby and includes high profile artist Paul Normansell, an artist who lives in Cam, and has had many high-profile fashion assignments including a range of portraits of supermodels Kate Moss and Agyness Deyn. In 2008, Paul was personally approached by Brandon Flowers of US rock band ‘The Killers’ and asked to create the cover artwork for their third album ‘Day & Age’ which went multi-platinum. Named ‘Best Album Cover of the Year.’ by Rolling Stone Magazine, Paul has also been ‘Man of the Month’ in April 2010's GQ Magazine and photographed by the legendary David Bailey himself.
Commenting on the exhibition, Natasha Senekal, Kingshill Arts and Meeting Centre said: “Exhibiting Paul Normansell’s work is a real coup for us. Paul’s art has received global acclaim from critics and collectors in the fashion and music industries, being hailed as some of the most style conscious imagery to define the shifting trends of popular culture.”
Arts Centre Host Event to Unite Clubs and People of Cam and Dursley
Local hobbyists, societies and clubs are gearing up for a day of connection at an event centred around the community in Dursley at the end of March.
Following on the from the success of last year’s event, the team at Kingshill Arts and Meeting Centre are once again holding their Societies, Groups and Clubs Fair on 23rd March.
With 30 different groups and clubs signed up to attend, the focus of the event is upon introducing people within the area to the names and faces behind the range of activities and interest groups which exist in Cam and Dursley and surrounding areas.
‘Last year the house felt alive with activity and the people who came along were given a real insight into the number of clubs which run in our area. There was a real mix of clubs, we had both well-known and undiscovered groups and we’re so pleased to provide this day to link everyone up. This event is great for anyone looking for a new hobby or interest!’ said Beth Pullin, General Manager.
The event runs from 11am to 3pm on 23rd March and entry is free. The house is currently being set up to run a series of exhibitions by local artists, so there will be also be a chance to feast your eyes upon some amazing artwork, as well as learn about activities which go on at the venue. All enquiries can be emailed to admin@kingshillhouse.org.uk or by telephoning 01453 549133.

Happy New Year!

First things first......
We would like to wish you a very happy and creative new year!!

We would also like to respond to a post on local social media recently, regarding proposals by Stroud District Council and the future of Kingshill House. We would like to state that, it is correct that Stroud District Council [SDC] are the freeholder of Kingshill House. A long lease was granted to Kingshill House Limited in 1999, a registered charity and not for profit organisation, who have run the building as an Arts Centre for almost 20 years.

Since 2015, informal discussions have taken place between the parties about the eventual transfer of the Freehold from SDC to Kingshill House Limited. At this point in time, no formal decisions have been made and consultations are still ongoing.  Stroud District Council provide a relatively modest capital grant each year to help with the operational costs, but the main income generated for the organisation is by way of providing creative workshops and classes and offering room hire to various users. Kingshill House as a Grade II* listed building is an expensive property to run and maintain and it is vital the organisation is financially sustainable if it is going to survive, be able to take the freehold of the building and assume responsibility for the maintenance of a building with such a magnificent heritage.

We are currently looking for new members to get involved and have a say in the future of Kingshill House, to offer ideas and generally act as an Ambassador, promoting the fantastic asset that Kingshill House Arts & Meeting Centre is to their family and friends. If you’d like more information, then you can ring the office on 01453 549133 or email us at admin@kingshillhouse.org.uk

​We hope that has made things a little clearer and we look forward to seeing or hearing from you in 2019.
Notice of Annual General Meeting of Kingshill House - 26 November 2018
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the twenty second Annual General Meeting of Kingshill House Limited will be held at Kingshill House, Kingshill Lane, Dursley, Glos GL11 4BZ on Monday 26th November 2018 at 7 p.m. Business to include:
1. Apologies
2. Notice convening the meeting
3. Approval of the Minutes of the AGM held 28th September 2017
4. Approval of the Annual Accounts for year ended 31st March 2018
5. Election of Officers
6. Appointment of Examining Accountants
7. Chairman’s Report
8. Any Other Business
9. Date, time and place of next meeting
 
By order of the Board
Andrew Telford
Company Secretary
26 October 2018
All Members of the Company are welcome to attend the meeting.
If you are interested in becoming a member of Kingshill House Limited and being involved in the exciting future of this Grade II* listed Georgian Arts & Meeting Centre, a not for profit Registered Charity, please contact the main office on 01453 549133 or download a membership form and return to admin@kingshillhouse.org.uk.
Summer School Success for Friendly Art Venue
PictureStudents and their mosaic stepping stones outside of Kingshill House
​Dursley’s Kingshill House Art Centre is celebrating following the success of their first ever ‘Summer School’ which ran from 16-20 July.
Kingshill House, an impressive and historic setting, teamed up with Stroud and Gloucestershire based art tutors and welcomed more than 60 students through its doors whilst providing around 50 hours of artistic tuition during a week of adult learning in Dursley.
Students, who came from all over the county, enjoyed a friendly and inspiring atmosphere during this series of one or two day workshops covering creative subjects such as ceramics, watercolours, print making, glass fusing, Pyrography, botanic wall plaque creation and garden mosaics. Participants were made to feel at home while they learned new skills receiving homemade biscuits, cake and delicious two course lunches during their visits.
 ‘We couldn’t have wished for a friendlier bunch of people to come along. I’m overwhelmed by the success of the event, specifically with the vibe and enormous feeling of goodwill in the building and it has, quite simply, been amazing!  Beth Pullin, Manager, Kingshill House.
Building upon the success of this recent event, plans are already underway for a Christmas themed art week nearer to the festive season. Anyone interested should visit www.kingshillhouse.org.uk for more details.