July 27, 2020

Hello all club members,

I’ve been in touch with the Public Hall management team and we are currently discussing arrangements for resuming club meetings on a Wednesday evening, possibly as soon as the 5th August if there is interest from you.  I understand that some may be cautious about returning and things will have to be run differently, at least in the short to medium term, and here is a summary of the main changes:

1) Social distancing.  This will need to be maintained and the Public Hall risk assessment indicates that a maximum of 2 (two) persons can safely occupy the Springfield room. Therefore we will need to use either the Penpole room or the main hall.  These are subject to availability but I understand that the main hall should be available at least during August as the Shire Stitchers are not due to return until September.  The Penpole room may then be available but will have a limit of 8 (eight) persons maximum.  I remind you that this room is upstairs and access may not be suitable for all.  It will also need prior agreement in order for the door to be unlocked.  It may be an option that we change the regular meeting night if we can get agreement on using the main hall on another evening.

2) Registration.  To meet Public Hall requirements for track and trace certain commitments are necessary. I will need to have an idea of persons attending on any given evening and also maintain an accurate log of those on site for the management team in case of a report of Covid-19.  In the event that I am unavailable, I’ll need a volunteer to log names in my absence. We’ll need to work out the detail of this and possibly use the functionality of the club website, but in the first instance can you each PLEASE RESPOND to this email with your intentions, assuming next Wednesday is an option.

3) Hygiene.  Can I respectfully ask that any member who is demonstrating the symptoms of Covid-19 does not attend club meetings until such time as it is deemed safe to do so.  On arrival, we may be greeted by one of the hall management team and hand sanitiser will be available in the lobby. Please use this. You might want to use a face covering, at least in areas where close contact is likely due to the construction of the building (e.g. on the stairs).

4) Refreshments.  Unfortunately the kitchen will remain closed until further notice so no tea or coffee will be available.  Therefore, if you do require refreshments you will need to bring these with you and ensure that any waste is taken away in order to protect other hall users and the cleaners.

5) Timings and members dropping in.  Can I request that you try to arrive between 19:00 and 19:30 (unless with prior arrangement) as our previous ad hoc entry will not work.  Therefore it will not be practical for those who habitually drop in towards the end of the evening and clearly there will be limitations if the use of the Penpole room is necessary.

Hopefully this is all clear and meets your expectations.  Discussions are ongoing with the Hall Manager, so can you please contact me by return if you have any questions or suggestions and to confirm your attendance as requested earlier.  It would be a shame for members to be turned away by the hall management team in the event of us exceeding occupancy limits.

March 31, 2020

With all Model Railway Exhibitions being cancelled due to Covid-19 why not get the the front of the queue with the Facebook "Spring Virtual Model Railway Exhibition"

https://www.facebook.com/groups/VirtualSpringModelRailShow/?__xts__[0]=68.ARBTW3nH6VbhVu_foWwEAl_TSz4DZtSCr_Puy3mLZtkYoUTqRGrJ-BHrCccmtr65u1EML-tAD_PElWMIzgU05Hx2ahJ2dnDcWIaA7J0rimxK1RJ-tw29brdSRnyEkdhiBmC6UHm_xZa42hQdkrCLKwrXTeaW_BRCtn4Nt5k4D85A8cZTrIM-Zy44RWEEWpQfq5-3nRNwcn4NMsNMdkQwNtN1ZL2WwGgvFaRtVkzFZmBVbreG0Is2iOWnkmqjbGHlV_i9SrgJ4EqMrmbx_GTC7xr2eaDzolX1FJ_XQQ8PjU1yWkn9Qe6KN51fW_b2OXulS_qc_3O3SqeV9oB5PSRCnAS-XA&__tn__=HH-R

March 18, 2020

Unfortunately due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, many events and show are being cancelled including the Burnham on Sea show which we were due to attend later this month. Future club nights are also being postponed until further notice. 

Please use the government and NHS website advice to reduce the spread of this virus.

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/about/share-facts-h.pdf

September 07, 2019

Now that summer is finally coming to an end and the days are getting shorter, these are the times where our hobby thrives in the spare bedrooms, garages, lofts and sheds. With this extra time we will have as the nights become longer we can now announce our Annual Exhibition for Sunday 6th October at the Shirehampton Public Hall.

We will have some great layouts on show including Brimscombe, Clifton Bridge Station, Larkmead and Tri-ang Central among others as well as our Test Track, Modelling Demonstrations and Trade Support from Keith's Model Railways 

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February 13, 2019

Last week we held our Annual General Meeting on Wednesday 6th February. We have reviewed our events and milestones from the last 12 months the year and are looking forward to the following year. As always our Honorary members have stepped down in there roles and then elections took place. Our Chairman John, Our Secretary Andrew and Our Treasurer - Derrick, have all remained unchanged in their club roles. 

All events that we shall be attending will appear on the website in the coming weeks, along with details of our own exhibition.

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For more details about our AGM for members, the full notes are available in our Members Resources Page 

December 10, 2018

A number of club members attended the annual show at the NEC in Birmingham over the weekend with our friend Tony Musgrave who was exhibiting his Didcot Power Station layout. This was Tony’s last exhibition with this layout before its donation to Didcot Railway Centre and Abingdon MRC. Tony was ably supported by members of our club along with members from Abingdon MRC who went on to take possession of the layout and the end of the show.

Interest in Didcot seemed to be very high and I’m delighted to report that this was subsequently borne out by the show judges who presented Tony with the Warley MRC award for ‘Best Modern Image Layout’, sponsored by Hornby. Unfortunately, Tony was himself not manning the layout when Peter Waterman came to present the trophy (a call of nature, I understand) but Derek stood in – so look out for him posing in future editions of the modelling press! A huge WELL DONE to Tony for a great layout and equally great showing at the premier railway modelling event.

Didcot ‘A’ was withdrawn from the exhibition circuit in early 2016, following the collapse of the generator hall, which tragically claimed the lives of four men working on its demolition. Tony and his team have now dedicated the layout to their memory and to the people of Didcot. ADMRC and Didcot Railway Centre will act as joint guardians. The layout will eventually take its place as part of a permanent exhibit at the railway centre, until then it will reside at the ADMRC clubrooms from where it will be available for exhibitions as required.

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For updates on Tony's Didcot 'A' Power Station Layout please visit its new home at  www.admrc.org.uk

October 03, 2018

Just an update of what has happened with our club since our Annual Exhibition in July. We had a good turnout for our exhibition and would like to thank everyone who came and helped out and to those who joined us.

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Just before our exhibition a large OO gauge layout was kindly donated to us and is currently in a state of being revamped by our members.

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One of our members, Tony is taking his layout 'Didcot Power Station' to the Warley Exhibition at the NEC on the 24th and 25th November.

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We will be exhibiting our club layout Brimscombe, at the 32nd Cardiff Model Railway Show, on the 20th and 21st October​

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(Pictures and info of Didcot Power Station can be found on our website in the club members layout section)

(Pictures and info of 'Brimscombe' can be found on our website in the club layout section)

April 19, 2018

Our Annual Exhibition date has now been confirmed for Saturday 14th July from 10:00-16:00. Layouts currently confirmed are; Brimscombe (as seen at Warley MRE) Dent and Clifton Bridge Station (as seen in Railway Modeller and Model Rail). Other visiting layouts, test track trade support and refreshments are available.

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Feel free to contact us via email at Shirehamptonmrc@gmail.com

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February 03, 2018

The date for our 2018 AGM has been set for Wednesday 14th March at the Shirehampton Public Hall. We will be reviewing events and milestones over the last 12 months and discussing our plans for 2018. We will take time to re-elect Club officials and discussing our new layout and 2018 exhibition. If members have anything that they would like to have added to the agenda please contact the honorary secretary via our forum