Yes, that time of year is coming. 🎄  Please find attached the form and menu for the North Staffs Arts Society Christmas Lunch at the Upper House on Monday, 30 November 2026.

If you wish to attend please would you complete a separate form for each member of your party so that there can be no confusion with menu choices.  

If you have any questions/problems please contact Margaret at:  16Fairbanks@gmail.com

Best wishes

Ros
 

Art Society Christmas Menu

Monday 30th November 2026

STARTERS

Parsnip & Fennel Soup (GF & VG on request)

Roast parsnip & fennel glazed with golden syrup, celeriac crisp

Duck Spring Roll Confit pulled duck leg wrapped with peppers, chilli and pak choi, sweet chilli dipping sauce, Asian style slaw & toasted sesame seeds

Crayfish & Crab Thermidor Tartlet (GF on request) Crayfish & crab meat, Gruyere & parmesan cheese sauce in a pastry case

Butternut Squash, Chestnut & Sage Cake (GF, VG)

Roast squash & chestnut cake pan fried, orange dressing pumpkin seeds

Venison Pastrami (GF). Home cured & smoked venison loin thinly sliced, pickled red onions & cherry tomatoes, rocket

MAIN COURSE

Turkey Breast (GF on request) Turkey breast rolled in herbs & smoked bacon, pig in blanket, cranberry stuffing, roast potatoes, roast root vegetables, buttered sprouts, gravy

12 Hour Braised Beef (GF on request) Pressed pulled beef, caramelised shallot, celeriac & potato mash, Yorkshire pudding, roast root vegetables, buttered sprouts, gravy

Gammon Medallion (GF on request) Orange & cranberry glazed gammon medallion, Yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, roast root vegetables, buttered sprouts, gravy

Sweet Potato & Spinach Pithivier (VG on request, GF on pre order) Puff pastry parcel filled with sweet potatoes, spinach & cranberry, roast potatoes, roast root vegetables, butter sprouts, vegetarian gravy.

Herb Crusted Salmon (GF) Salmon fillet with herb & pistachio crust, garlic crushed new potatoes, prosecco cream sauce, roast root vegetables, buttered greens.

DESSERTS

Christmas Bread & Butter Pudding Layers of Christmas pudding & brioche, brandy custard, winter berry compote, candied orange

Chocolate & Orange Delice (GF) Dark chocolate and orange delice, clementine compote, creme fraiche

Pear & Gingerbread (VG on request) Mulled wine poached pear, gingerbread sponge, salted caramel, vanilla cream, candied pecans

Baileys Cheesecake (GF) (VG on pre order) Baileys Irish cream cheesecake, espresso biscuit base

Apple & Blackcurrant (GF & VG on request) Stewed apples and black currants with cinnamon & cassis, oat crumble top, vanilla custard

coffee and Mince pie

optional extra course

Cheeseboard - £13.00

Trio of local cheeses, crackers, chutney, grapes & candied pecans

THE ARTS SOCIETY CHRISTMAS LUNCH MONDAY 30TH. NOVEMBER 2026 THE UPPER HOUSE BARLASTON  10.30AM.

LUNCH WILL BE PRECEEDED BY LESLEY SMITH GIVING HER NEW TALK ON EMMA HAMILTON. THE COST OF THE LUNCH IS £45 WHICH INCLUDES THREE COURSE LUNCH WITH COFFEE AND MINCE PIES, TALK,  COFFEE AND BISCUITS ON ARRIVAL AND UPPER HOUSE GRATUITY.

PLEASE FILL OUT ONE FORM PER PERSON AS THERE HAS BEEN SOME CONFUSION IN THE PAST  REGARDING MENU CHOICES.

10.30am.  ARRIVE FOR COFFEE AND BISCUITS BEFORE THE TALK IN THE ORANGERY.

12.30pm.  LUNCH IN THE WOODLANDS SUITE.

 I/WE WOULD LIKE TO JOIN THE TALK AND CHRISTMAS LUNCH.

NAME………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

MOBILE………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

EMAIL…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

DIETARY REQUIRMENTS………………………………………………………………………………………………….

STARTER……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

MAIN COURSE……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

PUDDING………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

IF YOU WISH TO HAVE CHEESE INSTEAD OF PUDDING THERE WILL BE A £4 SURPLUS – PLEASE ADD THIS TO YOUR PAYMENT.

I WOULD LIKE TO SIT WITH………………………………………………………………………………………………

PLEASE SEND COMPLETED FORMS TO MARGARET THOMPSTONE, 16, FAIRBANKS WALK, SWYNNERTON, ST15 0PF – 07748251057.

CHEQUES TO BE MADE PAYABLE TO THE ARTS SOCIETY NORTH STAFFORDSHIRE OR BY BACS 

30-95-91   00062931 REFERENCE CHRISTMAS.

Please click onto 'Visits' in the menu to access application form.

There are still a few places left for this amazing visit to Southwell Minster, the Workhouse and Infirmary on 17 September.  If you would like to take this trip please complete the attached form and sent it to Carole at the address given on the form.  Please note that the price includes lunch.

You will be contacted by the end of May once all the application forms received by that time, have been worked through.  Carole, like so many of us, is having issues with the postal delivery!

Places are limited so please be patient.

Very best wishes

Ros

THE ARTS SOCIETY

NORTH STAFFORDSHIRE

(Member of The Arts Society)

Membership Application Form for 2026-2027

You can pay by BACS to The Arts Society North Staffs

Sort code: 30-95-91  Account Number: 00062931

Please ensure that you clearly identify this payment using your

INITIALS & SURNAME so we can identify you as a member

OR    by credit card at the lecture meeting

OR   by cheque by sending the completed form and cheque

(payable to: The Arts Society North Staffs)

to the Treasurer: Vernon Wilson 63 Coppice, Road Willaston,

Nantwich CW5 6QD

Annual subscription (April 2026 – March 2027) = £55pp

Please ensure all payments are received by Friday 27.3.2026 and all

completed forms (if necessary), if not posted, are handed to the

Treasurer or Membership Secretary.

CURRENT MEMBERS NEED NOT COMPLETE UNLESS CHANGES HAVE OCCURRED

Please PRINT:

Name....................................................................Title................

Address.......................................................................................

...................................................Post Code.................................

Telephone......................................Mobile....................................

Email...........................................................................................

GDPR compliance. Members' details will be processed fairly and lawfully in order to satisfy the agreement entered with you on your admittance to membership. Your details will be passed to The Arts Society. We use email as our preferred method of communication for lecture programmes, trips and holidays but if you do not have access to a computer system please indicate clearly on your form.

Programme of Lectures for the 2026/7 season #

9th April 2026

Alexandra Epps - Priceless Peggy: Peggy Guggenheim

14th May 2026

Benedict Morrison - Cinema from the Rubble: the rise of Ealing Studios

11th June 2026

Simon Whitehouse - Wilde About Oscar

9th July 2026

Steve King - I Write the Songs

10th September 2026

Harry Venning - The Art of the Cartoon

8th October 2026

TBC

12th November 2026

Sarah Dunant - The Creative Courtesan

14th January 2027

Ian Swankie - Great Railway Stations of the World

11th February 2027

Bertie Pearce - The Punch and Judy Show

11th March 2027

Tyler Butterworth - A Bit of a Carry On

# may be subject to change due to illness etc.

Our celebration lunch will be held at the Upper House, Barlaston.

CHAIRMAN’S LETTER 2025-2026

We have had another very enjoyable year of amazing lectures covering a wide range of subjects

to suit everyone, organized by Rob Smith and helped by Ian Podmore. The counter system works

very well and gives the Committee a better indication of which subjects appeal to members, and which lecturers you would like to see again. There is no obligation on members to use the counters.

During the year, we enjoyed a five day holiday to The Cliff Hotel and Spa in Cardigan with a

private guided tour of St. David’s Cathedral given by the Archdeacon, resplendent in his purple

cassock and sash. We also visited the National Botanical Gardens of Wales, in heavy rain, The

Invasion Tapestry and the 14 th century Picton Castle and Gardens.

Our day visit was to Belvoir Castle, again with guided tours of the magnificent State Rooms and

their impressive collection of arms and armour associated with the Rutland family. We also had

visits to RSC Stratford and began our Christmas celebrations with the wonderful production of The Nutcracker in Birmingham, performed by the Royal Ballet. Our last event of 2025 was our

Christmas Lunch at The Upper House, where the raffle, organized by Pam and Ian, was drawn,

raising a wonderful £550 which was donated equally to Homestart and The Alice Trust. I was

privileged to visit The Alice Trust, along with Ian and Pam and saw the dedication and care that

went into the hundreds of donated gifts being made up by volunteers to be given to children who

would otherwise have nothing at Christmas.

We have our 40 th Anniversary Lunch at The Upper House on Friday 27 th March to look forward to and two theatre visits to Miss Saigon in April, and to see Kenneth Brannagh in The Tempest at Stratford in June. There is also a five day holiday including a visit to Balmoral Castle, and a day visit to Southwell Minster and The Workhouse. Later in the year there will be another visit to see The Nutcracker and then the festivities of another Christmas lunch.

I would like to thank the Committee for all their hard work over the past year and for all their

support to me – it is always a team effort and we are very fortunate to have such dedicated and

enthusiastic members to run our Society.

The Potteries Museum are still making changes and we have been told that the café will in future

be situated on the first floor where the main entrance is now. The space where the café used to be will become an education area, but we have been told the disabled entrance will stay the same.  What we have not been told is how long all these alterations will take, so with that in mind, we have booked to stay at the Wade Centre until March 2027. We will keep you updated about the progress when we have any details.

We do not have to input our car registration anymore at The Wade Centre, but everyone must

sign the register when they arrive, which it is a legal requirement , in case of fire or any

emergencies. Halina and her helpers are always at the top pf the stairs but if you use the lift and

can’t manage the stairs, please ask a member of the Committee to register your attendance.

Please make sure all phones are either switched off or on silent, as there have been a few

occasions last year when phones could be heard ringing during the lecture. This can be off putting and interrupt the flow, and we need to respect our lecturers.

With the increase costs of Lecturers and their travel, we have had to increase subscriptions to £55 from April this year, which, I’m sure you will agree, is still great value at only £5.50 per lecture.

Best wishes, Margaret.

A cheque for £275 was presented to Dawn Johnson ( Chair of Trustees- Home-Start Newcastle Borough) for our donation to the Charity, money was raised from the Christmas Raffle. Many thanks for the generosity of our Members.

 

The Christmas Raffle raised the grand total of £550!!.. this was divided between two local charities nominated by our Members.

The Alice Charity supports vulnerable and disadvantaged families across Stoke on Trent and Newcastle under Lyme by providing various services underpinned by unconditional love and kindness. Margaret Thompstone our Chairman and Pam Abell ( Website Manager / Social Media) presented the cheque for £275 to Heather Sheldon ( Chief Executive) and Sarah Sambrooks (Support Services Manager) at the offices in Fenton on 19th December 2025.
It was a privilege to witness the work of so many volunteers preparing Christmas stockings / presents for so many identified children across the City, who otherwise would not have received anything for Christmas.
 

The second Charity nominated by Members was Homestart.(Newcastle Borough).Homestart supports parents who are facing a variety of challenges and difficult situations, who need help and guidance.

The cheque for £275 was also  presented on 19th December 2025, to Dawn Johnson who is Chair of the Trustees for the Charity in the Spitfire Gallery in Hanley Museum.

Christmas Lunch at the Upper House Hotel, Barlaston-- Tuesday 2nd December 2025-- 12pm for 12.30pm. 
Menu choices made... it's time for our Members to put on their sparkle, relax and enjoy the food and company!! 

There may be a couple of places left.. if you are interested please contact Margaret Thompstone (our Chairman).. or speak to her at the November lecture.

THE ARTS SOCIETY HOLIDAY TO THE CLIFF HOTEL AND SPA, GWBERT, CARDIGAN PAY

MONDAY 26TH. MAY TO FRIDAY 30TH. MAY 2025

THE GROUP VISITED GREGYNOG HALL, PICTON CASTLE, NEWTON HALL, THE NATIONAL BOTANICAL GARDENS OF WALES, ST. DAVID'S CATHEDRAL, THE INVASION TAPESTERY AT FISHGUARD AND POWIS CASTLE.

Our Members choice..' Rainforest'- Winning Artist is now going through for Regional Consideration-- St Wulstans Catholic Primary School.

Good Morning

Last year we asked members to submit arts related projects in their local community  that would benefit from a £250 Arts Society grant.
You may recall that we had numerous submissions and we rewarded 5 projects with grants of £250 each.

We believe that we should continue to support the development of local arts projects, and with this in mind, we have budgeted to provide two grants of £250 during the current year - one of which will be funded by the Arts Society H.Q..

Community Grants are designed to help individual Arts Societies support art related causes in their local area.
The £250 grant may be used for any purpose provided that it is arts or heritage based. Consideration will be given to how helping a project or cause will contribute to the health and wellbeing of the local community, increase access to the arts and raise their profile locally.

The Committee would welcome your ideas and suggestions of organisations that meet the above criteria.

Please provide the following information:-

Name of the Group
Location
Description of the project.
Contact details. e.g. person, website, email address

Please email your suggestions to: info@theartssocietynorthstaffordshire.org.uk or Ros at oldoakrrg@gmail.com
Organisations that have already received a grant cannot reapply for a period of three years from the date of receipt.

The Committee will evaluate your ideas and suggestions and in due course let you know their decision. 
We look forward to receiving your suggestions, not later than 31st May 2025, please.

Best wishes

Vernon

The raffle tickets were available to buy before each lecture from April and drawn before the July lecture. 
£190 was raised! Many thanks to all who took part. 
Thankyou to our Committee Members Guy Jones and Pam Abell for providing the prizes. All money raised will go into our Community Fund, which will be distributed this year  to our local schools/ colleges, community clubs and charities.

Good Morning

Vernon has asked me to circulate the following information to give you the opportunity of voting.

Best wishes

Ros

Your Arts Society believes we should help, support and develop the appreciation and participation in arts within our local community. In pursuit of this aim, we have sponsored a local school, St Wulstan’s Catholic Primary School, Wolstanton, to participate in a national competition organised by an organisation called Art Bytes. In total, 149 schools are participating.

The competition is for Year 5 pupils. The school have submitted 30 pieces of art to the Art Bytes judges, who have now chosen the top three entries to progress to a public vote to determine which entry from each school goes through to District and National finals. 

The competition voting is on-line and the entries and voting information is shown below:

Public Vote
The vote is open to everyone from 3 April to 28 April: https://artbytes.co.uk/how-to-vote/ and is a wonderful way to measure a school's engagement. Specifically, using the vote as a way to raise the profile of visual arts in the school and measure how well the teacher and pupils encourage their school community to think about art, discuss creativity and vote for their favourite!

We invite all our members to participate in the vote. All you need do is click on the link, above. 
Not only can you vote for your choice from the three entries from St. Wulstan’s, but you can also view all the entries submitted from the school, and also see all the entries from all the other schools participating. 

We are sure you will find the artwork fascinating. 

Best regards, 

Vernon  (Arts Volunteering)

THE ARTS SOCIETY

NORTH  STAFFORDSHIRE

(Member of The Arts Society)

Membership Application Form for 2025-2026

You can now pay by BACS to The Arts Society North Staffs

Sort code: 30-95-91            

Account Number: 00062931

Please ensure that you clearly identify this payment using your INITIALS & SURNAME so we can identify you as a member.

OR

You can still pay by cheque by sending the completed form and cheque (payable to: The Arts Society North Staffs) to the Treasurer:

Vernon Wilson

63 Coppice Road

Willaston

Nantwich CW5 6QD

Annual subscription (April 2025 – March 2026) is £49 pp. 

Please ensure all payments are received by Thursday 27.3.2024 and all completed forms (if necessary), if not posted, are handed to the Treasurer or Membership Secretary.

CURRENT MEMBERS NEED NOT COMPLETE UNLESS CHANGES HAVE OCCURRED

Please PRINT:

Name…………………………………………………………..Title……………….…

Address…………………………………………………………………………………

………………………………………………………….Post Code……………….….

Telephone………………………………..Mobile………………………..…………

Email……………………………………………………………………………….……

GDPR compliance. Members' details will be processed fairly and lawfully in order to satisfy the agreement entered with you on your admittance to membership. Your details will be passed to The Arts Society.
We use email as our preferred method of communication for lecture programmes, trips and holidays but if you do not have access to a computer system please indicate this clearly on your form.

Christmas Raffle raised the fantastic sum of £532!!!🎄🎄
Cheques were delivered to the Members two chosen charities - The Macari Centre in Stoke on Trent ( for the homeless )- presented to Lou Macari and the Peter Pan Centre in Newcastle under Lyme ( Children with Special needs), presented to the Fundraising Manager Claire Addis.
Photos of our Chairman Margaret Thompstone and our Treasurer Vernon Wilson delivering the cheques on Friday 20th December 2024.

The Christmas Raffle raised the fantastic amount of £532!!!

Our Christmas lunch at the Upper House yesterday was enjoyed by all ( 95 Members attended) .. a festively decorated room created a lovely ambience, delicious food and super efficient staff and excellent company…what a super afternoon it was!! We raised £532 on the raffle and our prize winners were drawn as we had our coffee/tea . Congratulations to all of you who won prizes and a huge Thankyou to all our Members who bought raffle tickets, which enables our Committee to continue to reach out and support our Local Community and Local Charities. 
Members put forward suggestions for  a local charity to receive the monies raised by the Rafffle. The two charities to share the £532 are … The Peter Pan Centre ( Newcastle under Lyme )which supports children with Special Needs,and The Macari  Centre ( Stoke on Trent)who supports the homeless.
Wishing everyone a Happy Christmas and look forward to seeing you all at the Wade Centre, Hartshill for our January Lecture.

One of the five successful projects put forward by our Members, to receive the Arts Society Community Grant of £250.

Twigtwisters.

The school put forward the proposal of a day workshop for 25 selected GCSE and A Level Art students.

Twigtwisters allowed the students, under tuition, to express themselves using a different medium.

The fabulous pieces produced will be added to their GCSE and A Level submissions.
 

Part of the Arts Society's remit is to encourage the promotion of the arts within the local community by engaging with schools, colleges, charities and community groups.
We identified that on our doorstep our local University attracts extremely talented Fine Art  students.

Last year our Committee undertook to support these students by providing prizes to the graduates. The decision of who deserved the prizes was undertaken by our Committee members, but this year all our members were invited to participate in choosing the winners. Members were invited to the Final Exhibition and asked to vote for a 1st, 2nd and 3rd choice, the votes were then accumulated in order to arrive at the winning students. Prize money will then be presented to the winning students on their Graduation Day.
First Prize (£250) , 2nd Prize (£100) and 3rd Prize (£50)

1st Prize-- Ricky Chen.   Geometric sculptural origami aimed to present the hidden boundaries of the man made and the natural. (Top right photograph).

2nd Prize--Karl Webster.  Paintings and sculptures formed a contemporary enquiry into the natural landscape. Drawing from immersion in the English landscape, particularly the exploration of the Peak District. His work alluded to place, the passage of time, and the healing powers of nature.(Middle left photograph).

3rd Prize--Jenny Richardson. ( Ceramics)   Passionate about human rights and interested in peoples behaviour, Jenny's polemic art speaks for those being judged and marginalised.
Her work followed the life of her Grandfather, working  in the Staffordshire pottery Industry, fighting in the First World War and his gradual demise due to mental health problems.( Bottom right photograph).

Good Afternoon Everyone

We are hoping you might know a group who would value a £250 grant towards an arts or heritage based project or cause. 

Community Grants are set aside by the Art Society, designed to help individual Arts Societies support art related causes in their local area.

The £250 grant may be used for any purpose provided that it is arts or heritage based.

Societies should consider how helping a project or cause will contribute to the health and wellbeing of the local community, increase access to the arts and raise their profile locally.

Applications are limited to one Community Grant per Society per year.

The Committee would welcome your ideas and suggestions that meet the above criteria.

Please provide the following information

Name of the Group

Its location

Purpose/Community related

Arts/Heritage

Contact details e.g. person, website, email address

Please email your suggestions to : info@theartssocietynorthstaffordshire.org.uk or Ros at oldoakrrg@gmail.com

The Committee will evaluate your ideas and suggestions and in due course let you know their decision.

We eagerly await all your suggestions!  Not later than 31 May 2024 please.

Best wishes

Ros

Please note: the above information can be found on our Arts Society website

From 15th March to 5th April, the town of Cheadle will celebrate The Museum of the Moon, a wide range of programme of Arts and Cultural Activities and Events including:

Live Music and Spoken Word Performances 
Science and History Talks
Stargazing and Moonwatch Sessions 
Wellbeing Workshops
Film Screenings 
Craft Activities 

Mary Adela Blagg was a pioneering Astronomer, born in 1858, living her entire life in Cheadle, Staffordshire. 
Mary's groundbreaking work mapping the moon saw her become one of the first women to be admitted into the Royal Astronomical Society.

A crater on the moon, Blagg crater, was named after Mary, and in March 2023, a planet was named Maryblagg in her honour.

Mary is buried in the  churchyard of St Giles the Abbot in Cheadle.

Majority of the Programme will take place at St Giles the Abbot Church, Cheadle ST10 1HU.
( This is not the church associated with Pugin)

There is no parking at the Church, nearest parking is Tape Street, Cheadle, ST10 1EU.

Sign up for updates: outsidearts.org

The finalists from 17 Societies in our area-- the schoolchildren were asked to design a plate celebrating the 50th year of The Arts Society-- they drew and coloured their designs onto cardboard to be judged.

Their successful designs were made into ceramic plates and fired at the Wedgwood factory, to mark the occasion.

The Arts Society celebrated its 50th Anniversary in 2018, founded in 1968.

To mark the occasion Florian Schweitzer, CEO of the Society, ran 50k-- 5 runs of 10k.

Margaret Thompstone our Chair persuaded Florian to complete one of his 10k runs in the Potteries.

Florian ran from Longton through to Tunstall, so he passed through all of the six towns.

The photograph from the archives shows Florian, Margaret Thompstone and other members of the Committee outside the Portmerion shop in Longton

The Society has a history of promoting and encouraging young people to appreciate art and culture. As part of this programme we recently contacted the Staffordshire University Art and Design Department to offer financial support via a small prize to fine art students who graduated in July. 
Our President, Carole Deakin, Chair, Margaret Thompstone and two members of the Committee - Rob Smith and Vernon Wilson - attended the graduation degree show to view the work of final year students.
As a result, a prize of £100 was awarded to Polly Jools Deacon and £50 to Kate Jones.
We will contact these artists to seek permission to reproduce some of their work on our Facebook page.
 

The Wedgwood Vase which was saved from being exported to the USA, was handmade by Josiah Wedgwood himself in 1769 to celebrate the opening of his factory in Etruria.

The vase is one of four made, two vases are in the V&A in London and the remaining one is with descendants of Josiah.

A target of £482,500 had to be raised by 14th July 2017 to save its fate!

Thanks to donations from individuals, charities and organisations including the North Staffordshire Arts Society, the vase remained in this country.

Photograph.. Members of the Committee of the Arts Society North Staffordshire pictured alongside the Wedgwood Vase-- courtesy of our Chair Margaret Thompstone.

A Service of Commemoration and Thanksgiving on Remembrance Sunday was held at Westminster Abbey.

Members of the North Staffordshire Arts Society were invited to attend.

The photograph shows Brian Lewis (President), Margaret Thompstone (Chair)  and other Committee members of our Society.