News

Our Plumbing Museum Workshop is now well established in the Gin (short for engine) building at the Amberley Craft Museum. Our main demonstrators are Phil Mead and Peter Cheesman and we are hoping to increase the number of our demonstrators. The highlight for the visitors is when they are pouring lead. They have been very busy since moving in and have been involved in 3 projects.

They have made a lead planter which was presented to the Amberley Museum to celebrate its 40th anniversary. The second is a lead planter for our church, St. Magnus the Martyr. It has been completed and is much admired by our visitors. I expect that it will be presented to St. Magnus later this year – watch the website for further details.

The final project is more practical. The Gin building was leaking with puddles on the floor after heavy rain. Who better could deal with this than reputable plumbers? Firstly Phil and Peter identified the cause, namely a lack of guttering. As this is an old building plastic just doesn’t cut the mustard. Only lead would do. Hence for the last few weeks our visitors have been admiring the sections of guttering, each with our coat of arms, and the down pipe. The section at the front of the building has now been put up. The photo below shows Eddie McCourt our new volunteer demonstrator enjoying a well- earned cup of tea next to the new downpipe.

The next project is restoration of an earlier piece. You will remember that we presented a magnificent lead planter to her Majesty to celebrate her diamond jubilee. This now sits proudly and magnificently at Sandringham. We also made a near copy (you don’t duplicate a gift to Her Majesty so there is a difference from the original) which resided at Singleton, where we have an unmanned static display. However it has not been well looked after and has suffered significant vandalism. It is being moved to Amberley for repair.

There is also another large and prestigious project in the offing so keep looking out for details.

US firm buys Hurley Palmer Flatt to grow presence in UK

The following article was published in the August 2019 CIBSE journal.  HPF Chief Executive Paul Flatt is a Liveryman and Court Assistant of the Worshipful Company of Plumbers

Every year, on the Friday before the second Sunday in November, the new Lord Mayor is sworn into office at the Guildhall. The ceremony is known as the “Silent Ceremony” because, aside from a short declaration by the incoming Lord Mayor, no speeches are made.

Since Plum’s last update she has moved in with a new family where she has been residing for the last 6 months.  The socialisers are very experienced and have had multiple dogs for the charity.  They find Plum a joy to live with and great company. She has a cheeky nature but also very affectionate and loves human company.  Read her latest update.

New Liveryman Tim Gocher, who joined us at the July Court meeting on 9 July received an honorary doctorate from the University of Nottingham last week in recognition of his outstanding achievements in sustainable development. Many congratulations Tim on this wonderful recognition of all you have done.The award was made by the Pro-Vice Chancellor Prof. Sarah O’Hara and the full oration can be seen here.

The sun was shining and Liveryman Mick Munro our Golf Society Secretary had a smile on his face. This could only mean that the Annual Plumbers Golf Day at the beautiful (but tricky) heathland New Zealand Golf Club was all set up and ready to go.

The Court held its Summer Meeting prior to the Summer Festival in Stationers’ Hall.

The final formal function of the Plumbers’ livery year is the Summer Festival.  This year it was held in the magnificent and historic Stationers’ Hall.  The hall was begun in 1670 but later underwent many alterations and improvements including a major restoration in 1957 due to wartime damage.

We welcome many and varied groups to the Plumbers’ Workshop in the “Gin” (short for engine) building at the Amberley Craft Museum. There are coach parties for schools, holidaymakers and various groups such as the University of the Third Age. There are also family groups such as parents or grandparents with children of all ages, married couples or the experts finding out more about their craft.  Even 82 year old Michael Smith achieved an ambition at the Plumbers Workshop.

At the Court meeting on 9th July 2019, the following were clothed in the Livery: William Frederick Poole-Wilson (Architect) , James Stephen Foster QBE (Chartered Accountant), Jason Clark (Lift distribution company) , Prof. Timothy Edward Gocher (Investment Fund) , Dr Susanne Lee (Consultant Clinical Scientist) & Mark Killy (Water Regulations Manager). We give them all a hearty welcome. They bring to the Company a wide range of knowledge and skills illustrating one of our strengths in not being restricted by the craft, profession or trade of our Liverymen.

Caroline Walsh, The Worshipful Company of Plumbers Almoner, successfully abseiled down the side of the Barclay’s Building, Canary Wharf, Isle of Dogs, London on Friday 5th July 2019 on behalf of the Plumbers for the Lord Mayor’s Charity.

Our Golfing Plumbers enjoyed a splendid day out at Verulam Golf Club on the occasion of the 14th Annual Marketors Fellowship Golf Day.

The Chartered Institute of Plumbing and Heating Engineering (CIPHE) held its 2019 Annual General Meeting on Saturday 22nd June. It was announced that the Institute members had voted Christopher Northey as President for 2019 and Melville Gumbs as Vice President. They were duly installed and will serve for the next twelve months. Chris and Mel are both Liverymen in the Worshipful Company of Plumbers and they are heartily congratulated.

Trains – huge and small, dinner on station platforms 4 & 5, boats on the river in beautiful sun, a soaring cathedral and a moving evensong, dinner with two Lord Mayors – one current the other our Master, a visit to Mansion House. All this happened in York at the Master’s Week End.

Lest you hadn’t heard, this year’s City Beer fest, in aid of the Lord Mayor’s Appeal, is taking place in the Guildhall Yard on Thursday 18 July between 1230 and 2100. Sixteen breweries will be there providing the finest beers for your enjoyment. The Brewers’ Company would be delighted if you and as many Liveryman as possible would come along to enjoy the great beer, good food and lively atmosphere.

We are sorry to announce that Liveryman James McIntyre died on 31 May 2019; he had been a member since 1986. The funeral has already taken place and was attended by Liveryman Bernard Bateman. Our thoughts are with his wife and family.

The Worshipful Company of Plumbers has recently opened a Traditional Plumbing Craft Museum at the Amberley Museum in West Sussex. On the 26th May, the Plumbing Museum, as part of the Amberley Museum’s 40th year Celebration Event, presented a bespoke Lead Planter to Amberley to commemorate this special occasion. The Planter was made in the Plumbing Museum by Liverymen Phil Mead and Peter Cheesman. Why not take your family for a visit and see not only the planter but also the many and wide ranging exhibitions and skills that are on display.

This week our golfing Plumbers were at Ashridge Golf Club to defend The “Horner’s Trophy” that they won with a record score last year. Our Golf Society Captain Richard Harvey teamed up with Trevor Wilson (our par 3 specialist); Paul Nash (our golf ball flight specialist) and David Hannam (our full time amateur golf specialist) to take on the might of the Inter-Livery golfing world.This year the gongs and awards went to The Butchers, The Tin Plate and Wire Workers and The Information Technologists. However, we had a wonderful day and our thanks go to Colin Freedman and the rest of our friends in The Horners Company for yet again keeping the rain away, the course in great condition and a lunch to please the inner Plumber.

If you are interested in joining in with fellow golfers in our Company, please contact our Hon Secretary Liveryman Mick Munro.

Honorary Fellowship of the CIPHE for Liveryman Colin Stainer

One of the highlights of the Annual Lecture dinner is the presentation of the Corporate Members Outstanding Achievement Award. This awards scheme has been introduced to allow Corporate Members to put forward candidates from within their organisations who have demonstrated an Outstanding Achievement in their particular sphere of work.

The year the recipient was Stephen Fitzsimmons who is the Technical Services Manager at 21 Construction

Emma Howard-Boyd, Chair of the England Environment Agency delivered the 35th Annual Lecture of the Plumbers’ Company entitled “Extremes of Climate. Too Wet, Too Dry. What are we to do about it?”. Held at the Royal College of Physicians she led the audience through many of the challenges facing the country today resulting from changes in the weather patterns. Changes that it is expected will continue and become more extreme. The Environment Agency has, and continues to develop, many different strategies but recongnises that the scale and complexity of the challenges we face with it being too wet or too dry requires new and lateral thinking. The audience responded with many questions and observations. The Master summarised the evening by reminding us that such diverse and complex challenges requires us to listen to others, to collaborate across the disciplines and for us to take individual actions that can be simple and low key but have a great cumulative effect.

An invitation to Liverymen of the Plumbers’ Company.

If you would like to get more involved in the superb support we provide through our Charity in changing lives for the better, then this opportunity could be for you! Do you have a passion for helping others and superb organisational skills that could help bolster the work of the Trustees?

As part of our new 5-year strategic plan and our desire to enhance the work we do, the Trustees of The Worshipful Company of Plumbers’ Charitable and Educational Trust are inviting members of the Company to apply for the position of Trustee.

Congratulations!  The Plumbers win the Inter Livery Yacht Race at Cowes on 18 May 2019.

Candidature for Sheriff of the City of London 2019/2020 – Alderman Professor Michael Mainelli

Emma Howard-Boyd, the Chair of the Environment Agency, will present a paper on ‘Too much, too little, too hot, too cold: Extreme weather, what do we do next?’

Chris Hayward and Erica Stary compete for the post of Non-Aldermanic Sheriff for 2019

The Court has recognised the exceptional service of Past Master John Rae.

Six new Liverymen, including Honorary Liveryman Jools Holland, join the Company at the April 2019 Court meeting.