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Membership News
Aircraft Noise
For several years the Society has received free copies of
the newsletter of the Heathrow Association for the control of
Aircraft Noise (now known as HACAN Clear Skies). They have now
asked us to become subscribers at an annual cost of £20.
As its name implies, HACAN represents communities under the flightpaths
of Heathrow Airport. Its membership includes a number of civic
societies like ours, not only the obvious ones like Kew and Richmond,
but also others even further away from Heathrow than we are,
as well as most of the local authorities round the airport. It
campaigns for a reduction in aircraft noise, a total ban on night
flights and rejection of Terminal Five, on which a Government
decision is awaited. Nearly everyone now assumes that it will
be built but HACAN (and the London Forum) see it as essentially
a highly profitable shopping centre for interchange air passengers
with disastrous environmental consequences, both in the air and
on the ground.
The Croydon Society already subscribes to a number of outside
bodies at a substantial cost to its funds and the Executive Committee
is reluctant to incur any further expense of this kind. Also
aircraft noise has never been seen as a major concern of ours.
This happy state of affairs may, however, not last much longer,
as May Johnson noted in last summer's Focus. The easiest response
to complaints about aircraft noise is to alter or disperse flight
paths and the least vocal areas are the ones most likely to suffer
as a result. We should also not forget the proposal to expand
Biggin Hill, which is right on our doorstep.
We will be raising these issues at the AGM and will be guided
by members' response in deciding whether we should join HACAN.
George Parish
New Members
We are delighted to welcome into membership Mr A P Clarke.
Congratulations Cllr Mary Walker OBE
We congratulate Mary on gaining this honour and here is a
reply from her to our chairman in response to a letter sent to
her:
From the Mayor's Parlour, Town Hall, Katharine Street. 18
January 2001.
"Dear May,
Thank you very much for your very kind good wishes following
my award of the OBE in the New Year's Honours List.
I do thank you for the very generous comments which you have
made and trust that I can continue to represent the people of
Croydon during the rest of my Mayoral year in the way that I
hope I have represented many people of Croydon during the time
that I have had the privilege of being an elected Member of the
Council of the London Borough of Croydon.
With best wishes.
Mary"
Deaths
We regret to learn of the death of Mr Bevington Smith who
was Chairman of the South Croydon Conservation Area. We offer
our sympathies to his wife.
£2 increase in subscriptions? No
thanks!
(No need!!)
Sorry about the alarming headline, but the figure of £2
is a real one which we can easily avoid. The key is Gift Aid,
about which I have written previously. Gift Aid rules enable
charities, such as the Croydon Society, to reclaim income tax
on donations (including subscriptions) from those who are taxpayers.
Few of our members, I suspect, are non-tax-payers; if you
are one, the remainder of this article is not of direct relevance
to you. For the rest of our readers, do please read on ... and
then act! We DO need a form signed by you to enable us to reclaim
the tax; and this form is reproduced at the back of this edition
of Focus. (If you need another form; please ring me on 020 8777
4840 or (for preference) send an s.a.e. or download one from
our website at www.CroydonSociety.org.uk).
The arithmetic goes like this; to have £7.50 net change
for a double membership, a standard- rate taxpayer needs to earn
£9.61 and thus to suffer tax at £2.11. WE CAN CLAIM
THAT BACK, thus increasing the value of your sub by over 28%.
the percentage increase applies to single members also, with
a cash benefit to the Society of £1.69. Given annual subs
last year at £1162, we could get a tax refund of perhaps
£300, as against the £68.55 we did get. And if you
are a 40% taxpayer you can get the extra 18% off your own tax
bill. Can't be bad ... so why aren't we all doing it???
So please bombard me with forms, and remember that if you
know someone who would like to join the Society to give them
a membership form!
Andy Bebington
Hon Treasurer
Subscriptions were due for renewal on 1 January 2001.
There are still a lot of people who have not yet returned this.
Please do so the society desperately needs to know that
you are supporting us again this year.
Make sure you fill in the 'Gift Aid' declaration on the membership
forms even if you have a current standing order to the society
without this declaration (a tick in the box) we can not
claim your tax back!
Warehouse Theatre
The Warehouse theatre is situated in Dingwall Road, Close
to East Croydon interchange. The Box office number is 020 8680
4060. Website: www.warehousetheatre.co.uk There exciting programme
includes the following:
Fri 16 Mar-Sun 8 April, - Custard Factory Theatre
Company in 'A Doll's House'
Fri 27 Apr-Sun 20 May - Jet Theatre Company in the World
Premiere of Voyagers (12)
Fri 1 - Sun 24 June - Watermill Theatre West Berkshire Playhouse
in the World Premiere of Lone Flyer The incredible flight of
Amy Johnson
Tue 26 Jun-Sun 1 July - Tara Arts in two visionary tales
of exile, absence and the search for home 'Odyssey/Ramayan'
Wed 11-Sat 14 July - Add Lib And Score (ALAS) Productions
in 'Is There Life After Highschool?'
Fri 20-Sat 28 July - Edinburgh Preview - STAND-UP SEASON
Fri 3 & Sat 4 August - Croydon Young People's Theatre
Summer Production
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