So what does the Henley Society actually do? Find out here

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One of the most frequently asked questions of our Executive Committee is ‘what does the Henley Society actually do?’ 

And so in the spirit of informing, we list below our activities, both successful and not so much so,  from the start of 2020.

  • Raised approx. £11,000 to reinstate 19 Victorian Terrace House Signs
  • Lobbied Network Rail (unsuccessfully) to de-graffiti and repaint the Mill Lane Overbridge
  • Lobbied Henley Town Council to improve the Gravel Hill Amenity site
  • Restored the commemorative plaque to Past President Raymond Youle as a part of the above initiative
  • Responded to two Government White Papers on our current Planning system and Planning for the Future
  • Provided three Committee Members to sit on the Joint Henley Harpsden Neighbourhood Plan Review Committee – a five year task
  • Lobbied HTC to empty the towns litter bins more frequently
  • Sponsored the trial of two solar compactor bins in the town for a total of eighteen months
  • Campaigned to stop the proposed building of a Premier Inn  at the Station Car Park
  • Arranged a talk by Dr Michael Redley on ‘Aldermen and Mayors -the life of Henley before WW1’
  • Supported the campaign run by Amanda Chumas to stop HGVs using Henley as a rat-run
  • Lobbied SODC to have the Kings Rd (Waitrose) car park lavatories better cleaned  – resulting in them taking the work in-house
  • Lobbied SODC to carry out extensive renovations to the Greys Road Car Park lavatories – now completed
  • Lobbied HTC to reduce the number of A-boards in the town centre resulting in a new policy of one board per retail outlet
  • Lobbied HTC for better pavement and street cleaning
  • Arranged a talk at our 2021 AGM by John Howell MP for Henley
  • Persuaded ZZoomm (the broadband company) to provide 500 spring bulbs which our members planted in the grass triangle adjacent to the Three Horseshoes PH
  • Together with HTC renovated the Phillimore Fountain
  • Planted 8 trees on the southern entrance to town on land at the junction of Sheephouse Lane/Reading Road
  • Liaised with Townlands Hospital on a primrose planting project in their gardens
  • Arranged three Music on the Lawn events -2022,  2023 and 2024
  • Opposed plans to turn the Red Lion Hotel into a C2 Residential Home
  • Raised member concerns re the re-routing of the water away from the Thames Farm site in Harpsden towards Henley
  • Lobbied to bring about the re-opening of the Friday Street Slipway
  • Carried out a town wide membership campaign which resulted in increasing the membership from 253 to over 600 (now 682)
  • Re-connected an Australian living in Melbourne with a Henley family he had not been in touch with for over 60 years (achieved within 36 hours of receiving the request)
  • Provided car park attendants at the Bell Surgery during Covid vaccinations
  • Arranged  a talk at our 2022 AGM by Cllr Ken Arlett – subject – The JHHNP Review
  • Celebrated the 100th Anniversary of the first social housing in Henley (in Western Avenue)
  • Arranged a talk by Alan Pontin ‘Henley’s need for more housing- and how it can be sympathetically achieved’
  • Arranged a visit to the Commandants Parade at Royal Academy Sandhurst
  • Campaigned against the building of 8 flats on land between Pack and Prime Lane and Parkside
  • Arranged two walking tours of Henley historic buildings built by Charles Clements led by Dr Michael Redley
  • Arranged a talk by Simon Spearing (Theatre Manager) on The Kenton Theatre, the Past, Present and Future – and the ghost
  • Arranged a talk by the Queens Swan Marker, David Barber on Swan Upping and the health of our Swan population
  • Laid memorial wreaths at the Remembrance Day Service 2020 to 2024
  • Assisted Town Hall staff in pulling together the ownership history of the Friday Street Slipway
  • Published our book –‘The Henley Society-the first 60 years’
  • Financed a replacement sign at Peartree Cottages Rotherfield Greys for Henley and District Housing Trust
  • Arranged a talk by Simon Clinton ‘Save Wild Tigers’
  • Donated a lime tree to HTC for planting at Freemans Meadow
  • Outing to Fawley Hill for their September Steam Fair
  • Arranged 3 meetings with various Henley Town Centre Managers to make our points about the town
  • Arranged our 60th Anniversary Breakfast meeting at the Catherine Wheel
  • Placed a plaque on the exterior of the Catherine Wheel commemorating our 60 year association with them
  • Arranged a talk by Peter Hancock ‘Life in Henley in the 30s and 40s and a showing of his rare footage of the first Regatta after WW2
  • Lobbied strongly (but unsuccessfully) against the construction of a 115 bed room Care Home on the Smith’s Hospital site, Fair Mile
  • Consistently supported the  Henley Traditional Boat Fair
  • Consistently supported the Henley Farm & Country Show including 2024
  • Arranged a trip to the Royal Air Force Museum at Hendon, North London
  • Arranged a talk by Richard Anderson ‘Life at RMA Sandhurst’
  • Arranged a talk at our 2023 AGM by Alison Foster Project Director, on changes at the Royal Berkshire Hospital
  • Lobbied OCC regarding the missing paving slabs on Henley’s Grade 1 Listed  Bridge – now replaced after 3 years of such lobbying
  • Lobbied OCC regarding the proliferation of potholes evident in the town
  • Lobbied SODC about the Lack of a ‘Ladies Only’ cubicle at the Kings Road Car Park
  • Lobbied the Environment Agency re the closure of the Horsebridge at Marsh Lock
  • Arranged a talk by Oxford Historian, Liz Woolley  subject -‘William Morris -Lord Nuffield and his generosity’
  • Redesigned the Society’s web site – www.thehenleysociety.org
  • Lobbied for the restoration of the historic Pest House at Townlands Hospital
  • Financed and sited an information board at the Pest House at Townlands Hospital
  • Lobbied the owners of the Imperial Hotel – empty for many years- about its future
  • Lobbied OCC/SODC/Wokingham Borough re the removal of the ‘H’ graffiti on Henley Bridge
  • Asked  SODC to replace worn street signs at Boston Road and West Street -jobs now completed
  • Lobbied Gardiner Place to appoint cleaners to regularly clean the alleyway between Market Place and Kings Rd Car Park
  • Lobbied Sainsbury’s to better maintain their staff smoking area adjacent to their shop, and to provide cigarette butt bins
  • Lobbied Starbucks (unsuccessfully) to better clean the area adjacent to their café
  • Arranged a talk by Charles Whittaker on Augustus Pugin
  • Arranged a talk by volunteers from  the Thames Valley Air Ambulance volunteers, at which talk our members contributed over £1,100 to Air Ambulance Funds
  • Arranged a talk at our 2024 AGM by the Deputy Mayor of Henley on the Strategic Plan for Henley 2024-29
  • Supported the Henley Community Land Trust in their quest for more affordable housing in Henley
  • Lobbied Gail’s Bakery to reduce the amount of commercial waste left on the pavement overnight for later collection
  • Lobbied Henley Town Council to repair the bus shelter on Greys Road (near Top Shops) and to remove graffiti, resulting in extensive improvements to, and the provision of, more bus shelters
  • Lobbied Henley Town Council to better publicise the underused town bus service, and to provide timetables
  • Annually reviewed, and commented on, every Planning Application before HTC before determination by the Planning Authority, SODC. This amounts to approx. 300 applications per year
  • Arranged a horse-drawn canal boat trip on the Kennet & Avon Canal for 53 members
  • Lobbied the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities re the Environmental Impact Assessment Screening at Thames Farm, Harpsden
  • Lobbied the Secretary of State for Health & Social Care re the loss of 7 step-down beds at Chiltern Court and the threatened reduction in services offered, and hours of opening, at Townlands Hospital
  • ‘Harvested’ over 100 testimonials to Townlands Hospital to help the hospital Steering Group maintain services and opening hours
  • Arranged a talk for members and guests given by our new MP Mr Freddie Van Mierlo
  • Lobbied Cote Restaurant to keep the pavement outside their premises clear of food waste
  • Lobbied Oxfordshire County Council regarding the unsatisfactory road surface on the Fair Mile (A4130) and requested the cost of upgrade to be included in their 2025/6 budget

Whilst carrying out this work we have expanded our membership from 253 to over 680 and maintained our annual and life subscription rates at prices set in 1993