KHC Blog

Christmas is fast approaching again, so it’s time to look back at a year that kept us on our toes at Kegworth Heritage Centre. After reopening in 2024, we knew better than to try and build forecasts based on one year of data. Instead, we set ourselves a handful of clear goals for 2025 — and worked hard to hit them.

Our Main Goals for 2025

• Stay Open All Year - A simple goal on paper, but vital. After years of disruption, we needed to show we could run a stable, reliable museum again.

• Reopen the Upstairs Gallery - The fire escape was repaired in 2024, but the upstairs still needed clearing and restoration. The original wooden floor was sanded and varnished, and by late February volunteers were building new displays.

• Get Our Finances Under Control - Electricity usage, our biggest cost, had become unpredictable because of a faulty meter. Thanks to our treasurer, the issue was resolved in April, allowing us to set a realistic budget and put a system in place to finally be able to monitor cash our flow

• Submit the UK Museum Accreditation Application - We’d committed to becoming a UK Accredited Museum back in 2020 and this year we reached point where we had to submit our application or start over for another three year period. We submitted a week ahead of the deadline.

• We Opened — And Stayed Open - The doors opened in March and closed at the end of the season, ready for 2026.
• The Upstairs Gallery Looks Great - The restored floor looks fantastic, the new displays are up, and we even have a new storage area
• Finances Have Stabilised - After several years of losses, we expect to break even — possibly even make a small surplus. The wider financial climate remains uncertain, but we now have a solid base to build on.
• Accreditation Progress - Our Lead Assessor visited in October. Early signs are very positive, and we expect to be recommended for full accreditation when the panel meets in early February

• We are now entering a cycle of building year on year against our ten year development plan. Stability gives us room to grow and experiment. We are working hard to bring back more of our popular pre‑2018 events and activities, adding some fresh twists to reach new audiences while staying true to our roots. Our first KHC sponsored talk in years was held recently — thanks to Val Yates and James McKay.

• The KHC Collection is at the heart of what we are, but we have only just begun to realise exactly what we have buried away in storage boxes, cupboards and files. Thanks to Melina Leary and Kim Hilsdon, we’re building a proper catalogue of all our artefacts. They were also helped towards the end of the summer by our newest and youngest volunteer Phoebe Webster.

• Special thanks to Sandra and Maria for their ongoing work sorting boxes and creating displays, including the Remembrance window and Advent window. It was also wonderful to have Marietta back with us.

As autumn arrives and our second season draws to a close, it’s a good moment to look back on what we’ve achieved together.

This year saw the reopening of our upstairs gallery after major refurbishment, with brighter, more open displays that visitors have praised. Familiar themes such as schools and agriculture have returned upstairs in fresh ways, alongside new exhibits like the artwork from Kegworth Primary School pupils marking the decommissioning of Ratcliffe power station.

It hasn’t all been easy. Sunny Sundays — lovely for most people, tricky for museums — kept visitor numbers lower than hoped. But behind the scenes we’ve made big strides: keeping to budget, moving forward with our conversion to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, and applying for Arts Council Accreditation. We’ve also begun to tackle a huge backlog of documentation, creating an online catalogue that will shape future displays.

None of this would have been possible without our volunteers and supporters. Mel, Kim and Pat have put in countless hours cataloguing objects; Sandra, Maria and Val have been busy reshaping displays; Steve and Geoff continue to be our “man-Fridays”; and our friend James McKay, although not a volunteer, has generously shared the proceeds of his books and his research. We were delighted to welcome Marietta back after time away with family, and to add Phoebe, our youngest-ever volunteer, who quickly threw herself into every aspect of museum life. Together, this team effort is what keeps KHC alive.

Looking ahead, our priorities are clear: raising awareness of KHC within the village and beyond, improving access for those unable to reach the upstairs gallery by developing a simple web app, and — most urgently — recruiting new trustees and volunteers.

It’s been a year of consolidation and stabilising, and we’re excited for what comes next. Thank you for visiting, supporting, and cheering us on. We look forward to welcoming you back in 2026.

It doesn’t feel like it, but this is only the second Christmas message I’ve written as the chairman of KHC, although there have been quarterly updates and a couple of posts as acting chairman. Looking back on my past musings, I noticed a theme of uncompromising optimism and hope. Because that has been the narrative behind KHC for the last four years, and it wasn’t until July last year that it felt like it was beginning to have some effect. It’s not the greatest business strategy, and it certainly doesn’t stand up by itself, but without hope and optimism, it can be easy to start thinking that maybe you have bitten off more than your should have done!

We had two primary objectives in 2024. The first was to finally reopen, and the second was to prove to the people of Kegworth that their trust in us was not misplaced. We also needed to get through the year with enough financial strength to start our second season in 2025! It has not been easy. There are still challenges ahead. But these were huge goals to achieve, and you cannot imagine the effort, resilience, and sheer stubbornness of our volunteers to get through the year.

As we head into 2025, we now know that we will open up the second floor in time for the start of the season in the spring. We have secured the elusive funding to repair the fire escape, which has been a huge problem for many years, and work has finally started. Even before that was certain, the volunteers had spent an exhausting few weeks clearing the upstairs, creating new storage space, sanding and preparing the floor, and finally varnishing and oiling the floorboards. This is another huge step in our plan. Not only will we be able to have additional display space for our own collection, but we hope to encourage other exhibitors to help them showcase their work. We can finally begin to build a space for researchers who want to understand more about the village, their families, and their own local history. Lastly, that space will be used to host events for people to come and join us to hear from speakers, local or from further afield, and secure our place as a genuine community hub. There are exciting times ahead.

On behalf of the trustees, I want to thank our volunteers and all our visitors for keeping the faith and supporting us. Special thanks also to Kegworth Parish Council, NW Leicestershire District Council, East Midlands Airport, and Museum Development Midlands for their financial and consultancy support. And shout-outs to Lovage Homes for their generous donation and last but not least, to Mr. James McKay of this parish for giving us exclusive sales rights to the 2nd edition of his Kegworth Pubs book.

Have a fantastic holiday and we look forward to seeing you again in the Spring!

Ally Gill, Chairman KHC
Prague, December 2024

It’s now been almost five months since we reopened the doors at KHC and time to report back. We have been absolutely delighted with the support from the village (and way beyond!) and the fantastic feedback we have received - more on that in a moment.

Museums may be a reflection of the past but they have to be forward looking, dynamic and reactive to the needs of their visitors. That has been a huge driver in how we’ve reimagined KHC and how we’re moving forward.

Kegworth has changed dramatically since I first came here in 1980 as a student at Sutton Bonington (some of you will be pleased to know that I have as well!). Whilst the village retains much of its charm and character, it has grown in size and is almost buried by the industrial landscape that seems to encroach on an almost daily basis. And whilst the village has always been a transportation hub - many of the old pubs were coaching inns - Kegworth is now a convenient commuter hub with spokes pushing out in all directions. Our demographics have also changed. Our community now attracts more EastWinders than ever - some transient, but many who, like me, chose to make this our home. We’ve lost many of the old characters who were so instrumental in the formation of the current Kegworth. But new characters now live amongst us, taking their places in the future of our community.

As the curators of our heritage we are mindful of this and we understand that there are fine lines between past, present and future, and that we need to appeal to many different groups if we wish to continue to grow and build on our legacy.

So many of you who have been to visit have commented on the positive differences - the brighter and more open feel seems to have resonated especially. You’ve clearly enjoyed being able to step back further in time than ever before with the fantastic Robert Williams collection. And it’s been wonderful to see our younger visitors taking part in the Kaggi activity and the quizzes.

All your feedback has been logged and some of the suggestions are already being planned and will be in place for next year.

Over 90% of running a museum is completely unseen by our visitors, and even our volunteers to a certain extent. None of us has professional experience in the Heritage sector so everyday is a learning experience. We recently applied to join a support programme run by Museum Development Midlands (MDM) and were really excited to be accepted. It means we get to work with an amazing museum consultant, Tonia Collett, and be able to network with other museums that have similar problems so we can support each other. This was only possible because we opened! At our first meeting at KHC not only did Tonia join us, she brought along most of the MDM executive team. It really felt like we were on the map!

We’ve always maintained that Kegworth groups should try much harder to work together rather than fight for the limited resources we have in a small community, and I’m delighted that we are starting to make that happen. We’re partnering up with the RBL to help bring more awareness to Remembrance Week and supporting the UKSPF team in hosting and building the webpages associated with the buildings that were selected to display a Kegworth Plaque.

All of this activity keeps us busy. Too busy. We desperately need more people to help us, and in particular people who are comfortable using technology. We need people who can do research, help us put grant applications together, and a myriad of other things. We are currently being stretched too much and in too many directions. It’s our own fault because we are driven to make KHC an amazing place, and we’re trying to do it as quickly as possible!

We are continuing to build for the future but we need your help (and money!) now. If you'd like to get involved, please either drop in to see se us during our opening hours, or pop by on a Wednesday afternoon, or contact us via email or on Facebook. There are many things that can be done remotely if you have a computer and access to the internet! So, even if you're based hundeds of miles away (like I am!) we can still use your skills,enthusiasm and passion!

On that note, I'd like to welcome our latest volunteers, Kim Hilsdon, Brenda Wallis, and Tinashe Mawodza. Brenda and Tinashe are primarily helping with much needed stewarding support during our opening hours, and Kim is currently helping Pat to digitise the Collection Catalogue according to the latest Spectrum standard, starting with the Robert Williams Collection.


Finally - a special thank you to Lovage Homes for their very generous donation which has finally enabled us to buy a laptop which will help us catalogue The Collection!

Ally Gill, Chairman KHC
Prague, August 2024

2023 has been an extraordinary year for KHC, and we are finally back on track and heading in the right direction. We had been struggling to see the tunnel, let alone a light at the end of it. Now, we can make out the 'Reopening' platform on the other side of the exit.

The volunteering day we held in March was the catalyst for all that has happened since. The community survey we did in the Spring indicated that we were on the right path. By May, KHC was a safe place for volunteers to work in. The first working party started shortly after, with Pat, Marietta, Sandra, Maria and Diane trying to get some semblance of order from the chaos. The acquisition of the Robert Williams collection has been a focal point and allowed us to highlight some of the fantastic creative abilities we have in the team.

We'd hoped that if we could create the right environment here at KHC, then word would spread, and the volunteers would bring in their friends and families to join in. And we weren't wrong. First, Val came on board, and then our gentlemen helpers, Geoff, Steve and John, started to attend the sessions occasionally - making it even more of a family team. And to emphasise that, Mel joined us as secretary, having sworn to me that she'd never get involved with KHC. More recently, Vanessa and Jo have joined us, and we have some more people we hope will start in the New Year.

On Wednesday, for the first time, I witnessed firsthand what has happened here. I was fully aware of the commitment and the graft that was taking place. But what I hadn't experienced was the sense of fun and spirit of togetherness that has been missing for a long time. There really isn't a better time to come and join us, and we'll hold another Volunteering day in the next couple of months.

On Friday evening, many of the volunteers and trustees gathered at KHC for a well-deserved Christmas Gathering. Everyone brought something to the party, and we invited a few of our long-term supporters to join us - the first time anyone not directly involved in the reopening project has crossed the threshold. Their reactions were fantastic, a huge boost and testimony to hard work and perseverance.

We shall be heading into 2024 with a new zest to reopen in the Spring. And more ambitious plans for the rest of 2024 and beyond are already being drawn up.

KHC is a bit like a woolly mammoth - it's big and hairy. So far, we've shaved off the fur, revealed the elephant behind it, and made an amazing start in chopping it up into smaller pieces. The big difference between us and the woolly mammoth - we are not extinct!

On behalf of everyone at Kegworth Heritage Centre, have a wonderful Christmas and Happy New Year.


Ally, KHC Chairman.
Kegworth, Christmas Eve, 2023.

A large number of museums, especially small, independent rural museums, run as charitable organisations, like KHC, closed their doors during the pandemic, and many of them may never reopen. For some, it was because they had nothing left in the bank to cover their ever-increasing costs of even opening the doors. For others, it was because they lost their volunteers.

At KHC, we had a different set of problems, but we've been fortunate to be able to pay for all the new infrastructure that needed to be put in place through various grants and generous benefactors. And as I have previously mentioned, we have a great set of new and former volunteers driving us towards our reopening. I want to express our thanks to our most recent benefactors.

In July, we received an award from the East Midlands Airport Community Fund, which has enabled us to install a new alarm system. This includes both burglar alarms and smoke detection devices. The alarm is monitored, ensuring a police response in the event of a break-in. Please don't attempt to put it to the test!

We'd also like to thank Amazon UK Services Ltd., who have donated brand new display boards, which have been installed and their contents already planned and currently being created.

We still have much to do, but more pieces of the jigsaw I alluded to back in the summer are falling into place daily. The challenges that looked insurmountable in the past are becoming more manageable, and our confidence grows. Some of our volunteers have engaged family members to support us; thanks to Geoff Powell, Steve Yates and John Wood for rolling up their sleeves, quite literally at times, and getting stuck in with some of the heavy-duty activities that occasionally stand in our way.

Our finances continue to be tight, but careful management by our treasurer, John Billett, ensures that our cash flow is still under control and we can see out the continued cost of living crisis. We will continue to try and pay for improvements through grants, but operational costs will still need to be met from our reserves until we can start to bring in new sources of funding - and we are already thinking about opportunities.

In addition to the appointments we made in our last announcement, Diane Powell has now taken on the new role of Chief Archivist in addition to her role as a trustee. One of Diane's key tasks will be to bring some sense of order to the hundreds (thousands?) of documents in our possession and to provide her expertise and knowledge to our volunteers as we start to label the artefacts chosen for display to help visitors understand more about them.

We still need more volunteers! In certain organisations, there becomes a point where throwing more people at a problem does more harm than good. That's not the case with us! Our current volunteers need some support, both mentally and physically! In return, they will teach you about resilience, passion and extraordinary commitment. And we really need to get some younger members of our community involved. If you'd like to help out or you know someone who might be interested, please let us know! We will hold another volunteering day early in 2024, but there's no time like the present to get involved!

Brenda Naomi MOORE (née Bassett) 1931 - 2023

We would like to pay tribute to the late Brenda Moore, a former long-serving Trustee and dedicated Volunteer, who recently died at the age of 91 years.

Born in Kegworth and a lifelong resident, Brenda cared deeply for her community, keenly involved herself in village activities, and was passionate about local history and heritage. She played a pivotal part in establishing Kegworth Museum. With her enthusiasm, drive, determination and in her role as Secretary of the Kegworth Village Association (KVA), Brenda was instrumental in the acquisition of premises for a village museum, after a prolonged process fraught with difficulties. Then came all the effort and hard work necessary to prepare the building and exhibits before the doors could be opened to the public in 1992.

Brenda worked tirelessly on behalf of KVA and the Museum, organising a multitude of events both within the museum premises and externally in the community. She was responsible for reviving a Mediaeval Charter for the holding of a village market, and for many years organised the Easter Market held annually in the Market Place. Her Village Guided Walks were renowned, and people turned to her as a fount of knowledge on village history.

On a more day-to day basis, Brenda’s devoted volunteering covered all aspects of museum work, but her forté was in display and exhibition, attracting many favourable comments from visitors. She was creative and artistic, with an eye for detail and a love of the theatrical.

Brenda remained as Museum Secretary, Trustee and Volunteer after the eventual demise of KVA. She retired as a Trustee and Volunteer in 2018, having retired as Secretary a number of years previously but still proficient in her Pitman Shorthand skills!

A great debt of gratitude is owed to Brenda by Kegworth Heritage Centre and its patrons through her legacy of an invaluable contribution to promoting and preserving our community’s past.

Sincere Condolences to Brenda’s family and friends.