Volunteers at Stanmore’s Bentley Priory Museum have been awarded the prestigious King’s Award for Voluntary Service (KAVS).
The award recognises and celebrates the outstanding work of volunteers. Equivalent to an MBE, KAVS is the highest award given to local voluntary groups in the UK, and the award is for life.
In 2005, a group of volunteers set up The Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust to fundraise for a Battle of Britain commemorative museum to be created at Bentley Priory when the RAF left in 2008. After years of voluntary endeavour and enterprise, their vision became a reality when the museum opened in September 2013.
The museum’s volunteer team has grown considerably since 2005, with over 100 volunteers at the core of the visitor engagement team, many of whom have been with the museum for more than 10 years. Volunteers are integral to welcoming over 10,000 visitors a year, giving historic tours, serving food in the vintage café, engaging school students with the museum’s collection, and maintaining the museum’s Grade II Italian gardens.
Trustee Wing Commander Erica Ferguson said: “Our incredible volunteers are essential to the running of the museum and pivotal to our success. Visitors always highlight how volunteers enrich their experience, and we are so grateful to their extraordinary generosity of time, skills and knowledge. We are so proud of them for achieving this distinguished award.”
One of the museum’s longest serving volunteers, who joined in 2008, reflected on their volunteering experience: “I enjoy volunteering at the museum because it gives me so much pleasure. It comes down to the pleasure I get from the company and companionship of my fellow volunteers and most importantly of all, from the enjoyment our visitors get from coming along to share what’s so special about Bentley Priory.”
0 Comments