The Trust was pleased to host a visit from Lord Adonis, The Secretary of State for Transport and a railways enthusiast last night.

Lord Adonis heard from Trustee’s and members of the Railway Village community about their views of the Institution and the Trust’s plans for its restoration and long term use. Enthused by the discussion Lord Adonis was then taken on a tour of the Railway Village led by Daniel Rose, Chair of the New Mechanics’ Trust.

Also in attendance were Anne Snelgrove – South Swindon Constituency Parliamentary Candidate; Victor Agarwal – North Swindon Constituency Parliamentary Candidate; and Central Ward Councillor Bob Wright.

Lord Adonis pledged his support and commended the Trust for its success and hard work over the last 15 years.

Trust Chairman Daniel Rose talks to SwindonWeb…

Back to the Future at the Mechanics’

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“Self Help”, the second Mechanics Institutes Worldwide Conference, was held in the UK city of Bath in September.

The event follows the first Conference, “Buildings, Books and Beyond” held in Melbourne in 2004, and is aimed at the fraternity of Mechanics’ Institutes, Athenaeums, Schools of Arts, Literary and Philosophical Societies and other related organisations.

Hosting the conference this year was the Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, located in the centre of the World Heritage City of Bath.

The theme of this year’s conference was “Self Help”, in recognition of the 150th anniversary of the publication of the seminal work of that title by Samuel Smiles in 1859.

Daniel Rose, Chair of the Swindon New Mechanics’ Trust pictured here gave a speech to the conference winning a letter of support from the international audience that the Trust’s efforts should be applauded and urging the Council to support the Trust in bringing the building back into community use.

Further information about the conference can be found at: http://www.brlsi.org/mechanics09/