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In partnership with Carrickfergus Museum 

Charity Commission Registration Number NIC100315 

Annual Report for the Year Ending 31 December 2025 

ae CARRICKFERGUS MUSEUM 

Mid & East Antrim Borough Council 

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## Contents 

||Page|
|---|---|
|Society Purpose and Governance|3|
|General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)|4|
|Achievements and Performance|4|
|Accounts|6|
|Charities Commission for Northern Ireland Guidance|6|
|AppendixA - Carrickfergus and District Historical Society|7|
|Constitution||
|Appendix B—Carrickfergus and District Historical Society List of|9|
|Society Talks and Outings 2025||
|AppendixC - Carrickfergus and District Historical Society|10|
|AuditedAccounts2025||



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# Carrickfergus and District Historical Society Annual Report for the Year Ending 31 December 2025 

The Trustees of the Society are pleased to submit their report and accounts for the period 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2025. 

## Society Purpose and Governance 

The purpose of the Carrickfergus and District Historical Society is to promote a knowledge and understanding of the past by means of education, recording and dissemination of information, especially of the history of Carrickfergus and district. It seeks to develop an interest in our past and generate a curiosity of our history. 

The Society’s beneficiaries are the general public in the Carrickfergus area and those who originated from the area but have since moved away and are keen to learn about the lives of their ancestors. There are no private benefits flowing from the purpose. 

The Society is affiliated to the Federation for Ulster Local Studies, which is an umbrella organisation for the historical societies within the nine Ulster counties and contributes to their activities. In addition, the meetings programme is delivered in partnership with the Carrickfergus Museum which is part of the Mid and East Antrim Borough Council. 

The Society is based in Carrickfergus and holds its regular monthly meetings in Carrickfergus Town Hall and is managed by a team of Trustees — please see below: 

|Honorary Secretary|Helen Clarke|
|---|---|
|CommitteeMembers|Shirin Murphy, Laura Patrick, JoyGuest, Adrian Hack,|
||GladysWhan*|



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The Society is governed by a constitution which was agreed at the Annual General Meeting held on 27 January 2016 — please see Appendix A. During the period of this report the Committee met on Zoom on 10 occasions to manage expenditure, review past events and plan future activities of the Society. 

## During the period of this report the Society had a membership of 56. 

The Society notes with sadness the passing of three former members during the year — Sean Neeson in June, Brian McKee in July and Kerry Walder in December. 

The Society has Annual Public Liability Insurance cover through our membership of the Federation for Ulster Local Studies. 

## General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) 

The Society takes its responsibilities under GDPR seriously and continues to use an annual membership form which includes a reference to GDPR and seeks email addresses to ensure the Society meet the requirement that information is accurate and up to date. Individuals may unsubscribe from the Society contact list at anytime. A notice advising how the Society uses information is displayed at the desk at each meeting. 

## Achievements and Performance 

During the period of this report the Society held 7 meetings with invited guest speakers, 3 walking tours, a visit to place of interest and hosted a play. These events covered a wide range of local history interests and were open to members and non-members. Further details of the events arranged by the Society are given in Appendix B. In addition to the regular programme of talks and visits the Society, in partnership with Carrickfergus Museum held a VE Day 80 celebration and a Victorian week. 

VE Day — the Society in partnership with the Museum marked the 80" anniversary of victory in Europe by having a special VE Day event at Carrickfergus Town Hall on 10 May. There were demonstrations, displays, workshops, talks, games, music and dancing! With contributions from local organisations active during the war, including the Women’s Institute, St John’s Ambulance, Boys Brigade, Cadet forces and more. A local café provided samples of food from ration recipes of the time including Spam stew and potato biscuits. 

In November the Society and Carrickfergus Museum ran a Victorian week which coincided with the launch of the Museums community engagement exhibition Vital Signs. This included a series of free to attend lunchtime talks on some of the Victorian history of Carrickfergus, a number of workshops with a Victorian theme and a fireside quiz. 

In December, to mark the 400% anniversary of his death, the Society with grant funding support from Mid and East Antrim Council commissioned a play from Anthony Russell on the Trial of Sir Arthur Chichester before the court of history where Sir Athur is called from the grave to answer the charge that, in winning the Nine Years War (in Ulster), he was guilty of racism and crimes against humanity. The play was staged on 4 December by the Newpoint Players in Carrickfergus Town Hall with the audience as the jury. The jury declared him Not Guilty on a majority verdict! 

In total approximately 620 people attended Society events, excluding the VE day event which was a drop in style event. As of 31 December 2025, the Society’s Facebook page — Heritage Carrickfergus had approximately 3,000 members. In addition, the society launched a website (www. carrickfergushistoricalsociety.org.uk) in March 2025 to publicise events and share resources. The website had 313 Clicks and 1210 Impressions by the 31 December 2025. 

The Society project to map the grave markers in Kilroot cemetery is ongoing with the uploading the information continuing. At the end of the project we hope to provide an online publication with information on each markers including recording the current state of the memorials. 

The Carrickfergus Museum and the Society's community engagement project Carrickfergus before the Castle was completed with the production of a historically accurate game called Cattle Battle where players take on a character role and discover the twists and turns that confronted those who lived in early medieval times. 

The Society produces a newsletter on regular basis which provides an update on the Society’s activities and is circulated to all C&DHS email contacts, is made available at meetings and to local libraries and is posted on the Society's Facebook page and website 

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## Accounts 

The Society charges a membership fee of £10 per annum and a small fee for attendance at meetings - during the period of this report the charge was £2 per meeting for members and £3 for nonmembers. 

During 2025 the Society experienced a negative cash flow of £2,535, however, there was a £1 ,000 Debtor grant payment due at the end of the financial year and the Society held £1,200 stock of Mrs Coe’s books printed in-year. 

The Society’s accounts have been audited by the Society's Honorary Auditor Cyril H Beattie and a copy is attached at Appendix C. 

## Charities Commission for Northern Ireland Guidance 

In setting our objectives and planning our activities for year the Trustees gave careful consideration to the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland guidance on public benefit to ensure that the activities organised have helped to achieve the Society’s purpose and provide a benefit to the beneficiaries. 

Signed ACLs[son.] Date '5 -2-Qb Helen Clarke Honorary Secretary 

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Appendix A 

## Carrickfergus and District Historical Society — Constitution Charity Commission Registration Number NIC100315 Constitution agreed at Annual General Meeting held at Carrickfergus Library on Wednesday 27 January 2016 

1. The name of this Society shall be “The Carrickfergus and District Historical Society” (hereinafter: The Society). 

- 2; The object of The Society is to promote a knowledge and understanding of the past by means of education, recording and dissemination of information, especially in and about Carrickfergus. 

3. Membership is open to those who are sympathetic to the object of The Society. Each member shall pay an annual subscription, the amount of which shall be determined by the membership at the Annual General Meeting. 

4. An Annual General Meeting shall be held by the end of March each year. The date shall be circulated amongst members at least four months in advance. The purpose of the meeting shall be to receive reports from the officers of The Society and to elect a chairman, vicechairman, honorary secretary, honorary treasurer, five other committee members and an honorary auditor. At the Annual General Meeting other business will be considered relevant to the running of the Society. At an Annual General Meeting or any General Business Meeting a quorum shall be fifteen members including at least two officers. 

5. Any motions for consideration at the Annual General Meeting should be proposed 8 weeks before the date of the Annual General Meeting. The motion must be submitted in writing, signed by three members and lodged with the Honorary Secretary. 

6. Each member is entitled to one vote at Annual or any General Meetings of the Society, but the chairman of the meeting shall have a casting vote in addition to an ordinary vote. 

7. The Committee may use its discretion to co-opt additional members to the Committee, provided that the co-optees do not exceed two. A co-optee shall have the same rights and responsibilities as other members of committee. 

8. The committee is responsible for the necessary tasks of running The Society, namely arranging meetings, lectures, publications, displays, field outings and other activities of a like kind when appropriate. 

9. The committee may proposea president to an Annual General Meeting. The president may sit in committee ex officio. The president shall not be required to retire annually. The president Shall relinquish the post if required to do so by two thirds of the committee or a majority of the membership present at a General Meeting. 

10. The quorum for a committee meeting shall be three, two of whom must be elected officers. 

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11. | An Extraordinary General Meeting will be held at the written request of fifteen members of The Society handed to Honorary Secretary with one month’s notice to be given to members. 

12. If at least two thirds of the committee or one third of the membership ask for The Society to be discontinued an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) will be held. The time and place of the EGM and the motion for discussion shall be circulated to all members allowing at least one month’s notice. 

13. _ If The Society should dissolve itself or cease to function, then any funds and property vested in it shall be transferred to another charity or charities connected with the preservation of the history of the Carrickfergus area. 

14. The constitution may not be altered except by majority vote at a General Meeting of The Society. A proposed amendment must be submitted in writing to the honorary secretary by at least three members. 

## CARRICKFERGUS AND DISTRICT HISTORICAL SOCIETY - PUBLIC BENEFIT 

## STATEMENT. 

## Continuation of Constitution....... 

The purpose of Carrickfergus and District Historical Society is to promote a knowledge and understanding of the past by means of education, recording and dissemination of information, especially of the history of the Carrickfergus area. These benefits can be demonstrated by feedback and words of thanks from the beneficiaries for the information received. 

The purpose of our Charity will not lead to any harm. 

The Charity’s beneficiaries are the general public in the Carrickfergus area and those who originated from the area but have since moved away and are keen to learn about the lives of their ancestry. 

There are no private benefits flowing from the purpose. 

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Appendix B 

## Carrickfergus and District Historical Society 

## Talks and Outings 2025 

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Annex C 

## Carrickfergus and District Historical Society Accounts for Year Ended 31 December 2025 

CDHS audited accounts 2025.pdf 

CDHS auditor report 2025.pdf 

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