Orr’s Corner - Labby – Draperstown - BT45 7BE
e: info@ulht.org.uk
w: www.ulht.org.uk
Ulster Local History Trust
Trustees’ Report
Year ended 31 March 2023
Patron: Lord O'Neill
Trustees: Dr Seán Beattie, Dr Liam Campbell, Evelyn Cardwell (Chair), John Cunningham, John Dooher, Roddy Hegarty, Jack Johnston, Dr Linde Lunney, Graham Mawhinney, Dr Kay Muhr.
Charity No: NIC 101555
Ulster Local History Trust Trustees’ Report for the year ended 31 March 2023
The trustees present their Report for the year ended 31 March 2023
Trustees
The trustees who served during the year were as follows:
| Dr Seán Beattie | Ms Evelyn Cardwell (Chair to | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 Jan 2023) | ||
| Mr John Cunningham | Mr John Dooher | |
| Mr Roddy Hegarty | Mr Jack Johnston | |
| Mr Graham Mawhinney | Dr Kay Muhr | |
| Dr Liam Campbell (Chair | Dr Linde Lunney | |
| 10 Jan 2023 - ) | ||
| Registered | Orr’s Corner | |
| Address | Labby | |
| Draperstown | ||
| BT45 7BE | ||
| Independent | Róisín Shanks | |
| Examiner | Fellow, Chartered Accounts | Ireland |
| 7 Foxleigh Wood, | ||
| Lurgan, | ||
| Co Armagh | ||
| BT 67 9GW | ||
| Bankers | ||
| Ulster Bank | ||
| 11-16 Donegall Square East | ||
| Belfast BT1 5UB | ||
| Allied Irish Bank | ||
| The Diamond | ||
| Monaghan | ||
| Ireland | ||
| Charity | ||
| Registration | 101555 | |
| Number |
Structure, Governance and Management
The Ulster Local History Trust is a registered charity and is governed by the terms of its constitution. Three Trust meetings were held during the year in addition to the Annual General Meeting. Two were held via Zoom and one was held in person for the first time in almost three years.
Objectives and Activities
Ulster Local History Trust was established in 1980 by the Federation for Ulster Local Studies with the objective of promoting the profile of local history in the nine countries of Ulster.
The Trust uses various methods to achieve this objective, such as
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Awarding small grants for high quality local historical projects, carried out by voluntary groups and individuals (budget permitting). Particular attention is paid to innovation in demonstrating the value of local history to our shared communities.
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Providing advice to authors on good practice and general signposting to those who seek assistance in the field of local history.
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Keeping a watching brief on opportunities for, and risks to, the raising of standards of excellence in local historical studies especially on province-wide issues and responding accordingly where it is felt to be appropriate.
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organising regular conferences in support of local history.
Achievements, Performance and Public Benefit
The Trust was again able to offer grants to encourage and assist with the production of good quality work in the field of local history. Six grant applications were received this year, of which two were successful, one did not meet the criteria and three were insufficiently developed to qualify. Grants will be paid out in due course when the projects are satisfactorily completed.
One grant payment was made this year to support the book “ The Londonderry Militia (1793-1816” ( J A Bodkin) which has now been published:
It is encouraging to note that the number of grant applications has increased this year, which may perhaps indicate that the increased focus on publicity is paying off. However, the Trust is concerned that it is now receiving a number of applications which are in effect premature and lack the essential supporting documents in order to be considered. In such cases applicants were encouraged to resubmit when the project was closer to completion, and given advice where it was considered necessary.
Queries
The Trust provides a useful signposting service for a variety of queries, in addition to dealing directly with enquiries which are within the capabilities of the individual Trustees. In total the Trust responded to eleven queries in the year April 2022- March 2023. These ranged from media bodies seeking local contacts for television programmes, family history enquiries and requests for information on specific historical topics.
Financial review
The investment account with Investec Wealth and Management has continued to perform satisfactorily. In addition to keeping our investments under continuous review at all our Trust meetings, we also met with our Investec Manager in May 2022 for an in-depth discussion and review of its performance.