Amenity trust looks to the future as new trustees are appointed

Shetland Amenity Trust has a new chairwoman, while three new trustees have also been appointed to the board.

Alison Moncrieff succeeds Alastair Hamilton, who is stepping down as chairman but remaining with the trust.

She will be supported by two vice chairs – Linda Riddell and Ronnie Eunson.

In addition, three new trustees have been appointed to the board – Esther Renwick, Sophie Riise and Vic Thomas.

Current trustees Pauline Megson and Linda Riddell were re-elected for a second term.

In what what has clearly been a challenging year due to the lockdown, the trust has trumpeted a “small financial surplus” for the year – although that only applies after depreciation, investment revaluations and actuarial gains.

Yesterday’s annual general meeting heard the trust’s income for the year stood at approximately £3.3 million – a drop of £400,000.

That was largely due to a drop in trading activities following the pandemic, with the museum shop, Sumburgh Head and Shetland Wool Week all suffering from the effect of the lockdown.

But the loss was offset by initiatives such as online donations through the trust’s LocalGiving page, the HMRC furlough scheme and other grants.

The meeting heard expenditure dropped from £3.9m to £3.3m, which contributed to a £24,156 deficit.

Meanwhile, tribute has also been paid to head of development and assistant CEO Davy Cooper, who died in March.

Mr Hamilton said: “This past year really has been one like no other as we have all learnt to adapt to life during a global pandemic.

“We have also had significant changes in our senior management team and have had to come to terms with the loss of our friend and colleague Davy Cooper, whom we miss very much.

“We achieved a small financial surplus this year for the second year in a row and we are hugely grateful to our funders for their continued support.

“I am very proud of our staff team who have adapted so well to the extraordinary circumstances stemming from the pandemic, embracing new technologies, opportunities and ideas.

“They also worked incredibly hard to re-open the Museum and Archives and Sumburgh Head as soon as restrictions allowed, with a range of measures in place to keep staff and customers safe.

“We were one of the first museums and archives in the country to reopen. Whilst we saw a significant reduction in the number of visitors to some of our sites, we saw a huge increase in our audience online, who engaged with a range of virtual events, exhibitions, blogs, quizzes and activities.”