THE DECEMBER report from the Bata Heritage Centre
As many of you will realise it has been a busy year for us. Since I last wrote to you in July the various events that I mentioned have taken place save for being at the Orsett Show. Unfortunately, we just did not have volunteers available on that particular day. Our last Open Day on Saturday 12 October was successful although a little quieter than previous ones. There were around 50 or so people who took part in our 3 guided walks. For technical reasons I, rather than Mick Pinion, gave the talk about the history of Bata. There was a good attendance including Thurrock’s Lady Mayor, Councillor Kairen Raper.
We have set the date for the next Open Day which will be on Saturday 26 April 2025 so PLEASE SAVE THIS DATE. Our website (https://www.bataheritagecentre.org.uk/) has been updated but at the moment we have yet to agree on the 3 walk times but will do so early in the New Year so please keep an eye out for this update. If you decide that you would like to take part then please contact me, via the email address shown, with your preferred time and number of places needed. There is a small cost of £5 per person but there is no charge for school age children. Otherwise, it is a free event if you do not wish to take the guided walk.
We have had only 1 group visit since the October Open Day which was from the Rayleigh U3A. Other visits lined up for 2025 are currently as follows:
• Thames Chase Trust Guided Heritage Walks (February).
• A meandering Monday stroll around the former Bata Estate and visit to the Centre for guests of Kinetika’s T100 Festival (March).
• Sudbury Suffolk U3A (May).
One piece of exciting news, well it is for us, is (with the approval of Thurrock Council’s library department) that we have decided to expand our displays by the purchase of 2 new display cabinets. We hope that these might be in place by the end of January and certainly should be filled with artefacts by the time of the April 2025 Open Day.
Given the new cabinets, as I have said previously, we are always very happy to receive Bata related items should any of you wish to donate them to us. We are particularly keen to receive Bata shoes including the Wayfinder product that was launched in the 1960s in conjunction with the Scout Association.
We are extremely grateful to you, our supporters, who come along to Open Days to catch up with old friends and, of course, to our new visitors. One theme that we often hear is “I didn’t realise that East Tilbury, or Bata, was so big”.
Finally, if anyone would prefer not to receive our newsletters then please let me know by return. I will then delete your contact details from our e-contact list and confirm by return email.
Kind regards
Mike (Tarbard)
Chairperson of the Bata Heritage Centre
