Master Water Conservator

  The Tudor Pull is an annual river Pageant when Her Majesty’s Royal Watermen, with a flotilla of City Livery Company Cutters, deliver the River Stela from Hampton Court to the Tower of London. The Stela is a cross-section of an ancient wooden water pipe, now enclosed in a glass travelling case. For a number of years, Her Majesty’s Row-barge, Gloriana, has been used for the journey, including this year.   The Master Water Conservator with Derek Mann, Master Waterman, entrusts the transport of the Stela to the Queen’s Bargemaster in a ceremony, attended by Wardens, Christine Jarvis and Martin Bigg. The ceremony commemorates the use of the River Thames as a liquid highway for centuries.   The Gloriana arrived at Richmond Bridge for lunch and then left, escorted by 13 Livery Company Cutters, for the Tower. Among the Cutters was our own, The Water Forget-me-not , with Thames Warden, Christine, and David, on board for the thrill of a lifetime, steered by Merlin, son of our Bargem

  Members of the Worshipful Company of Water Conservators gathered at Water Conservation Trust-partner, Thorner’s Church of England School in Dorset, to dedicate a Ginkgo tree on the occasion of the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. The Master, Roger North, Chair of the Trustees, Rob Casey, Deputy Master and WCT Schools Lead, Christine Duthie, Court Assistant and Hon Sec, WCT, joined Headteacher Mike Sitch and the schoolchildren for the unveiling of a commemorative plaque. The tree was planted by the Master and a pupil celebrating his birthday that day. The tree, a ginkgo biloba , also known as the maidenhair tree, is the last living species in the order Ginkgoales, which first appeared over 290 million years ago. Following a speech of welcome, the pupils entertained us with a lively, celebratory song, in English and Xhosa. Our thanks go to the Chair of the Governors, the Headteacher and pupils at Thorner’s Primary School for hosting us so well.  

In May 2021 nearly 200 delegates from over 60 Livery companies attended the ‘ Who was found to be naked when the tide went out ?’ charity conference. Delegates expressed an interest in forming an informal network of Livery Charity Chairs to share experiences and ideas. And the Livery Charity Chairs Group came into being. The 2022 First Annual Conference at Ironmongers Hall celebrated a year of successful cooperation, and included a ‘ Review of the year’ , led by Alderman Sir Charles Bowman and Hilary Lindsay, ‘ The Importance of Impact Measurement and Reporting’ , chaired by Peter Alvey, ‘ Getting the structure right ’– the benefits of converting to a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO), chaired by Steve Graham, and ‘ ESG Investing and Other Climate Issues for Livery Charities’ , chaired Julia Sibley, and featuring Alderman and Sheriff Alison Gowman. Alison discussed the issue of charities’ powers to contribute to climate action projects. The Conference discussed many Charit