INVITATION TO JOIN THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

AS HONORARY TREASURER

OVERVIEW OF GGIFT

The Great Grimsby Ice Factory Trust (GGIFT) is a small building preservation trust founded in 2010, with the object of preserving the Grade II* listed Ice Factory and initiating a programme of heritage-led regeneration in Grimsby.

We are currently working on the £1 million Peterson’s Project in the neighbouring Kasbah area – Grimsby’s historic dock peninsula – funded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund and the Architectural Heritage Fund.  Significant investment has flowed into the Kasbah since it was designated England’s most recent conservation area in 2017, and a number of exciting projects are coming forward.  The Kasbah is part of Grimsby’s Heritage Action Zone and will play a key part in achieving the objectives of the Greater Grimsby Town Deal, a programme of regeneration and investment supported by central government.

GGIFT is a member of the Kasbah Steering Group, which includes representatives from Historic England, North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC) and landowners Associated British Ports (ABP).

The Peterson’s Project, which will bring back into use a listed smokehouse with an additional commercial building, has been developed in partnership with NELC and ABP.  Once completed it will provide an income for the trust to pay for basic outgoings, with any surplus income reinvested into further projects in the Kasbah.

STRUCTURE

GGIFT is a registered charity (no. 1146988), a company limited by guarantee (no. 7990488) and has recently registered for VAT (DTRN 358 9393 39).

THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

We currently have 8 trustees with a range of talents and experience.  Following a retirement due to work commitments, we now need to appoint an HONORARY TREASURER to oversee the financial affairs of the trust.

WHY JOIN US?

These are exciting times for the Trust, as we begin to see results after ten years of advocacy for Grimsby’s built heritage.

On the completion of Peterson’s, the Trust will have achieved its goal of securing a regular income with the prospect of cumulative savings, which will allow it to plan for its long-term role in the heritage-led regeneration of Grimsby.

Peterson’s will be an important anchor project within the Kasbah, and we intend to expand on that in future, contributing to a critical mass of occupancy of the heritage buildings, while supporting the “3 Strand” vision of encouraging artisanal food, supply chain to the renewables industry, and creative industries.

Our status as a registered charity is a valuable component of the partnership model we have set up with the local authority and the landowners, allowing us to access certain funding streams to help further the ambitions of the partnership. 

As a community group, we maintain our independence and at the same time are able to bring an important perspective to the Kasbah Steering Group.

Our new Treasurer will inform our decisions as we move into this new phase, and the voluntary sharing of their time and expertise will have a real impact on the shape of Grimsby for years to come.

ROLE SUMMARY

General

• Strategic financial planning for the charity; reviewing its financial performance.
• Ensuring that the charity has robust and effective financial controls in place and keeps proper accounts.
• Ensuring compliance with financial legal and regulatory requirements.
• Reporting on financial matters to the members and the Board.
• Advising on financial implications of any new projects proposed

Specific

• Overseeing the in-house book-keeping and liaising with the charity’s independent examiner ERVAS, who also file Charity Commission, HMRC and Companies House returns on the trust’s behalf
• Set up and approval of payments from GGIFT bank account
• Overseeing bank balances and deposited funds
• Reviewing the quarterly property management statements, and continually assessing the viability of the business plan
• Management briefings on financial performance, including presentation at Board meetings

TIME COMMITMENT

It’s suggested that the Treasurer confer with the Chair once a quarter, at least, to keep abreast of Property Management accounts and attend the Annual General Meeting to present the accounts to the Board.

Other Board meetings will take place from time to time.  (Since the arrival of Covid, all meetings and decision making have been conducted online.)

PERSONAL SPECIFICATIONS

Strong financial skill set

Knowledge and experience of current financial practice, legislation and regulations relevant to charitable organisations

Prior experience of property development/property management an advantage

CONTACT

Vicky Hartung

Chair

vicky@ggift.co.uk

07758 244487

EQUALITY,  DIVERSITY  AND INCLUSION STATEMENT

 Great Grimsby Ice Factory trust is committed to treating all people equally and with respect, regardless of their age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. 

These are all protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. We are committed to equality of opportunity between those who share those protected characteristics and those who do not. 

We believe everyone has a right to be respected, valued and listened to. 

We believe diversity delivers different experience and views that will strengthen our ability to achieve our aims of heritage led regeneration in North East Lincolnshire. We will consider all individuals in relation to our policy, strategy and the people we work with. 

Note 1: Great Grimsby Ice Factory Trust is a Building Preservation Trust and small registered charity run by volunteers (the Trustees) who form the executive board. At present we have no employees and work with sub-contractors to further our aims. Our constitution allows for a (non-voting ) supporting membership and we are always keen to attract a diverse range of supporting members. Great GIFT takes part in a very small number of public events such as Heritage Open Days or Public Consultations. We always aim to make these open to all sectors of society, and if there are problems with access (particularly in heritage properties or partly constructed developments ) we will make our best efforts to mitigate or advertise these restrictions in any advertising or promotion. 

A BRIEF HISTORY OF GGIFT

Vicky Hartung (Chair)

Vicky Hartung was born in Cleethorpes and spent her early years on Freeman Street in Grimsby’s East Marsh where her mother had a dress shop. She attended Grimsby Art School in the late 1960’s, before leaving town to study piano at the Royal College of Music in London. An early rescue project was Elgar’s holiday retreat, Brinkwells, in West Sussex. A preindustrial cottage set in ancient woodlands, Brinkwells has no parallels with the Grimsby Ice Factory, other than that successfully bringing it back into use depended upon combining respect for the building with a strong determination that difficulties will be overcome. Vicky moved to the USA in the early 80’s, where she continued teaching and performing, and became licensed to practise real estate in Washington D.C. and Virginia. During this period she acted as chair of the Arlington Public Schools Arts Committee, was cofounder of “Spotlight on Arlington Schools”, a parent newsletter, and was influential in developing a county-wide solution to inequalities between middle schools. Vicky returned to Grimsby in 2006, and in 2007 opened a contemporary fine art gallery on Brighowgate, Gate Gallery. The Great Grimsby Ice Factory Trust was formed in 2010, and much of Vicky’s time has been devoted to the project since.

Graeme Bassett (Secretary)

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Graeme is a former Civil servant, from Cleethorpes. He has a business degree, and is Treasurer of the Grimsby, Cleethorpes and District Civic Society. He and Vicky were the first trustees of GGIFT, and Graeme has devoted a lot of energy to gathering and disseminating information on the technical and scientific history of the Ice Factory, working with historians and refrigeration professionals.

Susan Pitcher (Trustee)

Susan Pitcher is a professional artist working under her maiden name of Sue Stone. She is current chair and exhibiting member of the internationally renowned 62 Group of Textile Artists and an elected Fellow of the Society of Designer Craftsmen. She was born in Great Grimsby, Lincolnshire in 1952. After attending Grimsby School of Art, Sue moved to London to study Fashion Design at St Martins School of Art and then Embroidery at Goldsmiths College, University of London. On graduating with a First Class Honours degree in 1975 Sue returned to her hometown and went into business with her husband, David Pitcher. They designed, manufactured and retailed clothing in Grimsby from 1975 until 2003 when Sue became a professional artist. Her textile and mixed media work, much of which reflects her local heritage, has been exhibited widely throughout the UK, Europe and more recently in Japan and the USA. Sue also delivers talks and workshops for adults throughout the UK. Sue’s family has close connections with the Grimsby Fishing industry. Her Dad went to work on the docks aged 14 and eventually became a fish merchant in the 1950s and 1960s. Sue, herself, spent many hours of her childhood going ‘down dock’ with her Dad every weekend. Her great Grandfather, Harry Conder was skipper of the trawler Fittonia, one of the lost trawlers of WW1. Sue has been involved with GGIFT since it’s inception in 2010. She is eager to save the Grade II* Grimsby Ice Factory building, not only to preserve a symbolic record of when Grimsby was indeed great, but also to give a new focus to the historic dock area and create an optimism for its future development and the new industries formed therein.

David Pitcher (Trustee)

David Pitcher is a freelance graphic and web designer and also an educator. He has always embraced modern technology and its usefulness as a design tool and was an early adopter of the Apple MacIntosh computer in the 1980s. He was born in Cleethorpes in 1950 and went to Wintringham Boys Grammar School before attending Grimsby School of Art. He moved to London in 1969 to study Graphic Design and Illustration at St Martins School of Art, (now part of Central St Martins, University of the Arts, London) graduating in 1972. After graduating he worked as a Freelance Designer in London and then taught Art in Woolwich becoming the youngest Head of Department in the Inner London Education Authority. He returned to Grimsby to start a business retailing fashion on a market stall. Over the next 27 years he grew that business to create the brand, Pitchers Anywear which encompassed the design, manufacture and retail of womenswear. On retiring from business in 2003 David once more became a teacher working in the Secondary School sector throughout Lincolnshire. For several years David was Head of Art at Skegness Grammar School. David has been a trustee of the Great Grimsby Ice Factory trust since 2010.

Roy Horobin (Trustee)

Roy studied Modern History at Queen’s University Belfast and completed his teacher training at Hull University. He started teaching History to 11-18 years olds at Matthew Humberstone School in Cleethorpes. Roy lives in Cleethorpes with his wife and teenage children. As a History teacher he has been involved in local history and community groups to bring his subject alive. It was therefore a natural progression for Roy to become interested in the Grimsby Ice Factory. He was attracted to the building because of its historical importance but also its beauty and remarkable location. For him the historic docks of Grimsby are an area dripping with exceptional potential. Roy’s key skills are innovative ideas, an enthusiasm for engagement with the local community, an understanding of campaigning and local politics. Within days of becoming a Trustee of the Great Grimsby Ice Factory Trust it became really apparent that winning over support from the local council was crucially important. This has led to Roy becoming extensively involved with local and national politics. A key idea for Roy is that local politicians need to promote and work with local groups to make great things happen.

Christopher Lester (Trustee)

Chris Lester is a Chartered Engineer and retired from the microwave electronics industry. He has been active in the study and appreciation of Lincolnshire’s industrial heritage for over 40 years as a member of the Society for Lincolnshire History and Archaeology. He first recognised the significance of the Ice Factory in the late 1990s when the Society was planning a conference about the Grimsby fishing industry for 2001, and industrial archaeologists came from all over the East Midlands to learn about “Fish and Ships”. Access to the factory, one of the fishing fleet’s engines of its success, was denied owing to its neglected state. He is a past chairman of the Society, a trustee and past chairman of the Industrial Archaeology Team. Since the formation of Great GIFT Chris has tried to raise the profile of the Ice Factory and the Trust’s plans for it by means of an illustrated talk which he gives whenever the opportunity arises.

Emilie Wales (Trustee)

BA (Hons), Associate IHBC, has 5 years experience as a Conservation Officer and is currently completing an MSc in Building Conservation. Whilst working at NELC, she wrote the successful ‘Discover Cleethorpes’ Townscape Heritage bid (total project of £2.9m) and secured the Greater Grimsby Heritage Action Zone, including adoption of the Kasbah as a Conservation Area. Emilie served an Urgent Works Notice at Victoria Mills Silo, Grimsby and monitored the subsequent £2.1m of works in default.

Jon Wilcox (Trustee)

Jon is a Chartered Surveyor from Cheshire, who until recently was the Principal Surveyor for the area, working for ENGIE in partnership with NELC. He was the lead on the rescuing and repair of Victoria Mills, Grimsby as well as championing other local projects such as the Cycle Hub, Cleethorpes, created from the original ticket office and the new Swimming Pool, Grimsby. Prior to coming to the area, Jon worked on heritage projects such as the Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester and the refurbishment of Liverpool Museum and the Walker Art Gallery. As well as new projects such as FACT Liverpool (a digital art facility and cinema). Jon was also a Partnering Advisor for the Ministry of Justice, including the first BREEAM excellent prison in Nottingham. Jon brings a wealth of experience of delivering challenging projects in a collaborative manner and a passion for historic buildings.