THE Alton Society’s 46th annual meeting attracted a strong turnout of around 70 members and guests to the Alton House Hotel.

Chairman Bob Booker opened proceedings by inviting Alton mayor Matthew Bayliss to present Ann Foulkes with the Society’s annual Individual Award for Outstanding Services to the Town.

In pervious years, the annual meeting has provided the opportunity also for the presentation of the John Ambose Award but this year, according to spokesman Martyn Dell, “there were no projects which were suitable for the award”.

“In contrast to last year when the Society had more than one contender,” added Mr Dell.

Mr Booker presented his annual report, which summarised another busy year for the Society, including playing a significant part in the successful adoption of the Alton Neighbourhood Plan.

Nicky Branch was elected as Society chairman on a rotating basis, while Mr Booker stood down as chairman having completed two years in the role but remained on the committee.

The meeting heard that Nick Carey-Thomas and James Willis, who had both served on the committee with great distinction for many years, were also standing down.

Although sad to see them go, the Society was pleased to welcome three new committee members – Nikki Bird, Tony Cohen, and Kate Sills.

The meeting concluded with a presentation entitled ‘Pressure groups and why we love them’ given by Simon Jenkins, head of planning at East Hampshire District Council.

Drawing on 30 years’ experience as a town planner, Mr Jenkins’ talk ranged from the impact on local planning of government policy to the importance of neighbourhood plans. He commended Alton’s plan as “exemplary” and a role model for others to follow, and also congratulated the Society on its work.

Inevitably, questions from the audience covered a broad spectrum, from detailed matters such as the width of roads and the Tesco site through to requirements for carbon-neutral homes and the importance of developers undertaking pre-consultation.

Mr Booker said: “I was delighted to welcome so many members and guests to our annual meeting. The reports and discussions demonstrate the importance of the issues facing the town and that people want to be involved in shaping its future.”