Times Out Trip to Westminster Central Hall and Supreme Court
Friday 9th February
On Friday 9th February 18 of our members travelled to
London to visit Westminster Central Hall and The Supreme Court which
are both located near or in Parliament Square.
  First we had a tour
round Central Hall which is part Methodist Church and part events
venue. The hall comprises 23 varied rooms that can accommodate up to
60 people in the smaller, more intimate function rooms, to over 2000
people in the main hall.
We were taken around
some of the rooms/halls - the library, chapel, church, Grand Hall –
all of which can also be hired for events.
The Grand Hall has a
magnificent organ and the stage is in  different parts which can be
raised and lowered according to the production requirements.
We also went out on
a balcony on the 4th floor that looked directly over the
main entrance to Westminster Abbey; this is where the BBC film any
major royal event at the Abbey.
At the beginning of
the 20th century there was a successful attempt to raise
one million guineas and everyone who collected or subscribed was
recorded in one of over 45 volumes, we were shown one of the volumes.
All around the place
there were paintings and statues many of which were of John Wesley,
founder of the Methodist movement.
They have a very
nice cafe there where we all had lunch.
  After lunch we
walked around the corner to the Supreme Court, the highest court in
the land, where we had our second guided tour of the day.
The Supreme Court of
the United Kingdom was only established in 2009 and is the final
court of appeal in the United Kingdom for all civil cases, and for
criminal cases originating in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. As
the United Kingdom's highest appellate court for these matters, it
hears cases of the greatest public or constitutional importance
affecting the whole population. Criminal or civil
cases must have gone through at least two appeals before they can be
referred to  the Supreme court which only deals with points of law
that need clarifying, they do not get involved with the facts of the
case.
A very fascinating
and informative tour. We sat in each of the three  courts and the
guide explained how the Supreme court works. After that we were shown
the large library full of legal books and case books.
The tours are only
available on Friday afternoons as the courts are being used the rest
of the week, however you can go into any of the courts at any time
whilst cases are being decided.
A really good day
out enjoyed by all.
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On
Wednesday 13th March 23 of our members travelled by train to London to
visit Battersea Power Station. 16 of us took the Lift 109 which is a
lift that travels up the north-west chimney and pops out at the top to
give the most spectacular views of London.
river.
In
the afternoon we walked to the Royal Hospital Chelsea, which is just
across the river, for a guided tour. We were shown round by a Chelsea
Pensioner in full official uniform.
Finally we visited the chapel which had an amazing ceiling,
On Thursday 18th
January 12 of our members went to the
Theatre Royal Windsor to see “Beyond the Barricade”.