Kew Guild AGM 2025

On a glorious September day, members gathered for a full and enriching itinerary at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. The sunshine provided a stunning backdrop for exploration, learning, and connection.

A highlight of the day was a specially arranged visit to the Kew Archives, generously facilitated by our Archivist Alice Nelson. Her thoughtful coordination allowed over 30 members to delve into Kew’s rich historical collections, with the group divided into two sessions to ensure an engaging and intimate experience. The visit offered a rare glimpse into the legacy and evolution of one of the world’s most renowned botanical institutions where Alice carefully curated exhibits from both Kew and the Kew Guild.

• 50 members and guests attended the meeting - the most we've had since before the Covid pandemic. 
• Members paused for one minute to remember those who are no longer with us:  Henry Boddington, Cyril Giles, Simon Goodenough, Derek Parker, Shan Watkins.
• Martin and Wendy Staniforth enabled members to join via Teams and the technology worked without a hitch this year. 
• The Kew Guild CIO met four times during the year. Meetings in 2025 continued to be hybrid with some members attending in person and others on Teams. All of the meetings were quorate in accordance with the CIO (three or one quarter of trustees).
• The Annual Report and Accounts were not ready and therefore not distributed prior to the meeting. They were distributed to members with the Minutes of the Meeting for approval by members. 
• Membership numbers are continuing to improve and are back to 2023 levels without large numbers of affiliates inflating the numbers.  We had 107 affiliates in 2022, most of which did not join the Guild when their affiliateship ended. 
• The annual subscription is to remain at £30 for full members and £15 for students in 2026. 
• 266 members are paying their subscription by Direct Debit. . 
• The Journal was published late, and the Editor gave her sincere apologies for this. Another large edition, thanks to the student reports which make it what it is. Postage of the journals remained the same as last year. 
• Deadline for 2026 articles for the Journal is the end of January 2026. 
• Awards for the year totalled £15,208.50, including a 50% increase in General Funds available agreed by Trustees in 2025. 22 applications were made, of which, 13 were successful. 
• There were no Honorary Fellowship awards this year. 
• Trustees and Officers for the Presidential year 2025-26 were ratified and there were no conflicts of interest declared. 
• Awards: Two Kew Guild Medals were awarded to Alex George (Australia) and Udai C. Pradhan (India). Alex attended the meeting via Teams and Udai was represented by his nephew Rayyam who collected the Medal on his behalf. Alex and Udai thanked Trustees and members for this prestigious award and both were met with warm applause. 
• The George Brown Award was presented to Colin Hindmarch.  Though the honour had been bestowed some time ago, this was the first opportunity to mark the occasion in person. Colin accepted the award with gratitude, acknowledging its significance with pride. Members present gave a warm round of applause, recognising not only the prestige of the award but the enduring contributions that earned it. See the Honours Board here for an outline of Colin's extraordinary contribution to the Guild and horticulture as a whole.  https://kewguild.org.uk/biographies-of-the-guild/colin-hindmarch/ 

• An additional George Brown Award was presented – this time as a surprise to its recipient, David Hardman. A distinguished Kewite, former student, and deputy curator at Wakehurst, David was instrumental in bringing Wakehurst into the Kew Guild community. His longstanding involvement, including serving as a past President and a continuing member of the Award Scheme, has left a lasting and inspiring mark on the Guild. His understanding and insight into Award Scheme applications has been profound.

• Chris then put forward a second surprise proposal. He remarked that the Kew Guild, as we know it today, simply would not exist without the tireless dedication of our Secretary and Membership Officer, Sara Arnold. Sara is a truly inspiring person and wholly deserving of this award for her dedication, diplomacy and service to the Kew Guild since 2006. The announcement came as a complete surprise to Sara, who was visibly moved by the unexpected honour. She warmly thanked the Trustees and members, expressing deep gratitude for their support throughout the years.

• The President ran through the results of Prize day: 
• • The Matilda Smith Memorial Prize for the best student overall to Josie Lane.
  • The George Brown Prize for the top student in the Temperate Collections to Louie de Witt
  • The Kew Guild Individual Study Prize for the student attaining the highest marks in their systematics exam to John Houston.
  • The Dummer Memorial Prize for the best Herbarium Naming Project to John Houston
  • The Kew Guild Cup for the highest marks in the first-year vegetable plot project to Josie Lane

   

• In addition, the Hart Prizes, in honour of Allan and Joan Hart were awarded to all Kew Specialist Certificate students, Apprentices and Introduction to Horticulture students who have successfully graduated from their courses.

• Chris Kidd formally presented the Past President medal to Rob Brett, who accepted the honour with gratitude. Chris commented that Rob is a great horticulturalist, plantsman and a fantastic President of the Kew Guild. Rob expressed pride in continuing to serve as Chair of the Kew Guild and looks forward to his involvement with the Guild, for a further three years.

• Richard Barley was offiically inaugurated as Non-Executive President for 2025-26. Richard spoke to us via Teams from Australia, where it was now past midnight. Richard thanked the Trustees and members and said that he is honoured to take on the role of President and pleased to continue his involvement with the Guild, being such a worthy institution.

• David Hardman thanked Chris Kidd for the great job he has done with the Award Scheme over the years and he was given a warm round of applause.  

• Date of next Annual General Meeting: Saturday 5^th September 2025, venue TBC.

• To round off the day’s activities, a supper was arranged at The Greyhound, a well-known local venue on Kew Green. The choice held fond associations as this was the venue where Trustees and students had gathered for a lively and successful student event back in January 2026, making it a natural pick for a convivial evening. However, in the weeks leading up to the AGM, The Greyhound underwent a change in ownership, and unfortunately, the transition brought a few hiccups. The supper did not unfold quite as smoothly as hoped, with challenges around the menu and its timing affecting the overall experience. Despite these setbacks, the spirit of our members shone through. Their good humour and patience were unwavering, and while the evening may have tested appetites more than expected, it certainly didn’t dampen camaraderie. Everyone left with a smile - some with a wry chuckle and a story to tell!

Thank you to  Ros Whistance, Chris Kidd and Richard Ward who have sent the excellent photos in this article.