Margate Civic Society
"The love of our town leads us"
Welcome to
our website
Founded in 1968, Margate Civic Society is a registered charity (no.257884). It is a founder member of Civic Voice.

We hope that you will enjoy browsing these pages and that they will help you to take pleasure in the history and character of Margate and its surrounding towns and villages.  We hope also to provide a service to members of the Society in publishing news and photographs that will be of interest. 

The Society produces a Newsletter four times a year, and has a lecture programme which covers a wide range of interests.  Details are given on the "Calendar" page.  The May meeting of each season includes presentation of the coveted Town Pride awards, and details of the 2024 winners can be found on the "Town Pride" page.  Town Pride contenders are nominated by members of the Society.

If you would like to join Margate Civic Society, details of fees and a link to an application form are shown in the "About us" page.  We currently have over 160 members and always like to welcome more.  The winter lectures are invariably of a high quality as is the Newsletter, and membership of the Society really is extremely good value.  The Society takes an active role in reviewing and, where appropriate, responding to planning applications and has a good working relationship with Thanet District Council in helping to improve the character and appearance of the area.
Please email any comments about this website or suggestions for its improvement to the Webmaster

Copyright © 2007-2025 Margate Civic Society
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Last updated 4th May 2025
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NEWS
Margate Civic Society
"The love of our town leads us"
Minnis Bay at spring tide, 8th January 2019
 

MEETINGS

Our next meeting will be held on Thursday 5th June 2025.  Our guest speaker will be William Friend, one of a long-standing and notable Margate family, telling us about "The Friends of Northdown".  The meeting starts at 7.30pm, all welcome, members free of charge, guests £3.50. 


Details of our 2025 programme, from March to October (except August) is shown on the Calendar page.

 

All meetings start at 7.30pm, the venue is Holy Trinity Church Hall, St Mary's Avenue, Margate CT9 3TN and all are very welcome. Members free of charge, guests £3.50 except where shown otherwise.

 

We serve tea, coffee and excellent cake at all our meetings at a very reasonable price.

 

TOWN PRIDE AWARDS

At our meeting on 1st May, we were delighted to announce the winners of our prestigious Town Pride Awards.  The winner of the Blue Plaque was Thanet District Council for their tremendous renovation of the fire-damaged Nayland Rock Promenade Shelter.  For further details of this and the other winners, please look at our Town Pride Award page - click to see it.

 

TOWN WALKS

Robin Colyer, who is a vice-president of the Society, hosts a number of town walks each year.  Robin is very knowledgeable and presents information in an authorative but light and humorous manner.  These walks are an ideal opportunity to learn about the heritage and history of our town.

 

The walks are free of charge, but we recommend a minimum donation to Margate Civic Society of £5 per person.

 

The walks planned for this year are:

 

Saturday 7th June: Northdown to Palm Bay.  Meet at the Wheatsheaf PH at 2pm.

 

Saturday 5th July:  The Dane and Dane Park.  Meet at the Tudor House at 2pm.

 

Saturday 13th September:  High Street and St John's Church.  Meet at the Droit House at 2pm.

 

Saturday 11th October:  Maritime Margate.  Meet at the Droit House at 2pm.

 

Booking is recommended for all walks by telephoning or texting Robin on 07878 537448.

 

CLOCK TOWER GATE

Following repeated acts of vandalism to the timber door of the Margate Clock Tower, Society stalwarts Lynda and Harry Smith suggested that a protective iron gate fitted to the stonework in front of the door should prevent further attack.

The idea was promoted to Thanet District Council and a subsequent meeting was held with Council officers. The proposition was welcomed and initial thoughts considered as to what form the gate should take. The design had to be appropriate and respect the Listed Building status that the structure enjoys.

Committee member Mike Thompson had in mind that St Saviour’s Church in Westgate featured a beautiful pair of wrought iron gates in front of the entrance door and that a single one of the same design would be entirely appropriate. Subsequently, having carefully measured up the clock tower door reveal, he drew up the design to scale and this was submitted as part of the required Listed Building planning application. The design was accepted and eventually we received the necessary Listed Building consent.

In the interim, the Society had found a suitable contractor who was able to provide a quotation for the construction and installation of the gate. Aided by financial contributions towards the project from the Mayor’s fund and from money that Thanet District Council (TDC) received from a Southern Water fine, plus contributions from Society members, sufficient funds were secured to cover the project’s cost, and the go-ahead was given for manufacture.

This was awarded to Stonaco Fabrications of Ramsgate who were enthusiastic about the project from the start and were most helpful throughout the process.

Once the gate was manufactured, a date was agreed for fitting and this was carried out on 14th November 2024 by staff members from Stonaco, who did a first-rate job.  The result speaks for itself.

A period now must elapse prior to painting the gate to allow the galvanising to settle and cure and then the Small Works team from TDC will paint it black - the colour approved in the planning application.