Events and Trips
Other major activities over and above our monthly talks include trips, lobbying, commenting about planning applications (see our planning section), providing grants for local projects and our Annual Christmas Supper.
Christmas Supper
We are holding our annual Christmas supper jointly with the Museum at The Steyning Centre on Friday, 19th December 2025. The evening will start with a reception at 7 p.m., supper will be served at 7.45p.m. and the evening will end with some jazz from the Sea Jam Quintet. Normandy Dining, who catered for us last year, will be providing the meal. The menu will consist of chicken in a creamy bacon and mushroom sauce or mushroom stroganoff as a vegetarian option (both will be gluten free), roast potatoes and seasonal vegetables, followed by butterscotch pudding with vanilla ice cream and a butterscotch sauce (a gluten free version can be produced on prior request). Vegan meals can be provided if specifically requested in advance. Wine and soft drinks will be served before and during the meal and coffee or tea with mints will be served after the meal. We will be arranging a raffle as well.
Tickets cost £35 each. We are sorry that we have had to raise the price this year but this is necessary because of increased costs and we hope that it will enable us to break even on the evening. Tickets are available at Steyning Bookshop and at the Museum. They can also be bought by paying the amount into the Steyning Society’s bank account with Barclays Bank Plc. The sort code is 20-98-74 and the account number is 60832235. If you buy your ticket this way, please let our Treasurer know by emailing adriangobat@hotmail.co.uk. Please also tell the Treasurer when you buy your tickets if you would like a gluten free, vegetarian or vegan meal.
As usual, guests are welcome, so please encourage as many friends and relatives as you can to come along and enjoy the evening with you. If you would like to sit in a group, please tell the Treasurer when you buy your tickets and we will try to arrange this. We can only accept a group booking if all members of the group have bought their tickets. We plan to arrange tables of eight but tables can accommodate nine if necessary.
Trip to Tangmere Military Aviation Museum
A group of our members visited the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum on 3rd November. The visit started with a talk about the Special Operations Executive (S.O.E.), which operated out of Tangmere during the Second World War, and was followed by a tour of the Museum. The group then moved on to the Anglesey Arms for a pub lunch before visiting Boxgrove Church and Priory. Jill Wellings and Val Stringer have both written lovely accounts of the trip which can be found in the Events Section of the website, along with Brian Lavery’s informative briefing note for the trip, or by using the links: Tangmere Trip – Jill Wellings’ account, Tangmere Trip – Val Stringer’s account and Tangmere Trip.
.Cruising on the Waverley
Earlier in the autumn, another group of members joined a cruise in September on the Waverley, the world’s last seagoing paddle steamer, from Southampton to Yarmouth, the Needles and finally Portsmouth. The cruise was originally due to start and end in Shoreham but this had to be changed because of the weather the day before, which meant that the Waverely was moored for the night at Southampton. Wendy Francis has written a wonderful account of the voyage, which can be found by following the link Cruising on the Waverley. Wendy explains how they experienced the nostalgia of bygone days with wooden benches on the viewing decks, wooden rails everywhere and the wooden interiors of the tea room and the observation lounge and how, despite the weather, they enjoyed the trip, including a delicious lunch. Brian Lavery’s information sheet about the Waverley and the cruise, which is well worth a read, can be found by following the link Paddle steamer Waverley.
Al Fresco Jazz Party
The Society has given 25 grants supporting a wide variety of organisations including the Steyning Downland Scheme, the Air Cadets, the Community Fridge, The Steyning Festival, the First Responders and Steyning in Bloom. To raise funds for these grants, we decided to hold a garden party this summer. We were lucky enough to be offered the beautiful gardens of Saffrons in Holland Road by Tim Melton and Bernardean Carey. Our good fortune continued with the weather which was exactly right, neither too hot nor too cold. The popular Riverboat Shuffle’s background music added greatly to the atmosphere. Society Committee member, Sarah Lavery generously donated a glass of Smock Alley, our local sparkling wine, for everyone and the Committee produced a range of homemade canapes which went down well. Raffle prizes were donated by Chalk, Ropetackle, Dennis Lascelles, Julia Donaldson, Alex Bell and Chichester Festival Theatre. Our thanks for their contributions. The event raised over £1,700! Many thanks to everyone who attended for your support and company. You can see pictures of the event by following the link.Al Fresco Jazz | Steyning Society
Winchester Trip
In conjunction with, the Friends of Steyning Parish Church, we arranged a trip to Winchester on 20th May 2025 to walk in the steps of Henry of Blois, Bishop of Winchester from 1129 to 1171, and explore the city’s connection with Steyning. Bishop Henry’s nephew was Henri de Sully, the Abbot of Fécamp in Normandy, Lord of the Manor of Steyning and patron of the Church when its glorious Romanesque nave was built.
It was one of those days when absolutely everything goes right. The sun shone, the coach arrived on time, refreshments miraculously appeared just when we wanted them, each event of the day’s programme flowed seamlessly into the next, and nobody tripped on the cobbles. Brilliant background research by Sarah Leigh and meticulous planning by Brian Lavery and Nicola Mason ensured the success of the day.
First stop was the Hospital of St Cross and Almshouse of Noble Poverty where we were shown round by two most entertaining resident guides, Brothers John and Peter. It was fascinating to pick out the specific decorative features in te 12th century Hospital Church – chevron ornament, fluted capitals, unusual leaf decoration, gorged rolls – shared by our parish church in Steyning, strongly suggesting that the same masons worked at both.
The more energetic of us then took the lovely walk from St Cross through the water meadows of the Itchen to Winchester Cathedral where lunch was served in a private room by the refectory. The afternoon’s Cathedral tours once again focussed on the links between Steyning and Winchester, identifying the contributions made by Bishop Henry. These include the Tournai font with its splendid narrative sculptures, the painted chapel of the Holy Sepulchre and the construction of the Holy Hole (the tiny entrance to a tunnel which enabled pilgrims to crawl to the shrine of St Swithun). We also viewed the great Winchester Bible and visited the Kings and Scribes Exhibition about the archaeological history of the Kingdom of Wessex. Special mention is due to the Cathedral guides whose knowledge and warmth of delivery impressed us all.
It was a wonderful day, packed full of interest but never feeling rushed. Thank you to the team – Sarah, Brian and Nicola – for organising a truly memorable trip.
Coach Trips
Coach trips are open to non-members. The visits are well researched and convivial days out. Usually departing from The Steyning Centre car park at about 8.30 am by coach and returning about 6 pm. Time is allowed for coffee, lunch and tea stops. Reductions to the cost are made for National Trust members or English Heritage members where appropriate.
If you need to cancel after making a booking, please remember that booking charges will not be refunded if you cancel less than 42 days before the trip, unless we find a substitute after all the unsold places have been sold. However, you can find a substitute because booking fees are transferable, provided that you notify us before the trip.
