News & Events

A charitable organisation, the Cordwainers promote and encourage excellent leather design and workmanship, at the same time we also seek to improve the prospects and opportunities of young and disadvantaged people.

Following on from the success of last year’s fundraising marathon and skydive the boys are back again with an even more adventurous scheme. This time it is cycling 1,400 miles in less than 20 days!

Alex Thorne, Daniel Emerson, Tom Chamberlain and James Shaw turned to our history for inspiration for a challenge to raise funds for the Royal London Society for the Blind and their Dorton House School. The result is that they are re-enacting the traditional trade route our shoemaking forebears depended upon by carrying some ‘cordwain’ from Córdoba in Spain over the Pyrenees, through France and back to Dunster Court in the City in London. 

The challenge will be undertaken without a support vehicle and success will depend upon the team’s physical fitness, ingenuity and capacity to perform as an effective unit. With less than 8 weeks to go they are training hard, breaking in the padded shorts, learning essential bike maintenance and brushing up the local lingo.

Their target is to raise £30,000 to provide equipment to enable blind and partially blind students’ greater independence and a better quality of life. 

We hope you can dig deep and sponsor them by visiting the JustGiving webpage http://www.justgiving.com/Cordoba-to-London-Bike-Ride. 

Alternatively you can send a cheque to the office made payable to ‘The Worshipful Company of Cordwainers Charity’. Please write Charity Bicycle Ride on the reverse of the cheque.

Around 100 people enjoyed our Carol Service on 2nd December held this year at St Mary Aldermary Church in the City. The Church has a special Cordwainer window. The service was made all the more memorable by the wonderful singing from the choir under the direction of own Freeman Anthony Herschel Hill

The service was followed by a reception, at which Colin Peal, who has been a member of the Company since 1945, was made the Father of the Company, an honour which is only rarely bestowed. The Master Mark Shaw presented him with a sterling silver salver.

The Cordwainers recently awarded a team of nurses from the Royal Free Hospital with an enlightening trip to a conference in Louisville, Kentucky.  Six matrons, two charge nurses and one maternity matron were given the opportunity to visit and learn about the USA’s Magnet hospitals.

A Magnet designation is a seal of approval for hospitals that offer excellent nursing care and have been shown to offer high levels of patient satisfaction and financial performance, as well as strong nursing leadership and the ability to retain nursing staff.

At a ceremony at the Royal Free Hospital in September 2009, the Master of the Company, Mark Shaw, presented certificates to the nine award winners, who had to demonstrate how they would apply what they learned from the tour to their own hospital.

Mr Shaw said: “I’m very pleased to be able to give staff from this famous hospital the opportunity to investigate new ideas and discuss good practice with their colleagues from overseas.”

As part of our charitable giving programme for 2009, the Cordwainers have been involved in two major fundraising activities.

Daniel Emerson completed the Paris Marathon in April (left), with an impressive time of 3 hours and 40 minutes. He came 8,105th out of over 31,000 participants and raised around £5,000 for the provision of Footwear Scholarships and Bursaries.

The second fund raising activity was a skydive performed by six members of the company (below) in order to raise funds for the Royal London Society for the Blind School at Dorton House, near Sevenoaks, Kent. They succeeded in collectively raising £10,000 for the Charity.

For most of the participants, this was the first time they had performed a skydive. Our Freeman, Hester Williams, who took part in this event, gives an account of her experience below.

It was a beautiful clear blue sky and I couldn’t quite believe my luck after the bad weather had called off the last two attempts. We crammed ourselves into the tiny aircraft and as the plane took off my stomach felt like a washing machine and my mind was a shambles. At least I was strapped to a rather solid looking instructor!

Before I knew it I was hurtling towards the ground with the air whistling through my ears. I was in freefall for what felt like a lifetime and then suddenly the parachute opened with a sharp jolt. It all became very peaceful and the view of the patchwork quilt earth was amazing.

On 23rd September, members of the Cordwainers were invited to a special Open Day at the Royal London Society for the Blind school at Dorton House near Sevenoaks, and saw HRH the Duchess of Gloucester, Patron of the charity, unveil a plaque commemorating the opening of a £365,000 addition to the school’s educational facilities.

The farm, which is home to sheep, pigs, rabbits, chickens and horses will give the school’s 77 pupils the benefit of hands-on learning and provide the youngsters with vital skills for the outside world.

Before leaving, the Master of the Cordwainers, Mark Shaw, presented HRH the Duchess of Gloucester with a cheque for £16,000, part of which was the result of the fund raising Sky dive.