Fund-raising appeal to mark 80th anniversary of Battle of Britain

With the 80^th anniversary of the start of the Battle of Britain less than a year away, a Kent charity is launching a major fund raising appeal to coincide with the anniversary.

 

The Battle of Britain Memorial Trust, which is responsible for the National Memorial to the Few – the aircrew who fought in the Battle in 1940 – is hoping to raise £250,000 to fund a number of enhancements at the site.

 

Despite looking after an important national memorial, the Trust receives no public funding of any kind and relies on donors and visitors to help it raise the £150,000 it needs each year to maintain the site at Capel-le-Ferne, just outside Folkestone on Kent’s famous White Cliffs.

 

In 2015 it opened The Wing, its most impressive addition since the Memorial itself was unveiled by Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother in 1993, and last year it re-opened Hunting Lodge as a new library, resource centre and business meetings venue.

 

The Trust has revealed ambitious plans to unveil more improvements on or around 10 July 2020, which will mark the 80^th anniversary of the most significant battle fought by this country in the whole of the 20^th century.

 

The most obvious visual improvement will be the installation of a set of Royal Air Force gates that once stood proudly at the former RAF Biggin Hill and will enhance the entrance to the Memorial by replacing the existing farm gates.

 

“We are immensely proud of the Memorial and visitors often remark on how well kept it is, but the entrance is currently uninspiring,” explained Trust Chairman Richard Hunting CBE.

 

“We are fortunate enough to have acquired a set of splendid RAF gates from Biggin Hill which will look absolutely superb at the entrance to the site, but restoring and hanging the gates and building the brick walls either side will be an expensive task.”

 

The Trust also plans to renew the severely weathered propeller blades that have stood on either side of the entrance to the Memorial for the past 29 years.

 

Inside The Wing, the Trust plans to improve the blackout and acoustic properties in the Geoffrey Page Centre so that it can be better used for the lectures, presentations and films that contribute towards the Memorial’s running costs.

 

“The other area where we are looking for support is in The Scramble Experience, our audio-visual introduction to the Battle of Britain,” added Richard. “By next year it will be five years old and we hope to refresh it with a new film and at the same time upgrade some of the hardware.

 

“While this will cost money, it will also generate long-term savings as we plan to move towards lower energy, long-life equipment such as digital projectors.

 

“In total we are looking to the public to help us raise £250,000 and we felt that the 80^th anniversary of the RAF’s remarkable victory against the Luftwaffe would be an appropriate occasion to unveil these much-needed improvements.

 

“We really hope that the public who supported us so generously when we embarked on the ambitious plan to build The Wing will once again help us improve this unique tribute to the Few.”

 

www.battleofbritainmemorial.org

 

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