The ‘Friends’ agreed to work to achieve the following projects:
- Disabled access at the front of Tolson Museum.
- Installing of signage for the Museum and Park on Wakefield Road.
- A circular footpath from Tolson Museum to Castle Hill and back.
- The installation of a ‘Trim Trail’ in the park.
- To engage the local community with a monthly ‘Tea & Cake’ afternoon in Tolson.
- To create a ‘Memorial Garden’ in the park.
The Friends put together an information stall with a banner and bunting. With the stall, they attended events in Ravensknowle Park to celebrate Yorkshire Day, Ravenknowle Gala and the Bark in the Park. A quiz was put together. They also took the stall to Almondbury Children’s Centre and on Heritage Day to Beaumont Park.
On the weekend of 11th-12th August a refreshment stall at the Kirklees Flower and Produce Show in Ravensknowle Park was organised by the Friends.
With a donation of £500, the ‘Friends’ supported the Arts Council Bid by the Museum Staff for improvements inside the museum. The proposal was that the current Library and neighbouring room should be turned into one room (as in the original house) with new flooring, repairs and doors and ceilings and redecoration.
At the ‘Friends’ meeting in September there was a ‘Demonstration of a collection of curious antique medical instruments’ by Wilf Lunn. Wilf brought an eclectic selection of curious antique medical instruments to impress and delight an intrigued audience with his knowledge. He had a bizarre selection of devices from phallic shaped inhalers, blood letting instruments including fleams, fleam cases, cupping jars, through poisons, such as antimony administered as a laxative, to instruments of torture that were attached to a baby’s arms to inhibit thumb sucking.
The ‘Friends’ collected tokens for the Examiner ‘Wish’ Scheme raising £53.19.
The ‘Friends’ Christmas event was held in the Transport Gallery and the Victorian School Room (the two main rooms in the Museum being re-ordered.) Joanne Harris, local, national and international author, read a story and we were entertained by a choir from Dalton Junior School. There were several stalls and Father Christmas arrived in his vintage car.
At the AGM in May 2013 John Rumsby, former curator and expert on military history gave a talk entitled ‘Our Soldiers slighted’ the story of army veterans.
The ‘Friends of Tolson and Ravensknowle’ become a member of the British Association of Friends of Museums.
Plans for the memorial garden were drawn up and letters written to local groups asking for financial support.