AIMS OF THE SOCIETY

1. To continue to maintain village activities concerned with amateur fruit, flower and vegetable growing and presentation, home cookery and handicrafts.

2. To encourage children in the above by continuing and strengthening our links with Sissinghurst C of E School.

3. To offer help and advice to beginners of all ages.

4. To encourage and welcome those who do not qualify for the competitive classes due to their professional expertise, to stage special exhibits demonstrating their skills.

RULES OF THE SOCIETY

1. The Society to be known as Sissinghurst Flower Show Society.

2. All Officers and Committee to be elected annually at the AGM.

3. The Committee shall have the power to co-opt any Member.

4. The Business of the Society to be conducted by the President, Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and up to 12 other Members.

5. The Officers shall be ex-officio members of all Committees.

6. Members shall be drawn from residents of Sissinghurst and Cranbrook Ecclesiastical Parishes and those with existing links with Sissinghurst C of E Primary School. Others may join on application.

7. In order to exhibit, a person must be a Member of the Society, except for Open classes

8. The Committee shall reserve the right to visit the garden or allotment of any competitor.

9. Rules for the Annual Shows to be drawn up by the Committee.

10. Any infringement of the Society’s Rules will disqualify the offending competitor from the relevant class.

11. All complaints to be made in writing to the Secretary, who shall lay them before the Committee for consideration.

12. Subscriptions to be £5.00 per Person annually or Family membership £10.00 annually.

13. The Treasurer to receive all monies and make all payments on behalf of the Society.

14. Accounts to be audited annually.

15. A General Meeting will be held annually.

The Society is affiliated to: The Royal Horticultural Society and The Kent Federation of Horticultural Societies

BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP

1) You can obtain discounts (different terms apply) on many items for the garden ONLY on production of your current Membership Card at:

• Cranbrook DIY, High Street, Cranbrook, TN17 3EE

•Flowers Everywhere, Stone Street, Cranbrook, TN17 3HF

• Webb’s, High Street, Tenterden

• Golden Hill Nurseries, Goudhurst Road, Marden, TN12 9LT

• Frankies Nursery, Clapper Lane, Staplehurst, TN12 OJT

• Iden Croft Herbs, Frittenden Road, Staplehurst TN12 ODH

• Millbrook Garden Centre, Staplehurst Road, Staplehurst TN12 9BT

• Rumwood Nurseries & Garden Centre, New Road, Langley, Maidstone, ME17 3ND

2) Dobies Seeds: Our members can buy seeds at 50% off list price and other items at a discount off list price. Catalogues, with order form, are available from the Chairman in September. Orders should be sent directly to Dobies’ Seeds, quoting the special discount code.

3) You are welcome to join the Staplehurst Society at their Monthly talks for a small fee. A wide range of topics is offered – something for everyone.

4) The Society contains members who between them can answer most gardening queries, and who are very ready to help you.

5) Finally we provide three opportunities a year for you to enter your fruit, flowers, vegetables, cookery, photography and handiwork into our shows. We have serious and ‘fun’ classes and think there is something for all types of gardeners – those with large or small gardens, young or old, knowledgeable or beginner. Every show is also a social event, complete with a produce stall, refreshments, side shows and a first-class raffle. The Annual General Meeting provides an opportunity for a pre-Christmas ‘jolly’.

DIARY FOR 2026

Members are invited to join Staplehurst Society’s Talk each month. Meetings are held at the Village Centre, Staplehurst, starting at 8 p.m. Contact Mitzi Newsom (712956) for further details on any item. A small fee is charged.

Tuesday 20th January: Staplehurst Talk: New York garden city – Jane Scotchmer

Tuesday 17th February: Staplehurst Talk: The Arts and Crafts movement and its gardens – Stephen Harmer

Tuesday 17th March: Staplehurst Talk: Roses in a mixed border – Edward Flint

Saturday 21st March: SISSINGHURST SPRING SHOW – Primary School

Tuesday 21st April: Staplehurst Talk: Growing and using lavender – Castle Farm, Shoreham

Tuesday 19th May: Staplehurst Talk: British flower movement – Jen Stuart-Smith

Saturday 20th June: SISSINGHURST SUMMER SHOW – Primary School

Tuesday 18th August: Staplehurst Talk: Floral demonstration – Sophie Leathart

Saturday 12th Sept: SISSINGHURST AUTUMN SHOW – Primary School

Tuesday 15th Sept: Staplehurst Talk: Birds in your garden, a mixed blessing – Ray Morris

Tuesday 20th October: Staplehurst Talk: War graves

Monday 9th November: SISSINGHURST A. G. M. – Parish Room 7.30p.m, followed by a short talk or film. Raffle. Refreshments including a glass of wine

Tuesday 17th November: Staplehurst Talk: Winter interest in your garden – Kevin Tooher

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GDPR – BE IN CONTROL OF YOUR DATA

Why does Sissinghurst Flower Show Society need your data?

We need to collect and store some of your details, for example, your name and email address, so that we can let you know about things like show dates, subscription payments, talks, garden visits and social events.

What data do we collect from members?

We collect some of the following types of data from members (we don’t collect all of this data on all members – we only collect it if it’s needed):

• Name

• Email address

• Postal address

• Phone number

• Subscription payments

• Bank details

• Age/DOB

• Gender

• Photos/video footage

We check what data we have on members every two years and remove it if we no longer need it. If you leave the group, we’ll make sure we stop using and/or delete any data we don’t need to keep.

What do we use it for?

Any of the information listed above might be needed to manage your membership with the Sissinghurst Flower Show Society and to organise and run our activities including shows, talks, garden visits and social events. We won’t ever use this data for anything else unless you give us your active consent for that additional use.

Do we share your data with anyone else?

We will never give your data to third parties for that third party to use.

We will sometimes use third-party services (e.g. Google Drive) to store or process your data. We will always make sure that they are reputable and secure, and that your data is kept safe.

If another Sissinghurst Flower Show Society member asks for your contact details, we will only ever share them if you consent.

What can you ask us to do?

At any time you can ask to view, update or correct any data we hold on you. You can also ask that we stop using your data or that we erase it. To request any of these, please contact the Data Protection Officer, Mrs S McAuley, who will respond within one month.