British Ambassador Mr. Paul Arkwright honours Mike Carn’s OBE during the Consular Contacts Reception at the British Ambassador’s Residence in the Hague.
British Ambassador’s Residence 23rd January, The Hague—Today the British Society Of Amsterdam and the Netherlands (Britsoc) officially launched their new website www.britsoc.nl during the second annual Consular Contacts Reception at the British Ambassador’s Residence in the Hague.
The idea for the reception came from British Consul in the Netherlands Mr John Cameron-Webb, who has long held a cherished desire to create closer bonds between the various British expat groups and individuals spread across the Netherlands. The reception, held in the early evening, was well attended despite the freezing, snowy conditions.
The British Ambassador Mr. Paul Arkwright welcomed the guests and brought Mike Carn, honorary chairman of the Commercial Anglo Dutch Society (CADS), to the front and announced that he has been awarded an OBE, Officer of the Order of the British Empire, in the New Year Honours List by Queen Elizabeth II for his services to charity and Anglo-Dutch business. Mike said he was “Well chuffed”, and would receive his OBE at the Palace in London sometime in March 2013.
Next up was Britosoc chairman Stephen Huyton, who spoke briefly about why the society had chosen to strengthen its ties with the broader expat community outside of its normal Amsterdam area. He then introduced the floor to writer and Britsoc webmaster John Richardson, who gave a ten minute presentation about the thinking behind the new website, which he then officially launched.
John Richardson launches the new Britsoc website during the second annual Consular Contacts Reception at the British Ambassador’s Residence in the Hague.
One of the key parts of his presentation on the large screen was called Britnet—Britsoc’s Directory of Social and Networking Clubs in the Netherlands. Still in early development, John hopes this will become a key focal point for interaction between the various expat groups and businesses across the Netherlands.
John also reported that the new online Britsoc magazine, the ZINE, had gone from a readership of 400 when first launched in July/August 2012 to over 4,000 today. He also noted that the printed version, first started in 1920, was last printed in December 2102 after reaching its milestone 600th edition.
The presentation was then handed back to The British Ambassador Mr. Paul Arkwright who congratulated Britsoc for its efforts and, having not seen the presentation beforehand, was genuinely excited about the future of the idea.
Everyone then returned to the roaring fire, a welcome glass and some serious networking.
By John Richardson, copywriter and content strategist, Amsterdam, the Netherlands