NEPA Convention 

The 75th Annual NEPA convention and Stamp Fair will take place on Saturday 15th March 2025

 at the Bowburn Community Centre, Durham DH6 5AT 

Doors will be open from 10am, with the usual convention myriad of dealers, competition entries, displays, the NEPA AGM, presentation of awards for Competition entries etc. The afternoon will include an invited display. Refreshments will hopefully be available throughout the day. 

A raffle will be held during the day. There will be a variety of philatelic and non-philatelic prizes, so make sure you get some raffle tickets at convention.

The Venue -The Community Centre in Bowburn was built in 1961 as the second Bowburn Miners Welfare Hall and Institute. The first Miners’ Institute was opened on 26th February 1921, when a Roll of Honour, on which the names were inscribed of 35 men who had fallen in the First World War, was unveiled by Rev. Thomas Wardle, vicar of St. Paul's, then the Parish Church of Cassop-cum-Quarrington.

The roll of honour was on brass, mounted on marble and framed in oak. It was dedicated by Rev. A.J. Gadd, former vicar of St. Paul's and then honorary chaplain to HM Forces. Prayers were said by Rev. G.R. Bell. The plaque has remained in the Miners Welfare ever since, moving to the new building (now Bowburn Community Centre) after it was built in 1961. Four more names were added in 2001.

The original Institute was built by Bell Bros., owners of Bowburn Colliery, who also donated the memorial. It was later known as the Green Hut Welfare, in contrast to today's building, which built across the road from it, in 1961.

For more details see http://www.communitycentre.bowburn.net/index.htm

The Stamp Fair and Dealers—

The 2018 Stamp Fair has 13 dealers booked to date, with a great range of Stamps, Postal History and also Postcards available. Dealers will have travelled from as far North as Dunbar East Lothian to Mansfield Nottingham and Grantham Lincolnshire in the South and from Liverpool in the West to attend the Stamp Fair. There will be a good variety of all philatelic material available to purchase. A not to be missed philatelic event in the North East. As part of our initiative to widen the scope of the Stamp Fair and Philately in the North East the fair organisers are offering NEPA societies the opportunity of having their own table on the day. Your society could use the opportunity to promote the values of belonging to your Philatelic Society and to attract membership from the visitors and collectors who attend. The table could also be used by NEPA members to sell their surplus material and become 'dealers for a day'

Contact Mike Lewis 07742 153669 <mikeval9b@yahoo.co.uk> or

Graham Whitewick 01723 379077 <grwhitewick@btinternet.com> for further details

How to get to the venue by Road

For those with Sat Nav the postcode for the Community Centre is DH6 5AT

Directions

From the North or South

Leave the A1M motorway at junction 61 and take the A177(N) to Bowburn.

Enter the village and continue on the A177 past the former Cooperage Public House, down the hill and pass the Library on your right hand side.

The Community Centre entrance is 20 metres further on the right hand side.

How to get there by Public Transport

The following bus services to/from Durham Bus Station, stop at the former Cooperage Public House, which may be now a carpet saleroom.

56 Bishop Auckland–Durham

57 Kelloe–Durham

57A Hartlepool– Durham

58A Hartlepool– Durham

59 Wheatley Hill–Arnison Centre

X12 Middlesbrough–Durham with connections at Durham onto service X1

Durham Bus Station is served by a variety of bus services to places in the region, also Durham Railway Station is a short walk away, with a connecting bus service to/from the bus station. For more details of bus services see http://www.cartogold.co.uk/durham/ which gives access to the interactive map and latest bus timetables.

http://www.cartogold.co.uk/durham/images/Durham%20Map.pdf gives a downloadable map of bus services in and around Durham,  showing services to Bowburn as far as Shincliffe in the lower right hand corner.

Refreshments will be available at the community centre and there are a couple of pubs and other food service outlets in the village.

We look forward to seeing you all there.