Thought for our times:
"He that goeth about to convince a multitude, that they are not so well governed as they ought to be, shall never want attentive and favourable hearers."
Richard Hooker 1554(?) - 1600
Following early retirement from the UK Senior Civil Service in 1997 (see my CV) I became a member of the National Measurement System Working Group on Software Support for Metrology and the European Commission's panel of experts for project evaluation, monitoring and appraisal in the then current Science and Technology Framework Programme. In the context of this I chaired the panel of independent experts that monitored the launch in 1999 and the first year activities of the Commission's new Information Society Technologies programme.
I also worked for some years as a self employed tourist guide through an agency called British Tours Ltd.
In the voluntary sphere I have been a Trustee of the United Society for the Propagation of the Gospel (USPG) since 1999 - 2006 and have chaired its Finance and Audit Committee 2003. In this context I sit on the ecumenical Church Investors' Group. This informal group monitors the ethical and governance practices of major companies. I also chair USPG's staff pension trustees.
I am also treasurer of the Southwark Cathedral Millennium Trust, a Churchwarden of St Paul's Church, Clapham and a member of my Deanery Synod which I represent on the Southwark Diocesan Board of Finance.
Address:
25, Rozel Road, Clapham, London SW4 0EY
Phone 020 7622 5744 (International: +44 20 7622 5744)
And sometimes in Wales at Cae'r Saeson, Gellilydan, Nr. Bl. Ffestiniog, Gwynedd LL41 4EY
Phone 01766 590602 (Maentwrog 590602)
You can email me at home at roger.hird@argonet.co.uk (or just click on this link)
If you want to know more about Cae'r Saeson just click on this link.
Note For Early Retired Civil Servants
Follow this link to my tax hint page!
BORING TECHNICAL DETAILS For IT types, I use Orpheus Internet's Broadband ISP service and the Netfetch communications package with Jonathon Duddington's Pluto News/Mail Reader. on an Acorn RiscPC 700 upgraded to the ARM Strongarm microprocessor with the RISC OS Adjust 4.39 gui operating system. For those who cherish the history of computing in Britain, this means that I'm using a UK ISP and running a UK designed comms and news/mail packages on a UK designed and manufactured computer, with a UK designed microprocessor chip which, in ordinary use, needs neither Microsoft DOS nor Windows of any sort - and gee, it feels so good! Actually it does have Windows and a 586 processor too on a plug in card so that I can run PC apps in a RISC OS Window from time to time.
8 May 2006