The Amersham Society

PICTURE (TOP):
The old market
cross at Aylesbury
before its
demolition.
  • Facing up to new shopping challenges in Amersham today

Modern-day food shopping is unimaginable without big supermarket chains and their use of plastic packaging. Plastic plays an important role in protecting goods and importantly in reducing food waste and its climate impact. However, our throwaway culture has led to increasing levels of plastic waste in the natural environment.

To tackle the issue, the UK Plastics Pact was launched in April 2018. Its aim is to bring together businesses, UK government and NGOs and transform the way how we make, use, collect, sort, reuse and recycle plastics. This would create a circular economy, capturing the value of plastic, keeping it in the economy and out of the natural environment. Almost all of the UK's major supermarkets have signed up to the pact.

But what can we as individuals do to reduce plastic waste? The Society has been in contact with a local group called Sustainable Amersham and asked them to share their views with our members on how we could adjust our everyday lives and shopping habits to join the initiative.

•  Please read ‘Amersham as a Plastic-Free Town’ by Nikki Magrath, an article published in the Society's September 2021 Newsletter – see below or click here.
  • Who we are:
  • Our aim is to foster a greater awareness of the amenities and heritage of the Old Town of Amersham and to encourage conservation and sensitive enhancement.
  • Membership is open to everyone who shares our desire to make the town attractive to residents and visitors.
  • Our activities:
  • From September to May the Society organises lectures. In 2021 all meetings have continued to be held online via Zoom and the recordings then made available to our members on demand. This year the annual outing resumed, with a September visit to the Gurkha Museum in Winchester.
  • Our recent publications:
  • Members receive email bulletins monthly and copies of the Society's printed Newsletter in January, May and September.
  • As well as local history, the newsletter includes reports on our monthly talks along with articles about committee activities and other matters of local environmental interest, such as HS2, planning applications and the state of the River Misbourne.
  • For more information:
  • The first port of call is our website, or email info@amershamsociety.org.
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Thanks to Elena Morgan at the Amersham Society for providing content for this page.