May 2002
An English oak tree was planted by Derek Townsend, the Mayor of Dacorum, on Saturday 16 March 2002, to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. After a rainy period, the day dawned bright and dry much to everyone’s relief. Members of the Parish Council and the W.I. assembled for the occasion. Nine year old Catherine Bessant presented the Mayoress with an attractive bouquet of flowers and Tony Briselden recorded the event for posterity, with a superb photograph.
The event brought to mind records of earlier occasions when commemorative trees were planted. To mark the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, a sweet chestnut tree was planted on 19 March 1977 in the same area as the new oak tree, just beyond the car park opposite the Old Vicarage. The tree was presented by the Chipperfield branch of the Royal British Legion and the Chipperfield Jubilee Committee, on behalf of the residents of the village. Fortunately, there is a photographic record of this occasion too. To commemorate the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II, on 2 June 1953, a cedar tree was planted on the Common, opposite Queen Street, by twelve children who were the prize winners of the fancy dress parade held on that day. They were: Kathleen Brooks (m. Appleby), Kay Burgess (m. Holt), Judy Lawrence, Pamela Scott (m. Monk), Peter Bass, Peter Brooks, Robin Dane, Paul English, Gordon Lee, Patrick Milner, Keith Sturman and Graham Woods. The three men, who officiated over the planting, were all members of the Chipperfield Horticultural Society, which had been reformed after W.W.2, and they were: Archie Hutchinson, President; Frank Bates, Chairman and Lisle Venables, a committee member, who had driven Waterhouse’s lorry in the parade. A photograph of this event has just come to light. Does anyone else have one that could be copied for our archives?
In May 1937, an oak tree was planted, on the church side of the cricket pavilion, to commemorate the Coronation of King George VI. Edith Midgley confirms that she and Jim Healing were chosen to assist on this occasion, because they were the oldest girl and boy in the village school at that time. No photographic record is known of this occasion. Going further back, Miss Liddle’s book describes how John and Mary Marriott, who came to Pinglesgate House (Manor House) in 1714, loved The Common and planted many trees such as beeches, firs and oaks in groups of five. They also planted the twelve lime trees around the monks’ pond; hence the name Apostles’ Pond. Mary Nobbs
VILLAGE OF THE YEAR COMPETITION
After our success last year in winning one of the categories for the Village of the Year Award, the Parish Council has decided to enter the competition again this year. The competition is a little different from the days of Best Kept Village entries as the award now focuses more on the quality of village life rather than on its appearance. Nevertheless, how Chipperfield is cared for will still rate highly in the judging criteria and I appeal to you to do everything you can to help to show us off to advantage. The judges for the ‘Environment’ category will be visiting us sometime between 13 May and 14 June and the Parish Council will be doing everything it can to show the village to its best advantage during that period. Our properties and gardens are always viewed favourably but some of our public places do sometimes let us down. Michael Horne, our Village Warden and Paul Hewetson, our Common Ranger, will be doing everything they can to clear litter and other eyesores. However, they cannot be everywhere at once and if you are aware of a collection of litter, any dumped rubbish or unsightly weeds please contact John Pringle, our Parish Clerk, on 01442 822704 (Monday-Friday 9.30am to 12.30pm; answerphone at other times) so that he can arrange for removal.
David Nobbs, Chairman of the Parish Council
STOPPING UNWANTED TELEPHONE CALLS
A reader has kindly called to advise us that the telephone number for the
Telephone Preference Service has been changed to 0845 070 0707. If you wish to stop unsolicited telephone calls, you should contact this new number. We apologise for inserting an obsolete number in our April issue.
CHIPPERFIELD MOTHER AND TODDLER GROUP
Why not join us at the Village Hall every Tuesday between 9.30-11.00am. We have a large selection of big toys, -ride on bikes, cars, play kitchen, slide and many more. Younger babies are well catered for with quiet corner and plenty of stimulating toys. Drop in for a chat and let your child meet some new friends. Tea, coffee, juice and biscuits supplied. Song time to end the morning. £1 per adult per week.
A REQUEST
Now the better weather is on the way, a request -please keep the volume of your radio and TV down during the summer months and don’t bring the speakers outdoors. You can be a nuisance to your neighbours who do not share your taste in music or the time you play it. An afternoon can be ruined by the noise pollution from someone else’s garden, so please limit the sound and keep it within your own home.
OXHEY CHAPEL RE-OPENS
Historic Oxhey Chapel will re-open for viewing between 11am-4.30pm on the first Saturday of each month from April to September. The chapel was built in 1602; Thomas F. Blackwell (of Crosse and Blackwell) had the building restored in 1897 and used it as his family chapel. For further information please telephone 0208 428 5161 or 0208 421 1610.
MAMMAL TROUBLE
Once again the long tailed tits are delighting us by building their nest close to the windows of the bungalow. Two years ago they nested in a berberis bush at the front, this year they are busy in a tightly clipped berberis just off the edge off the terrace. We get a grand stand view of their to-ing and fro-ing from the patio windows whilst we have our tea. Their oval shaped nest is made of moss and lichen bound together with cobwebs and lined with feathers. It has an amazingly stretchy quality and seems to expand as the chicks get bigger.
They seem to have found a good supply of feathers as they were constantly back and forth whilst we were having our tea today, always with a nice fluffy feather in their beaks. The birds are a great joy to us at the moment: the garden is full of birdsong. The thrushes and the blackbirds seem to have singing contests on either side of the main ride and the chiff-chaff, a summer visitor, is singing away by the greenhouse. David has just heard the first black cap, another visitor, up in our little wood. They all seem full of the joy of spring and the promise of summer. Unfortunately, not all the visitors to the garden are behaving themselves. The muntjac has just munched all the flowers off my most succulent bergina (they had not been open for a day) and all the buds have been eaten from the cuckoo flower in the dell! Either a fox or a badger keeps digging in the bark mulch behind our bamboos, probably for worms, and digging out the shade loving plants as well. The last straw though is the mice in the vegetable garden: they are nipping off the buds from the early strawberries! A step too far - my traps will have to be carefully set where the birds can’t get at them. This is war. Wendy Bathurst
THE BOOT INN
The Boot Inn has been a pub for over 200 years and has a reputation for serving fine ales, wines and good food in its bars and restaurant. With all the attractions of a traditional country pub, you can enjoy a drink in the wood-beamed bars, eat in the restaurant or on warmer days, enjoy the extensive gardens. For those who enjoy live music, there are regular sessions on Sunday evenings when The Boot hosts shows by a variety of bands.
The Boot has just completed a major kitchen refurbishment and for the past few weeks there has been no food available. The kitchens are now open again and to celebrate the reopening of the restaurant, Terry and Linda have introduced a mouth-watering new menu. The main menu features such tempting starters as char-grilled vegetables infused with thyme and smoked duck breast with
Seville orange chutney. Among the choice of main courses are medallions of monk fish with king prawns served on a bed of lemon risotto with tomato sauce and chicken breast stuffed with brie and sage, wrapped in bacon with a sage cream sauce. There are a number of vegetarian options as well and of course traditional steaks cooked to your liking. A typical three course meal costs less than £20 a head. Terry and Linda also offer an extensive bar snack selection where nothing costs more than £6.75. A traditional roast lunch is available all day on Sundays with two courses for £7.95 or three courses for £9.95. The children’s two course Sunday lunch costs £3.95.
KINGS CHRISTIAN BOOKSHOP
Opened three years ago, the Kings Christian Bookshop is situated in the foyer of Christ Church Baptist Church in The Nap, Kings Langley.
In addition to books they have a large selection of greetings cards, both with and without scripture texts, priced at 55p or less. They include Dave Newbould’s range, the Traidcraft range and other charity cards. The bookshop also stocks CDs, gifts, Traidcraft and other charity products.
There is ample car parking, either in front of the church or nearby in the Community Centre car park. Refreshments are always available, in the Kings Coffee Shop on Mondays and in the bookshop on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
The bookshop is open from 10.30am to 1.00pm on Mondays and from 10.00am to 12 noon on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
The bookshop telephone number is 01923 267035 and if you would like further information please contact Anne Armstrong on 01923 262581.
BOOKWORMS
In last November’s Chipperfield News there was a paragraph asking if anyone was interested in joining a proposed reading group.
Many people replied and the first ten applicants have now formed themselves into Chipperfield Bookworms.
So far we have had four meetings and as there are ten of us we find this a manageable number for meeting at the homes of members and for lively discussions. We have read and considered two books each month and have been introduced to authors and subjects which some of us might not have discovered.
Thanks to careful pre-planning we have been able to obtain most of the books from Bovingdon Library and they have given us help and encouragement with starting the group.
Already we have made new friends, enjoyed lively discussions and several glasses of wine. We hope that those who were not able to be part of our group will form another one and find it equally enjoyable once the ground rules are established. VEB
CHIPPERFIELD WITHIN LIVING MEMORY
Mary Nobbs continues her series of articles
THE FORMATION OF THE WOMENS’ INSTITUTE IN CHIPPERFIELD
On Tuesday 5th December 1933, forty women met in the Women’s Club (which was on the left-hand side of the present Social Club) and it was unanimously decided to form a branch of the Women’s Institute in Chipperfield. Thirty names were put forward for election to the committee and the ten elected were: Miss Sharpin (Kings Mead), Mrs. Kelly (Chipperfield House), Mrs. Loosely (The Firs), Mrs. Tarver senior (Doggetts), Mrs. Bidnell (headmaster’s wife at Redcroft), Mrs. Meehan (Wood Lea), Mrs. Leuchars (Copthall), Mrs. Brown (4, Flint Cottages) and Miss Rivington (Little Callipers). Mrs. Florence Kelly was duly elected president.
It was agreed that meetings should be held at 2.30.p.m. on the first Friday of each month but this had to be changed because the Social Club room was only available on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. At a committee meeting held immediately after the general meeting, the committee members agreed to co-opt Mrs. Bayes and Mrs. Jefferies (the vicar’s wife), whose names had been next on the ballot list. Miss Sharpin was appointed vice-president, Mrs. Leuchars became secretary and Mrs. Loosely hon. treasurer.
Mrs. Meehan agreed to be responsible for teas and the charges were to be 1d for a cup of tea and 1d for a bun. Sub-committees were set up to organise entertainment, monthly competitions and a "give and take stall". The tradition of singing Jerusalem was established at the first meeting in January. For the first meeting in February, Mrs Meehan volunteered to demonstrate the making of a pouffe, as there was insufficient time to organise an outside demonstrator or lecturer. The competition for February was "the six best uses for stale bread". Mrs. Kelly volunteered to give a silver spoon, to the monthly prize winners, for the first year.
The committee was very busy planning the year’s programme which was to include a potato competition to be judged by Mr. Simmonds (potatoes to be given to the hospital); an outing to the W.I. rally at Hatfield House (coach costs to be 2 shillings and 6 pence (25p) per head) and dress making classes to be held in the afternoon and evening. The latter were very popular and over thirty people had applied to join. The women did not wish to go to classes in the school. At the Women’s Club, it cost 3 shillings (30p) for the use of a room and 2 shillings and 6 pence (25p) to cover the cost of coal and the cleaning of the premises. The County Council arranged the instructors for the classes.
All members were issued with a free copy of the year’s programme and Home and Country Magazine was in circulation in 1934. The annual meeting of the National Federation of Women’s Institutes was held at the Royal Albert Hall on May 16th 1934, but no one from Chipperfield attended that year due to a lack of funding.
Women wishing to join the W.I. had to write a letter of application to the committee and on approval, each person’s name was recorded in the minute book, along with that of a proposer and a seconder. In March 1934, Mrs Laws became the one hundredth member, Mrs. French the one hundred and first member and her daughter Miss Kathleen French (now Mrs. Williams) became the one hundred and second member at the age of about fifteen years.
The June meeting was to be a Garden Party at Chipperfield House(weather permitting) and the programme would include a pastoral play and a parade of dresses made at the two classes.
KINGS LANGLEY SENIOR SCHOOL
This month’s news starts with …
38 students, (from Years 9-13), two parents and six members of staff, enjoyed a skiing trip to Alpendorf in Austria, during the February half term. At the end of the 20-hour coach journey, everyone was safely ensconced in the Hotel Vertenmoos, (which is rather like a cross between a Youth Hostel and Hotel). The skiing covered all abilities, beginners, improvers and advanced. Students studying for their GCSE in PE, were videoed for part of their practical assessment. The snow was excellent, and by the last day, plenty of powder snow had fallen providing everyone with the perfect end to a great trip. Evening entertainment includes swimming, skating, discos, a quiz night, and a presentation evening.
Cabaret Evenings were held on 28 February and 1st March. Both were brilliant evening shows casing the wide variety of talent amongst the Kings Langley School students. Musicians included rock and jazz groups, piano, saxophone, percussion, guitar, clarinet and the School Band. Performers also included a magician, dancers, singers and performance of the monologue "The Lion and Albert". Staff also joined in and there was a surprise performance by the ever popular "Three Degrees"!! KLSA manned the bar and students acted as waiters and waitresses. These evenings are very much organised by senior students and credit must go to everyone involved, especially Steph Suter, Mrs Mendelsohn and Mrs Snow. The two comperes for the evening Charles Suter and Rob Halford, did a very professional job providing entertaining links between each act! Over the weekend experienced staff are learning the courses for the Year 8 trips (starting in May) and they in turn helped new members to get to grips with the various activities. Very much a team building exercise – who would you trust to lead you when you were blind folded?
Insight into Industry – undertaken by Year 9 students. Tuesday 19 March was a special day for Year 9 students. Visitors from a variety of industries came into school to talk to students and to help with activities. This year’s representatives were from Army Careers, B.P., Norwest Holst Contruction PLC, Primark, and Microsoft. The day was divided into three sessions and the students into groups of approximately 25 (which could then be sub-divided) so that they could experience a variety of activities. This is yet another area cementing links between the school and local industries. The day was co-ordinated by four members of staff, Ian Hall (Head of Year 9), Mike Lewis (Head of IT), Helen Yates (Head of Business Studies) and Jacqui Devine (Head of Careers), and obviously many other members of staff on the day. The students get an idea of the variety of opportunities out in the real world and appreciate the chance to hear about them first hand.
March has been a very busy month for everyone. A three-day course over an Inset Day and weekend took place for staff at the School’s Outdoor Education Centre in Llaneglwys in the Brecon Beacons. The first day was rather cold and misty but the weather improved. A four-hour First Aid Course run by the St John Ambulance Brigade was organised for 14 students in Years 12 and 13, who are studying for their Community Sports Leader Awards. This is a course funded by Dacorum Borough Council and organised by Nicky Walshaw from the Youth Sport Development. Everyone successfully completed the course – Congratulations.
The Easter holidays arrived later than usual for several members of staff and many Year 11 students this year. They were working hard during the Easter Revision School organised for four days before the Easter weekend. There was an excellent response from the students and they were very focused and worked hard. A big thank you to the staff for all their preparation and efforts. We hope everyone enjoyed the rest of the holiday and were suitably rewarded with Easter Eggs on Easter Sunday.
Last November PC Jackie Hagan and Kate Worden from Dacorum Borough Council, gave a presentation to Year 10 girls, about the High Sheriffs Crime Beater Award. Mrs Yvonne Snow (teacher) was also present and acted as a facilitator for the developing project. From this, a group of six girls volunteered to form GAG (Girls Action Group). Lucy Eveo-Connor, Laura Scott, Laura Miller, Megan Unwin, Sophie Faller, and Kerry Hoskins, went on to design two projects, one on Bullying, which they have taken into six local primary schools (including Kings Langley, Chipperfield and Bedmond Primary Schools), the other on Life Skills. This included role play acted out by the girls and a competition for the children. Their work culminated in an Award Ceremony at Herts County Hall on Monday, 18 March 2002. By now they were aware that they had won an award but did not know which one. All the projects were of a very high standard and the awards in true style were announced in reverse order. After the second place award was announced, the girls realised they had won first place. Everyone was thrilled. The Mayor of Dacorum, Councillor Derek Townsend, presented the girls with a cheque for £1,250, which is to be spent on something to support "Crime Beater". Well done girls, a brilliant and worthwhile effort.
Meanwhile, work is still going on to organise and support the 15th Annual Puffer Fun Run. Application Forms are available and for details of the three routes around the village, phone Carol Gahan on 01923 268308. Make sure the date is in your diary - Sunday, 19 May 2002.
Music Successes – Well done to:-Charlotte Graysmark, who achieved a Distinction in Grade 7, Recorder; and Laura Neville-Rolfe, who gained a Merit playing the Clarinet in the Watford Music Festival Advanced Woodwind Section.
Finally, we would like to say "Welcome" to Mr Gary Lewis, who began the summer term as Head Teacher at Kings Langley School on 8th April. Thank you to Mrs Fiona Winfield, who has done a great job as Acting Head Teacher, over the past two terms.