Bugbrooke Link Magazine

(Issue 136), February 2006
Editor: Paul Cockcroft

Happy New Year and welcome to the first issue of 2006. In this issue we have provided all the answers to the Christmas Quizzes, that hopefully you found challenging and entertaining.

The police theme continues with a further article from Tony Pace and another from the police authority.

As well as community issues associated with policing, we have details of a Victim Support scheme and “Safe and Sound” from the South Northants Volunteer Bureau.

We have wondered what has happened to the Bugbrooke Village web site. If you know the status of the village website, or what would be involved in getting it up and running to a good standard, I would be interested to hear from you and to report on this matter in future issues of this magazine.

You can contribute to the magazine by posting articles through my door or preferably by submitting copy by e-mail to the e-mail address.
The deadline for the next issue is Monday 6th March 2006.
 
Parish Council Report
The Parish Council had to settle for third place only in the Large Village category in this year’s Village of the Year competition, which was slightly disappointing having been Northamptonshire Village of the Year in 2004. The judges visited the village back in May and were shown around by members of the Council and it did seem that they were most impressed with the amount of community activity that took place in the village. However their main comment was that we did not have a Parish Plan, this is also the document that we need to produce for the Council to gain ‘Quality’ status.

A Parish Plan is a document that is written by the community, for the community and its main aim is to enable the parish to move forward. For a plan to be prepared it is essential that the community is involved and help to drive it. Many other local parishes have produced plans and they can take many different forms from a thick glossy book to a thin plain booklet. The key to their success is that they become a working document to help form a strategy for our community today and in the future. The first step is to consult and involve as many parishioners as possible and to do this in the New Year we will be calling an open meeting. This will then lead on to some form of questionnaire to every household, the results of which will form the basis of the plan. If you would like to be involved in this exciting process for the development of the village, then please contact me, any other member of the council or the Clerk at the Parish Office.

Following my report in the last edition of Link, the Council was asked by South Northants Council to reconsider the name of the new housing development off Church Lane. Councillors were still keen to have a link with the village history, so we put forward the alternative of ‘Baptists Close’ to reflect the fact that this area was the first in the community to be associated with Baptist worship.
After several years of effort by the Council’s Footpaths Committee and unforeseen frustrations, I can finally report that we have produced a circular walk leaflet. This covers a walk which involves the canal towpath and connects through the main part of the village. The leaflet points out places of interest and is available free of charge from the shops and pubs in the village.

Once again there has been a personnel change within the Police force
locally and we now have a new lady Inspector who has agreed to attend a public meeting to talk to parishioners about policing in our area. The date of this meeting is Monday 20th February at the Community Centre. Do please come along and voice your views direct to the police about any issue which concerns you.

We were recently involved in a consultation exercise about reducing the provision of the mobile library. We were very keen to ensure that the library continued to visit at times that would allow all members of the community, including children, to access this important service. The County Council have listened to us and our recommendations and the service will continue to call every other Thursday afternoon, up to and after school has finished.
Finally do please clear up after your dog, levels of dog fouling across the village seem to be rising, despite the fact that the Parish Council has provided special bins for dog waste across the village and more are due to be installed in January. The Dog Warden from South Northamptonshire Council does visit the village regularly and can issue on the spot fines to dog owners if they do not clear up their dog mess. Alternatively if you know of someone who persistently allows their dog to foul, then ring through to the Animal Welfare Officer on 01327 322277, they do not need to know names, just an idea of where and when the person walks their dog, they will then come and patrol that area.
Phil Bignell - Chairman

What’s happening to the Police?
In the last edition of Link, there was a very informative article from the police in which they claimed “… officers patrol Bugbrooke on a daily basis …”. I have to say I have heard of little evidence of recognisable patrols; rather there is just the occasional mention of a police car going through the village. There does appear to be a continuing disconnect between what the village wants as a police presence and what the police think they are delivering. However, it does seem that things are about to change though whether that will be for better or worse is entirely unclear. You will all have heard from the national press that the government wants to create larger police forces by amalgamating some of the county forces into larger groups. Such a change will bring both advantages and disadvantages but I am most concerned about the impact it may have on local policing, particularly if it will result in further reductions in the current dismal level of service. If you have opinions or concerns about the reorganisation of the police then you can join in the debate and make your views known.
Contact your MP, Tim Boswell.
Contact your County Councillor, Joan Kirkbride
Contact the Chair of the Police Authority, Councillor Dr Marie Dickie
If you want to ensure you have the police force you want in the future, it is up to you to make sure your views and concerns are known.
Tony Pace

Northamptonshire Police
Would you like an opportunity to discuss local issues with Chief Superintendent Paul Phillips, Area Commander for the Western Area of Northamptonshire Police?
We are running a pilot "Open Door" session in February and March where you can book a 15 minute telephone call with Mr Phillips to discuss local issues. There are currently time slots available on February 14 between 9am and 1:30pm and March 6 between 9am and 1pm.
To book a time slot please let me know by email or telephone
Preferred date/time
Your telephone number for Mr Phillips to phone you on
What issues you would like to discuss
The village/town you live in
The time slots will be booked on a first come first serve basis, however depending on the popularity and success of this pilot we will aim to hold this regularly giving you all a chance to speak to Mr Phillips.
Address for contact is:
Laura Houghton
Western Area Public Relations Officer
08453 700 700 Ext: 3158
Daventry Police Station
Area Headquarters
New Street
Daventry
NN11 4BS
 
NORTHAMPTONSHIRE POLICE - Visit us at
http://www.northants.police.uk 
 
New number for Northamptonshire Police
Northamptonshire Police has introduced a new countywide telephone number for the public to use when making non-emergency calls. As of Thursday
1st December 2005 the new number for all non-emergency calls to the Force is:
08453 700700.

An automated call handling system was introduced at the same time,
giving callers who know the extension number they need, the chance to key it in. This will speed things up for them, and allow other calls to be answered more quickly as well.
Staff in the Customer Contact Centre answered 288,775 non-emergency calls last year – 791 calls each day. Currently there are five local numbers in existence, depending on where you live in the county, all feeding in to a central switchboard. Northamptonshire Police hope that the introduction of the new number will make things easier for the public, with just one number to remember wherever in the county they are calling from.

It will also make things simpler for people when the four policing Areas merge into two later this year.
The new telephone number - 08453 700700 - is charged at the normal local rate and will continue be answered by call handlers in the Force Communications Centre.
The existing local numbers will gradually be phased out but will still
connect to Police for the time being, until people become used to the new number.
There is, of course, no change to the 999 number for emergency calls.
The new number will be promoted across the county to ensure it becomes widely known.
Our Only Aim Is To Help Reduce Road Casualties, Not To Catch You Speeding
The Northamptonshire Safety Camera Partnership was formed in April 2000 to undertake the speed enforcement element of the county’s casualty reduction efforts. The prime aim of the Partnership is to help reduce the numbers killed or seriously injured on the county’s roads. Operating as a multi-agency initiative, the Partnership comprises Northamptonshire Police, the County Council, the Highways Agency and the Magistrates Courts.

Selected as one of the first Government-sponsored pilot areas, Northamptonshire is now one of more than 40 established Safety Camera Partnerships around the UK and operates:
40 fixed site speed cameras
2 average speed systems
6 red light cameras
7 mobile speed camera vans
2 camera-equipped motorcycles
4 motorcycle enquiry officers
All fixed site cameras are located on routes where we have witnessed a number of serious injury accidents. Central Government approval is necessary before installation can take place and all fines collected from speeding and traffic light offences are forwarded to the Treasury, the Partnership only being allowed to reclaim direct costs.
The county has signed up to the Government’s objective of reducing those killed or seriously injured on our roads by 40% by 2010. Through a combination of Engineering, Education and Enforcement the Casualty Reduction Partnership has already helped reduce this figure by over 30% with the casualties at the fixed site cameras dropping by 67%.

The mobile units spend most of their time enforcing the speed limit on the county’s Red Routes – stretches of road where there have been clusters of serious accidents. We are, however, allowed to spend up to 15% of enforcement time responding to requests, mainly from the general public, expressing concern over speeding vehicles in the local area.

In the 5 years of operation we have seen speeds drop, the numbers caught speeding fall, and the number of casualties reduce. Northamptonshire has one of the best road safety records in the country – staying within the speed limit will help us to keep it.

Our team of Motorcycle Enquiry Officers patrol the county’s Red Routes and enforce the speed limits using hand-held laser speed guns connected to video machines – the same equipment that is used in the mobile vans.

Additionally, the Enquiry Officers investigate offences that have been questioned and cases for potential prosecution.

We will always endeavour to publish, in advance, the locations of our mobile units on our website and in the local media – the whole purpose of the initiative being to slow motorists down and prevent casualties, not issue as many tickets as possible.

We also spend time visiting local community groups, county events, Parish Councils and industry groups where we can better explain the Partnership’s function and answer questions.
With an initiative that has generated considerable public and media interest over the years, there are numerous questions that we have been asked concerning the scheme. Some of the more common questions follow:
 
The Most Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Surely this is just a money making exercise for the Police?
A. Neither the Police nor the Partnership makes any money from the
initiative. We are, however, allowed to re-claim the direct costs of running the Partnership from the fines collected.

Q. Shouldn’t you be out catching real criminals rather than waste time and resources on innocent motorists?
A. These are additional resources, which are not diverting officers from other policing duties. Breaking the legal speed limit is against the law and motorists should be aware that, if they exceed that limit, the risk of detection is now a real one.  

Q. Your vans hide behind bushes just to catch us out, don’t they?
A. Our specially liveried vehicles are clearly marked with “Safety Camera Partnership” logo and the familiar “box brownie” signs. We always endeavour to park in open, conspicuous locations, respecting other road users and the safety of our Officers. All sites comply with Government guidelines.
 
Q. I have heard that Northamptonshire offer speed workshops as an alternative to penalty points. Am I eligible to attend?
A. Speed workshops are offered to those people who have been caught marginally exceeding a 30mph limit. Those who qualify for a place will receive details once the driver has been nominated.
 
 
Bugbrooke Sports and Community Centre
The continuing success and resultant healthy state of the finances has enabled a much needed improvement to the Main Hall heating to be carried out. The Entrance Hall carpet has been replaced by wood panel flooring, which gives a lighter and more attractive approach to the centre. The next major capital expenditure will be the enlargement of the changing room area to improve the facilities for visiting sports teams.
 
Playing field (dog fouling)
In order to reduce the health hazard to the players of the various pitches, the committee request that the exercising of dogs is restricted to the perimeter of the field and they are under control at all times by means of a lead; faeces should be collected and disposed of in the appropriate bins. The clubs have been experiencing an increasing fouling of the pitches, which is not only unpleasant for the players but the faeces can cause a disease to the eyes. We ask for the co-operation of all dog walkers to help reduce this problem.

Note from Editor: The above observations about dog fouling are among many that we receive at the LINK magazine. We do not include all of the contributions, though clearly this is a serious issue for many people and the village as a whole.

Bugbrooke Playgroup
HAPPY 2006!
There will be a ‘Pay and play’ session in the February break on Thursday 16th February, from 10-12. Entrance fee is £1.50 for 1 adult and 1 child and 50p extra for each child after that. This includes drinks, cakes/biscuits and use of whichever toys/activities are out.
We are holding a Pampered Chef party in the evening on Wednesday 1st February at 7.30pm. Anyone welcome even if not part of the Playgroup. All commission goes towards getting new toys for Playgroup. If more information is required, please ring Lorna on: 01604 831061.
If you have a child who is soon to be 2 years 6 months: ring Kate Meech on 832669, or ring Playgroup on 832347, between 9am and 1pm weekdays. Sessions are Mon-Fri 9.15am-12.45pm. This is including your child bringing packed lunch. Sessions cost £6.50.
Lorna Britten (Secretary)

St Michael & All Angels Church News
Arrangements during the Interregnum
The Church Office in the Sunday School continues to open most weekday mornings (except Thursdays) between 9am and 11.30am. The phone number is 830373 and there is an answer phone so you can leave a message and someone will get back to you. On most Tuesday evenings between 7.30pm and 8pm one of the Churchwardens, Judith Smith or Ivor Bradbury will be in the Church Office to answer enquiries about weddings or baptisms. For any very urgent matters contact Judith on 832494 or Ivor on 830735.

Jubilee House Communion 
A communion service will be held at Jubilee House on the Wednesday 1st February at 1.30p.m.

Evening Communion
On the first Wednesday evening of February (8th) a communion service will be held in Church at 7.30pm. Everyone is welcome.  

Our new vicar Revd Stephen French will be licensed at 3pm on Sunday
February 12th at Bugbrooke Church. Our benefice will now encompass the four parishes of Bugbrooke, Rothersthorpe, Harpole and Kislingbury. At the time of this magazine going to press the times and frequency of services in each parish are not yet known. Please watch out for the Church Diary, which will be distributed around the village shortly.
Lynn King
 
Friends of St Michael & All Angels Church
We held our Wine Tasting evening on 2nd December and it proved to be a very popular and successful evening. We sold all the available tickets and had to turn away a few people who had wanted to come. The wines were particularly enjoyed this year and we made a profit of just under £400 on the evening, this will go into our funds towards the maintenance of the beautiful old church. We reported in the last issue of the Link that we had agreed to make a substantial payment for repair work on the stonework of the building.

We have been fortunate in arranging another musical evening at the church, which will be given by the Northampton Amateur Operatic Group and will be held on Saturday 25th February at 2.30pm. We only manage to hold this event every other year and it really is a most pleasant and entertaining evening; they sing songs from musicals and films and there is always a happy atmosphere, the church, in particular, seems so warm and welcoming. Tickets are £5.00 each and are obtainable from committee members or at the door on the evening.

After this we have our Race Night and Quiz coming up on 24th March. This is a rumbustious evening and always enjoyed by those who come along for an exciting and, possibly, profitable evening if they bet on the right horses!! It will be held at the Community Centre and will start at 7.30pm.
Tickets are £3.00 each and are available from committee members.

Robin Whipp, who has been a committee member since our inaugural meeting in April 1999, has resigned from the committee and we should like to express our thanks to him for all the hard work and encouragement, which he has given to all our activities during this time. We are pleased that he has promised to continue to support our functions and to ‘drum-up customers’ for future events. Tony Pace has agreed to join the committee and we look forward to his invigorating contribution to our meetings.
Bob Peel (Chairman)

Mothers’ Union
On Thursday afternoon, November 10th, 14 members attended a talk by Hazel Fountain in the Sunday School entitled “On the Spot”, the “Spot” being occasions when memories were made, either happy or sad. Hazel spoke of her many “spots” that had become strong memories for her. Hazel then invited members to tell us of their “spots”. This became a most enjoyable afternoon; we finished by all singing a lullaby, jogged into memory by Pat’s “spot” – “84 years ago”. Lindsay said prayers and took a small service.

On November 23rd, in the Sunday School, Judy Smith conducted a very spiritual evening service. Unfortunately few attended yet the evening was very inspiring. Candles were lit and hymns were sung, accompanied very ably by Hilary Kent on the newly installed organ, kindly donated by Mary French. A very pleasant evening was completed.
Ruby Coles

On Wednesday, November 30th, at 2.30pm an Advent Carol service was held in Newham Church. The service was taken by the Rev. Michael Pettit. Leaders of our Deanery branches read the lessons, carol advent carols were sung. Newham M. U. members made a delicious buffet tea, which they have done for the past eight years. Now it has been decided each branch will take a turn, we hope they will do as well. 40 members attended.

The advent carol service held by Bugbrooke and Rothersthorpe was held on the evening of December 8th in the Sunday School. The service was taken by Joyce Leadly. Readings were said by members, carols sung. The four advent candles were lit and names of the Prophets read. Pat read a Christmas story called “The Tablecloth”. Sue Pace played the piano. Tables were laid with home made cakes and mince pies. A social evening followed and was enjoyed by 43 members.
Pat Archer
 
Jesus Fellowship, Bugbrooke Chapel
LOST SHEEP
On Saturday 11th February there will be a special event at the Chapel called “Lost Sheep”. One of the most popular Christian hymns is “The Lord is my Shepherd”, but is it true? Verna Paul tells me that her father was a shepherd at Home Farm (Campion’s). When he walked up from their home in Great Lane to the farm on the High Street, the sheep would recognise his footsteps, and would run to the gate to await his arrival. There were probably lots of footsteps on the High Street, as there were only 6 cars in Bugbrooke at that time (wouldn’t that solve the traffic problem!), but the sheep recognised the footsteps of the one who was coming to feed them. In today’s society many people are on their own, and there is no need to be alone. Our “Lost sheep” event is for all those who feel that they would like the Lord to be a true shepherd to them, and to discover the beautiful reality of “The Lord is my Shepherd”. The event will begin at 6.30pm, and there will be a free tea from 5.30pm.

We have our regular Sunday morning services at 11am, to which all are welcome. These are on 5th, 12th and 26th February, and 5th, 12th and 26th March. On Sundays 19th February and 19th March, the morning meeting is at the Jesus Centre, Abington Square, Northampton. Every Sunday evening there is an evening meeting at the Jesus Centre at 6.50pm, which is particularly suitable for first time visitors. The atmosphere is relaxed and you are welcome to come or leave at any time during the service.
We continue to receive requests for prayer for people in need, especially for healing, so please let us know and we will make sure that every request is mentioned in our prayers. These can be confidential if required. If you would like an “anointed cloth” to give to the sick person, please let us know. It works!
John Thomason
Contacts:
John & Avril Thomason 01327 340612; mobile 07966 341221
Ed & Judith Hunt. 01604 830004, 45, High Street, Bugbrooke.


Bugbrooke Cricket Club
Our AGM on 28th November was well attended with the main changes being Graham Trevitt taking over the Saturday 1st X1 Captain from Ian Street who moves to Vice-Captain. With Sarah Bolus leaving the Club Jill Booty from the Dower House very kindly volunteered to assist with the teas, which is always the highlight of any home match here. We are very indebted to Nigel Thomas for again auditing our Accounts.

The Club & myself wish our grounds man Gerald Young a speedy recovery from his operation due on January 23rd.

Indoor nets will be held at the County Ground every Thursday 8pm to 9pm for both Seniors & Juniors from January 19th until April 13th. Get in touch with Roger Stone or just turn up on the day – it will be your chance to impress the selectors before the start of the season & get some useful practice!
 A touring side is going to Kent where 3 matches have been arranged over the Easter weekend on 15th, 16th & 17th April. For further details get in touch with Ian Street or Chris Chapman.
 We will be running 2 Saturday league teams as well as Sundays, Junior & Midweek sides so get in touch with any of the above officers or myself if you wish to join the Club at it’s picturesque ground by the brook. Have a look at our website www.bugbrookecc.co.uk and www.bugbrooke.play-cricket.com for further information & chat on our Message Board.
Peter White (830452)

Bakers Arms Golf Society
10/12/05 Brampton Heath Golf Centre
Well my last venue of the year as Captain (very enjoyable it was too) was Brampton Heath for our annual turkey shoot. I would like it known that no turkeys or other animals were actually shot. Some were injured with the odd golf ball but I’m sure it was all by accident. Anyway back to the job at hand.
As usual, we had a great turn out with 3 tasty birds up for grabs (the feathered kind although I’m sure some of the players would have preferred the other). The weather was fine for the time of year and course was firm under foot. It was a pleasure to be playing alongside my brother-out-law, Glyn
Llewelyn when he recorded his first back to back birdies, one being a 2 on a par 3, well done, and picking up a share of the pot for having a 2 was Kieran Dabbs, also a playing partner and what great banter was going on between us until the back nine when he showed his true colours and overawed me.
The winners on the day were James (Ollie Reed) Lott on 44 points. Runner up was Kieran (Johnny Vegas) Dabbs on 41 points, and yet again my other brother-out-law Richard (Clanger I like to keep my coat on at all times)

Langford was third on 40 points. Longest Drive was won by Ray (Charles) Worth and Nearest the Pin by Denise (Carol Thatcher) Turvey. Congratulations to all. Hope to see you all next year and cheers.
Darren Smart, Captain

Bugbrooke & Harpole Scout Group
The Scout Group would like to thank everyone in Bugbrooke and Heyford who kindly made use of our Christmas card delivery service in December. Heyford Scout Group have delivered Christmas cards locally for many years, and they gave us some useful advice! Our Scout Group Leaders who organised this venture depended on parents, volunteers and especially the boys (who go to Beavers, Cubs, and Scouts). They all dropped leaflets, collected everyone's Christmas cards, stamped, sorted, and then delivered them in all weathers. A big thank you to everybody who helped.

We are very grateful for the enthusiastic response we got from many households
This autumn term, (along with delivering Christmas cards), Cubs have been busy getting their Athletics badge and making Christmas decorations. On December 10th the District campfire took place in Daventry Country Park in the early evening. There was a good turnout as whole families came to
enjoy the camp fire and beat the chilly weather by singing carols together loudly. Future events include a visit to the pantomime.

On December 18th Scouts and Cubs attended the Christingle service at St. Michael’s. Scouts presented two large cardboard model worlds they had made, one to represent the Christingle orange, and a blue and green world, while the Brownies told the Christingle story.
Future events include a trip to Laser Zone and the Archery Competition
For information about the Scout Group please visit our website at www.bahscouts.co.uk, or ring the contact number.
Margaret Raymond, Secretary, (830532)
 
Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal
The sum collected in the village for the 2005 annual Poppy Appeal was £1250.41, which is only slightly less than the £1253.90 collected in 2004.

We should like to thank all those who gave to this very worthwhile appeal and, in particular, to those who undertook the house-to-house collecting and to all the village schools, shops and pubs who kindly had our collection boxes and trays of poppies on display.
Terry Ward and Bob Peel
 
Royal British Legion – Women’s Section
Meetings held in November, committee same. Mrs Taylor resigned as treasurer, she was thanked very much for what she had done in the past years. We went on to Heyford for a meal in December. Our next meeting will be held in February.
A. Boswell
 
Bugbrooke & District Flower Society
Bugbrooke and District Flower Society start 2006 with our AGM and Social Evening at the Sunday School, 8 p.m. on Monday 27th February and you are welcome to come and join us. Our Christmas demonstrator Jean Crane gave us a superb evening at Nether Heyford, despite fighting the effects of a heavy cold.
Our first demonstration of 2006 is “Springtime” by Sue Dedman, starting at 8 p.m. in the Sunday School, Bugbrooke and you are very welcome to come and join us. The demonstrator in March is Julie Woods, and her demonstration is entitled “Floral Illuminations”.
Veronica Chambers 832179
 
Cinema/Theatre Trips/Meals Out
Would you like to meet new people and be willing to participate in the organising of cinema / theatre trips / meals out and many other social events? If you are interested in an initial “Get Together” to discuss the possibilities of such a Group then please telephone 01788 560251 or 07792 564235 (evenings).
 
Women’s Institute
December meeting held at Sunday School where a new member was welcomed. The speaker was a lady from the animal sanctuary, which was very interesting, especially about her own dog. Dinner to take place in February, names were taken for this. The speaker at the meeting on February 6th will be Mr Cliff Billing, giving a talk on Northampton Amateur Operatics. March 6th, Mr Michael Peachy will be speaking on oil paintings.
Annie Boswell
 
U3A – Upper Nene Villages 3rd Age Group
The next two meetings are as follows:

“The Herriot Trail” February 20th
Jack and John Johnson will be following in the footsteps of James Herriot’s writing across the hills and dales of North Yorkshire. Their screen presentation will cover the towns, villages, abbeys and lovely unspoilt moors and the countryside in this area, I suspect some of us have visited a few of these
beautiful and interesting places in our travels and would love to revisit them from the comfort of our seats.

“Photography Past and Present” March 20th
Paul Howard is a professional photographer with an interesting story to tell. He will give us a picture of his own life in photography telling us how he started and has progressed through his career, and no doubt give a little expert advice to all you budding enthusiasts. Should be a must, especially for those who have recently participated in the U3A digital photography course. You never know, he may even want to see some of your own snaps, perhaps of the beautiful or unusual variety, so bring one or two along.

Meetings are also open to non-members and will take place at Bugbrooke Community Centre, Camp Hill, Bugbrooke on the third Monday of each month starting at 2.30pm.
Special Interest Groups: Genealogy, German, French, Bridge, Literature, Scrabble, Cook and Eat, Investments, Music, Painting, Theatre Group.
For further information contact Steve Saunders on 01327 349870
 
Bugbrooke Darby and Joan Club
Hello everyone. As I sit to write this it’s nearly 2006. First I have to apologise for not getting the last write-up ready in time to print. This was because of the move from Cornhill to 17 George’s Avenue taking place at the same time, so now I will re-write the last newsletter.

October 1st - “Our Golden Anniversary”. As photos taken during the event show, the room was decorated with gold and white and a very splendid meal was prepared and served by Mrs Pam Bird and her team. We had invited special guests to join us. Mrs Olive Massey, our most senior member, cut the cake and we were then entertained by Neil of “Bookit and Riskit” with good old songs and music.
A donation of £400 from the Village Ball Fund has been received and the Club extend their grateful thanks.

November 19th - The Christmas Bazaar. We thank all who gave, helped and supported us on the day.
December 14th - Our Christmas Tea. As always a happy afternoon, joined by transport helpers and tea ladies, a few games of bingo and carol singing. A very enjoyable tea prepared by the committee and the usual present to each member from Club funds, then from members to committee, which Pauline and myself took care of. We owe our committee a big thank you for their
efforts, which are the making of the Club.
Mrs D. M. French (01604 832274).
 
Bugbrooke Now and Then
High Street a ‘century’ difference
 
Historic photo by kind permission of the
Bugbrooke History Group
 

School & War in 1944
Sixty years ago for me as a young five year old boy living and growing up in Bugbrooke, was a very exciting period in my life. It was the year that I was to start school under the watchful eye of Miss Wright, daughter to the late Frank Wright who was headmaster to my father. I did not have far to go to school, as we lived in a cottage opposite the village hall.

I was to start just after the Easter break in 1944. I remember being taken along on my first morning at school carrying over my shoulder the famous gas mask. It was blue in colour with round lenses and had a long nose/valve that stuck out the front that made very rude noises when I breathed heavily. I was to get many a scolding from Miss Wright over the tunes and noises that I made when wearing the mask.
On one particular morning when reciting the times table whilst wearing the gas mask, the lenses were to steam up completely leaving me with no vision of the black board where all the tables were written. I put up my hand to ask about my problem, but it did not get me very far, so a moment or two after, I asked if I could go to the toilet. The request was granted, and once outside I removed the mask and cleared the lenses to see my way to the toilets that were in a building at the top of the playground. When I returned to the classroom I was to get the cane for removing the mask. We were told to rub a piece of cut potato on the lenses to help them from misting up.

The cardboard box that contained the gas mask was not designed to withstand the climbing of trees and scampering over walls; I think I got a new box a week, as well as a good telling off. Although it was handy to put fruit in from scrumping episodes, it always amused me how my sister, like many of the other girls, would decorate or cover the gas mask box with fancy wallpaper or put lipstick or such likes in it.

The following weeks and months were to get more exciting due to all the activity of the Army that was stationed in and around the village. My sister Gwen was requested by Mr Garlick the village policeman to be a nanny to the children of Major Perry and Major Brumell, who were two Army requisition officers who came to live in the Manor House, whose company I was to relish as they had a horse that I was able to learn to ride on.

The school playing field was soon to be filled up with many armoured vehicles, alongside tents and cooking facilities to feed the many soldiers that were to crew them. The soldiers would sleep in our classrooms over night. Many a morning when arriving at school they would be putting all the desks back into place. We were encouraged to take papers and books to school for them to read in the evenings.
The army was to requisition Mr Barnes’ bakery to bake the bread that was required to feed the troops that were stationed in and around the village during this period. I remember that for several Sundays the village folk could not get their Sunday roast as they had done on a regular basis for many years, until the army had left to take part in the Normandy landings.

The headquarters for the 13–18 Hussars were in the big house at Cornhill and the tanks and armoured vehicles stood on both sides of the road for hundreds of yards covered in camouflaged netting. A very large Nissan type building was erected in one of the fields for the REME repair unit and the
surface of the road was concreted over to stop the tanks ripping up the road when turning to get into the building.

One of the reasons for knowing what was going on at Cornhill was visits we paid to Uncle Harry Able who lived in the old Toll House in Watling Street. On one occasion a Wellington Bomber was to crash in the field just to the rear of Uncle Harry’s home.

The sky over Bugbrooke during this period always seemed to be full of planes of every description. There was noise from the very busy railway, with some trains carrying tanks, lorries and guns for the army. The canal was also very busy, the boats seemed to run all day and through the night, as you could hear them chugging away. Just before the Normandy landings I was to witness the army erecting a Bailey bridge over the canal on the narrow part by the wharf where there once stood a swing bridge. This was to carry very large tanks over the canal and down into the Wheel Pits through the brook and up through Browns Yard and on up Pilgrims Lane. While this was going on hundreds of soldiers were to wade across and through the canal, through gaps in the hedge and down into Bugbrooke.

It was quite common to see many soldiers coming through the village during this time, either following the road or coming over the fields, up back yards crossing the road and carrying on out the back yards of the opposite houses. At times all the dogs in the village started to bark and carry on so as to fetch all the folk from out of their homes. Living near to the school and  spending quite a great deal of time sitting on the kerb opposite the Co-op shop, I was to witness many convoys of army vehicles travelling through Bugbrooke.

After the Normandy landings had taken place, on one particular day the sky was full of aeroplanes pulling gliders. I witnessed a glider break away from an aircraft as they came over Bugbrooke. It turned and came over the High Street and the Co-op where I was sitting, with the cable hanging from the front of it. It turned back towards the village of Heyford disappearing over the roof tops out of sight. I learned years later that it had crashed in a field next to the double bends just before one reaches Heyford, killing all that was in it.

The odd tractor would pass by, mainly being driven by a Land Army girl. Little did we realize at the time that they would replace all the horses that were in the village during this period. The other spectacular site was Mr Bill and Mont Grant with their steam engine pulling all the threshing tackle through the village to and from the farms after harvest time. On the odd occasion we heard the air raid siren warbling away, or the long steady ‘all clear’ sound that it gave out. On some mornings the village would be covered in lengths of silver tin foil that were dropped by aircraft during the evenings. We would collect them up and plait them into shapes like corn dollies.

During harvest time in 1944 the air raid siren went off; this was due to a German plane firing at men working on the railway. It had started somewhere near Blisworth and followed the line towards Heyford, before swinging away towards Bugbrooke firing at one of the Heygate lorries travelling along the Heyford road. I was in the fields at Mr Campion’s farm along with my sister Gwen, younger brother Malcolm and Audrey who was a few months old in a pram. It fired at men working in some of the fields and anything that it could see. Gwen managed to get us all under the hedge next to Smiths Lane. The rounds that were hitting the ground near to us shook like a cart horse running past with wood and soil flying everywhere. The best part was the fuss they made over us when we eventually got home safe.
Up until the soldiers were to leave Bugbrooke to take part in the Normandy landings, the army had requisitioned the village hall and there was always a soldier or two on guard at all times, I was told later that it was a makeshift sick bay or an area to contain soldiers that played up, but on the odd weekend they would hold dances in there and the sound from the music would keep us all awake. When the army eventually departed from Bugbrooke and Cornhill, the place w as like a ghost town, it seemed so quiet, especially in the evenings as there were still no street lights due to the enforced black out.

As I remember the Sunday school was to have different religious children attending it. Amongst other different schools around the village, for a short period the school would take the village children in the mornings and the evacuees in the afternoons, There was always something going on that took my interest; once a barrage balloon had broken away from somewhere and drifted over rooftops with a policeman and soldiers following it. I remember a very heavy hail storm which smashed windows and roof slates, some of the stones were as big as hen’s eggs. I used to watch my father and Mr Campion and Mr Barford make petrol bombs with rags around the corks in bottles, filling lots of old beer crates from Phipps Brewery. They were never used and after the war many of them, along with hand grenades, were buried in the grounds of the Grange. A steel pole was erected over the pit, the pole was accidentally removed once, and as far as I know they still remain there. I watched the home guard erect railway sleepers in the centre of large fields or help build hay or straw ricks as well as leaving old farm equipment in the way, so that German gliders would not be able to land. Later, I heard an ex-German prisoner of war say to Mr Riggall from Heygates farm, that it was a good idea to have poles in the centre of a field so that the cattle could rub and scratch themselves.
Stan Clark