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Saturday 7th January 2006
Social welfare in past times was mainly at the behest of
local philanthropy rather than central government with the rich financing the
poor whenever the inclination took them. The records are full of generous
gestures by the aristocracy, the landed gentry and tradesmen, all of whom
enjoyed a comfortable lifestyle whereas the majority who had little faced a
precarious existence and death came early and often ignominiously.
Disability usually went untreated unless patrons could be found among the
wealthy and appeals often appeared in the local newspapers or were printed on
small cards and circulated to prospective benefactors and, if successful, the
victims found their plight eased through charity, often the lifeline that
rescued them from a life of withdrawal and sometimes ridicule.
John Machin, a Lincolnshire man who now lives at Leeds in West Yorkshire, has
sent me a card that makes such an appeal in May 1847 on behalf of a ten-year-old boy,
Benjamin Hollingworth, son of a farm labourer from Pickworth, near Bourne, who
had been blind from birth. Several supporters or subscribers had already been
found, including the vicar, the Lord of the Manor, a local magistrate and
several titled ladies, and others were being sought in an attempt to raise
sufficient funds to send him to the School for the Indigent Blind that had been
opened in London fifty years before.
The object of this institution was teach children with impaired vision various
trades by which they could earn money and so enable them, wholly or in part, to
provide for their own subsistence. The school had opened in 1799 in premises at
St. George's Fields in Southwark, London, and was extremely successful,
returning 30 blind people to their families and enabling them earn from 7s. to
18s. per week. Admissions were originally confined to children over twelve and
under eighteen who were physically fit, reasonably strong and had nimble fingers
that were needed for the work which was taught, namely the manufacture of
threads, linens, mats and baskets, and, as a report from the period described,
"the ability evinced by many of the pupils was truly amazing".
There were other similar schools in Britain, including an important one in
Liverpool, but the Southwark institution is particularly noteworthy because its
origins survive to this day under the auspices of the Royal School for the
Blind, now a registered charity based at Epsom, Surrey.
We do not know whether Benjamin Hollingworth was given a place at Southwark and
so we do not know whether he was provided with the education and assistance his
family were seeking or if he was left to suffer the impoverishment of village
life. If anyone out there has knowledge of this case, or is perhaps a descendant
of the family, then please email.
The decision by the government’s Planning Inspectorate not to allow new
houses to be built on parkland adjoining The Croft in North Road, Bourne, is
seen as a victory for those who fought to prevent it. The individual objectors
included many of the great and the good from this town living in retirement in
nearby Maple Gardens who did not wish to have their view spoiled by a new estate
replacing the meadow and orchard that has been their pastoral outlook since
moving in.
Private passions are a potent catalyst when it comes to change but we are left
with a once attractive town house, now a crumbling property becoming derelict as
days go by, and a desecrated area of surrounding meadow that will fast become an
eyesore unless something is done to save the site.
The residents of Maple Gardens include many people who have played an important
part in the life of this town and it is to be hoped that they will not desert
this cause now that their case has been won.
The Nimby syndrome is a powerful motivator but the outcome affects us all and
perhaps they will now devote their efforts to ensuring that the site will be
acquired for some useful purpose, perhaps as a hospice, theatre, sports or
community centre, and use the expertise they applied to preventing the
development to ensuring its use in perpetuity for the public good.
What the local newspapers are saying: After much deliberation, South
Kesteven District Council has discovered what everyone else knew already, that
it would be a mistake to close down the bus station at Bourne. The Stamford
Mercury reports (January 6th) that the facility will remain for the
foreseeable future and they quote the leader, Councillor Linda Neal, who admits
that the council had been considering selling the bus station on the grounds
that it was surplus to requirements but added: “In the light of recent comments
and public opinion, I can confirm that it will not be going anywhere unless
another site can be found.”
This will be a welcome assurance to everyone who has voiced concern that Bourne
would be losing yet another valuable amenity, not least to Brynley Heaven, of
Aslackby, who mounted an email campaign opposing the council’s scheme which
proved so effective that he even received a personal visit at home from
Councillor Neal. Now he tells the newspaper: “It seems that common sense has
broken out all over” while Anthony Delaine-Smith, managing director of Delaine
Buses, the main local user, said: “The bus station must stay where it is and
public opinion over the past few months has clearly shown that the people of
Bourne agree with this.”
So there we have it. The people have spoken, the local authority has done its
homework and so let us hope that is the end of the affair.
We had a visitor from London in the New Year and were surprised to learn
that Lincolnshire is practically unknown in the Islington dinner table circuit.
Many had not even heard of it and others thought it was vaguely somewhere up
north past Watford Gap but the consensus was that it was a seedy and backward
place to be avoided at all costs.
Warming to his theme, our guest told us of a friend who was having a house built
at Sutton Bridge and was regarded as positively weird as a result, Surrey or
Kent being the favoured locations for anyone who was anybody. “Lincolnshire”, we
were told, “is not known for anything and therefore has no reason to even
exist.”
At the same time, I had an email from John Hughes, a long time supporter of this
web site who lives at Fort Worth in Texas. He has had a soft spot for this
country ever since serving here with the United States Air Force in World War
Two and he remembers the neighbourliness and good cheer of his reception to this
day. Yet he told me: “It is very peculiar when I ask a Brit over here about
Bourne and the answer is always, I never heard of the town.”
The reason, as with the Islington set, is either one of total ignorance or a
haughty disregard for anything considered to be inferior. I referred our visitor
to Elsea Park and other up-market housing estates springing up around the
locality and pointed out that many of these new residences were being snapped up
by Londoners anxious to escape the financial burden and physical constraints of
living in the metropolis. There are many other places they could have chosen but
then perhaps they do not dine out in Islington.
Fireworks heralded the New Year in our part of Bourne and there was much
spirited rejoicing in the pubs with hundreds of revellers gathering outside the
Town Hall as midnight approached. By chance, I have stumbled across an account
of the celebrations from a less hectic age, as reported by the Stamford Mercury
on Friday 8th January 1932, and I was quite surprised to discover that a quiet
game of cards was an acceptable way to pass the time in the run up to the
witching hour but then those were the days before television and even radio was
in its infancy and only available to the few:
HOW BOURNE GREETED 1932 – a Jolly Carnival
in the Corn Exchange
The fourth annual whist drive and carnival
dance in connection with the Bourne and District Liberal Club took place on New
Year’s Eve at the Corn Exchange which had been gaily decorated for the occasion
by Mr Alfred Stubley, the well-known scenic artist of Bourne. This event has
proved the most successful of any similar function from every standpoint and the
club will reap a financial benefit therefrom.
Partner whist was played at 40 tables and at the conclusion of 24 hands the
following were declared the winners: Mr and Mrs B Sandall (184), Mr T M and Mrs
T Mee, Messrs Hill and Whamond (177), Messrs J Bradley and A J Osborn (176),
Miss Horner and Mr E Tipler (longest at the table), Miss G Waters and Mr
Frankland (consolation). In the knockout, in which 108 players took part, Mrs
Ambrose and Mr Cox were the winners and Miss Tabor and Mr Clarke runners-up. The
prizes were presented by Mr Edward Pearce, who was introduced by Mr F H Sones,
the M C, as a novice at whist drives, a remark which was greeted with laughter.
Mr Pearce said that whilst he had acted as M C at whist drives for 50 years, it
was the first time that he had been asked to present the prizes.
Music for dancing was supplied by Eddie Edinborough’s band, of Stamford, and
continued until 2 am. About a minute before midnight, the dancers lined each
side of the hall and as the strokes of Big Ben were heard (from a portable
wireless set kindly lent by Mr W A Swift), Mr H G Penfold dressed as “Father
Times” wound his way slowly down the centre of the dimly-lit room, his exit
being heralded by a brilliant flash. Elsie Horner danced among the company as
“Miss 1932” after which all present joined hands and sang “Auld Lang Syne”.
During the evening, a spot foxtrot and a novelty elimination dance were held,
the prizes being presented to the successful couples by Mrs B Cox. The
refreshment buffet was in charge of a ladies’ committee and the general
arrangements were carried out by a sub-committee appointed from the general
committee of the club, several members of that committee assisting in the
preparation of the room.
A request has come in from Rob Rogers of Haconby, near
Bourne, who wishes to be included in our Links page and so enable him spread the
message about the services he offers. “I have invested many thousands of pounds
in the latest reverse osmosis water technology”, he tells me. “This allows me to
produce laboratory grade pure water, the pure water that enables me to give my
customers the best results that are second to none.”
We are pleased to add a link advertising this enterprising gentleman’s services
but should explain that Rob is in fact a window cleaner.
Our mailing list has been improved in that we have stopped using a
commercial server in favour of a system that we have devised ourselves. This
means that it contains no outside advertising but initially, you may have been
be missed from the list in that it was compiled over the Christmas and New Year
period and no one is perfect, especially at the festive season. To ensure that
you are included, or wish to be, please email as directed by the box on the
front page.
This mass email facility, sent out usually once a fortnight, is an excellent
method of keeping in touch with visitors to the web site and enables us point
out important changes and features. The first posting under the new system will
be made within the next few days and so if you do not receive an email from us
before next weekend then your name is not on the list or you have changed you
email address. Please advise as directed when you get a moment because apart
from receiving this periodic information, it enables us gauge the level of
continuing interest in our activities.
By taking over direct responsibility for the mailing list, we also ensure that
there is absolutely no possibility of your email address being used for
unsolicited messages, commonly known as spam, and so you may add your name to
the list with complete confidence, knowing that the information remains private
and will be deleted on request.
This mortal coil: On Friday evening last, John Boyer, game dealer, of
North Street, Bourne, left home between 5 and 6 o'clock for the purpose of
fetching a quantity of rabbits and other game from Grimsthorpe Park. He was
driving a pony, imperfectly broken, in a light cart. On arriving at the park,
the pony took fright at the deer and broke away from him, smashing the cart and
inflicting severe injuries on the back of Mr Boyer's head and neck. Mr Roots,
the keeper, afforded him every assistance and fain would have had him stay all
night, but finding him determined to return, he lent him his pony and cart and
sent his man with him with a light, the night being very wet and windy.
On arriving at the Bytham road, leading through the ruins of the Abbey at Vaudey,
he wished the man to return as he felt satisfied he could then find the way. He
had not proceeded above fifteen yards from the large gate outside the ruins when
the cart turned over and falling upon him, he was instantly killed. His family
becoming alarmed at his absence some time after the hour he had said he would
get home, his two sons started to make inquiries and endeavoured to find out the
cause of his absence and on arriving at Mr Roots' soon after midnight, they
found he had left there two hours before. Instant search was made for him and he
was found as above described. His body was conveyed to the Black Horse Inn at
Grimsthorpe and Mr Henry Ashworth, surgeon, of Bourne, attended but life was
found to have been extinct for some time. An inquest was held on Saturday before
Mr R A White, coroner, and a verdict of "accidentally killed by a cart falling
upon him in a dark and rainy night" returned. - news item from the Stamford
Mercury, Friday 18th September 1874.
Thought for the week: The world is becoming like a lunatic asylum run by
the lunatics. – David Lloyd George, Liberal statesman and Prime Minister
(1863-1945), quoted in The Observer newspaper on 8th January 1933.
Saturday 14th January 2006
Itinerant advertising today consists mainly of those signs of graduated
size announcing school or club activities that appear overnight on the grass
verges alongside the roads into town. They cost little and reach a sizeable
audience but in years past the most popular method was bill posting, now illegal
because it created an eyesore in public places.
No free space escaped the attention of the pasters of posters with fences and
blank walls the main attraction, such as the gable ends of houses, empty
buildings, bridge parapets and the windows of empty shops, and despite the
ubiquitous and admonitory warning notice on many saying “Stick no bills”, all
were soon covered with gaudy announcements for forthcoming events, fairs and
circuses, sales, auctions and public meetings.
The hey-day of bill posting was during Victorian times, before radio and
television, when it became a fast and cheap method of reaching the people with
information and so one poster was often pasted on top of one another and some of
the more popular spots were soon bulging to a depth of several inches. The
advent of the cinema brought a fresh wave of gaudy advertisements and by 1930
local authorities in some of the larger cities, including London, were greatly
concerned about the ruinous effect they were having on the street scene.
One of the most well known bill posters in the county was William Welldon, of
North Street, Bourne, who achieved some prominence in his trade during the 19th
century. There were several men in the town so employed but Welldon did the job
for such a long period that he was reckoned to be the oldest in Britain and
earned himself a reputation as the "Father of the Bill Posters", becoming a
familiar figure in the district and walking thousands of miles to carry out his
work which he continued until he was well over 90 years of age, five years
before he died in 1916.
Another colourful character in the bill posting business was Mr Joseph Edward
Dallywater who was also the town crier at Bourne as well as being a chimney
sweep and landlord of the Red Lion in South Street. He also achieved short fame
in September 1899 by entering the lion's cage of a Spanish travelling menagerie
that was visiting Bourne, facing the lion and remaining inside with the door
locked for several minutes while he calmly smoked a cigarette, after which he
emerged unscathed amid the cheers of a crowded audience. He lived to tell the
tale and to post more bills but only for a short while because he died
prematurely in September 1901, aged only 36.
During the early years of the 20th century, the work was carried out by John
Henry Pool who also had a variety of jobs around Bourne and apart from running
the market on Thursday and Saturday, he was also handyman for Richard Boaler
Gibson, the corn merchant who owned The Croft in North Road, often working by
mending grain sacks at the maltings in St Peter’s Road.
His bill posting round was a busy one, with three large hoardings in Bourne, one
close to the railway station off South Street, another in Coggles Causeway
facing the railway line which ran close by and the third underneath the railway
bridge in Abbey Road. He also had a number of sites in the villages around
Bourne but despite the long distances involved, he always completed his rounds
on push bike with a leather satchel full of bills over his shoulder and a bucket
of paste and a brush fixed to the cross bar. The paste was delivered wholesale
to his home in Alexandra Terrace, large barrels of the stuff straight from the
factory but had to be diluted before it could be used.
John was so dedicated to his work that he could be seen returning home from his
bill posting as farm workers were setting out to start their day. The only
occasion that he did use motorised transport was at election time when the number
of posters increased dramatically and as timing was of the essence, he would
hire a car and driver to take him around the many designated sites. He was a
busy man all his life and died in 1956 at the age of 70.
Although posters became an art form and are widely admired and collected today,
the practice of pasting them on every available public space ended their
popularity. They became so widespread that the defacement nuisance could not be
ignored and local authorities, beginning with London County Council, started to
introduce bylaws prohibiting their use if they disfigured the highway, the urban
landscape, street furniture such as railings and lamp posts, historic buildings
or places of natural beauty, and this initiative was eventually adopted
throughout the country.
Official sites continue to be used to good effect but the placing of
unauthorised notices which despoil a neighbourhood, now known as fly posting,
carries heavy fines for the culprits and so occasional advertising is confined
to approved or private sites, shop windows and official notice boards, and
although they sometimes appear illegally on roadside verges, local councils
usually turn a blind eye to this practice provided it does not cause a nuisance
or generate complaints.
What the local newspapers are saying: Persistence pays off is the slogan
of dogged determination and may well reap rewards for CFD Limited of Oakham
which has been trying to obtain permission to build new houses on the parkland
surrounding The Croft in North Road, Bourne, since 1993. The tale of repeated
refusal all the way from Bourne Town Council to Whitehall is well documented but
the Lincolnshire Free Press reveals that despite the ruling of a public
inquiry last month against residential development on this green space, the
battle is not yet over and that yet another modified application is quite likely
(January 10th).
Architect Martin Wilson told the newspaper: “We are currently considering all
our options in the wake of the inquiry’s findings. We will see how the figures
stack up but one may be to submit a new scheme.”
Strength of purpose is an admirable trait and one essential to survive in
business but the message from the people of Bourne about this site has been loud
and clear for more than a decade and to ignore it yet again is to court even
greater unpopularity for a cause that has failed to find favour at any level in
the planning procedures.
With the property currently in limbo, many are hoping that it might be acquired
for the good of the town for use as a hospice, sports or community centre or
even a theatre and dance school, fanciful ideas perhaps but what is life unless
enhanced by daydreams. The last family to occupy The Croft were landowners who
have been associated with Bourne for almost a century and much of the fortune
they made was generated here, but making money is one thing and giving it away
is another. The quiet philanthropy demonstrated by the death of local
businessman Len Pick who left the bulk of his £4 million fortune to this town
when he died in January 2004 was a rare occurrence and although lightning does
not usually strike in the same place twice, we would be more than happy if it
did.
Concerns by traders about the apparent lack of progress on the £25 million
redevelopment of the town centre in Bourne surfaced at the Local Area Assembly
meeting at the Corn Exchange on Wednesday. The Stamford Mercury claims
that “the scheme has been shrouded in mystery with rumours rife that it might
have hit the buffers due to lack of interest from firms wanting to move in”
(January 13th) and there is certainly some unrest among shopkeepers, especially
those on the west side of North Street who are deeply anxious about their
business prospects. Ivan Fuller, the town centre co-ordinator, tried to calm
these anxieties and although his reply had an optimistic semantic spin, it
failed to hide the disappointing advancement of the scheme which is now causing
serious discontent in the town. “On the whole, 2005 was a year when expectations
were not met”, he said. “We put pressure on ourselves to deliver on certain
timescales which in the end were unrealistic. However we are moving towards our
goal and I can assure people that a lot more will be happening in 2006.”
He fielded accusations that the Town Centre Management Partnership which is
handling the project was not being as open with the public as it should by
offering to talk to anyone at any time if they wanted to know the state of play
and he ended by promising to deliver a progress report “with some interesting
news” to the next meeting due to be held in April.
The proposed geophysical survey of the Wellhead Gardens using electronic
gadgetry to determine the possibility that a substantial mediaeval castle once
stood there is to take place in February although a report in the Stamford
Mercury contains discrepancies over the date when it might have been built
(January 13th). One paragraph claims that it originated in the 14th century but
archaeologist Bill Manners, who will be conducting the hi tech appraisal from
above ground, without disturbing the land, told the newspaper: “I think we will
find something as Bourne Castle is mentioned in the Domesday Book from 1088 and
there are further records from a later period which indicate that there was a
castle at the site. I will not be surprised at all to find the remains of a
sizeable stone fortress lying beneath the Wellhead.”
Mr Manners appears to have made up his mind on a matter of theory and
speculation, a most unscientific approach, but he might like to check his
history books. The great Norman land survey was carried out in 1086, not 1088 as
he suggests, and it contains no mention of Bourne Castle. Furthermore, if any
authenticated documentary references do exist, then many people would be most
interested in seeing them. Perhaps when he finally unearths the castle, he will
then use his electronic wizardry to conjure up a Domesday Book entry to go with it.
The town council has decided that Bourne will enter the East Midlands in
Bloom competition this year, a community based project designed to encourage
cleaner, smarter and more attractive town centres in the region. This will mean
a great deal of work, not only for those directly responsible for the appearance
of our streets and public places but also the people without whose support an
entry would be impossible.
There are several sections in the competition and Bourne falls into Category B
Towns, those with a population of between 6,000 and 12,000, based on the last
electoral register. Apart from the various section awards there are several
special prizes to be won for the least littered environment, the best permanent
landscaping scheme, residential garden, wildflower and conservation area and
more. Judging takes place in July and the co-operation of everyone is essential,
schools, community groups, the local councils, the Chamber of Trade and Commerce
and Bourne United Charities.
Such awards are not unknown to Bourne which has in the past been the winner of
the best kept small town competition for the Kesteven area of Lincolnshire
twice, in 1965 and again in 1978. Since then, many areas have become run down
and neglected with litter and graffiti a serious problem and so the task ahead
will not be easy. The clerk, Mrs Nelly Jacobs, who writes about the project in
the latest edition of the town council’s newsletter, is under no illusions about
the effort required. “A lot of work will be necessary to be successful”, she
says, “and even if no award is gained, the council is sure that the community as
a whole will reap the benefits of the exercise. This must be a win, win
situation!”
My item last week about Benjamin Hollingworth, the ten-year-old blind boy
from Pickworth, near Bourne, has produced further information from readers whose
researches have completed the story. You may recall that in May 1847, an appeal
was made for subscribers to help finance a course of instruction at the School
for the Indigent Blind in London where he would learn a suitable trade by which
he could pay for his keep although no further information was available.
We now know that Benjamin was indeed awarded a place at the school where he was
trained as a shoemaker and his name is included in the 1851 census return for
the institution where he was living at the age of 14. Life as a cobbler,
however, did not suit him and by 1861 he had moved north to Huntingdon with his
wife Hannah and was earning his living as a wandering musician. She was eight
years older, having been born at Whitby in Yorkshire, and by 1871 they were
living at Kingston upon Hull but they later moved to a lodging house at
Gainsborough where Benjamin was still working as a musician but he is believed
to have died in 1890 at the age of 56.
This information comes from Gillian Smith, who lives at Christchurch, New
Zealand, and Ian Cameron, of Weston-super-Mare in Somerset, who have been doing
some research into Britain’s census returns and have kindly sent me extracts
from the records. This is a fascinating addition to our knowledge and we are now
hoping that others out there will be able to provide even further information to
help complete the story of someone who obviously overcame his disability and
appears to have lived as happy a life as the times permitted.
Thought for the week: Any cook should be able to run the country.
-Vladimir Ilich Lenin, Russian revolutionary leader (1870-1924).
Saturday 21st January 2006
Wheelie bins on are their way to Bourne and soon every
household in the town will have to find space for these plastic monstrosities
which are a constant reminder that we live in a consumer society generating
increasing amounts of rubbish.
The black plastic bags introduced by South Kesteven District Council in 1979 and
collected every week will soon be no more and instead we will be rolling out the
bins to the kerbside every fortnight, one for normal household rubbish and the
other for recyclable material such as tin cans and plastic bottles. The new
scheme will be introduced in phases and completed by June 2007. Let us hope that
everyone has room in the side passage to accommodate them.
Domestic rubbish is the barometer of household affluence. The richer we are the
more we throw away and as the detritus of everyday life has increased with the
passing of the years, we can assume that our standard of living has risen
commensurately.
An organised collection of domestic rubbish did not begin in Bourne until the
early years of the 20th century. Until then, people dumped their garbage in the
most convenient spot they could find and that was often the Bourne Eau or at the
bottom of the garden where huge piles attracted rats and other vermin.
A system of sorts was introduced by Bourne Urban District Council in 1911 but
this consisted of nothing more than a horse and cart with a bell attached to
alert home owners that it was in the vicinity and the dustman, as he was known,
was paid one shilling an hour for his services. But it was not until 1930 that
weekly door-to-door collections began with each household using a galvanised bin
that was left within easy reach of the dustmen when they made their call. The
various parts of the town were covered in four days of each week and the rubbish
collected was taken to the brick pits off West Road and buried, the forerunner
of what we now call a landfill site.
Bourne UDC ceased to function under the re-organisation of local government in
1974 and although a parish or town council was formed, most of the town's
affairs, including rubbish collections, came under the control of South Kesteven
District Council based at Grantham, a situation that continues until the present
day although the metal bins later gave way to black plastic bags. In the past
100 years, the amount of rubbish generated by the average home has increased
dramatically with the arrival of the consumer society and the refuse collection
service has tried to keep pace ever since. National government is also actively
seeking ways of recycling our rubbish, rather than total disposal in landfill
sites as in the past, and local authorities who must implement their policy are
introducing new schemes to ensure that as much waste as possible is salvaged for
re-use. It is for this reason that the wheelie bins will soon become part of our
everyday life.
An angry letter in The Local last week suggested that money had been
wasted on installing the new system of traffic lights in the town centre and
building the south west relief road (January 6th). Although the writer, T
Dickinson, of Morton, does not actually say so, the two developments are linked
because traffic flows through Bourne build up because there are no alternative
routes.
But the letter is based on a mistaken premise that the combined expenditure
would have financed a north south relief road for the A15 because this is
another subject entirely. The writer also says that the new 1½ mile stretch of
road, opened last October at a cost of £4 million (financed entirely by the
Elsea Park developers, I might add), appears to have few users and can hardly be
said to have relieved the town centre of heavy traffic since most vehicles are
travelling north to south.
This is the perfect example of misinformation because the new road is not
intended to be as busy as the A15 at peak periods but is designed to do exactly
as the name implies, relieve the town centre of through traffic and even the
most amateurish of checks will prove that this is happening. A short spell on
the grass verge counting the traffic travelling past will reveal that it is
working as it should for if you clocked only one vehicle every 30 seconds during
an eight hour busy daytime period, an extremely conservative estimate, this
would account for almost 1,000 cars, vans and lorries being diverted away from
the town centre and this was the very objective when the carriageway was
planned.
Furthermore, the queues of traffic along South Street in the late afternoon on
weekdays that often extended from the traffic lights to the grammar school, one
of the worst bottlenecks in Bourne, have now largely disappeared as a result of
the opening of the new road and the number of vehicles passing through the town
at other times has visibly reduced.
Constructive criticism is a useful tool in a democracy but it is of little use
rounding up half a dozen council projects you dislike and then lumping them
together and suggesting that the money they cost should have gone elsewhere.
Improvements to our infrastructure, especially in the costly sector of highway
construction, is a slow process and we still have many black spots that need
attention. Speedier progress and the availability of increased capital would be
more beneficial but this is not an ideal world and we are getting there only as
fast as the system permits and funds allow.
What the local newspapers are saying: Sunday pharmacy services in Bourne
have become a victim of cost-cutting, according to a report in The Local
which claims that the Lincolnshire South West Primary Care Trust is withdrawing
funding despite the effect this will have on the elderly and infirm (January
20th). Until now, it has been subsidising the town’s two pharmacies, Boots and
Anglia Co-op, which have been operating a rota to ensure that patients can get
their medicines on a Sunday but this system is now ending. In a pitiable attempt
to defend the indefensible, the trust’s acting executive Susan Hitchenor has
written to the town council saying: “After careful consideration we decided not
to direct either of the pharmacies to open on a Sunday. Activity on previous
Sundays was looked at and discussions took place with the pharmacy contractors
who both felt there was a low demand.”
The decision will mean that prescriptions for Bourne patients can only be
dispensed on Sundays by chemists at Stamford and Grantham, a round trip of 25 or
45 miles and for those who have to go by taxi, a bill of £20 or £25 if they can
find one because few local operators work on a Sunday. Councillor Trevor Holmes
summed up the iniquity of the trust’s decision at a meeting of the town council
on Tuesday when he said: “Those most likely to need a pharmacy on a Sunday are
those least able to travel far to get to them. If they have no means of
transport, the costs would be prohibitive. To deny the sick and vulnerable
access to essential medicines in this way is a strange and perverse way of
thinking.”
The decision does appear to be based on economy rather than expediency that is
fast becoming recognised as the new forward strategy throughout the National
Health Service with the result that patients are suffering the effects. They can
no longer depend on round the clock health care as they did in the past and the
climate of nine to five weekday working that has already overtaken our clinics
and many of our hospitals is now denying them vital medicines if they need them
at times which are deemed to be inconvenient for those who dispense them.
One of the youngest parish councillors in Lincolnshire, James Mort, has already
achieved distinction after less than two years in office. The Stamford
Mercury reports that he was elected to the parish council at Baston, near
Bourne, when he was only 21 and has now been appointed vice-chairman (January
20th). This is a most encouraging development for a local authority and one that
it is hoped will spread to others in our district in the years to come.
James, now 23, a former pupil of Bourne Grammar School and who works as an
official for HM Revenue and Customs in Peterborough, started to take an interest
in local affairs after attending meetings of the parish council while still a
teenager and was fired by the ideal that he wanted to contribute to the
community where he was born. “I understand the issues and I think I can make a
difference”, he said. “I would also urge more young people to become involved
with their town and parish councils and in this way the youth of this country
would have a much louder voice.”
Our town and parish councils are filled by men and women who are way past their
intellectual best yet still think they have a part to play when in essence they
have nothing new to contribute. Too many are also returned unopposed year after
year because no one has sufficient interest or aspiration to challenge them and
so the quality of administration deteriorates to the mediocre. James Mort has
shown the way and an upsurge of interest from young people would work wonders
and remove the geriatric stupor that currently pervades so many of our council
chambers and committee rooms, especially when important and controversial
decisions need to be made.
Shop watch: Two incidents in recent days have reminded us just how
important it is to check receipts after making a purchase, particularly at the
bigger stores where payments are computerised. On leaving Sainsburys on Friday,
my wife discovered that she had been charged twice for the same £4 item and when
she asked for a refund the assistant said it was the result of a double scan at
the check out and inferred that it was not an infrequent occurrence. At Boots in
West Street the following day, the computerised till displayed £4.99 when the
item on the shelf was clearly marked at the reduced price of £3.79 and when this
was pointed out, the assistant said that the machine had not recognised the
price change. We therefore almost lost £5.20 within 24 hours and although that
may be a small amount to some it is real money for old age pensioners living on
a fixed income. While mistakes appear to be so prevalent at the checkouts, close
examination of every transaction before leaving the shop would appear to be a
rewarding practice.
From the archives: A little fellow, just three years old, was playing
with other children on the steps which lead down to the river near the Abbey
Church in Bourne on Wednesday when he fell in and was drowned. He has been named
as Thomas Fletcher, son of Joseph Fletcher, a brazier. Another boy also fell in
but was pulled out safely but there being a strong current at the time, Thomas
was forced under the arch thence under the Abbey and a considerable distance
along the river. The body was taken from the water by the Rev J P Sharpe [the
curate] and Mr George Nicholls, surgeon, promptly attended and did all in his
power to restore animation but without avail. It is supposed that the child had
been in the water between 15 and 20 minutes. Thomas Chamberlain, who came up
shortly after the child was missed, went some distance under the arch which runs
under the Abbey premises but was held back by the force of the stream that had
carried the boy through into the river. The place where the accident occurred is
a very dangerous one for children and should have the attention of the proper
authorities. - news report from the Stamford Mercury, Friday 21st June 1861.
Thought for the week: Ethel Gertrude Blundy, aged 9, was buried after
dying from concussion of the brain caused by a blow on the head from the hand of
the schoolmaster of Irnham on Monday 8th May. - from the parish registers for
Dowsby, near Bourne, 1899.
Saturday 28th January 2006
The second anniversary of the death of Len Pick, the
Bourne farmer and businessman who left his £4 million fortune for the benefit of
the town, falls this weekend and the trust formed to handle his bequest has
issued a detailed statement outlining its activities and progress.
This is a model of the transparency that was promised from the outset and
enables the people to see how the money is being spent and who is administering
the bequest.
Initial grants announced in August 2003 went to Bourne Town Football Club of
which he was a lifelong supporter (£100,000), the Abbey Church (£50,000), the
Outdoor Swimming Pool (£50,000), Macmillan Cancer Research Fund (£5,000), the
Salvation Army Citadel and the Darby and Joan Club (£2,000 each), the
Butterfield Day Care Centre, Digby Court Residential Care Home, the Royal
National Institute for the Blind, Bourne Round Table, Bourne Lions, Bourne
Players and the Bourne branch of the British Red Cross Society (£1,000 each),
the Christian Aid Fund for Children, Barnardo’s and the Bourne branch of the
Alzheimer’s Disease Society (£500 each).
The statement says that further sums have since been given to Bourne Town
Juniors Football Club to help provide an additional pitch to cater for a growing
membership, to Bourne Hockey Club to extend its activities, to the Citizens’
Advice Bureau for the purchase of laptop computers to improve their service, and
a grant to the Civic Society to enable work proceed on a display commemorating
the life of Charles Worth (1825-95), founder of haute couture who was born in
this town.
The trustees are also talking to a number of other local voluntary and service
organisations to find out what they require and to ascertain whether they too
can benefit. Co-ordinator Adrian Smith explained: “We expect that these
discussions will lead to a focussed and targeted deployment of our income for
the general benefit of the townspeople in accordance with the terms of the trust
deed.”
The statement also reveals that two further trustees are to be appointed to help
with the work and applications are being invited to fill these posts, a
commendable way to proceed and fully in line with the guidelines issued by the
Charity Commission for England and Wales which recommends advertising as an
effective way of reaching a wider group of people possessing the particular
skills required. An advertisement to this effect appeared in the local
newspapers yesterday and is an indication of what is expected from trustees of
important charities such as this.
The statement adds: “The trust is in perpetuity and now the work involved in
setting up the mechanism has largely been completed, the trustees feel that it
is essential that members of the local community have the opportunity of being
involved in the decision making process to further enhance its transparency and
also to ensure that it is fully reflective of the aspirations of the community.”
The way in which the trust has been conducting its business is exemplary and it
is inevitable that comparisons will be made with our other benevolent
organisation, Bourne United Charities, which administers 19 bequests made to the
town since the 17th century. It issues no statements, makes no pronouncements and
its work is largely unknown. Whereas the Len Pick Trust already has its own
informative web site, such a development for BUC is not even on the agenda. The
fifteen trustees meet in private at the Red Hall, issue no press announcements
about their deliberations and make no attempt to keep the public informed about
their work. Even the names of the trustees are never announced, although they
are listed on this web site through my own efforts, and members are forbidden to
talk about their work outside the boardroom.
Vacancies are never advertised even though the Charity Commission is quite
specific that the system of making appointments by word of mouth or personal
recommendation is more likely to narrow the field and does not provide such a
thorough means of finding the right people for the task. Such methods are also
likely to work against having a diverse trustee board from a range of ages and
social and economic backgrounds and the commission suggests that a greater
diversity is an important factor for accountability and promoting public
confidence.
The policy of confidentiality is pursued by BUC to the point of secrecy and is
therefore a particular reason for concern because the board of trustees contains
five members nominated by the town council yet they appear to acquiesce with an
unwritten policy of total privacy and say nothing of their activities to the
people they represent or indeed the colleagues they sit with in the council
chamber.
The commission strongly urges transparency to maintain public confidence, a
factor that is being amply demonstrated by the Len Pick Trust. This is therefore
the time for Bourne United Charities to accept that we are living in the 21st
century when communication is paramount and embark on a new era of openness by
keeping the public fully informed of its activities in order that the people can
judge whether they are doing the job for which they have been appointed. We live
in an age of accountability and there is no reason why BUC should be excluded
from making periodic progress reports to the public detailing how it is handling the money left in its care.
The village church at Pickworth, nine miles north west of
Bourne, is a favourite with Prince Charles and it is not difficult to understand
why.
St Andrew’s stands in the unfrequented stone belt of South Lincolnshire and was
largely rebuilt, apart from the tower, about 1358 by the Pickworth family, ten
years before the Black Death swept away one third of the population. Yet the
building today is a time capsule of religious belief in a small rural community
that has remained virtually unchanged over the centuries. The flagstones have
been worn uneven by generations of worshippers and the ancient timbers of the
pews, the pulpit and communion rail smoothed by the touch of untold hands for
this is a living church, a building that has been a pivotal force in the
existence of those people who have inhabited this countryside since it was
built.
It also contains a series of important mediaeval wall paintings and they are
really what matters at Pickworth but as so often in England they are far too
badly preserved to be enjoyed to the full. The murals were originally painted
circa 1380 but were partly obscured during re-roofing a century later and
covered by white paint circa 1540. They were re-discovered during the Second
World War when a bomb fell near the church and displaced large chunks of the
whitewash. Mr E Clive Rouse set to work and by carefully chipping away the
plaster, gradually uncovered the paintings that were finally revealed in all
their glory when his work was completed in 1950, depicting scenes from the
Bible, the lives of the saints and examples of the moralities.
If one wants to enjoy or indeed to study them, one must look at reproductions
and fortunately the church provides a clear broadsheet guide for visitors. Doom,
or the Last Judgement, is over the chancel arch depicting more than sixty
figures and on the nave south wall three figures are sizzling in that very
cauldron but opposite is first the ascending Christ, then the Three Quick and
the Three Dead, then the friendly figure of St Christopher while one of the
north arcade spandrels contains another picture showing the Weighing of Souls.
They are all precious as examples of 14th century art and devotion.
It would seem that the importance of these paintings has persuaded the Rural
Enterprise Scheme run by Defra (the Department of Environment, Food and Rural
Affairs) to provide the £15,000 needed for the replacement of the roof timbers
and slates, work that has now been completed by specialist contractors to give
the church a new lease of life and so protect this ancient church art for future
generations to enjoy.
The project was also carried out under the watchful eye of English Heritage who
were anxious to safeguard the roosting and breeding site of a colony of rare
pipistrelle and Natterer's bats that have made their home in the building.
Workmen therefore made their visits to suit the breeding cycle and to ensure the
minimum disturbance.
There are 17 species of bat in the United Kingdom and the pipistrelle is one of
the smallest and most common, appearing in the early evening and recognisable by
its jerky, erratic flight which gave rise to the ancient name of flittermouse.
The Natterer is named after the early 19th century Austrian naturalist who
discovered it and it appears after sunset and can be recognised by a white
underside as it flies slowly at roof top level.
All bats are protected by law because their numbers have decreased so
dramatically and every effort is now made during work on old buildings and other
habitats to secure and enhance bat populations for future generations to enjoy.
The restoration will also ensure their future at St Andrew’s. Churchwarden Peter
Thomas said: “Until now, the roof was being repaired on a casual basis but it
was not solving the long term problem and so we decided to complete the job in
one go in order to eliminate the potential for irreparable damage. The grant was
essential and without it we would have had to embark on a long public appeal and
so we were able to get down to work straight away and prevent any damage to the
paintings or loss of the bat colony.”
Prince Charles came to St Andrew’s to see the wall paintings in 1971 while
learning to fly at nearby RAF Cranwell but found it locked although he returned
in 1988 when his visit had a more successful outcome. If anyone wishes to make
the pilgrimage, they will find their visit well worthwhile and if it is closed,
a notice in the porch will direct you to where you may find the key, usually at
a nearby house.
What the local newspapers are saying: An ambitious scheme to reclaim
2,000 acres of fen on the outskirts of Bourne to increase the diversity of flora
and fauna has been launched by the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust. Threatened
species will benefit but The Local reports that it can only be achieved
with the support of landowners, farmers and tenants and even then it will take
between 50 and 100 years to complete (January 27th). The area already includes
the two nature reserves at Baston and Thurlby, both designated as Sites of
Special Scientific Interest and the last strongholds for many rare and
endangered plants, birds and invertebrates. In winter large numbers of wildfowl,
including widgeon, teal and mallard, are attracted to the flooded washlands and
in summer, dragonflies flutter over peaty pools that hold rare aquatic plants
such as frogbit, fen pondweed and greater water parsnip. But the reserves are
considered to be too small and isolated to provide a sufficiently robust refuge
and by embracing the surrounding land, a habitat of reed beds, marsh and wet
grassland could be created to attract endangered wildlife and at the same time
benefit the local economy through tourism, farm diversification and job
creation.
A radio station for Bourne is floated by town councillor Guy Cudmore who thinks
it would provide a valuable information and entertainment service for the
community. He told the Stamford Mercury that as the town was expanding,
media outlets should grow in equal measure, broadcasting a few hours each day
and covering local issues, the arts and sport on Friday nights (January 27th).
Councillor Cudmore is obviously a man of vision because his proposed scheme does
not stop there and once Radio Bourne is up and running, with everyone
downloading and listening to programmes on their portable MP3 players, he sees
no reason why we should not get our own television station and he conjures up an
image of passengers sitting on the Delaine bus into Peterborough watching news
and events on their laptop computers. This, of course, is the stuff of dreams
without which life would be very dull indeed.
A small band of volunteers were busy along North Road on Saturday morning
planting trees on the roadside verge. They were members of the Rotary Club of
Bourne whose objective is to enhance the street scene and give this part of the
town a more attractive appearance, a particularly praiseworthy objective at this
time when the town council is planning to enter the East Midlands in Bloom
competition. Eighteen young rowans were planted with professional help and by
midday the improvement was apparent and will be enhanced once the saplings burst
into leaf.
This is an ongoing project by the Rotarians and more than 70 trees have already
been planted along North Road and Queen’s Road but their work over the years has
been hampered by vandals, a small destructive element intent on destroying
anything that is good about our community. Trees in the past have been damaged
on several occasions, either snapped in two or completely uprooted, but the
volunteers always come back to replace them. If their latest round of work is
damaged in any way, then we can only assume that those responsible are beyond
redemption and have no place in a civilised society.
Eighteen new trees were planted on Saturday at a cost of around £400 and apart
from their benefit to the town, they are also a tribute to Rotarian John Bentley
who has been co-ordinating the work for many years but who died suddenly at the
beginning of the month at the age of 76. The date for the planting was fixed
some weeks ago and although he died only a few days before, fellow members and
his family agreed that the work should proceed as planned. His passing was a
shock and a sad loss to the club for despite the constant damage to the trees
over the years, John was determined not to give in to the vandals. The yobs
might remember this next time they consider causing criminal damage as they roll
home along North Road after a night out on the town because a recurrence would
be doubly reprehensible.
The reorganisation of our mailing list is now complete and we have
replaced the system offered by an established server with one of my own design
and it appears to be working well. The update sent out last Sunday (January
22nd) reached almost 500 people around the world and so if you did not receive
it then your name is not on the list but you may add it through the email
facility on the front page of the web site.
Those who have received it will continue to do so in the future unless they wish
to cancel by returning the last email with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the message
body. Also, please remember to notify any change of email address because all
messages that are undelivered are deleted from the list.
Meanwhile, there is welcome news from our Internet service provider that spam is
now being tackled in an aggressive fashion and as others are following suit,
many will have already reaped the benefit. Please be assured that anyone who
contacts the Bourne web site may do so with complete confidence knowing that
their email address will not be passed to a third party for commercial
exploitation.
Thought for the week: Families are paying £250 a year on their council
tax bills to fund the generous inflation proof state retirement pensions for
public sector workers which swallow up one quarter of the money raised.
–
news report from the Daily Mail, Monday 23rd January 2006.
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