Newsletter 71 November 2009
The First Civic Society in Britain Founded 1846 For the Protection of the Beauties and Amenities of the Neighbourhood and to Promote and Aid its Cultural Development
www.sidvaleassociation.org.uk
SVA Executive President Mr D Taylor
01395 516982
Officers Chairman: Rev. Handel Bennett Vice Chairman: Mr Denzil Taylor
‘Camps Bay’, 2 Victoria Road, Sidmouth, EX10 8TZ 01395 514211 campsbay2@tiscali.co.uk Seaton Burn, Boughmore Lane, Sidmouth, EX10 8SJ 01395 516982
Hon. Treasurer: Mr P Neville Staddon
79 Woolbrook Road, Sidmouth, EX10 9XD 01395 516158 septembertree@btinternet.com Hon. General Secretary: Mr Alan Darrant Trent Cottage, Kestell Road, Sidmouth, EX10 8JJ 01395 519848 a.darrant@tiscali.co.uk
Executive Committee Conservation and Planning: Brian Hall 01395 515787 Footpaths: Philip Atkinson 01395 512193 Heritage Centre/Museum: Dr Bob Symes 01395 578114 Meetings and Website Administation: Mrs Karen Allen 01395 514581 Membership: Mr Andrew Scott 01395 519797 Newsletter Editor: Miss Liz Owen 01395 516535 Assistant Newsletter Editor: Mrs Pam Eves 01395 579229 Press and Information: Diana East 01395 519275 River: Mr Michael Flynn 01395 512056 Social: Mrs Joyce Stevenson 01395 515274 Woodlands and Estates: Mr Patrick Stubbs 01395 513460 Youth Matters: Mrs Sylvia Brownlee 01395 514011
brianhallsidmouth@dsl.pipex.com atkinson@doctors.org.uk bobcar37@btinternet.com su7499@eclipse.co.uk andrewscott@sidford.orangehome.co.uk
liz_owen20@hotmail.co.uk pandbsarumcottage@tiscali.co.uk diana@dianaeast.me.uk lynnmflynn@btopenworld.com
sylvia.brownlee@me.com
Vice Presidents Sir Jack Boles MBE, DL and Brian Callaway BA (Cantab) Dip.Ag. (Cantab) 2
Chairman’s Report
S
ummer has come and gone, and it’s time to look forward to meeting with family and friends, and enjoying the festivities of the Christmas season. You will find details in these pages of our annual Festive Fare luncheon in February, and we look forward to the pleasure of your company as we go into the New Year. Our regular afternoon meetings in the Manor Pavilion have already re-commenced, and Karen Allen has for us a very good programme of interesting speakers. We are grateful for all that Karen has done for the SVA, and continues to do as Secretary of the Keith Owen Grants Committee. Now Karen says the time has come for another volunteer to offer to be Speakers Secretary (from April 2010). We also are currently looking for a new Chairman of our Conservation and Planning committee. Those who volunteer for this committee come from all walks of life. We are not seeking an ‘Einstein’! Just someone who has used their brain rather than brawn, in previous employment. Why not join the existing committee to see what they do, (whether or not it leads to the Chair)? For several years Tony Wiltshire volunteered to undertake the distribution to the Museum, the TIC, and retail outlets, of the Landscape Calendar and our Countryside Walks packets. We are grateful for what Tony has done, but now we look for another volunteer to help with this role, which is helpful but not onerous. As I wrote in the last Newsletter, Colin Mills has kept the Museum accounts for four years. He will be resigning at the April AGM, so we would ideally like someone to volunteer to join him now — in readiness for April 2010. We had an excellent New Members Meeting in September, when over 40 new members were present. Perhaps you were one of them. As you can see from the foregoing, our Association depends on the willingness of volunteers to help continue the work of the SVA. We are proud of what so many volunteers have achieved over the years, through a few hours or days a year. We have all benefitted from their generous contribution to community life in Sidmouth. Can you help with one of the above near vacancies, or one of our other team activities? If you want to know more ‘phone or e-mail me (See page 2 for details). Please call!
Handel Bennett, (Revd.) 3
Footpaths: Philip Atkinson The Parish Paths Partnership (P3) has now been in existence for Sidmouth for 18 years. I mentioned in the Annual Report that to a large extent this has taken over the SVA’s role in the care of the 58 miles of paths we have in the valley. In recent years the County Council has realised the increasing value of the paths and the impact they have on tourism. The ‘easy to use’ criteria have led to improvements to gates, stiles and seasonal vegetation cutting. Our local County Footpath Warden is very vigilant and proactive in his management. The less expensive work has been done and the bigger jobs are beyond the resources of the P3 budget; funding changes therefore are required. For the future this means that we, the locals, will continue to take a part in identifying work required and will obtain estimates which will then be considered by the County for their funding, and if granted, we will monitor the work. Improvements are to be made to a bridleway (BR41), part of the East Devon Way which passes through the valley; it is on the spring line and requires expensive drainage etc. This work now has been made possible through the County, who have obtained part of the cost from ‘equestrian’ sources. In early November about 40 steps will be built on path (FP23), Peak Hill. The P3 continues to meet at the Town Council office every three months under the chairmanship of Cllr. John Dyson, and has on it representatives from DCC, EDDC, STC, SVA, RA and the British Horse Society. The SVA footpath committee and other SVA members will continue to complete the annual survey and be alert to problems.
Social: Joyce Stevenson I will be holding another skittles event sometime next spring. These are very popular evenings, so if you are interested please ring me on 01395 515274. The Festive Luncheon is fast approaching and will be held again at the Victoria Hotel, on Saturday 6 February, 2010 at 12.30 p.m for 1.00 p.m. The price of the luncheon will be £24.50 ─ see booking form which should be returned to me, together with your cheque and a stamped addressed envelope at: 12b Ascerton Close, Sidmouth, EX10 9BS. It has been a superb luncheon in the past, enhanced by David at the piano. I do hope to see you there. Finally a big thank-you to my TEAM for all their help. 4
Meetings: Karen Allen Wednesday 18 November by the Chairman of the Sidmouth Rugby Club, Mr Terry O’Brien, a keen rugby fan and former PE teacher. The Rugby Club is celebrating, this November, its 125 years as an established club in Sidmouth and Terry has done a lot of research work for a forthcoming book on the club. This talk therefore will have much of the history and interesting stories of the people and men of sport that give rise to this 125 years Celebration. Wednesday 20 January by Kate Tobin who is involved with the AONB and EDDC with environmental issues. Kate Tobin has been part of the work team in creating the Axe Estuary Wetlands Project near Seaton for the past two years ~ her talk will be on this wetland project. An engaging and enthusiastic speaker who has a great love of her subject. Wednesday 24 February local Wild Food Forager Robin Harford will be doing a talk on how to harvest your own food for free by just enjoying a walk along a country road and knowing what to pick to eat there and then or collect for a wholesome meal on return home. The title of the talk is ‘A wild food journey through the Sid Valley’. Wednesday 24 March. The Museum Lecture will celebrate the 350th anniversary of the founding of the Royal Society and its Sidmouth connections. The speaker will be Keith Orrell, and Dr Bob Symes will introduce the subject. The talks start at 14:30, and are about 45 minutes in total with a laptop presentation and usually include an opportunity to ask questions of the speaker on the topic at the end. Afterwards you are most welcome to a cup of tea or coffee up in the Manor Pavilion lounge including a biscuit which is part of your entry cost of £1.50. I will be stepping down at the April 2010 AGM after seven years. Anyone interested in taking over is welcome to contact me in the evenings on 01395 514581 and to shadow me this season and see what it is all about. The job entails ~ arranging four talks per Winter Season for October, November, January, February. ~ Booking the Manor Pavilion with the Manager Graham Whitlock, by means of an annual form, which lists the Treasurer as the person to send the invoice to for the hire of the theatre. ~ To arrange with the SVA Treasurer any payments to the Speakers and expenses; organise someone to collect the entrance fee. ~ To set up the microphones and any other equipment with the speaker. ~ Correspondence of confirmations of bookings and thank-yous after. ~ Confirm dates for the teas with the SVA Social Secretary. 5
Brian Callaway
T
he Executive Committee of the Sid Vale Association decided at their July meeting to honour Brian Callaway by inviting him to become a Vice President of the Association. I am happy to report that Brian has kindly agreed to become our Vice President. As a young man Brian was prominent in athletics, winning a Blue as a javelin thrower at Cambridge University for three consecutive years. He was trained by Franz Stampfl, the Austrian Coach, who also coached Bannister, Chataway and Brasher in their successful quest to break the four minute mile.
Brian Callaway in Combe Head Wood 6 May 2002
At Cambridge Brian took a B.A. (Cantab) in Natural Sciences: botany, zoology, organic and biochemistry. He also took a Dip.Ag. (Cantab). He was to use his notes in the plan to develop the Beaufort Gift (now Livonia Field) of which more later.
After a distinguished career in industry working for Proctor and Gamble, Brian and Joyce decided to retire to Sidmouth, where he devoted his time and interests towards all things gardening and continued a lifelong passion in flowers and nature. Apart from his own beautiful garden in Balfours, Brian also had an allotment and joined Bill Green’s team planting and caring for trees in Sidmouth. In 1989 he took over from Bill and when we acquired land, became our first chairman of Woodlands and Estates, a post he held till 2002. During the 1990s, some new large houses were built in Livonia Road and Coulsdon Road. The developer, Beaufort, was invited to give something back to the community. This land, known as the Beaufort Gift, was put out to tender to interested parties who wished to acquire it. They would have to write a scheme as to how they would use this land as a small nature reserve for wildlife. Brian wrote a paper using his notes from Cambridge. His scheme was accepted, and the SVA acquired the land. This was our first land acquired in this part of the Sid Valley. Shortly afterwards, the Executive Committee, advised by Brian, purchased Gilchrist Field next to Livonia Field, and in 2002, Margaret’s Meadow. Brian further advised the SVA Executive Committee to buy Combe Head Wood on Salcombe Hill. Under Brian’s management, 6
Soldiers Hill Wood (part of our James Cornish Field) was cleared of brambles and scrub into a fine bluebell wood.
© Handel Bennett
Brian also put in place the necessary expertise to help us make the right decisions and look after our legal interests. This is particularly important with trees as we have a number of large trees on our land, some near rights of way and highways. Sidmouth Town Council, which had inherited Allotment Field Wood, from Salcombe Regis Parish Council, wanted to plant conifers there. Brian employed Dr Peter Beale, who had formed his own company Sunflower International, to persuade the Town Council that Allotment Field Wood would be more valuable as a deciduous woodland for wildlife. Dr Beale remains our environmental advisor. Brian recommended a former pupil of Dr Beale, Simon Major, to be our arboreal consultant. Since retiring as Chairman, Brian has continued to help with working parties – a very hard worker in the fields. He organised a successful project planting snowdrops and primrose plants in 2006. This resulted in a transformed terrace below Margaret’s Meadow by the stream. Brian has enjoyed guiding groups of the public on nature walks through our fields year after year. He has always been there to give advice and encouragement whenever it was needed. The only way we can say ‘thank you’ for this commitment to our local environment, is to rightly make him an honoured Vice President.
Patrick Stubbs 7