Upchurch 50 Years Ago in February 1964

Many years before the appearance of the ‘Upchurch Festival of Music’ the village experienced a musical month which generated plenty of local interest in February 1964.

The football club began the monthly social events with a lively dance to the music of Dave Champion and the Strangers. This was followed up with a ‘Musical Fanfare’ in the village hall with fifty people participating in a concert. The Church Choir, The Women Institute’s choir, Jane Scott, Myra Duncalf, Peter Brightman and Bryan Veale all performed. Parish clerk Aubrey Smith organised the event which turned out to be very successful and about £12 was raised and donated to inter-church aid. Later in the month a concert took place in the village hall with brass quartets, soloists and a light orchestra which attracted a big audience.

Down at Otterham Quay the annual ‘Miss Otterham’ event took place with lots of twisting and shaking to Dan Barcott’s Band with girls dressed in mini skirts and men wearing smart suits and ties. Twenty eight year old Yvonne Baker won the event with Julie Sims and Jean Martin runners up.

The Upchurch Horticultural Society Dinner turned out to be the most significant social affair of the month. Opened by society president Albert Clemons from Suffield Cottages, 120 guests sat down to dinner after chairman Cliff Wanstall had given a summary of the year. Royal Society medals were awarded to Les Stevens and A Hinge & Son while Charlie Stokes won the vegetable award and George Friend the flower award.

At the Women’s Institute Mrs Johnson gave a lecture about the history of drama. She spoke about the origins of drama in ancient Greece and finished by giving tips on choosing and casting a play. At the same meeting Mrs Court resigned because of ill health and Mrs. Wright won the competition for growing a hyacinth in a jar.

The parish council decided not to enter Upchurch in the ‘Best Kept Village Competition’ but good news arrived with the announcement that a letter had been received from the Divisional Education Officer stating that additional accommodation would be provided for the Infant’s School at the end of the year. At the same time the council announced that more Royal Mail post boxes and a new telephone box were still needed in the village. Permission was also given for the recreation ground to be used for the judging of floats and used as a car park in the forthcoming August carnival.

David Wood.

A wedding with a difference took place in Upchurch when Peter Boakes from Chaffes Lane married Janet West from Iwade at the village church. After the ceremony the bridegroom presented dolls to the bridesmaids and identical models of the Jaguar car to the pages that had brought them to the church. The couple then went to Devon for their honeymoon.

In the village centre daily life continued as usual where Mr and Mrs Jaggers ran the Upchurch Stores, Dick Hales managed W.H. Hales butcher’s with his assistant Barry Madden, Mr and Mrs Huggins ran the grocery shop opposite the church, Cliff and Fay Wanstall managed the post office, Fred Clemons organised the delivery of newspapers while Marj Davies served petrol at her family run garage in Horsham Lane.

Finally, birthdays for the month included Jill Hitchen from Horsham Lane aged seven, Paula Maxted from The Street aged one and Pamela Edmonds from Drakes Close aged twelve. Although there weren’t any recorded baptisms for February Lucy Gransden from Oak Lane aged 70 was buried in the churchyard. A long term resident in the village, Mrs. Gransden had been a regular member of the Mother’s Union and had done a lot of work for the church along with her husband Charles who had served as a churchwarden during the 1960s. This ended a month mainly remembered for music, entertainment and social gatherings.

About David:

David Wood was born and raised in Upchurch and is able to write from personal experience about many people and aspects of the village and of changes that have taken place over the years making ‘Memories of Upchurch’ a very readable book and a detailed historical study of the village. David's book ‘Memories of Upchurch’ is available direct from David on:  david3702001@yahoo.co.uk  or from us here at Upchurch Matters.

price £12 + p+p £2.

David Wood.
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Preparation for a Possible Severe Weather Event

Dear Stakeholder,

Today is a normal day across the networks with no widespread power cuts due to the weather. However, UK Power Networks is working closely with the Met Office to track the high winds and heavy rain that ARE forecast to hit the UK on the 5th of February.

If the storm materialises and affects power lines, our paramount focus will be on restoring electricity to customers as quickly and safely as possible.

We are currently putting in place a range of measures to be better prepared to respond to any potential impact on our networks and customers. 

Measures

We are currently preparing to deal with the storm’s potential impact on our network and customers. Below are some of the measures we are taking:

• We are arranging additional staff to cover call centre roles. Additional people have been allocated to take and make phone calls and provisions are in place for even more engineers and resources to be available on short notice in case of need.

• Our emergency teams are reviewing plans and a message has gone out to our trained customer champions to be prepared to be deployed to sites if the storm materialises.

• We invest in a partnership arrangement with the British Red Cross and can activate their volunteers to support vulnerable customers if power is affected.   

• The emergency teams in the local authorities have access to the web link that enables them to see fault levels. In the aftermath of Storm St Jude, we have improved our systems to make the tracker more robust.

Our electricity network is built to be resilient but extreme weather can affect overhead power lines when tree branches and windborne debris damage them. In the event of a power cuts as result of the winds and rain, UK Power Network’s priority will be to restore supplies as quickly as is safely possible and keep people informed as best we can during a constantly changing situation. We will work from job to job targeting big jobs first where many customers are affected.

In communication with customers, we urge the public to stay well clear from power lines and anyone spotting a damaged power line needs to report it to UK Power Networks.

To report any power cuts and damaged lines on free helplines, please use the following numbers: In the South East call: 0800 783 8866.
You can also see: www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk and follow the company on twitter for updates. 

Preparing for a power cut

Below is some advice on how our customers can prepare for a power cut:

•  Keep our freephone number handy.

•  See the website for some useful videos offering you advice during a power cut.

•  Keep spare batteries for radios and torches – local radio stations often broadcast                    helpful information.

•  Keep an old-fashioned corded phone which you can plug in, as cordless phones won’t work in the event of a power cut.

•  Dress warmly in several layers of clothing, stay in one room or even get into bed.

•  Take care if using candles, tea-lights and other naked flames.

•  Keep fridges and freezers closed, with a blanket over as they will stay cold for many hours.

•  Switch off all your electrical equipment, except one light which will let you know when the power comes back on.

•  Remember the street lights may also be off so take care if you go out.

•  Look out for elderly neighbours; please consider taking them a flask of hot water round or hot food.

Kind regards,

Stakeholder Engagement Team

UK Power Networks

Newington House

237 Southwark Bridge Road

London SE1 6NP

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The Westmoreland Trust

Westmoreland in Lower Halstow Dock in the early 1960s
with the Brickfields in the background. 

Westmoreland as she stands today.

The last surviving Kent Brick Barge and famous racer, Westmoreland has lain derelict for 40 years but a Heritage Lottery Bid is now underway to save her.

Westmoreland Trust CIC are a 'not for profit' community interest company established to restore Thames Sailing Barge Westmoreland and are speaking to Heritage Lottery Fund about a major grant application.

Westmoreland was saved from Standard Quay in Faversham and moved to Otterham Quay. Now she is back home in Lower Halstow Creek after many years away! This move has only been possible with the support of those willing to defer payment for towing her there.

Built in 1900 in Conyer, she worked from Lower Halstow for 60 years, taking bricks from the Brickfields there up to London. The Brickfields and the last Barge that serviced them are a vital part of the local heritage, Westmoreland Trust hope to tell the story of that lost industry using the Barge, once she is fully restored.

The Heritage Lottery process is likely to take up to two years but in the short term funds are needed to pay for moving Westmoreland to her dry Dock and for the ongoing insurance and ancillary costs until such time as other funding streams are secured.

It is intended that she be moored on a swinging mooring in Lower Halstow Creek prior to being moved back into the dock at Lower Halstow, from where she traded for 60 years. If the Heritage Lottery Fund bid is successful she will be restored to her former glory and operating from the dock once again.

The Thames Sailing Barge needs to be protected while the Heritage Lottery Fund bid is prepared. Westmoreland is slipping away and this project is no doubt the last chance to save her.

So please get behind the project and help raise the funds to keep her safe until the Heritage Lottery bid can be submitted.

Please pledge if you can by visiting the Thames Sailing Barge Westmoreland JustGiving page: Here

If you are on Facebook then you can stay up to date with her progress by visiting their page: Here and clicking 'Like'.

Upchurch Matters

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Nick Sketchley

Nick Sketchley 1976 - 2014.

Nick sadly passed away on Tuesday the 28th of January and will be dearly missed by all who knew and loved him.

A family man and loving husband to his wife Joanne, Nick was Dad to two children, Annie and Billy and, along with his brother Robert, a loving son to his parents Chris and Bernard.

Many will remember Nick from growing up in Upchurch, and his school days at Holywell Primary and the Westlands School in Sittingbourne. He went on to study drama at Mid Kent College, during which time he worked at festivals and in the theatre. Nick went on to help run the family business for many years.

Before settling in Lower Halstow, Nick and Joanne travelled the world. Nick will be remembered as someone who embraced life fully and made those around him smile. His zest for life meant that he was able to experience many of his great passions. 

Nick had many good friends and the number of kind thoughts and tributes received this week are testament to a well-loved man who will be truly missed.

Robert Sketchley

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Winter Mix Salt/Sand Available For Residents Use

Upchurch Parish Council would like to advise residents that there is a bag of winter mix (salt/sand) located in the Recreation Ground Car Park for residents use.

If you would like to get prepared for the winter, please do help yourself to this salt using your own bag/container. We do ask that you clear away any spillage's to ensure the area is kept tidy.

Upchurch Parish Council

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Wienerberger Public Exhibition - Hartlip Parish Hall

On behalf of Wienerberger I would like to make you aware of a public exhibition which is due to take place at Hartlip Parish Hall on Wednesday 5th February from 2pm until 8pm. You are welcome to attend.

Representatives from Wienerberger will be at Hartlip Parish Hall to meet local residents to discuss plans for the proposed brick earth extraction site at Paradise Farm, Newington.

Plans will be on display and the team will be on hand to answer any questions from the local community. All issues including transport movements, the process of extracting the material and timings will be explained to anyone wishing to attend.

Feedback forms will also be made available on the day for any additional comments.

Terry Gilligan

Associate Director – on behalf of Wienerberger