Notice Board

Friday 6 March 2015

The Great Upchurch Bake Off

On Friday March 13th Holywell are having a Bake Off to raise money for the school.

All classes will be baking something to sell and it is hoped parents and grandparents will come along too and support the schools first ever bake sale!

Further donations of baked goods* from home are welcome and should be bought in to the office on March 13th between 12:15pm and 12:45pm.

*Holywell is a nut-free school so all baked goods

should not contain nuts. Thank you.

For more info please contact Mr Ball, Email: tball@holywell.kent.sch.uk

Upchurch Matters
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The Mystery of Mr. Mantle by David Wood

Upchurch at War in 1914-1918

One of the great village mysteries of World War 1 involved the sudden disappearance of inventor Mr. Mantle from Bayford House on the bottom left of Poot Lane in 1915.

Born in Minster, Sheppey on December 30th 1850, Mantle went to Germany and joined an agricultural machinery agent’s in Hanover where he stayed for 2½ years. He then moved to Schleswig-Holstein where he continued in the agricultural machinery business then he started a small engineering and iron foundry company. In 1882 he took out his first patent for making improvements in threshing machinery but this failed because of insufficient capital.

Mr. Mantle returned to England in 1884 and took out a patent for improvements in cooking ranges in 1889. He also built a factory at Gray’s in Essex but this failed so he constructed another in Northfleet but he again ran short of capital. He finally settled down in Upchurch during the early 1900s.

When he came to Upchurch Mr. Mantle constructed his own house on the marshes on the bottom left of Poot Lane which became known as ‘Bayford House.’ The large building, overlooking the marshes, reminiscent of Miss Haversham’s big house in Charles Dicken’s novel ‘Great Expectations’, became the only one of its kind in the parish. After this Mr. Mantle formed his own company called ‘The Bayford Ironworks Company’ and constructed an iron foundry close to his house for the production of Wizard stoves in 1911. He intended to produce stoves for the domestic UK market but the business didn’t progress due to the outbreak of war in 1914. Only one stove was ever produced.

Considered as a bit of an extrovert by local residents, the late Georgine Gordon-Smith who later resided in the house, explained that Mantle dressed in a top hat and tailed coat when entertaining friends and generally kept himself to himself.

With the outbreak of war in 1914 residents’ backgrounds were checked and in 1915 the police ordered Mr. Mantle to vacate the parish on instructions from the military then charged and arrested him under the Defense of the Realm Act. The exact reasons remained a mystery but rumour spread in the village that he had become a German spy and wide coverage of the case appeared in contemporary editions of the East Kent Gazette.

After taking out a petition in protest for wrongful arrest and deprivation of his home and business without good reason, the question of Mr. Mantle’s arrest reached Parliament when local MP Mr. Granville-Wheeler took the case to the Under-Secretary of State in early 1915. The MP asked whether Mr. Mantle had been charged with any offence against the realm and whether he had been informed on what charges or evidence had led to his arrest and whether he would be given an opportunity to produce evidence to show that he was innocent of any crime. The Under-Secretary replied that:

‘The action taken in this case was under the Defence of the Realm Regulation Number 14 under which, as I have on previous occasions explained, no charge is necessary. Mr. Mantle was suspected of acting or having acted in a manner prejudicial to the public safety. It would not be in the public interest to go further into the details of this case.’

Not completely satisfied with the reply Mr. Granville-Wheeler asked further questions and a conclusion was reached when the Under-Secretary told him that if he wished to bring the matter as a special case he would give it personal consideration. After Granville-Wheeler had continued fighting the case during a six month period he managed to get the order cancelled and Mr. Mantle re-appeared at Bayford House to the surprise of local residents who were unaware of what exactly had happened to him.

When the war finished Mr. Mantle successfully sued the British government for wrongful arrest and received a large amount of compensation according to the late Georgine Gordon-Smith. He then left Bayford house, terminated his company and moved away from the area. The foundry later became a fruit store for farmers A. Hinge and Sons while bulldog breeder Dick Shrubsall and Georgine Gordon-Smith moved into the house.

Memories of
Upchurch

When Dick Shrubsall died Georgine Gordon-Smith continued living alone in the huge building overlooking the marshes until she died when in her mid-nineties and farmer Robert Hinge and his family moved into the property. Although a century has passed since the incident involving Mr. Mantle, the complete truth about his arrest remains a mystery.

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 at: david3702001@yahoo.co.uk or from us here at Upchurch Matters. Price £12 + £3.50 postage and packing.

David Wood

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Wednesday 4 March 2015

Shanty Night On Board The Edith May

Edith May Trading Company

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Monday 2 March 2015

New Website Launched for Parents & Friends of Holywell School

Parents & Friends of Holywell School are pleased to announce the launch of their new website.

The website will provide information about their forthcoming events and current fundraising plans, and will be continually updated throughout the year.

It can be found at: www.pfhs.co.uk

Simon Smith
Publicity
PFHS

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Sunday 1 March 2015

The Gullands guide to dipping into your pension pot or not?

Radical changes to the rules in respect of pensions are being introduced in April 2015. These are the most significant changes that have been made to pensions in many years. The key change which has attracted headlines is the new flexible access to pensions from the age of 55 giving you the choice, in certain circumstances, as to whether you take a lump sum, regular lump sums or an income from your pension.

These options all have tax implications and you would need to be independently advised as to the option that is best for you.

Should you decide to withdraw funds from your pension pot then you may wish to consider purchasing a “buy to let property” to generate an income for you and, hopefully with bricks and mortar, maintain or increase the capital value of your investment.

This is also the time of year where older children are considering their futures and may be looking to move away to undertake further education and will therefore be incurring accommodation costs. It is worth considering buying a property where they are going to study for them to live in, with the additional potential for an income source from other students who may wish to house share/rent a room.

These options are certainly worth considering if withdrawing funds from a pension pot. You would of course need to consider the tax implications for owning a property which is not your principle private residence, receiving rent as part of your income and the various issues around tax relief on the associated expenditure of mortgage interest and ongoing maintenance costs. However you may feel that this is a more secure and better investment than retaining funds in a pension scheme.

Alternatively you may just be carrying out a general review of your property requirements in the run up to your retirement. Do you live in a property that is now too large for your needs, too costly to run or in need of repair and maintenance? Would you like to live closer to other family members or perhaps within walking distance of shops and amenities? Perhaps you should consider downsizing from your current home and finding a property that better suits your needs before even considering withdrawing funds from your pension. The equity you release from such a sale may help you with your future plans without leaving you without a future income or with a sizeable tax bill.