village hall

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Sunday Reflection

Paul Vacher, Honorary Secretary to The Village Hall Management Committee, contributed the Sunday Reflection this week

The Village Hall has been there for nigh on 120 years. Now it sits silent, shut and brooding on Malthouse Lane, waiting for that time when things will be back to normal, when the doors can open and it returns to life again.

But, if the walls could talk, what would they say? Would they tell of the parties, the dances, the films and theatre productions; the flower show, the fashion show, the art show and craft show or those Committee and Council meetings that always seemed to over-run?  Would they tell of the Pilates Classes, the Ladies of the Village stretched flat on the floor with their legs in the air and of the Wednesday mornings when Mothers and ‘tots’ gathered to natter and play with Lego etc. ?  Would they remember the Harvest Suppers of yesteryear; the Royal visits, the Parish Assemblies when it was hard to believe that so much went on in the Village; the WI and WAGS (and the singing of Jerusalem), the Cubs and Brownies  and so much more ?

Of course the walls would remember all of the above and they will hear it all again. The Hall is poised and ready to go just as soon as it is allowed. It has been spruced up and will welcome young and old and recommence hosting all those Village events that have been so sorely missed.    

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Christmas Celebrated, And New Year Greetings

Hambledon’s festive celebrations concluded with community carol singing outside the village shop on Christmas Eve which an estimated 200 people attended. It just gets bigger every year!

Following on from the equally-successful carols in the Merry Harriers and the Christmas Dance at the Village Hall (see earlier news item), it was then left to St Peter Church to bring home the Christmas message with midnight communion on Christmas Eve and a Family Service on Christmas Day.

Now all that remains is New Year’s Eve. There will no doubt be many private parties around the village and the Merry Harriers has live music and a buffet, beginning at 9pm and going on until 1am. Midnight will be celebrated with complimentary bubbly.

Finally, from all of us at the Hambledon Village Web Team, we wish you the very best for 2020.

We leave you with some photographs taken by David Edmiston of the Village Shop carols and our thanks to all those who organised and participated in a wonderful Christmas community gathering.

 

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‘Mountain Music’ at the Village Hall – October 11th,

 

On Friday, October 11th the Village Hall Committee is hosting a new musical production called Mountain Music from the award-winning Little Bulb Theatre Company. It is part of an initiative by Farnham Maltings, supported by Waverley Borough Council to promote theatre in Village Halls and the production is currently on a national tour.

It tells the story of American country music from its celtic origins in the UK to the present day. It is performed by a small group of talented musician/actors and we are expecting beautiful harmonies, swinging country music and a good old-fashioned hoedown!

Watch the video below to brighten up a rainy day and get a taste of what’s to come!

Continue reading →

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Annual Village Meeting Will Hear From Police Commander And Discuss Speeding

Hambledon’s Annual Village Meeting, hosted by the Parish Council at the Village Hall this Thursday evening,  is to be addressed by Inspector Gary Smith, Waverley Borough Commander for Surrey Police.

He will give an overview of policing in the borough as well as deal with concerns about speeding traffic in the village.

The Parish Council has been exploring various road traffic initiatives and has held meetings with police and Surrey County Council highways engineers in recent months. However, it has been made clear that no traffic calming measures are likely to be introduced.

Budget restraints and a lack of statistical evidence to indicate that Hambledon has a speeding problem have been cited as reasons why the village can expect little in the way of new measures. The council had been exploring a proposal for a 20mph speed restriction in the centre.

The Annual Meeting will provide an opportunity to ask questions of our borough commander as well as hear more about what the Parish Council has been trying to achieve.

There will also be an opportunity to consider whether Hambledon wants to set up a Community Speed Watch where volunteers, with police training, use detection devices to check on the speed of vehicles in the village. Those caught above the limit are sent warning letters.

This would also be a means of determining whether speeding is a real issue and not just anecdotal and would help reinforce the case for traffic calming measures.

The scheme would have to be run by villagers and without sufficient volunteers it will not happen.

Those interested in taking part will be asked to sign their names at the end of the meeting, which will also hear annual reports from the Parish Council and village clubs and organisations.

Refreshments will be served from 7.30pm and the meeting starts at 8pm. (See previous news item for more information)

Details will also be given about taking part in the annual village clean-up, which takes places on Saturday (April 27th) followed at around noon by a parish barbecue outside the village shop.

All are welcome at the Annual Meeting, the clean-up and the barbecue.

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Annual Village Meeting and Parish Clean-Up and Barbecue – All Welcome

Hambledon’s Annual Village Meeting takes place on the evening of Thursday April 25th and all are welcome to come along.

This is an opportunity to hear a round-up of the past year’s activities from all of the village organisations, clubs and groups as well as a report from the Parish Council, which hosts the meeting.

Refreshments including wine, tea and coffee will be available from 7.30 and this is a chance to chat to village friends and neighbours before the meeting itself starts at 8pm at the Village Hall.

There will be a short presentation concerning the efforts made by the Parish Council to address concerns about speeding in the village and other local traffic issues.

Residents may like to consider whether they want to form a Community Speed Watch Group. A minimum of six volunteers would be required. Speed detection devices would be provided by Surrey Police together with appropriate training.

Full details of this scheme can be found here: www.communityspeedwatch.org

Further details will be provided at the meeting. Mary Grove, a parish councillor, can be contacted in advance for those who wish to register at grovemum@aol.com

Although the parish council can make the necessary arrangements with Surrey Police and register the speedwatch group, it is for villagers to step forward and volunteer if they want this initiative to succeed.

Despite widespread concerns across the village about speeding, both Surrey Police and Surrey County Council Highways engineers have stated that there is no gathered evidence to support this belief. It is highly unlikely that any traffic calming measures can be introduced in Hambledon until there is data to support the proposal. Community Speed Watch is one way in which such evidence may be gathered.

The Village Meeting is followed two days later – on Saturday April 27th – with the parish clean-up ending with a community barbecue outside the Village Shop at noon. Volunteers are asked to collect litter in designated areas for which they can register at the Village Meeting. Bin bags and litter grabs will be provided and all rubbish will be removed by the local authority.

 

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VILLAGE HALL QUIZ – A GREAT NIGHT OUT

(Please also see news item below this, posted by Hambledon Village Hall Committee)

A packed Village Hall saw residents and friends pit their brains against each other as 14 tables, comprising 84 participants took part in a fund-raising quiz on Saturday (November 17th).

Thanks go to the Village Hall Committee and its team of volunteers who organised the evening, staffed a well-stocked bar, cooked and served home-made cottage pie and rounded-up an impressive selection of donated prizes for a raffle.

What was particularly rewarding was the cross section of villagers, old, young and everything in between, who took part and made the evening a great success. They included people from all aspects of life in Hambledon; the shop and its volunteers, Merry Harriers pub regulars, its Bridge team, the church, the cricket and football teams and, of course the Village Hall itself.

The questions were well set and divided into 10 themed rounds. The winning team,” Here, There and Everywhere”, comprised Christine and Ron Baker, Duncan Watson, Charlotte Gray, Mary Burrows and Stewart Payne.

However, it was a close-run contest and several teams just missed out on the top spot, having answered a few more questions correctly but not used their “multiplier” as effectively.

All profits from the evening go towards the upkeep of the Village Hall, which has recently been undergoing an extensive refurbishment with new chairs and curtains.

 

 

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Tickets still available for Bully Beef & Whizzbangs this Saturday October 20th

This specially commissioned play to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the end of the First World War and will be performed at Hambledon Village Hall on October 20th starting at 7:30pm.

Tickets are £12, £10 (concessions) and £35 (family). They are on sale at the Village Shop and are also available online at https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whizzbangs and by telephone on 03333 666 3366

There will be a licensed bar and refreshments, proceeds of which will go to the Village Hall fund. Doors open 7pm.

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Village Dance Raises A Record £1,250 For Cancer Charity

THE Hambledon Village Dance, a sell-out event at the Village Hall on December 9, raised a record £1,250 for local cancer charity KatCanDo.

This year’s party was organised by Mike Blanchard, keyboard player with the band Toxic Sausage. Mike, who lives in the village, wanted the dance to raise money in memory of Pat Hill, a friend and Merry Harriers regular who died earlier this year from complications from blood cancer.

Mike also wanted to mark the successful surgery at the Royal Surrey County Hospital received by Stewart Payne, Hambledon resident and friend of Pat’s, who was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer last year.

KatCanDo, which is run entirely by volunteers, raises money for the purchase of cancer-related equipment at local hospitals and hospices. It was set up in 2004 by Kate Coles, a friend of Stewart’s, who was suffering from bowel cancer and who overheard one of her specialists complaining that a piece of equipment that would be beneficial to sufferers was not available on the NHS budget.

With the support of friends Kate set up KatCanDo, a registered charity, with the express purpose of working with cancer care specialists to provide much-needed equipment at the Royal Surrey and Frimley Park hospitals and to aid cancer sufferers in local hospices.

Kate lost her battle with cancer in 2006 but her friends have kept the charity going and it has donated more than £300,000 to help the fight against the disease.

Stewart suggested to Mike that KatCanDo would be a worthwhile cause to donate the money to, and he agreed.

The dance was a big success, with Toxic Sausage belting out music that kept the dance floor packed.

Mike took it upon himself to organise this year’s dance, booking the hall, selling the tickets and taking no fee for performing. Well known around the village as Big Mike, he also has a big heart, and his kindness and hard work is much appreciated. Pat’s sons James and Jono attended the dance and were delighted and touched by the level of support. Thanks also go to Brigitte Coleman for the buffet and to the volunteers who ran the bar.

Toxic Sausage have a big following in Hambledon and will be appearing again at the Village Ball on June 23rd as part of the 2018 Midsummer Festival weekend.

If you would like to know more about the work of KatCanDo please visit www.katcando.org.uk.