Number 15 Gallery’s late night shopping event is this Thursday 19th June… and many of the Old Coal Yard businesses will be open donating a portion of their takings from the whole day to the Prostate Project.

Visit the Man Van!

From 4pm till 8pm the charity will be providing simple finger prick blood tests (for £40) plus advice and support in their Man Van.

If you have a prostate you should test from the age of 50, and if you have a family history of prostate, ovarian, or breast cancer, or you are black, you should test from 45 as you are at higher risk.

If picked up early, it is much easier to treat and manage so early diagnosis is key. We look forward to seeing you and thank you for your support.

For more info visit: https://www.pth.org.uk/news-and-events/events/upcoming-events/bramley-open-gardens*/

I would like to use our village website to thank all those villagers who contributed to a generous leaving gift and signed card following my departure as a Hambledon Parish councillor after 24 years, the last four as Chair.

As many will know, I decided a year ago that it was time to step down, knowing that we have a strong and well-organised parish council with dedicated councillors and an extremely capable clerk.

My resignation took effect at the May AGM earlier this month, when the card and wine vouchers wine were presented to me by deputy Alison Scott-Bishop.

Following my departure, Alison was voted in as the new chair and Robin McKeith as deputy. A vacancy now exists to replace me as a councillor and Clerk Catherine Russell has started the necessary legal process with Waverley Borough Council. If any villager is interested in applying, please contact Catherine at [email protected] and she can explain what to do.

The photographs show Alison presenting me with my gift and card (above) and my final meeting at the village hall with parish council colleagues, from left to right Andy Hinde, Alison, Robin, myself, Simon Rhodes, Catherine, and Sean Sinnott, with our Ward County Councillor Kevin Deanus and Ward Waverley councillor Michael Goodridge. Missing from the line-up is parish councillor Jude Milan and Waverley Ward councillor Jane Austin.

It has been really rewarding to have been a parish councillor and I have reflected on this in more detail in a short article in the June edition of Hambledon Parish Magazine. If you are not a subscriber, copies are available in the village shop. Details of council, Agendas and Minutes etc, can be found on the Parish Council pages on this website

Thank you to the people of Hambledon for supporting the parish council over the years and making my time there so fulfilling.

He was, quite literally, the spy who came in from the cold.

Not the fictional one created by John le Carré in his novel of the same name, later turned in to an award-winning film starring Richard Burton and Claire Bloom.

The one sitting huddled by the inglenook fireplace at the Merry Harriers on a chilly winter’s day was a genuine Cold War spy whose escape to the West was as daring as any espionage book plot – a Russian KGB colonel turned double agent.

It’s hard to believe that this year Oakhurst Cottage is celebrating 40 years since it first opened as a museum.

This little labourer’s cottage, set in the edge of the woodland just off the cricket green, has been owned by the National Trust since 1954. It was given to them by the Allfrey sisters, Vera Margaret and Beatrice Evelyn, along with a number of other cottages in the village. The sisters had originally acquired them to save tenants from eviction. When these were passed to the Trust, it was upon the condition that they were ‘not let to well-to-do people’. At the time the tenants were Ted and Elsie Jeffery, who lived there until Ted’s death in 1983.

Alice Servaes, on behalf of Feathercombe Farm, has asked the village website team to post notice of impending works to install a new polo pony exercise track and arena, so that residents are aware of lorry movements during construction.

Planning permission has been granted after due consultation and it is expected that work will begin on the site, accessed off Feathercombe Lane, on or around April 14^th. The project is expected to take between six to eight weeks and all vehicles will arrive from the Milford direction and will not drive through the village.

Lorry traffic is expected to be at its greatest several weeks in to the construction, when drainage and surfacing work will be taking place. Alice said she plans to keep residents informed of progress using the village WhatsApp group.

The arena requires no new buildings, fencing or other visible construction and the landscape should appear unchanged once work is completed.

The Surrey Hills AONB and Surrey Wildlife Trust have been involved in discussions with Feathercombe Farm and Alice said: “We will be putting some more hedges in at some point as well as trees. We really want to try and encourage the birdlife and all wildlife as much as possible.”

Please the plan below.

Hambledon Village Trust, landlord of the shop and Pendle Cottage, is delighted to announce that work has started on the new roof.  

Scaffolding for the main roof will be erected in the next few days. Then, dependent upon the presence of an ecologist to monitor bat movement, and fine weather, tiles can be removed and work begins in earnest.

This phase of the project will include the main roof and the roof over the deli. The garage roof and flat roof will be done later.

A big thank you for the many donations that have raised enough funds to make this possible.

Continue reading for some background…

The Old Coal Yard start-up businesses welcomed five new tenants in the past month. The latest to arrive are Julia and Lucy of Number 15 Gallery. Julia, a Hambledon resident for nearly 30 years, and her friend Lucy, from Godalming, are opening a small Artists’ studio and gallery space at The Old Coal Yard, next to the Merry Harriers.

They met at Changing Perceptions in Godalming, a now, sadly, closed social enterprise for The Meath Epilepsy Charity (where Lucy was the assistant manager and Julia a volunteer). The days spent upcycling furniture and laughing (a lot) with the Meath residents are missed by everyone who spent time there.

Both of them have art backgrounds and wanted to be able to work and show their wares in a dedicated light and airy space. In 2022 they held a pop-up art exhibition in one of the, then, empty units (at the Old Coal Yard) in aid of The Fountain Centre Charity at the Royal Surrey County Hospital. It was such a great success and a lovely experience that they decided to take on a new unit when one became available – 2 years later and here they are.

Not only will they be creating and selling their own work in Hambledon, they will also have the work of 5 other local artists on display in the space – ceramics, stained glass, reupholstered and painted furniture, photography and paintings will all be available.

After much back and forth trying to choose a name for the gallery – they hit upon “Number 15” (a remarkable coincidence as they are in unit 15 at The Old Coal Yard).

Julia is excited about their opening day. “It is on Saturday 15th March (15th?!) at 3pm (15:00 hours?!) and everyone is most welcome to come and say hello. We are both delighted to be joining the gang at The Coal Yard and happy to finally have a studio space that we don’t have to clear up in time for dinner!”

Lucy added “Number 15 is scheduled to be open every Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but if you see us in there at any other time, just pop in!”. www.Number15.net

https://www.coalyardcreatives.com

As Hambledon heads into Spring, with daffodils, primroses and cowslips coming into bloom and bluebells soon to flower, it is timely to look to see what the season offers of interest to villagers.

First up, at the Village Hall on Thursday March 13^th, is the Hambledon Heritage Society’s annual presentation. This year it features a talk on the subject of Witley and Haslemere Artists, 1859-1914.

The speaker is Sarah Bain, honorary vice president of Haslemere Educational Museum who will focus on the lives of the many artists who came to live in the area and gained inspiration from its beautiful countryside, Hambledon’s included. Doors open at 7.30pm for refreshments followed at 8pm with the Society’s brief AGM formalities and then the presentation.