Last winter Epsom Methodist Church, in the heart of Epsom, opened up its premises every Wednesday as a place where people could come to keep warm, enjoy hot drinks and a lunchtime bowl of soup and have a friendly chat with others. In the afternoons Warm Wednesdays hosted an after-school club that included children’s entertainment and an evening meal for all the family. Everything was free of charge and the initiative proved very popular, with an army of volunteers making and serving over 1,000 meals during the course of the winter.
From 1st November through to 13th March 2024 Warm Wednesdays is back and from 10am to 6pm will be making the same offer available as last year. On the first Wednesday (November 1st ) students from the nationally acclaimed Laine Theatre Arts will be coming to the after-school club to lead a Disney-themed entertainment session.
In an exciting new development Warm Wednesdays will this winter also include a weekly one-stop advice cafe. The church has partnered with a range of local organisations including Citizens Advice, The Mary Frances Trust, Epsom & Ewell Employment Hub, The Good Company, Surrey Community Action and Surrey County Council, to offer advice and support on:
Mental health and wellbeing Benefits, welfare rights, housing and rents Energy saving in the home and dealing with energy suppliers Finding a job and accessing training Budgeting and managing your money Getting help in a crisis
Robert Hill, one of the organisers of Warm Wednesdays explained: “No appointments are required – just drop in, grab a free hot drink and have a chat to one of the friendly advisers. One week the advice café will operate in the morning from 11.30am until 1pm and the next week in the afternoon from 3.30pm to 5.15pm.
“We know life is tough for many people at the moment. Some people just want to be part of a friendly community where they can stay warm and make new friends. Others have particular worries and pressing concerns. And some will simply welcome somewhere where they and their children are entertained and catered for in a relaxed environment.
“We look forward to welcoming back many of those who joined us last year as well as making lots of new friends this winter.”
Further details and a map of Epsom Methodist Church’s location can be found at
A closed-street scheme is being launched in Epsom to “get more children away from their ipads and TVs and actually play outside”.
A ‘play street’ for Miles Road was approved by Epsom and Ewell Borough Council after residents pushed for temporary closures so their children could play outside.
Councillor Clive Woodbridge, chair of the community and wellbeing committee, said: “More than 90 local authorities have introduced the Playing Out scheme in their areas, and I’m really pleased to see this initiative come to Epsom and Ewell. “We believe the scheme will help support the mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing of children and the community by creating a safe and inclusive space for everyone to play in and by fostering a much needed sense of neighbourliness.”
The scheme has already been adopted by neighbouring Elmbridge Borough Council.
Playing Out is a not-for-profit organisation set up by parents in 2009 with the aim of getting young people out and about more freely.
The schemes, which have the backing of Play England, allow for streets that are not a main road or bus routes to be closed to through traffic for up to three hours.
Play streets are resident-led and need the agreement of neighbours. They are designed to give children the freedom to play outside and bring communities together.
Volunteers steward the roads and parents are responsible for their own children.
Applications to become a play street are handled by the same council team responsible for street party road closures.
Addressing the October 10 meeting, Cllr Woodbridge said: “We’ve looked at it and wherever it’s been adopted there has been some significant benefits and it’s a useful scheme.”
He told the committee the decision would be reviewed in a year to determine what, if any, changes were needed. He added: “But it’s quite valuable to get it up and running. “One of the most important things is to let our residents know that they can do this. “It would be great to get more children away from their ipads and TVs and actually play outside.”
As part of the application process Surrey County Council and the emergency services are notified of any road closures.
Cllr Chris Aimes (Lab, Court Ward) said: “I and my fellow councillors from Court Ward are very much in favour of this.”
Don’t wait for the Feast of St Stephen
For the seventh year running, Citizens Advice Epsom & Ewell (CAEE) has teamed up with the Rotary Clubs of Epsom and Ewell to bring much needed support to those in the borough in need of help with paying fuel bills this winter.
Project Wenceslas enables those who receive, but do not need, the Government’s Winter Fuel Payment to donate it to either Rotary Club of Epsom or Rotary Club of Ewell. This money will be distributed to people in critical need of assistance with energy bills, much needed during the Cost of Living crisis. All monies donated are redistributed 100% without any deductions for costs or expenses.
Lisa Davis, CEO, Citizens Advice Epsom & Ewell, said: “With energy bills still the biggest cost-of- living worry for many individuals and families across the country, this fund is a crucial support for those in our borough. Please get in touch if either you want to donate your Winter Fuel Payment, or you are in need of support.”
Since January 2018, CAEE has received nearly £15,000 in donations and made over 170 payments to families in Epsom & Ewell suffering from fuel poverty.
If you would like to know more about donating your Winter Fuel Payment, please contact via the websites epsomrotary.uk or ewellrotaryclub.org.uk and search for Project Wenceslas.
If you are struggling with fuel bills, then contact Citizens Advice Epsom & Ewell on 0808 278 7963 (Mon-Fri, 10am – 4pm) or see our website : www.caee.org.uk https://www.caee.org.uk/
St Stephen’s Day (the first Christian Martyr) is 26th December in Western Christianity.
Local community gathered at Horton Cemetery
On World Mental Health Day 10th October on a working and un-seasonally hot day, young and old gathered in commemoration of the 9000 patients buried in Epsom’s abandoned Cemetery.
The events were the climax to a year long project of The Friends of Horton Cemetery, supported by Kings College and Dr Alana Harris, local resident and Reader in History at the University. Entitled “Out of Sight, Out of Mind”, the project raised awareness throughout the Borough of the lives of 9000 patients buried between 1899 and 1955. In their memory nearly 1600 ceramic flowers were uniquely painted by hundreds of concerned citizens as they contemplated the stories and photographs of individual patients.
Hardy poem reading
Faith leaders read a committal together
The celebration started in a private field provided for the day by local farmer Mr Seymour Bourne and located right next to the five acre Cemetery. The largest asylum cemetery in Europe. Under a blazing Autumn sun the gathering was addressed by the charity’s secretary Mr Lionel Blackman, who called for a rejection of a local council categorisation of the Cemetery as “amenity woodland”. The Mayor of Epsom and Ewell, Cllr Robert Geleit (Labour Court Ward) spoke of Epsom’s historic connection to the five psychiatric hospitals in the Borough.
Patron of the charity, Chris Grayling MP sent a message, read by Horton Ward Cllr Kieran Persand: “It’s easy not to realise, as you drive past, the piece of history that lies behind the fence. Thousands of people lived in the old hospitals, lived and died mostly anonymously. They have no gravestones to mark their final resting place. And disgracefully the cemetery has been allowed to rot by its current owners. It is a credit to the work of the Friends, and of people like Alan Carlson who raised the money for a memorial, that their memory has not been lost. I hope one day that the cemetery can be taken back, and turned into a real garden of remembrance for those who passed so much of their lives here.“
Theresa Keneflick, a trustee of the charity and head of St Josephs Primary School spoke and brought a school choir who sang “True Colours” by Cindy Lauper.
The following each read a verse from Thomas Hardy’s ‘Voices from Things Growing in a Churchyard’:
Rosie Spence, relative, on behalf of her great, great, great grandfather. Allen Price from Love Me Love My Mind. Carmen Nel, NHS Clinical Practitioner. Audrey Ardern-Jones, local poet and project volunteer. Charles Wood, former Nurse at Manor Hospital and Horton Hospital. Kevin McDonnell, Friends of Horton Cemetery Trustee and lead researcher of the lives. Timothy Folkard, project volunteer.
Then voices from the Cemetery were spoken by Epsom Players representing the lives of Enid Barnet and Richard Waterer.
Dr Alana Harris explained the symbolism of the ribbons everyone had tied for the day to the fence near the Cemetery.
Rev Nick Parish and Judith Mitchell (St Martin’s Church of England); Fr Stephen O’Brien (St Joseph’s Catholic Church); Pastor Josh Selfe (Epsom Methodist Church); Clerk Frances Touch (Epsom Quakers) said in unison:
“We are gathered to remember these 9000 souls who lived and died in Epsom – to remember them and to make representations that they might have dignity and rest in their death.
To everything there is a season and a time for every purpose on earth. A time to be born and a time to die; a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted. A time to heal, a time to break down and a time to build up.
We affirm our mutual commitment to honour the residents of Horton Cemetery and to work for their memorialisation. Amen.”
Finally a trumpet solo ‘Marking the Unmarked’ – was performed by its composer Erin Symonds.
The gathering then followed Scots Piper Bob Ash to the former Horton Chapel where a Memorial Garden of the ceramic flowers was unveiled. The audience was addressed by Patron of The Friends of Horton Cemetery, Baroness Sheila Hollins, who once worked in the St Ebbas Hospital in Hook Road, Epsom. Dr Harris concluded speeches with an overview of the project and its significance and meaning.
‘In Memoriam’ a film created by Cameron Cook, Jack Daly and Mica Schlosser of Kings College simply rolled the 9000 names to suitable music. The audience was spellbound.
Company Concentric performed a dance ‘Garden Unlocked’ and led the audience to the Memorial Garden unveiling. This involved the planting of final flowers within the Forget Me Not installation by Sue Littleboy planting for James Poppelwell (great grandad, 1867-1914, d.Long Grove, grave b977); Nari Fairbanks (by proxy as resident in NT, Australia) – planting for Charles Holdgate (great, great, great uncle, 1854-1932, d. Long Grove, grave 1105a); Iveta Goddard – creator of the ceramic flowers used in the memorial garden and Lauren of St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School.
Joining the 200-odd strong audience beside Horton Cemetery were Liberal Democrat PPC Helen Maguire, Chair of Epsom and Ewell Labour Party Mark Todd and Gina Miller the True and Fair Party PPC for the constituency. And as ever on her push-bike, Cllr. Alison Kelly (LibDem Stamford) and Janice Baker a leader of the local Green Party. Two Residents Association Councillors appeared including Cllr Phil Neale (Cuddington Ward) and another.
Lease reprieve for Langley Village Hall
Langley Vale Village Hall was under the threat of closure but due to the hard work of the Langley Vale Village Hall Association and local residents a new 10 year lease has been negotiated.
The Hall, situated at 47 Rosebery Rd, Epsom, is the heart of community life in the somewhat otherwise isolated housing estate over the Downs. The freeholder of the hall is THE GUILDFORD DIOCESAN BOARD OF FINANCE, a company limited by guarantee and not-for-profit.
Nevertheless, it is reported to have been been a trying and difficult year dealing with the lease renewal.
Sharon Watkinson, a long standing resident of Langley Vale, witnessed the signatures of the trustees of the Association on the new lease.
The new lease includes a guaranteed option to add a further 5 years to take the Hall safely through to 2038.
The renewal allows the Association to apply for grants for the Village Hall for some much-needed maintenance works and possible eco friendly upgrades to the heating and also the windows.
The Hall was the venue for a highly successful Kings Coronation Street Party, “the best party the Village has seen” said Sean Porter, Chairman of the Langley Vale Village Hall Association.
Pollution around Epsom and Ewell Schools
Epsom and Ewell Extinction Rebellion embark on a public education drive on Sunday 9th October in Epsom High Street. The climate action group has tabulated the pollution statistics for schools in and around the Borough.
Between 10am and 1pm the XR group will have a Doctor’s surgery (with an Intensive Care Unit Doctor) giving real world advice on the health impact of Air Pollution. A Citizens Polling Board so passersby can vote for their favourite Pollution Solutions and an information desk so you can find out the Air Pollution levels at your home and local schools.
In 2020 in a study published by the journal Science of the Total Environment, experts from the University of Surrey’s world-renowned Global Centre for Clean Air Research (GCARE) partnered with a local school and the local community in Guildford to investigate the impact cars have on air quality in and around schools during drop-off and pick-up times.
Children face a worrying threefold increase in air pollution during the daily school runs, causing air quality experts to call for restrictions on the use of cars during those periods.
These are the statistics provided by addresspollution.org for local school postcodes year long average figures assessed on 4th October 2023:
Epsom & Ewell Borough Council, Go Epsom Business Improvement District, and dedicated volunteers from across the borough were delighted to pick up a number of awards for Nonsuch Park, Epsom Town Centre and Ewell Village at this year’s South & South East in Bloom awards.
For the first time, Nonsuch Park picked up two awards, a prestigious Gold Award for Large Conservation Area and a Silver Gilt Award for Heritage Park.
Judge Peter Holman, who is also Chairman of the South & South East in Bloom scheme, praised the efforts of the Nonsuch Voles Volunteering Group, and Epsom and Ewell Borough Council’s Operational Services and Countryside Team, who all work together for the overall benefit of the park.
Mr Holman said, “Woodland management, planting new trees and beds, and uncovering and restoring horticultural features all add value. Since my last visit, it’s good to see progress and the natural areas of the park are an excellent example of what can be achieved to benefit wildlife.”
Ewell Village kept its Silver Award status in the Large Village of the Year category and was congratulated on the efforts of the community volunteers who help maintain the Gertrude Longhurst Memorial Garden and Bourne Hall Park.
The council’s work at Bourne Hall was also praised. The judges said, “With its historic grounds, Bourne Hall showed noticeable improvements to the area at the rear of the building, which now forms an outdoor extension to the café area. It is understood that planting to soften its appearance is planned along with a new children’s play area. Adjacent to the pond, a new pollinators bed has been successfully planted and looked attractive.
“The Wheatsheaf public house was pleasing to see and welcoming. Also of note was the work at Gertie’s garden.”
Epsom Town Centre entered the Business Improvement District category and retained its Silver Award status. The judges noted the planting schemes in Rosebery Park, the ‘Pocket Park’ in South Street and the new planters outside TK Maxx, they were also impressed with the murals around the Town Centre and the Lidl Living Wall in Upper High Street.
Councillor John Beckett, Chair of the Environment Committee, said “I am pleased to see the hard work and dedication of the council, Go Epsom, businesses, residents and volunteers has been formally recognised at this year’s South & South East in Bloom awards.
“Maintaining our standards by winning Silver Awards in Ewell Village and Epsom Town Centre again and improving on last year’s awards tally by winning Gold and Silver Gilt for Nonsuch Park is a brilliant achievement.
“Plans are already being put in place for the borough to take part in Bloom next year. I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who is committed to ensuring our borough is the best it can be for the local community, visitors and wildlife all year round.”
Karen Pengelly, BID Manager at Go Epsom said, “Epsom is a lovely town, and the introduction of planters, murals and general greenery are welcome additions to our street scene. Visitors and local workers have commented on how much they appreciate the efforts of everyone involved in making Epsom look even better. Onwards and upwards for 2024 – there’s always more to do!”
The awards were held at RHS Wisley on Friday 29 September 2023.
South & South East in Bloom is part of Britain in Bloom and runs annual competitions across the counties of Kent, Surrey, East & West Sussex, Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, East & North Dorset and East Wiltshire.
Budding astronauts and space engineers are set to be wowed and inspired on Saturday 7 October, when space researchers at the University of Surrey take over Guildford town centre.
The University and its event partners, the Institute of Physics, will offer activities for children and adults to try in the Tunsgate Centre and on the High Street.
Thanks to the UK Space Agency, there will be space suits to try on, Winchester Science Centre will host a pop-up planetarium, and there’ll be a working model of a mini Mars rover.
Experts from Surrey Space Centre will be in the Tunsgate Centre.
Laura Cox from the University of Surrey’s Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences explained what people can see. She said:
“Come along to see inside a small satellite and have a go at steering it. You can also help spot illegal fishing boats on satellite images, a crime which costs over $15bn annually.
“At the mobile ground station, visitors can see signals from satellites in real-time and the decoded data they are sending from space. And you can learn about different types of space rocks and handle 3D-printed models of real asteroids, comets, and planetary moons.”
Astrophysicists from the School of Mathematics and Physics will be answering astronomy questions, running a constellation activity, offering an escape room-style activity and more.
Local employers in the space sector will also participate, including Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL), who will show off models of spacecraft and components of the satellites they make, including a propulsion tank, circuit boards and samples of the exterior panels we see in photos.
Dr Nicola Baresi, an astrodynamicist who plans efficient routes for spacecraft to travel in space, including to the Moon and to other planets in our solar system, says:
“It’s going to be a fun day for people of all ages with lots of space-related activities and experiments to try. Space is a hugely exciting sector and is a thriving industry across Surrey and Hampshire. There are plenty of opportunities for rewarding careers in this area, yet significant skills shortages, something we help tackle at the University of Surrey with our research activities and educational programmes. We’re keen to inspire people and help them realise that they could get a job in the space industry.”
Glyn students brighten the Borough
Epsom & Ewell Borough Council and Glyn School have come together to transform an unused building on the site of the Upper High Street car park with a community mural funded through the Government’s Safer Streets initiative.
Ten local secondary school students recently worked in collaboration with the council and international graffiti artists from Positive Arts to create a large scale mural celebrating the biodiversity within our borough. The artwork has dramatically improved the aesthetics of the building, which previously looked tired and in need of renovating.
Giving support to the project, Councillor Clive Woodbridge, Chair of the Community & Wellbeing Committee at Epsom & Ewell Borough Council, said: “It is a goal of the council to ensure that our natural environment is both celebrated and accessible to all. This project showcases how culture and creative practices can help to elevate the natural landscape of our borough in new and colourful ways.
“This type of project sits within the emerging Cultural Strategy for the council, which seeks to nurture and champion the creative talents within our community while increasing access to creativity for all to enjoy and engage with. The students’ teamwork has also been extremely impressive and is something to be proud of”.
Julian Phethean from Positive Arts said, “The young people were really determined to produce something they could be proud of and that’s exactly what they achieved!
“All of the students worked well in a team, made a positive social impact, and displayed a high level of creativity, focus and drive.”
A spokesperson for Glyn School said: “The students involved thoroughly enjoyed this unique experience to give back to the community in a very different way.”
From “Princess” to Pauper’s grave in Epsom
9000 patients of Epsom’s cluster of now closed psychiatric hospitals were buried between 1899 and 1955 in a now abandoned Cemetery. The Friends of Horton Cemetery are writing their life stories and seeking to reclaim the five neglected acres from a property speculator.
The Horton Cemetery is located between Horton Lane and Hook Road, Epsom.
On 10th October 2023 from 1.00pm The Mayor Cllr Robert Geleit (Labour Court Ward) and Mayoress of Epsom and Ewell will lead councillors, Aldermen of the Borough and the public in commemorating the lives of the 9000. The commemoration will begin beside the Horton Cemetery. Parking is open in the Hook Road Arena. Ceremonies will start at 1.00pm so the public is advised to park no later than 12.45 to allow time for the walk.
If you intend to attend the event you are requested to complete this simple online RSVP form.
If you are attending you should read the advice of The Friends of Horton Cemetery on the ground conditions and lengths of walks involved. Click HERE.
Here is a taster of just one of the hundreds of life stories written by the volunteer team of the Friends of Horton Cemetery charity. Steve Johnson, one of the research team leaders, delved into the extraordinary story of a Polish aristocrat who’s family’s lives were upturned in the Russian Revolution of 1917.
Felicja Staszewicz, daughter of Aleksander Skirmunt and Teofila Skirmunt (née Lubańska) was born c1873 – the seventh of nine children – at the family country estate of Porzecza, Piński (now Belarus), the family having retained its Polish heritage despite the partition of Poland in 1795.
At the outbreak of the Russian Revolution in 1917, Felicja and Piotr, together with their family, moved to Vilnius where they remained until the end of WW1. Tragically, Marta-Karolina committed suicide at the outbreak of the revolution.
It is unclear where Felicja and Piotr moved to after WW1, but Piotr died in 1929, and by 1939 we find Felicja living in Teklinopol (her country estate near Vilnius which she had inherited from her mother) with her youngest daughter, Matylda, who had moved there in 1923 after her marriage to Jan Myślinski (also from a notable family that traces back to 1670).
On the 17th September 1939 the Russian army crossed the border and Felicja and Matylda, together with her two young daughters, Janina and Jolanta, were forced out of their home and moved to the nearby village of Wilejka.
On the 13th April 1940, in the middle of the night, the family were arrested and, together with thousands of others, taken by cattle train into Russia as slave labour. Two of Felicja’s sons, Aleksander and Jan Leon were taken by the Russians and were amongst the mass murder of thousands massacred in the forests of Katyń.
