Hear all about an Epsom charity’s medical support for Malawi.
Undaunted by the 4500 miles distance between Epsom and Chilaweni in Malawi, local resident Ruth Markus heads a charity founded in her son’s name. “Alex’s Medical & Educational Clinic in Africa” (AMECA). Before he died at the age of 23 Alex was a junior doctor, a British Army officer and a qualified paratrooper. AMECA is committed to healthcare delivery, training healthcare professionals and to healthcare education in sub-Saharan African countries, through sustainable initiatives.
Feature photo is Alex providing medical care. His passion and vocation.
The AMECA Primary Healthcare Clinic at Chilaweni in Malawi opened in May 2017 and is dedicated to the memory of Alex. The Clinic currently serves 38,000 people in 23 villages. It sees on average, 4,000 outpatients each month. These communities had no prior access to any accessible healthcare facilities.
Ameca Maternity Clinic opened November 2020
AMECA supports surgical training at district hospitals in Malawi through Links in Africa for Surgical Training (LAST). Led by AMECA’s Clinical Director, Consultant Surgeon Paul Thomas, LAST is committed to providing surgical training to improve sustainable surgical healthcare in Africa.
On August 7th at 10am at St Martin’s Church, Church Street, Epsom Ruth Markus will speak about the work of the charity and update on the Maternity Unit built at Chilaweni Village. The illustrated talk will celebrate the success of the maternity unit and maternity mentorship programme, implemented to raise standards of clinical care for mothers and babies and to deliver respectful and inclusive treatment to mothers.
The Ashley Centre’s new pop up art gallery has extended it’s stay until 31st July – plus the show, which is now open daily, has also added work by four new artists. Situated opposite Moka cafe in the main concourse, the Pop Up Gallery now displays work by a dozen west London and Surrey based artists.
With a mixture of styles from traditional landscape, abstract pieces through figure painting, to technicolour animals and graffiti style urban street art, there is something for everyone ! And with prices starting at only £20, this summer is a great time to start your original art collection.
Landscape painter Jane Scofield joins Dilys Foster and Di Phelps Lester: all inspired by the natural world , they produce colourful atmospheric landscapes in acrylic and mixed media. Stephen Doak works in cut paper and collage as well as painting mid century inspired coloured abstracts.
Russian born Yulia Robinson favours bright colours and pieces often featuring beautiful birds in dreamlike landscapes . Raph Thomas is a young artists who has produced a whole animal kingdom of technicolour animals. If there isn’t your favourite animal in his portfolio, he takes commissions.
Luis Alvarez and Emma Champion both use texts and captions in their work . Though in very different styles, art lovers with a taste for text can find a message for their walls here.
Since opening at the Ashley Centre, Kate Winskill‘s iconic Battersea Power Station print works have proved really popular , whilst she has also added new figurative paintings to the show.
Younger customers have been drawn to Lauren Mavromatis’ powerful autobiographical digital drawings, whilst songwriter and artist Rory Thomas infuses his paintings and prints with lyrics from his songs. And if music is a major feature in your life, check out Emelia Jacks’ Dancing on Paper monochrome series of prints and paintings inspired by specific songs.
Prices are affordable too, with prints from £20 and originals from £45 , so there has never been a better time to look for something to brighten up your home. And you don’t have to wait until the end of the show to collect your purchase , as sold art is replaced daily .
The gallery is staffed by the artists, so you can find out more about how they work. They all undertake commissions, so if you are looking for a bespoke artwork, come and see what they can offer.
Big paintings are delivered free locally and prints can be posted on customer’s behalf as gifts.
Want to see work in your own home? Home visits around Epsom with selected artworks can be booked by appointment with the artists. Open daily 10.30 – 5.30pm and Sundays 10.30-4.30pm until 31st July 2022
Epsom and Ewell Times’ purpose gets a leading endorsement. Today’s Times newspaper (established 1785) has published a leading article headed “The demise of regional news reporting is bad for democracy and bad for communities”. The article states: “Local news is the lifeblood of local democracy and indeed of democracy itself. If people cannot have confidence that those in local councils, courts and public services whose actions impinge directly on their everyday life are being scrutinised and properly held to account, why should they trust those remote figures who wield power in the centre? A society without rigorous local news is a society vulnerable to corruption, disenchantment, isolation and conspiracy theories….”
New Epsom Pantry offers more than food to the struggling….
A Pantry has been officially opened by the Mayor Clive Woodbridge last month. It has been launched in Epsom as another way of helping people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis, to try to reduce dependency on foodbanks. The shop in South Street stocks a wide range of food, including fresh fruit and vegetables, frozen and chilled produce as well as tinned and packaged items. Members pay £5 a visit and can choose items that value around £30, so they can save money on their grocery shopping bills. Epsom Pantry has been set up with support from Epsom and Ewell Borough Council. The Pantry is part of the Good Company charity, which runs numerous projects in Surrey including five foodbanks and the East Surrey Poverty Truth Commission.
Jonathan Lees – director The Good Company
Jonathan Lees, Managing Director of Good Company said: “This year Epsom and Ewell Foodbank is marking 10 years of existence. That is not acceptable. We cannot accept dependency on foodbanks, which are only meant to be a temporary measure.”
As well as helping with the cost-of-living crisis, Epsom Pantry will offer other community services such as cooking on a budget, debt management and housing and job advice.
Epsom Pantry Manager Bex Loomes said: “Since the Pantry opened its doors, it has been filled with a sense of community and togetherness. The cost-of-living crisis means more and more households are struggling to make ends meet. We know that the Pantry offers vital financial savings, and we hope that access to healthier foods and the development of skills and confidence through volunteering will allow us to tackle isolation in our community.”
UK HEATWAVE: THAMES WATER URGES HOUSEHOLDS TO CONTROL THEIR WATER USAGE.
Thames Water is urging residents to control their water usage and limit consumption around the home.
Households are being advised to take shorter showers and limit use of the garden hose in a bid to reduce water usage.
With temperatures set to rise to record levels this week, Thames Water is urging residents to control their water usage and limit consumption around the home where possible.
Prolonged spells of hot weather increase the demand for water, putting a strain on the network and accelerating the draw on rivers, underground aquifers, and water stored in reservoirs.
Thames Water is offering advice to households on how to limit their water usage and help to prevent any future shortages. This includes simple routine changes such as taking shorter showers, reducing use of the garden hose and turning taps off when brushing your teeth.
Research released today by Thames Water and YouGov reveals that rising temperatures and its effect on the supply of water is an issue causing concern among adults in England. Over three quarters (76%) think it’s possible parts of England will experience water shortages in the next 20 to 30 years.
It’s changing the way they think about water too; more than a third (38%) say they would be motivated to use less water to protect rivers and the environment, while almost as many would cut back to make sure there’s enough water available for future generations (35%) or to help avoid a drought (31%).
Andrew Tucker, Water Demand Reduction Manager at Thames Water, said: “During spells of hot weather, water usage can often rocket, with hoses and sprinklers watering gardens and paddling pools filled. That makes it even more important to be mindful of water usage to ensure there’s enough to go around for everyone.”
“While we’re not currently expecting to introduce restrictions on water use this summer, it’s important that households remain responsible with their usage and help us to limit the pressure on our resources.”
Take shorter showers. On average, a shower uses around 10 litres of water a minute. That means a 10-minute shower can use 100 litres of water. If a family of four reduced their shower time by just one minute, they could save up to £45 on metered water bills and a further £52 on energy bills every year.
Swap your hose for a watering can. You can keep your plants happy and still save water by swapping the garden hose or sprinkler for a watering can. A sprinkler can us as much water in half an hour as the average family of four uses in a whole day. Using a watering can in your garden could save up to 4,050 litres a year, that’s equivalent to more than 50 full bathtubs.
Don’t water when the sun’s out. Avoid watering plants when the sun’s out and temperatures are high to help minimise the amount of water evaporating. Water early in the morning if you can as evening watering encourages the slugs and snails to come out at night.
Turn off the taps while you brush your teeth. A running tap uses on average 6-8 litres of water a minute. That’s over 14 pints straight down the drain – so an easy change to make a big difference is turning off the taps while brushing.
Fix leaky loos and dripping taps. Leaky loos are usually caused by a faulty flush valve or fill valve inside your cistern tank. A leaky loo can waste an average of around 400 litres of water a day. That’s equal to five full bathtubs or around £350 a year.
Go the full load. Wait until you have a full load before running the dishwasher or washing machine. This will not only save on the amount of water you use, but it’ll lower your energy use – helping you reduce your bills.
Households can also find a free water saving calculator on the Thames Water website where they can work out how much water and energy they are using and receive tailored advice on how to save.
Ambitious new plan sets out the future for travelling around Surrey.
Surrey’s ten-year Transport plan which includes measures for reducing the 41% of carbon emissions currently generated by transport, was approved by Surrey County Councillors at their Full Council meeting on 12 July 2022.
The plan prioritises measures to support people to get around Surrey easily and sustainably including increasing the number of walking and cycling routes, providing more charging points and parking for electric vehicles, charging for transport use and introducing car clubs, as well as improving internet connections for home-working and redesigning neighbourhoods to enable easier access to local services, lessening the need to travel by car.
Matt Furniss, Cabinet Member for Transport, Infrastructure and Economysaid, “Our new transport plan sets out our roadmap for a transport network in Surrey that meets the needs of the future. Crucially this includes proposals to help tackle the climate emergency and become a carbon free county by 2050.
“With such a high proportion of harmful emissions coming from transport and their significant impact on our environment, we all need to act. Residents can play their part by relying less on their cars for some journeys.
“We know this will be a challenge and we do not expect to eliminate car use. We have recently invested over £39m in buses, £6m to improve cycle routes and footpaths and a further £6m to improve road safety around schools to help make other methods of travel more appealing and accessible for certain journeys, whilst also improving the health and wellbeing of our residents.”
All local authorities are required to produce and consult on, a local transport plan to set out how it will maintain and improve the local transport system.
Farnham Town 3-2 Epsom & Ewell Pre-season Friendly Saturday 2nd July 2022.
The artificial surface at Kings College in Guildford was the place to be to witness the opening match of the Anthony Jupp and Liam Giles era. Farnham are a Step Five team and they held the balance of the play in the first half, although only broke through in the third minute of injury time when a near post right wing cross was converted with a sidefooted volley past our keeper. The half time whistle blew immediately after the restart, and both teams changed a number of personnel and in our case, the formation too. This bore fruit within 35 seconds as a smart strike from the left about fifteen yards out put us back on level terms. We then hit the face of the bar with a shot from the left before another shot took a slight deflection and came back off the Farnham post. Unfortunately a foul just inside the penalty area gave our opponents a spot kick which was converted in the 73rd minute and then two minutes after we had hit the post once again in the 87th minute, Farnham scored a third goal with a fine finish into the top corner from just inside the box. This third goal was a little harsh on our team, but in the 91st minute we did get a second of our own when our earlier scorer latched on to a fine pass, held off his man and steered the ball under the keeper from an angle about ten yards out for his second of the match. It was the least we deserved, having also hit their woodwork on three occasions during that period! As always at this stage of the season the performance is more important than the result, but with so many players absent it is hard to say much more than the scoreline was about fair, largely due to Farnham holding a greater balance of play in the first half. Suffice to say our new Management seemed happy enough with the way things went and that’s all that really matters at this point. We move on to meet another Step Five team when we visit Hassocks next Saturday.
It is generally accepted that the most pretty ground in the area is Arundel’s; sitting in the shadow of its imposing castle. However, Hassocks home ground of The Beacon would certainly fit in the tier just below that, and on a gorgeous day that was probably too hot for football an impressive crowd around the 130 mark were present to witness our victory, although once again the support from an Epsom point of view was really low. This was a pity as the performance showed a clear upgrade from the previous week, despite the heat, although admittedly both teams were almost entirely changed at half time, so most players only played one half of the match.
This was an incredibly unusual result. In my forty years as a regular supporter I can only recall a couple of previous occasions where the only goal of a match occurred in the opening minute, but that’s exactly what happened in this contest. There were more new faces on show at Hassocks, including another former Epsom player from 15 years ago, although the only goal after just 18 seconds, came from a familiar face as Athan Smith-Joseph collected the ball some thirty yards out and strolled unchallenged to the edge of the penalty area before casually striking the ball into the corner of the net. It’s possible that our opponents hadn’t realised we were playing three at the back to start the match and lost track of the extra man we had further forward, but either way we caught the hosts cold with this strike.
From that point, the home team had as much of the match as we did and had a couple of really good chances to equalise; firstly in the 38th minute when a deep ball to the left was volleyed across goal only for the Hassocks 10 to strike over the bar from close range, and then in the 79th minute when a free kick to the far post was headed against our crosssbar and as the ball bounced down and then up again, it wouldn’t come down in time for the incoming striker who headed the loose ball over. Our (currently) unnamed keeper, who was different to last week’s, also had a good game and made a couple of solid saves, but the match was largely devoid of real goalmouth action and this was a fairly attritional contest at times, which isn’t always a bad thing when you are leading.
Did we deserve the win? Maybe a draw would have been fairer over the 90 minutes, but I also felt we were worth a draw at Farnham Town last week and we didn’t get it! Whilst the actual result isn’t that important at this time of the season, I felt we saw the match out well and this bodes well for the future when some of our other new names will be appearing to strengthen the competition for a place. All in all though; sunny day, lovely ground and my team won. Why would you want to be anywhere else if you truly are a genuine and loyal Epsom supporter?
AFC Uckfield Town 0-2 Epsom & Ewell Pre-season Friendly Tuesday 12th July 2022
In my last report I referred to the clean sheet secured at Hassocks being our first in a long time and we have now added a second just three days later with a good 2-0 win at Step Five AFC Uckfield Town at the Oaks.
We had visited this ground before, back in 2009 for an F.A. Cup tie when one half of the merged Uckfield club were previously known as Wealden FC, and it remains as picturesque as it was back then. Around 65 people attended on a warm and sticky evening to watch the home team hold the upper hand in early proceedings, but without really looking like they would break through.
However, the pattern of the match changed in our favour in the 21st minute. I wouldn’t normally advise the name of an unsigned scorer, but seeing as he did it himself on social media, I can advise that Jahobi Maher collected the ball just over 45 yards out and launched a strike at goal. The keeper stumbled, at which point you knew instantly that it was going in for a spectacular opener.
Confidence grew from that point and we should have made it 2-0 with a great move, but Ricardo Fernandes blazed over from the edge of the penalty area. In response the home side flicked a shot at goal but our keeper was able to deal with it comfortably and we extended our lead in the 42nd minute when new signing Nick Wilson met a long throw with a glancing header across and beyond their keeper from around eight yards out, and only a great save from the home keeper stopped a spectacular third goal after a good move concluded with a superb volley from the edge of the area, but the ball was tipped over the bar.
There were less changes than usual at the break with only three players coming on, bringing the total of subs up to four at that point after one of our players had limped off ten minutes from half time. One of these was our keeper from last year, Kane Charles and he would prove to be very busy in the opening quarter of an hour, making a couple of spectacular saves, although he needed some help in the 49th minute when a defensive header back into our penalty area enabled a home striker to shoot at goal, but Louis Chin was perfectly positioned to head the ball off the line via the crossbar and out to safety!
We made four more changes after an hour and the contest, which had been a bit niggly throughout to this point then flared up again after one of our players crashed into the hoardings near the dugouts which required his replacement, but the home side seemed to run out of ideas a little and the game ended in a fairly comfortable 2-0 win in the end.
Phil Walker’s final pass….
Richard Lambert pays homage to the late great footballer who played for Epsom and Ewell FC.
[Photo: Phil Walker pictured running the line at West Street on 24th October 1976 in a Charity Match as a Dennis Waterman XI defeated an Epsom XI 11-10 with the recently deceased Waterman scoring a hat-trick. Over 2,000 were present along with many other famous names like Alan Mullery, Dave Sexton, Tony Gubba and Trevor Lee.]
Photo: Gemini Reynolds
On Friday 8th July 2022 our club lost one of its most famous names when the death was announced of Philip Leonardus Walker at the tragically young age of 67.
Phil was born in Parsons Green on 29th August 1954 and went to Battersea County School in Culvert Road, Battersea where he met another youngster, Trevor Lee. Their stories would of course become inextricably linked, although had Phil been born three days later, he would have been in a different school year and their paths may not have even crossed!
Both of course connected well at a time when it must have been extremely difficult growing up as a young black man in South London, but the pair would become footballing pioneers in arguably the most hostile of environments, the Den; home of Millwall FC.
Although both were very good at football, they went in opposite directions at first. Phil was working in a factory in Acton and got talking to a workmate who was at Wingate F.C. so he went and played with them, scored in his first match and stayed a while.
However, in 1973 he teamed up with Trevor again at Cobham alongside another player in Steve Jones. All three would then sign for Epsom and Ewell in the summer of 1974.
Saturday 08/02/75 v Hornchurch F.A.Vase – Won 1-0.
Back Row: Steve Jones, Ted Yorke, Chris Page, Johnny Eales, Dave Worby, Trevor Lee, Willie Bennett, Dave Ritman
Front Row: Tommy Tuite, Trevor Wales, Phil Walker, Pat O’Connell, Alan Webb
Our club were of course just picking themselves up after years in the doldrums and had just finished as runners-up in the Surrey Senior League, but Manager Pat O’Connell; a former professional himself at Fulham, wanted our club to achieve much more.
Phil joined our club a month after Trevor, due to a holiday in America, and made his debut on Saturday 7th September 1974 when we defeated Chobham 3-0 in a Surrey Senior League Cup tie at West Street, but it was a slow start for the new lad who only made four first team appearances by the December. However, he forced his way into the team as the season progressed and by the end of May we had won the League and Charity Cup double with Phil firmly entrenched in the number 10 shirt.
Phil scores our only goal in the F.A. Vase win over Hornchurch on 8th February 1975
Johnny Eales is the other Epsom player in the photograph and to my knowledge is the only other member of the 12 man squad to have passed away as I write this.
Of course most supporters will remember that 1974/75 season for our run to Wembley Stadium in the very first FA Vase competition, where Phil was a focal part of the run. He scored the only goal in our Quarter-Final victory over Hornchurch and the winner against Stamford in the first leg of the Semi-Final, which was won 2-1 and essentially earned the trip to Wembley, following our goalless draw in the second leg.
Trevor Lee and Phil Walker share a moment at the F.A. Vase Final post-match get together at the Cavalier in Wallington on 19th April 1975 with Manager Pat O’Connell and his Assistant Arthur Evans
Our boys celebrate with the Surrey Senior League Trophy at West Street on 22nd May 1975
Although the day at Wembley ended with a 2-1 defeat, our club was on the football map again and in the early part of 1975/76 Millwall Manager Gordon Jago came calling. The new man in charge already knew of our club and ground, having played against us in the early fifties as Captain of Maidstone United in the Corinthian League. Jago actually took four of our players for trials at Cold Blow Lane. Willie Bennett, one of our finest defenders in club history, and Tommy Tuite, who would become our greatest ever goal scorer were also asked to attend along with Trevor and Phil, but ultimately injury hurt Bennett’s chances, while Tuite was considered too small at five feet eight, ironically the same height as Kevin Keegan! Both played matches for Millwall in the Football Combination, before returning to leafy Ewell Village.
However, Trevor and Phil were successful and Phil made the last of his 41 appearances for us against Southall and Ealing Borough (who had another non-league success playing in their team by the name of Alan Devonshire) in an F.A. Cup replay. Phil scored 19 goals in that time. Trevor would return for five appearances in 1985/86, but Phil would never wear our colours again.
Both players were due to sign for Millwall on 13th November 1975 live on the main regional news show of day, The Today show; a programme that would become infamous just over a year later for an interview featuring the Sex Pistols, but back then it was very popular. However, only Trevor made the show as Phil had to have x-rays but he would soon sign a two year contract in December 1975. Both made an instant impact on their debut, with Trevor setting up Phil to score the only goal against Mansfield Town at the Cold Blow Lane end at the old Den, and Phil made 35 appearances that season as promotion to Division Three was achieved.
Despite the obvious fact that they were the only black players in the Lions team at a sad time in our distant past when the National Front were regularly acknowledged on television as the fourth main political party, and even before the implementation of the Race Relations Act in 1976 (which expanded on the previous Acts from 1965 and 1968 and properly started to give some real teeth to the subject of discrimination) they became extremely popular at a ground where the word “hostile” was a tag that many of their supporters embellished as a badge of honour. They remain so to this day.
Promotional photo from Millwall showing Gordon Jago after capturing both Phil and Trevor from Epsom and Ewell FC
Both players became pioneers for their club, although Phil didn’t stay that long. He made 167 appearances for them, with 22 goals before moving on. Whilst there he was honoured for his contributions to sport by the Muhammad Ali Scheme in Brixton, along with Olympic Champion Daley Thompson and World Champion Boxer John Conteh.
To give full details of Phil’s professional career and achievements, it is much better to refer you to the clubs for whom he played from this point, as they will all have written their own tributes. Suffice to say though, he signed for Charlton Athletic for £120,000 in the summer of 1979 before having a loan spell at Gillingham.
He then made an unusual career move in those days by going abroad in 1983 when he moved to Hong Kong to play for Eastern AA before moving again, this time to Portugal where he joined Leixoes, Boavista and FC Maia before retiring at the age of 41. He also told me that the best ground he ever played at (excluding Epsom’s appearance at Wembley Stadium) was Benfica’s old Stadium of Light.
He also did some coaching at Maia in the early 2000s and this was put to good use in recent years when he started to run his own soccer school at Wandle Recreation Centre in Mapleton Road, Wandsworth which continues to this day.
Most people will not know that Phil was actually a member of a very talented family and had a couple of brothers; Dennis who also played regularly for Epsom and Ewell, making 102 appearances and scoring 12 goals, and Larrington (Larry) who was a very well-known actor with roles in Minder, The Bill, Inspector Morse and The Chinese Detective amongst others, yet was versatile enough to also be a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company and was a good friend of comedian Lenny Henry. Also, his nephew Kyle Walker-Peters is of course currently a professional footballer with Southampton.
I was extremely fortunate to meet both Phil and Trevor in 2015 when I noticed that Phil had started following our club on Twitter and dropped him a line to see if he would like to have a chat and he was more than happy to meet up and would bring Trevor along too.
When we met that evening I found two extremely modest people who knew they were breaking down barriers and raising the public’s perception at a time when it desperately needed to be, but you got the impression that they saw themselves as simply footballers. I didn’t feel the need to ask them the same questions they must have heard hundreds of times about their race, and in all honesty, I’d have probably been able to find out those answers from many other previous interviews. I wanted to concentrate on their time at Epsom and Ewell and I think it must have been quite refreshing for them to answer some different questions. In more recent years the Achtung Millwall podcast interviewed Phil and whilst it obviously concentrates more on his time there, it is well worth a listen too.
I said my goodbyes that evening and they said they would try to get along to an Epsom game one day. Regrettably now Phil will never make that journey, but he will never be forgotten at this club while I am here to pass the baton and remind people of our former greats, of which Phil was certainly one!
Sandwiched between weekend Festival performances to sizeable crowds in Harrogate and Swanage, Jo Harrop delighted Epsom Jazz Club’s modest audience on 7th July by taking to the stage for a sublime midweek concert.
Wonderfully accompanied by local jazz guitarist Nigel Price, Dave Chamberlain on double bass, and Matt Home on drums, Jo effortlessly commanded the room with songs from Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday, and more.
Image – Terry Tomlinson
After moving to London from her home city of Durham, Jo quickly established herself as one of the most unmistakable voices in British jazz, performing everywhere from Ronnie Scott’s to the Royal Albert Hall. Epsom Jazz Club is still in its infancy having only been launched in 2022, and was elated to welcome Jo in the midst of her busy touring schedule.
Epsom Jazz Club rests in August and will announce its Autumn programme soon.
