The churches of Whaley Bridge Uniting Partnership warmly invite you to join them in their Easter services:
Maundy Thursday – April 2nd 2015
7pm – Service of Shadows with Holy Communion at Whaley Bridge Uniting Church (2 hour service)
Good Friday – April 3rd 2015
10am – Churches Together in Whaley Bridge Service at Whaley Bridge Uniting Church
Easter Sunday – April 5th 2015
10.30am – Morning Worship with Holy Communion at Whaley Bridge Uniting Church
2.30pm – Afternoon Worship with Holy Communion at Fernilee Church
2.30pm – Afternoon Worship with Holy Communion at Kettleshulme Church
All are welcome to receive Communion

Many of Whaley Bridge’s Organisations and Groups put together a 2 day exhibition at the end of November in the Uniting Church to Commemorate WW1 and its impact on families and social life in and around Whaley Bridge (supported by a £500 grant from HPBC, and a £150 grant from Whaley4Wards via the Town Councils regeneration budget).

A constant stream of visitors all day

An enormous amount of  research and background work had been undertaken by the groups and individuals who showcased their displays for all the community to enjoy and more than 500 people visited the exhibition. Chris Simpson created a photo display of over 75 photos capturing local life and local images of the war, accompanied by accounts of individual stories, and other historical detail. Julian Thompson presented an audiovisual display detailing various local WW1 soldiers, and based around detail from his website www.whaleybridgefirstwar.co.uk  (currently temporarily hosted at http://www.peterthomp.co.uk/blank_web/index.htm ) .

A hall full of different exhibits.

The Royal British Legion and Whaley Bridge and Furness Vale History Societies showed Continue Reading →

Whaley4Wards, the regeneration subcommittee of Whaley Bridge Town Council, have created a trial scheme to help shop owners, tenants and landlords in the conservation area of Whaley Bridge to access a small grant which is available for anyone who would like to improve the external appearance of their premises.

All applications for funding must be received by 31st January 2015, although applications may be considered after that date if funds allow. All works funded must be completed by 31 March 2015.

The commercial centre of Whaley Bridge lies within a conservation area. Within this area, the appearance of shop fronts and the pavement area in front of them, has a considerable impact and influence on the character of the town. They are an essential element of the wider streetscape. A shop front designed with respect given to the architecture of the building and character of the surrounding area can add charm and vitality, making it attractive to shoppers and visitors alike.

For a high definition map of the Conservation area , see link below.

WhaleyBridgeCAmap

The shop front facelift scheme aims to Continue Reading →

The Whaley Bridge Rose Queen children’s Christmas disco, now a firm fixture in the calendar, takes place on Friday evening (12 Dec) at the Bowling Club.

Entry is free for all children under 12. The disco runs from 6pm-8.30pm, with party games, prizes, and a goody bag for every child. Hot dogs will also be on sale.

At 8.30pm, the annual presentation of donations to local youth organisations, totalling £1,400 from the proceeds of this year’s carnival, will be made by Cllr John Pritchard, chair of Whaley Bridge Town Council.

The committee has started the search for a Rose Queen for next year, the 40th anniversary since the festival was reformed in 1975. For further details, contact
Tim Mourne, chairman, on 01663 734930.

Cricket enthusiasts with a particular interest in the history of the game, and those who enjoy a good investigative story,  will be in for a treat if they attend an event being held at Whaley Bridge Bowling Club next week. (Tuesday 2nd Dec 7.30pm)

The author of a book investigating the controversial sale of a ball supposedly hit for an historic six sixes by West Indian legend Garry Sobers in Swansea in 1968 will be speaking at a meeting of the High Peak Cricket Society – along with John Parkin, the batsman standing at the other end during the famous over.

Grahame Lloyd’s illustrated talk – including an interview with John Parkin – takes place at the Whaley Bridge Bowling Club in Buxton Road (SK23 7HX) (opposite the Cock Pub) at 7.30pm on Tuesday 2nd December 2014. All are welcome and non-High Peak Cricket Society members can attend the meeting at a cost of £2 . If you would also like to enjoy a hotpot supper for a modest fee please contact the Secretary, Bob Wood, on 01663-732866 or highpeakcs@btinternet.com in advance so that the numbers can be planned.

The Duke & Son ball was sold for a world record £26,400 by Christie’s in 2006 but in Howzat? The Six Sixes Ball Mystery, freelance broadcaster and journalist Grahame Lloyd proves that it wasn’t the one bowled to Sobers by Malcolm Nash at St Helen’s because it was the wrong make.

The actual ball used in the over was manufactured by Stuart Surridge and BBC TV footage confirms Nash’s assertion that it was the only one he bowled – not the last of three as claimed by Christie’s – during the Glamorgan versus Nottinghamshire county championship match.

“I used the same ball for all six deliveries,” says Nash, “and it was charred, scarred and Continue Reading →

Whaley Bridge people renewed their link to the Cenotaph in Memorial Park, which could not be used for the last two Remembrance Sundays because of a major refurbishment.

Local organisations, including the Royal British Legion, placed wreaths on the memorial, later admired by many people.

The Rev Margaret Jones, priest in charge of the parish of Whaley Bridge, conducted the service. Earlier she had told congregations at other services of her moving visit to the ceramic poppies display at the Tower of London.

Wreath laying at the Memorial in Whaley Bridge Memorial Park

We will remember them.

 
Kettleshulme remembers at village Memorial Hall

One of the smaller gatherings in the area was at Kettleshulme. The village’s dead of two wars are commemorated outside the Memorial Hall. The Rev Keith Sandow, minister of Whaley Bridge Uniting Church Partnership, read their names and Laurie Walton, principal cornet player of Whaley Bridge Band, played the Last Post. Continue Reading →

On Fri 21st and Sat 22nd November, 10am – 5pm, at the Uniting Church in Whaley Bridge, Whaley Bridge’s regeneration group, Whaley4Wards, with the help of many other local groups and individuals, are getting together to put on a commemorative exhibition covering aspects of life in and around Whaley Bridge and Furness Vale during the First World War period. The purpose of the exhibition is to remember those who lost their lives, and to provide an insight into how the war affected people living in Whaley Bridge and nearby. Various war artifacts from the period will also be on display to show things which would have been familiar to the soldiers at the front.

William Henry Jones from Whaley Bridge was one of those who made the ultimate sacrifice. He enlisted in August 1917, when he was just 18 and 1 month. Just 21 days after arriving in France in April 1918, he died from wounds received in action on 27th April 1918.

William Henry Jones

The exhibition will comprise an audiovisual display, pictures of the period from Chris Simpson, war memorabilia,  contemporary music,  school displays from Taxal and Fernilee,  Furness Vale,  Buxworth and Whaley Bridge schools, crafts, and a living history performance by actors who will talk through aspects of life during the war both from a soldiers perspective and from a general perspective, illustrating how attitudes to the war changed over the period. The event will also see the launch of several local history books of the period. The audiovisual display remembers those who lost their lives using photos and research by Julian Thompson. There will also be an archiving facility where people can bring along paperwork or other materials and have them scanned or photographed, without the material leaving their sight. The material does not need to be local in nature. Refreshments will also be available. Continue Reading →