Playground reopens – please use your common sense

CUBLINGTON PLAYGROUND –

PLEASE READ BEFORE ENTERING
a. You must maintain social distancing from others, if it is too busy
to do this please do not enter.
b. Do not use the equipment if you or any member of your
household has coronavirus symptoms, or are self-isolating. 
c. Children should not use the equipment if they are clinically or
extremely clinically vulnerable. 
d. Make sure you have hand sanitiser with you before entering the
playground.
e. Encourage everyone in your family to wash their hands or use
hand sanitiser regularly, as a minimum before and after using
the playground. 
f. Encourage children to avoid touching their faces 
g. Some equipment can only be used by one child at a time while
social distancing.  Please ensure your family waits at a safe
distance if the equipment is in use or return later to use the
equipment
h. At busy times please think of others and limit your time in the
play area so others may use and enjoy it too.
i. Please do not consume food or drink in the playground
j. If your family is wearing disposable PPE, please take it home
with you or where provided use the bins – don’t litter. 
k. Users of this playground do so under their own risk
l. All children must be accompanied by an adult
m. The playground has not been sanitised – you are strongly
advised to clean the equipment with disinfectant before use and
to take away your rubbish with you

Cublington Parish Council

Coronavirus mobile testing site comes to Buckingham from Wednesday, 13 May

© Stewart Turkington for Bracknell Forest Council
Pictured: Stock photo of coronavirus mobile testing site.
© Stewart Turkington for Bracknell Forest Council

Buckingham will be the location of the next coronavirus mobile testing site in the county, which will run for up to three days from Wednesday, 13 May.

It will operate from the Swan Pool and Leisure Centre site in London Road, MK18 1AE.

This is in addition to other local and regional coronavirus testing sites, which are still available for residents in Buckinghamshire to use.

Mobile testing sites have been in operation at High Wycombe and Aylesbury over the last week, but both of these have now moved on.

Anyone who is eligible and wishes to be tested at the Buckingham mobile site must arrange an appointment on the national booking website first – https://self-referral.test-for-coronavirus.service.gov.uk.  Tests must be booked and are not available on a ‘drop-in’ basis. You can also book a test at a different site via this website.

Only certain categories of people are eligible for testing at this time, like NHS or other essential workers (and some household members), or people over 65 with coronavirus symptoms. More details of these categories are listed below.

People being tested must bring appropriate ID (like an NHS ID card) or a letter/ email from their employer to confirm their key worker status.

The site, which will be operated by military personnel, will operate a one-way system in and out of the parking area, so anyone using it should please take care to follow the signage.

Gareth Williams, Cabinet Member for Public Health and Community Engagement at Buckinghamshire Council, said: “It’s very encouraging to have another mobile testing site running in the county, so soon after those in High Wycombe and Aylesbury. Testing is vital as we work together to stop the spread of coronavirus. We would urge anyone who thinks they should be tested, and who is eligible, to please book a slot at the Buckingham site.”

Dr Raj Bajwa, GP and Chair of NHS Buckinghamshire Clinical Commissioning Group, added: “Testing is essential to help keep NHS services running smoothly during this outbreak, and to help vulnerable people stay as safe as possible from coronavirus infection. These mobile sites will offer a great boost to our testing capabilities in Buckinghamshire, so we hope they will be well-used by those that need them.”

Tests are being offered to the following categories of people, and, in some cases, members of their household. They are not available for other members of the general public at this time:

·       All those working on the frontline in health and social care (with or without symptoms)

·       Patients in the NHS and residents in care homes (with or without symptoms)

·       All essential workers with symptoms

·       Anyone over 65 with symptoms

·       Anyone who goes into work because they cannot work from home (e.g. construction workers) and has symptoms

·       Anyone who has symptoms and lives with someone who meets any of the above criteria

You can find more details about eligibility for testing here – https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-getting-tested

Five Bucks household recycling centres set to reopen

social distancing guidelines
The experience of visiting our household recycling centres will be different. This is what visitors can expect

Buckinghamshire Council has confirmed the reopening of five of its nine household recycling centres to give residents the chance to dispose of waste that cannot be safely stored at home.

From Wednesday 6 May, the Amersham, Aston Clinton, Buckingham, Beaconsfield and High Wycombe sites will open seven days a week, 9am-6pm – the usual summer opening hours. The other four sites will remain closed for the foreseeable future. To stay within the government’s coronavirus guidelines on essential travel, however, it is important that journeys to these sites during lockdown are only made if waste cannot be stored for longer at home without causing risk to health or safety. 

The health of residents and staff is always the highest priority, so everyone visiting the reopened sites will be expected to observe the new social distancing measures that have been put in place. This includes traffic management to control the number of visitors at any one time. The Council warns that this could lead to extensive traffic queues building up at site entrances, so it’s well worth delaying a visit until things are a bit quieter.

Bill Chapple OBE, Buckinghamshire Council Cabinet Member for Environment and Climate Change, said: “The decision to reopen the recycling centres has been taken after listening to residents’ concerns on extra waste accumulation during the lockdown period. We want to ensure that people who have been struggling to manage their waste are able to dispose of it properly.

“However, I must warn visitors who do feel that a trip is essential that their visit will be different from normal due to the measures we are putting in place to protect both visitors and our staff. I would also stress that we are only open for residents of Buckinghamshire and will be asking visitors for identification to prove their address.

“As part of the need to ensure social distancing, we have had to limit the number of visitors on site at any one time, so long queues to access the site are likely. I’d ask people to bear in mind that the five sites that are reopening will be open from 9 am to 6 pm seven days a week, so it isn’t necessary to rush there at the first opportunity.

“Staff will be on hand to ensure that the social distancing guidelines are adhered to, therefore we urge all visitors to be patient and leave plenty of time for their visit.

“Fly tipping is a crime. Buckinghamshire Council takes a zero tolerance approach to fly tipping and will prosecute wherever possible. However, there has been some concern amongst residents that the closure of the recycling centres has led some people to either fly tip or hire unlicensed individuals to take away their rubbish. With the reopening of five sites, it means that anyone with accumulated waste that cannot safely be stored can now dispose of it properly.”

These are the things to remember when visiting the reopened household recycling centres:

· You should only visit the site if you cannot safely store your waste at home.

· All residents visiting the site will need to observe the social distancing measures now in place. This also means no assistance for unloading can be provided.

· There will be limits on the number of vehicles allowed on site to allow for social distancing. There may be delays accessing the site and possibly queues of waiting vehicles.

· Only one person per vehicle where possible.

· Residents will be asked for their proof of address. Only Buckinghamshire residents will be allowed to use the sites.

· The existing permit system is still in place, but trailers are temporarily banned from sites.

· In line with Public Health England guidance, residents who are vulnerable, or who are showing symptoms which may indicate coronavirus, should not visit household recycling centres.

· We will continue to charge for non-household waste brought to sites.

· Because of the higher staffing levels required to ensure social distancing, we cannot open Aylesbury (Rabans Lane), Chesham, Burnham and Langley sites for the time being. These sites remain closed so please do not visit.

Green waste collections to restart and waste sites stand ready to open.

Buckinghamshire Council will restart green waste collections across the county from 11 May and also stand ready to open five of its nine household waste sites as soon as the Government gives the green light nationally.

The moves to help residents across the county deal with their additional waste were announced at Cabinet today (30 April) by Bill Chapple OBE, Cabinet Member for Environment and Climate Change.

Today’s announcement follows the closedown of both areas at the start of the coronavirus outbreak due to government guidance, as well as staff shortages due to sickness and those needing to self-isolate. However Bill Chapple said things had improved sufficiently to reinstate the two services.

“Coronavirus has had a massive impact on all our waste services but waste teams from across the county have worked tremendously hard to prioritise collections and keep waste and recycling bin collections going. However, we’re now fighting back and it’s my intention to get services operating somewhere close to normality wherever I can, subject to current conditions continuing.

“Bringing back green waste collections will really help residents tend to their gardens during the lockdown. I know collection crews will be working hard particularly on the initial rounds, so could I ask residents to be considerate and avoid over-filling bins or putting additional garden waste out alongside.”

Residents’ normal garden bin collection days will stay the same but the Council advises checking their website first just to make sure nothing has changed. Collection times may however change, so residents are asked to put bins out by 6.30am. In addition, no subscribers will be out of pocket while green waste hasn’t been collected as contract extensions or reduced priced renewals are being introduced. The Council will also be reinstating its bulky waste collection service across the county.

Bill continued, “To allow residents to dispose of other essential rubbish that might be harmful to store, we’ve also been working behind the scenes to prepare five of our most suitable household waste sites for reopening. These sites are at Amersham, Aston Clinton, Beaconsfield, Buckingham and High Heavens in High Wycombe and are best able to deal with queuing vehicles.

“We’re now just waiting for the Government’s final authorisation to open and this is expected within the next couple of weeks.

“That said, sites will look and operate differently to comply with strict social distancing requirements. We’ll be adopting a ‘supermarket style’ of operation with strict controls on the number of people entering the site at any one time and marked off areas to maintain two metre gaps. 

“As soon as we get the green light, we’ll publish more detailed guidance on when these sites will reopen and how they will operate so residents can be absolutely clear on what they need to do.    

“It’s been a concerted effort from the whole waste team to find the best ways to reintroduce services given the extraordinary times we’re in and I really hope it will provide some much-needed help for local residents going forward.”

For more information, please visit www.buckinghamshire.gov.uk 

The Pub Hub shop is open!

Every household in the village will have been dropped a leaflet outlining the basic products we are offering for now. The items may change periodically so please continue to look here for an up to date list.

Please either phone your orders through on 07498 179777, email to pubhub@cublington.com or fill in the form and drop through the Unicorn letterbox. It will be dealt with as soon as possible and arrangements made for payment on delivery.

BACS transfer is the preferred method for payment, with Shop and your Name as a reference. Thank you.

Cash or cheques can be accepted Cheques made out to Cublington Crier please, cash by arrangement only, the right amount please in an envelope, again with your name and shop as a reference.

We hope you find this shop useful while you are isolating during these troubled times.

Cublington Remembers

The 11th November marked the 100th anniversary of the end of WW1.
To mark this occasion the residents of Cublington curated an incredible exhibition of social history, focusing on family members of Cublington residents who served, and some who made the ultimate sacrifice.
This short article tells just some of these stories with a focus on current residents and their connection to both wars and other conflicts.

Please forgive any omissions or inaccuracies.

Many thanks to all who gave their time to curate such a moving archive available here as a pdf download. It is hoped that in time many more documents and information from the exhibition will be published online.

Cublington Remembers

Reminiscences of an evacuee 1939 – 1943

Pat McGinn revisits Cublington

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My name is Pat McGinn, but I was born Patricia Allen. Last week on October 16th, my family decided to go visit my sister Eileen, as her daughter told us she was ill in the hospital in London. When we left Heathrow, my son hired a car and suggested we go to Cublington, as Eileen and myself lived there in 1939 for nearly 4 years.

In September, 1939 we were at war with Germany. At the time, I was 7 ½ and Eileen was nearly 10. All we were told was that we were going to the country and it would possibly be only until Christmas. So, on the first Saturday in September, we were taken to our school where there were a number of buses. All we had to carry was a case and a gas mask for Eileen, and a back-pack with my clothes and my gas mask inside it. The buses took us to the railroad station, where we were all put on a train with our teachers. The train took us to Leighton Buzzard. Then we got on more buses and went to a place called Cublington. When we arrived at the Cublington School, we went inside and there was a meal prepared for all of us by the women of the village. Each of them had said how many children they were prepared to take and live with them. One of the women was Mrs. (Mollie) Stevens and she said she would take 6 children. Because it was hard to find a family of 6, they decided to take 3 lots of 2 sisters. So they asked us to put up our hands if we were 2 sisters. Well, they called the 2 girls Popkins, then the 2 Bonner girls , then Eileen told me to put up my hand and the teacher, Miss Hammond, called Eileen and myself. We then went with Mrs. Stevens to her home, which was called The Old Rectory. In my eyes it was a huge house. She took us to the part of the house that she stayed in and it was beautiful. I remember saying to Eileen, “Look. They have the pictures here”, as Mrs. Steven had a black and white TV, and Victor Sylvester was playing on it.

The other girls did not stay too long. I think it was because they got home-sick. So, before the end of November, only Eileen and myself were left at the Stevens. We called Mr. and Mrs. Stevens “Madam and Master”. It was a memory of my childhood I shall never forget. Mr. and Mrs. Stevens treated us like we were part of their family. Before Christmas, Madam came to us and asked if we were going to write a letter to Father Christmas. I did not know who Father Christmas was. So, Eileen said, “Think of a toy shop and all the things in it you would like and write them down on the large piece of paper.” So, we did, and then gave it back to Madam. Well, Christmas morning came and as we went out of our bedroom door, there were two pillow cases filled with all the small toys we had asked for. Then we went downstairs to our playroom and we could hardly get in the door for all of the other things we asked for that were there!

That evening both Eileen and myself were given dresses and big bow ribbons to put on our heads. Mine was red and Eileen’s was green, as we told Madam they were our favourite colours. When I look back now, it was like on a box of chocolates—the bow was almost as big as my head! We then went to Madam and Master’s part of the house, and they had friends of theirs, and we celebrated Christmas with them.

The household at the time consisted of Mr. and Mrs. Moore, who were the cook and butler, and Mr. and Mrs. Sparks, who were the housekeeper and head gardener. Then there were Leslie Gardener and Dennis Butcher, who were working under Mr. Sparks as gardeners.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We went to Aston Abbotts to school after Cublington School was closed, as the government said there were too many children for a 2 roomed school. But Mrs. Stevens said that walking all the way to school, which was 2 ½ miles, and back 4 times a day was too much. They tried to tell her we could take sandwiches for lunch, but she still said no, as she thought we should have a hot meal at lunchtime. So, Eileen and myself went to school in the morning and then walked home at lunchtime, bringing our homework with us. Mrs. Moore prepared a hot meal for us. Then we were to sit in the playroom and do our homework and Mrs. Stevens would come over to the playroom and check to see we had done it.

We lived there until Madam and Master decided to move to Scotland as Madam had a brother, Master Dick, who was in the Air Force and was reported missing. So, they decided to go to Scotland and asked our parents if we could go with them. But our parents said it was too far away, so Eileen and I were split up. I went to live with Mr. and Mrs. Sparks and their daughter Sheila, but they could not take Eileen, so she went to stay with another couple.

After the Stevens left, The Old Rectory was owned by Lady Essex. I knew this because at age 15 years, I went back to Cublington to see if Mr. and Mrs. Stevens had moved back, but they had not, so I did not see them again.

When Mrs. Stevens left, Mrs. Sparks went to work for Mrs. Gilbey. One Saturday, Mrs. Gilbey invited Mrs. Sparks, Sheila and myself to go to Aylesbury to the The Bull Hotel for a meal with her. The remembrance of that for me was when we sat down, we had six different knives and forks laid out on either side of the place setting. Mrs. Gilbey told Sheila and I how each serving started at the outside and worked in. We started with fish, and she said it was to clean our pallet. Then we worked in as each course came around. It was a very good experience for me. Still to this day I eat with the knife in my right hand and the fork in my left, unlike the Americans where I live. They pick up both knife and fork to cut their meat, then put down their knife to use the fork to eat with. (That’s how the Americans couldn’t move to Europe as spies, because they shoveled their food. They had to go to England first to learn how to eat. I found that out after the war.)

One of the things I do remember was that Mrs. Gilbey moved into the village with her daughter Susan. Every night Mrs. Gilbey would take her dog Soda for a walk towards Stewkley. To see the two together was so funny, as Soda was bandy and waddled as he walked, and so did Mrs. Gilbey. The kids in the village would stand by the church wall at 5 o’clock, just to see them come past. Do you know who Mrs. Gilbey was? Her husband owned the Gilbey’s Gin company in London.

One day Mr. and Mrs. Sparks decided we’d be going to Cambridge to visit a relative of hers. We went for the weekend and on the way back, we were stopped by some soldiers asking us to give one of the soldiers a lift to Wingrave Crossroads. He climbed in the back with me and as we were going along the road, in the distance, we could see all the bursts of London being bombed. He said, “London’s really getting it tonight,” and I started crying. I started crying because I had not heard from my family for 3 weeks. He asked why I was crying, and Mrs. Sparks explained that I was a London evacuee and that my parents lived in London. He asked what parts and I told him Hoxton, because that’s the only place I knew. He said, “No, don’t worry. They are only bombing the docks, which is a long way from where your parents live.” When we got back to Cublington, Eileen told me the next day that she received a letter from home, and that my mother and father were bombed out, but everybody was OK.

Mr. Biggs was the “Billington Officer”. He was the one who went around the village and spoke to all the families to see how many children families were going to take. He was also the one who found a place for Eileen after the Stevens said they were leaving. Mr. Sparks and Mr. Biggs got together and decided that Mr. Sparks would slaughter a big pig and Mr. Biggs would have one of his cows slaughtered. They would both give up their families’ meat ration coupons for one year, and we would have fresh beef and pork for a year.

After a while, Eileen wanted to go home to London and wrote and told my mother, who said if Eileen comes home, so does Pat.

It was 1943 when Eileen and I came back to London. For me, it was a frightening time as in Cublington we had no bombs dropped. It was a very quiet village and we knew everyone. When I came back to London, it was very noisy, and we lived with the idea that we did not know if we were going to be alive very long. At first the German bombers would come over nightly, so we were supposed to go down to the air raid shelter. But my father said no because he said he did not think the shelter was safe, so we sat on the stairs in the apartment block. As he said, when he looked at the bombed apartments during the day, the only thing standing was the stairs so it was safer for us to be there. Also, he could have a cigarette and that would help him to clear his lungs.

Listening, you could hear the “ping ping ping” every night. You’ve got these airplanes going over and it was funny to hear this “ping ping ping” and I wondered what it was. My father said it was the shrapnel from guns on the railway lines. That’s what we listened to. So nightly, we sat on the stairs and just up the road there was a large gun parked on the railway lines, so when the bombers came over, we could hear it and the shrapnel would fall in the grounds of our apartment, which kept us from getting a good night’s sleep.

Later on, the Germans sent the V1 and V2 Rockets daily. We had no warning that they were coming. We just heard an engine until it stopped and then we knew it was coming down. It was a pilotless plane with a huge bomb, and did quite a lot of damage. I was going to school at the time and quite often the teacher would shout, “get under your desks!” as we could hear them coming and just waited for the engine to stop, for then we knew it was coming down.

Eileen was 14 years old and she had to go to work. She worked for an American company in Camden Town. It was called “The Black Cat” and they made the Craven A Cigarettes. Eileen worked in the factory from 8 in the morning until 5 in the afternoon. I did not see her very much, so we were not as close as we had been in Cublington. Eileen met a woman in her factory named Rosie Reading. She had a son who was in the Navy named Harry. When he came home on leave, Eileen was 15 years old and she met Harry. They met every time he came home. Eileen went with Harry until she was 23, then they got married.

I would like to say right now that going back to see the Old Rectory was such a joy to me. Memories came flooding back and I will always remember that time in my life as I know how it has influenced my life.

So, looking back at 86 years old, I think I took the memories of Cublington and the people of the village and said that I would like my family to live like they did. It was such a wonderful time. I will never forget.

Going back to Cublington after nearly 80 years, I was so thrilled to be able to walk around the grounds the first day and see the lily pond and all the back of the garden, and the old moat that we used to slide on during the winter with master Dick, as he had ice skates and skated around Eileen and myself. I even saw the old school in Aston Abbotts where we went to school after Cublington School was closed.

Comparing the two different ways of life as a child, I can finally look back and say I had a wonderful life living in Cublington and would like to thank every one of the people that made this possible.

I’d like to thank Lucy Peck for allowing us to go back into the Old Rectory and bringing back so many happy memories.

Pat McGinn

In the event of a power cut – what to do

The electricity network is built to be resilient but extreme weather can damage overhead power lines resulting in some customers losing their electricity supply. Where this happens UKPowerNetworks work to restore power as quickly and safely as possible. They have organised for additional staff in their contact centre to help customers whose electricity supply might be affected by the predicted weather, and they have called-up additional engineers to carry out repairs to overhead lines and poles as soon as the wind reduces to a speed at which it is safe to work.
You will be able to find regular updates on the website www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk and social media @UKPowerNetworks throughout this period.

Anyone experiencing a power cut should:
· Call 105 to report power cuts and damage to the electricity network, or 0800 3163 105 (from a corded phone or mobile phone if you have no power)
· Visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk for the latest updates
· Visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/powercut and type in their postcode to view our live power cut map
· Tweet @ukpowernetworks to report a power cuts or to receive updates

UK Power Netwroks advise people to stay clear of power lines and report damaged power lines immediately by calling 105 free from both a landline or a mobile phone. If they see electricity lines that are down or causing significant risk to the public they should call 999.
Extra help for customers on our Priority Service Register is available during a power cut. Households with older or disabled people, those with children under five, or where someone uses medical or mobility equipment that requires electricity as well as other reasons can join the register.

You can find out more information about the Priority Service on the website: ukpowernetworks.co.uk/priority.

If you would like to share information about preparing for the storm or the priority service register on social media you might like to use the following:
@UKPowerNetworks has extra staff on hand 24/7 to deal with the impact of #stormEleanor
Call 105 to report a powercut and visit www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/powercut for the latest updates
Do you, or someone you know, need extra support during a power cut? @UKPowerNetworks provides free services to vulnerable customers. Visit ukpowernetworks.co.uk/priority for more information #stormEleanor
Preparing for a power cut
Below is some additional advice:
Add 105 to the contacts on your mobile phone
Keep our Freephone 0800 3163 105 number handy
See www.ukpowernetworks.co.uk/powercuts for useful videos and advice during a power cut.
• Locate a torch, check it’s working and make sure you have spare batteries. Take care if using candles.
• Charge up your mobile phone, and a rechargeable mobile ‘powerbank’ if you have one
• Use a phone with a cord if you have one, cordless phones don’t work in a power cut
• Keep fridges and freezers closed, with a blanket over as they will stay cold for many hours
• Switch off all your electrical equipment, except one light which will let you know when the power comes back on
• Remember the street lights may also be off so take care if you go out
• Dress in warm clothes
• Look out for vulnerable neighbours

Orchard Ground Association AGM

Notice is given of the AGM of the Orchard Ground Association

at The Biggs Pavilion 19.30 15th November 2017

Agenda
• Apologies
• Review of Previous Minutes
• Matters Arising
• Chairman’s Report
• Treasurer’s Report
• Election of Committee for 2017/18
• AOB
• Date of Next Meeting

Cublington Tennis Trek

The Cublington Tennis Trek, held on October 2nd was heralded a great success as 24 players from the club, local area and guests from Halton and Princes Risborough took part in the third village Tennis Trek. (Previously held in 2004 and 2007)
This was a mixed round robin event played on four village courts – two at the Tennis Club, Orchard Ground, and on the delightful private garden courts in the village at the Old Stables and the Old Rectory. All players got to play on all courts, trekking round the village to compete in three of the 6 rounds of matches.

The four top placed male and females then played off in semi final sets before the winning team of Will Lightfoot (Cublington TC) and Gertruud Van Dijken (Princes Risborough TC) right claimed their prize against Jean Barnett and Peter Orchard.
A sumptuous rolling BBQ feast was available during the day and many guests and supporters enjoyed the tennis as well as the sunshine. More than £500 was raised towards the potential refurbishment of the courts to an “artificial turf ” surface, hopefully next Spring.
Organiser Gary says a further event is being planned for next year by kind permission of both the George and the Peck families.IMG_4958