BERDEN RECORDER’S REPORT 2022  

 

January
The Village Hall was opened for New Year ’s drinks and nibbles at Midday. The focus of the Parish Council continues to be on the proposed Solar Farm and Battery Unit. The village is against the proposal. Clare Yeoman passed away on the 12th January from cancer. She was a much loved member of the community who freely volunteered her time for the village. The Berden Progressive Supper looks to be happening again in May after the past few years.

February
A celebration of the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee will take place on June 5th. The Street will be closed and villagers will be invited to bring lunch and listen to some local bands. A new Boules court has been created thanks to funding from Uttlesford Council and the Village Hall. Harry Wadsworth led a group of helpers in its construction. Very strong winds hit Berden this month with the first ‘Red’ warning for Essex being issued. A number of trees were lost but most buildings were relatively unaffected. In wider news, Russia has invaded Ukraine, sparking a major new conflict in Europe. Refugees from Ukraine will be expected in the next few months.

March
A Road safety group has been set up in Berden to monitor the speeds of vehicles coming into the village from Stocking Pelham and Clavering. The aim is to record speeds and encourage a change in behaviour of drivers entering the village. Jenny Green has retired as the village post lady after many years. A good bye ‘send off’ was organised on March 5th to thank her. Statera held a public consultation event at the Village Hall on 21st March. This was well attended but did not succeed in easing residents concerns.

April
Food vans are now appearing at the monthly Family Night and these are proving to be very popular with residents. The Good Friday Fish Supper resumed this month and was well supported at the Church. The Easter Egg Hunt took place at the Village Hall on Easter Sunday. Berden Open Gardens will be happening this year on the 26th June along with the Fete on the 9th July. A decision was made to cancel the progressive supper due to lack of support.

May
A Family Fun walk around the village was organised by Steve Bates on the 22nd. This was followed by a lunchtime BBQ. The Church is continuing to collect food for the Uttlesford food bank as there has been another increase in its need for its services. The Church is also resuming its Champing activities whereby people can come and stay in the church overnight. It will be one of 19 other churches who are part of this network nationally and will raise some much needed funds. Phillipa Hall died this month after a short illness. She was a former teacher who volunteered as a mental health counsellor.

June
On Thursday 2nd June many people from around the village attended the lighting of the village beacon at the village hall. This was lit by Freddie McConnell and supervised on behalf of the Queen by Fergus McMullen the Deputy Lieutenant Colonel of Hertfordshire. A very enjoyable lunch was organised in the Street for Her Majesty’s 70th year on the throne. Many residents turned out and listened to Berden’s Wild Roses. Women In Berden has now resumed after the pandemic and met on June 10th. On the 26th we had our Open Gardens event and this was attended and publicised by BBC Radio Essex. They came as part of their programme called ‘Essex Quest’ and interviewed a number of people including the organisers and myself on the Boy Bishop tradition at St Nicholas Church. Alex Philimore Brown was appointed Bishop for the day. The first one in 50 years! There was live music from the Wild Roses and Afinado in the churchyard. A café was set up for visitors.

Berden Book Club continues to meet. This month they are reading ‘The Hummingbird’ by Sandro Veronesi. Jenny Arnell organised a coffee morning at Jersey Farm last month and raised £500 for St Clare’s Hospice. This is where Clare Yeoman stayed in her final weeks. We also lost Carol Fahy this month who trained as a nurse and made a huge contribution to village life as a member of the Social Club Committee and the Village Hall Committee.

July
The Fete took place on the 9th July. It was a great success and raised over £10000 for the village hall and the church. It once again took place in the Street. The weather was very hot and for the first time in British history the temperature exceeded 40c in late July. We are now entering a period of drought.

August
It continues to be very hot. There is concern about the rising cost of living brought on by the Ukraine War, Brexit and other supply issues. Fuel is set to rise very steeply. With the resignation of Boris Johnson there is now a period of hustings to be the new PM. Our local MP, Kemi Badenoch stood for election but eventually it came down to Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss.

September
The death of Queen Elizabeth II was announced this month. A bank holiday was arranged for the 19th September to enable people to attend or watch the funeral on TV. The new King, Charles III will be crowned next May. Liz Truss became PM and is set to make some big changes to Government economic policy. The Village Quiz took place on the 30th September and was hosted by Andrew Cowley.

October
On the 9th October the first Berden Boules Finals Day took place at the Village Hall. Village Bulb planting took place on the 16th October. Liz Truss was forced to resign as PM due to the economic and political turmoil brought on by her economic policies. We now have our third PM this year; Rishi Sunak. The Solar Farm and Battery installation continues to be a concern around the village. No final decision about planning has been made. Bonfire collections resume from the 15th October. The Harvest Supper at the church took place on the 15th and raised nearly £400. Heather Davis passed away this month. She was a member of the choir and Berden Ladies Group

November
The Berden Firework Night took place on the 5th November and was a huge success. A large number of people attended and many people said how great it was to attend this event, particularly as the Clavering one was cancelled. Stuart Felstead, a Berden resident has been made Essex Cricket Captain for the over 50s squad. He will also be touring Barbados as a member of the England squad this month.

December
The Village Hall Committee and Parish Council are struggling to find people to join them. This is a problem as many of the existing members are resigning or retiring for various reasons. The Christmas Busstopshop took place on the 11th and was very successful. The village tree was also put up the following week. Christmas lights have gone up around Berden despite the cost of electricity! Many houses are lit up. On the 18th a village carol service took place at the Church and raised funds for Crisis at Christmas. It started slightly later at 6pm to accommodate the winter World Cup Final between Argentina and France! This month saw the start of a series of rail and nursing strikes over pay. The cost of living crisis means that many people are struggling

 

Mark Trapmore
Berden Local History Recorder