January 2018

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11 Buckden Roundabout
January 2018
Events
Storytime is on every Tuesday in school term time and starts at
2.15pm. This month’s sessions are on the 9 th, 16th and 23rd
January. Our regular monthly craft activity will be on Saturday
13th January. Look out for more details in the library. Our reg-
ular Knit Lit meetings are on Friday 5th and 19th January from
8pm. Knitters of all ages and abilities welcome!
Engage in the Afternoon
On Wednesday 17th January Joe Matthews, Huntingdonshire
Falls Prevention Trainer, will be giving a talk on falls prevention
and the benefits of physical activity. Free tickets are available
from the library.
E-books and e-magazines
Did you know that library members can download a wide
range of e-books, e-audio books and e-magazines for free at
www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/libraries? Come along to the
library to find out more
Volunteers
We currently have a few vacancies for volunteers in the library.
If you think you might be interested, or would like some more
information, ask in the library.
Village Hall, Burberry Road, Buckden
Tel: 0345 045 5225
www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/library
Tuesday 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
2.00 pm to 5.00 pm
Thursday 2.00 pm to 5.00 pm
Friday 5.00 pm to 8.00 pm
Saturday 10.00 am to 1.00 pm
Closed Monday and Wednesday
Poetry Competition!
Do you know your haiku from your acrostic? Do you prefer
rhyming couplets, a sonnet or maybe a quatrain?
Why not enter the Roundabout poetry competition and win
£10!
The theme this year is Spring.
Entries can be made to the following age groups:
• 11 years and under
• 12 to 18 years
• 19 years +
Entries should be emailed to the editor
(editor@buckdenroundabout.info) by Friday 16 February 2018.
Winning entries will be published in the March 2018 edition of
The Roundabout.
BUCKDEN VILLAGE HALL - A SHORT HISTORY (Part 1)
By Jo Harvey and John Thelwall
In 1921, the conversion of the building known as The Rifle Range
on Church Street from a malting to a rifle range, reading room
and billiards room was completed. Over the years it had many
functions, including the holding of dances during and after World
War II. The Parish Council held its meetings there and it was, in
effect a village hall.
After World War II, there was a proposal to establish a permanent
memorial to the villagers killed in the war and it was felt that a
playing field would be a good memorial. Money was raised and in
1947 the War Memorial Playing Fields Trust was established. In
1953, “Children’s Corner” was purchased for £90 from the Church
Commissioners. It was to be held on trust by the Parish Council
for the benefit of the inhabitants of the village. It is now the main
car park for the Hall. In 1958, the rest of the land, including the
Memorial Playing Fields and Valley was bought, again from the
Church Commissioners, for £900. The land was again conveyed to
the Parish Council as trustee for the benefit of the inhabitants.
The deed set out in detail the terms of the trust and how it was to
be managed. The whole site now comprises the Village Hall, play-
ing field, tennis courts, bowling green and the Valley. The fact
that it is The War Memorial Playing Fields is commemorated by
the stone memorial near the Hall.
According to the Buckden Village history book, in 1969, in the
opinion of some, the Rifle Range had outlived its usefulness. With
the building of St Stephen’s Hall and the renovation of The King’s
Room in the Palace, it was no longer the centre of village social
activities. There was no parking to accommodate the increasing
number of cars in use. An open meeting was held, which was very
animated and eventually a vote was held. By a small majority, it
was decided to sell the Rifle Range and build a new village hall.
However, the title deeds to the Playing Fields show that in 1966
the sale of the Rifle Range had already been proposed and in
1968, the Rifle Range Trustees and the Parish Council both passed
resolutions to amalgamate the two trusts, which seems to sug-
gest that plans to sell the Rifle Range and build a new village hall
had been under way long before the 1969 meeting.
Whatever the actual course of events, the Rifle Range was sold
and the money was used to build a village hall on part of the site
of the War Memorial Playing Fields. In addition to the actual hall,
it had a stage, kitchen toilets, changing room and space for the
Village Club. It had a steel frame and metal roof. It was run by
trustees nominated by village organisations, as set out in the
founding Scheme, and up to six village members.
In addition to housing Parish Council meetings, it was a social hub
for the village and used by a number of different societies includ-
ing a thriving drama club which put on two productions and a
panto every year.
By the late 1990s the building was looking dated and tired. The
Parish Council held a public meeting to decide its future and the
chairman proposed closing the Hall. The British trait of contrari-
ness once again showed itself as the result was a revival of public
interest in the Hall. A joint working party of the Village Hall Trus-
tees and the Parish Council was established to decide its future.
Village News