Bramley Centenary Guide Update

1994 saw the production of the Bramley Parish Council Centenary Guide, to update a previous booklet produced in 1977 to commemorate the Queen’s Silver Jubilee. This article aims to update it – if only to record change before memories start to fade. Contributions to various chapters of the 1994 Guide involved calling on the knowledge of many local people, and the enthusiasm thus generated was instrumental in the creation of the Bramley History Society. The Society continues to go from strength to strength with around 200 members, regular quarterly meetings, and its own website at www.bramleyhs.btinternet.co.uk

In 1996, the Post Office moved from the west side of the High Street to occupy the north end of the Library building. The Parish Council managed to photograph, and then rescue, the old stamp machine and letter box, and these are now displayed as historical artefacts in the new lobby entrance to the village hall. The restaurant La Baita changed hands and is now Edwinns, and the adjoining Grinsteads (the butchers) is now closed and up for  sale. Sue Wingate’s stationery shop (and the adjoining Gallery for artists) next to the Wheatsheaf was sold, and Whibleys (the florist section) moved across the road to fill The Gallery. This enabled Clare’s Pantry to extend into Whibley’s vacant shop and thus compete as the alternative village grocery retailer to the petrol station, which had been extended at the rear to accommodate a Budgens mini-supermarket,

PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT CHANGES

Sadly, 1994 saw the demolition of Chapel of Rest (pictured right) in the closed cemetery. This lovely Victorian structure, being left unoccupied, was frequently vandalised. The only redeeming feature was the procurement of some of the Bargate stone which went into some of the external refurbishment to the Village Hall. In 1995/6 Stanton’s Wharf (previously the SCC Depot) and Woodrough Copse (subject of the thwarted bail hostel attempt) were built, and Smithbrook Kilns allowed to expand. Following the fire at the Bramley Grange Hotel in 1996 (see more below, The Grange has been developed for private residential use, although the Parish Council managed to secure its first affordable housing site for young local people (Webster Court) on the old hotel car park. Following closure of the SCC Youth Club, due to lack of attendance, the Bill Hedger Room (previously the Infant’s School canteen) has been demolished and the site now provides a pleasing main entrance to the School. Drummond’s, architectural antiques moved from Birtley Farm buildings in 1996, and this is now a small business centre (Birtley Courtyard). In a 3-stage development, St. Catherine’s School has extended in the grounds of the Junior School, thus releasing their kindergarten premises in Hall Road for staff accommodation. Snowdenham House (previously the Hamilton’s residence) was sold in 1998, and about the same time Maryvale (the church retreat) opposite was redeveloped to provide upmarket homes (Snowdenham Hall). Birtley House has also been extended to provide more care apartments. Since Grinstead’s closed, the land to the rear has been sold, with permitted development for 3 houses, and The Leathern Bottle public house has also been redeveloped to provide 4 dwellings (Smithbrook Gate). After the closure of BAe Dunsfold in 2000, the land has been purchased with a view to major re-development. Whilst the industrial buildings now house 88 business units under temporary planning consents, the overall long term use of the whole site remains unclear; traffic issues loom large amongst Bramley’s concerns.

We were delighted when the Surrey Domestic Buildings Research Group undertook research into the Village Hall, and concluded that many of the old oak timbers dated back to medieval times, although the old barn was rebuilt in the mid-1800’s and now stands at right angles to Hall Road, instead of parallel to it. Some of these beams have been exposed in the recent improvements.

Conscious that the fabric of the Village Hall had scarcely changed since the annexe and kitchen were built around 1968, the Parish Council – supported by numerous grants – has undertaken a systematic refurbishment of the whole premises between 1994 and 2006.  Extensions to Village Hall have provided an office for the Clerk (previously at the Bill Hedger Room), a toilet for the disabled, a galley kitchen (enabling the Meeting Room to be occupied concurrently with the users of the main hall), a store for the History Society, and a small interview room which is used by the Cranleigh CAB as an outreach surgery, and for periodical use by the Police and MP.  In refurbishing the stage area, the rolled up security curtain revealed a magnificent artwork by Mr E Mason (pictured left), a Bramley Player, depicting the various organisations and activities of the time (1950). This is now proudly displayed as a permanent backdrop to the stage. Further refurbishments saw the replacement of the kitchen and toilet areas, and in 2006 the programme was completed with the opening of the new main entrance lobby, with a further toilet for the disabled and a display area for the History Society, rendering the previous entrance by the Social Club to become an emergency exit.

DIARY OF EVENTS SINCE 1994

1995 Celebrated the 250th anniversary of Ladies’ cricket, and a VE day exhibition was mounted by the History Society.

1996 The fire at the Bramley Grange Hotel, in the early hours of Saturday 3^rd March, was a sad day for those in Bramley and many beyond, who had fond memories of weddings there. The fire gutted the whole of the frontage to the main road, and also part of the Snowdenham Lane frontage. The proceedings were filmed by the Clerk, and a copy of the video is held by the History Society.

1997 The Parish Council embarked on a project to restore the Infant School clock that was badly worn and required manual winding. Some £4.5k was raised and the clock was loving restored by David Ball, our village clock smith, who was also able to refurbish some of the mechanism to the Church clock. Sadly, David has since died, but his wife still runs the business, in conjunction with Graham, her son, who also faithfully attends to the raising of flags in the village centre. Also, this year, a plan was raised to re-open the rail link between Guildford and Cranleigh, although this was subsequently found to be financially unviable. Other events included a Housing Needs survey, the joint BPC/BVS Strategic Plan, and the production of the Village Heritage Map, which is displayed in the Village Centre and at the old station.

1998 Bramley again came under siege – this time by Surrey CC who were looking for cost savings and were aiming to close the Library. Yet again, the community fought back and won and the Friends of Bramley Library was formed to help promote the facility. It is now well used, with a children’s story-time reading area, internet, video and DVD lending and other facilities. Meanwhile, the Parish Council acquired the small garden in Hall Road, on license from Robertson's, and set about making it more amenable.

1999 The two remaining milestones in the parish, at Grafham and in Birtley Road, were restored by the Parish Council. An article in the Bramley Record for November 2001 tells more of the history of these stones, erected around 1757 along this turnpike road for the benefit of the then King, amongst others.

2000 To mark the Millennium, the Parish Council provided commemorative mugs for the school children and back-lighting for War Memorial. The Infant’s School made tiles, an embroidered set of vestments was made for Holy Trinity Church, a time capsule was buried in the Church Pound, there was a lunch for the elderly in Blunden Court, and the History Society created a photographic archive (SNAP 2000) for future generations to see Bramley “as it was”. The Cranleigh Waters and Hascombe Stream were subject to flooding later in the year, and several homes in Fisher Rowe Close were flooded.

2001 The Millennium celebrations triggered enthusiasm for nationalistic pride, and the first St. George’s Day supper was held at the Jolly Farmer. Some 20 local people attended, and this annual event now attracts over 50 people. The Parish Council decided to press SCC more strongly on road safety improvements. The plans for Rooks Hill junction were agreed (and finally implemented in 2003) and the first of the Village Schemes was aired. Several iterations later, it was finally agreed in 2004 and some works done in 2005. We are optimistic that most of the rest will be completed in 2006, together with improvements at Grafham, notorious for injury accidents.

2002 To mark the Queen’s Golden Jubilee, the Parish Council initiated a project to refurbish the Church Pound. Apart from the much improved access and garden, three plaques are now mounted to record the event, the history of the Pound, and the Bramley Crest. Together with the adjacent Church and War Memorial, the floodlighting makes an impressive sight at night, especially for passing travellers. This was largely funded by a Heritage Lottery Grant – see www.lhi.org.uk for a more detailed description of the work.
After years without a village bobby, we were delighted to be allocated a Neighbourhood Specialist Officer, albeit on a shared basis with other villages.

2003 St Andrew’s Church, Grafham undertook a project to restore the floor tiles and banners of this lovely Victorian masterpiece. The Parish Council embarked on a two-year project to restore the old Bramley Station; during this first year, the brickwork was repaired and the track bed re-laid.

2004 Stage two of the Station project comprised the erection of a platform shelter based on the design of the old waiting room, the replacement of wooden fencing with replica level crossing gates, a platform light, and a pictorial archive mounted in the shelter. Largely funded by external grants, the project received a coveted Waverley Award; it has subsequently received wide acclaim, with many more visitors now using the station as their base for cycling and walking. The six affordable housing units at Webster Court were released for occupation by local young people.

2005 A Review of Bramley Conservation Area took place with Waverley, resulting in some boundary changes. Out went the newer properties in Brambles Park, Windrush Close, Blunden Court and Old Rectory Close, and extensions were made to include the station, part of St. Catherine’s School, the Infant’s School, and the closed cemetery. The Review gave due regard to the historic features of the village, especially the bargate stone walls, and various buildings and features became “locally listed”. These now have added protection against insensitive alteration. Waverley contributed £15k towards the improvement of the Conservation Area, which the Parish Council directed, in conjunction with the Traffic Safety Scheme, to replacing much of the lighting along Birtley Road, High Street and Station Road. It is hoped to extend this initiative in subsequent years, as the remaining lights are architecturally uninspiring, dated, and in some cases, malfunctioning. The battle over placement of mobile phone masts continues to rage, with local resistance currently succeeding over proposed sites near private houses and schools. One has been discreetly erected behind trees at Rooks Hill, and this has not caused any significant wave of criticism.

2006 Early in the year, the Parish Council embarked on a programme to re-establish wildflowers on Gosden Common, it will be a couple of years before we know whether this has been successful. The Council also embarked on an Emergency Planning initiative to ensure that the local community is geared up to help itself in the event of a local emergency.