THE MAGAZINE FOR AND ABOUT HAWKHURST No 3 2025 FREE Art is in the air for Hawkhurst artists P9 TIME TO PLAY AND ENJOY What’s on where and when – for young and old P8 TAKE A BREATH Simple tips for a better and healthier you P7 110 YEARS OF GIRL GUIDES One of the first units in the UK, Hawkhurst is still going strong
also online at www. friendsofhawkhurst.org.uk The magazine is editorially independent. Compiled by local people for local people, its aim is to report on all aspects of Hawkhurst life and to provide a communication platform for the many groups that are active in the village. EDITORIAL and DESIGN Gunda Cannon gunda4friendsofhawkhurst@gmail.com Jacqueline Schalburg hello@friendsofhawkhurst.org.uk ADVERTISING susan4friendsofhawkhurst@gmail.com ¼ page £30 ½ page £45 Full page £90 Contributions are welcome – we love to hear from you with news about people, events, interest and activity groups, and ideas for feature articles. All views expressed are those of the respective authors. The publisher accepts no responsibility for errors, omissions, or the consequences thereof. Copyright © 2025 Friends of Hawkhurst Published quarterly in January, April, July, October – copy deadline is the 1st of the preceding month Main cover image: Park Scene – watercolour painting by David Aspinall WELCOME Welcome to our third edition of Hawkhurst Life. We have received some wonderful feedback to the first two magazines and would definitely like to encourage you to continue writing to us at hello@friendsofhawkhurst.org.uk. Various events will already have happened in Hawkhurst since our last edition. At Easter almost 100 children converged on the KGV and Pavilion to take part in the free craft activities and the scavenger hunt to receive their free Easter Egg – thank you Tesco for your donation. It was great to witness the interpretations of a certain colour item to be found. My favourite was the young boy who proudly showed us his red shoes for “something red from nature”. On Sunday, 22nd June, 400 people raced against each other and the clock in the Hawkhurst 10k & 5k, whilst the children’s free race was incredibly popular, all for medals and prizes galore. Adults were treated to cakes from the WI and free beers from the Eight Bells after running so far, on the undulating course. We keep the final hill until the end! Thank you to all our wonderful sponsors. Then, of course, a week later there was the village fete. All this to say how lucky we are to live in the lively and friendly Jacqueline Schalburg I Editor village, that is Hawkhurst. Long may it continue. Village events for your diary NEWS I EVENTS I DATES I NEWS I EVENTS I DATES I NEWS I EVENTS I DATES I NEWS HAWKHURST LIFE is published by Friends of Hawkhurst 6 August 2-5pm: Play Day, King George V playing fields (more info on p.9) 6 September 10am-4pm: Makers@The Moor craft fair, The Moor (more on p.9) 20 + 21 September 11am-3pm: Hawkhurst Heritage Day, King George V Pavilion, The Moor – heritage walks, heritage displays, craft activities, artist sessions and lots more, all free! www.heritageopendays.org.uk 5 October: Seniors Tea (time and venue tba) Hawkhurst History Society events 29 July 2pm: visit & talk at Rother Valley Railway, Robertsbridge 26 August 7pm: historic walk of The Moor starting from St Laurence Church 30 September 7.30pm at Hawkhurst Club: House History & Family Research ‘Surgery’ – a talk from The Amelia Scott to help you explore your family history For full events calendar contact secretary@hawkhursthistory.org A meeting place for mothers and their young charges Toddler Train (Babies + pre-school): Tuesdays 1.30-3pm during term time, Baptist Church Babyccino (Birth to 4 years): Thursdays 9.30-11.30am, St Laurence Church New Kent County Council In May’s Kent County Council election Reform UK took 57 out of 81 seats, ending the Conservative majority which had stood for nearly 30 years. Council leader Linden Kemkaran has announced a host of initiatives – including sending teams into local authorities to assess ‘wasteful spending’. The first council earmarked to be audited is Kent County Council. KCC is the top-tier local authority for Kent, managing education, highways, social care, libraries, waste disposal, and public health. It sets plans and allocates funding for large-scale infrastructure and community services. While TWBC handles local matters like planning applications and refuse collection, KCC’s decisions impact Hawkhurst’s schools, roads, and elderly care services. Claudine Russell is our new KCC representative. Hawkhurst in Bloom garden competition It has not gone unnoticed by Hawkhurst residents that the volunteer team of Hawkhurst in Bloom is making our village blooming marvellous – just look at the planters in and around Rye Road and the Smugglers Cove area opposite Tesco. Part of the RHS’s Britain in Bloom initiative, HIB is now inviting everyone to take part in the annual Garden Competition, which focusses on the best front gardens and best hanging baskets across the village. Judging takes place in July and entry forms are available from the library, Kino, Parish Office and via Peter Buswell Estate Agents.
IS IN THE AIR Hawkhurst is home to a number of artists – Gunda Cannon visited three of them in their studios DAVID ASPINALL “There are always rules to be broken”, says David with an expression that signals his cheeky sense of humour. A past President of the Weald of Kent Art Society, with many exhibitions under his belt, his fame extends far beyond Kent. He came to art via an illustrious career as a designer in advertising and his mastery of the pen and brush allows him to tackle any subject – street scenes, architecture, people, even cars. He is never happier than when painting outside, in a village, in the shade with his back to the wall, capturing the ‘opera’ (as he calls it) of things happening around him. Many a time has he sold a painting on the spot to a passer-by. David has produced some fine work in oils, but watercolour remains his real love. He has two sketchbooks on the go for gathering information about the areas of light/dark and the outlines of the scene – later in his studio he can go back to this reference and create a painting which can either be true to the original scene or artistically altered to improve the composition. Figures pop up in many of David’s paintings – he sees them primarily as shapes to help with the composition, without needing detail on their faces. Judiciously placed dots of colour that add accents – often in Cadmium red and Alizarin crimson – are another Aspinall trademark. Painting is David’s life, and that means constantly exploring new things but not always as a solitary pursuit. Just as he enjoys painting in the company of others, his inspiring and uplifting demo sessions and his mentoring have encouraged many artists. Art is for sharing, is David’s belief, and a never ending learning curve. n ANNABEL WYLLIE Annabel calls herself an artist/printmaker, creating one-off pieces. Contrary to what many people might think this is a time-consuming, labour-intensive creative process that involves many stages that you can’t do at home, working with toxic materials and using techniques that haven’t changed since Dürer’s time. Her ‘Night City’ (shown top right) is a multi-layered collagraph/etching with handpainted chine collé, created in numerous steps. These are, very roughly, making the plates (in cardboard, zinc or aluminium), arranging them artistically, making a map of the sequence of plates to be used and with which colours, inking up the plates and using cutouts of wet thin coloured paper (chine collé ) before putting the piece through the printing press various times with different colours. Her style is semi-abstract, based on motifs from real life like barns or cityscapes, but re-arranged, simplified, slightly distorted. Colour plays an important part – she likes using Prussian Blue, white, reds. A sketchbook with ideas functions as a memory aid to remember the exact colours she has mixed. Ever since Annabel signed up for a printmaking course in her late 20s she was hooked. Now she has returned to her love with fervour, keen on experimenting, attending courses to develop further, always on the lookout for new ideas – trying viscosity printing next. With her work shown in galleries and a successful artist’s residency at Tonbridge School behind her she has established herself firmly on the map but, she says, “You are only as good as your last piece”. n PHILIP RICHARDSON True to his motto “Only paint when you have something to say!”, Philip only works when he has an idea. Painting is a passion though, done most days. Coming across a Cézanne painting at school set him on his path of becoming a full-time artist, via a Fine Art degree and many years spent painting in Italy and Spain. Italy showed him the intensity of light and how it can reflect, Spain inspired him with its rugged landscape. His breakthrough in terms of recognition and selling his art came in 1998 and soon he was doing three solo shows per year. Although Philip likes people to see his art – currently displayed in the Wing Gallery in Wadhurst – selling is not that important to him. He greatly values the fact that he can be more experimental and fluid in his art now because he doesn’t have to please any clientele. With his motifs mainly landscapes, trees and flowers, his paintings convey an impression of what he sees. So a still life with oranges and flowers, lovingly set up in his studio, becomes the painting that you see above, after months of working and re-working which the medium of oils allows you to do. Colour and composition are all-important. Greens and blues are recurring colours, with splashes of vivid orange. The ruler is a key tool but used not as you might expect – not to draw lines but to help guide his hand to sense the space across the canvas. To create a piece of art that has elements of interest in it that reveal themselves gradually to the beholder, tiny new discoveries all the time, that is Philip’s aim. n David’s watercolour ‘Park Scene’ is the main cover image. More at: www.wealdofkentartsociety.co.uk/davidaspinall Annabel takes part in S outh Ea s t O p e n Stud i os and exhibits at the R y e C r e a t i v e A r t s C e n t r e 11-13 July www.instagram.com/annabel.wyllie/ Philip’s ‘Yellow Flowers & Oranges’ is shown top left. www.philip-richardson.com www.instagram.com/philip_richardson_artist/
Wild Nature watch with Pete Smith, Honorary Warden for the Collingwood nature reserve in Hawkhurst Last time we were underground with the badgers, this time we are up in the air. You will notice that the summer months are a quiet time for birds, they hide away a little while they shed their feathers after breeding and grow new ones, ready for their migration south at the end of the summer. But we have butterflies to look out for! The commonest along the hedgerows, lanes and fields are the Meadow Brown, Small Copper and Gatekeeper – all brownish with a bit of orange – plus the Common Blue and the Brimstone (pale lemon yellow). Much larger and showier are the Red Admiral and Peacock, the latter with beautiful ‘eyes’ on the tips of its wings. I also love watching out for moths – there are 2,000 different moths in the UK. Many are night creatures, like the large Elephant Hawk-moth, but many fly by day as well. You have probably come across the yellow and black striped caterpillar that turns into the stunning Cinnabar moth with its 3.5cm wingspan. As the caterpillar feeds on the leaves and flowers of Common Ragwort the moth has been introduced in some areas to control Ragwort which is highly poisonous to horses if ingested. On calm summer evenings you can also see bats flying around. Their wings are actually hands that are adapted for flight. We have 18 species in the UK, all protected. Bats spend the day in their roost – a hollow tree, someone’s loft, a church tower. At dusk they emerge to find a drink and then hunt for food. In a single night one bat might devour over 3,000 tiny insects. Bats are not blind but in the dark they use echolocation – as they fly they emit a high pitched sound and the returning echoes give them very detailed information about anything that is ahead of them in their flight path – including the size and shape of an insect and which way it is heading. Until next time, Pete www.butterfly-conservation.org Cinnabar moth www.bats.org.uk News from the volunteers We’re pleased to share with everyone that we’ve recently held stakeholder workshops and plans are shaping up. We are looking forward to sharing more details over the coming months, so watch this space! In the meantime, we can all do our bit to reduce food waste by being creative with leftovers and extra ingredients. Our favourite way to do this in the summer months is to get creative with a mix of leftovers and whip up a salad: why not mix together green leaves (lettuce, spinach, rocket), cooked grains (quinoa or couscous), raw sliced courgette, beetroot, and fresh cucumber and apple. Toast some leftover bread for crunchy croutons too. Head to BBC recipes for more inspiration on how to make the most of your leftovers! HAWKHURSTLIFE no3I2025I5
Parish NEWS Council Hawkhurst Parish Council (HPC) elected me as their Chairman at the Annual Parish Council meeting in May. My local government experience comes from having served as a Parish Councillor for Hawkhurst and Westerham, Deputy Leader of a District Council and a Unitary Council Cabinet Member. I am hoping these experiences will assist me in serving you all. GUIDING PRINCIPLES As Chairman of HPC I will be guided by three principles: n Continuing the work of my predecessor Cllr Clare Escombe, our other Councillors and our Clerk (not forgetting her team) in improving the functioning, compliance, and governance of HPC. n Continue to work towards full transparency, where possible. n Delivery of improvements the village deserves while still using public money wisely. AREA CHAMPIONS In order to achieve success in the three areas above we will introduce a system where the four individual areas of the Parish (Gills Green, Highgate, The Moor, Hawkhurst Rural) are represented by one Councillor. We will also have champions for different areas. Councillors will work with officers to maintain services such as streetlighting, allotments etc. The prompt publishing of minutes, agendas and documents on our website will continue, working towards full transparency by ensuring residents know where to find information. ONGOING PROJECTS Over the last year we have been working to deliver these projects, which will continue until completed: n Moving to a new office within the Highgate area; n Extensive work on the management and care of our cemeteries; n Improvement to Heartenoak play area; n Updating the Neighbourhood Development Plan to ensure it contains policies HPC can utilise, and the residents can benefit from; n Work with developers and utility companies to solve issues. I fully support my fellow HPC Councillors in delivering these actions. I believe if we all work together HPC will deliver for our residents on these promises and more in the future. SOUTHERN WATER VISIT Finally, please see below a few important points picked up from our visit to Hawkhurst North pumping station and meeting with Southern Water. The full report is now available. Over the next five years £7.1m has been earmarked, plus a possible further investment of £2m from the Government, to upgrade both sewage treatment plants. New homes are not the cause of the works required, new estates are built with tanks to ensure the rain water does not flow into the sewer system. It is the older houses which cause the issue (please see report for details). OVERFLOWS The Environment Act 2021 dictates that water companies must report overflows: Southern Water are alerted by an alarm, and they verify it. The cause can be ground water entering the outlet pipe, a stray spider or even a cobweb. After a verified alarm independent tests are done, and one such test was witnessed by the Councillors and the Clerk. Hawkhurst North fills two tankers a week of ‘sludge’ which is taken to another site for treatment. 95% of the waste water received by Hawkhurst North is treated on site. The Councillors and Clerk saw the waste before and after treatment (pictures are included in the full report). Martin Taylor-Smith Chairman Hawkhurst Parish Council martin.taylor-smith@hawkhurst-pc.gov.uk I have lived in Hawkhurst for seven years with my wife Rosanna who is active in the local WI. We have three children and eight grandchildren which keeps us busy. My life in Kent began when I attended Grammar School. I served as an Officer in the British Army, worked for IBM as a manager and been at the head of international software companies in the UK and the US. I have worked hard for these achievements, however, I benefitted from luck along the way. I still run a small consultancy firm. HAWKHURSTLIFE no1I2025I 8 HAWKHURSTLIFE no3I2025I 6
Ardingly Showground for the London + SE England ‘May-hem’ event. Did you know that Lord and Lady Baden-Powell, the founders of scouting and girl guiding, had a summer house in Ewhurst and that this is where the seed for the first Girlguiding unit in Hawkhurst was sown? Anita Stevens, Brown Owl and Volunteer Girlguiding Leader, tells the story GIRL POWER I was a Brownie in the 70’s and I wore my bobble hat with pride. I have been in and out of Guiding for over 40 years, and each time I have returned to it, I discovered a little more about myself. I’ve made new friends, tried things I didn’t know I was capable of. I’ve grown a little taller. It might sound silly, but I always wanted to be ‘Brown Owl’ and now here I am in my fifties being just that, volunteering alongside a group of amazing women. As leaders we are all ages, from 19 to 53, from all backgrounds, and together we lift one another up. There are lots of opportunities to grow in confidence and develop as a leader as we are supported by a national network of volunteers and supported by Girlguiding UK. INSPIRING WOMEN AND GIRLS We follow an inspiring line of women and girls here in Hawkhurst, dating back to 1915. Scouting and then Guiding had started nationally from 1908 and local units were being established all across the UK. Around 1915, Robert and Olave Baden-Powell – the founders of Scouting and Guiding – were staying in their summerhouse in Ewhurst and our records show that Miss Freda Ross-Thompson, who lived in Hawkhurst, made a connection with Lord Baden-Powell’s younger sister Agnes. Both were enrolled by Robert in a garden at Ewhurst, and Freda then set up the first unit of guides in Hawkhurst. “You get to make lots of friends and do fun craft activities and things outdoors. I also learn life skills. The leaders are really kind and supportive” Pippa ONE OF THE FIRST UNITS Being one of the early units in the UK in what is now a worldwide movement is an amazing legacy to be proud of. We have some of the old diaries and photos from the HAWKHURSTLIFE no3I2025I 7 1930’s, it’s really something special to read their stories. They talk of a ‘fizzy feeling’ of excitement as they gathered at the Colonnade before being waved off with their ‘Captains’ (name for leaders in 1933) by a crowd from the village. They travelled through France, Switzerland and spent time in Belgium – where their Belgian guides made them weak tea… They were given special friendship badges, one of which we still have in our local archive. “I like how we always create something new each week, it always has something to do with around the world and that time of year” Sophie SPACE TO FIND YOUR VOICE Zoom forward to today, and whilst uniforms have changed, the spirit and ethos hasn’t. Girlguiding is a safe space to grow and find your voice. Girls follow a programme of skills builders, interest and fun badges too. Our youngest girls are four years old (Rainbows) and then progress to Brownies (7-10 years), Guides (10-14) and Rangers (14+). We also have opportunities for girls from 14-17 years to become young leaders and you can do the volunteering section of your Duke of Edinburgh’s Award with us. “Bea loves being part of the group community, putting new badges she’s worked towards on her guiding blanket, and loves the leaders who all make her feel completely safe and comfortable. Even when she doesn’t want to go to school she wants to come to Brownies! “ Rose and daughter Bea Recently our Hawkhurst Guides took on a hike from Cranbrook to Staplehurst, experiencing together how to be prepared for all weathers, read maps and work as a team. We’ve also been working on an Eco-award, learning to use tools to make bug hotels, getting our hands dirty with wildflower seedbombs. 110 YEARS This year we are celebrating 110 years of Girlguiding in Hawkhurst and we’ve been wanting to shout a little louder about the opportunities that we offer. The girls all poured their energy into designing the medal for the Hawkhurst 5 +10k race and many of them will be running (and their parents too!). We are planning a sleepover for the Brownies, and our Guides have been looking back through the archives to create a challenge pack for all sections including designing a special badge (we love a badge!) to honour all that has gone before and spotlight where we are today. We’re planning a moment to mark the occasion later this year and if you’ve been a part of Girlguiding in some shape or form, here or across the world, please get in touch as we’d love you to celebrate with us. n JOIN IN To enrol in Girlguiding in Hawkhurst contact girlguidinginhawkhurst@gmail.com – meetings are on Monday evening in the scout hut at The Moor and you are welcome to come for a trial session. You don’t need to have been in Girlguiding before to join in as an adult volunteer. Volunteering can be really flexible and you can make a difference behind the scenes too. www.girlguiding.org.uk
& Hoe Gardening matters & magic with local gardener Beryl The less watering you have to do in the garden at the end of the day, the better. The secret to keeping the soil moist for longer is a good mulch around your plants. If your soil is heavy clay (as is the case with many newbuilds round here) and not crumbly you may have to put in some effort first – but it will pay dividends. Break the soil up, soak it with water, loosen up some more, mix in some grit as well, water again copiously until it puddles (or wait for a spell of rain), and then comes the magic moment of putting the mulch on top. This can be home-made compost, wood chippings, leaf mould, well rotted manure or brands like Strulch. The idea is that in hot weather the mulch dries out but not the ground underneath. Bear in mind that the garden always reflects the weather of the year before – after a hot dry summer the plants will struggle the following year, some not coming up at all. With blooms and young shoots always come those pesky pests! So let me share with you the recipe for a garlic wash that works perfectly on slugs and snails and keeps your hostas and other plants safe. Put one clove of garlic in 1 litre of water, boil until the clove is soft. This then gives you the concentrate which you can bottle. Use one tablespoon of the concentrate in a 1 litre spray bottle if spraying directly onto the plants, or use the concentrated solution if spraying on the ground around the plants. The only downside is that it needs to be done once a week – but it does work! Enjoy the summer sitting in your garden paradise and don’t think about all the work that autumn is going to bring... n Local osteopath Michael Lingard established the first holistic clinic in Kent in 1981, qualified as a Buteyko Eucator to teach better breathing, and as a Plantrician advising on diet. Here he shares a few insights that 40 years in the healthcare sector have taught him TAKE A BREATH ! Never underestimate your own power and ability to lead a healthy and happy life – for me that sums everything up. At a time when our NHS is struggling under growing pressure anything you can do to help yourself to get and keep healthy is a bonus. And there is much you can do. It’s impossible to mention everything here so let’s pick one thing that will make a fundamental difference to your well-being if you get it right: your breathing. Breathing is the first thing we do when we arrive as a newborn baby and the last thing on our departure from life. To check how well we breathe should be one of the standard vital health checks as poor breathing is an element of almost every disease – poor breathing means the oxygenation of our body tissue is impaired. Our breathing is controlled automatically but over time with our Western lifestyle, or after any trauma, our automatic system fails to adjust our breathing correctly. It is a fact that over 75% of the population breathe badly, usually suffering from some degree of Chronic Hidden Hyperventilation (CHHV). This may lead to many common health problems, notably asthma, hypertension, gut problems, etc. You can easily check the quality of your breathing with the Buteyko Method by measuring your Control Pause, the CP, by doing the YouTube video check (link below). Once you have established your breathing quality and want to improve it, here are a few tips: 1. Always try to only breathe through your nose, that’s what it is for! 2. Take short periods of five minutes throughout the day to sit quietly. Eyes closed, focussed on some pleasant image, relaxing and breathing very gently. 3. When out walking, every now and then breathe in and out and see how many steps you can do before you need another breath. 4. Try using thin strips of micropore tape to remind you to keep your mouth closed at night when asleep. Have a tab on one side for easy removal. For a great number of patients that I have seen over the years, changing their breathing habits has made a huge difference to the quality of their life. Give it a try and see what difference it makes to yours. n More on the subject n Michael’s podcast “Better Breathing Means Better Health” is on Apple Podcasts and Spotify and on www.podchaser.com/podcasts/better-breathing-means-better-843683/episodes/recent n Check your breathing at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fvmG19BVJM4 www.TotalHealthMatters.co.uk HAWKHURSTLIFE no3I2025I 8
three happenings in the village over the coming months – here’s a little preview from Jacqueline Schalburg of Friends of Hawkhurst TIME TO PLAY+ ENJOY Our small group of Friends of Hawkhurst Trustees, together with our volunteers, have been keeping themselves busy! After the Hawkhurst Race the pace hotted up on the organisation of this year’s Play Day. National Play Day, also known as the National Day for Play, is celebrated annually around the UK on the first Wednesday in August. This year, Play Day falls on Wednesday, August 6th. National Play Day is a campaign that highlights the importance of play in children’s lives and celebrates their right to play. And in Hawkhurst we have been celebrating for many years now. So, details… Calling all children (accompanied by an adult), on Wednesday, 6th August: there will be a free afternoon of play at the King George V Playing Fields from 2-5pm. We have pulled out all the stops for this year’s event and have lots in store for you to explore. There are crafts to keep you busy, games, face painting, a sand pit and dressing up. And when you need a quiet moment, sit down with the story teller who will keep you enchanted with his tales and actions. We will be serving simple refreshments in the Pavilion, i.e. much needed cups of tea for the adults and free squash for the younger participants. On an entirely different note, we are also looking forward to another successful Makers@TheMoor. Get ready to view, inspect and shop on Saturday, 6th September, at Makers@TheMoor. This will be the fifth one and each year it gets bigger and better. You will find almost 50 stalls selling locally made crafts and bakes. There will be something for everyone: items of wood, glass and pottery, hand-sewn, knitted and crocheted goods, exquisite jewellery, artists selling their original paintings and cards, as well as candles and games! Oh and did I mention, bird tables, garden ornaments, plants and all sorts made from locally grown lavender and honey from local bees! And to tempt the taste buds, jams, chutneys, chocolate, cakes and bakes. The setting is beautiful and our tea tent, selling savouries, cakes, coffees and teas, has a range of seating and tables for you to mull over your purchases and consider the next ones. Again, the Friends of Hawkhurst Trustees are going to be supported by our volunteer helpers. So come and support our local artisans from 10:00 to 4pm. If you are a maker, baker, artist, selling your goods locally, there is still time to apply to join us with your own stall. Just email us at hello@friendsofhawkhurst.org.uk for more information. I said three events….the third being our Tea for Seniors. The date October 5th. Afternoon tea. Free of charge. Includes a Raffle with prizes for all! More information to come next time! Just note the date in your diary. n “ There is something for everyone – we are pulling out all the stops ” HAWKHURSTLIFE no3I2025I 9
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