Village news

Village news

David Childerley

5 Melbourn Mobile Warden Scheme 7 Ron Peer 7

Women’s Group 11

Library

11 Short Story Reading Group 11 Melbourn Women’s Institute 11 Do you shop online? 11

Library – LAP (Local Access Point)

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Monday 2.30 to 4.30 pm Tuesday 2.30 to 4.30 pm Wednesday 2.30 to 4.30 pm Thursday 2.30 to 6.30 pm Friday 2.30 to 4.30 pm Saturday 10.00 to 12.00 am

David Childerley

David was born in Cambridge in 1938 and grew up in Coton where he attended the village school, going on to the High School for Boys in 1949. He loved all sport and represented his school at cricket and rugby. After leaving school he did his National Service in the RAF for 2 years hoping to see the world but spent his time deskbound in the UK typing reports.

After the RAF he took a temporary post for a year at Coleridge School, Cambridge teaching mainly English, RE and games to ensure the profession was for him. In 1960 he started at St Luke’s College, Exeter studying for a Diploma in Physical Education. David & Rosemary married and she joined him in Exeter and taught in a girls’ secondary school. A few years later they moved to Thame in Oxfordshire both teaching at the same school. They stayed in Thame for 3 years during which time their son Steven was born and David became interested in youth work. Later, in 1966 he became a youth leader within a school at Christchurch.

David and family moved back to the area firstly as Youth Tutor at Melbourn Village College. Helen was born during this time. A year’s counselling course in

London followed and then 2 years as a peripatetic youth and community worker in Fenland gaining valuable experience for when he returned to Melbourn Village College as Community Tutor. Here he came into his own. He felt that the site should cater for people from the cradle to the grave.

To make full use of all the college facilities he started a playgroup in the Youth Centre. In 1984 when the college was oversubscribed he persuaded some tutors to take adults into their classes so that the adults who attended evening classes in the same subjects could enhance their chances to gain necessary qualifications. As more women returned to work he encouraged them to take courses at the college to better their chances of success. Evening classes were in their heyday and the college buzzed with life every evening.

In 1980 he began looking for people to help with the more elderly population. Along with Eileen Martin, he set up the Luncheon Club based on the principles of good food and conversation. The club still runs today and is a popular weekly event for the elderly. David continued his association with the club until he could no longer drive.

Whilst doing all this he continued to oversee the youth clubs in the catchment area and tried to visit the students in their home villages. He organised weekends away for the students, pony trekking one of the most popular. He also joined in on Out of School Weeks and particularly loved the sailing trips out of Ipswich.

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From Sarah (Laidlaw) Kershaw ex student “I first met Mr Childerley when I was able to go to the Melbourn Youth Club. He was a tolerant, affable adult presence whose quiet humour worked well with a group of very rowdy teenagers.

Towards the end of my school life, in 1987, an opportunity came for a group of us to spend a week sailing to Holland, Belgium and then down to France, organised by Mr Childerley. Such larks were to be had on this trip, we had 2 yachts, one for the boys and one for the girls. If my memory serves correctly, Mr Childerley was on our boat, along with his daughter Helen. Encouraged by Mr Childerley, this trip turned into a race ‘Girls vs. Boys’ and although we lost sight of the other boat on the way over to Holland, I believe our boat entered Middelburg harbour first with none of our crew suffering from sea sickness (contrary to the boys’ boat!). We spent the next few days hopping the coast of Holland and Belgium mooring at different places to explore the local towns. The journey back to the UK was an experience. During a storm, we were told to stay below deck and at one point the boat keeled over on its side. We were all perfectly safe under the expertise of Mr Childerley and the skipper, and overseeing so many unruly teenagers must have been a tremendous responsibility. What a brave man he was!”

In 1987 David, Val Tookey, Rod Yallop and Sue Cane decided that a swimming pool, a wish voiced for many years, should be added to the facilities on the school site and after much thought, fund raising and planning the first sod was cut in 1989 and officially opened by Val Tookey in 1991. Many innovative and whacky events took place to raise the funds for the project to succeed. The swimming pool thrives and is used throughout the year.

In 1993 funding in Cambridgeshire for adult education was on the demise. David took voluntary redundancy and quietly gave up full time work. He continued to support the Luncheon Club and Meldreth Neighbourhood Watch and Speed Watch schemes. However, in 1994 there was an article in the Guardian about the University of the Third Age (U3A).

Both David and Carole Alderton read the article and thought the area would benefit from such an organisation. The vice chairman of the National U3A, Norman Richards, was invited to meet David and Carole in Melbourn and advise on setting up a local branch. A steering group was formed and following an address by Norman Richards, at a meeting to give an overview of the U3A, many people expressed an interest and so the first official meeting of the Melbourn & District U3A took place in September 1994. David was appointed Chairman and for 3 years held the post seeking out new tutors for new subjects making sure all was well, after which he was appointed honorary president in recognition of his importance in setting up the local branch. The U3A goes from strength to strength and is surviving today.

In 2008 David received the unexpected diagnosis of early onset Alzheimer’s Disease which he dealt with in his own, quiet, stoic way. He donated his brain to Addenbrooke’s brain bank handling the administration of his donation by himself. He died on November 6th 2016. A respected man of education. “To him so many people owed so much. In a modest, unassuming way David supported groups and individuals within our community with no fuss and never seeking prominence or public recognition for his achievements.

He was very proud of his job and his role in the community was important to him. To achieve all that he did, he would always go the extra mile to create opportunities which he thought were important to the needs of others.” Rod Yallop Head of PE at MVC who worked with him for many years. “I consider myself to have been so fortunate to have been married to a lovely, gentle, gentleman, who was humorous and usually smiling.” Rosemary Childerley

Melbourn Mobile Warden Scheme

Can we help you? Can we help a relative? Can we help a neighbour?

Who does the Scheme help? The scheme is open to the mobility impaired in Melbourn and Meldreth including those who live alone or with their families, but need the extra support offered by our services. Couples too are most welcome.

It is also open to those in sheltered housing, as the scheme offers different, but complementary services.

Note: The scheme also offers its services for short periods to cover the temporary absence of relatives who otherwise provide this support.

We offer help with:

•Friendship and support via twice weekly visits and daily phone calls • Ordering and collection of prescriptions • Basic shopping • Collection of pensions • Setting up Lifeline service • Bereavement support • Advice on benefits • Going to the Post Office to pay your bills • Advice on getting repairs done in your home • Arranging transport to the hospital or other appointments • Just coming round for a chat

What will it cost?

We do have to make a small weekly charge for the warden’s services. The fee is only £6 per week (a little more for couples).

Jeannie Seers (Mobile Warden) 07808 735066 email jeanseers1@ntlworld.com

Jane Cage (Deputy) 07592 821976 email jane.e.cage@btinternet.com

Melbourn Warden Scheme is a registered charity Warden of Melbourn Village College 1969 – 1989 Ron Peer was born in Ferryhill Co. Durham in 1928. He attended Heaton Grammar School in Newcastle upon Tyne. His military service followed school in the Royal Artillery and Royal Army Educational Corps after which he went to King’s College, Durham University.

He began his teaching career in Northumberland gradually moving south to Nottingham in 1959 and then further south in 1965 as Deputy Head at Soham Village College. He arrived as The Warden for Melbourn Village College in 1969 where he stayed until he retired in 1989.

His first wife Dee and family Marissa, Trevor and Sian came too and made their home in the Warden’s house at the college.

Ron’s second wife Marianne believed in the same approach to the village college system as Ron and became a much-involved member of the village and college community. She was instrumental in setting up Drifts Community Magazine which was a forerunner of the magazine produced today. The news in Drifts covered all 13 villages in the catchment area of MVC and was produced in one of the garages on site at the college. Distribution was mainly achieved by students taking home a copy.

On Ron’s retirement, the couple moved north but sadly, shortly afterwards, Marianne died. Ron’s third wife was Mavis, who had been the school secretary at MVC and they moved back down south and settled in Bourn, not far from Melbourn, where Mavis still lives. Ron was buried in December in Meldreth.

A man dedicated to MVC and the ethos of a good education for all, and who will always be remembered for the flower, usually a rose, he wore every day in his buttonhole.

The following words are from Patricia Baxter (Kennington) former Deputy Head of MVC “I first met Ron Peer when, after moving recently to the area, we needed to find a secondary school for our 11-year-old daughter Louise. Ron had such warmth, buzzing with enthusiasm about education in general and his beloved school in particular.

Two years later she was joined by her sister Antonia and they both flourished and went on to high flying career, as have many former students.

Ron Peer lived for his school and had a genuine affection for his pupil all of whom he appeared to know by name and who, when he addressed them, replied with both respect and liking.

I thought then how pleasant it must be to work with a man like Ron Peer. Six years later I was fortunate to be appointed Deputy Head working alongside Jack Horner, now sadly deceased and Arthur Webster who went on to be an outstanding Head in Surrey. We didn’t always see eye-to-eye but we had many laughs. I persuaded him to allow girls to wear trousers and the day after that was announced a little delegation of senior boys came to see me in my office. It wasn’t fair, they said, that the girls had a choice of skirts or trousers whereas they couldn’t wear skirts. “Why not?” I replied. “There’s no rule against it.” I hurriedly went to report this exchange to Ron in case one or two of our bright sparks turned up in skirts – we decided to say absolutely nothing if they did – but, rather to our disappointment, none of them had the courage to do it.