Midhurst Magazine. Issue 31, Spring, April 2020. The 60th year edition.
Projects and Campaigns: Harvey Tordoff reports. Most clubs and societies have names that describe what they do. The Midhurst Society is slightly more enigmatic. You probably know that we put on regular talks with guest speakers, and that we comment on planning applications, but behind the scenes we get involved in much more.
small schools in the area should be closed or merged with others. There was insufficient dialogue between WSCC and the schools concerned, and when the news broke there was little time to present a case for keeping the schools open.
The common theme is: how can we make Midhurst a better place to live, work and visit? In addition to this magazine (which first appeared in a different format in 1988) we have published many books and history leaflets. A new print run is now being distributed in popular places around town.
Stedham Primary School
We wrote to WSCC and using social media we helped raise awareness of the possibility of closure facing Stedham Primary School. There was overwhelming local support and a petition was launched. The decision was made to 'federate' with Harting C of E Primary School and Stedham has been reprieved!
We placed a number of seats in and around town. We became involved in cultural activities such as the celebration of the 400th anniversary of the visit by Queen Elizabeth. Over the years we successfully fought for road signs to keep large vehicles out of the old town, although some satnavs aren't convinced! We fought unsuccessfully for better signage for Midhurst on the A3 after the Hindhead tunnel opened.
Dunford House, Heyshott
Dunford House in Heyshott has faced an uncertain future since the owners, YMCA, stopped using it several years ago. It was the birthplace and home in later life of the nineteenth century social reformer Richard Cobden, and still contains many objects pertaining to his life and work. It had remained in the hands of Cobden's descendants
Here is a summary of some of our more recent activities. West Sussex County Council (WSCC) decided that in the interests of economy some of the 46
