Now that the Parliamentary boundary changes are definite, we thought it would be of interest to readers to know something about the three main contenders for the Rye vote in the next election. As we all know by now, Rye will no longer be part of the Rye and Bexhill constituency but will be joined to Hastings along with a coastal strip of villages, and the new constituency will be called Hastings and Rye. It was only 150 years ago that we stopped returning two members just for Rye, and in 1885 we were first merged in a larger area - though the then new MP, Col. A.M. Brookfield, lived at Leasam House and, according to Leopold Vidler, "took an active part in all the town's affairs".
Our present MP, Mr. B. Godman Irvine, is retiring anyway at the next election, although he represents us until then for any constituency matter. A new Conservative candidate has been appointed to succeed him, for the new Bexhill-plus constituency, though, not for Rye. Our future interest lies with the three people - all men, as it happens - who will be standing for Hastings next time, and so as to be strictly impartial we pass on the information we have in alphabetical order.
The Alliance candidate will be Mr. David Amies. He is 41, and lives in Robertsbridge as did his father and grandfather; Mrs. Amies teaches at Claverham, and they have two children. Mr. Amies read civil engineering at Leeds University, then went into computing, worked in Canada for three years and then for the Corporation of London. He became an accountant, and is now Manager of the Barbican Estate in the City. He has previously contested a Parliamentary election at Havant and is on the Liberal side of the Alliance Party. He represents Battle on the County Council.
The Labour candidate is Mr. Nigel Knowles, 36. Mr. Knowles is married with two children, and his wife Jenny is Vice-Chairman of the Wood Green Constituency Labour Party. He comes from the West Midlands, and was a textile worker for a time after leaving school, before going to Essex University. The family now live in London, where Mr. Knowles is an Education Officer for the General Confederation of Trade Unions. He contested the Bodmin seat for Labour at the last Parliamentary election. He is currently a member of Harringay Council.
The present, Conservative, MP for Hastings is Mr. Kenneth Warren. Mr. Warren is in his middle fifties, and went to King's College, London, and the London School of Economics. His professional career has been mainly in the field of aviation engineering, with company directorships and other business experience. From 1953 to 1965 he was on Paddington Borough Council and became the MP for Hastings in 1970; he has held various Parliamentary appointments mainly connected with science and technology, and is at present PPS to the Secretary of State for Education and Science. He and his wife have three children and live at Goudhurst.
These three people will almost certainly be competing for our vote at the next General Election. (Maybe there will be other candidates as well, and we shall hope to publish similar details about them.) If an election is as imminent as some seem to think, we hope that there will be an early opportunity for Rye to meet all three, and we will of course publicise any formal or informal political meetings.
A second well-paid (over £5,000 p.a.) office job in Rye was advertised in the Sussex Express last week. Although the Social Services Patch Office will not be opening in Rye until the summer - not March as the ad says - they are looking now for a full-time secretary receptionist; as well as the usual secretarial skills, she or he will have had a certain amount of experience plus the right temperament for a job of this kind, and will be expected to start work at the Bexhill office so as to receive training before the Rye office opens. Further information from 0424 218498; application forms to County Hall by 18 March.
2.
The death occurred in Rye Hospital on Friday, after many months of increasing illness, of Mrs. Ada Banister, wife of Mr. Leonard Banister of Ashenden Avenue. The funeral will take place at Hastings Crematorium on Friday, 11 March, at 2.30. Mrs. Banister and her husband had lived in Rye since their marriage 48 years ago and were of course well known to customers at the family business of Banisters, ironmongers, in Cinque Ports Street. Mrs. Banister was one of the founder members of the WI Market and had also been WI Group Chairman and Home Economics Leader, and back in 1951 she started the WI Produce Guild. She was also on the committee of the Winchelsea Floral Society, and over many years a tireless worker for Cancer Relief. She is mourned by her husband, her son and his family, as well as by very many friends in and around Rye.
Mrs. Lilian Browne, who died last week aged 74, came to Rye from London some years ago to join her brother and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Newman, at their home in South Undercliff. Ill health unfortunately meant that she was unable to take much part in the life of the town. Cremation will be at Hastings on Thursday (10th) at 2.30.
Mrs. Amy Leggett, whose death we reported briefly last week, died in hospital aged 86 after a winter of illness. Mrs. Leggett was the widow of Dr. Bernard Leggett, a consultant radiologist. Born in Rye in 1896, she was the daughter of Brookie Clark, well known in local sporting circles and a member of one of Rye's oldest and most respected families. She was one of eight girls who were the first to attend Rye Grammar School in 1908, and in 1958 attended the Golden Jubilee of the school’s move to The Grove. After their marriage in St. Mary's, the Leggett’s moved away from the area, at one time living in Munich; it was not until Dr. Leggett died in 1950 that his widow returned to live with her own widowed mother Mrs. Clark in Tower Street. She had a shop at Winchelsea Beach which will be remembered fondly by many who were children in the fifties. Latterly she was a regular attender at the Red Cross Over-60s Club, and a proud moment was when she was presented to the Queen Mother in 1978 by her daughter Mrs. Joan Yates, who was then Speaker of the Cinque Ports. Shortly before her illness she was able to watch the finals of the Bowls Club's first season and present the Cup she had given in memory of her father. She leaves a son and two daughters, six grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Chris Davson tells us that Rye Parish Church is hosting what promises to be quite a "happening" with the arrival of the Rev. Colin Urquhart and his team on Tuesday, 15 March. Such is the renown of this internationally-known speaker that the Church authorities are keeping the publicity strictly local and even low-key. The team will be taking part in a number of daytime functions during the week, but the focus is on the evening meetings at 7.30 pm each weeknight, and the Grand Finale at 6.30, pm on Sunday in which Bishop Peter of Lewes will take part. "Get some food before you come" says Mr. Davson, "as we know when the meetings start - but after that, who knows? Get there in good time to be sure of a seat, and enjoy the warm-up music. All are welcome, just bring an open mind, and a cushion in case you have to sit on the floor!"
The winter issue of the RNLI magazine shows a busy time last summer for the Rye Harbour lifeboat. It went out on 19, 27 and 29 June; twice on July and twice on the 6th, six times on the 11th (presumably an offshore-wind and rubber-mattress sort of day), once on the 18th, 22nd, 25th and 28th, and twice on the 29th; and in August once on the 6th, three times on the 8th, and again on 14th, 19th, 27th, 31st.
The second and third of the new Brede class lifeboats, designed by Judd Varley and built by Lochin Marine, are on station at Oban and Fowey respectively. The Oban boat was called to the aid of a stranded fishing boat while she was still on her operational evaluation trials.
The Rye, Winchelsea and District Branch of the RNLI is holding a wine and cheese evening at the Community Centre on Thursday, 24 March, at 7; admission £1.50, in aid of the RNLI of course - all are welcome, though Secretary Joan Parkes is not producing a lifeboat this time.
THE RYE GAZETTE, 9.3.83 - page 3
We are sorry to report that Papa Joe's Pizzeria will be open for the last time on Sunday, 20 March. Mr. Card has spent ten years making pizzas in Rye, and when he first came his was one of four restaurants (as opposed to hotels) in the town; the number grew, but so did the clientele. Lately, however, the trend is against eating out, and he has decided to move into wholesaling. Rye pizza-lovers will be able to obtain four of Papa Joe's most popular lines from Mrs. Jane Edgar at the Peacock Wine Bar, and perhaps later on elsewhere as well; Mr. Card already has 20 outlets which he will be provisioning from premises in Ashford, and he can cope with up to 50 before he has to decide whether to go really big or not. Customers are reminded that he is still taking freezer orders from the High Street restaurant, with a 10% discount on orders over £10 - so stock up while you can!
The Friday night films have now ceased, and so, soon, will the jazz on Sundays, though there is a possibility that this will move along the road to the Saltings. Mr. Card says that with more local support for these entertainments he might still be here in April. As it is, the new proprietors, who come from Lewes will be opening an Indian Tandoori restaurant.
Choosing a career is one thing and actually getting a foothold in it is another nowadays, but a large number of parents and pupils turned up at Thomas Peacocke School on Thursday to take advantage of the advice on offer at the school's fourth Careers Convention. Some students diligently investigated almost every option, others wafted round with their noses in the air; some parents, already with older children not working, were more cynical than others coming new to the problem. But the representatives of the various trades and careers were very eager to help; only the ESCC adviser, apparently marooned on the platform, seemed sometimes short of customers. The Convention is certainly a useful and convenient way for parents to investigate job prospects, though of course the school also has a network of careers advice, work experience and even dummy-run interviews which comes into use as pupils approach the end of their schooling.
On Sunday, 27 February, the Rye Racers gave a party for 145 retired people. A three-course meal was served - soup made by Jack Taylor, roast beef, Yorkshire pudding and three vegetables provided by John Sperring, and trifle by courtesy of Long Bros. Transport to and from the Community Centre was provided by Graham Trill and other volunteers. The entertainment was much enjoyed by the audience; Dorothy Wood and Myrtle Ball played the piano, and performers were 1st Rye Brownies, Rye Players and Tony Rome.
Rye Racers, would like to thank the many Rye traders (including some from the Market) for their munificence in providing an enormous number of raffle prizes, and the volunteer helpers who made the evening possible.
The most unusual lot at the Thomas Peacocke PTA Auction on Saturday was undoubtedly the bearskin rug, complete with lifelike head, which glowered menacingly from the top of the grand piano throughout the sale. However, buyers were not intimidated and with total takings over £1600 the event raised the magnificent sum of £900 for the school minibus fund. This results from an incredible amount of work put in both beforehand and on the day by members of the PTA Committee, with help from their children; and the Committee is most grateful to Mrs. Pauline Chalk of Butler & Hatch Waterman, who gave up so much of her time to wringing the final 10p’s from hesitating buyers, ably assisted by Bob Huxtstep's stentorian starter bids.
The list is enclosed with this week's paper; we have printed it on a separate sheet for the benefit of those who would like to keep it handy, Extra copies are available free on request.
- an interesting exhibition of plans for redeveloping Hastings, including the shopping centre, at the Queen's Hotel until the end of this week.
THE RYE GAZETTE, 9.3.83 - page 4
Grumbles about the Planning Committee have doubtless been going on for as long as the Planning Committee itself, but there seems to be some doubt about technical details of procedure, and anyway staff cuts have meant that these have been altered in recent weeks. Those who regularly use the Planning Department will know all about this, but many people may only ever be concerned with a single application and are then confused when the system turns out not to be what they thought.
Rother Council publishes a weekly list of applications received, under parishes; it should be remembered that Rye Harbour comes under Icklesham here. This list is available for inspection at the Library and the Ferry Road offices and can also be sent to anyone for an annual subscription of £12. The actual applications relating to our area are also normally available for inspection at the Ferry Road office on request, for anyone who wants more details of a particular one.
The Sussex Express publishes planning applications in brief, usually the week after they appear on the official list; but they are not bound to do so. Only certain types of application have to be formally advertised in the press and or have a notice displayed on the site; the Planning Officer says it is an elaborate list, but it includes conservation area applications which would have an appreciable effect on the surroundings, and also such things as public conveniences and Turkish baths! Rye Town Council is notified of all planning applications which affect the town; the Conservation Society is not, but it receives the weekly list.
There is no indication on that list of when an application will come before the Planning Committee; that only appears in the agenda of each month's Planning meeting. Until January, these agendas were placed in the Ferry Road offices on the Monday before the Thursday meeting, giving time for anyone interested to check whether a particular application was due to come up; but last month we were told that the policy was altered and the agenda, with its individual reports on all applications, was not made public until the morning of the meeting. We are at present negotiating for just the agenda (less the individual reports) to be sent to us as it is to the other newspapers in advance of the meeting - we could then have covered the Rye Harbour Road proposals at the proper time (see next week's GAZETTE).
We understand that when an application appears on the Planning Committee agenda, any Rother Councillor can ask for it to be referred to the full Council before a final decision is taken; this can even be done during the Planning Meeting as long as the vote has not been taken and was in fact done for a Rye application in December. If, on the other hand, the application is just discussed at the planning meeting in the normal way, a vote is taken, and a simple majority decides the matter. In many cases, of course, the application is quite straightforward and there is no discussion. Some applications are put off for a month to await further information or reports; some are refused outright.
Not everyone with a planning application in is able to attend the Planning meeting in person, and the written notifications usually take some days to deal with. A phone call to the Planning Department at Bexhill Town Hall (0424 216321) will discover whether a particular application was passed or not; enquirers must be able to give the application reference number (which appears on the weekly list), and all they will get is a simple yes or no, without any details of conditions, etc. This information used to be available by mid-day on the Friday after the meeting, but here again the system is altered and the draft minutes are not now given to the staff until mid-day on the Monday - and the Planning Officer stresses that they are only draft minutes at this stage, and not final. The written notification is the one to wait for before taking any action.
It seems clear that keeping an eye on the weekly lists is the only way to be sure that someone is not proposing a development in your area without you knowing anything about it, since - contrary to popular belief - the Planning Office staff is not required to notify neighbours about all applications they only do this when in their view "adjoining neighbours would be adversely affected" and to judge from a recent case the word "adjoining" is strictly kept to and does not mean next-door-but-one or across-the-road.
One final point: anyone, applicant or not, is very welcome to go to any Planning Committee meeting - only to listen, of course, not to state their own views!
5.
All Rye will be sorry to hear that the Rev. John Pyke, our popular Methodist minister, is leaving the town in August to go to a three-church parish at Ramsgate. Even those not connected with church affairs at all will know of Mr. Pyke's hang-gliding activities, and Rye has seen several weddings and christenings that he has conducted as chaplain to the local hang-gliding association. During the family's five years in Rye (come August), Mr. Pyke has been Mayor's Chaplain to Mrs. Kirkham, chaplain to the ATC, and Free Church chaplain to Hill House and Rye Hospital. As well as Rye itself, he has been in charge of seven village chapels; and somehow he found time to teach roller-skating to the Junior Club, and build himself a micro-light aircraft now almost completed. We understand Mr. and Mrs. Pyke will be succeeded for one year by an American Methodist minister and his wife, and then by the present minister at Hastings.
Tony Thompson, Chairman of Rye and District Swimming Club, asks us to say that the Club's AGM is on Wednesday, 16 March, upstairs at the Community Centre at 7.30. There is what ought to be good news for swimmers - the County Council expects to be spending money on the pool this year, though they aren't saying how much. However, it will be remembered that last year they spent money on it and went on spending for two-thirds of the swimming season, so that the pool was only opened at the very end of July; there was no school swimming, and the TPS swimming gala had to be cancelled. We hope there will be reassurance at the meeting that this won't happen again.
Anyway, the Club had a very successful if abbreviated season in 1982; but it really does seem only fair that families using the pool should do their share of helping with the running of it, and the Committee needs to have a good attendance at the meeting if it is to plan am programme for the coming summer.
A number of parents and friends helped to celebrate Thinking Day on Sunday afternoon at the Community Centre, when Rye District Guides presented an entertainment with an international flavour. Each of the nine units selected a country, and the appropriate flags were carried in procession up the hall. Both entertainment and food reflected the country adopted by the unit concerned.
Miss Henley tells us that Guiding in Rye was started in 1916 by the Misses Bushby; it would be interesting to recall its subsequent history if anyone has more information. There is also the school company, which started later, and at one point four Brownie packs.
Rye Community Centre has come up with a new idea - just an idea at the moment, but Secretary Mrs. Maureen Sherwood is inviting enquiries from people who might be interested. The Committee plan to use the large hall once or perhaps twice a week on the principle of a car boot sale but held in greater comfort. They will rent out tables in the hall to people who have goods to sell in aid of themselves, paying a set fee to the Centre. The Committee hope to make their event a regular part of the week's shopping round, and it would certainly be convenient for people who have things to dispose of that are not quite up to sale-room standards but are too good for a jumble sale - or, of course, new items (craft work, for instance). The days proposed are Sunday and/or Thursday mornings, and Mrs. Sherwood will be pleased to discuss the matter on Rye 222850 or at the Centre during its office hours.
A Camber couple are applying to build a house on the land at present leased as a builder's yard by Messrs. Andrews & Payne in West Undercliff. There are also applications for a dormer window at 5 West Street and an East Street bathroom. An interesting application relates to the windmill, at present the Gopsall Pottery; the inside of the main mill building, which was left as an empty shell when the mill was rebuilt after the 1930 fire, has recently been turned into living accommodation extending up six floors, and the planning application is for permission, in principle only, to open it as a guest house for up to 16 guests.
Thursday, 10th Rye Museum Association AGM, Town Hall, 7.30 (followed by slides)
Friday, 11th WI Market returns to the Community Centre, 10
Natural History Society: Finding Fossils and Wildflowers, FEC,
Saturday, 12th Coffee morning and sale, Baptist Hall, 10 to 12. 11.30.
Jumble sale, Hill House League of Friends, Methodist Hall, 2.
Sunday, 13th Mothering Sunday
Wednesday, 16th Red Cross Thrift Shop, handing-in, 10.30 to 12.30
NSPCC AGM, with Ron Hawker, the Society's 1984 Centenary Officer, FE Centre, 3
Swimming Club AGM, Community Centre (upstairs), 7.30 (see p. 5)
• We apologise to Messrs. Le Fevre, Wood & Royle, who do not in fact take on photo-copying for outside customers as we stated in error last week. However, Rye is still well-served, since both the Library and the Council offices only charge 5p a sheet, which is half the normal commercial rate.
• Mr. Bill Easter, of Tilling Green, who has been the acting caretaker at Lower School since the death of Mr. Ovenden, has now been appointed to the job on a permanent basis.
• Rye Christian Lunch Club is looking forward to a very special speaker next Thursday (17th) when the Rev. Colin Urquhart takes time off from his Teaching Week in Rye (see page 2) to talk to the group. The meeting is at 12 for 12.30 at the Community Centre, and the £l entry fee includes a simple meal.
• Guest of Honour at the Northiam and Rye RAFA annual dinner last Friday was the Association's national President, Air Chief Marshal Sir Lewis Hodges, accompanied by his wife. 48 members enjoyed an excellent dinner at the Saltings Hotel.
• Does anyone in the area want to let (or exchange for the equivalent in Sevenoaks) a house for the first fortnight in July - to sleep 7, preferably in 4 bedrooms? If you are interested, please phone Miss Anne Hamilton, Rye 223652.
• At a well-attended AGM last Friday, Rye Movie Society elected Mrs. Joan Camier as its Chairman, with Bert Osborne as Vice-Chairman, Dickie Dickinson as Hon. Treasurer, Fred Masters as Press Officer, and Mrs. Jeffery Waters (114 New Winchelsea Road, Rye 223332) as Hon. Secretary; President is Mr. Bernard Waters.
• PEOPLE are doing all sorts of things at the Easton Rooms this month. A mixed exhibition on this theme, including paintings, drawings and sculpture by local artists and others among the gallery's regular exhibitors, continues at the High Street gallery until 22 March.
• We do like two examples at the Swiss Patisserie of what might be called container cookery: brandy-snap sundae baskets, and a decorative circular loaf of bread take off the "lid" to reveal the inside neatly packed with little triangular sandwiches. Claude Auberson won't say how he gets the inside out in the first place!
• The fox referred to last week seems to be a new visitor to The Mint. Mr. and Mrs. Simmons had wondered why their cats suddenly seemed so jittery, until they found fox droppings in their garden, and finally came across a fox nosing about in their rubbish bag. Does anyone down that way keep chickens?
THE RYE GAZETTE is registered as a newspaper at the Post Office. It is published by Mrs. Mary Owen, 94 Udimore Road, Rye (Rye 222303), who is always glad to have news items for inclusion - normal deadline Monday afternoon, emergencies first thing Tuesday morning. It costs 20p a week (25p from next month) and is normally delivered to subscribers and pick-up points on Wednesday.
Photocopied by Sussex Secretarial Services, 11 Claremont, Hastings (0424 22633).
THE RYE GAZETTE printed, back in October, a list of charities and organisations and people acting for them, who will gratefully receive things which would otherwise find their way to the dustbin. We now publish an updated version, and will always be glad to add any other "collections" of this kind.
SILVER FOIL: Guide Dogs for the Blind, c/o Miss Henley at Freeman Hardy & Willis, or c/o Gordon Collett at 2 Love Lane.
USED POSTAGE STAMPS (if they have an interesting postmark, send the envelope intact; if not, tear off the stamp with a wide margin of paper; damaged stamps are useless): Guide Dogs for the Blind, c/o Gordon Collett, 2 Love Lane or leave at Maison Fleur; Cancer Research, c/o Mrs. Kirkham, 10 Cadborough Cliff or leave at Town Hall; Mother Teresa's Charity, c/o Miss Anne Hamilton, 2 Eagle Road; Homes for Aged and Frail at Heathfield, c/o Mrs. Baker, 33 Udimore Road.
NEWSPAPER (tied in bundles, please): Playden Church, the shed in the churchyard.
PLASTIC CARRIERS, LARGE PAPER BAGS: Thrift Shop, c/o Red Cross Centre any time.
PLASTIC FLOWER POTS: WI Market, Community Centre, Friday mornings 10 to 10.30.
CHRISTMAS AND BIRTHDAY CARDS: Church of England Children's Society, c/o The Rye Bookshop (Mr. and Mrs. Bateman).
KNITTING WOOL (for blanket squares): WRVS office, FE Centre.
BOTTLES, JARS, ANY DISCARDED GLASS: the bottle banks are now at Tower Street and Strand Quay.
EGG BOXES: always welcomed by shops which sell farm eggs.
WIRE HANGERS can be returned to (or left behind at) the cleaners.
'SPECTACLES: Mrs. Arnold, 1 East Street (office hours) collects them, without cases please, for missions mostly to East Africa; also Miss Bosher, Inner Wheel (Rye 222999) for India, and Mrs. Wood, c/o 77 The Mint, for Sri Lanka. In each case they are re-dispensed and not merely handed out regardless.
RING-PULLS from drinks cans: Gordon Collett, 2 Love Lane, passes them on to Lions to raise money for kidney machines. (There is talk of a "tin bin" for salvaging the actual cans, but we are not suggesting that people save up their drinks cans until it appears!)
BABY CLOTHES, towels, blankets suitable for cutting up: Miss Bosher again (Rye 222999) on behalf of Inner Wheel, who pass then on to Third World countries.
JUMBLE generally: see the Town Diary in the Spar grocery store for the next blue spot, or ring Rye 222303
and finally
PAPERBACKS JIGSAW PUZZLES BOARD GAMES MAGAZINES, COMICS
plus large sheets of wrapping paper, and any kind of stout string: to the WRVS office in the FE Centre, for dispatch via Lydd airport direct to our troops in Northern Ireland (there is a collecting box in the Library foyer).