Pontefract Voice - August 2020

PONTEFRACT VOICE August 2020

VJ DAY 75TH ANNIVERSARY

CHAIR’S REPORT

Leading a civic society in ‘Lockdown’ is a strange experience of online meetings, posting content, and peaks and troughs of activity; in some ways, I’ve never been busier, and underneath managing our current activity and future activity, there’s also the catching up that we need to do on projects which have been on the ‘back burner’, whilst also transforming how we work as a well-governed charity, and digitally and technologically for the 21st century. Many of you will say that we are no different to many other organisations, and that’s fine, but we would love to increase the limited number of active members on the quest, which will improve our success rate, making both Pontefract Civic Society and the town a better place.

I’ve mentioned the necessary transformation that civic societies are engaging in, and it is fair to say that Karl has already played a part in that in earlier terms of office through significant contributions using his design and technological skills. We are therefore already working with Karl on a handover plan, which could be implemented earlier than the AGM as we seek to reallocate some of the workload, though we do need a volunteer! If anyone wishes to discuss this opportunity with me, please get in touch.

Honorary Secretary At this time, it is pertinent to advise that our Secretary, Karl Gilbert, has confirmed that he is not able to continue in that role from our next AGM due to the time needed to focus on the Pomfretian and other business opportunities.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Business Since the last issue of Pontefract Voice, I’ve continued to work actively with reporters from the Pontefract & Castleford Express as businesses come out of Lockdown to face the challenges of sustainability. This has ensured the town has had good coverage with quotes and some photographs for The Blue Bell, Maud’s Café, The Little Green Bistro, The Liquorice Bush, The Coffee Lounge, Coffee at the Court and Jolly’s.

Meetings and events in this period • Barnbow: National Shell-Filling Factory no. 1 & the 1916 Explosion with Eric Jackson (30 Jun) • How to optimise digital momentum created during COVID-19 – Charity Digital (2 Jul) • Introductory phone call to WMDC HOD grant (3 Jul) • A Taste of Liquorice – Virtual event (5 Jul) • Executive meeting (7 & 28 Jul) • Heritage Group - HOD planning (8 & 23 Jul, 13 & 27 Aug) • Planning Group (13 Jul) • Leeds Civic Trust – ‘A Stranger’s Guide to Leeds in 1830’ - Dr Kevin Grady (15 Jul) • Rail Group(17 Jul) • Decoration Squad (22 Jul) • Pontefract Bike & Skate Hub inaugural meeting (23 Jul)

Towards the end of July, registrations for the government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme were relatively low in Pontefract within a two mile radius of the town centre (excluding Xscape).

I rectified this by contacting the relevant businesses, which increased participation in a few days from 17 to 29 businesses, and we hope that you’ve all taken advantage of the scheme.

Wakefield Council For our quarterly Pontefract Steering Group meeting on Skype, we were joined for the first time by Cllr Darren Byford, WMDC Regeneration portfolio holder. We’ve also been studying and responding to consultation for the Pontefract Masterplan, the ‘Devolution Deal’ for West Yorkshire, and next we’ve had to turn our attention to Robert Jenrick MP’s controversial Planning White Paper which raises concerns for local planning authorities and the civic movement.

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• Yorkshire Day – Virtual event (1 Aug) • Friends of Friarwood Valley Gardens – Litter Pick & Gardening (2 Aug) • Welcome to Yorkshire (3 Aug) • Mid Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce & Industry Ltd – Maximise your Membership (4 Aug) • Leeds Civic Trust – ‘Montague Burton: Tailor of Taste’ (5 Aug) • VJ Day – Virtual event and War Memorial ceremony (15 Aug) • Citizenship Group (17 Aug)

WMDC Regeneration meetings and events • Pontefract Masterplan – Pre-launch of consultation events (30 Jun) • Pontefract Delivery Group (13 Jul & 26 Aug) • Pontefract Masterplan – Businesses (16 Jul) www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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• Pontefract Steering Group (23 Jul) • Pontefract Masterplan – Public (29 Jul) • Pontefract Outdoor Market (30 Jul) • Introduction phone call with the new Place Manager (28 Aug)

Civic Voice & YHACS meetings and events (all delivered via Zoom/Skype) • High Street Task Force (HSTF) - Reopening the High Street – Transformation Route Map • National Design Guide - Andy von Bradsky Head of Architecture at MHCLG (1 Jul) • HSTF- Reopening the High Street - From Recovery to Transformation (3 Jul) • Matt Bell, Can Grosvenor’s Community Charter rebuild public trust in planning? (7 Jul) • In Conversation - Sarah Richards, CEO of The Planning Inspectorate (8 Jul) • In Conversation - Duncan Wilson, CEO of Historic England (9 Jul) • HSTF- Reopening the High Street - From Recovery to Transformation (10 Jul)

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• In Conversation- Ros Kerslake, CEO of Heritage Lottery Fund (16 Jul) • How to do High Streets differently - Aldershot, Hastings and Paisley (17 Jul) • In Conversation - Gavin Parker, Professor of Real Estate & Planning (22 Jul) • HSTF – Prof Cathy Parky, Transformation Route Map (24 Jul) • YHACS Quarterly Meeting hosted by Addingham Civic Society – theme focused on environment and climate change (25 Jul) • Should Civic Societies become Statutory Consultees? (29 Jul) • YHACS – Executive (15 Jul) • The Voice of Authority (TVOA) - How are Councils responding to the government’s planning white paper (25 Aug) • TVOA - What’s good and what’s bad in planning for the future (27 Aug)

So you can see, we have plenty on our plate as we continue to work for Pontefract.

Paul Cartwright Chair

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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VJ Day 75th Anniversary - Pontefract remembers ‘the forgotten’ We were proud to have staged this ‘closed ceremony’ with Ackworth & Pontefract Branch Royal British Legion. Having had to cancel all physical VE Day commemorations in May this year, it was a step in the right direction that a small socially distanced service could take place at Pontefract War Memorial on Saturday 15th July. Strict guidelines from the RBL HQ were in place including a maximum of 30 invited representatives.

After the disappointment of not commemorating VE Day, we breathed a sigh of relief that we could remember VJ Day and the end of 2nd World War. This was particularly poignant for the ‘old soldiers’ of Pontefract, especially as the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry contingents who saw active service in Far East conflicts were based at Pontefract Barracks.

Brian Berry, Chairman, The Royal British Legion, Ackworth and Pontefract Branch, said:

‘The Ackworth and Pontefract Branch TRBL, was delighted to be able to work with The Pontefract Civic Society and Pontefract Heritage Group to mark this important historic occasion. VJ Day represented the end of the Second World War, so it was vitally important for Pontefract to commemorate the 75th Anniversary with a ceremony at The War memorial’.

All arrangements were made between Brian Berry, RBL, and Phil Cook, Vice Chair, Pontefract Civic Society, and 5pm was chosen to avoid large gatherings during Saturday, a busy market day. The ceremony commenced with a recorded pipe version of ‘Battle’s O’er’, followed

by Reverend Canon June Lawson, the Royal British Legion Chaplain and Vicar of All Saints & St Giles’ with St Mary’s Pontefract, leading the religious service, and Pontefract Heritage Group’s Town Crier, John Turner, read the ‘Cry for Peace’, as all town criers across the land were doing on this special day. The exhortation was read by the Royal British Legion, and Last Post and Reveille was performed by a bugler, together with a recording of the National Anthem.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Covid-19 creative calendar launched for 2021

Pontefract Civic Society in association with local artist, Rachel List, and The Prince of Wales Hospice are proud to launch our 2021 Pontefract calendar, and we are extremely pleased that the surplus proceeds by donation will be going to the Hospice.

During “Lockdown”, following one request from the landlord at the Horse Vaults pub on Baxtergate, Rachel List commenced her work at the crack of dawn, though she continued to receive calls from other building owners plus ideas from friends and the public and whole thing just grew and grew to 17 creative pieces celebrating the NHS and all key workers, plus the epic Yorkshire fundraiser, Capt. Tom Moore.

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Phil Cook, Vice Chair and Citizenship Coordinator, Pontefract Civic Society, said

‘In recent years, our calendar has been based on local heritage, buildings and events, and we connected with the talented Rachel List to map a trail of her Covid-19 artwork during June. It now just felt right that with her permission, and with the public support for key workers, that we could partner with The Prince of Wales Hospice as a fundraising initiative collating the images into our 2021 calendar. Initially, we set ourselves a target of raising £1,000 for the Hospice which we now think we can exceed, though only time will tell!’

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Some of Rachel’s artwork has also been auctioned for the Hospice, and the civic society’s VE Day item is in storage until a new location is confirmed. The remainder provide a great route for health and wellbeing walks around the town. The 2021 Calendar priced £7.50 (+p&p) can be purchased online: https://www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk/ product/pontefract-calendar-2021/ Orders and walk-in purchases can be collected from Suzi’s Boutique, Michelle’s Flowers, Maud’s Café, Myxology, Hark Interiors, The Shoe Room, and the Prince of Wales Hospice shop on Cornmarket.

Diane Peter, Marketing and Communications Manager at The Prince of Wales Hospice, said,

'We are so grateful that the Pontefract Civic Society reached out to us during lockdown and offered their support to help us to raise funds. The calendar looks fantastic and we're so excited for its release. Rachel is really talented, and her work is so unique. It is something really special we are bringing to our community and I hope sales of this little piece of history go well.'

Rachel List, said,

'I am so happy to be involved with fundraising for the Hospice, which is such a worthy and invaluable service in our community. It’s the least we can do to give back'.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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The civic movement in England: what is it, why should I care and how do I engage?

Written by Jaydn Edwards @ jaydnedwards.com Did you know the first civic society was set up in the 1940s? Across the country there are hundreds of civic societies; fiercely independent organisations aiming to work with local people and authorities to better the places we live, shop and work in. They champion the history and heritage of the places they represent, while working to improve life there. Some maintain local archives and most have a blue plaque scheme to honour notable locals and their achievements through history. They give a voice to the people and work with the local authorities. This is the civic movement.

Their focus now is on encouraging debate on the future of the city centre, promoting the architectural legacy and encouraging people to think about good design.

What have they ever done for us?

In the 1960s, not long after they were established, the Wakefield Civic Society stepped in to prevent part of St. John’s Square from being demolished, and then led a project to improve the appearance of the houses there. St. John’s Square is home to elegant three-storey late Georgian terraces and the late 18th century Church of St. John the Baptist. In May 1968, it was designated a conservation area. Had the demolition not been stopped by the Wakefield Civic Society, the whole area may have been lost in the decades since.

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St John’s Square, Wakefield - north side.

Copyright Stephen Craven and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence (CC BY-SA 2.0).

In 2008, the Pontefract Civic Society worked with the Grand Central Chief Operating Officer, including inviting them for a tour of the town.

Two years later, in 2010, the line from Bradford to London was extended to Pontefract. Thanks to the efforts of the Pontefract Civic Society, Pontefract has a direct rail connection to London. www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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In 2016, they delivered the Magna Carta monument in Pontefract to celebrate the part our town played in the signing of the Magna Carta (read: Great Charter) by King John of England at Runnymede, near Windsor, on 15th June 1215.

So here it is. You should care because something as important as the civic societies don’t have people to represent us, and no one ready to keep it going in the future. It also doesn’t hurt career-wise; you can gain valuable experience and employers love volunteers.

Pontefract was announced by Welcome to Yorkshire as the Best Dressed Town in the 2019 Tour de Yorkshire. This can be attributed to Pontefract Civic Society’s efforts to organise the town’s decoration efforts with local businesses and people.

What can you do?

So, why should you care?

I volunteer for the Pontefract Civic Society, where I have made the Pontefract Blue Plaque Guide, Pontefract Town Hall History leaflet, and a poster for the Society’s work with a local author (amongst other design projects).

I’ve published some of their articles on their website, collated their monthly newsletter, and given advice on their web presence and content strategy.

The civic movement directly affects the future of this country and is headed by a population of mostly older men. Younger people are not represented, and we should be. The future of civic societies also rely on the recruitment of young people.

In 2019, I attended a quarterly meeting of civic societies across Yorkshire and the Humber that was hosted by Pontefract Civic Society. You can read more about that visit on the Pontefract Civic Society website. It was a few hours long, talking about a lot of topics. It was important stuff, but there was a lot more men than women and I was the only person there around my age.

At the end, when I was preparing to leave, I was approached by an elderly gentleman. He had another gentleman with him who seemed to be looking after him. He was very polite, and then he told me,

“I won’t be here in ten years.”

Join your local civic society. Become a member, reach out and offer to volunteer. Get involved with the society and let your voice be heard.

Any skill set is welcome.

Some people help decorate the town for events, help organise said events and help with the advertisement of them. You can get involved in any of the sub-groups, such as the Rail Group who campaign for better rail between the three stations at Pontefract.

Look up the Society near you and send them a message asking how you can get involved. Get your friends involved! We all should be invested in our local communities and civic societies are probably the best way to gain a meaningful platform to do that.

I definitely didn’t know what to say to that! He told me to look around the room. He told me that most of the people here won’t be here in another thirty years, and that I need to get more young people like myself involved.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Wrapping up.

Pontefract Counting House, falling in disrepair.

Thank you to Paul Cartwright of Pontefract Civic Society and Kevin Trickett MBE of Wakefield Civic Society for speaking with me about their societies’ achievements. You’ve both been really helpful.

I want to create a discussion about this, so please follow me on Twitter and tell me what you think with the hashtag #YoungCivic.

To the right are some photos I’ve taken of our town. I hope they remind you of our civic pride.

Pontefract Castle, recently conserved.

Jaydn Edwards PCS Volunteer jaydnedwards.com Twitter: @jaydn_edwards

Christmas Lights 2019, bringing our town together in celebrations.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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A Taste of Liquorice While Pontefract’s annual celebration of liquorice has been cancelled, we were still able to celebrate our town’s rich history of liquorice with this virtual event. A number of community groups have come together to deliver a “Taste of Liquorice”. This will include performance, facts, poetry and more, and all being run from our Facebook page which encouraged others to join in and add photos and memories of past years and connections to liquorice. We also invited local businesses running liquorice themed promotions to let us know so we could add them to the event.

Our posts were shared to other sites throughout the day, and here’s what we did.

10:00

History of Liquorice

11:00

Local liquorice companies

12:00

Making black Liquorice at home

12:30

Friarwood Valley Gardens connection to liquorice and more

13:00

‘The Lost Liquorice’ performed by the children of St Giles with St Mary’s Pantomime Theatre Society (video)

13:30

Children’s activities

14:00

‘The Licorice Fields at Pontefract’ John Betjeman read by the Town Crier (video)

14:30

Walking map of liquorice Garth’s and local Blue Plaques

15:00

Exhibition from Pontefract Art Club

16:00

Tom Dixon local Pomfretian talks about liquorice (video)

Wakefield MDC also did a virtual event, ‘Pontefract Allsorts’, where we’d agreed to cross promote each other’s event.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Yorkshire Day Our virtual event on Saturday 1 August followed our tried and tested format with preplanned posts using text, imagery and video in partnership with other organisations, with posts being shared across a number of local Facebook groups, as well as limited sharing onto Twitter and Instagram.

Here’s an example of the kind of reach we can achieve through sharing our content with like-minded community pages and groups on Facebook (though we realise some people will be members of more than one social media presence):

Yorkshire Day - 1st August Location

Type

Name

Members

Ackworth

Community

Ackworth, live it and love it

6,487

Ackworth

Community

This is our Ackworth

1,788

Castleford

Community

What’s happening in and around Castleford

20,247

Featherstone

Community

fev watch

8,573

Knottingley

Community

KFC WARD 9 (Knott &Ferry Community)

887

Knottingley

Community

The Official Knott and Ferry Community

3,386

Pontefract

Community

Barracks Community Association

118

Pontefract

Community

Pontefract Community Page

20,924

Pontefract

Community

Larks Hill Community Page

875

Pontefract

Community

WDH

779

Pontefract

Event

Pontefract Area - What’s Going On!

1,113

Pontefract

Event

Pontefract: Events

260

Pontefract

Event

Social Pontefract and Castleford

19327

Castleford

Event & Youth

Events & Playgroups in Castleford & Pontefract

1418

Ackworth

Historical

Ackworth Heritage Group

271

Pontefract

Historical

Pontefract the Good old Days

8379

Pontefract

Historical

Pontefract remember when

507

Pontefract

Historical

You know you have lived in Pontefract when........

3,838

Pontefract

Historical

Pontefract The Good Old Days

8637

Yorkshire

Historical

YORKSHIRE’S HISTORICAL GROUP

13,155

Pontefract

HOST

Pontefract Civic Society

1,800 TOTAL REACH 122,769

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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For those who missed it or are not on Facebook, here’s the virtual event which Phil Cook curated: Time

Event

10:00

The Yorkshire Prayer

11:00

History of the Yorkshire flag

11:30 12:00

Pontefract Art Club Yorkshire Art Display It’s all in the batter

13:00

The Yorkshire Terrier

13:30

The Band and Bugle of Durham and Yorkshire A.C.F. (video) Leather, stumps and whites and odd shaped balls. Part 1 Leather, stumps and whites and odd shaped balls. Part 2 ‘Eee by Gum, Ponte is Fun!’ by St Giles & St Marys Pantomime Society (video) Curd and Whey a Yorkshire treat

14:00 15:00 15:30

16:00

Pontefract Art Club Rhona Crichton, Secretary of the art club, tells us that they raised £190 from sales of paintings on Yorkshire Day, and they did sell two paintings during the virtual liquorice event raising £40, both for the Hospice.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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COMMITTEE REPORTS

11 – 22 Sept, 2020 Heritage Group Since we got the late confirmation (in June) from the national body behind Heritage Open Days that the festival would actually go ahead, we’ve been playing catch-up, as our normal planning cycle should have started in February. There is also a supplementary them of ‘nature’ this year, so look out for how that might be weaved into some of our programme.

It’s been my desire that we do our utmost to retain and deliver some physical activities through guided walks, though we know we can’t really access buildings and enclosed spaces whilst maintaining social distancing.

We are therefore working very hard towards a blended approach to Heritage Open Days 2020 with perhaps four or five physically led tours or activities, and then the remainder will be a collection of online activities, videos and slideshows. One thing that may not be immediately obvious is that we are all learning under these Covid-19 circumstances, not just through research as we unearth interesting facts and some interesting people from the past, but Registered charity number 513509

also as we experience technologies that are new to us, so we are upskilling ourselves as we go along.

We can promise you some HOD ‘regulars’ and some new stuff, though at this stage, it’s all with a pinch of salt, that we are still working on some of the content, so I hope we can pull it off in time. What is crucially important, is that all socially distanced ‘live’ events will have strict guidelines and pre-booked maximum number (additional attendees may be turned away); bookings will be managed on Eventbrite.

We were also successful in gaining a small grant of £1,250 from Wakefield MDC for HOD, which will primarily go to our ‘Through the Eyes of a Child’ project, where we’ll create a booklet with St Giles C of E Academy, as well as do some small filming segments with St Giles with St Mary’s Pantomime Society and Pontefract Heritage Group, who will also benefit in receiving a small donation from us. We will be match-funding the bulk of the grant to deliver the booklet theme from the grant award. www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk 15

Heritage Open Days 2020 Programme Here’s what we hope to promise you (dates and times are yet to be finalised; subject to change due to Covid-19 guidance): 1. St Giles Church

Video

2. St Andrew’s Church, Ferrybridge

Slideshow

3. St Edward the Confessor Church, Brotherton

Slideshow

4. St Michael’s Church, Carleton

Slideshow

5. All Saint’s Parish Church

TBC

6. St Joseph’s Church - interior

TBC

7. ‘Past Retail & Social Gillygate’ [other streets maybe additionally offered]

Live

8. Liquorice Fields at Pontefract with Tom Dixon

Live

9. Ackworth School external heritage tour and social history

Live

10. Pontefract Castle 11. Friarwood Valley Gardens

Virtual Live

12. Pontefract Town Hall & Assembly

Video

13. ‘Through the Eyes of a Child’ (Henry VIII & Catherine Howard) with St Giles with St Mary’s Pantomime Society

Video

14. ‘Through the Eyes of a Child’ with St Giles CofE Academy (2020-2021) 15. ‘Through the Eyes of a Child’ (People, Places & Treasures) Panto part 2

Booklet Video

16. Heritage Walks (Market Place conservation area from the Museum)

Live

17. Town Hall 100 metres: Self-guided walk Magna Carta, Civil War Siege, Elizabeth Moxon and much more

Virtual

18. Pontefract Park history and uses in the wars

Live

19. Talk: Domesday Pontefract (Eric Houlder) Tues 22 Sept 7:00pm

Zoom

20. Conservation Area Exhibition (Magistrates Market & Bus Station)

Displays

21. Children’s Activities

Virtual

Separate to HOD, we should soon be finalising the content for our interpretation board at Barracks, which will be installed at some stage, when this is realistic for WDH and the Barracks Community Association.

Paul Cartwright Interim Heritage Group Coordinator

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Citizenship Group It’s been an incredibly busy period and it’s not over yet! Some of our work has been reported elsewhere in this issue of Pontefract Voice, which we hope you enjoy reading, but here are a few headlines that we’ve worked on: • 2021 Calendar – a good pre-launch and a massive success already – have you got yours?

• Joint working with St Giles with St Marys Pantomime Society on multiple projects this year • Considerable input to research and creation into our ‘Lockdown’ virtual events, including those to come, such as Heritage Open Days, this will also see the Panto Society in various performances, one with Pontefract Heritage Group, and we hope to launch the creation of a booklet through joint working with St Giles CofE Academy • Of additional note for HOD is a piece of work we’ve called ‘100 Metres of Bridge Street using Google maps and heritage we’ve identified in the area • Engagement with WMDC markets and major event team - joint working is progressing • Agreement for VJ and Yorkshire day decorations mounted on Town Hall • The design continues of the children’s croquet game funded by Tesco/Groundwork ‘Bags of Help’ Phil Cook Citizenship Group Coordinator

STOP PRESS!!

‘Digital in the Community’ category - please VOTE for Pontefract Civic Society for the amazing success we’ve had in turning physical events into virtual events during Lockdown.

You can also vote for other organisations and individuals in the seven other categories.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Rail Group

Talks & Tours Group

The entire rail industry still faces a very challenging short-term future. The government is now encouraging people to use rail again, but obviously having close contact with other people, and having to wear a mask will discourage many passengers.

Visits and live talks are still a long way in the future!

We have tried to get the Sunday service on the Baghill Line addressed for when services are hopefully resumed in September. We wrote to our local MP, Yvette Cooper, asking for her support in this matter; to date we have not received a reply.

I attended an online meeting of Wakefield District Consultation Sub Committee (managed

by WYCA), hoping for reassurances and information on future services from Northern Rail. Unfortunately, Northern Rail did not attend the meeting.

Our Rail Group is currently pressing for a Five Towns meeting with WYCA, which has not taken place for a considerable length of time.

An article highlighting our past achievements has been submitted for publication in the next Railfuture magazine.

It has taken some time for the Grand Central service to King’s Cross to re-start, though our aspiration remains on improving this service.

We believe that Pontefract residents should be given the opportunity of maximising the service, though the lack of a 7-day return service is a barrier. Representations have been made to the Managing Director of Grand Central, who has not had the courtesy to reply; this letter was also copied to Railfuture Y&H branch. We were also co-signatories on a Railfuture Y&H letter to Secretary of State, Grant Shapps MP, seeking support for Grand Central and Hull Trains.

At the end of June, we had our first test talk on Zoom, with the kind support of Eric Jackson who presented ‘Barnbow: National Shell-Filling Factory no. 1 and the 1916 Explosion’ to a very well supportive audience of almost 50 members and non-members from across Yorkshire. We received some good questions in the ‘chatroom’ on the night, and positive feedback afterwards that most delegates would be prepared to attend future online talks.

We looked into having socially distanced live talks in the Town Hall, but the practices needed to facilitate this made it impractical.

Therefore, we have arranged a further online talks, these being ‘The Vikings in Yorkshire’

by Professor Joyce Hill from Leeds University, on Weds 26th August, ‘The Discovery of Doomsday Pontefract’ by local archaeologist and photographer, Eric Houlder on Tuesday 22nd September (which will close our Heritage Open Days festival for 2020), ‘From Eboracum to York by archaeologist and historian Karen Edwards, and ‘The Gunpowder Plot by Eric Jackson.

Dave Hogg Talks & Tours Group Coordinator

Dave Hogg Rail Group Coordinator Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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2020 Tuesday Talks All talks will be delivered online via Zoom.

26 Aug

Joyce Hill

Vikings in Yorkshire

22 Sept

Eric Houlder

The Discovery of Domesday Pontefract

13 October

Karen Adams

Eboracum to York

3 Nov

Eric Jackson

The Gunpowder Plot

2020 Events 11-20 Sep

Heritage Open Days

17 Oct

Virtual Lantern Festival

Sun 8 Nov

Remembrance Sunday

Weds 11 Nov

Remembrance Day

Mon 7 Dec

Liquorice Singers Christmas Concert

Highways Group Covid-19 restrictions have brought our usual meetings held every other month to an abrupt halt. We are now dependant on information gleaned from council officers and elected members to keep in touch.

It has also drastically changed the way that the local authority is able to work on previously planned projects, but the Pontefract Masterplan has been published running to thirteen pages in all. Many of the highways ideas therein follow the proposals in the comprehensive document we submitted seven years ago (Oct 2013) written by one of our 2013 members, Adrian Pope, as part of the consultation process for improving Pontefract town centre. It has to be noted that none of Adrian’s suggestion that traffic should be diverted away from the town are included in the Masterplan.

I have made occasional contact with Paul Stevenson, Transportation Planning Manager, asking to be kept up to date on progress with three of the schemes that are in the system.

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• South Featherstone Link Road – Public consultation was likely to take place scheduled for late summer 2020; this is now deferred to late autumn or winter 2021.

• South Baileygate/All Saints’ junction This was submitted to the Department for Transport in January 2020 for the government’s Pinch Point bid for congestion hotspots; it was a top priority scheme in West Yorkshire for this funding. Given the current circumstances, the government have not yet made an announcement about allocating this funding, but WMDC understands this may be announced in 2021.

• A639 Park Road – WMDC has been successful in gaining funding from West Yorkshire Combined Authority to develop the Outline Business Case. Work on the business case will commence in autumn, 2020. As part of this, Stakeholder and public consultation will be undertaken in due course.

Derek Vaux Highways Group Secretary

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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OTHER SOCIETY REPORTS

Pontefract in Bloom 2020 Pontefract in Bloom was delivered successfully in June and the tiered planters in the town centre are spectacular. There was a problem with the supply of hanging baskets from our usual supplier but with the help of the civic society we did find an alternative supplier at short notice. Unfortunately, the weekend that lock-down was relaxed and the pubs reopened, two of the Market Place tiered planters were tipped over but we managed to replant them and they did recover reasonably well. However the Red Lion planter was tipped over again at the end of July and couldn’t be resuscitated and had to be removed. We also had plants stolen from the Dispensary planters which are still looking fine but not as good as they did.

Our nursery supplier informs us that antisocial activity has been especially prevalent this year in other localities, presumably related to the pandemic lock-down.

Dr Colin White Chair

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Friends of Friarwood Valley Gardens The popular Covid Snake was installed as a permanent feature by Engie at the Council’s instigation on 30th June and has received numerous appreciative comments. After Facebook consultation it was decided to call it the “Covid Circle of Hope 2020”.

Volunteer activities restarted in July with litter picking on the first Sunday of the month at 10.30am with litter pickers and bags supplied, but please bring your own gloves. Gardening sessions are every Saturday at 2pm until further notice and there’s lots of weeding to do in the Rose Garden due to 3 months without any gardening sessions; tools provided but bring your own gardening gloves and please observe social distancing.

The Hiroshima/Nagasaki bench was repainted in time for VJ Day on 15th August. This is a curious feature in the Valley Gardens next to the liquorice plants which deserves explanation.

The bench has a plaque remembering the 40th anniversary of the atomic bombs which destroyed the two Japanese cities in 1945.

In 1985 Pontefract was visited by a group of Japanese pharmacists who were interested in Pontefract’s liquorice history. The bench was installed and a flowering cherry tree planted at that time in recognition of the visit.

Dr Colin White Chair

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Friends of Pontefract Park

Pontefract Lioness Club

The booklet to accompany the Peter’s Lost Peregrine Trail from Wakefield Council has been has been ordered and it will be on sale in the new Leisure Hub from next year. The lock-down caused complete cessation of all volunteer activities as all our active members are in the ‘at risk’ age group. However, litter picking sessions have now restarted at 10am on Wednesdays, litter pickers and bags provided, but please bring your own gloves and observe social distancing.

Pontefract Lantern Festival run by Pontefract Lioness Club volunteers is going virtual this year due to COVID 19 and we want you to help us to make this year a success. The Lantern Festival is now in it's 9th year and we want to get as many people involved as possible. Save the date Saturday 17th October and watch our page for announcements and updates.

Dr Colin White Vice Chair

We are asking you to have your own little festival in your garden on the day. Decorate your garden with lanterns or fairy lights and post your photos on our facebook page. Have your own little parade around your house or garden and share your videos. Maybe even have a Fish and Chip supper or burger as you would have done at Valley Gardens. Get some music on and have a party to celebrate one of Pontefract's most popular events.

Start saving your large pop bottles as we will be putting together "how to" tutorials soon for bottle and willow lanterns. We also hope to make a few for you to collect and decorate nearer the time or you can take away a kit with everything that you need to make one from scratch.

Keep checking our page for more news on ways you can get involved. Just because we have had to cancel the actual parade it does not mean we are not working on making this year a huge success too.

Karen Heywood

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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BOOKSHELF

We have a number of local heritage and history publications for sale.

Our local heritage publications are available for sale online. Visit www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk/ shop to purchase online or contact us via: Phone: 01977 708658 Email: info@pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk/shop

£11- Pontefract’s Chequered History

£12.99 - Pontefract - Celebrating the Past; Looking to the Future

£10 - The Railways of Pontefract in Days of Steam

£7 - The Prince of Wales Colliery

£7 - Ancient Routes Through Pontefract

£13 - The J.S. Fletcher G.P. Rhodes Collaboration

We also have a stock of quality branded pens for just £1.00, and lapel badges at £3.00. Please show your support for Pontefract Civic Society; let’s get noticed!

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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Donations & Bequests Have you thought of making a donation to Pontefract Civic Society during your lifetime, or leaving us some money in your will?

This newsletter and the Annual Reports on our website show the tremendous work the society and our members are doing to make Pontefract a better place. To continue our important work at its present level, or in fact expand it as we plan to do, then we have a pressing need for more resources.

The beneficial position of the society is both it’s independence and non-political stance, and that we do not rely of public sector grants to conduct our core activities. As the town’s watchdog on planning, architecture, heritage and public amenities, we can speak on behalf of those who live and work in Pontefract, without fear or favour.

We would be absolutely delighted if you would make a donation or a bequest. Both the Chair and the Secretary are available if you wish to discuss this in more detail.

MEMBERSHIP It is usual that we launch our next year’s membership at Heritage Open Days (this applies to new members) and 2021 online membership will open on 11 Sept, 2020. Our plan is to significantly grow our membership, particularly with younger audiences who wish to become active in supporting our strategy and ways of working. Also tell your friends, and for the first new member you recruit, we’ll give you £5 back!

For more information on becoming a member, please visit http://www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk/shop Individual Member

£15

Joint Members (same address)

£20

Bronze Business Member

£22 / £45 inc. donation

Silver Business Member

£47.50 / £95 inc. donation

Gold Business Member

£97.50 / £195 inc. donation

Community Group Member

£20

Honorary Membership

No fee

Junior Civic Society Member

No fee

WELCOME

to the following new member: Contacts *Executive Committee Member

• Michael O’Hara

Chair & Heritage Group Coordinator

*Paul Cartwright

01977 708658

chairman@pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

Vice Chair

*Phil Cook

07931700021

vicechair@pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

Secretary

*Karl Gilbert

07598336027

secretary@pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

Treasurer

*Ian Wood

07806 916 937

treasurer@pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

Planning Group Coordinator

*Peter Taylor

01977 703050

p.taylor569@btinternet.com

Rail Group & Talks & Tours Group Coordinator

*David Hogg

07910564141

david.hogg1@live.co.uk

Co-opted & Pontefract in Bloom

*Colin White

01977 795074

whitedrc@sky.com

Heritage Open Days Coordinator

Philip Henfrey

01977 798517

henfreyphilip@gmail.com

Highways Group Coordinator

Anthony Dee

01977 701866

anthony.deefamily@gmail.com

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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VOLUNTEERS ALWAYS WELCOME • Creatively collating information and designing posters and other materials • Helping Mollie with refreshments • “Selling” the civic society to others via our PR stall • Conducting heritage research or being our representative at a Heritage Open Days event ….and many more opportunities Members are welcome to get involved in any of work, and if you are unsure, then speak to those currently involved. Whether you have a passing interest, a skill, knowledge from other community groups or your day job, then we need your support. You could sit in on a meeting, or shadow another team member.

Give it a go!

You might enjoy it.

Registered charity number 513509

www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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BUSINESS MEMBERS - Gold Member -

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PARTNERS Wakefield Cultural Consortium

Yorkshire Coalfields Community Rail Partnership

Acknowledgements: Photographs courtesy of: • Christine & Paul Cartwright • Phil Cook • Colin White • Medlock Photography Registered charity number 513509

• Jaydn Edwards • Richard Deguil • Rachel Riley • Pontefract Art Club • Wakefield Museums & Castles www.pontefractcivicsociety.org.uk

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