WWI Barracks Turned Dance Studio awaiting Demolition

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A former World War I barracks, has survived until the present.

It is unused and delipidated and there are plans to demolish it and replace it with two houses.

After World War I, the barrack hut was moved to its present location in Swinburne Road, Abingdon, as a Boys Club. It then served as a day hospital and a Home Guard base (evenings and weekends) during World War II.

In the postwar years, the building became a dance studio. It operated under the names ‘Bretts of Abingdon’ and later ‘Selleck School of Dancing’ and the ‘Abingdon Dance Studio.’ The Abingdon Dance Studio has since moved to Larkmead Secondary School and West Wing Studio.

The barrack room hut is still standing with a concrete extension, and a car park, but not for much longer. The latest planning application for its demolition is under review by the Vale of White Horse District Council. Nobody dances there anymore. Nobody says, ‘Don’t Panic!’

Art in the Park Exhibition

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Thanks to Stephen Gray, an artist from Culham, for the pictures and details.

Howbery Park recently hosted an art competition and exhibition centred around the theme ‘Water in our World.’ The park is by the Thames and the event encouraged artists to explore the vital role water plays in our lives, promoting the idea of sustainable living and conservation.

Stephen was honoured to have his painting selected as the winning entry. The judges appreciated how his artwork connected with Howbery Park’s grounds and its conservation efforts.

P.S. I remember going for a job interview in Howbery business Park near Wallingford in 2019. I did not get the job but thought it looked a good place to work, with its buildings set among trees in parkland around a Manor House.

1944: 80th anniversary of D Day, Friends of Abingdon, and Abingdon Drama Club

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1944 was a year of contrasts in Abingdon. While the town celebrated the birth of new cultural organisations like the Friends of Abingdon Civic Society and the Abingdon Drama Club, the armed forces were still fighting across Europe and Asia in the Second World War.

The summer of 1944 brought both hope and heartbreak. The successful D-Day landings in June offered a glimmer of hope for an Allied victory, but the ongoing conflict continued to cast a shadow. News of missing, killed, and decorated servicemen featured often in the local news.

At home, the war’s impact was also felt with armed force personnel being billeted in the area, but the privations at home were starting to be reduced. Some street lights had been turned on and the Abingdon Fireguards were disbanded in October. The Home Guard, a civilian defence force, was disbanded in December just as the Abingdon Drama Club was being formed. While the Home Guard’s final parade made headlines, the new drama club received only a brief mention in the North Berks Herald.

The formation of the Friends of Abingdon Civic Society made headlines news in May, as did their purchase of the three cottages in Thame Street in December. This achievement demonstrated a commitment to preserving the town’s heritage. Those cottages were to become the Unicorn Theatre, where the Abingdon Drama Club would perform.

Thank you to The North Berks Herald for the information.

Car-free a few days early

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20 cyclists left Abingdon this morning to visit a nature reserve near Sutton Courtenay and celebrate World Car-Free Day. (Car-Free Day will be on  Sunday, 22nd September 2024. So this was getting in early with being car-free.)

The 19 acre nature reserve, near Milton Park, has woodland, meadow and ponds and an Environmental Education Centre with two classrooms. The land is owned by Didcot Power Station. 55 years ago it was given to the local council as an environmental education centre to mitigate some of the damage done by building the power station. Some of the group remembered going there as children or bringing their children there for their first night away from home. That was when it had some scout-style huts on land now sold for an Asda warehouse

It is now managed by BBOWT (Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wild Life Trust) and the new education centre was built in 2004.

The centre has a mix of rare and common species. The reserve has rare great crested newts. There are too many grey squirrels, which are killing trees by eating their bark. The reserve monitors for mink that eat rare water vole babies. We saw a Red Kite’s nest, and a buzzard flying. It was an enjoyable visit thanks to Clive who organised the event, and the Senior Learning Officer at the centre.

For more information or to see events at the centre, visit https://www.bbowt.org.uk/explore/discover-and-learn/sutton-courtenay-oxon.