Category: Community (Warminster)

Topics about organisations and activities in Warminster.

Great British Railway Journeys ~ Michael Portillo Visits Warminster Maltings

Monday 28th January 2013

Michael Portillo, in this week’s five episodes of Great British Railway Journeys (Monday to Friday, on BBC2, at 6.30 p.m), is travelling from Paddington to Newton Abbot in Devon, with his trusty Victorian Bradshaw’s Guide, comparing then with now. 

Tonight, in the enjoyable half hour programme, he did the first stage, 99 miles from the Paddington terminus to Warminster. On the way he made a visit to the former Middlesex County Asylum at Hanwell, where he was not only able to see stored human brains (for research) but was able to handle one. After an overnight stay in Hungerford, he boarded the train again, crossing over the county border into Wiltshire, stopping at Westbury, making his way up to Bratton Castle, to help clean the Westbury White Horse. He then took the train again, to Warminster, where he paid a visit to the Malthouse at Pound Street.

Warminster Railway Station from the air.
Hillbourne Close lower left of picture.
Avenue Primary School and Central Car Park
in topright of the picture.

Michael Portillo at Warminster Railway Station.

The Pound Street Malthouse from the air.
Pound Street on the left and Pound Row
in the top left corner of the picture.

The Pound Street Malthouse is the sole surviving
working maltings in Warminster.

Robin Appel explained to Michael that the 19th
century method of malting is still continued here.

The attactive garden at the Pound Street Malthouse.

The process includes steeping the barley grain in water,
setting off the process to convert starch into sugar.

Michael wondered how anyone first thought up the process.

A chance to look at the early ledgers.

The railway was used for transporting malt.

Having heard the history it was time to
go and see the malting process.

Robin Appel explains the process to Michael.

The production of malt is manually done.

A fascinating survival of an old tradition.

Robin and Michael watching the ancient craft.

The grain is dragged through with a pronged tool.

Low ceilings and back-breaking work.

Michael had a go at “ploughing” the barley grain,
which saw him bent over and making jerky movements.

Michael Portillo on Platform 2
of Warminster Railway Station.

Leaving for Salisbury.

Warminster Railway Station from the air.
Northfield Industrial Estate in lower left corner.
Hillbourne Close in lower right corner.
Lidl supermarket in top left corner.
Central Car Park in top right corner.

A Real Sense Of Community At Sambourne School, Warminster

Friday 25th January 2013

Headteacher of Sambourne School, Warminster, Cathy Chalk writes ~

Sambourne has had a real sense of community this last term. Many of our parents and grandparents have been in school helping with reading. This has had a huge impact on the confidence and fluency of the children who have been heard to read. Orca class have also had help from grandparents with a woodworking project in which they have designed and made their own toys.

As you know we love music at Sambourne. We now have a school choir, who sing like angels! Sarah Hobbs leads this and they have performed for the school and at Woodmead, entertaining the residents with a performance of carols. Hev Scorah, our peripatetic music teacher, has been working really hard with our children who have singing, keyboard and trumpet lessons. I love passing by when she is teaching, as it it so wonderful to see the children so engaged with learning. It is also great to see their confidence grow.

Christmas is a magical time and at Sambourne we try really hard to ensure that all children have lots of happy memories that they will never forget. This year our Christmas activities started with a whole school craft day, in which the children all made a decoration for our very large tree. As part of a tree dressing service, we dressed and blessed the tree. It really is a special event. We also had a very unexpected surprise visit from two reindeer, Snowflake and Cupid. All the children at our school had an opportunity to feed them and pet them.

Our Christmas performance this year was a musical story of the Nativity, called Hosanna Rock. Every child in our school had a role to play in it. We held the performance for parents at Christ Church, on a very cold and dark winter’s evening. The children, and staff, did an amazing job. It was a superb event!

Ray Mears On Wild Salisbury Plain

Thursday 24th January 2013

Tomorrow evening (Friday 25th January 2013), at 8.00 p.m., on ITV, in the fourth episode in the current series of Wild Britain, survival expert Ray Mears explores Salisbury Plain.

This part of Wiltshire, rich in archaeology and home to the great stone circle of Stonehenge, is not only the largest area of chalk grassland but is also the habitat for a huge variety of wildlife. 

Ray watches roe deer, badgers and brown hares, and gets close up with an invertebrate that depends on the ruts and puddles made by military vehicles on manoeuvres for its very survival.

Ray also gets ornith0logical, with the grey partridges, the corn buntings and the yellowhammers that thrive on Salisbury Plain, and takes a look at the bustard, the world’s heaviest flying bird, which has been reintroduced (it became extinct in England 180 years ago).

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