A Carol Service will be held at Kings Norton Cemetery on Saturday 14th December at 2pm, Rev John White and Pastor Brooks are officiating at the service which will be held outside the office, the event is being sponsored by Goodridge Milford Funeral Directors and following the service there will be refreshments available.
Bereavements Department have planted a memorial Christmas tree and invite people to place a card on the tree and make a donation to the Macmillan Charity.
Hopefully, if this event is a success, we may see a similar service at Brandwood End Cemetery next December.
Author: Jane Edwards
Last litter pick of 2013!
Just a reminder to all those who support us and a appeal to anyone new who feels they can spare a couple of hours to help keep this cemetery litter free. Meet at the Lodge on the main drive at 10am this Sunday, 1st December. Please wear suitable stout footwear, outer clothing and gloves but we have plenty of litter pickers and bags!
Can we take this opportunity to thank everyone who has supported our litter picks in 2013 and if you cant make this one, we look forward to seeing you in 2014. Watch this blog for confirmation of dates.
Great Collage Competition entries!
Following on from our really successful visit to the Cemetery with pupils from Woodthorpe Primary School we set them a challenge. They had collected lots of leaves and natural items and the challenge was to create an interesting collage with them, in their own time. We are pleased to say that we had 5 excellent entries (Below) and will be awarding them all with a small prize and certificate at a school assembly.
Well done everyone!
Litter pickers at the ready!
Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery worked with pupils from Woodthorpe Primary School to discuss what can be done to reduce litter locally. This was followed up by a litter pick in their school grounds and then in nearby Brandwood End Cemetery. The pupils followed their litter hunt with some time spent collecting leaves, cones and other natural items to complete a collage. Watch this space to see their results! Our thanks go to all the helpers, particularly Class 5 of Woodthorpe School.
We all agreed we had enjoyed our adventure in Brandwood End Cemetery and look forward to working with together again.
Stunning setting for a poignant Remembrance Sunday service
Community members and local Councillors joined the Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery in an Act of Remembrance at the Cross of Sacrifice in Brandwood End Cemetery.
The Deacon of St Dunstans Church, David Fairbotham, led a short but poignant service. Following this wreaths were laid on behalf of Birmingham City Council and its Citizens, Kings Heath Branch of The Masons and the Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery.
This year we had not one but two buglers who performed the Last Post beautifully. Two minutes silence was observed and this, along with the buglers, brought tears to the eyes of many of the people attending.
Many of the visitors stopped behind to ask about the cemetery and the work the Friends are doing.
Act of Remembrance within Brandwood End Cemetery
You are invited to join Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery in a short Act of Remembrance in Brandwood End Cemetery on Sunday 10th November 2013.
Please meet at the Cross of Sacrifice on the main drive at 10.45am for a brief address by David Fairbotham, Deacon of St Dunstans Church, Kings Heath followed by 2 minutes silence at 11am and the laying of wreaths by Councillor Barry Henley and other local organisations.
Please note that there will be no access along the main drive from the Chapels to the Broad Lane gate from 10.45 to 11.15 whilst the Service is taking place. All other roads within the cemetery remain open. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Brandwood End Cemetery Lodge for hire
Following its internal facelift Brandwood End Cemetery Lodge is now available for use by community groups. The lodge is situated just within the Cemetery grounds at Woodthorpe Road, Kings Heath, Birmingham B14 6EQ.
The lodge building is available Monday – Friday between the hours of 9.00 – 4.00 in the summer opening 1 May – 30 Sept and Monday – Friday between the hours of 9.00 – 3.30pm in the winter opening 1 Oct – 30 April.
The cost to hire the ground floor which provides three meeting rooms is £17.00 per hour. There is no restrictions to the times booked, however if the usage is less than an hour the minimum fee of £17.00 will be charged.
Booking of the lodge is subject to suitable usage in keeping with the surroundings of the Cemetery all enquires to Kings Norton Cemetery, Longdales Road, Kings Norton, Birmingham B38 9BU. Tel: 0121 303 5583
If any interested parties would like to view the facilities then this can be arranged
Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress visit Jasmin Fields
Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery joined other members of New Vision at an ‘Explore Jasmin Fields’ event last Saturday. A similar event last summer was completely drowned out so we were dismayed when we started to set up in rain and wind! The wind was so strong that one or our gazebos briefly became a kite……but the wind soon dropped and the rain cleared and by starting time we had very acceptable weather.
We were very pleased that the Lord Mayor and the Lady Mayoress came along to open the event and stayed most of the morning. The Ranger Service and the Friends of Jasmin Fields, supported by New Vision, had arranged a circular walk of the nature reserve, pond dipping, cake icing, badge making, bike repairs and advice on security by the Neighbourhood Policing Team. The event gave local groups, including FBEC, the opportunity to make residents more aware of their activities and to enlist members for future events. Everyone agreed to had been a real success and well worth the effort by the volunteers.
If you have an interest in any of the local groups, especially Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery, please contact us via this site and we will add you to our e mail list to be advised of anything happening in our local community group areas. We all need your support at our events and it is so good to see local people interested in any of our sites.
Hedge gets first serious cut!
Those of you that follow this blog will know that just over a year ago pupils from St Albans Catholic Primary School joined Friends and volunteers to replace an ailing hedge around the Civilian Garden of Remembrance with a new hawthorn hedge.This peaceful area had been abandoned for many years until The Friends, with lottery support, restored it to a restful place to sit and enjoy. Initially we had surrounded the area with a beech hedge but the soil, being clay and waterlogged much of the year, did not support this species, so a major plan was put in place to replace it with a more tolerant hawthorn hedge.
This hedge has thrived and grown and had begun to look unruly, despite occasional trimming, so this weekend it had its first serious ‘cut’ and we are pleased to say it looks fantastic. This will only be its second winter coming up and already it is starting to look like a well established hedge. I think you will agree from the photo’s above that the area looks inviting and is well cared for volunteers from FBEC.
If you feel you could help us at all with this ongoing task of weeding etc please contact us via our web site. Many hands make light work and there is always something to do.
Safety measures completed.
Some time ago we reported the concern of members that the exit from the Broad Lane gate of the cemetery was potentially dangerous as there was no pavement and you stepped into fast moving traffic. FBEC arranged with local Councillors to have the road marked outside both the public and the Jewish gates, to warn vehicles that there were hidden exits within the hedge line.
Following our request to the Cemetery Superintendent we are pleased to say that a warning sign has been placed close to the exit so all pedestrians are now aware of the danger. Our thanks go to those who drew this to our attention and also for the assistance of the local Councillor and Bereavements staff for addressing this issue