Tag: fbec; brandwood end cemetery

More mature trees lost in Brandwood End

We are sure regular visitors to the Cemetery will have heard and seen the tree work that has been going on. A number of mature trees have had to be removed as they were either damaged or diseased and represented a risk to the public.

20150123_144748 (800x600)It is so sad to see such majestic trees felled but many of them are at least as old as the Cemetery- so 120 years and some were part of the original hedgerows in the farmers fields. Nothing lasts for ever and fungi are often a sign of a trees demise.

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The Friends are keen to help with the maintenance of tree stock numbers and species in Brandwood End but any introduction of trees into the cemetery needs to be carefully planned with Bereavement Services and the local Tree Officer to maintain its original design.

Christmas shopping on Amazon? Please think of us….

Dear Friends….If you will be Christmas shopping on Amazon this year please consider using the Icon for their site at the top of this web page. It costs you no more and takes just a second longer but for every purchase you make, FBEC receive a small donation.

It’s possibly a bit early- but Seasons Greetings to all our members and followers on the web from the Committee of FBEC.

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‘Roadworks’ at last!

For many months now we have been awaiting the commencement of work on the pot holes along the cemetery drives.  Earlier this week our Chairwoman got really excited as, from her house, she could hear the sound of heavy plant engines so she rushed round only to find it that was a large drain cleaning machine! Disappointment…. but then the helpful driver informed me that he would be followed within a couple of days by the whole kit and caboodle. Today it all arrived and work has begun.

IMG_7348 (800x600) IMG_7349 (800x600) IMG_7351 (800x600)Take care when using any of the drives as preparation work involves removing the road surface in some areas.

FBEC and the staff at Bereavement Services have received many complaints about the appalling condition of the drives and, whilst the work carried out will be limited, this must be a step in the right direction.

Archivist needed!

FBEC are looking for an interested member of the public to take on the volunteer role of ‘Archivist’. This will not be a very time consuming role but we feel that it is important that we keep material such as news cuttings and photographs etc in an orderly fashion for future reference.

It would require a person with access to a computer, a scanner and the internet ……and also an interest in preserving information.

If you think you can help us please contact FBEC via this web site or e mail friendsofbec@gmail.com for more information.

Jane Edwards (Chairman FBEC)

FBEC AGM 2014

You are invited to the Annual General Meeting of the Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery which is to be held on Thursday 10th April at 7.30 pm. Please note that we have changed the venue back to St Bedes Church, Bryndale Ave, B14 6NG.  We hope returning to this venue will increase attendance at our AGM as we need your support at our meetings. Copies of the Annual Report and the Audited Accounts will be presented and circulated to the members. Following the meeting these will be posted on our website www.fbec.org.uk.

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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.

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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.

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.

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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

Local school children enjoy the cemetery trees!

Before the end of the summer term, pupils from Woodthorpe Junior and Infant school joined members of the Friends to investigate our ‘Tree Walk’ as part of their ECO week. The pupils, accompanied by members of staff, collected leaves and cones and did leaf and bark rubbings.20130722_111804 The school hopes to be working with us again in the Autumn term on a number of small projects. Woodthorpe has a newly instated Forest School area and a keen ECO group and the children were very enthusiastic and entered into the spirit of the activity despite occasional slight drizzle.

Hobbits and crafts!

The New Vision Community Board made its first appearance off site at the Middle Earth Weekend at the Shire Country Park (Sarehole Mill). Many people stopped to ask questions about the Brandwood End Cemetery and we hope, as a result we will see some new members to our already growing group. Please do think about joining The Friends (There is information on how to do this on our site). There is always strength in numbers and more members lead to more ideas as to how we can work with BCC to retain and improve the quality of this magical cemetery site.

 

Friends of Brandwood End Cemetery – AGM

FBEC held their AGM this evening at the Brandwood Centre. Unfortunately attendance was low but the evening was rounded off by a very interesting talk by the Reverend Douglas Wilkes on the Cemeteries of the Jewellery Quarter.
Neville Summerfield proposed a vote of thanks to Anne Courbet, who has been involved with FBEC since its inception and was currently serving as Chairman. Anne announced her intention to step down from her role and also from the committee but will continue to support FBEC and its future projects.
The elected committee members names, committee officers details and annual accounts will be displayed on this site following the first committee meeting on 1st May.