Posted on Mar 15, 2003

If you have been to Beadnell in the past few weeks you will have noticed crocus popping up in the grass verges and open spaces. These were planted by the Jubilee Committee and helpers. Last Spring a group of people met, consisting of one member from every organisation in the village and a Jubilee Committee was formed. A very successful Ceilidh was held in March to get a Jubilee fund started. An application was then made to 'Awards for All' and a grant was received to help with organisation and expense of the Jubilee celebrations. With this we were able to hold a free lunch for villagers, second homeowners, caravaners and in fact anyone who was in Beadnell on Jubilee day. A very willing and hard working band of helpers served over 400 lunches and a very enjoyable day was had by all. At this function a voluntary collection was made and over £1000 collected which was divided between 4 charities - the RNLI, St Ebba's Church, Beadnell Playground and the WI (who provided the hall for the events). In August all children under 16 were invited on a trip to Edinburgh Zoo. A party with some adult helpers went by bus and thoroughly enjoyed their day out. We hope as they grow older they will remember what they did in Jubilee Year! The remainder of the grant was used to purchase 13,000 crocus bulbs. These were planted on the two weekends of the 9th and 16th September by another willing band of helpers. The final purchase was 3 commemorative seats, which are now in place and are already being used by many visitors to the village. As a result of the grant we also had sufficient funds to replace all the posts on the Village Green behind St Ebba's Church and another team of volunteers spread 16 tons of pebbles to make good the uneven road in front of the church and the Village Shop. The improvement to the village has been such a success and drawn so many favourable comments from residents and visitors alike that it is proposed to carry on with this type of work by appealing for funds to continue with the improvement to the looks of the village. Wendy Clark Beadnell Jubilee Committee