THE WAR Memorials Trust, a charity which specialises in the conservation of monuments, has been asked to consider if Penn’s war memorial has been damaged by a well-meaning cleaning company who used a power-wash to spruce it up.
The Bin Kings, who make a living cleaning people’s wheelie bins, have been earning a lot of local praise for stopping by filthy road signs and voluntarily cleaning them. They often post their work on social media.
But in January they went a step further and voluntarily cleaned up the 103 year old war memorial outside Penn Church which they said was “dull and covered in moss”.
Their action drew over 500 responses on social media, mostly from people thanking them for their community spirit with many scolding the authorities for allegedly not looking after the memorial properly.
However, the company did not seek prior permission from Penn Parish Council which is responsible for the memorial’s maintenance and takes advice from the War Memorials Trust on how to look after it.
In a report the council said the company’s action may have “disregarded the proper standards for cleaning significant monuments and may even have damaged the sandstone.”
Mike Morley, who chairs the council’s Recreation and Open Spaces committee said: “Pressure washing as used by Bin Kings is one of the methods not advocated. One reason is that it can dislodge surfaces that are eroded and force dirt deeper into the stone, particularly if porous.
“Any cleaning should follow guidance by Historic England and they have comprehensive guidance leaflets.”
Mr Morley said it was difficult to say if the memorial had been damaged. “There appears to be no major damage although some lettering has lost its sharpness, but it would be difficult to ascribe the damage only to the power washing without a recent ‘before’ image.”
The War Memorials Trust said it had reached out to The Bin Kings but was yet to receive a response.
Director Frances Moreton said: “Unfortunately, well-intentioned but inappropriate works to war memorials are a serious issue as people can cause damage through works which are too aggressive for historic materials, introduce chemicals that can eat into the fabric or use modern methods which do not suit the age of the monuments.
“This case is under review as we give people time to respond as we understand that information we receive may not always be fully accurate.”
The Bin Kings however say they took special care not to damage the memorial.
In a response on social media a spokesman for the company said: “We did not apply an aggressive jet wash to the memorial, although it may come across like we have. The wreaths were removed first, then the stone was treated using a low-pressure soft-wash process with biodegradable detergents and controlled dwell time to breakdown algae, lichen and biofilm.
“Our pressure washer is fully adjustable so the pressure output was turned down to a safe level and rinsed at low PSI well below thresholds that would risk granular detachment, font edge rounding or pore opening.
“The aim is always to clean safely while preserving the memorial’s integrity.”
On its website the company added: “We didn’t do it for recognition. We didn’t do it for publicity. We did it because remembrance deserves dignity. Because those names deserve to be seen clearly.”
*Penn’s war memorial is one of a small minority in the country where the names of the fallen in World War 1 are not listed alphabetically but by rank. A memorial to the World War 2 fallen is in the nearby church with the names listed alphabetically.
Why Penn Wood’s bluebell display gets better and better and better
PENN WOOD is being featured nationally as a perfect way to maintain ancient woodland… and has the bluebells to prove it!
The Woodland Trust charity took over the management of the 435 acre wood 27 years ago after a six year campaign by locals to prevent it being converted into a golf course.
Since then the trust has embarked on a long programme to restore the wood to its former glory.
It has taken out conifers and beech planted close together for commercial profit, allowing natural light to restore native trees, shrubs and plants like bluebells, which have flowered increasingly extensively in recent years.
In all, three quarters of it is being restored by letting nature take a managed course.
The wood was featured in a national campaign last month as a prime example of what the trust says needs to be done nationwide if the Government is to meet its pledge to restore ancient woodland by 2030.
To be defined as ancient woodland the area has to have been continuously wooded for over 400 years. Such woodland contains irreplaceable habitats yet they are under threat. They represent less than three per cent of the UK’s land area.
*The first bluebells made an appearance at the Spring Equinox last month, probably the earliest they have ever flowered in the Chilterns It follows the early appearance of daffodils, some in full bloom, well before Christmas.
Local news
You’re the tops – Royal Mail chose Christine Walker’s postbox topper in Church Road, Tylers Green as a centrepiece for a national social media campaign. Christine, of Ashley Drive, has been making toppers for the post box on special occasions for years, brightening up the village and bringing a smile to people’s faces.
Smart move – Tylers Green Middle School is one of 68 schools in Buckinghamshire that will ban its pupils from bringing smartphones or smart watches into school from the start of the September term. Sir William Ramsay School in Rose Avenue, Hazlemere already has a policy where pupils leave their phones, whether they are smart phones or not, in signal-blocking pouches in a locker during the school day.
Full fibre – Openreach completed work to enable full fibre broadband available in Penn, Tylers Green and Hazlemere last month thereby allowing providers to offer the facility to their customers. Hazlemere Library was the first to be converted enabling its computers to have faster, more reliable internet speeds.
Charity challenge – Tylers Green charity walker Ron Hedley has so far raised £82,500 in aid of prostate cancer research as part of the Bob Willis Fund (see March 2025 blog) and has been challenged to reach £100,000 by November. You can contribute or join him on the walks planned for this year on this link https://bobwillisfund.org/ronsmarch or contact him on rjhatters1@yahoo.co.uk.
Football festival – In compliance with new rules players under ten will not be allowed to head the ball in the Penn and Tylers Green football festival planned for the May Day bank holiday weekend. The three day event is expected to attract 4,000 visitors and 1,600 players from under sevens to under 13s.
School celebration – Events to commemorate the 150th anniversary of Tylers Green First School (see February blog) will include a festival at the school for everyone to attend on Saturday 4 July and a fund-raising dance in a marquee on Friday 3 July. A fun day for the children is also being planned.
Extra protection – Parish councils in Penn and Tylers Green have been advised to re-evaluate and re-adopt the village’s conservation area because of increasing pressure from housing development. The protected area was last determined 18 years ago and planners say if a new one is agreed it will carry more weight should new developments be proposed. The existing conservation area can be found on this link: https://media.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/documents/Penn-and-Tylers-Green-conservation-area-designations-and-sub-areas-map.pdf
Sign of the times – This colourful nine-metre long history timeline has been installed at Tylers Green Middle School outdoor area. It also includes a section on local history.
Infilling agreed – Permission has been given for a house to be built in the rear garden of Glenmore, Church Road, Penn despite objections from the parish council and residents groups that the land falls in Green Belt. The planning officer ruled the area could be classified as Grey Belt because the house would not harm the character, openness or views from the adjoining Penn Conservation Area.
It’s Showtime – Performing arts students at Sir William Ramsay School watched a performance of Hamilton at London’s Victoria Palace Theatre last month and afterwards had a behind-the-scenes look at how the show was produced, talking to members of the cast and crew.
No to limit – Parish councillors have rejected a suggestion to seek to impose a 20mph speed limit on roads throughout Hazlemere.
Name change – Manor Farm Infant School in Rose Avenue will officially incorporate the previously privately run nursery in the school premises from September and it will be called the Manor Farm Community Infant School and Nursery.
Safety tests – “Topple” tests have been conducted on every gravestone in cemeteries in Cock Lane and Hammersley Lane, Tylers Green and families contacted if remedial work needs to be taken.
Royal theme – Penn and Tylers Green Village Show on 20 June is introducing royal themes to many of its classes this year as the show falls a week after the king’s official birthday. The show’s craft section is being expanded this year after an upsurge of interest last year. The show will raise funds for Wycombe Homeless Connection. Full details of all classes on https://www.pennandtylersgreenvillageshow.com
Choral festival – Wycombe Chamber Choir will perform at a special choral evensong at Penn Church next month as part of Holy Trinity’s patronal festival. The service will be on 31 May.
Spring jumble – Penn and Tylers Green Scout spring jumble sale in the village hall is on Saturday 9 May from 12.30pm
Popular visit – Children at Penn Street’s Curzon Church of England Combined School had a visit from the local fire brigade last month which gave them a chance to learn about fire safety and, best of all, to explore inside the fire engine.
Penn’s historic masterpiece has a condition check
CONSERVATORS spent several days examining the 650 year old painting of the Last Judgement, known as the Doom, at Penn Church last month to check on its condition.
It’s a rare example of medieval art – there are only five such paintings in the UK – and for the first 100 years of its existence it was a colourful and dramatic centrepiece designed to impress the illiterate and Catholic worshippers of the time.
But in the mid-16th century, when images of popery were banned by Henry VIII’s new Anglican church, the painting was whitewashed over. Then, nearly 200 years later in 1733, a layer of plaster was laid on top of the whitewash during church renovations.
The Doom, over the Chancel arch, was forgotten about and it was only due to an amazing piece of luck (or Divine intervention?) that it was discovered just before the Second World War.
In 1938 workmen stripped off layers of plaster and attached board in preparation for building a new roof. They threw the boards into the churchyard ready to be taken to the tip, but one of the workman thought he’d take one home to be chopped into firewood.
It was only then he noticed that on the other side of the board was a painted face. The startled vicar was called and, rummaging through the building rubble, found the other boards too had the remains of medieval painting.
It didn’t take long to realise they had made a historic discovery.
Over the years the painting has been professionally cleaned and treated for woodworm. It has been X-rayed , analysed with infra-red technology and had missing parts expertly inserted to make the gaps less conspicuous.
It was the highlight of a special exhibition on Gothic art at the Victoria and Albert Museum and after the exhibition in 2004 it was returned to Holy Trinity, safely ensconced in an aluminium frame, and hung in its present position above the chancel…a remarkable survivor in a remarkable church.
A detailed account of the Penn Doom’s story by Miles Green can be found on this link: https://www.pennchurch.uk/the-penn-doom/
Farewell Philip, an artist who enjoyed the beauty of life
PHILIP Cooper, a well-known and popular member of our community, died after a short illness last month aged 88. Here, his family have penned this tribute:
“It is with much sadness that we announce the passing of Philip Cooper, who died peacefully on 12 March 2026. A resident of Tylers Green for nearly 60 years, Philip will be fondly remembered as an active and giving member of the community.
“Philip spent his entire working life in the print trade and set-up and ran a successful platemaking business in Amersham until he retired in the mid 90s. He helped to design and print the early village history books and designed programmes and material for many local events such as Country Fayre.
“Both he and his late wife Margaret were active members of St Margaret’s Church where he served as a church warden – a role he also later performed at Penn Street Church. He was a highly practical man and would willingly turn his hand to many tasks. He loved to cook and particularly relished his rivalry with great friends to see who would be crowned winner at the Village Show.
“In his later life, he indulged his passion for traveling; visiting countries far and wide, well into his late eighties. He also had a love of jazz and would join friends for festivals around the country, and whilst never a particularly accomplished dancer, he was always the first on the dance floor! He had a particular love of Paris and also travelled to New Orleans several times – all contributing to him leading a long and active life.
“However, Philip’s abiding passion was painting. During his lifetime, he dabbled in watercolour, portraits, abstract and many others form of art. He loved nothing more than to share this passion with others – teaching young and old alike. He exhibited widely and there are many people who can proudly point to an original work by Philip on their wall at home!
“A service of remembrance in celebration of Phil’s life will be held at St Margaret’s Church on Thursday 9 April at 12.30pm. In accordance with Philip’s wishes, attendees are requested to wear colour (no black) and everyone is welcome.
“The family also invite you to join them afterwards for refreshments and a display of Philip’s artwork at 5, Wheeler Avenue, Penn.
“We take comfort from the fact that Philip is now forever reunited with his beloved Margaret and fondly remember him as a caring, fun-loving and devoted father and grandfather.”
There’s an online tribute page on this link: https://philip-cooper-1937-2026.muchloved.com/
The ‘alien’ in our midst. Council rejects power plant in the middle of Penn’s ‘rolling countryside’ but may have a battle on its hands
IT IS the classic dilemma of our times. The needs of modern day Britain against the desire to protect ever-diminishing open countryside.
No-one denies the National Grid needs to significantly boost its reserves of electricity, particularly in our area where scores of energy-gobbling data centres are located with many more in the pipeline – not to mention the addition of thousands of new properties.
But to plonk an industrial site complex comprising 84 big battery storage containers on a remote farm at Mop End, just off the Amersham Road, is a step too far say Buckinghamshire Council’s planners. In fact they describe it as an “alien feature” in what is elsewhere described as typical “Penn rolling countryside.”
The farm is within the Chilterns National Landscape (formerly Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty), the Grade 2 listed Shardeloes Park and the Green Belt. Even Historic England, a normally timid quango that prefers to sit on its hands when voices are raised, ventured that the scheme would cause “a low level of harm by somewhat industrialising the soft and arable countryside setting…”
But hang on. This is no Middle Earth paradise argues the developer, the private investment company Sandbrook Capital.
For starters, the Amersham electricity sub-station, with a web of pylons and power lines extending from it, is already situated on the site.
They argue the area is not “proper” Green Belt but actually falls under the Government’s new definition of Grey Belt, that is low quality Green Belt that doesn’t serve a purpose of separating communities and already has some industrial activity on it.
And they maintain the ecological health of the surrounding countryside could improve if they get permission because they would give the Chilterns Conservation Board half a million pounds to mitigate any environmental impact.
So it’s likely this won’t be the end of the matter. If the council approves its planners’ decision (which it will), the developer may well choose to appeal and let the issue be decided by a Government planning inspector who, in turn, may have to submit his or her recommendations to a Cabinet minister before they are published (as in the case of the controversial Marlow Film Studios decision).
The issue is, as they say, electrically charged.
Counting the cost of our biggest ever housing development
BUCKINGHAMSHIRE Council and housing developers Taylor Wimpey last month signed a lengthy legal agreement covering “who pays for what” in the Gomm Valley, the area of open countryside between Cock Lane and Hammersley Lane, Tylers Green which is the site of this area’s biggest ever housing scheme.
The council gave full planning permission in December for 79 homes to be built at the bottom end of Hammersley Lane and outline planning permission for a further 461 homes in the rest of a valley (see January blog). A detailed planning application will be made in the next year or two for the 461 homes.
Now it’s been agreed how much Taylor Wimpey will contribute to the whole development under what’s called a Section 106 agreement. It includes:
- £5.6million towards the cost of building a new primary school with 210 places and attached nursery with 30 places.
- £3.1million towards changes to road junctions on the A40 including significant alterations to the junctions with Gomm Road and Micklefield Road; additional traffic lights at two other junctions and an extension of the bus lane.
- £814,000 towards the cost of constructing a shared use cycle path/footpath/bridleway through King’s Wood from the car park opposite the middle school in Cock Lane, Tylers Green to the Beech Tree pub in Terriers.
- £509,000 towards the cost of extending Penn Surgery and/or Lynton House Surgery, the two nearest GP units. Negotiations with the NHS are ongoing.
- £554,000 towards the cost of providing additional bus services to the development.
- £325,000 towards improving sports facilities at the Derehams Lane sports ground in Loudwater, including provision for bowls and tennis.
- £230,000 towards the cost of providing traffic calming in Orchard Road, which links Cock Lane to Gomm Road.
- £85,000 to enable the council to carry out consultation on proposed new parking restrictions considered necessary, including in Hammersley Lane.
- £67,000 towards the cost of providing a plan to maintain wildlife habitats and other ecological issues on the remaining undeveloped part of the land, plus £14,000 towards the cost of maintaining the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in the valley and £20,000 to provide new fencing to surround the SSSI.
- £13,000 contribution to the management and maintenance of the Abbey Barn South allotments.
Final arrangements on issues such as affordable housing commitments, landscape and drainage proposals and how recreational facilities will be managed have also been agreed.
Preparation work on the first phase of the development – the 79 homes at the bottom end of the valley – is expected to begin within a few months.
From war games to the real thing
HIGH Wycombe’s RAF base started last month playing war games…and ended the month involved in the real thing.
In an exercise planned well before the current Middle East crisis the base was involved in a full scale alert to ensure the service was ready to “fight tonight” in defence of the nation. Neighbours next to the Naphill base were warned not to be alarmed by the flurry of activity involving emergency vehicles, sirens and “command and control” arrangements.
Then, within days, the consequences of the American/Isreali attacks on Iran had people at the base involved in real war events commanding surveillance missions and co-ordinating RAF reinforcements. The base is also the headquarters UK Space Command where navy, army and airforce personnel work with non-military experts conducting surveillance from space.
Old council offices to become health hub
THE NHS has acquired the former Wycombe Council offices in the centre of High Wycombe in what amounts to a major reshaping of health services in the area.
The Buckinghamshire NHS Trust will use the site to bring together various health services currently scattered on different sites throughout the area.
It also means they can move some services from the ageing tower block at Wycombe Hospital which is slowly being emptied before eventual demolition.
Health workers will begin moving in next year after redevelopment on the site, although the Trust says it will retain the familiar facade of the 1930s building in Queen Victoria Street. The handful of council staff still located at the site will be relocated to smaller offices elsewhere
Regional news
Flying start – The Chilterns Open Air Museum in Chalfont St Giles celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and begins its festivities this Easter showcasing life in Tudor times, including a falconry display.
School closes – Little Marlow Church of England primary school is to close at the end of the summer term due to a lack of available children. Five years ago 81 children attended but by the end of last year it was down to 18. Since then even more have left leaving just five children to see out the school year. Projections show the number of pre-school children in the Marlow area will continue to fall.
New railway – Funding for a new overground north-west London orbital rail line, linking Hounslow to Hendon, has been agreed which will link ten stations with other connections. It means Chiltern Railway passengers will be able to access various stops in north west London instead of travelling into central London providing they change to the Jubilee Line at Wembley and journey one stop to a new station at Neasden. If all agreed next year the line should be operating in six or seven years time.
Pothole squabbling – Buckinghamshire Council has denied suggestions from Wycombe (and Tylers Green) MP Emma Reynolds that it was given an additional £5million pounds to deal with a backlog of potholes on local roads. It says it was given a £5.7m “incentive” payment “intended for highways maintenance but not specifically aimed at repairing potholes”.
Eid celebration – Around 3,500 Muslims attended Eid – the celebration to mark the end of Ramadan – in Wycombe’s Holmer’s Farm Rec last month and enjoyed a free breakfast. It was the biggest religious gathering in the area for years.
Housing anger – Residents had to be turned away from a public meeting to discuss housing plans in Beaconsfield because inside it was standing room only. There’s concern over plans to demolish the town’s library and Beacon community centre to make way for housing plus the development of more green field sites. The organisers, the Beaconsfield Society, said it would arrange a bigger venue next time.
Meanwhile the town’s MP, Joy Morrissey, Buckinghamshire Council and the Beaconsfield Society said they were angered by the Government Planning Inspectorate’s decision last month to overturn the council’s rejection of a 330 home development in Green Belt in the town. The planning inspector said the proposal by the developer, the Portman Estate, to make half of the houses “affordable” homes was a deciding factor. The site is by the new Beaconsfield relief road between the Amersham Road and the Pyebush roundabout on the A40
Dodging democracy – Another Buckinghamshire councillor last month switched allegiance to a party he wasn’t elected to represent. Wendover councillor Dan Field switched from the Liberal Democrats to the Conservatives. The previous month, Kathryn Gibbon, a councillor elected for Reform in Bierton also switched to the Conservatives and last year Robin Stutchbury in Buckingham quit Labour within a week of being elected and became an independent. None have offered to test whether their constituents agree with them by resigning and standing for their new parties in a by-election.
Charli, Florence and Cruz – An extra stage and more than 60 artists will be included in this year’s Reading Festival over August bank holiday weekend. Charli XCX, Florence + The Machine and RAYE are among the headline acts, with Cruz Beckham and the Breakers among support acts. Tickets range from £295 for three days (non camping) to £325 for three days (camping).
Brothers abandoned – Buckinghamshire Council has been criticised by the Ombudsman after failing to provide speech and language therapy for more than a year for two brothers with special needs. The council has apologised and promised an inquiry. An Ofsted report earlier this year said the council needed to improve its service for special needs children in four out of five categories inspected.
Woodland walk– It’s been agreed to improve access to the former Spade Oak quarry lake at Little Marlow which has become a wild-life haven. A small car park and footpaths round the lake will be constructed to provide a mile and a half walk.
Ukranian hope – Many of the 300 Ukrainian refugees living in the Chilterns gathered for a service in a Chesham church to mark the fourth anniversary of Russia invading their country. Nearly 90 per cent are working in full-time jobs while four per cent have started their own businesses. However, in a survey, just 35 per cent said they were optimistic about their future. Many fear their children will not want to return to Ukraine as they become more established here.
Easter 100 years ago, when the Twenties were beginning to roar and Woolies was starting to wonder
EASTER in Penn and Tylers Green in 1926 was in early April, like this year, and you could feel the excitement in the air.
Suddenly everyone was on the move on motor bikes or charabancs; fashion was taking on an air of flamboyance and flair and new machines developed by engineers and scientists were being celebrated with gusto.
That Easter the village scouts were delighted with a gift from the American millionaire Dr Horace Marshall. He built and lived in Penury Grove in Witheridge Lane which, 20 years earlier, had become the first house in the village to be lit by electricity.
He owned the Central London Railway, which developed into the Central Line, and was very generous to village organisations. At Easter he gave the scouts a “magic lantern” and slides and they became the first youngsters in the village to be glued to a screen!
Another engineer, Captain Peter Eckersley, gave a spell-binding talk to a crowded parish room. He was the chief engineer of the British Broadcasting Company, a job he kept when it became the British Broadcasting Corporation nine months later.
For the vast majority of people of course Easter remained a strongly religious occasion with processions and services up to three hours long on Good Friday and several services on Easter Sunday. The village’s Girls’ Friendly Society performed Passion plays in the parish room on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. Meanwhile the newly formed Penn and Tylers Green British Legion enjoyed its first gathering that Easter.
Sport was as big an attraction as it is today. At Beaconsfield’s Hall Barn estate hundreds gathered for Britain’s first inter-county cross country run, a seven mile all out race and early forerunner perhaps of our own Penn Seven.
For many though the real highlight came the week after Easter, with the opening of High Wycombe’s first Woolworth’s store in the High Street.
These adverts, taken from the Bucks Free Press, give you a flavour of the time…
The wonder of Woolies. The store was a mainstay of the High Street for 83 years.
From gay scarves to dainty lingerie, ladies fashion was making its mark at McIlroy’s department store in High Wycombe
…while for square-jawed, pipe smoking chaps sports coats and flannels were the more traditional ware.
The freedom of the road was a major Easter attraction. Penn and Tylers Green, with hundreds of cherry trees in orchards, were an Easter tourist attraction as people came to enjoy the blossom and the fresh air.
Coach trips, especially in those with pneumatic tyres to make the ride less bouncy, were a big Easter attraction. There were complaints in Beaconsfield that the A40 running through the town was blocked with traffic taking day trips to London and Oxford.
Captain Eckersley’s talk on the future of broadcasting proved mind blowing for many of his audience. He became a controversial figure joining the fascists in the 1930s and setting up the transmitter in Germany that the traitor William Joyce – “Lord Haw-Haw” – would use to broadcast propaganda to Britain in the Second World War. By 1937 he’d realised his mistake and worked for British Intelligence separating from his lover Dolly Clark who remained in Germany and was a Hitler devotee until the end of the war.
By the way…
- Earl Howe, who lives in Penn House, had expected his long parliamentary career to come to a stop when parliament prorogues later this spring because he is one of 92 hereditary peers set to be banished from sitting in the House of Lords. However he may get a late lifeline if he wants it following a deal between the Government and the Conservative Party to allow 15 hereditary peers to receive a life peerage, enabling them to stay on in the Lords until they choose to retire. He’s one of the favourites to be asked to stay on.
- …..
- In her new book – on gardening this time rather than baking – Dame Mary Berry fondly recalls her exquisite garden at her former Penn home, Watercroft in Church Road. But mementos remain. She not only took with her some plants from her Watercroft garden to her new home in Henley, but retains the services of Kevin Pryce, her gardener for over 30 years, and calls on Penn Tree Services to keep on top of her trees and hedges. Hardly surprising really as her son Tom owns the company.
- …..
- Philip Cooper, whose son Adrian wrote the tribute above in this blog, had a wonderfully dry sense of humour mixed with a yen for self deprecation. He would often show his artistic work at local exhibitions to earn extra a bob or two and loved to tell the story of when he noticed one lady seemingly captivated by one of his creations. “Are you interested at all?” he casually inquired. “Oh yes,” she gushed. “I really would like the marvellous frame…”
We’ll miss you Phil.
You can contact this blog at peter@pennandtylersgreen.com It will be updated as necessary during April, but the next full update will be on 1 May.