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Coordinates: 52°30′00″N 0°01′26″W / 52.5°N 0.024°W
Benwick is a small rural village in the heart of Fenland, located approximately 15 miles (24 km) away from Peterborough, England, and 30 miles (48 km) from Cambridge. Benwick comprises around 330 houses, and in 2001 the census showed the population to be around 860.
[edit] Parish councilThe Parish Council consists of seven members who are elected every four years. The last elections were in May 2007. The Chairman is Lyn Keppel-Spoor; Vice Chair is Tony Richardson. The other five councilors are Howard Langford, Patrica Tickner, Reg Few, Gill Thomas and Mark Chapman. They meet on the first Tuesday of each month.[1] [edit] SchoolThe school was built in 1873 and is located on the High Street. The current headmistress is Jackie North. There are three classrooms and the school teaches pupils aged 4–11 (years reception to 6).[2] [edit] Religion Benwick currently has no church; the church of St. Mary was demolished in the mid eighties, and the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel stopped being used in 2006. There was also a Baptist chapel built in 1818 located on the site of the Baptist graveyard. There are currently plans by the Friends of Benwick Church, to build a new church next to the Village Hall.[3] [edit] Groups and associationsBenwick has a good number of groups and associations which run in the village. Benwick has a large Scouting movement, which includes all groups from Beavers to Explorers. There is also the Benwick Athletic Football Club, which although based in Doddington is still a village club. The Forget-Me-Nots is open to all residents aged over 55, and do a number of things including Whist Drives and outings. There is a Residents Association, Parish Plan Steering Group and Village Hall Committee. There is also the Friends of Benwick Church, who fundraise in order to build up funds to create a new church for the Methodists and Church of England. Friends Of Benwick School fundraise for extracurricular school activities. [4] [edit] Benwick Publications"The Benwick Bugle" is Benwick's free bimonthly magazine. It features village notices, news and events and carries adverts from local companies. The Bugle is distributed to houses in the village and is available at the Five Alls public house, the village hall and the school. Issues can also be viewed online at the Benwick Bugle website "Benwick Bygones", is a book written by Janet Fountain and Adam Keppel-Garner, it was released in September 2008, and the first run sold out within a month. The book focuses on the history of the village, and features a wide array of photographs from the Victorian times onwards, including rare photographs of the church in colour and more. The book took Janet and Adam 8 months to complete, along with the help from many villagers past and present, especially Albert Sismey and Wilf Bedford, whom Janet remarked are the "elder statesmen" of the village. [5]  Following the success of the book, a new DVD was released in August 2009, which contains footage of Benwick in the 1970s and 1980's. The DVD, entitled "Bygone Benwick" is available through The Benwick Website. In the early 1990s there were two books made, entitled "Diary of a Victorian Village School" and "Diary of a War-Time Village School", put together by Alan Whitney and the then Head-Master. They contain extracts of the School records from the Victorian period, and the latter from the two World Wars. [edit] Benwick Dickensian MarketIn November 2008, the Benwick Residents Association, hosted the first annual Benwick Dickensian Market. The market stalls included bread, candles, artwork, Christmas cards, sweets, honey, dolls and plants.[6] The next Dickensian Market is due to be held on Saturday November 28 2009. This years event will be much larger, with more stalls, and a wide range of traditional entertainment, from Punch and Judy, Molly dance and more. [7] [edit] RailwayFrom 1898 to 1966 Benwick was the terminus of the Benwick goods railway which ran from Three Horseshoes junction at Turves, on the Ely to Peterborough line. The station was on the road to Whittlesey. There was never a passenger service on the line, except a group of railway enthusiasts who visited the line in 1956. [edit] External links
[edit] References
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