Bere Regis Village Website News Archives
Scroll down the page to see all the old village website news items or look at the menu below...
October 2003
A new dawn for the Village as we go online. Click the photo above to have a look around the site as it was in the beginning...
November 2003
The Village business directory has been created & filled with all of the Parish magazine advertisers. Click the photo above to search it
December 2003
We have set up a village diary section which replicates the diary in the parish magazine so you can always stay abreast of what is going on in the village, whereever you are! Click the photograph above to view it
January 2004
We have created a sub-website for the Parish Church of St. John the Baptist. Click the photograph above to view it
February 2004
We have incorporated a search facility into the website, so now you can find anything you want, such as family names & village history, with a click of a button. Click the photo above to access the search page
March 2004
We have had over 1,000 visitors to this website! They have come from as far afield as the US, Canada & Australia!!
May 2004
The village website is now ranked #1 in all searches for 'Bere Regis' on the worlds most popular search engine. Try it for yourself by clicking the logo above!
June 2004
The Village history section now has 35 then and now photos included. We have taken some well known old photos of the village and reshot them at the exact same location. See the results by clicking the photo above
We have created a village classifieds section so you can advertise items for sale or wanted. Click the photo above to access it
August 2004
We have added an Ancient History of the village into the Village History Section. It covers village history from pre 2500 BC up to 1066 AD - click the picture to view it
September 2004
The number of photographs in our historical photo gallery has passed the 250 mark! Click the photo above to view them all in their different sections (street scenes, general views, industry, churches, schools, sports, bypass construction, woodbury hill fair & villagers)
October 2004
Baptisms, Marriages & Deaths for the village from the 1600's up to the 1800's are now available in our Village History section. Click the photograph to see them
Nov 2004
We have set up a Village Forum section so you can air your views on anything, within reason, that you like! Click the photograph above to view it
December 2004
We have added a section explaining all of Thomas Hardys literary Links with the Village ('Kingsbere')
January 2005
We have put together a new section which outlines all the local attractions that should suit any visitors to the village. Click the photo above to have a look...
March 2005
We have added the Shitterton 1851 Census. Click the Photograph above to see the results...
April 2005
We have collected all the details about the listed buildings in Bere Regis from the National Monuments record.Find out about them and see photographs of each one too. Click the Icon above to enter...
August 2005
There are plenty of local transport options for villagers to get around without having to use their cars. Click the photo above for more information...
September 2005
September 2005 - The Parish Council Meetings Minutes have been archived stretching back to January 1988. You can see them here. The Drax Hall Meetings Minutes have been archived stretching back to April 1993. You can see them here
October 2005
We have added a map to our Guestbook page that shows where in the world all our Guests live. Click the world above to see it...
November 2005
We have reached our 5,000th Unique Visitor!!!
A big thank you to all our readers & I hope you have got as much enjoyment out of this site as I have. Since we started in November 2003, the site has grown to over 450 pages with more than 500 photographs...read more here
December 2005
Now that the temperatures are plummenting, click here to read our advice & tips for making this your most comfortable & safe winter ever...
January 2006
We have added the 12 Photographs of the Village in the 1950's from the Ashley Series of Photographs & Calanders held in the Birkinshaw Archive. They were taken by Donald Ashley Birkinshaw (1922 - 1988). We now have 280 Historical Photographs in our Collection. Click the photo above to see the Birkinshaw Photographs...
February 2006
We have added 41 Historical Photographs of the Village to our Galleries, bringing the total to 322 Historical Photographs in 9 Galleries. The new additions are courtesy of Mark Bennett. Click the Photograph above to explore the Galleries...
March 2006
We have added 11 more pairs of Photographs to our Then & Now Gallery. Click the Photographs above to see how the Village has changed over the last 120 years...
April 2006
We have set up a Village History Fund - you can now donate money to the Fund to help us aquire historical documents/photographs relating to the Village which will be then made avaialble online & in Exhibitions. Click the Photograph above to find out more...
May 2006
We have added the years 1841 - 1901 of the National Census covering Bere Regis which occurs every Decade. Click the Photograph above to see the findings...
June 2006
We have added a Gallery containing Paintings & Drawings of the Village. Click the Painting above to view it...
July 2006
We have added 12 more Pairs of Photographs to our 'then & now' Gallery - click the Photographs above to see the Gallery...
We have just added 3 Aerial Views of the Village taken in April 2006. Click the Photograph above to view them...
August 2006
We have added 6 Aerial Photographs of the Village taken in 1963 - click the Photograph above to see them...
October 2006
We have added electronic scans of the actual pages in The Domesday Book where the village is mentioned. Click the picture above to see them...
November 2006
We have reached our 10,000th Unique Visitor!!! A big thank you to all our readers & I hope you have got as much enjoyment out of this site as I have. Since we started in November 2003, the site has grown to over 626 pages with more than 843 photographs (modern & historical) and a wealth of historical resources on the village. Click here to find out more
December 2006
We would like to wish all our readers a very Happy Christmas & Wonderful New Year! As the site goes from strength to strength why not look at the 10 new Historical Village Photographs we have added to our Collection? Click here to see the enlarged Collection which now numbers 339 Photographs...
March 2007
We have added 23 new Aerial Photographs of the Village taken in December 2006. Click here to see them
May 2007
Kellys 1939 Trade Directory for the Village is now in our online Collection & we have added new historical material to the following sections - Village Births, Village Marriages & Village Burials. Click the Document above to see it all...
July 2007
We have added historical Ordnance Survey Maps of the Village from 1887 & 1902. Click above to see them...
August 2007
In the largest project in this Websites history we have put all the available scanned copies of the 493 Villagers Wills from 1559 - 1853 into Galleries within our History Section. Click the Image below to see the Archive...
September - November 2007
This has been a relatively quiet time for the site. Alot of the functionality and historical content is now in place. There will be new additions, but just not in quite the frenetic pace of the past 4 years!
December 2007
I would like to take this opportunity to wish all our readers & villagers a very merry Christmas & happy New Year!
January - February 2008
We have added 7 more Historical Village Trade Directories to our Collection. Click the Photograph above to view them...
March 2008
We have added 19 more Historical Village Photographs to our Collection. Click the Photograph above to view them...
April 2008
To show Bere Regis to even more people around the world, the village now has its own page on social networking phenomenon facebook. Click the image above to see it (you will need to be a member of facebook to view the page)
July 2008
Ever wondered how this website has grown over the years - click the Image above to see the whole website as it was a month after we first started in 2003...
August 2008
We have reached our 20,000th Unique Visitor!!! A big thank you to all our readers & I hope you have got as much enjoyment out of this site as I have. Since we started in November 2003, the site has grown to over 700 pages with more than 909 photographs (modern & historical) and a wealth of historical resources on the village. Click here to find out more
October 2008
We have added hundreds of Victorian Baptism, Marriage & Burial Parish Records for the Village to our History section. Click the Photograph above to see them...
November 2008
As we remember the sacrifice of all who have fallen & those who continue to do so in our name, let us not forget them. Click the Poppy above, to see the WW1 & WW2 Bere Regis Village War Memorial Project, that was completed by the Village Scouts...
December 2008
We have compiled some Statistics together, to show you how the Village Website has grown from its inception in 2003 till today - click the Image above to see them...
January 2009
There are many things that people in the Village can do to help the environment. The Village Green page gives some ideas. There are also some general everyday living tips that may help make your life a little bit more simple and successful...
September 2009
Read up on the Village from 2 guides, one published in 1732 & one in 1819. Click the Image above to find out more...
March 2010
We have recently added 68 Historical Photographs to our Collection. They involve Street Scenes, General Views, Village Carnival, Industrial & Villager Photographs.
June 2010
We now have full digital copies of the Parish Magazine stretching back to 2003 in our Parish Magazines Archive. We are currently converting further Parish Magazines, so we will soon have them heading back to 1997. Click the Image above to see the Archive...
October 2010
October 2010 marked the 7th Anniversary of the Bere Regis Village Website! Since our inception in 2003, over 30,000 people have visited the site from 41 Countries. Albania, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Grenada, Hungary, India, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Montenegro, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, UK, Ukraine & USA. You can see the Visitor Countries marked in red on the Map above - everyone is welcome!
February 2011
We have added the Geological History of the Village. Click the Photograph above to find out more...
March 2011
Due to the forthcoming retirement of Jim Ruddock, Clerk to Bere Regis Parish Council for the past 36 years, they are seeking a new clerk. You can find the Advert here, the Job Description here & the Personal Specifications for the Clerk here. The Deadline for all Applications is 15th April. Details of how to apply can be found in the Advert.
April 2011
To Celebrate the upcoming Wedding of HRH Prince William to Kate Middleton, we are throwing a Village Picnic Party on Friday 29th April from 3pm - 8pm at the Bere Regis Sports Club on North Street. Bring a family picnic & something to sit on. Hog Roast & Bar, Free Kids Refreshments, Wacky Games, Live Music, Fancy Dress Competition for all ages & much more! Click here for a Flyer with further details...
May 2011
In 1986 the BBC launched an ambitious project to record a snapshot of everyday life across the UK for future generations. A million volunteers took part. The Country was split into blocks. Our Village was in Block GB-384000-93000. Read our entire Entry by clicking the Image above...
July 2011
Come to the Drax Hall between 10-12pm on Friday 15th July for a Memory Morning. It is an Old Bere Regis Photographic Exhibition organised by Paul Bennett and local historian John Pitfieldl. There will be a coffee morning, bring & buy, home made cakes, raffle, games and all the various stalls upstairs . We hope to have some live music and a slide show by wild life expert Tony Bates entitiled “All things Bright and Beautiful in Bere Regis”. It is in aid of the Pamela Hoare Tribute Fund supporting the sterling work done by the Alzheimers Society.
August 2011
Bere Regis School needs YOUR help!
We are coming up to a ‘crunch’ time for Bere Regis school and we need the help of all Bere Regis residents. You will be aware that from 2012 the school will start changing from a first school, with five school years, to a primary school with seven school years.
The present school site is not suitable – either in size for the new number of children who will be attending, nor in facilities for the older age group. To accommodate the new demand, a new school building is the only practical option, and would not just be beneficial to those directly involved in the school, but also of course, the whole community and the future of the village.
Dorset County Council (DCC) informed the school two years ago that it was ‘top of the list’ for funding. However, DCC’s Modernising School’s Panel has decided that the school does not need any updating at all at present. In fact, they have delayed any funding, ‘hoping’ that it might be possible for a new school to be complete by 2015. This would, at best, mean the school would be over-subscribed for at least two years, with unsuitable facilities for the students who do attend. In turn, this has the danger of parents taking their children elsewhere, naturally, which could, at worst, lead to a situation where the demand for a school in the village is negated, leaving the school in the possible danger of closing completely.
We believe that the school is one of the real heartbeats of the village, and whether you are effected by it directly or not, Bere Regis would be a vastly different village without it, or with a diminished one – and poorer for that difference.
We are asking you to write to the people below, either by email or post, affirming the urgent village need for a new school. Please ask them to reconsider the current view that funding for Bere Regis School is not ‘critical’ and to start immediate work on building the new school, with completion by 2013.
The matter is very urgent as there are two council meetings next week where the final decisions will be made. The Schools Services Overview Committee meet on 3rd October and the Dorset Cabinet meet on the 5th October. It is at these meetings that decisions will be finalised, so if you can write to the people below and show them both the need in Bere Regis and the depth of support and feeling within the community we might just be able to change their minds.
Please address your letters to these following people:
Democratic Services Manager - Corporate Resources Directorate, Toni Coombs, Angus Campbell and Alex Brenton
At the following address:
County Hall,
Colliton Park,
Dorchester,
DT1 1XJ
Or email the Democratic Services Manager here and Alex Brenton here
Your letter will need to arrive before Monday 3rd October.
Thank you for all your help and we hope to be able to give you good news soon about this matter.
September 2011
Bere Regis Doctors Surgery have recently completed a Patient Survey - click the Image above to read a PDF of the Results...
October 2011
"Let the Memory Live Again "
This is a new CD now available entitled " Let the Memory Live Again". It features five local vocalists from the village of Bere Regis (click each thumbnail above for a larger photograph) and is on sale in aid of the Alzheimer's Society at £5. See a Video about it by clicking here.
The Organisers have sold £650 worth of CD's to date and hope to sell more on the run up to Christmas. The CD will make a great gift at Christmas and you would be helping a very worthy cause as all of the £5 purchase price will go to the Alzheimers Society. It is available at Mace, The Royal Oak ,Pamperd Pigs, The Chapel Butt Lane and The Pop In Place. You can also order your copy by telephoning Alison Bennett on 01929 472 023 or email her here.
We hope that you will enjoy listening to the songs that we have chosen and that you will support this venture by purchasing a copy in aid of a very good cause.
Return to the Main Village Homepage
© Bere Regis Village Website 2011 - Site by Chola Design
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