Welcome to the Great Bowden Village Website
The beautiful village of Great Bowden lies on the edge of the Welland Valley and has a past history dating back to Anglo Saxon times.
Great Bowden still enjoys a village way of life and to this day has retained itself by largely remaining within its ancient boundaries. Surrounded by attractive countryside and separation of settlements land, Great Bowden has a unique relationship with its larger neighbour, Market Harborough.
The village’s picturesque centre consists of beautiful greens, shops, pubs, the village hall and our historic church.
With a population of approximately 1000, Great Bowden has an active Parish Council, a variety of services, a host of clubs/groups, a pre-school and a primary school.
If you would like to know more about the history of Great Bowden and its Heritage, please visit the Groups page. The Historical Society or Archaeological & Heritage Group can provide a wealth of information.
Please view the current Newsletter-2011-Winter which includes articles and news items from local residents.
Great Bowden Events Calendar
Select event for venue & further information. If you'd like an event added please tell us about it here.
News & Information
Deadline for next village newsletter (Spring edition) is February 7th for diary dates and copy.
Trees Felled
The value of trees
An extract from Harborough District Council’s Great Bowden Conservation Area Character Statement reads: ‘At Nether Green, another of the greens but away from the Main Street, are the buildings of the former kennels of the Fernie Hunt. Nether Green is separated from the main village centre of the Church and Rectory House by a large tree-fringed paddock, bounded by brick and mud walls and forming an important open space’.
No longer is this the case, the development of the old Fernie Hunt Stables has resulted in the destruction of 17 mature trees.
Nine of these trees, mature Common Limes, have been felled without planning permission, allegedly, and we await HDC’s investigation into this matter.
These trees were about 90 years old and a few minutes with a chain saw has destroyed a valuable eco system.
Trees provide shelter and shade. Trees filter out atmospheric pollutants. Trees shade out harmful solar radiation and have a positive effect on the incidence of asthma. Trees can assist in the cleaning up of contaminated land. Trees, it has been estimated, can increase property values by as much as 18%, with houses and homes in tree lined avenues much desired and sought after. Ask any estate agent. Trees also mask the intrusive nature of many developments where space is at a premium. Trees provide valuable environmental habitats for a myriad of creatures both large and small. Trees bring the countryside into town. Trees enhance the character of local areas. Trees soften the landscape of hard edged towns, making them greener and more attractive. Trees provide long lived memorials to those no longer with us. John Henry Stokes planted these trees about 90 years, providing a living legacy for everyone to enjoy and benefit from today - but no longer.
For the bean counters amongst us we can put a financial value on all of this. A valuation method called CAVAT (Capital Asset Value for Amenity Trees) has been developed and adopted by most councils to put a price on trees. It allows an assessment of a tree's worth, according to its size, health, historical significance and how many people live near to enjoy it. It assesses worth in actual money terms. Using this calculation the monetary value of the nine limes allegedly removed without permission is approximately £330,000.
Unfortunately the maximum penalties that can be imposed in a Magistrates Court is a fine of £20,000 per tree – a pittance in comparison with its true worth, although at Crown Court it’s unlimited.
We can only wait and see what HDC’s action will be. If you wish to contact HDC and raise the profile of the issue please quote planning reference 11/00988/TCA.
Tree Warden
LRWT Great Bowden Group
Leicestershire & Rutland Wildlife Trust
Winter Program:-
Wednesday 15th Feb 2012 - A.G.M. followed by 'Summer Leys Nature Reserve' Jane Pearman, Reserves Manager BCNPWT (Northants) tells us how the reserve was turned from a bean field into a nature reserve, its site history, management and wildlife.
Wednesday 21st March 2012 - 'A Trip Down the River Welland' A pictorial voyage from the river's source to the Wash by Tom Youden.
Wednesday 18th April 2012 - 'Creating a Living Landscape' Simon Bentley Director LRWT will provide an illustrated, up to date account of the Trust’s work to protect and enhance the wildlife and wild places of Leicestershire and Rutland for everyone.
Meetings held at 7.30 pm in the Village Hall
Entrance fees (include refreshments) £1.50 for Wildlife Trust members £2.00 non-members
Bruce White on Tel: 01858 467976, Email bruceywhite@yahoo.co.uk
If you spot any wildlife or anything interesting near your home please contact Gerald Mitchell who is recording all the information. Thank you. Gerald Mitchell - Tel: 01858 462393, Email mtchg6@btinternet.com
Dance Lessons - Great Bowden
LFG Dance offers fun and energetic dance classes where street and contemporary dance styles are combined.
All classes run on Friday evenings at the following times:
4pm-4.45pm (6-10 years)
5pm-5.45pm (11-14 years)
Great Bowden Village Hall. Classes are £3 each or £30 for 12 sessions.
Booking the 12 sesssions ensures that we can produce a more successful performance piece at the end of term.
A date of Friday 16th December has been set for a perfomace which will showcase what the dancers have achieved throughout the term.
Laura Green, Tel: 07886 269270 Email: laura@lfgdance.co.uk or visit www.lfgdance.co.uk
Shop Local
There are some shops that really are worth visiting.
Weltons stock a variety of wonderful cheeses and meats as well as selling fresh breads, magazines and newspapers. The cafe offers an excellent menu for brunches or lunches and wonderful cakes.
Location: The Green, Great Bowden
Quinns Bookshop & Art Materials also has an art gallery showcasing local talent.
Situated up a cobbled alley next to Joules on the High Street, Market Harborough, Quinns really is a treasure of a shop.
Quinns also sell tickets for film showings and live broadcasts from the National Theatre shown at the Harborough Theatre organised by Octagon Films.
www.quinnsbooksandart.co.uk Tel: 01858 432313
Location: Three Crowns Yard, The High Street, Market Harborough
GREAT BOWDEN FESTIVAL 2012
2012 will be an exciting year for the nation as we host the Olympic Games and for the village as we have our Festival Year. One of our events will be to hold our own Great Bowden Olympic's on the' Rec', which will kindly be organised by the cricket club. This family day will bring together the Streets' Greens' Roads' Lanes' forming into teams to compete in fun, light hearted games.
We hope you will design your own flags,costumes ,kits and mascots to make the day loads of fun.
After all that running around there will be time to relax in the beautiful surroundings and enjoy a BBQ.
There will be lots more events throughout the year. Some of your old favourites such as the Pancake Race and a village pantomime as well as celebrations to mark the Queens Diamond Jubilee.
Information and details will be given closer to the events.
We would love to hear about what YOU would like to do,watch,enjoy and participate in.
Please email suggestions to Lisa Hilton lisa@sleepydog.net
Great Bowden - Looking out for all - Neighbourhood Watch
If you see anyone who you think is acting suspicious or vehicles in the village that seem unusual please do call, Crime prevention on 0116 222 2222 or by visiting the Force
website at www.leics.police.uk
If the sighting is of an innocent nature it can be validated. Being vigilant can stop crime.
- Description of the individual/s and location.
- Vehicle registration plate,description and location.
Read all about it!
Since 2003, Great Bowden Heritage and Archaeology Group has been collecting evidence to illustrate the life
and times of the village before the Norman Conquest. We have built a picture from digs, field walking,
metal detection, local records and wider history, compiling three booklets to give you a flavour of the
village in those times.
Free copies have been donated to local schools, but there is a charge to the public to contribute towards printing costs.
£2.50 per booklet or a set of three for £5
Contact Liz Thomas on 01858 466003
A History of Great Bowden School
A very interesting history of our school from 1839-2009 with archive material and photographs leading through to live memories and the present day.
To order a copy please click on the image below to view application form.
Books cost £6 (Book £5.00 + £1.00 P&P)
All proceeds go to the School and the Great Bowden Historical Society.
Lorries Using Village Centre
It is noticeable that heavy lorries are continuing to use the village as a through-route and in particular ignoring the lorry restriction on Dingley Road. The only way for the village to make an impact on this problem is to complain and the more people that do so the better the effect.
All that is required is to provide in written form to the Police Inspector, MH Police Station is a short note providing:
Date/time of incident
Description of lorry: type / colour of vehicle, owners name and if possible the registration number.
Direction of Travel: from or to Corby
Road being used: particularly Dingley Road
View up Station Road
Archive
* Population figures taken from the 2001 census give a total of 954 residents within Great Bowden Parish. Since 2001 new properties have been built on the site of the old Countryman pub as well as on Langton Road and more recently the conversion of Bishops House into apartments. Great Bowden Parish 2001 Census of Population.
The Village Web site
Great Bowden’s village web site was created by volunteers who are members of the Compass Group.
Information has been provided by groups and individuals within the village as well as suggestions which have shaped it into the web site we have today.
www.greatbowden.org hopes to provide information on groups and services within the village as well as information or links to, travel, tourism etc which may be of use. The much loved Village Newsletters are also available to view.
News items on meetings and events may be submitted to the details below for inclusion.
We endeavour to ensure the information on the site is up to date and accurate but if you do discover that there is a broken link or an error with information provided, please do let us know so that it can be addressed.
Contact us here or email greatbowden@aol.com
Documents available to download on this site are saved in PDF format. You will need Adobe Reader to view them. Click the link below to download the software.
