Moving ahead with a project of longstanding interest to Society members – to light the War Memorial at the top of Monument Hill – the Weybridge Society is now working on an application for Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) funding. This funding would go to a study by lighting engineers, generating a specification report that will form the basis upon which we can obtain quotes for implementation.
Already a 12-page report has been prepared by member David Bounds, outlining in great detail the history of this special Weybridge memorial located at the roundabout near the cricket green. The report includes best practices surrounding the lighting of memorials, the planning and building consents needed, architectural considerations, impact on residents, issues concerning the lights themselves, light pollution and energy efficiency. The report also dealt with costs and maintenance, as well as additional proposals for improving the Weybridge War Memorial, and was annotated with detailed measurements and photography.
The Society thanks David Bounds for his incredible work, and any members interested in obtaining a copy by email should get in touch with the Chairman at: chairman@weybridgesociety.org.uk. Anyone from the general public interested in seeing this and other Society work in detail should first become a member.
For the lighting scheme to move forward, discussions will first take place with Elmbridge and Surrey to secure their backing for the project and ensure that the Society’s programme is in line with any requirements the councils may have. The Society then hopes to submit its application in early 2018. Comments from members at this stage would be welcome, please address them to warmemorial@weybridgesociety.org.uk.
The Weybridge War Memorial, unveiled in 1923, was produced by a prestigious firm of the day, R.I. Boulton and Sons, which made the country’s leading ecclesiastical sculptures and claimed as patrons Queen Victoria, King Edward VII, the Pope, and the Dukes of Norfolk and Westminster as well as the Dowager of Denbigh. The architect J. Hatchard Smith was responsible for a number of other Surrey and London war memorials, and the Weybridge War Memorial is listed Grade II under the Planning Act of 1990 as a construction of special architectural and historical interest.