Earlier this month, Year BG from the halow project in Guildford enjoyed 2 fantastic days working with the Surrey Hills Society where they were tree popping and planting fruit trees.

The young people were pleased by the stunning views, friendly team and the lovely sunshine we had, and couldn’t have asked for a better location to be working in.

On the Tuesday the young people were removing and cleaning Hawthorn from the hills and then on Wednesday were planting trees in Puttenham bonfire field to be part of the new orchard. Both days required new skills and patience which the young people showed plenty of!

Having never come across a tree popping tool before, the young people very quickly learnt and developed lots of new skills and had to use teamwork and perseverance to complete the tasks. They loved working with the other volunteers and were even very kindly treated to lunch which went down a storm!

They are very keen to work with Surrey Hills Society again and look forward to possible opportunities in the future.

Written by Hannah Jackson from Halow

Following the success of our first tree planting event back in February, it was time to get our wellies out again for some more conservation and planting.

On Friday 11 November, over 100 employees from our Guildford office got together to help plant hedgerows and wildflowers at West Horsley Place. The sun shone all day and we loved getting out of the office to use our volunteering hours. We planted 870 hedgerow plants along 250 metres of pathway and created several large wildflower beds.

The day was a great success thanks to the team at Surrey Hills who organised the day so that we could be as productive as possible. They explained how the work needed to be done as well as how it would help preserve the local environment so everyone felt that it was a really worthwhile day out of the office. We are looking forward to planning more events together in the future.

Jessica Pike
Marketing Assistant for Brand and CSR Allianz

This was as part of the Surrey Hills Champions programme in partnership with Surrey Hills Enterprises.

On a cold November day over 30 members found the perfect place to keep warm! Adam Aaronson treated us to a fascinating display of specialist glassmaking at his West Horsley Studio. Adam told how he had learnt his trade in Stoke having originally been encouraged to study law by his father!

Adam has been at the heart of British studio glass for nearly 40 years, first running galleries dedicated to glass art and subsequently as a glass artist in his own right, learning how to create glass art later in his career and developing self-taught methods. Adam is a skilled maker and a truly diverse and talented glass artist. He is constantly experimenting with techniques and exploring new ideas, including the potential of large sculptural works designed for the outdoors.

We watched spellbound as he expertly fashioned several separate pieces including a glass, a bowl and a small bird. Several of our members were so enthused that they have signed up for one of the several classes that Adam runs regularly. “Anyone over 9 years old can do it!” Adam assured us.

Halfway through we enjoyed tea and cakes which gave us the opportunity to look at the extensive samples of Adam’s work available for sale with a new appreciation of the skill and effort involved in even the simple pieces.

None of us wanted to exchange the warmth of the furnaces for the cold outside at the end of an excellent afternoon!

Gordon Jackson

Many people will have heard of the Dorking Cockerel but few will have any knowledge of the “Chilworth Chicken”.

This is the affectionate nickname given to a piece of topiary beside the North Downs railway line and which forms a moving memorial to a train guard who lost his life in a tragic incident over 130 years ago.

On Monday 29 February 1892 – a leap year – a goods train travelling from Redhill to Reading crashed at about 10:40pm, throwing the guard, Henry Wicks, to his death. The train, led by two locomotives, had come apart because of a broken goods wagon coupling.

The front portion of the train continued down the gradient and was eventually stopped by the two locomotives. The rear wagons caught up and collided with the front section between Gomshall and Chilworth. The impact threw 30 wagons down the embankment and derailed the vehicle’s front nine wagons and the second locomotive.

Henry, age 52, was found at first light lying on the embankment. He had worked on the railway for 30 years and left behind his wife, a son and daughter-in-law, Jessie Wicks. Jessie was especially upset by the loss of her father-in-law, and was instrumental in the planting of his lineside memorial and asking railway workers to care for it.

Rather than a chicken, the topiary is pheasant-shaped. It sits on a wide chair, symbolising Henry’s peace, and is also known as Jessie’s Seat. Former railway operators maintained it until 1989 and, since then, volunteers have looked after it.

The “Chilworth Chicken” is still there but blink and you’ll miss it! Unfortunately, it’s not accessible from a public route and sits very close to the track. However, to keep the memory alive, a special memorial train was run on the anniversary in 2020. There are now plans to place a poster cabinet at Chilworth Station to explain the story, along with a replica of the train headboard used on the commemoration event.

Ken Bare