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Places Last updated: 9 Dec 2022 |
The Bank
![]() The branch was opened in 1905 by the London and Provincial Bank next to The Woolpack, and was at first housed in a wooden hut shown in the centre of the photograph on the right. At the time, the London and Provincial primarily provided banking services to small tradesmen and private customers. The Banstead branch, which was operated as a sub-branch to Sutton, was run by one cashier, Frank Wilton, who came up with cash from Sutton on Tuesdays and Thursdays, in a horse drawn vehicle, to open for business. In 1911, the branch moved to its present site in the High Street on the corner of Avenue Road. In January 1918, the London and Provincial amalgamated with the London and South Western Bank Ltd and within the same year, Barclays Bank Ltd.
By 1925 opening hours at the Banstead Branch had been extended to 9am -3pm Monday to Friday and 9am-12 noon on Saturday. The manager lived in the house adjoining the back of the branch, and Colin Mead tells us that his father, who was the bank manager, used to sit by the window in his dressing gown and go through the morning's post. | |
![]() ![]() The Banstead Branch was rebuilt on the same corner in 1969 and the image below shows the interior in 1970. | |
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The exterior is a familiar landmark in Banstead, and as can be seen from the photographs below, it has not changed | |
Barclays closed this branch in 2022 If you have any photographs of the bank during rebuilding, or have any stories you can tell us, |
Banstead Commons
The Banstead area has four distinct areas of Commons which were the subject of a long legal battle in the late 1800s. These are: Banstead Downs 430 acres Burgh Heath 87 acres Banstead Heath 760 acres Park Downs 74 acres The Banstead Common Conservators have published a leaflet on the subject and this is freely available from the Help Shop in the Horseshoe at the western end of Banstead High Street. The map on the right is printed on their leaflet. Banstead Commons Conservators web site |
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Banstead Woods
In the Middle Ages the woods belonged to the Lord of the Manor of Banstead. Villagers had no rights there, though some of them were under obligation to cut and carry timber for repairing cottages, firewood, etc. They might be allowed to graze pigs there on payment. From the 13th century much of the woods was fenced in as a Deer Park and a Hunting Lodge was built on the edge of the woods for the Kings who were the Lords of the Manor. |
![]() More pictures Please note - these pictures may take a little longer to load..... |
The woods in 1881 were offered for sale either as a housing estate or for a large mansion with extensive grounds. They were bought by the merchant banker, Francis Baring, who built his mansion in the middle of the woods.
In 1893 C H Garton bought the estate and occupied it until his death in 1934. In 1939 the Mansion and its grounds became an Emergency Military Hospital and the remainder of the woods were requisitioned by the War Department as a military camp and later for a Prisoner of War camp. In 1946 the Queen Elizabeth Hospital for Children was opened in the mansion, whilst the rest of the woods became vested in the Local Authority as Open Space for the public. The Hospital closed in 1998. |
The Fire Station Brighton Road opp Garrats Lane, Banstead. Banstead Fire Station in Brighton Road was officially closed on the 31st July 1960. More photos and memories of the men and women stationed there can be found here. |
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The War Memorial
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Several members of the old Banstead History Research Group have researched all 119 men listed on the memorial. You can see all their findings here. Banstead History has published two commemorative books about thememorial and local men who lost their lives during the two World Wars. These two publications are beautifully written, fully illustrated titles which have become an important and lasting contribution to Banstead's long and proud history. |
The Old Well Junction of Park Road and Woodmansterne Lane, Banstead. | |
The Well which is almost 300 feet deep and was last used around 1895 was an important part of village life until the arrival of piped water. The 18th century wellhead cover which still houses the elaborate winding gear is a listed building.
Over the last few years the structure started to develop a severe lean and after some temporary repairs, a full restoration was commissioned in August 2003. The full restoration was completed by mid November 2003 |
![]() The old photograph was taken in about 1904 and the building on the right was the original Well House |
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This photograph was taken on the 15th Of November after completion of the restoration work. Check out the Special feature on the restoration of the Village Well which includes many more photographs and close ups..... Special feature |
Well Farm Woodmansterne Lane, Banstead. ![]() Upstairs, at the rear is a room known as "The Bishop's bedroom" in memory of a remarkable cleric who was one of the farm's earliest owners. His name was Robert Sherborne. Despite some dubious activities, he was appointed Bishop of Chichester and held that office for some thirty years. Sherborne sold the farm to a couple of yeoman-farmers but in 1516 they sold it to John Lambert of Woodmansterne, in whose family the property remained for the next four hundred years. The 'Wardens' as it was known then, was largely rebuilt in the 18th century and the 18th century facade is still there today (2007). In 1905, workmen uncovered some wooden panelling on a wall in the front room of Well Farm on which was a large crudely painted Stuart Coat of Arms.Over it is written FEAR GOD AND HONOUR THE KING. It has been suggested that this was the Royal Coat of Arms removed from All Saints Church at the time of the Civil War, but this has never been proved. ![]() The house and grounds were sold in 1919 and passed through several hands. Marshal of the Royal Air Force, Arthur William Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder, was the owner from 1954 until his death in 1967. ![]() When I was a kid (pre-teen), I spent more time in Well Farm (opposite the Congregational Church in Woodmanterne Lane) than I did at home because my best friend Richard Tedder lived there. I met one or two quite famous people there because his parents were Lord and Lady Tedder. Lord Tedder was Marshal of the RAF and had been in charge of the RAF operations in the Mediterranean during WWII. ![]() In the '50s the BBC did a series of outside broadcast interviews with famous people in their own homes. One of them was Lord Tedder and I met Richard Dimbleby (who was doing the interview) there. The Outside broadcast van with large aerial was parked in the Congregational car park with all the TV cables draped above Woodmansterne Lane across to Well Farm. It was strange watching the (live) program in the evening knowing that it was actually taking place a hundred yards or so away from where we were sitting. Another regular visitor was Lady Tedder's brother, Bruce Seton who was an actor and had played the part of the sergeant in the film Whisky Galore. I went to Lord and Lady Tedder's holiday home in the Outer Hebrides one year, met several of the locals who Compton Mackenzie based the characters on in the book, and saw the wreck of the ship that prompted him to write the story in the first place. |