Loscoe Women's Institute

Day out to Highfields Happy Hens and The National Memorial Arboretum.

Updated 1st June 2010

Happy Hens and The National Memorial Arboretum.

Loscoe WI visit Highfields Happy Hens and The National Memorial Arboretum.

Sixteen members and friends met at Loscoe Post Office on a beautiful sunny morning in May.
Clear blue skies and hardly a breeze was a sure sign that we were in for a very warm day.
Our first stop was near Etwall, just south of Derby.
"Highfields Happy Hens is a very special place providing hope, training and encouragement to young people with special needs."
Roger and Beryl Hosking have seen their venture grow from a derelict farm with 36 hens to an area of 100 acres of mainly grass
and 3 acres of market garden, with 300 breeding ewes there are also the pigs,
goats and free range hens – all 24,000 of them.

The newest addition to the farm is an emu. You can see the chicks and ducklings in the incubators.

Marion and Jenni on the way to see the farm animals.

It was lovely just strolling around the farm, although we didn't go right up to the chicken sheds,
I think another visit is called for.

A fabulous place to take children, there is so much to do and plenty of seating for parents and grandparents.

You can take a tractor ride up to the fields where the hens live or you can walk. Once in the sheds you are able to collect your own eggs and pay back at the farm shop. What a great idea.

The playbus or Big Brain Bus has lots of puzzels and games on board
with colourful posters on the windows.
Children (or adults) can try their hand at milking a cow, with no risk of it kicking out.
The playbus or Big Brain Bus has lots of puzzels and games on board with colourful posters on the windows. Children (or adults) can try their hand at milking a cow, with no risk of it kicking out.

Eileen and Keith study the selection of jams.

We all enjoyed a drink in the cafe, apart from the usual selection of hot and cold drinks they also sell a variety of home-made cakes all made with their very own free range eggs.
The shop stocks a wide variety of produce as well as their own eggs.
Eileen and husband Keith check out the display of jams and preserves on sale.
Highfields Happy Hens is certainly worth a visit and the free range organic eggs are delicious.

We spent about an hour and a half at the farm then it was back on the coach
for the journey to The National Memorial Arboretum.

Once on the coach we headed down the A38 past Burton-upon-Trent and were soon pulling into the car park at the Arboretum.
"The National Memorial Arboretum is a special place that remembers those who have served, and continue to serve, our nation in many different ways.
The focus, however, is not totally military. There is a large area devoted to Police who have fallen while on duty,
as well as other areas given over to the Fire & Rescue and Ambulance services.
National charities that represent those who have died in particular circumstances, including children,
and people killed in road incidents, are also to be found in the Arboretum grounds."

Polar Bear (49th West Riding Infantry Division)

The Polar Bear Memorial is a tribute to the 49th Infantry West Riding Division. The Second World War found the 49th Infantry stationed in Iceland and because they were snowed in under 20 foot of snow for most of the campaign, their commanding officer called the men ‘his Polar Bears’ and the Polar Bear on a block of ice was soon adopted as their mascot and shoulder flash.

The arboretum has over 160 memorials set in 150 acres, so a visit could involve a lot of walking.
You can hire a buggy to get round, or borrow a wheelchair or motorised scooter,
there is also a train to take you on a tour.

Serviceman is raised aloft on a stretcher.

A warrior is prepared for burial by female and Gurkha soldiers.

At the heart of the Arboretum is the impressive Armed Forces Memorial, which is a tribute to almost 16,000 service personnel who have lost their lives in conflict or as a result of terrorism since the end of the Second World War. At 11 am on 11 November each year the sun shines through two slits in the outer and inner walls of the memorial, casting a shaft of light across a wreath in the centre.

Over 15,000 entries were carved by computer when the memorial was created with space on the empty panels for an additional 15,000 names. The names of those killed in 2007 (102) and 2008 (66) have been engraved by hand on the Memorial, and names will continue to be added on a yearly basis.

The memorial to the prisoners of war who didn't return home. Something they longed for, open gates to freedom.

Although it was a fair walk we were determined to visit the WI memorial. The seat, which is in the shape of an 'S' and can seat more than 20 people, was commissioned by the Women's Institute, to commemorate the work of WI members in World War Two.

Audrey and Jenni enjoy a drink in the beer tent.

A welcome drink in the beer tent for some.

Essex Woodcarvers have created 'The Storyteller' depicting a group of 12 children
in modern dress listening to the same words that the apostles themselves heard.

The altar in the Millennium Chapel of Peace and Forgiveness and the view from the chapel.

Views across the Arboretum.
The National Memorial Arboretum is a fantastic place to visit. Somewhere peaceful to reflect and remember.

Time to board the coach and head home, but while we were all together there was chance for a group photo.

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