Betchworth and Buckland Society

Welcome to the Betchworth and Buckland Society web site

The Society is an excellent way for local residents and families in Betchworth & Buckland to meet and socialise with the villages communities, as well as help contribute to good local causes. See "About Us" for more info on the B&B Society, plus "Events" tab for info on past and future events.

The Chairmans report to the 2026 AGM is copied below; which also gives a good summary of our activities.

Chairman’s Report

I just want to briefly outline some key events held in the last 12 months, the support we have provided to some local charities, and other worthy causes & to look ahead to the next 12 months.

The past 12 months has been a remarkably busy time for the Society

In August we held our BBQ event - which this year was held on Goulburn Green in Betchworth. To say it was a little damp is a bit of an understatement. We had some proper rain, together with some strong gusts of wind before the start – so much so that we had two large gazebos make a ‘break for freedom’ - being lifted into the air and heading for The Street – thankfully they were caught by the roadside hedge – all quite concerning! Despite that, we had a good, but damp day - with great food provided by Sarah from the Plough at Leigh & entertainment provided by an equally damp group of musicians. It reminded me that we are British & the weather will never stop us!!
Then in late November, we held our Annual Christmas Dinner at the Hartsfield Manor Hotel. Approximately sixty people entered the Christmas spirit, over an excellent dinner. We had our usual Heads & Tails & a Christmas Music quiz. A quite unusual thing happened in one of the Heads & Tails, where there was a question which was ‘which British colony surrendered to the Japanese on Christmas Day 1941?’ – I gave two possible answers – Singapore or Hong Kong. Out of 35 people, 34 went for Singapore, one lady went for Hong Kong - & she was right & won the bottle of Bollinger straight up! It goes to show, trust your instinct & don’t look around the room!!
Finally, for 2025, we held our pre-Christmas drinks at the Reading Room on Sunday 21st Dec. This was a very relaxed way to ease our way nicely into the Christmas period.
So that was 2025 – the Society then kicked off the New Year with our Annual Quiz in January. It was, again, extremely well supported, with over one hundred enthusiastic attendees. We had an excellent ‘half time’ dinner again provided by Sarah from the Plough at Leigh & there was a friendly, competitive atmosphere. We had our normal music round, but this time had a full hall competition for singing Take Me Home, Country Roads by John Dever & 500 Miles by the Proclaimers... we never cease to be amazed what people will do for an extra point in a charity quiz.... congratulations to the winning team (winners yet again!)
In March, we held our Wine Tasting event which was run by our friends from the Vine King. This was a well-attended event, with about 60 people in the Reading Room & covered the whole spectrum of white, red & sparkling wine. I say this every year but, as ever, the volume, for some reason, increased as the evening progressed – I have no idea why!!

So, these are the social events & activities that have taken place over the last year, however, our purpose is not just to engender a great community spirit, but also to provide some funding for local worthy causes. Through your attendance at these social events, together with your membership fees, in the twelve months to December 2025 we have donated over £3,000 to various worthy causes. In the last 12 months to May we have...

Donated to the Re Betchworth 4B’s programme of biodiversity initiatives & work. This has supported their extensive work on all aspects of biodiversity – including education, talks, wild life pond starter kits, a wildlife habitat garden at the local school & the B line. Looking ahead our support will help fund ecological surveys they have commissioned for their planned Nature Trail.
We donated to Loveworks, a local Reigate based food bank. – This donation supported their work providing emergency food provision working against food poverty & growing food in their community allotments.
Supported the Buckland and Betchworth Choral Society – Here the Society provided funding to support the cost of their Autumn concert.
We donated to Stripey Stork – this is a baby bank who collects and redistributes baby and children's items to families in Surrey who are experiencing hardship, ensuring they have the essentials they need.

Looking ahead, to our plans for the rest of 2026, we have a busy schedule coming up... including

Our Annual BBQ – on Sunday 28 June - this year it will take place on Buckland Green
The Annual Christmas Dinner – on Thursday 3rd December at Hartsfield Manor
Pre - Christmas Drinks – on Sunday 20th December at The Reading Room in Buckland

So please get those dates in your diaries & come along.

I should finally remind you that your Society is managed & run by a committee. This group of people put a huge amount of time & effort into organising & running these events on a completely voluntary basis, my sincere thanks must therefore go to;

Tamlynne Chapman, Amanda Douglass, Graham Hanson, Cat Martin, Nathalie Nichols, Katrina Rea, Debbie Suenson-Taylor & Rachel Studholme

for all their invaluable contributions over the last 12 months. Your efforts are really appreciated... so thank you Finally, I should say thank you to you, as our members, for your continued support & enthusiasm for our events & the Society....it makes such a difference.

Simon Thomas (Chair, Betchworth & Buckland Society)

As always, your own input would be welcome should you wish to contribute and can be given to any one of your committee members.