On 6th February 2022 Her Majesty The Queen became the first British Monarch to celebrate a Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years of service to the people of the United Kingdom, the Realms and the Commonwealth. To celebrate this unprecedented anniversary, events and initiatives took place throughout the year. This page highlights just a few of the wonderful ways that the community marked this historic milestone, in particular during the bank holiday in June.
In recognition of Her Majesty The Queen’s 70th year as our Monarch and Head of the Commonwealth, more than 2,000 beacons were lit throughout the United Kingdom, Channel Islands, Isle of Man and UK Overseas Territories, and one in each of the capital cities of Commonwealth countries.
The location for the beacon in Ringwood was the top of the tower of the Church of St Peter and Paul in the Market Place where it could be seen for several miles.
The whole community were invited to attend and despite the later hour, young and old gathered in the Market Plce to watch this historic event. Ringwood and Burley Band started proceedings by showcasing tunes from across the United Kingdom. The Mayor of Ringwood, Cllr Gareth DeBoos said a few words and then we followed the national programme with an individual piper playing 'Balmoral', followed by a bugle call and the lighting of the beacon at 9:45pm.
We are grateful to Gill Tybjerg from Ringwood Benefice who co-ordinated a wonderful community choir to sing the unique ‘Song for Commonwealth’ which was written for the occasion- the idea being ‘voices around the globe joining together in celebration’. 45 people attended practices for the choir and they did a spectacular job.
You can view a short film with highlights from this remarkable event here.
Our big celebratory event took place at Carvers Recreation Groun. It was a day for the whole community to come together. Families brought picnics, dressed up in red, white and blue and enjoyed the huge array of entertainment from live music to Punch and Judy, inflatable obstable courses to circus skills. The weather held out until late afternoon and a few hearty souls stayed to dance in the rain with the wonderful Swing Unlimited. To download a copy of the programme, please click here.
Thanks to the overwhelming generosity of Ringwoodians, the event raised £1500 on the gate for charities as well as a great amount at the charity bar.
To relive the best bits of the day, please click here. Thank you again to the talented Jay Cox for capturing these special moments.
A wide range of events took place over the bank holiday including live music in the Furlong Centre, a garden party with afternoon tea at Greyfriars Community Centre and dozens of street parties across the Town.
Other events took place throughout the year. A special oak was planted at Greyfriars Community Centre and RACE (Ringwood Actions for Climate Emergency) organised for one tree to be planted for each class at Poulner Infants, Poulner Juniors, Ringwood Infants and Ringwod Juniors as well as 3 for Ringwood School. The trees were planted as part of the orchard at Four Acre Farm where the children will be able to go and see them grow.
We have included lots of photos taken to mark the occassion and would like to say a big thank you to Paddy Butler (ariel shots), Derek Maidment, RACE, Greyfriars Community Centre, Trevor Pogson and the Furlong Centre for their permission to use their photos here.
Dec
The Council has a number of vacancies. Click for details and apply to join our team.
Dec
Wishing all Ringwood residents and businesses a Very Merry Christmas and a Healthy and Happy New Year. Click on the image for our opening hours over the Christmas period.
Dec
We have continued to work hard behind the scenes today and have received assurances that the remainder of the town’s Christmas lights will be installed tonight (5th December).
Whilst we do not expect this will draw a line under the matter—there will be important discussions to be had in the New Year—we hope that after tonight we will have a complete and festive display. Our goal remains to ensure that the town looks its best, encouraging everyone to visit and support our local businesses.
Thank you for your continued patience and understanding.
