In Sussex dialect a ‘Lavant´ is a winterbourne, which means it only flows during the winter. In C15th documents in the West Sussex Records Office it is also spelt as ‘Louente’ and ‘Lavent’. Most rivers start from a ‘spring’ and gather water from tributaries as they flow downhill.
Category: Amenities
Trees, the river, roads, bikes, what surrounds us
The Westgate Fields
To the south of Westgate were fields and meadows, until the construction of Chichester College in the 1960s. Much of the land belonged to the Dean, and in the 12th century, when he desired to open “a way from his garden to his land and orchards between the wall and the river Lavant”, he had… Continue reading The Westgate Fields
Successful day for Centurion Way 2018
A very successful exhibition was held on Saturday 27th January 2018 in the Scouts Hut by the newly formed Friends of Centurion Way. The exhibition coincided with the launch of a written dossier detailing all the community issues that need to be considered in relation to any proposed diversion of the path’s southern end. The… Continue reading Successful day for Centurion Way 2018
The Future of Centurion Way 2018
The Committee are keen for interested residents to attend the “Friends of Centurion Way” Exhibition which is taking place this Saturday 27th January 2018 from 11.00 am – 3 pm at The Scout Hut on Sherborne Road, Chichester PO19 3AA. The Friends will be displaying material from their dossier of research about the path including information… Continue reading The Future of Centurion Way 2018
The Brewery Field: Community Open Day, 20 August 2017
After 105 years absence, it was an emotional moment to see a brewery dray enter the Brewery Field that Sunday in August 2017, as two magnificent shire horses, Pride and Griffin, were driven in by John Medhurst, their driver for the past 28 years. Driver John Medhurst and Cllr Peter Jones, then Mayor of Chichester
Inventory of the Brewery Field Trees
(as of August 2017) There was some disquiet after the opening of the field in August 2017, to see that a rather sculptural – but dead – tree on the Western edge of the field had been felled. The Brewery Field had recently been added to the Chichester Conservation Area. Therefore all the trees were… Continue reading Inventory of the Brewery Field Trees
Hidden Westgate Histories 4: The Westgate Lavant
Most residents are familiar with our winterbourne, the River Lavant. Winterbourne because it is a seasonal stream that comes down from the Downs, filtered out of the chalk after the Winter rains.
The Brewery Field in 2017
The History This field was part of the Westgate Brewery which produced beer for many inns and pubs across Sussex and East Hampshire from 1751 until it closed in 1954. In 1827 it was taken over by the Henty family who went into partnership with George Constable in 1921. The brewery had been rebuilt in… Continue reading The Brewery Field in 2017
More on the Westgate Cycle Path 2016
Retired traffic consultant Paul Wreyford has been a key expert assisting the four RAs concerned with the impacts of the Whitehouse Farm development. He has over forty years of detailed highway and transport design and construction experience, and assessing developers highway designs has been a major part of this. Following the approval of the outline… Continue reading More on the Westgate Cycle Path 2016
The Westgate Cycle Path 2016
Re-design Westgate to Accommodate Everyone’s Needs Safely? The City Council’s Cycle Infrastructure Design Workshop met on 1st October 2016 in St Paul’s Church. Unfortunately this clashed with our monthly Coffee Morning but several residents were able to attend, for which many thanks. By all accounts, some interesting and competent contributors had been brought in from outside… Continue reading The Westgate Cycle Path 2016