Watchfield/Naafi/Aerodrome Notes

A Memory of Watchfield.

This was the NAAFI shop that served the military quarters at Watchfield, which housed the then many miltary and civilian staff of the Royal Military College of Science, and some of the students at the college, many of whom were from overseas.The RMCS is now the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom and is multi-service.
I am not a native, so to speak, of Shrivenham/Watchfield, but lived in one or the other for a total of 52 of my now 60 years. My father was RSM F J (Jim) Hodder, posted to RMCS in 1956, he was RSM until 1962 then stayed on as a civilian until retiring in 1978. We lived firstly in 31 Faringdon Road for a few months, but shortly moved to 4 South Street where we lived until 1975. You can still see the Christmas tree that my sister and I planted in the back garden, now about 40 foot high. I stood next to it only today, from the back field (25th March 2012).The NAAFI underwent several upgrades in the years we were there but is now a church - St Albans, with nursery attached. I understand this church replaced the original which was for many years in Burgoyne House in the main part of the college.The small place on the right is what was then W H Smith, the shop was made of green painted tin and behind was a place of similar construction, which was an office/store with a seperate entrance facing the NAAFI. I remember the young man and woman who worked in the shop, but no idea of their names. Later, the business was taken over by a Mr Nash who also ran it as a bookshop, newsagent, and later by Mrs Page of Shute Avenue who sold materials, fabrics, thread and such like. Both huts are long gone, no trace. The Naafi was at the junction of Folly Cresent, Meadow Road and Axis Road. The road going up between the Naafi and Smiths was a short stub in those days, you could climb up the bank and visit the old concrete pill box up on the hill (still there as at 25-3-12) but the stub is now extended to the newer army houses that have been built along Meadow Road, and behind the Naafi/church. As of today, many of the older 1930/1940s quarters are again undergoing refurbishment, odd blocks have been demolished and there is now no trace of them. I remember that in, or around, 1958 I was friendly with a Pakistani or Indian girl who lived in Short Street opposit the Naafi. Her father was at RMCS, she and I attended Shrivenham School, her name was Indra. The only street in the army quarters at Watchfield which still looks like it always has, with the gardens enclosed with privet hedges, is South Street. The children's playground in South Street, swings, roundabout, bars, see-saws, rocking boat, all long gone, no trace. A few other points, the headmistress of Watchfield School was Mrs Lait, not Late, and the shop in Watchfield village was Godfreys, not Geoffries. Mr Godfrey died in 1980. I never knew Mr Biggs, but Mrs Biggs was my teacher when the year below the most senior year at Shrivenham School were housed in the Garden House School, 1960/61; us 10 year old boys quite liked Mrs Biggs. Mr Friend was headmaster at Shrivenham. I too remember having to catch the school bus to Shrivenham. I stayed at Shrivenham school from age five to eleven when I went to King Alfreds, Wantage. My sister attended Watchfield School for at least part of the time, and at one time my mother worked there as a dinner lady, it being in North Street, directly opposite South Street. My mother knew Mrs Page very well and they both worked in the laundry at Zebra Camp with Mrs Dewhurst at one time.
I remember Arnhem Camp being used for parachuting troops and vehicles. The aircraft used were Hastings, Beverley, Argosy, and later the Hercules. Rare visitors were the Scottish Aviation Twin Pioneers, I think they did some sort of training as they were not used for dropping. In 1975, Watchfield aerodrome was in the news as the site of the famous pop festival. Watchfield and Shrivenham were both in Berkshire until the mid-seventies, when local government boundary changes put them in Oxfordshire.
The Spar shop/Jet petrol station was in Watchfield High Street, and at least for part of the time was run by Mrs Smith and son Phil, I believe they moved to the West Country. There is now no trace of the shop or petrol station, as usual it's now houses. There used to be three or four petrol stations/garages in Watchfield and Shrivenham: Knapps in Shrivenham High Street, latterly run by Mr Heinz, now Shrivenham Motors. Swan Hill Garage on the old A420 to Swindon, the Hut Garage (now houses) run by Jim Kettle and his brother, and Spar/Jet in Watchfield.
I believe that many of the hangars and control tower at Watchfiled remained there derelict until the seventies, I recall going up the control tower around that time I think; in any event all were swept away in 1984 by the Shrivenham bypass which cut across the base. The Watchfield side of the road is now the Shrivenham Hundred Business Park. There is no trace of the airfield now, it is home to five wind turbines and an array of solar panels. As a final note, I believe that the name Watchfield derives from the ancient (not sure how ancient) name Wacca's Field, field belonging to Wacca, the cc of Wacca being pronounced 'ch' rather than 'k', ie Wacha's field, Watchfield.