PVHG Displays on Open Gardens Day 26th August 2024

Open Gardens Display

On the Bank Holiday Monday afternoon, 26th August 2024, our village History Group PVHG provided, in the Memorial Hall meeting room, some background information in a display about the Open Gardens history of our village:

The Full Display – Individual panels are shown below

House Dating Project Display

n addition, a brief summary display was shown, giving details of the project to record build date information, provided by villagers, of when their homes were built.

In mid-August 2024 we have dated 216 buildings, which we believe to be just under 60% of the total built environment of over 400 dwellings.

You can still contribute to this project by easily and quickly giving us your house date, using the form here on this website

Guided Tour – High Street History Walk – 7:30pm Tuesday 27th June 2023, led by PVHG

Packington Village History Group PVHG offers a FREE guided history walk of our village High Street, taking place at 7:30 pm on Tuesday 27th June 2023 (weather permitting!).

Meeting point: just across the road from the Bull and Lion.

The guided walk will be led by PVHG chair Robin Boucher, whose reputation as a fount of knowledge of Packington History is well -deserved.

The meeting point is the location a century ago of Packington’s Reading Room building, now the service road of Heather Lane

Robin will describe historic features of our High Street, some of which are more evident than others:

Perhaps you have seen this odd-shaped stone at the High Street entrance to Hall Lane – do you know what it is called, or what it is for?

There is a story behind many of the historic buildings and features of our High Street, and we who can walk blithely past today may never have realised the way things were in times of yore.

Do come along and join us for this informative event, (did we mention it is FREE?) which leads at its end to refreshments in our Memorial Hall Meeting Room, where a display of High Street information will be available.

Chair’s Report to Annual General Meeting, January 2022

Robin Boucher, chair of PVHG, made the following report of 2021 activities to the Annual General Meeting on 25th January 2022:


During the first half of 2021 we were constrained by Government restrictions on meetings, due to the Covid pandemic. Some of us met on Zoom while others felt unable to do so. In the autumn we were able to meet face-to-face once more. Despite the difficulties, the year was not without some achievements.

Following Yvonne Eaton’s retirement from the position of secretary, Sue Brown agreed to take on the role for the next couple of years. Thank you, Sue, for undertaking this work.

While we were unable to meet, Sue Brown and Robert Dilworth worked on production of a list of baptisms and burials which now appears on the Group’s website at pvhg.uk. Some 3,286 entries are now available for visitors to examine.

In mid-June, I led a walk up Mill Street. The weather for the evening was beautiful and around thirty people turned out, which was close to the permitted attendance for an outdoor event at the time. The walk was well-received – the appearance of a peacock near the starting-point was clearly a good omen!

Meanwhile I had also started preparing a publication, based on oral interviews which our predecessors had undertaken from the late 1980’s onwards. Group members helped with proof-reading and supportive feedback and the Parish Council made a grant from its Solar Fund towards production costs. “A Way of Life That Has Gone” was published in December 2021; the PVHG publicity machine rolled into action (thankyou Robert and Sue) and the book was launched at a signing session in the Memorial Hall. At the time of writing over half of the print run of 100 copies has been sold.

Our autumn meetings included a session looking at the 1735 estate map of Packington, and a very interesting presentation by Sue Brown on the Leeson family, prominent in Packington from the fifteenth to the eighteenth centuries. We concluded by starting to plan our contribution to the village’s Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebration to be held in June 2022.

Robin Boucher

2nd January 2022

Annual General Meeting — Presentation to Yvonne Eaton

At the Annual General Meeting (AGM) of PVHG on Tuesday 25th January 2022, a presentation was made on behalf of the members to our retiring Secretary, founder-member Yvonne Eaton.

Yvonne Eaton displays the cut-glass goblets she has just received from Chair of PVHG Robin Boucher

Yvonne has been a member of our village History Group since its start back in the ’80s, over 30 years ago, and has acted as both Secretary and Treasurer for decades. Many early meetings were held in her home, Beech House on Ashby Road, before the 2009 refurbished Memorial Hall Meeting Room became available, and were renowned for her kind hospitality and provision of welcoming hot drinks and snacks.

She has retired from her rôle as Secretary, but retains her post as Treasurer, which involves a little less work. Yvonne believes the process, of changing our PVHG bank account signatories from her to someone else, might prove far too daunting for her to consider relinquishing this position!

Three decades ago – an early meeting of PVHG stalwarts shows Yvonne in the foreground, with Keith Haines and Nancy Atherton, seated; standing behind L to R are Peter and Laura Cooper, Dorothy Ireland, Doug Pratt and Vera Haines

In a letter to thank the group for the gift she received to acknowledge her many years of secretarial work, Yvonne wrote:

I wish to express my sincere thanks for the generous gift of crystal glasses given by the history group on my retirement as secretary of the group. What a surprise.

I have enjoyed being part of the group from its humble beginnings in the school room, then to Dorothy Ireland's home in the Grange, then to Beech House when Dorothy moved to Ashby, and now the Memorial Hall, long may the group continue.

Please pass my thanks on to all members of the history group."

Meeting Tuesday 26th October 2021 at 7:30 pm – The Leeson Family in Sixteenth Century Packington

So who was Raphe Leeson, pictured below? Why do we have his expensive 1587 memorial in our village ? Who was in his family? What did they do?

Village Historian Sue Brown is our PVHG Secretary and Treasurer, and on Tuesday 26th October 2021 at 7:30pm in the Memorial Hall Venue 35 will be giving a presentation on “The Leeson Family in Sixteenth Century Packington“.

The 1587 Leeson Memorial in Packington is our oldest memorial

Non-members will be particularly welcome – our famed PVHG hospitality means that although the passing-round of a plate of free biscuits is banned under virus protocols, we can still provide hot tea or coffee to attendees.

Guided Walk – Mill Street History – 7:30 pm Tuesday 15th June 2021, led by PVHG

Packington Village History Group PVHG offers a FREE guided history walk of our village’s Mill Street, starting at 7:30 pm on Tuesday 15th June 2021 (weather permitting! – else Tuesday 22nd June 2021)

Our starting point is over there, on the “Severn-Trent Corner” of Babelake Street, at the Junction with Bridge Street, across the road from Mill Street – meet before the 7:30 pm start.

The guided walk will be led by PVHG chair Robin Boucher, whose reputation as a fount of knowledge of both Packington and History is well-deserved.

Mill Street has been described as “The Jewel in The Crown” of Packington, containing some of the most beautiful and historic aspects of our village.

However – it hasn’t always been known as “Mill Street”..

It’s 68 years since the Coronation of HM Queen Elizabeth II – do you know where to find this reminder?

This wall, above, is almost 200 years old – 198 already. Do you know where on Mill Street it is to be found?

The ancient Mill Street steps above are 180 years old. Do you know where they are, and where do – or did – they lead?

Answers to many more of our – and your – questions should be available from our Walk Leader, Robin Boucher, on Tuesday 15th June 2021, starting from the top end of Babelake Street at 7:30 pm. PVHG hope to see you there.

PVHG Chairman’s Report 2021

Packington Village History Group PVHG – Chair’s Report to Annual General Meeting AGM, 26 January 2021

The January AGM has had to be postponed, it became a successful Zoom trial. PVHG will now meet virtually for our AGM on Zoom on Tuesday 23rd February 2021. Here is the report from the chair:

Robin Boucher writes:

I ended my report to last year’s AGM with the words ”Roll on 2020” – I must be more careful what I wish for!

Following that well-attended January AGM, we met in February 2020 when we scrutinised Adrian Mongredien’s survey of Anglo-Saxon and Viking Packington. (Thanks to Adrian for all the work he did on this, now available here as a FREE download on our website). After this the Covid curtain fell and we have been unable to meet since.

This does not mean that nothing has happened. We have received and responded to occasional enquiries from residents of the village and further afield, we have sold a couple of our publications, and I have added 27 items to our archive. The group’s website pvhg.uk continues to flourish (thank you Robert). However, it has not been possible to further the group’s development in any meaningful way.

As we start 2021, Yvonne Eaton has declared her wish to stand down as our secretary and treasurer. I believe Yvonne has been involved with the group since it started around 1988: our archive includes examples of her work as secretary from thirty years ago. More recently she hosted numerous group meetings at her own home and when the archive was rendered homeless in 2017 she and her husband kindly agreed to provide temporary accommodation for it. I have found her an invaluable source of information and support while I have been group chair. A very big thankyou, Yvonne, for all you have done.

Obviously we now need to fill the roles of secretary and treasurer, which can be undertaken either separately or together. I have asked Yvonne to draw up a list of the tasks involved as a kind of “job description.” I would be pleased to hear from anyone associated with the group who would consider taking up either or both roles.

Looking ahead, for the time being Government rules and Covid risks prevent us from meeting in the normal way. At present it is far from clear how long this will continue. I am happy to try virtual meetings through Zoom, as some members have advocated, as a short-term measure. I recognise this will not appeal to all of the group’s members and friends and we will need to consider the position more fully if nothing changes in the first half of the year.

With regard to subscriptions, clearly members who paid up in January last year had very little to show for their investment. Putting that alongside Covid uncertainty, I propose to waive payments for this year. The treasurer’s report shows a robust financial position and we should be able to meet all foreseeable expenditure.

Finally, I am willing to continue to serve as chair for the coming year, if that is the wish of group members.

Robin Boucher

28th January 2021

Minutes of our PVHG November 2019 meeting

At Venue 35 – the Memorial Hall Meeting Room – on Tuesday 26th November 2019 at 7:30 pm

Present: Chairman Robin Boucher and 10 members

Apologies: Stephen, Diane, and David O

Minutes of the previous (October) meeting were approved and signed.

Matters arising:  Following the Thomas Pestell film, Robin has received a publication from Wendy Freer entitled “Thomas Pestell, a 17C Vicar of Packington – Local History Resources“, which is available to members.

The question of the clubs finances was raised, following Nationwide closing all Treasurers Accounts at the end of 2019. 

Robin and Yvonne have applied for a current account at Lloyds Bank  and provided the account remains in credit, there are no bank charges.  Members were asked if they agree to this change – carried unanimously.

Robin invited Adrian to speak on his work of the history of Packington dating back over 2000 years. Adrian explained that when talking to his grandchildren history did not appear to rate highly as a subject so he felt it was important to record a history of Packington and surrounding areas for young people and subsequently their elders as the learning of history is vitally important. 

Adrian prepared a draft entitled “A history of Packington and the surrounding area from 0-1100AD” for each member to take home and read.

Following Adrian’s presentation there was much discussion regarding how best to present any historical works, whether digitally or published in the traditional way, much to discuss in future meeting.  Thanks go to Adrian for his hard work on the early days, but members agreed it was important to take his work forward to the 21C.

Sue reported she has digitised copies of the Court Rolls.

The meeting closed at 9.10pm.

The next meeting is our AGM on Tuesday, 28th January, 2020

Minutes of our PVHG October 2019 meeting

At Venue 35 – the Memorial Hall Meeting Room – on Tuesday 29th October 2019 at 7:30 pm

Present: Chairman Robin Boucher and 9 members

Apologies: Pam

Robin welcomed our three visitors.

Minutes of the previous (September) meeting were approved and signed.

Matters arising:  The film show was well attended and if any member wishes to see the Thomas Pestell film, Robin has a DVD which can be borrowed.

Mediaeval Packington

The main event of the evening was a talk by Sue on Medieval Packington. Sue has done extensive research, which included visits to the National Archives in Kew. 

During early times until the Dissolution of the Monasteries, Packington was in the patronage of Coventry Priory, which was founded by Leofric in 1043. 

Sue showed members maps of the layout of the village, and also the Packington extent of 1412.  

After questions and answers by Sue, Robin thanked her on behalf of members for a most interesting and informative evening.

The meeting closed at 9.35pm.
The next meeting is on Tuesday 26th November at 7.30pm.