23 June 2024
Some of you were at Caldecott when the QM visited, I believe in late November 1985 for the official opening ceremony at Lacton House, although John Cook had some children at the new unit since 4 June. I gather that it was renamed Pine Lodge, perhaps when used as an assessment centre.
There is a picture of the helicopter arrival in the grounds at Hatch. I have also seen odd news clips about the opening, and there was a photo of various adolescents at Lacton Hall.
I was aware that this group of boys and girls from the Colt House had moved there in about September 1983, perhaps with later arrivals, in a swap of locations with most of those that had been at Lacton Hall (so they became Hornbeam). Some I can vaguely recall from my visits to Caldecott when they were younger.
Maybe it has been done already, for all that I know, but I would hope that we could see a few paragraphs of someone's memories of the visit by the QM, and which the Caldecott Association (CA) might put on the website, and even in the Archive. Other memories and pics etc would also be useful as Caldecott did not cease to exist in 2000, merely changed as it had done at various times previously. Our CA newsletters, website and archive have not had much about Lacton Hall after 1967, yet it had been the home of many children even up to 2011.
[Richard McClean remembered another visit by the Queen Mother, in about 1949]