The Knaphillian
The True Voice of Knaphill
Your Village - At Your Fingertips...
One of the best things about The Knaphillian is the on-line community spirit it can create. Your positive comments keep us going and indeed our Village Forum is where many local issues can be discussed and dissected and where all your concerns about your village can be raised for debate. More changes and improvements were promised and you will see that we have added a new calendar & events facility and news page as well as a link to You Tube where you can access some exhilarating items on our village and its people.
During March '10 we celebrate our 4th birthday which gives us an opportunity to reflect on some of the achievements of our first four years as Knaphill's best on-line resource. Indeed, an average of nearly 10,000 hits a year is testament to how far we've come.
The Knaphillian came to prominence following its Teenage Voice campaign. The idea was launched to highlight the lack of facilities for teenagers in the village. Since then we have seen the emergence of youth projects at The Kings House Coffee Shop and other initiatives supported by local church groups that have given our youngsters new hope. Outside facilities have also been added as is evident with the new basketball court at
Since our conception we have supported a number of charities and aided local benefit initiatives, the most prolific being our own Karolyne Foster's trek to
The Knaphillian is widely renowned for organising the successful Knaphill Village Music Festival for 2007 & 2008 and indeed, live music is now a major part of Knaphill's entertainment calendar with more special nights planned for the future. Bands such as Aspex, The Hitch-Hikers and Six Miles Away have all benefited in some way from the exposure we afforded them on our website.
In 2007 we were also first with local news 'exclusives' such as the Strippers at the Crown and the fraud scandal involving staff at Barclays Bank in the village. Both were later covered by the local press and the BBC following reports on our Home Page. Quotes from our website were also used.
During 2008 our original web address was unbelievably 'stolen' by an unscrupulous 'businessman' in
The Knaphill Village Forum is a popular place for local residents and visitors to air their views. Even local politicians have used it as a verbal boxing ring for their cross party exchanges! Our forum has also helped raise the profile of such important local issues as Anti-Social Behaviour, Almond Villa, Botany Barns and the future of the old library building.
We now look forward to the future with a number of new ideas and initiatives. These include the Knaphill Poetry Week, Sponsored Charity Walks and more enhancements to our site.
Thank you all for your continued support and for making us the No. 1 Community Website for Knaphill.
2009 Review
Well, that was the year that was: as The Knaphillian enjoyed another great year since its inception in March 2006. The village itself has seen a few changes to its fabric with the demolition of Almond Villa and the closure of Botany Barns. Two shops, Gallery 99 and The Thresher Wine Shop have also closed.
Almond Villa, the former NHS halfway house in The Broadway was targeted by child arsonists one Saturday in April which involved an ambulance helicopter spectacularly attending the scene. The building was later demolished but the site remains an eyesore.
The much maligned development of Brookwood Farm in Bagshot Road, Knaphill also continued with the structure of twelve eco-friendly houses. In fairness, these give the village a new dimension and we wait with baited breath as they become populated with new residents in the Spring of 2010. More development at the farm though, remains a major threat!
At Botany Barns, the new Surrey Poultry Farm has thrived on part of the site, but it is only there on a temporary lease as planning permission has been passed for a new development of houses/flats at the Barrs Lane site. The Pentangle Aquatic centre remains (for now!)
In April The Knaphillian received a record number of ‘hits' following our April Fools Day spoof about a massage parlour opening up at premises formerly occupied by The Viceroy Indian Resturant in the High Street. A number of people were taken in including local councillors, the press, estate agents and local residents. On a serious note, the aim of the ‘joke’ was to also attract people to our other content and make villagers aware of our existence – it worked!
Over Easter our own Karolyne Foster travelled to Argentina to appear in the BBC’s Total Wipeout. The programme was aired in July. 2009 also saw our first ever Knaphill Village Poetry Festival which attracted some great poetry from local writers. Again, this was high-lighted in the local press and was a great success. Knaphill based Author Hilary Mantel won the Bookers Prize for her novel Wolf Hall to international acclaim. The title is now high on the best sellers list.
In October we held our third annual Knaphill Village Music Festival with events at The Crown pub and The Knaphill Working Men’s Club. The line up included the consistently brilliant Frayed Not (pictured), The Hitch-Hikers and the recently disbanded Six Miles Away as well as the Dave Raphael Band and many others. The Knaphillian will continue to support live pub music in the new year – so watch this space!
Our Village Forum has also been a great success and recent discussion has triggered debate on many local issues, such as the future of the old library site, Brookwood Farm, Knaphill border issues, local bus services and much, much more....
Teens log on and request more to do in Knaphill
Woking News & Mail Article:-
A KNAPHILL resident who expanded his village website to give young people their say has been amazed by the response from teenagers so far.
Mal Foster — is the creator of www.theknaphillian.com, a non-profit making website designed to provide handy information about the village.
Following a conversation with a Knaphill teenager he decided to dedicate part of the site to young people to help identify what they wanted in the village to keep them occupied. Teenage Voice asks youngsters a series of questions to find out what type of facility they would like to be available, who it should be run by and whether they would be willing to pay a membership fee.
The website says: “Between now and the summer we are asking you to tell us what facilities teenagers want in Knaphill.
“Better facilities for the youth of Knaphill are high on the Knaphill Residents’ Association’s agenda but it needs to get Woking Borough Council to listen and then — most importantly — get them to act on your behalf.
“Please complete and submit the form and we will then present the results to the residents’ association. The information will also be made available to councillors who are responsible for amenities and facilities in and around Knaphill.”
Mr Foster said: “In the past we have had problems with teens in the village and this is related to the fact that there is no youth club or any other facility designed specifically for them. I am finding that those who are responding to the questions are looking for an independent initiative to be set up, which is not linked to Woking Borough Council, the police or the church.
“This shows that the young people are putting a great deal of thought into what they want — the response has been amazing. I am hoping to set up a poster campaign and contact some of the schools about the site so we can get a feel for what young Knaphill residents really want.”
Mr Foster added: “It all started when a girl aged 13 emailed me about the website to say that there was no opportunity for youngsters to make a comment and asked ‘What about us?’ So I decided to do something about it.
“I started collating material in September and hopefully now it will be full steam ahead and the responses will continue to be very positive. I have got a teenage son who has helped me decide what questions to ask.”
Mr Foster believes that youth initiatives, such as The King’s Coffee House Chill and Chat sessions, may not have been so popular with young people because of their affiliation to certain organisations.
“An independent youth club or café would be more popular. The Chill and Chat café just seemed to attract youngsters who went to church,” said Mr Foster. “So far I have also found that youngsters — or their parents — would be willing to pay a membership fee.
“We already have a handful of businesses interested in the general village website. If we receive enough positive responses from the young people in Knaphill, we would approach these businesses to see if they would be interested in pursuing a youth facility for the village.
“Obviously we would need to consult with the council and the police before anything went ahead and I will be putting these ideas forward at the next residents’ association meeting.”
Courtesy: Woking News & Mail - January 2007
Webmaster : Mal Foster has lived in Knaphill since 1993 although his ties with the village go back much further. Mal is a former Vice Chairman of the Knaphill Residents Association and a published poet. He was editor of Wire Poetry Magazine between 1989 and 1997 and is currently working on his first screenplay 'Man In A White Suit', a psychological drama set in a crematorium! - Mal can be contacted at theknaphillian@yahoo.com
The Knaphillian
