Sandy Balls
Encyclopedia
Sandy Balls is 120 acre (0.4856232 km²) of woods and parkland in the New Forest
, between Godshill
and Fordingbridge
, in Hampshire
, UK. It is bounded on the western edge by the River Avon. Now run as a holiday centre, Sandy Balls is owned by the Westlake family.
. It appeared on maps and other documents of the time as "Sandyballas," which is the description given to the dome-shaped sand and gravel outcrops on the western boundary of the site. Many of these outcrops remain, including ones called Good Friday Hill and Giant’s Grave.
Due to the estate's name having a humorous sound in Modern English
colloquial usage, Sandy Balls has been used in various jokes and comedies. Notable YouTube comedian Ray William Johnson featured it on one of his videos [labeled "Old People Rock"].
On the comedy panel show Have I Got News For You
, guest host Alexander Armstrong
introduced a promotional video for Sandy Balls that made fun of the resort's name.
bought the land as a site for his newly formed youth movement the Order of Woodcraft Chivalry
. After the death of Ernest his son Aubrey Westlake carried on his ideas and the forerunner of Forest School Camps
was established. The first Head master was Cuthbert Rutter, Aubrey’s cousin.
The estate also served as a home for Grith Fyrd
during the 1930s.
In the 1980s the holiday centre was extensively developed and modernised by Richard Westlake.
In 2007 a major redevelopment was carried out, making the central area into a piazza and adding the bistro restaurant and adding new retail spaces including the bike hire shop. A new reception building was built with a roof covered with sedum
s and other plants.
Recently the centre has been used as the location for the Forestman Triathlon, Iron Distance. In the winter months it also features Forest Ice – an outdoor ice rink in the middle of the holiday centre.
New Forest
The New Forest is an area of southern England which includes the largest remaining tracts of unenclosed pasture land, heathland and forest in the heavily-populated south east of England. It covers south-west Hampshire and extends into south-east Wiltshire....
, between Godshill
Godshill, Hampshire
Godshill is a village and civil parish and in New Forest National Park in Hampshire, England. It is about east of the town of Fordingbridge.-The village:Godshill is a small village scattered on either side of the B3078 road east of Fordingbridge...
and Fordingbridge
Fordingbridge
Fordingbridge is a town and civil parish with a population of 5,700 on the River Avon in the New Forest District of Hampshire, England, near to the Dorset and Wiltshire borders and on the edge of the New Forest. It is south west of London, and south of the city of Salisbury. Fordingbridge is a...
, in Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
, UK. It is bounded on the western edge by the River Avon. Now run as a holiday centre, Sandy Balls is owned by the Westlake family.
Name
The estate's name has been traced as far back as the reign of Henry VIIHenry VII of England
Henry VII was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizing the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death on 21 April 1509, as the first monarch of the House of Tudor....
. It appeared on maps and other documents of the time as "Sandyballas," which is the description given to the dome-shaped sand and gravel outcrops on the western boundary of the site. Many of these outcrops remain, including ones called Good Friday Hill and Giant’s Grave.
Due to the estate's name having a humorous sound in Modern English
Modern English
Modern English is the form of the English language spoken since the Great Vowel Shift in England, completed in roughly 1550.Despite some differences in vocabulary, texts from the early 17th century, such as the works of William Shakespeare and the King James Bible, are considered to be in Modern...
colloquial usage, Sandy Balls has been used in various jokes and comedies. Notable YouTube comedian Ray William Johnson featured it on one of his videos [labeled "Old People Rock"].
On the comedy panel show Have I Got News For You
Have I Got News for You
Have I Got News for You is a British television panel show produced by Hat Trick Productions for the BBC. It is based loosely on the BBC Radio 4 show The News Quiz, and has been broadcast since 1990, currently the BBC's longest-ever running television panel show...
, guest host Alexander Armstrong
Alexander Armstrong (comedian)
Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong is a British comedian, actor and television presenter.-Early life and career:Armstrong was born in Rothbury, Northumberland, the youngest of three children, to Henry Angus Armstrong and his wife Emma Virginia Peronnet Thompson-McCausland, daughter of Lucius...
introduced a promotional video for Sandy Balls that made fun of the resort's name.
History
In 1919 the estate came up for sale to pay for death duties which arose on the death of Sir Edward Hulse in the first World War. Ernest Westlake, an anthropologist stimulated by the ideas and work of Ernest Thompson SetonErnest Thompson Seton
Ernest Thompson Seton was a Scots-Canadian who became a noted author, wildlife artist, founder of the Woodcraft Indians, and one of the founding pioneers of the Boy Scouts of America . Seton also influenced Lord Baden-Powell, the founder of Scouting...
bought the land as a site for his newly formed youth movement the Order of Woodcraft Chivalry
Order of Woodcraft Chivalry
The Order of Woodcraft Chivalry is a Scouting-like movement operating in the United Kingdom, which was founded in 1916 by Ernest Westlake. Like Scouting, it was inspired by Ernest Seton's Seton Indians, and Seton was its honourary Grand Chieftain...
. After the death of Ernest his son Aubrey Westlake carried on his ideas and the forerunner of Forest School Camps
Forest School Camps
Forest School Camps is an organization that is aimed primarily at children between the ages of 6 and 17. FSC has camps running throughout the year, the main ones taking place in the summer. Being a volunteer run organization, it relies on cultural/social bonds and enthusiasm from participants for...
was established. The first Head master was Cuthbert Rutter, Aubrey’s cousin.
The estate also served as a home for Grith Fyrd
Grith Fyrd
Grith Fyrd was a radical alternative educational movement in England during the 1930s. It created two permanent work camps, one at Godshill in Hampshire and the other at Shining Cliff in Derbyshire, which took in unemployed men and tried to use them as a basis for creating a land-based...
during the 1930s.
Development into a holiday centre
In 1934, 12 simply furnished camping huts were built and next year the first brochure was produced, entitled "Sandy Balls for the Beauty Spot Holiday". As the original aim of Aubrey Westlake was to use the location to provide a simple, low cost holiday for families, the original cabins were placed among the trees.War years
During the war the estate served as temporary accommodation for evacuees and for families whose main bread winner was on active service. A large air raid shelter was built and a Red Cross post established.Continued development
Through the 1950s and 1960s the Westlake family continued the location's development as a holiday centre. Accommodations were greatly extended and a restaurant and shop were added (with the latter two locations using produce grown on the estate).In the 1980s the holiday centre was extensively developed and modernised by Richard Westlake.
In 2007 a major redevelopment was carried out, making the central area into a piazza and adding the bistro restaurant and adding new retail spaces including the bike hire shop. A new reception building was built with a roof covered with sedum
Sedum
Sedum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Crassulaceae, members of which are commonly known as stonecrops. It contains around 400 species of leaf succulents that are found throughout the Northern Hemisphere, varying from annual and creeping herbs to shrubs. The plants have...
s and other plants.
Recently the centre has been used as the location for the Forestman Triathlon, Iron Distance. In the winter months it also features Forest Ice – an outdoor ice rink in the middle of the holiday centre.