1950s: Hot food for Cold War trial

Army personnel oversee the assembly of a field kitchen at Chilwell, which was the trial for later exercises at Chatsworth. George Barron (in the glasses) is pictured talking to the welfare officer for Derbyshire, Mr Chambers

The field kitchen set up for the first visit to Chatsworth

George Barron is pictured just before Christmas 1965, distributing gifts to children affected by the floods in Chester Green

IT all started around 1955, while my father, George Barron, was working in the welfare department of Derbyshire County Council under the county welfare officer, Mr Chambers.

It was a time of strife with the possibility of another war being very real. Part of my father’s job, at that time, was working with the Civil Defence Corps. He was responsible for training volunteers to be able to feed and house the population in the event of an attack or some other emergency making large numbers homeless.

The staff of the county welfare department was mindful of the need to put theory into practice and part of the training, at that time, revolved around building emergency kitchens and cookers from whatever might be available.

Together with volunteers, my father organised a trial run by feeding 1,200 members of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food and Armed Services with a three-course hot meal at the Central Ordinance Depot, at Breaston.

After its success, the next move was to test the county’s responsibilities for the elderly by organising a summer outing.

My father started by approaching the Duke of Devonshire to ask if he would allow this to take place within the Chatsworth Estate. He received the full co-operation of the Duke and his staff, who provided land on the “Dukes Meadows , together with free entry to the gardens and house for everyone who attended. The only condition was that, at the end, the meadow land had to be left in the same condition as they found it, as it was used as grazing pasture for the estate’s prize-winning herd of cattle.

The first year this took place was in 1956 when 1,500 members from Derbyshire’s elderly welfare groups were bussed onto the estate. The volunteers of the Derbyshire Civil Defence Corps started work the day before by building ovens made out of bricks, mud, old dustbins and scrap metal. They erected marquees, made provision for bus and car parking, first aid and the general welfare of all those who were to attend.

On the day of the first event, they cooked 1,500 hot meals, comprising of a main course of roast beef and two veg, followed by apple pie and custard, all produced in the open air.

The WVS (now the WRVS) provided a packed picnic, together with drinks for a picnic tea. WVS members trained with the Civil Defence in those days and also had a food flying squad capable of answering emergencies at very little notice, which was used to full advantage.

The site was cleared and handed back to the Duke’s agent the following day and the success was such that it was repeated for a number of years.

As East-West relations deteriorated, Civil Defence training was stepped up and my father was moved to a new office based at Ivanbrook, in South Darley, as the county’s welfare section instructor, together with personnel dealing with communications, transport, ambulance work and rescue.

It was from here that they ran volunteer training courses throughout Derbyshire. It was around this time that Mr J W White took on overall responsibility as the county’s Civil Defence officer.

Many similar events were organised as part of the formal training of volunteers. Some of the exercises involved feeding Rover Scouts on the Four Inns Walks, youngsters attending Toc H holiday camps and providing school meals at many of the county’s larger schools.

My father considered it a top accolade when he gained permission to feed patients at several of the local hospitals for the elderly. The picture above was taken at Babington Hospital, Belper, where meals were prepared under the watchful eye of the matron and her deputy.

In 1959, he became the Civil Defence training officer for Derby, remaining in the post until its disbandment in 1968. He revelled in his work with volunteers, recognising their valuable use within the community.

Over the years, he was involved with a number of high profile disasters, including feeding and housing victims of the Chester Green floods.

My father is pictured (above, left) handing out Christmas gifts, donated by volunteers, local organisations and companies, to children in the area. Civil Defence volunteers also assisted with the recovery of workers who had been killed during the demolition of the South Mill at Belper. No-one else had the expertise to work in dangerous conditions under partially demolished buildings.

When the Civil Defence was disbanded, my father moved to work as the deputy ambulance superintendent for the Borough Ambulance Service under Jim Joynes until his retirement, in 1973.

He always felt aggrieved that Harold Wilson’s government should close down an organisation, made up of volunteers from all walks of life, that was so highly trained it could respond to major emergencies with very little notice.

It could be said that time has proved this to be correct, as we witness the struggle to respond when things we take for granted fail.

My father died in 1987.

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