The Glebe Project

Seventy years ago in June 1951, my family first moved into number 45 The Glebe. My grandparents, Ellen & Albert Saxby, along with my then 9-year-old mother Margaret, and her older sister Jean.

The Glebe was a fairly new post war development of council owned houses on the edge of Hallcroft in the small market town of Retford, Nottinghamshire. Just a few minutes walk into the centre of town, it is a quiet cul-de-sac of some 48 houses, an additional two houses would be built in the early 2000’s

Uncle Doug (Jean’s husband) was our last long term resident, he passed away aged 92 in May 2020, leaving the house to my sister Lesley and I.

Let's put it perspective, in 1951, King George VI was on the throne, Phil Collins was in nappies, Winston Churchill was having a second run at being Prime Minister, the average price of a car was £615.00, a pint would set you back 5d, Manchester Utd. ended their 41 year wait and finished 4pts ahead of Spurs to win the Football League Division 1 title, and rationing was still in place.

Lesley and I spent many a happy summers day playing in the garden at No. 45. The house has seen its fair share of celebrations and a number of sad moments too.

Julie and I returned to the UK in August 2020 to help take care of Mum during her final few months. Of course we moved into Number 45.

To commemorate the ending of our families connection with The Glebe, I set about capturing the residents who make up this charming cul-de-sac with some door-step portraits. Some residents were a little shy, some were over the moon to help, all had stories of living in The Glebe and the connections with my own family flew thick and fast.

In June 2021 Lesley and I handed the keys to Number 45 over to Craig & Kim and their young daughter. We hope they have as many happy memories as my family have over the last 70 years.

It’s a project that unfortunately I didn’t get chance to finish before returning to New Zealand. But each time I return to my birthplace, I will endeavour to capture a few more images of the residents of The Glebe.

  • Number 1

    Doreen, moved to The Glebe in 1998

  • Number 3

    Pauline, Rebecca & Alfie, Pauline was born at Number 3 71 years ago. Her parents used to live further down The Glebe but moved to number 3 because her father was in the fire brigade and had to be close to the only telephone cable which ran across the top of the street.

  • Number 5

    Rhea, Charlie and Maddie, loves the friendly quiet and safe feeling of The Glebe

  • Number 16

    Anne & Mick, moved in 18 months ago. Mick used to run The Scotsman Arms pub where my Dad and his mates would spin tall fisherman tales after a hard few hours sat on the riverbank feeding lots but not catching many fish.

  • Number 18

    Joan a Retford girl is one of if not the newest member of The Glebe, having moved in 2 months ago

  • Number 21

    Bryan & Tania with Isabella, Bella & Georgia. Moved into The Glebe in 2009

  • Number 22

    Pat, been in The Glebe for 62 years on and off. Her daughter’s boyfriend is in the Royal New Zealand Navy, bringing the connection to the bottom of the world.

  • Number 24

  • Number 27

    Pauline & Les, so many connections to my family. Pauline worked in the hospice and helped take care of Dad during his final days.

  • Number 36

    Pat has been in The Glebe on and off for 73 years and was one of the first to move into the street.

  • Number 37

    Cedric, has been living in The Glebe for 35 years, used to work with my Uncle Geoff at Jenkins,

  • Number 38

    Michelle & Phil. moved in The Glebe in 1993. Michelle was 7 months pregnant when they moved in and now her daughter lives just a couple of doors up with her own family

  • Number 40

    Cheryle & Janice. Cheryle moved into The Glebe in 1953.

    The sister’s remember watching the Queen’s coronation on a neighbours TV a few doors up. It was the only TV in The Glebe and the house was packed.

  • Number 41

    Johnny & Roxy, have been in The Glebe since 2003. Loves the fact that his home like Number 45 backs onto the woods. As for Roxy, she just loves a good snuggle.

  • Number 43

    Carol & Peter

  • Number 45

    Julie and I moved into number 45 in September 2020. Crazy to think that my little office in the house used to be my Mum’s bedroom when she was just a teenager. So many memories

  • Number 45 - Time to say goodbye

    For Lesley and I a bittersweet moment as we said our final farewells to a house that held so many special memories

  • Number 45 - The New Owners

    New owners Kim & Craig. These guys wasted no time in updating a house that hadn’t seen much change since it was first built in 1945. Within 90 minutes of getting the keys, they sent through photos of the kitchen completely ripped out

  • Number 47

    Gerry, our lovely next-door neighbour. Most of the houses are semi-detached so Gerry and we were joined. Hopefully, our musical choices didn’t drive Gerry crazy. Gerry moved in in 2019, and loves the friendly vibe of The Glebe

  • Number 51

    Phil & Karen, have been in The Glebe since 2011. Unfortunately, we missed Karen as she was working. Phil loves the fact that kids like his grandaughter Kara can play safely outside.