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THE MANOR HOUSE HOLIDAY CENTRE (PHYSICAL TRAINING AND
RECREATION ACT. 1937).
This year witnessed the birth of a project under the above Act which
had been engaging the attention of the Council for some time, namely a
seaside Holiday Centre for the residents of the Borough. A very attractive
two-storey building known as "The Manor House" at Sandgate, near
Folkestone, Kent, standing in spacious grounds and situated some 400 yards
from the sea, was purchased by the Council in November, 1957. After works
of adaptation and repair, the facilities made available for visitors
include 12 bedrooms, dining room, lounge, recreation room and lounge hall,
as well as a small camping site in the grounds for camping parties from
Borough youth organisations.
The Manor House Holiday Centre, as it is now known, is open all the
year round, and is available to any resident of the Borough, young and
old, for a week or a fortnight's holiday at reasonable cost. By means of
a grant made by the Borough Council to the Stepney Old People's Welfare
Association, under Section 31 of the National Assistance Act, 1948, old
persons may have a holiday at the Manor House at the considerably reduced
rate of £2 per week, and of the total accommodation available each week
half is allotted to old people. Coach transport is provided to and from
the Public Health Department and the Manor House each Saturday.
The first visitors were received at the Holiday Centre on Easter
Saturday, 5th April, 1958, and the formal opening by His Worship the
Mayor, Councillor W. Sullivan, J.P., took place on 21st June, 1958, in
the presence of the Mayor of Folkestone and representatives of the
Boroughs of Stepney and Folkestone. By the.end of the year, 558 residents
of the Borough had taken a holiday of one week or two weeks at the
Manor House Holiday Centre.
The management and control of the Holiday Centre are vested in the
Council's Physical Training and Recreation Committee, and the day-to-day
administration is the responsibility of the Medical Officer of Health.
Photographs of the Manor House Holiday Centre face this page, and
the conditions and charges for the first year of running are described
in a leaflet, extracts from which are given below.
"The Manor House is a Holiday Centre run by the Stepney
"Borough Council, and is for the use of all residents
"of the Borough, young and old. It is pleasantly
"situated, stands in its own grounds, and is about
"400 yards from the sea and the shops. Folkestone is
"within easy reach (seven minutes by bus).
"The Lounge and Dining Room are centrally heated and the
"bedrooms have hot and cold water, interior sprung
"mattresses and metered gas and electric fires.
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