Bethany, Saltdean

This wonderful house is in Saltdean, near Brighton on the south coast of England.

It is now called Bethany but in a former life was know as Bedford and according to 'The Ocean Hotel, Lido and the War' at www.saltdean.info, the house was central to The Saltdean Fellowship, a self-help residents organisation whose objectives were 'tending to casualties, helping the homeless destitute through war and organizing first aid and home nursing classes and also organising working parties for providing required items by the fighting and mercantile services, providing social functions and to generally promote a sense of community spirit'.

'Most Fellowship meetings were held at 'Bedford', now 'Bethany' in Arundel Drive West, home of Mrs Hill, and over 5 years mountains of garments (1626 woolens alone) were sent for dispatch to the services, Merchant Navy and the blitzed people of Britain and Russia. On 25 November 1940, Miss Margaret Hardy returned to 'Bedford' to a sale of household goods, garments and fancy leather work which sold so quickly that when a reporter from the Herald arrived halfway through the day most of the goods had gone. This raised a huge £56 for deserving causes'.

Bethany is now used as holiday accommodation.