Facilities
The large and distinctive parish church is dedicated to St. James . It was built in 1861 as a memorial to General Reid who was MP for Windsor and designed by Sir William Tite in yellow brick with a Byzantine style dome, Chinese looking turrets and an Italianate Campanile. In 1969 the singer Lulu married Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees in the church. Originally named Jarrett's Cross before the times of the Gerrard family, after a highwayman and Jarrett's Hill is still there going up to WEC International off the A40 and Jarrett's Cottages are also still in existence. The actress Margaret Rutherford is buried in the St James Church graveyard. Gerrards Cross has its own well stocked library, a two screen cinema and various restaurants.
Independent schools include Maltman's Green School (all girls), St Mary's, Gayhurst and Thorpe House. Students of secondary school age attend either one of the local grammar schools, such as Dr Challoner's Grammar School (Boys), Dr Challoner's High School (Girls), The Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe (Boys), John Hampden Grammar School (Boys), and Beaconsfield High School (Girls) Chesham Grammar School (Co-ed), or the local Upper School, Chalfonts Community College, which is the catchment school. However some students are sent to leading independent schools.
Just outside Gerrards Cross, on the A40 to Beaconsfield, is one of the UK's largest landfill sites. The landfill operated by Veolia Landfill Ltd can currently accept up to 900,000 tonnes of non hazardous waste each year from south Buckinghamshire, London and other surrounding areas. The site is expected to cease accepting waste and enter a period of restoration and aftercare in 2013, but Veolia announced in 2009 that due to the economic climate this may take longer than expected. The landfill gas produced from the waste is put to good use with thirteen specially adapted engines producing over 10 megawatts of electricity which is feed back into the local power grid. Veolia's own website
The future of the landfill site is mired in controversy after an unsuccessful bid by Veolia to build a waste to energy plant in 2009 to dispose of Buckinghamshire's household waste. Despite failing to be selected for this contract Veolia have refused to rule out the possibility of them building their own energy from waste site to dispose of commercial and industrial waste. Buckinghamshire Residents Against Incineration (Brains)
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Famous quotes containing the word facilities:
“I have always found that when men have exhausted their own resources, they fall back on “the intentions of the Creator.” But their platitudes have ceased to have any influence with those women who believe they have the same facilities for communication with the Divine mind as men have.”
—Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902)
“Marriage is good enough for the lower classes: they have facilities for desertion that are denied to us.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)