Soldiers’ salute for kind Stan
Maidenhead: Tribute to thoughtful World War II veteran
Tributes have been paid to a Second World War veteran and long-time Maidenhead resident following his death at the age of 96.
Stan Swansborough lived in the town for more than 55 years, moving from London in 1963 with his late wife.
He died on February 12 at a Chichester care home, where he was staying.
Born in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, Stan soon moved south to Uphaven, in Wiltshire, with his father, and left school at the age of 14.
His early working years saw him work part-time at an RAF camp as a civilian, and in March 1943, Stan became a serving soldier and joined the Royal Signals Association Bikers, where he was a dispatch rider.
During his time with the forces, Stan served in the Second World War, as well as the Normandy battle in northern France.
He left the army in 1947, two years after marrying his wife, with whom he had two children.
The pair started living in a flat in West London before moving to nearby Chiswick,
where daughter Jane was born. They then settled in Maidenhead for more than five decades.
“Before lockdown, he really liked going into Maidenhead to have a coffee and a sausage roll at Greggs,” Jane told the Advertiser.
“He was always there – always doing stuff. He was not one of those people who would just sit about.”
Stan also had four grandchildren and three greatgrandchildren, and particularly enjoyed gardening at his Cookham Road allotment, and golfing at Winter Hill.
His working life after the war saw him work for the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) – now known as British Airways – where he worked from 1955 until his retirement in the mid-1990s, enabling Stan to take staff trips to all corners of the world.
But it was on a recent trip to Normandy – in 2019 – where Jane recalled her father remembering aspects of the landscape he had witnessed in battle some 75 years prior.
In June 2014, Stan was awarded the coveted Legion of Honour award, a French medal reserved for the most deserving in their field.
“Everyone said how kind and thoughtful he was,” she added. “If anyone needed anything, he was always the first to say ‘what can I do?’”
Jane recalled that her father had received help from various eyesight charities, including Maidenhead Blind Club, the Macular Society and Blind Veterans UK.
Stan’s funeral is due to be held on Tuesday at Easthampstead Park Crematorium in Wokingham.
His journey there will be accompanied by the Royal Signals, with the road through the park lined by serving soldiers.
Jane added: “He would have loved it.”
A Maidenhead entrepreneur has spoken out about the struggles with isolation the pandemic has created for people with disabilities.
Molly Watt, 26, has Usher syndrome, a condition which causes gradual sight and hearing loss. She was born deaf and was diagnosed at the age of 12.
Molly is an accessibility consultant for her own company – but the pandemic has limited her connection to others through work.
“I’m very sad that lots of my work travelling has had to be postponed or cancelled and that I am unable to meet with my clients or colleagues,” she said.
“I am dependent on routine and structure and socialising
helps to break up the week and get through it. It’s so important to connect with people, have a laugh and get a chance to relax.
“Now, it’s just a lonely, openended blur.”
Molly relies on public transport in her daily life and thinks improvements to services would help her to go out and meet more people.
She is also in favour of better community services and access to work and employment.
“When I feel optimistic, I think the world might become more accessible, and that life will improve for disabled people, because almost everyone is working from home and having to strategise to get by,” she said.
“Non-disabled people can now empathise more with how disabled people live on a daily basis.”
According to research by disability charity Sense, two thirds of disabled people are now chronically lonely – and 70 per cent of young disabled people.
This has led to the majority of disabled people believing that the Government should prioritise tackling mental health issues caused by the pandemic once the vaccination rollout is complete – in preference
to the NHS, economy and education.
Richard Kramer, Sense chief executive, said: “Many disabled people were already experiencing high levels of social isolation and loneliness before the pandemic, and the last year has made the situation much worse, raising fears of a mental health crisis.
“Loneliness has disproportionally affected disabled people. Many disabled people told us how they don’t have support networks around them and feel cut off from
their local community.
“Throughout the pandemic the needs of disabled people have been overlooked, and they have often felt forgotten.
“We can’t change what disabled people have experienced during the pandemic, but a more accessible society and a commitment to address loneliness can be its positive legacy,” he said.
Sense is calling on the public to sign its pledge, committing to help create a more accessible society. Visit sense.org.uk/ LeftOutOfLife for information,
The Government should implement a ‘tiers’ system for schools when they go back next month to eliminate confusion dealing with potential coronavirus cases, the council’s health lead has said.
Councillor Stuart Carroll (Con, Boyn Hill), the cabinet member for health, has written a letter to health secretary Gavin Williamson asking for specific guidelines to be created for when schools return on Monday, March 8.
Many schools struggled when they returned from the summer holidays in September, with uncertainty over whether to close
down the school, send classes home or just isolate close contacts if a student or staff member tested positive for the virus.
After speaking with school staff, parents and guardians across the borough, Cllr Carroll has called on the Government to introduce a formal criterion which all schools can follow if staff or students test positive for coronavirus after they reopen in March.
He said: “I have spoken with officials at the Department for Education about some things I think need to be looked at.
“I do think some kind of criteria needs to be put together, similar to the tier system we had before lockdown, to say when a school should be open or closed.
“Of course, we hope that won’t happen but we have to be realistic, even with the support of the vaccine programme, there needs to be proper criteria there that enable decisions to be made on an evidence basis.”
Cllr Carroll added that he would like to see the Government create more online resources for teachers and homeschooling parents and guardians to use while students are still home learning. He also expressed a desire for a five-year plan to help support students when the country emerges from the COVID-19 crisis and returns to normal life.
The Department For Education has been approached for comment.