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Hadleigh was put on alert to receive teenage evacuees from London. Every household was approached by one of a squad of women and asked if anyone would be willing to take any children and how many. The response was magnificent and we were expecting our quota of guests with, admittedly, some trepidation.
The day came and the coach loads arrived with the welcoming co-ordinating ladies. Lo and behold there were no teenagers but masses of young mums with varying numbers of squalling infants all from the East End of London and far more than we had been expecting. To this day I do not know how Hadleigh coped. My mother used all her powers of persuasion to find accommodation for all these tired and fractious visitors in her patch of responsibility. The ensuing days were spent in reallocating those who were housed in impossible circumstances. Luckily there was no bombing of London during what was called the ‘phoney war’ and within a few weeks most of the Eastenders went home.

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