Time Capsule Competition in Partnership with Local School at Newland Park

Leading UK developer Comer Homes has marked the progress at its landmark development Newland Park by inviting pupils from the leading local independent Berkhamsted School, as well as Chalfont St. Peter Parish Council and the neighbouring Chiltern Open Air Museum to share contributions to a time capsule.

Marked by a commemorative plaque, the capsule was buried within the central courtyard of the Grade II listed mansion house, that is situated at the heart of the development, on Thursday 15th June 2023.

The capsule includes contributions from pupils at Berkhamsted School following a competition that challenged the students to pen poems inspired by the magical 300-acre private grounds of Newland Park or draw pictures of the key figures that have visited the site, which has included King George III, Emmeline Pankhurst, H.G Wells, George Bernard Shaw and John Milton.

Chalfont St. Peter Parish Council has included the 2023 Feast of St. Peter Programme of Events and this year’s Visit Chalfont St. Peter leaflet. The Chiltern Open Air Museum is donating the latest Family Museum Guide, a leaflet detailing 2023’s community events and handmade nails that were collected from an original building that was dismantled and moved to the museum recently.

Modern day items, such as a mobile phone and Bluetooth headphones have been included within the capsule, which will be opened in 50 years to showcase the height of technology in 2023. Sentimental items, such as historic pieces found in the mansion house, as well as the latest edition of the local newspaper and the sales brochure for the new residential development were placed in the capsule.

This initiative is part of a long-term commitment from Comer Homes to the local communities of Chalfont St. Giles and Chalfont St. Peter, that surround Newland Park. Activities in recent months have included the placemaking developer being the lead sponsor for the Feast of St. Peter Fun Night in December 2022.

Newland Park will also be opened to the local community for the first time in decades, with a number of public parks set to be completed as part of the wider developments, as well as communal sports facilities and a world-class health club, which will be managed by one of the UK’s leading luxury health & fitness operators.

Commenting at the Time Capsule ceremony at Newland Park, Comer Homes Co-Founder and Group Chairman, Brian Comer, said: “Newland Park is a site of huge significance to us as a business and the local community, so it is important that we continue to mark its heritage through initiatives such as this. The time capsule captures the site’s storied history and marks a new step in its journey through time, whilst engaging with the pupils of Berkhamsted School to contribute their view of this important landmark for the local area.”

The winning entrants from Berkhamsted School were gifted a Hawthorn tree, which is a native species to Newland Park, with some located on the grounds that are over 400 years old, to be planted at the school in recognition for their contribution.