2018 is heralding operational and visual changes as you may have already noted on linked in that we’ve moved but also a new logo and imminently to be launched website, so it has been a busy few weeks!

Our new offices are located at Strelley Hall, situated in Strelley Village, just by jn 26 of the M1 retaining our Midlands wide and Yorkshire accessibility. Having been here for a couple of weeks now, it’s clear that there is a lot more to this picturesque house in the Nottinghamshire countryside than may initially meet the eye, with its long and fascinating history. It seems fitting therefore that I should use this month’s newsletter to introduce ABPM’s new base.

In 2006, when work began on an extension to the house, a medieval wall was found as well as the remains of a moat, in an area of the village which is now known as Motts Corner. This prompted an archaeological dig, which uncovered two buttresses, pottery, coinage and masonry that dated back to 1250-1350. The conclusion was that this was a Saxon castle from 1200AD, although from a legal perspective, it could not be a castle because there was no proof of permission to crenelate, so was actually more a fortified manor house, than a castle. However, there are many sections of the house that remain which are medieval, such as the walls of the Gate Lodge.

There is very little evidence of activity in the house during the Tudor period, besides a coin dated to the reign of Elizabeth I. The lack of artefacts has been put down to a possible fire at the end of the period. In 1678, Nicolas Strelley gambled the house away, and the house was passed eventually on to a lawyer, Robert Edge. It is believed that Strelley put a curse on gambling and would continue to come uninvited to the house during the nights, which terrified serving girls and caused them to lose their minds. It is these girls which are now said to haunt the house, particularly the Castle Room which overlooks the Churchyard. Although these ghosts are apparently benign, we’ll be keeping an eye out during any late-night shifts!

Strelley Village itself is also a note-worthy place, being one of the first industrial villages ever. During the 16th/17th centuries it was extensively exploited for coal, so much so that a problem with transporting the coal soon arose. This led to the creation of the first railway between Strelley and Wollaton, although only for horse-drawn trucks, given that the steam train had not yet been invented. Open-cast coal mining has taken place in Strelley until as recently as the 1960s.

Since then, the house has seen many modifications and changes, all while staying in the Edge family up to the 1970s, when it became a venue for events as well as offering office space, which we have been very excited to take advantage of. We are all looking forward to the next chapter in the ABPM story at Strelley Hall and are on hand, as you well know to offer, career advice and support to you.

Rej Abraham Managing Director