Code breaker Barbara

Nearly 80 years after the end of the Second World War Barbara Southerland was finally recognised for her vital code-breaking work, thanks to one of our tea parties.

Barbara, 99, was just 18 and serving in the Auxiliary Territorial Service, which was attached to the Royal Signals, when she was recruited to listen to German coded messages at Forest Moor listening station near Harrogate.

Working round-the-clock with other colleagues from the ATS Barbara intercepted increasingly panicked enemy ‘chatter’ towards the end of the war as the Allies began to re-take Europe. The codes were then passed to world-famous Bletchley Park for analysis.

Through an administrative error Barbara’s name was never added to the code-breakers’ roll call of honour and, in keeping with the wartime edict of not discussing secret work, she only disclosed details of her war effort 50 years later when she finally told her family.

The details then became known to her Enfield and Southgate tea party group, run by Steph Hutchings, who put her in touch with a wartime author who in turn contacted Bletchley Park. And in 2023 Barbara received a certificate signed by then Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and a gold-plated badge inscribed: “We also Served.”

A specially engraved brick- paid for by the tea party group – bearing Barbara’s name is now also embedded in the Codebreakers’ Wall which takes pride of place at the heart of the once top- secret establishment.

Describing her work Barbara said: “There were several listening stations which intercepted the German codes and passed them to Bletchley. Forest Moor was one. But not all of our names had been stored for whatever reason which was why it’s taken so long for me to be recognised.

“I’m very glad it’s happened, not just for me, but because all of us in the ATS were looked down on somewhat. We weren’t as glamorous as other units but we were doing a vital job.

“I never knew exactly what was going on. I have no idea why I was chosen to be a wireless interceptor. I had been a Girl Guide and in the Home Guard and knew morse code and semaphore so that probably helped. I was also interested in solving puzzles.

“Because of all the secrecy I had to keep quiet about it for a long time. But now I feel very proud that my part in the code-breaking has been officially recognized and that wouldn’t have happened without the Re-engage tea parties.”

Barbara was married to late husband Peter for 67 years. They had four children, six grandchildren, 14 great grandchildren and one great, great granddaughter.

“My husband developed dementia and I had ten difficult years of looking after him,” added Barbara. “After he died I lost contact with most of my friends and became very isolated. I didn’t go out.

“Then someone told me about Re-engage so I joined and it’s been a real life-saver. I really look forward to Sundays. Everyone in the group is very friendly and Steph and husband Kevin are marvellous. They look after us so well and we have so much fun.”

Steph, who has run the Enfield and Southgate group for eight years, said: “Barbara thoroughly deserves the recognition for her fantastic war work. And I’m so grateful to Re-engage for making her a part of my life. She is amazing and can still solve puzzles instantly!”

Pickleball

As he waited for the first of two bus journeys to take him to a new social group Gordon Nichol was far from convinced this was going to be a successful outing.

But an hour later he was having the time of his life on a Pickleball court at the Meadowbank Sports Centre in Edinburgh along with several other older people supported by Re-engage.

“It was an effort to get there but believe me it was well worth it,” said 77-year-old Gordon. “I was made to feel very welcome and it was the best afternoon I’ve had in a long time.”

As well as Edinburgh Re-engage has started Pickleball groups in Perth, Dundee and East Kilbride, with plans to start a fifth in Stirling.

Pickleball kicked-off in the same year as Re-engage – 1965- but while becoming quickly popular in America it has taken a while to catch on this side of the Atlantic. However, it is estimated there are now 40,000 regular players in the UK, with a 65% increase in the last year alone.

The game is sometimes compared to tennis but is a low impact sport played on much smaller courts with plastic balls and paddles as opposed to traditional bigger rackets.

Re-engage partnered with Pickleball Scotland to start the groups in May last year and they are proving very popular.

Esther Lynn, the charity’s Engagement Officer for Scotland, said: “Pickleball has gone down very well. Some of the players get very competitive – in a friendly way- and have a great time.

“The sessions are mixed but it seems to be particularly popular for men who may not want to go to our tea parties but still want to get out and socialise. And the beauty of the game is that it can be played by anyone, even if they are not too mobile.”

Gordon couldn’t believe his luck when he saw a message promoting the activity group.

“I leapt at the chance to sign-up,” he said. “You really don’t see that kind of thing being advertised for people of my age so I wanted to get in quick before all the places went.”

"I’m so glad I made the effort to go. Every one of the staff and volunteers gave full attention to us older folks and it was such a great feeling to know that these people really cared about us and gave such heartfelt time and effort for our wellbeing. I was humbled by this. People thrive on being acknowledged and validated and when you’re older there’s a dearth of that.

“I’ve been to other groups and it can be quite disheartening because those taking part usually get into their little cliques and it’s hard to break in.

“But with the Pickleball group it was so different. It was amazing how welcoming everyone was. I was made to feel at ease from the very start and everyone was friendly.”

Gordon, who ran a recording studio in Dallas, Texas for 30 years found most of his friends had moved on when he returned to the UK in 2009.

“Fortunately, I’m active and can still get around but sometimes I can feel lonely,” he said.

“Many people tend to look forward to retirement but once it comes you lose a structure to your life so you have to find things to keep you busy so I’d love it if the pickleball group could meet more often. It really is first class.”