AUDREY Godsell, a 19-year-old Swindon born nurse was reported killed when the Surrey hospital to which she had been evacuated was bombed.

The daughter of Mr and Mrs HB Godsell, of 29 County Road, Audrey was a former pupil of Clifton Street Schools and later studied commercial classes at Swindon College.

She began her nursing career as a probationer at a children’s orthopaedic hospital at Thorp Arch, Boston Spa, Yorkshire and moved to St Mary Abbott’s General Hospital in South Kensington when she qualified.

Staff and patients had been evacuated to the Sutton Emergency Hospital where Miss Godsell died when the ward on which she was working received a direct hit during a bombing raid on October 7.

Sheila Wakefield, the daughter of Swindon MP WW Wakefield had a lucky escape during a visit to friends in London when an enemy raider jettisoned part of its load.

“Several deaths resulted and considerable damage was done to property,” reported the Advertiser.

The MP’s London home had sustained considerable damage during the September air raids and according to the report had been “vacated, the furniture sent up north, where much of it is being used to give comfort to the evacuees.”

Mr Wakefield, who was working from his Grosvenor Street Sportsmen’s Club, made a visit to his constituency this week to inspect the engineering department of the Technical College where the recently introduced fitters’ course had got off to a flying start.

The retraining scheme, run in conjunction with the Ministry of Labour to help meet the demands for skilled metal workers, had proved so successful that it was planned to extend the programme, running three simultaneous courses across 24 hours.

The success of the Swindon scheme was attributed to the availability of so many skilled instructors in the town.

Sixteen men had attended the first eight week course and Mr Wakefield told an Advertiser reporter that he was amazed by the enthusiasm and adaptability of the men who were making remarkably rapid progress.