Walberton
| Walberton | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Area | 10.44 km2 (4.03 sq mi) |
| Population | 2,174 (Civil Parish)[1] |
| • Density | 208/km2 (540/sq mi) |
| OS grid reference | SU972059 |
| • London | 50 miles (80 km) NNE |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ARUNDEL |
| Postcode district | BN18 |
| Dialling code | 01243 |
| Police | Sussex |
| Fire | West Sussex |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| UK Parliament | |
Walberton is a village and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England centred five miles (8 km) north-west of Littlehampton, and south of the A27 road. The land rises from 10 metres above sea level to 35 metres, a quarter of the height of the nearest foothill, Nore Hill, of the South Downs which is outside of the parish to the north. The civil parish, administering local community buildings, fields and paths includes the smaller village Binsted to the east and larger neighbourhood of Fontwell, less than a kilometre north-west. Walberton has a medieval church by its clustered village centre; Binsted's medieval church still retains its original landscape setting where the village houses are dispersed around the farm fields, rather than clustered by the church.
Amenities
Binsted has a pub, the Black Horse and its own Norman church built in 1140 A.D. by the monks of Tortington Priory to the immediate east.[2] Roman and medieval pottery and tile kilns have been excavated there.[3] Binsted also has a traditional summer festival the Strawberry Fair where locally grown produce is shown and sold for charity. Part of Binsted is within the South Downs National Park; the whole of Binsted's countryside was originally assessed by the Countryside Agency as meeting the criteria for inclusion; but in 2015, the community, businesses, natural beauty and wildlife of Binsted are threatened by 'Option B' proposals for a new Arundel Bypass. More information on this threat to Walberton and Binsted's amenities can be read here.
St Mary's Church in Walberton has a Saxon font and west wall. There is a large pub, The Holly Tree. This is recorded from 1845 and has been called by its present name since 1867.[4] Towards the end of the village there is a small village pond where children often feed the ducks. There are a small number of shops and a post office next to the modern village hall.
Notable people
- Sir William Anson (1843–1914), jurist, academic and politician, was born in Walberton.[5]
- Frederick Marquis, 1st Earl of Woolton (1883–1964), businessman and government minister, is buried in Walberton churchyard.[6]
- Rosemary Sutcliff (1920–1992), children's writer, spent the latter part of her life in Walberton.[7]
- The Hilton Avisford Park Hotel,[8] with its golf course between Walberton and Binsted, was formerly Avisford Roman Catholic Preparatory School for boys (1928–73),[3] where BBC journalist Edward Stourton (born 1957) was head boy and Robert Nairac (1948–1977), an army officer abducted and murdered in Northern Ireland, spent a year teaching before university in the late 1960s.
References
- ^ Key Statistics; Quick Statistics: Population Density United Kingdom Census 2011 Office for National Statistics Retrieved 10 May 2014
- ^ Remains of Tortington Priory and its fish pond Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1021459)". National Heritage List for England.
- ^ a b T P Hudson (Editor), A P Baggs, H M Warne (1997). "Binsted". A History of the County of Sussex: Volume 5 Part 1: Arundel Rape: south-western part, including Arundel. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 11 May 2014.
{{cite web}}:|author=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) This includes a detailed architectural description of the church. - ^ British History Online: Retrieved 12 September 2011.
- ^ ODNB: H. C. G. Matthew: "Anson, Sir William Reynell, third baronet (1843–1914)". Retrieved 10 May 2014. Pay-walled.
- ^ Delorme, Mary (1987). Curious Sussex (London: Robert Hale). ISBN 0-7090-2970-5
- ^ Rosemary Sutcliff's ODNB entry: Retrieved 12 September 2011. Subscription required.
- ^ Avisford Park Hotel Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1222534)". National Heritage List for England.
External links
Media related to Walberton at Wikimedia Commons- The village's 36 listed historic buildings are described here: Retrieved 12 September 2011.
- Walberton Parish Council web site.
