Charing
Charing | ||
---|---|---|
Shire county | ||
Region | ||
Country | England | |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom | |
Post town | Ashford | |
Postcode district | TN27 | |
Dialling code | 01233 | |
Police | Kent | |
Fire | Kent | |
Ambulance | South East Coast | |
UK Parliament | ||
Charing is a village and
The Pilgrims' Way, the M20 motorway and Charing railway station (between London Victoria and Ashford International via Maidstone) serve the parish.
History
The name Charing first appears in 799 as Ciorrincg. The name probably comes from the
The Church of St Peter and St Paul, Charing, the parish church of Charing, is situated next to the remains of the Archbishop's Palace, just off the High Street. The church's west tower was built in the 14th century, though most of the rest of the building was reconstructed following a catastrophic fire in the 16th century. The church contains a number of memorials to the Dering family, a branch of the Dering family of Surrenden Dering, Pluckley, Kent.[2]
Mills
Charing has had four mills over the centuries, serving the needs of the villagers. There were two watermills on the Upper Great Stour and two windmills.
- Watermills
- Burnt Mill, a corn mill working until the 1950s, now derelict.
- Field Mill, a corn mill, the building of which survives retaining its waterwheel.
- Windmills
- Charing Mill, also known as Field Mill on the Downs above the village is a smock mill which was built in the early nineteenth century and last worked in 1891. It stands today as a house conversion.[3][4]
- Charing Heath Mill was a smock mill[4] that was demolished c.1878. Millers include William Missing in 1845 and Robert Millgate 1862 – 1878[5]
Places of interest
Its most famous building is the
Amenities
These include:
- C of E Primary School
- Library
- Doctors' surgery
- Independent shops/franchises
- Kentish Tea Room
- Two mid-to-large sized pubs, most of which are listed buildings:
- The Bowl
- The Wagon & Horses
- The Kent County Crematorium. At which were cremated 60 Commonwealth service personnel of World War II[6] and the author Charles Hamilton, who as Frank Richards created Billy Bunter. Here also were cremated Archbishops William Temple and Cosmo Gordon Lang.
Community
Housing development since the 1960s has also led to a significant proportion of people employed in London or business parks on the motorway corridors. Groups of residents organise frequent club-based or charity events and fairs. Charing has in the same period revived its
Demography
Charing compared | |||
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2001 UK Census | Charing | Ashford district | England |
Population | 2,284 | 102,661 | 49,138,831 |
Foreign born | 4.3% | 5.5% | 9.2% |
White | 98% | 97.6% | 90.9% |
Asian | 0.6% | 0.9% | 4.6% |
Black | 0.3% | 0.4% | 2.3% |
Christian | 77.4% | 76.5% | 71.7% |
Muslim | 0.4% | 0.6% | 3.1% |
Hindu | 0% | 0.3% | 1.1% |
No religion | 12.6% | 14.6% | 14.6% |
Unemployed | 2.2% | 2.4% | 3.3% |
Retired | 20.5% | 13.8% | 13.5% |
At the 2001 UK census, the Charing
The economic activity of residents aged 16–74 was 32% in full-time employment, 11.9% in part-time employment, 14.3% self-employed, 2.2% unemployed, 1.9% students with jobs, 2.1% students without jobs, 20.5% retired, 7.1% looking after home or family, 4.6% permanently sick or disabled and 3.5% economically inactive for other reasons. The industry of employment of residents was 17.8% retail, 12.9% manufacturing, 8.2% construction, 14.7% real estate, 10.2% health and social work, 7.4% education, 5% transport and communications, 4.1% public administration, 5.1% hotels and restaurants, 4.4% finance, 4.4% agriculture and 5.8% other. Compared with national figures, the ward had a relatively high proportion of workers in agriculture and construction. There were a relatively low proportion in public administration, transport and communications. Of the ward's residents aged 16–74, 18.4% had a higher education qualification or the equivalent, compared with 19.9% nationwide.[7]
Transport
Transport links provided by the A20 London to Dover road, and direct train services to Ashford International and London Victoria via Maidstone East.
There are two bus stops in Charing, with the only bus services running through being the 10X and 124, which runs exclusively as a school bus.
Train services are operated by Southeastern, with one train in each direction throughout the middle hours of the day, and an much enhanced service during the morning and evening peak periods.
References
- United Kingdom Census 2011 Office for National StatisticsRetrieved 10 May 2014
- ^ The Monuments and Painted Glass of Upwards of One Hundred Churches, Philip Parsons, Printed by Simmons, Kirkby and Jones, Canterbury, 1794
- ISBN 0284-98534-1.
- ^ a b Coles Finch, William (1933). Watermills and Windmills. London: C W Daniel Company. p. 177.
- ^ "Directory of Kent Mill People". The Mills Archive Trust. Archived from the original on 16 April 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2008.
- ^ "CWGC Cemetery Record, Charing Crematorium". cwgc.org.
- ^ a b "Neighbourhood Statistics". Statistics.gov.uk. Retrieved 22 February 2008.
- ^ a b "Kent Rail". p. 1. Retrieved 20 July 2008.
- ^ "Kent Rail". p. 2. Retrieved 20 July 2008.