102-414: Tanworth-in-Arden ( / ˈ t æ n w ər θ ɪ n ˈ ɑːr d ən / ; often abbreviated to Tanworth ) is a village and civil parish in the county of Warwickshire , England. It is 12.5 miles (20 km) south-southeast of Birmingham , 5.5 miles (9 km) north-east of Redditch and 8 miles (13 km) south-southwest of Solihull and is administered by Stratford-on-Avon District Council . Situated in
204-522: A London borough . (Since the new county was beforehand a mixture of metropolitan boroughs , municipal boroughs and urban districts, no extant parish councils were abolished.) In 1974, the Local Government Act 1972 retained rural parishes, but abolished most urban parishes, as well as the urban districts and boroughs which had administered them. Provision was made for smaller urban districts and boroughs to become successor parishes , with
306-515: A Special Expense, to residents of the unparished area to fund those activities. If the district council does not opt to make a Special Expenses charge, there is an element of double taxation of residents of parished areas, because services provided to residents of the unparished area are funded by council tax paid by residents of the whole district, rather than only by residents of the unparished area. Parish councils comprise volunteer councillors who are elected to serve for four years. Decisions of
408-576: A boundary coterminous with an existing urban district or borough or, if divided by a new district boundary, as much as was comprised in a single district. There were 300 such successor parishes established. In urban areas that were considered too large to be single parishes, the parishes were simply abolished, and they became unparished areas . The distinction between types of parish was no longer made; whether parishes continued by virtue of being retained rural parishes or were created as successor parishes, they were all simply termed parishes. The 1972 act allowed
510-477: A city council (though most cities are not parishes but principal areas, or in England specifically metropolitan boroughs or non-metropolitan districts ). The chairman of a town council will have the title "town mayor" and that of a parish council which is a city will usually have the title of mayor . When a city or town has been abolished as a borough, and it is considered desirable to maintain continuity of
612-462: A city council. According to the Department for Communities and Local Government , in England in 2011 there were 9,946 parishes. Since 1997 around 100 new civil parishes have been created, in some cases by splitting existing civil parishes, but mostly by creating new ones from unparished areas. Parish or town councils have very few statutory duties (things they are required to do by law) but have
714-559: A city was Hereford , whose city council was merged in 1998 to form a unitary Herefordshire . The area of the city of Hereford remained unparished until 2000 when a parish council was created for the city. As another example, the charter trustees for the City of Bath make up the majority of the councillors on Bath and North East Somerset Council. Civil parishes cover 35% of England's population, with one in Greater London and few in
816-440: A civil parish is usually an elected parish council (which can decide to call itself a town, village, community or neighbourhood council, or a city council if the parish has city status). Alternatively, in parishes with small populations (typically fewer than 150 electors) governance may be by a parish meeting which all electors may attend; alternatively, parishes with small populations may be grouped with one or more neighbours under
918-481: A civil parish which has no parish council, the parish meeting may levy a council tax precept for expenditure relating to specific functions, powers and rights which have been conferred on it by legislation. In places where there is no civil parish ( unparished areas ), the administration of the activities normally undertaken by the parish becomes the responsibility of the district or borough council. The district council may make an additional council tax charge, known as
1020-586: A common parish council. Wales was also divided into civil parishes until 1974, when they were replaced by communities , which are similar to English parishes in the way they operate. Civil parishes in Scotland were abolished for local government purposes by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 ; the Scottish equivalent of English civil parishes are the community council areas established by
1122-484: A community governance review, on 31 March 2009 the former Hockley Heath Parish Council was abolished and on 1 April 2009 four new parish councils were created: Hockley Heath (including Nuthurst), Cheswick Green, Dickens Heath (including Whitlock's End) and Tidbury Green. The new parishes follow the old ward boundaries for the Hockley Heath Parish and each parish now has a parish council. [1] Hockley Heath
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#17327939333881224-500: A devastating fire which destroyed much of the interior following a suspected arson attack. The property had recently been sold to a housing developer, who converted the shell of the property into luxury apartments, and built several additional properties in the surrounding grounds. As the canal network came to replace coach and horse transport, the Stratford-upon-Avon Canal was dug through the village in 1798 and
1326-512: A fire in 1998. There is a road called Cut Throat Lane out towards Earlswood, which despite local rumors involving an 18th century highway man, is likely a corruption of "Cut Through Lane". The Hockley Heath Recreation Ground is situated on the Old Warwick Road. It has a children's play area, a multi-use games area and 2 full-size football pitches. One of these pitches was formerly a cricket pitch, while tennis courts were adjoined by
1428-694: A local youth football club named Hockley Heath Football Club. The club was founded in September 2011 and as of 2020 has teams across eight age groups from under 6 to under 13. The teams play matches at the Hockley Heath Recreation ground. The club badge contains the notable local landmark, the War Memorial. There is an adults Sunday league football team called Hockley Heath Dynamos. Racing Blythe Football club also play their matches at
1530-529: A new code. In either case the code must comply with the Nolan Principles of Public Life . A parish can be granted city status by the Crown . As of 2020 , eight parishes in England have city status, each having a long-established Anglican cathedral: Chichester , Ely , Hereford , Lichfield , Ripon , Salisbury , Truro and Wells . The council of an ungrouped parish may pass a resolution giving
1632-431: A new smaller manor, there was a means of making a chapel which, if generating or endowed with enough funds, would generally justify foundation of a parish, with its own parish priest (and in latter centuries vestry ). This consistency was a result of canon law which prized the status quo in issues between local churches and so made boundary changes and sub-division difficult. The consistency of these boundaries until
1734-687: A parish (a "detached part") was in a different county . In other cases, counties surrounded a whole parish meaning it was in an unconnected, "alien" county. These anomalies resulted in a highly localised difference in applicable representatives on the national level , justices of the peace , sheriffs, bailiffs with inconvenience to the inhabitants. If a parish was split then churchwardens, highway wardens and constables would also spend more time or money travelling large distances. Some parishes straddled two or more counties, such as Todmorden in Lancashire and Yorkshire. Hockley Heath Hockley Heath
1836-416: A parish council, and instead will only have a parish meeting : an example of direct democracy . Alternatively several small parishes can be grouped together and share a common parish council, or even a common parish meeting. A parish council may decide to call itself a town council, village council, community council, neighbourhood council, or if the parish has city status, the parish council may call itself
1938-503: A population of between 100 and 300 could request their county council to establish a parish council. Provision was also made for a grouped parish council to be established covering two or more rural parishes. In such groups, each parish retained its own parish meeting which could vote to leave the group, but otherwise the grouped parish council acted across the combined area of the parishes included. Urban civil parishes were not given their own parish councils, but were directly administered by
2040-1079: A range of discretionary powers which they may exercise voluntarily. These powers have been defined by various pieces of legislation. The role they play can vary significantly depending on the size, resources and ability of the council, but their activities can include any of the following: Parish councils have powers to provide and manage various local facilities; these can include allotments , cemeteries, parks, playgrounds, playing fields and village greens , village halls or community centres , bus shelters, street lighting, roadside verges, car parks, footpaths, litter bins and war memorials. Larger parish councils may also be involved in running markets , public toilets and public clocks, museums and leisure centres . Parish councils may spend money on various things they deem to be beneficial to their communities, such as providing grants to local community groups or local projects, or fund things such as public events, crime prevention measures, community transport schemes, traffic calming or tourism promotion. Parish councils have
2142-409: A role in the planning system; they have a statutory right to be consulted on any planning applications in their areas. They may also produce a neighbourhood plan to influence local development. The Localism Act 2011 allowed eligible parish councils to be granted a " general power of competence " which allows them within certain limits the freedom to do anything an individual can do provided it
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#17327939333882244-598: A set number of guardians for each parish, hence a final purpose of urban civil parishes. With the abolition of the Poor Law system in 1930, urban parishes became a geographical division only with no administrative power; that was exercised at the urban district or borough council level. In 1965 civil parishes in London were formally abolished when Greater London was created, as the legislative framework for Greater London did not make provision for any local government body below
2346-943: A small village or town ward to a large tract of mostly uninhabited moorland in the Cheviots, Pennines or Dartmoor. The two largest as at December 2023 are Stanhope (County Durham) at 98.6 square miles (255 km ), and Dartmoor Forest (Devon) at 79.07 square miles (204.8 km ). The two smallest are parcels of shared rural land: Lands Common to Axminster and Kilmington (Devon) at 0.012 square miles (0.031 km ; 3.1 ha; 7.7 acres), and Lands Common to Brancepeth and Brandon and Byshottles (County Durham) at 0.0165 square miles (0.043 km ; 4.3 ha; 10.6 acres). The next two smallest are parishes in built up areas: Chester Castle (Cheshire) at 0.0168 square miles (0.044 km ; 4.4 ha; 10.8 acres) (no recorded population) and Hamilton Lea (Leicestershire) at 0.07 square miles (0.18 km ; 18 ha; 45 acres) (1,021 residents at
2448-521: A spur to the creation of new parishes in some larger towns which were previously unparished, in order to retain a local tier of government; examples include Shrewsbury (2009), Salisbury (2009), Crewe (2013) and Weymouth (2019). In 2003 seven new parish councils were set up for Burton upon Trent , and in 2001 the Milton Keynes urban area became entirely parished, with ten new parishes being created. Parishes can also be abolished where there
2550-401: A station of its own: rather it lies midway between two others - Wood End to the north and Danzey to the south, both about one mile (1.6 km) distant, though the latter was once known as Danzey for Tanworth . Historic estates within the parish of Tanworth include: Civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government . It is
2652-436: A territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes , which for centuries were the principal unit of secular and religious administration in most of England and Wales. Civil and religious parishes were formally split into two types in the 19th century and are now entirely separate. Civil parishes in their modern form came into being through
2754-408: A wharf built known as Hockley Port. The wharf supplied the surrounding area with commodities such as coal, stone, lime, bricks, salt and timber. Today the wharf is a public house. By 1850 the importance of canals died down as they were replaced by rail transport. The last commercial load was brought into the wharf on Christmas Eve, 1929. Hockley Heath did not receive a station and so residents had to use
2856-670: Is a village and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull , West Midlands, England. The village is to the south of the West Midlands conurbation , 12 miles (19 km) southeast of Birmingham 5.5 miles (8.9 km) from Solihull town centre and 13 miles (21 km) north of Stratford-upon-Avon . Hockley Heath is in the Arden area and borders Warwickshire and the District of Stratford-on-Avon to
2958-507: Is at present the only part of England where civil parishes cannot be created. If enough electors in the area of a proposed new parish (ranging from 50% in an area with less than 500 electors to 10% in one with more than 2,500) sign a petition demanding its creation, then the local district council or unitary authority must consider the proposal. Since the beginning of the 21st century, numerous parish councils have been created, including some relatively large urban ones. The main driver has been
3060-539: Is evidence that this is in response to "justified, clear and sustained local support" from the area's inhabitants. Examples are Birtley , which was abolished in 2006, and Southsea , abolished in 2010. Every civil parish has a parish meeting, which all the electors of the parish are entitled to attend. Generally a meeting is held once a year. A civil parish may have a parish council which exercises various local responsibilities prescribed by statute. Parishes with fewer than 200 electors are usually deemed too small to have
3162-587: Is managed by the Parish Clerk. There are a number of listed buildings in and around Hockley Heath and Nuthurst, including Box Trees farmhouse. The village is situated on the main A3400 Birmingham to Stratford Road, 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south of junction 4 of the M42 motorway affording links to London and other major cities, whilst 2 miles (3.2 km) south of the village there is a junction off
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3264-405: Is not prohibited by other legislation, as opposed to being limited to the powers explicitly granted to them by law. To be eligible for this, a parish council must meet certain conditions such as having a clerk with suitable qualifications. Parish councils receive funding by levying a " precept " on the council tax paid by the residents of the parish (or parishes) served by the parish council. In
3366-654: Is now Hockley Heath Primary Academy. The village was attacked during the First World War when Zeppelin L 62 bombed the village during an attempted raid on Birmingham but heavy anti-aircraft fire prevented the airship from getting near the city centre. The sporting life of the village increased in the 1920s with the acquisition of land for recreation. This was due to the enterprise and generosity of Mr Harry Mould of Hockley House and grants from Warwickshire and National Playing Fields Associations, Carnegie trustees and by money raising events. Several hundred pounds
3468-511: Is now Nuthurst, along with the hamlet of Illshaw Heath , within the larger Forest of Arden . William Dugdale found no mention of a settlement before the reign of Henry III (1216–72) but it has been identified with the woodland 'aet Hnuthyrste' given with Shottery to Worcester Cathedral by Offa of Mercia c. 705. In 872 Werfryd , Bishop of Worcester , granted to Eanwulf, the Kings thane , land at Hnuthyrst for four lives, with reversion to
3570-613: Is part of the Dorridge and Hockley Heath ward of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council and is represented by Mayor Ian Courts and Councillors Andrew Mackiewicz and Ken Meeson all of the Conservative party. Nationally, it is part of the constituency of Meriden whose Member of Parliament since 2019 is Saqib Bhatti of the Conservative party . Prior to Brexit in 2020, it was included in the West Midlands electoral region of
3672-504: The 'Standards Board regime' with local monitoring by district, unitary or equivalent authorities. Under new regulations which came into effect in 2012 all parish councils in England are required to adopt a code of conduct with which parish councillors must comply, and to promote and maintain high standards. A new criminal offence of failing to comply with statutory requirements was introduced. More than one 'model code' has been published, and councils are free to modify an existing code or adopt
3774-761: The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 , which have fewer powers than their English and Welsh counterparts. There are no equivalent units in Northern Ireland . The parish system in Europe was established between the 8th and 12th centuries, and an early form was long established in England by the time of the Norman Conquest . These areas were originally based on the territory of manors , which, in some cases, derived their bounds from Roman or Iron Age estates; some large manors were sub-divided into several parishes. Initially, churches and their priests were
3876-1010: The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73) to become the smallest geographical area for local government in rural areas. The act abolished the civil (non-ecclesiastical) duties of vestries . Parishes which straddled county boundaries or sanitary districts had to be split so that the part in each urban or rural sanitary district became a separate parish (see List of county exclaves in England and Wales 1844–1974 ). The sanitary districts were then reconstituted as urban districts and rural districts , with parishes that fell within urban districts classed as urban parishes, and parishes that fell within rural districts were classed as rural parishes. The 1894 act established elected civil parish councils as to all rural parishes with more than 300 electors, and established annual parish meetings in all rural parishes. Civil parishes were grouped to form either rural or urban districts which are thereafter classified as either type. The parish meetings for parishes with
3978-411: The Local Government Act 1894 ( 56 & 57 Vict. c. 73), which established elected parish councils to take on the secular functions of the parish vestry . A civil parish can range in size from a sparsely populated rural area with fewer than a hundred inhabitants, to a large town with a population in excess of 100,000 . This scope is similar to that of municipalities in continental Europe, such as
4080-515: The M40 motorway to London, which controversially cuts through the Halls former grounds and the avenue of giant sequoiadendron which once marked the path between the two. A country house called Nuthurst Grange was built in the settlement in 1882, once serving as home to Walter Higgs . It is now a luxury hotel and wedding venue. The hamlet lies to the south of Hockley Heath, and borders Lapworth to
4182-472: The break with Rome , parishes managed ecclesiastical matters, while the manor was the principal unit of local administration and justice. Later, the church replaced the manor court as the rural administrative centre, and levied a local tax on produce known as a tithe . In the medieval period, responsibilities such as relief of the poor passed increasingly from the lord of the manor to the parish's rector , who in practice would delegate tasks among his vestry or
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4284-692: The communes of France . However, unlike their continental European counterparts, parish councils are not principal authorities , and in most cases have a relatively minor role in local government. As of September 2023 , there are 10,464 parishes in England, and in 2020 they covered approximately 40% of the English population. For historical reasons, civil parishes predominantly cover rural areas and smaller urban areas, with most larger urban areas being wholly or partly unparished ; but since 1997 it has been possible for civil parishes to be created within unparished areas if demanded by local residents . In 2007
4386-467: The parish churchyard . Since his death in 1974, Nick Drake has achieved cult status, and the village churchyard has become a place of pilgrimage for his fans. In recent years, an annual gathering of his fans has been held in the village. The grave of nine-times world motorcycle champion Mike Hailwood MBE, GM, and his daughter Michelle, who were both killed in a car accident at Portway in 1981, are also to be found here. An annual memorial motorcycle run
4488-514: The thane 's 'worth' or estate. In the 19th century, the suffix 'in-Arden' was added to the name, in order to avoid confusion with the town of Tamworth in Staffordshire , it refers to the Forest of Arden in which the village lay. The parish was at one time very extensive, covering land that now includes Hockley Heath , Earlswood and beyond. In the 14th century, the important families of
4590-470: The (often well-endowed) monasteries. After the dissolution of the monasteries , the power to levy a rate to fund relief of the poor was conferred on the parish authorities by the Poor Relief Act 1601 . Both before and after this optional social change, local (vestry-administered) charities are well-documented. The parish authorities were known as vestries and consisted of all the ratepayers of
4692-586: The 18th century the manor had passed to the Archers of Umberslade Hall and the hamlet was briefly reoriented around its Umberslade area. The Umberslade estate sits on the border of Nuthurst and Tanworth in Arden and had been built for the Archer family in 1680. Lord Archer raised a 70 feet (21 m) limestone block obelisk on the estate in 1749. The reason for this is unclear, possibly to celebrate his elevation to
4794-564: The 19th century is useful to historians, and is also of cultural significance in terms of shaping local identities; reinforced by the use of grouped parish boundaries, often, by successive local authority areas; and in a very rough, operations-geared way by most postcode districts. There was (and is) wide disparity in parish size. Writtle , Essex traditionally measures 13,568 acres (21 sq mi) – two parishes neighbouring are Shellow Bowells at 469 acres (0.7 sq mi), and Chignall Smealy at 476 acres (0.7 sq mi) Until
4896-591: The 2011 census, Newland with Woodhouse Moor and Beaumont Chase reported inhabitants, and there were no new deserted parishes recorded. Nearly all instances of detached parts of civil parishes (areas not contiguous with the main part of the parish) and of those straddling counties have been ended. 14 examples remain in England as at 2022, including Barnby Moor and Wallingwells , both in Nottinghamshire. Direct predecessors of civil parishes are most often known as "ancient parishes", although many date only from
4998-511: The 2021 census). The 2001 census recorded several parishes with no inhabitants. These were Chester Castle (in the middle of Chester city centre), Newland with Woodhouse Moor , Beaumont Chase , Martinsthorpe , Meering , Stanground North (subsequently abolished), Sturston , Tottington , and Tyneham (subsequently merged). The lands of the last three were taken over by the Armed Forces during World War II and remain deserted. In
5100-556: The Aylesbury who represented Warwickshire in the parliament of Edward III . Hockley Heath was originally part of the ecclesiastic parish of Tanworth-in-Arden . The village owes its first stage of independent development to the roads that cross through it, specifically the Stratford Road and Old Warwick Road, which allowed for the transportation of post through from London to Birmingham and beyond. Because of its position on
5202-628: The Box Trees area between the village and the Blythe Valley Park area. By the mid 1800s further construction had been undertaken on Aylesbury Hall, rechristened Aylesbury House and remaining home to the Aylesbury family. It later became a hotel. The Aylesbury family were also prominent in neighboring Packwood, and many artefacts of the family are now in Packwood House and St Giles Church Packwood. In 2016 Aylesbury house suffered
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#17327939333885304-592: The Early English style, was built in 1879 and consecrated on 30 June 1880, having cost £2,500. It was dedicated to St Thomas, as a compliment to Thomas Burman, of Warings Green, who, as the chief subscriber, laid the foundation stone in 1879. Situated at the junction of the A3400 Stratford on Avon to Birmingham Road and the B4439, known as the Old Warwick Road is the War Memorial to those killed during
5406-822: The European Parliament. Most of Hockley Heath is on a salient of the West Midands County and therefore is covered by the West Midlands Combined Authority , a strategic authority with powers over transport, economic development and regeneration. Residents can vote in elections for the Mayor of the West Midlands and the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner . The ruined Mortuary Chapel of
5508-475: The Nags Head, where post horses were kept. Queen Victoria stayed at Hockley House in 1837 prior to taking the throne, possibly on her way to visit nearby Packwood House . Hockley House was demolished in 1968 and housing now sits on the site. The Nags Head is still in operation as a restaurant. By the 1760s the Aylesbury family would own Box Trees farm in the north of the village, which now gives its name to
5610-543: The South East, and Tanworth-in-Arden to the southwest. Hockley Heath first appeared in the 13th century. Originally the area north of Nuthurst was known as "Hocca's Hill" possibly named after a local Anglo Saxon chieftain or landowner. There are a number of other places across historic county Warwickshire with 'Hockley' in the name, including Hockley in the Jewellery Quarter , so it is possible that Hocca
5712-623: The Stratford Road opposite Box Trees farm. The former RAF site is currently used for farming. In 1978, the Memorial Hall was modernized. Due to its rural location, until at least 1998 the village had its own policeman who resided in the Police House near to the Nags Head. The house had a small office for the police officer to use as a base. In the north of the village Box Trees farm is now an Arts and Craft Centre. Today
5814-738: The administration of the poor laws was the main civil function of parishes, the Poor Law Amendment Act 1866 , which received royal assent on 10 August 1866, declared all areas that levied a separate rate or had their own overseer of the poor to be parishes. This included the Church of England parishes (until then simply known as "parishes"), extra-parochial areas , townships and chapelries . To have collected rates this means these beforehand had their own vestries, boards or equivalent bodies. Parishes using this definition subsequently became known as "civil parishes" to distinguish them from
5916-547: The area were the Archers of Umberslade Hall , the de Sydenhale family of Ernolds Place and Sydenhall Farm in Illshaw Heath , and the de Fulwoods of Clay Hall. Throughout most of its modern history Tanworth-in-Arden was part of the "union of Solihull ". In 1878 Tanworth-in-Arden lost a sizeable piece of its parish territory when Hockley Heath broke off to form a new parish with the hamlet of Nuthurst (formerly of Hampton-in-Arden parish). In 1894 Tanworth-in-Arden
6018-536: The bowls club, however when the council ceased to maintain them they were taken down, and the village cricket team left the village. In 2014 a new BMX track was built, funded by the village fete committee. The recreation ground is used for major village events such as the village fete, Bonfire Night and Proms in the Park. There is also a Pavilion which is used by local community groups such as the church, beavers, cubs, scouts, an under 3s club and local football teams. The venue
6120-399: The charter, the charter may be transferred to a parish council for its area. Where there is no such parish council, the district council may appoint charter trustees to whom the charter and the arms of the former borough will belong. The charter trustees (who consist of the councillor or councillors for the area of the former borough) maintain traditions such as mayoralty . An example of such
6222-537: The council are carried out by a paid officer, typically known as a parish clerk. Councils may employ additional people (including bodies corporate, provided where necessary, by tender) to carry out specific tasks dictated by the council. Some councils have chosen to pay their elected members an allowance, as permitted under part 5 of the Local Authorities (Members' Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003. The number of councillors varies roughly in proportion to
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#17327939333886324-464: The council of the urban district or borough in which they were contained. Many urban parishes were coterminous (geographically identical) with the urban district or municipal borough in which they lay. Towns which included multiple urban parishes often consolidated the urban parishes into one. The urban parishes continued to be used as an electoral area for electing guardians to the poor law unions . The unions took in areas in multiple parishes and had
6426-466: The council will an election be held. However, sometimes there are fewer candidates than seats. When this happens, the vacant seats have to be filled by co-option by the council. If a vacancy arises for a seat mid-term, an election is only held if a certain number (usually ten) of parish residents request an election. Otherwise the council will co-opt someone to be the replacement councillor. The Localism Act 2011 introduced new arrangements which replaced
6528-459: The creation of town and parish councils is encouraged in unparished areas . The Local Government and Rating Act 1997 created a procedure which gave residents in unparished areas the right to demand that a new parish and parish council be created. This right was extended to London boroughs by the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 – with this, the City of London
6630-463: The desire to have a more local tier of government when new larger authorities have been created, which are felt to be remote from local concerns and identity. A number of parishes have been created in places which used to have their own borough or district council; examples include Daventry (2003), Folkestone (2004), Kidderminster (2015) and Sutton Coldfield (2016). The trend towards the creation of geographically large unitary authorities has been
6732-439: The ecclesiastical parishes. The Church of England parishes, which cover more than 99% of England, have become officially (and to avoid ambiguity) termed ecclesiastical parishes . The limits of many of these have diverged; most greatly through changes in population and church attendance (these factors can cause churches to be opened or closed). Since 1921, each has been the responsibility of its own parochial church council . In
6834-534: The established English Church, which for a few years after Henry VIII alternated between the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England , before settling on the latter on the accession of Elizabeth I in 1558. By the 18th century, religious membership was becoming more fractured in some places, due in part to the progress of Methodism . The legitimacy of the parish vestry came into question, and
6936-417: The estate of Umberslade Hall , Muntz's country seat. The ecclesiastical parish of Nuthurst cum Hockley Heath was formed in 1878 with the addition of the modern village of Hockley Heath from Tanworth. It lies for the most part between two roads from Henley-in-Arden to Birmingham which meet in the extreme north of the civil parish, where the church of St. Thomas, designed by John Cotton, a red-brick structure in
7038-472: The far west of the county and close to the Worcestershire border, the civil parish is larger than the village, and includes Tanworth-in-Arden itself plus the nearby settlements of Earlswood , Wood End , Forshaw Heath, Aspley Heath and Danzey Green . The population of the parish was 3,228 at the 2021 UK census . The village is of Anglo-Saxon origin, with the name derived from Tanewotha ; meaning
7140-645: The gift and continued patronage (benefaction) of the lord of the manor , but not all were willing and able to provide, so residents would be expected to attend the church of the nearest manor with a church. Later, the churches and priests became to a greater extent the responsibility of the Catholic Church thus this was formalised; the grouping of manors into one parish was recorded, as was a manor-parish existing in its own right. Boundaries changed little, and for centuries after 1180 'froze', despite changes to manors' extents. However, by subinfeudation , making
7242-455: The government at the time of the Local Government Act 1972 discouraged their creation for large towns or their suburbs, but there is generally nothing to stop their establishment. For example, Birmingham has two parishes ( New Frankley and Sutton Coldfield ), Oxford has four, and the Milton Keynes urban area has 24. Parishes could not however be established in London until the law was changed in 2007. A civil parish can range in area from
7344-517: The hamlet of Nuthurst in the south, and borders Dorridge and Packwood to the North East, and Illshaw Heath and Earlswood to the North West. Until 1 April 2009, as well as Hockley Heath village, the parish included Cheswick Green , Dickens Heath , Tidbury Green , Salter Street, and Whitlock's End . According to the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 6,771. However following
7446-443: The large village of Dorridge . The Stratford-upon-Avon Canal runs through the village and Hockley Heath Wharf, situated to the rear of The Wharf Public house, meant it became one the Arden villages which later became a convenient stopping off point for users of the canal. The canal, which runs from Kings Norton, was navigable as far as Hockley Heath by 1798, the remaining link to Stratford being opened by 1816. Hockley Wharf served
7548-476: The late 19th century, most of the "ancient" (a legal term equivalent to time immemorial ) irregularities inherited by the civil parish system were cleaned up, and the majority of exclaves were abolished. The census of 1911 noted that 8,322 (58%) of "parishes" in England and Wales were not geographically identical when comparing the civil to the ecclesiastical form. In 1894, civil parishes were reformed by
7650-647: The main road of the hamlet. After the Mowbrays the manor passed to the Montforts, Hastings and then to the Trussells. It was Sir William Trussell , of Nuthurst who informed Edward II of his disposition in favour of his son. During the conflict against Edward II, Sir William Trussell found himself fighting the Despencer family , who were amongst their other titles, lords of the manor of nearby Solihull . By
7752-465: The mid 19th century. Using a longer historical lens the better terms are "pre-separation (civil and ecclesiastical) parish", "original medieval parishes" and "new parishes". The Victoria County History , a landmark collaborative work mostly written in the 20th century (although incomplete), summarises the history of each English "parish", roughly meaning late medieval parish. A minority of these had exclaves , which could be: In some cases an exclave of
7854-524: The monastery of Stratford. After the Norman Conquest the name usually appeared as Notehurst, but gradually reverted to its present and original spelling. It was part of Hampton-in-Arden, and 1/5 knight's fee in Nuthurst was held of Niel de Mowbray c. 1230 and of Roger de Mowbray in 1242. The overlordship descended in this family, being held by Roger de Mowbray at his death in 1297, and by John Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk, in 1432. The church at Nuthurst - at
7956-463: The nearby Dorridge railway station , Lapworth railway station , or Whitlocks End railway station . Until 1837, Hockley Heath had neither a church nor school. To remedy this, Umberslade resident and Whig MP for Warwick, Edward Bolton King , gave land for the building of a chapel on Orchard road and a school. The school building still stands on the end of School Road and is now used as an offices for John Shepherds estate agents. The Church of St Thomas
8058-465: The new district councils (outside London) to review their parishes, and many areas left unparished in 1972 have since been made parishes, either in whole or part. For example, Hinckley , whilst entirely unparished in 1974, now has four civil parishes, which together cover part of its area, whilst the central part of the town remains unparished. Some parishes were sub-divided into smaller territories known as hamlets , tithings or townships . Nowadays
8160-611: The now demolished St Peter's Church in Nuthurst, and its graveyard, lies on land next to the M40 motorway. Nuthurst also has a second, now redundant church called Umberslade Baptist Church . The church was commissioned by George Frederick Muntz junior, the son of George Muntz , the industrialist and MP for Birmingham. It was designed by the Birmingham architect George Ingall and building was completed in 1877 in Umberslade Park,
8262-488: The other conurbations. Civil parishes vary greatly in population: some have populations below 100 and have no settlement larger than a hamlet , while others cover towns with populations of tens of thousands. Weston-super-Mare , with a population of 71,758, is the most populous civil parish. In many cases small settlements, today popularly termed villages , localities or suburbs, are in a single parish which originally had one church. Large urban areas are mostly unparished, as
8364-401: The parish the status of a town, at which point the council becomes a town council . Around 400 parish councils are called town councils. Under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007 , a civil parish may be given one of the following alternative styles: As a result, a parish council can be called a town council, a community council, a village council or occasionally
8466-404: The parish. As the number of ratepayers of some parishes grew, it became increasingly difficult to convene meetings as an open vestry. In some, mostly built-up, areas the select vestry took over responsibility from the entire body of ratepayers. This innovation improved efficiency, but allowed governance by a self-perpetuating elite. The administration of the parish system relied on the monopoly of
8568-562: The parish; the church rate ceased to be levied in many parishes and became voluntary from 1868. During the 17th century it was found that the 1601 Poor Law did not work well for very large parishes, which were particularly common in northern England. Such parishes were typically subdivided into multiple townships , which levied their rates separately. The Poor Relief Act 1662 therefore directed that for poor law purposes 'parish' meant any place which maintained its own poor, thereby converting many townships into separate 'poor law parishes'. As
8670-537: The peerage or just, as was the fashion during that period, as a folly . However, according to local folklore it is said to mark the passing of a favoured horse, which is buried beneath it. When local industrialist and politician, Mr G. F. Muntz became resident in Umberslade Hall he instigated the building of Umberslade Baptist church in Nuthurst and the adjoining Baptist school in 1876. The Baptist Church and Obelisk are now separated from Umberslade Hall by
8772-499: The perceived inefficiency and corruption inherent in the system became a source for concern in some places. For this reason, during the early 19th century the parish progressively lost its powers to ad hoc boards and other organisations, such as the boards of guardians given responsibility for poor relief through the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 . Sanitary districts covered England in 1875 and Ireland three years later. The replacement boards were each entitled to levy their own rate in
8874-411: The population of the parish. Most rural parish councillors are elected to represent the entire parish, though in parishes with larger populations or those that cover larger areas, the parish can be divided into wards. Each of these wards then returns councillors to the parish council (the numbers depending on their population). Only if there are more candidates standing for election than there are seats on
8976-438: The right to create civil parishes was extended to London boroughs , although only one, Queen's Park , has so far been created. Eight parishes also have city status (a status granted by the monarch ). A civil parish may be equally known as and confirmed as a town, village, neighbourhood or community by resolution of its parish council, a right not conferred on other units of English local government. The governing body of
9078-427: The road between Oxford and Solihull with road links out towards Warwick and Worcester , Hockley Heath became a central distribution point for postal deliveries over a wide area. Because of this the village became a staging post on the old mail coach road from London to Birmingham. A large property called Hockley House was turned over to become a high end coaching inn , with another coaching inn opposite called
9180-487: The south, with some parts of the village on either side of the border. It incorporates the hamlet of Nuthurst , and has a history dating back to the year 705 AD as a wood owned by Worcester Cathedral . The 2011 Census gives the population of Hockley Heath civil parish as 2,038. The area known as Nuthurst derives its name from the Anglo Saxon Hnuthyrste, meaning Nut Wood, a woodland that covered what
9282-567: The southbound carriageway of the M40 motorway . The village is on the route of bus services X20 which runs between Solihull and Stratford-upon-Avon . Additionally service A7/A8 links the village to Solihull via Dorridge . Dorridge Station is the nearest railway station to the village at 2 miles (3.2 km) away with local connections to Solihull, Birmingham and Warwick and main line connections to London Marylebone on Chiltern Railways . Nearby villages include Earlswood, Lapworth , Kingswood, Baddesley Clinton , Tanworth-in-Arden and
9384-480: The stables are thought to have once stood. Hockley Heath Primary Academy is situated on School Road, Hockley Heath, Solihull, West Midlands, B94 6RA In 2020, The Real Schools Guide ranked Hockley Heath Primary Academy as the 9th best primary school in Solihull. Local secondary schools include Tudor Grange Academy Solihull , Arden Academy, Henley-in-Arden School and St. Peter's Catholic School. The village has
9486-407: The surrounding area and non-perishable goods were unloaded there, including timber, lime, coke, coal, cement, bricks and salt. The last commercial load was brought into the wharf on Christmas Eve, 1929. The village was formed as a horse changing point on the 25-mile journey between Birmingham and Stratford-upon-Avon . A public house once called "The Nag's Head" still stands next to the place where
9588-463: The time a curate chapel of Hampton in Arden - dates from at least 1216 and was dedicated to St Peter. A painting from 1820 shows the church in ruins and the only thing that remains of the church now is the graveyard and a ruined mortuary chapel dating from the 1800s. The church likely fell out of use because of the construction of the church of St Thomas in Hockley Heath, which was closer to
9690-854: The two World Wars. The village is served by a number of pubs and restaurants, notably the Wharf Tavern. It underwent an extensive refurbishment in December 2019. The majority of pubs and restaurants are situated on the Stratford road, and make up the Hockley Heath Mile, a Pub Crawl beginning at Hockley House (formerly the Oak) and ending at the Barn. The core of the Barn is an older listed building, which has been subject to claims of 'haunting', with newer additions built around it, many added after
9792-479: The village include The Bell Inn public house and the 14th-century Church of St Mary Magdalene . The boxer "Gentleman" Jack Hood was the licensee of The Bell for 36 years, displaying above the bar the Lonsdale belt that he won on 31 May 1926. (The belt was sold by his daughters in 2011.) Tanworth was the childhood home of folk musician Nick Drake and his sister, the actress Gabrielle Drake . His grave lies in
9894-519: The village is an affluent commuter village for those working in Solihull town centre, Stratford Upon Avon, and other surrounding larger towns and cities. The village still has four public houses/restaurants, a parade of shops, a petrol station, a village hall, recreation ground, a luxury hotel, a number of footpaths, and a Rolls-Royce and McLaren showroom. There is a cycle route to the nearby Blythe Valley Business Park . The village has
9996-421: Was an important landowner of the area. By 1280, Hockley Heath was known as "Huckeloweheath". By 1542, the single word was split and the village had become "Hokeley Heath". Due to its growth Hockley Heath eventually absorbed the settlement of Nuthurst at the south of the village. By 1361 the Aylesbury family had settled in the area and constructed a large house called Aylesbury hall. The family were descended from
10098-421: Was built in 1879. In the 1850s the village bakery 'Wedges' would open, remaining in the same family until 2013. Local industrialist and politician, Mr G. F. Muntz instigated the building of the village institute in 1892, later renamed King George VI Memorial Hall. In 1913, the old school was closed and a new council school was built for 120 pupils from the old school and now closed Baptist school. The school
10200-527: Was held every March from the former Norton motorcycle factory to Tanworth, although this was stopped after the 2011 event. The parish includes Umberslade Hall , on the border with Nuthurst , which dates from around 1695, and for six hundred years the home of the Archer family and later the industrialist George Frederic Muntz . The village lies close to the ex- Great Western Railway line from Birmingham Moor Street to Stratford-upon-Avon but has never had
10302-676: Was included in the Solihull Rural District , before eventually being redesignated under the Stratford-on-Avon District later in the 20th century. Solihull remains the village's post town . The village was a filming location for the fictional village of Kings Oak from the British television series Crossroads until 1988. On 29 November 1967 the parish was renamed from "Tanworth" to "Tanworth-in-Arden". Notable historical buildings still standing in
10404-550: Was raised by Mr Mould, who acquired a Rhode car , value £235, and took it around the country inviting people to subscribe one shilling to the Recreation Ground Fund. The car was raffled at a concert held at the institute on 3 November 1923 During the Second World War, the village had an air station called RAF Hockley Heath . The station opened in 1941 and closed in 1948. The airfield was situated on
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