Cropthorne
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Cropthorne is a village in England, roughly 12 miles southeast of Worcester. There is a population of around 600, with about 250 households. Cropthorne has a diversely aged population, with a local primary school, which serves Cropthorne and the next village Charlton. The village of Fladbury is situated on the opposite bank of the River Avon, the two communities being linked by the Jubilee bridge.
Reduced congregations and full-time workers typical of rural Anglican communities has meant that the parishes of Fladbury, Hill and Moor and Cropthorne are now combined, with a single rector looking after all of the churches.
School provision still differs between the villages, children from Cropthorne First School, go on to Bredon Hill Middle School, then Prince Henry's School in Evesham.
Cropthorne has a large playing field (the Sheppey), with an excellent village hall, changing rooms and children's play area. Youth activities centre around the Sheppey Junior Sports Club, which currently has 5 junior football teams from U9 to U13. An adult football team also plays on the Sheppey. A major annual village event is the "Cropthorne Walkabout" on the first May bank holiday weekend, where hundreds of people descend on the village to view the gardens of the inhabitants and enjoy the village fete, including watching the local children dance around the maypole.
In the year 2000 Cropthorne won the best kept medium village award.
Famous inhabitants include Sir Michael Spicer, an MP for the conservative party.
Another famous resident is the Top Class racehorse trainer Tony Carroll who established his racehorse training stables there in 2006.
During the July 2007 floods the main road between Evesham and Worcester was split in half by a raging torrent of flood water at Cropthorne. The newly formed gorge was nicknamed the "Cropthorne Canyon" by local humourist Mike Sheward who set up a spoof website in the Canyon's honour.
