| Willesborough | |
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Willesborough
Willesborough shown within Kent |
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| Population | 7,800 (2005)[1] |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | TR025417 |
| District | Ashford |
| Shire county | Kent |
| Region | South East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Ashford |
| Postcode district | TN24 |
| Dialling code | 01233 |
| Police | Kent |
| Fire | Kent |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| EU Parliament | South East England |
| UK Parliament | Ashford |
| List of places: UK • England • Kent | |
Willesborough is a residential suburb on the eastern side of Ashford, Kent, England.
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The South Willesborough Dykes area, on the west bank of the East Stour river, is an area of sheep fields drained by dykes. The area is designated as the South Willesborough Dykes Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI). The dykes continue on the east side of the East Stour river and among the residential areas, and a tributary stream (Aylesford Stream) runs between Newtown and South Willesborough and into the East Stour. The smallest ditches dry up completely in summer.[2]
The South Willesborough Dykes are important in terms of the geology of the area, being in the river floodplain and in supporting neutral, wet grassland species, along with Willesborough's Aylesford Green and Boys Hall forming part of the Ashford Green Corridor,. although public access is otherwise limited.[3]
Ashford Borough Council has a project to create the Willesborough Dykes Country Park.
There are a number of schools in and around the Willesborough area.
The town is known for its 1869 windmill near Hythe Road, and St Mary's Church on Church Road, which has one of the oldest ringing bells in Kent.
Former English international cricketers Mark Ealham and Richard Ellison were born in Willesborough.
The William Harvey Hospital, a major hospital providing services for east Kent, is in Willesborough, and is named after the discoverer of the blood circulatory system. There is a statue of William Harvey at the hospital, and an older, damaged, statue of him, formerly the hospital, in the garden at the William Harvey Public House on Church Road in Willesborough.
Norman Cycles was a bicycle, autocycle, moped, and motorcycle manufacturer based in Ashford, Kent. The Norman Cycles Club is based at Willesborough Windmill and The Norman Museum is located in the windmill's barn, where mopeds and bicycles are on display.
Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Willesborough Willesborough] at Wikimedia Commons