| Wrabness | |
All Saints, Wrabness |
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Wrabness
Wrabness shown within Essex |
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| Population | 400 |
|---|---|
| OS grid reference | TM222417 |
| District | Tendring |
| Shire county | Essex |
| Region | East |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Manningtree |
| Postcode district | CO11 |
| Dialling code | 01255 |
| Police | Essex |
| Fire | Essex |
| Ambulance | East of England |
| EU Parliament | East of England |
| UK Parliament | North Essex |
| List of places: UK • England • Essex | |
Wrabness is a small village, near Manningtree, Essex. The village is located six miles (10 km) west of Harwich. It is served by the Wrabness railway station. Wrabness had a population of approximately 400. Clive Owen owns a house in Wrabness.
The oldest building in the village is All Saints' Church, which dates from around 1100. The church's bell tower collapsed in the seventeenth century, and the bell moved temporarily to a wooden bell cage in the church yard. The bell cage remains to this day.
Wrabness Nature Reserve covers 52 acres (210,000 m2) on the banks of the river Stour estuary. The site was once a former mine depot established in 1921 by the Ministry of Defence. It was closed in 1963. Following closure, a number of planning applications were put forward (including an application for a prison in 1968 and 1989). The site was saved from closure when it was bought by Wrabness Nature Reserve Charitable Trust in 1992. The site has now been taken over by the Essex Wildlife Trust.
The reserve is an important wildlife site - owls, yellowhammers, whitethroats, turtle dove, song thrush, nightingales and bullfinches can be seen. There are also many wild plants such as corn mint, hairy buttercup, sea aster and ox-eye daisy.
There is good access with a hard-core path around the reserve making it accessible for pushchairs or with disabilities.