Headley, Surrey

Headley
The squat grotto at St Mary's Church, Headley are the reworked remains of a 15th century church
cricket is played in the village.
Headley Headley shown within Surrey
Area	6.75 km² (2.61 sq mi)
Population	643 (Civil Parish)^[1]
– density	95/km² (250/sq mi)
OS grid reference	TQ205545
Civil parish	Headley
District	Mole Valley
Shire county	Surrey
Region	South East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	Epsom
Postcode district	KT18
Dialling code	01372
Police	Surrey
Fire	Surrey
Ambulance	South East Coast
EU Parliament	South East England
UK Parliament	Mole Valley
List of places UK England Surrey

Coordinates: 51°16′37″N 0°16′16″W / 51.277°N 0.271°W / 51.277; -0.271

Headley is a village and civil parish in the North Downs in Surrey in England. The village is bordered to its west by Mickleham, Surrey and Leatherhead, to the north by Ashtead and Langley Vale, Walton-on-the-Hill to the east and to its south by Box Hill. It is just outside the M25 motorway encircling London.

History

The Romans had an influence in the surrounds, with the Roman Road to Noviomagus Reginorum, called by the Saxons 'Stane Street (Chichester)' a few hundred metres from the western and northern boundaries and a considerable Roman presence in the neighbouring village of Walton-on-the-Hill with its scheduled ancient monument villa and other finds

Headley's land lay in the Saxons' Copthorne hundred. As Saxon records are scant and the church and population was smaller, no church in Headley was known during this period; the first records of a church are after the Norman Conquest. However this church could have been built on or adjacent to the site of a Saxon church. In any event next to the church are the remains of a 15th-century church, placed over the grave of the Revd Ferdinand Faithful.^[2]

Headley appears in Domesday Book of 1086 as the manor of Hallega. It was held by Radulfus (Ralph) de Felgeres. Its domesday assets were: 2 hides; 6 ploughs, woodland worth 15 hogs. It rendered £5 per year to its overlords. The survey records that the manor was held before the conquest by Countess Goda (the mother of King Harold) and it had been granted to her by King Edward the Confessor.^[3] Halle(g)a means a clearing in the heather, which is appropriate considering the village's position on a large patch of acidic topsoil of the generally alkaline North Downs.^[4]

The church, which worships St Mary as its dedication, was built in 1855 next to old remains, designed by Anthony Salvin with an added tower of 1859 by G. E. Street. It is built from relatively local flint rubble and is in the common Grade II category of listing.^[5]

Walter Cunliffe, later 1st Baron Cunliffe and the Governor of the Bank of England, was given the original farmhouse estate, formerly the main manor, and its remaining 300 acres (1.2 km²), Headley Court, in 1880 by his father on the condition that he would make a career in banking rather than become a farmer. He redeveloped it in 1898. The family fortune had been made by Walter's grandfather, James Cunliffe, with his development of the North Eastern Railway (UK).^[6]

Land use and Headley Heath

There has been little new housing in the village in the late 20th century and early 21st centuries as it is part of the London Green Belt and the Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Substantially the steep and quick-draining land is covered by woods. A large minority of field land in the village is used primarily for grazing for the many riding establishments in the area. A large section known as Headley Heath is managed by National Trust, and other nearby areas are controlled by Surrey Wildlife Trust and other nature reserves. The heath is part of the Mole Gap to Reigate Escarpment Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Economy

Most of the population work outside the village: care and rehabilitation work, maintenance, extension work, equestrian work and agriculture being the main areas of work within the village.

Headley Court

There is a military hospital (previously run by the RAF Hospital) at Headley Court in the parish, once the manor house, the main building being a reconstruction that took place in 1899.^[6] Its playing fields can be used for helicopters.

Amenities

The village has an active church, shop, village hall and pub.

County-supported schools are in Leatherhead, Ashtead, Mickleham and Dorking. Some children attend private schools.

Headley is known for its large heath lands, which are owned by the National Trust, leading out towards Box Hill. The Heath was once much higher than it is now, it was flattened out by Canadian troops during World War II for use as tank and combat training grounds.

Transport

Good footpaths for the most mobile connect the village in all directions, particularly to Leatherhead, which lies up to 60m below some of the village.

A typically hourly bus service runs from Dorking to Leatherhead through Headley. A service was provided by Surrey County Council for local children of 5–11 years of age, to the primary schools terminated on 1, September 2006.^[7] The 516 Bus runs to Epsom, Leatherhead, Dorking and Box Hill.

A bus service is also provided by St. Andrew's Catholic School, Leatherhead for its pupils (aged 11 to 18).

Social life and sport

The village has a Parish Council and its hall hosts clubs including: a computer club, cricket club, gardening club, the Women's Institute and other activities.^[8]

The Cock Inn, formerly for a few years the Cock Horse, is the only public house in the village. There is also the RAF Headley Club which is open only to servicemen and women, plus their families of Headley Court.

The Headley Cricket Club was founded in 1893, and now incorporating the Old Freemen's side from nearby City of London Freemen's School. The team play on the ground opposite the main Heath car park, to the south of the village centre and have played in the Surrey Downs League since 2002 on Saturdays and have a Sunday team.

Tyrrells Wood Golf Club is a large private golf course and grounds to the west of the village and partially within the bounds of the parish.

Headley was on the London-Surrey Cycle Classic over the opening weekend of the 2012 London Olympic Games as part of the Box Hill loop, which was covered nine times in the men's event and twice in the women's. With long distance routes in various directions, the roads in and around Headley have become very popular for leisure cycling.

Demography and housing

**2011 Census Homes**
Output area	Detached	Semi-detached	Terraced	Flats and apartments	Caravans/temporary/mobile homes		shared between households^[1]
(Civil Parish)	103	120	13	10	0	0

The average level of accommodation in the region composed of detached houses was 28%, the average that was apartments was 22.6%.

**2011 Census Key Statistics**
Output area	Population	Households	% Owned outright	% Owned with a loan	hectares^[1]
(Civil Parish)	643	246	32.9%	25.6%	675

The proportion of households in the civil parish who owned their home outright compares to the regional average of 35.1%. The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares to the regional average of 32.5%. The remaining % is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible % of households living rent-free).

Emergency services

Headley is served by these emergency services:

Surrey Police. everything is handled from Dorking Police Station, as Headley lies within Mole Valley Division.
South East Coast Ambulance Service as of 1 July 2006, is the local NHS Ambulance Services Trust. The Surrey Ambulance Service, Sussex, and Kent ambulance services have merged, and have now ceased to exist independently. Leatherhead or Epsom Ambulance stations are close by.
Surrey Fire & Rescue Service, Leatherhead Fire Station is the first response station for Headley. Although RAF Headley also have 2 Green Goddess Fire engines.