Stonham Aspal

Stonham Aspal

Church of St Mary & St Lambert
Stonham Aspal
 Stonham Aspal shown within Suffolk
Population 601 [1]
DistrictMid Suffolk
Shire countySuffolk
RegionEast
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Police Suffolk
Fire Suffolk
Ambulance East of England
EU Parliament East of England
Websitewww.stonhamaspal.co.uk
List of places
UK
England
Suffolk

Coordinates: 52°11′37″N 1°07′08″E / 52.193689°N 1.118783°E

Stonham Aspal is a village and civil parish in the Mid Suffolk district of Suffolk in eastern England. Located around five miles east of the nearest town of Stowmarket, in 2011 its population was 601.[1] The village has a public house and a primary school. Surrounding villages include Mickfield, Little Stonham and Pettaugh. It is in a rural location surrounded by farmland but has the popular tourist route of the A1120 running through the middle of the village.

In the 1870s, Stonham Aspal was described as:

"STONHAM-ASPALL, a parish, with a village, in Bosmere district, Suffolk; 4½ miles NE of Needham-Market r. station. It has a post-office under Ipswich. Acres, 2,399. Real property, £4,957. Pop. in 1851, 814; in 1861, 694. Houses, 156."[2]

History

The village dates back to the Roman Hypocaust era.[3] The name of Stonham Aspal in the 13th century is directly translated as 'Stone homestead'.[4] Many of the houses in the village are 14th and 15th century.[5] The main industry in the village according to census data from 1881 for males was agriculture.[6]

Stonham Aspal is mentioned in the Domesday Book as 'Estuna', in the Bosmere hundred of Suffolk. It is made up of 2 villagers, 4 small holders and 11 free men. 1.5 lord's plough teams and 2 men's plough teams are also mentioned. It has a meadow of 7 acres, woodland of 80 pigs, 1 church and 0.11 church lands. In 1066 the lord was Aelmer. In 1086 the lord was Miles de Belefol.[7][8]

Stonham Aspal has undergone many boundary changes over time. It was originally part of the Bosmere registration district until 1935, when it was abolished the village joined the Gipping registration district transferring a population of 14427 in total from the Bosmere registration district. In 1983 Gipping abolished and Stonham Aspal joined Gipping & Hartismere registration district. This abolished in 2010 and from this point Stonham Aspal has been part of the Suffolk registration district.[9]

Census data for Stonham Aspal dates back to 1801. The earliest recoded population total at this time was 578. The highest figure to be recorded by the Census was in 1851 with a total population of 814. The lowest recorded being in 1961 with a total population of 418, just over half the highest recorded figure.[10][11]

Occupations by Male and Females according to the census data from 1881
Occupational Orders according to 2011 census data

The main industry recorded for the village in 1881 was in Agriculture, taking a total of around 39%. In 2011 Census this figure had dropped to 6%. This would be due to Britain's shift from primary work to secondary and tertiary sector jobs. This will also explain why now the highest percentage in industry is around 14% for manufacturing jobs.[12][13]

On the graph shown for 1881 occupational orders, the highest number of occupations for males was agriculture, but for females it is unknown. This could be down to many being housewives and not expected to work during this period as other than unknown the next highest occupation recorded is domestic.[12]

The writer, poet and miniature portrait painter Mary Matilda Betham, daughter of William Betham, the headmaster of the endowed school, was born in Stonham Aspal in 1776 and raised there.

Housing and transport

Stonham Aspal is in The Stonhams district ward, described by the Office for National Statistics as a 'village surrounded by inhabited countryside'. The main housing type is Detached, Semi Detached, flats and terraced, with housing ownership being private and social housing.[14] The average house price sale from August 2013 to January 2014 for the area was £221,458.33, the majority being detached at an average price of £265,800.[15]

The local school is the Stonham Aspal church of England voluntary aided primary school. The school is for ages 5–11, and had 189 pupils on roll for the school year September 2013 to July 2014. The school achieved a total of 97% of students in 2013 achieving Level 4 or above in reading, writing and maths, improving 7% from the previous year.[16] A school inspection done by Ofsted on 15 January 2013 rated the school 'Good'.[17]

Stonham Aspal Pre School - geograph.org.uk - 1413765

The nearest train station is Stowmarket which is 2.91 km (1.81m) away from the village centre. Other stations close by include Needham Market (6.20 km) and Elmswell (8.93 km).[18] There is currently two public bus services serving the village. The first is the Simonds bus number 114, where the route begins in Ipswich and ends at Diss. The second is the Galloway European Coachlines, bus number 115, which begins at Wetheringsett ad Ends in Ipswich. Both these services run on a Monday to Saturday basis, there are currently no buses on a Sunday.[19]

Places of interest and organisations

The Ten Bells Stonham Aspal

The Ten Bells Inn: one of 45 Grade II Listed Buildings in Stonham Aspal,[20] listed on 26 March 1987.[21] It is a public house dating back to the late 18th century. The building was extended in the mid 19th century and again in the mid 20th century.[22] The Ten Bells re-opened at the end of 2014 as Casa Mexico, a shop specialising in products from Mexico. [23]

St Mary and St Lambert Church: The only church in the village, the St Mary and St Lambert is an Anglican church. In 1742 Theodore Eccleston, the local squire, replaced the ring of five bells with one of ten and the bell chamber was built to house them. This explains why the bell chamber is a separate structure to the church and is also thought to be where the local public house got its name from.[24] Within the church there is very little coloured glass and here are medieval fragments in the aisle and the two easternmost clerestory windows.[25]

Suffolk Owl Sanctuary: Supported by voluntary donations and admission charges, the Suffolk Owl Sanctuary established as a registered charity in 2001. It is currently open to the public all year round and holds over 80 raptors at the centre. It claims it "operates a comprehensive facility for the care & rehabilitation of owls from the region, and the promotion of owl conservation throughout the UK and beyond."[26]

The Stonham Aspal Women's Institute: Founded in 1923, the Stonham Aspal Women's Institute currently has around 8 members. It is one of the 114 part of the Suffolk East Federation of Women's Institutes, whose headquarters are in Ipswich. This is affiliate to the National Federation of Women's Institutes, the UKs largest voluntary organization for women.[27][28]

Stonham Barns: The Stonham Barns is a leisure and retail village with free entry. Facilities currently include fishing lakes, crazy golf, a beauty salon, Aquatics and Reptile Centre, clothes shops and restaurants. It is also the host to the mid and west Suffolk show, which consists of arena demonstrations and displays, steam and classic car exhibitors and a range of stalls.[29][30]

Stonham Aspal Football Club: Founded in 1959, Stonham Aspal FC was made from the Stonham Aspal school old pupils club. It was entered into the Ipswich and District League Division 3 in the 1960/61 season. This League is now the Suffolk and Ipswich League. At the beginning of the 1970/71 season a reserve team was formed and entered into division 5.[31] The club is currently sponsored by Stonham Barns.[32]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "<StonhamAspal> (Parish): Key Figures for 2011 Census: Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 February 2014.
  2. ↑ Wilson, John Marius (1870–72). Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales. Edinburgh: A. Fullarton & Co. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  3. ↑ "Stonham Aspal village history". Stonham Aspal Village Pages 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  4. ↑ "Key to English Place names". The University of Nottingham. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  5. ↑ "Stonham Aspal Village History". Stonham Aspal Village Pages 2006. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  6. ↑ "1881 Occupational Orders". A Vision of Britain. Retrieved 22 February 2014.
  7. ↑ "Open Domesday". Professor J.J.N. Palmer, University of Hull. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  8. ↑ "Stonham Aspal National Archives". The National Archive. Retrieved 23 February 2014.
  9. ↑ "Suffolk Registration District". GENUKI. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  10. ↑ "Stonham Aspal Census Tables". A Vision of Britain. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  11. ↑ "Key Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "1881 occupational orders". Vision of Britain. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  13. ↑ "Industry 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
  14. ↑ "Socio-demographic Data". British Streets. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  15. ↑ "Average House Prices". UK Local Area. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  16. ↑ "Stonham Aspal Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Details". The Department for Education. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  17. ↑ "Stonham Aspal Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School Ofsted Report". Ofsted. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  18. ↑ "Postcode Statistics: Stonham Aspal". UK Local Area. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  19. ↑ "Bus and Coach Services". Travel Search. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  20. ↑ "Listed Buildings in Stonham Aspal, Suffolk.". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  21. ↑ "The Ten Bells Inn List Entry". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  22. ↑ "Ten Bells Inn Listing Entry". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 11 March 2014.
  23. ↑ "Information Page". Casamexico. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  24. ↑ Knott, Simon. "St Mary and St Lambert Church - Suffolk Churches". Suffolk Churches. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  25. ↑ Knott, Simon. "St Mary and St Lambert Church". Suffolk Churches. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  26. ↑ "Home Page". The Suffolk Owl Sanctuary. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  27. ↑ "Stonham Aspal WI". The Suffolk East Federation of Women's Institutes. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  28. ↑ "About SEFWI". The Suffolk East Federation of Women's Institutes. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  29. ↑ "Homepage". Stonham Barns. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  30. ↑ "Mid & West Suffolk Show". Families Suffolk. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  31. ↑ "Stonham Aspal FC Profile". Green Un. Retrieved 12 March 2014.
  32. ↑ "Stonham Aspal FC profile". Touchline SIL. Retrieved 12 March 2014.

External links

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