Balsham
Encyclopedia
Balsham is a rural village
and civil parish in the county of Cambridgeshire
, United Kingdom
which has much expanded since the 1960s and is now one of several dormitory settlements of Cambridge
. The village is south east of the centre of Cambridge beyond the A11 road and also within comfortable driving distance of Newmarket and Haverhill
where many residents work and shop.
raiders. A sign on the village green commemorates the sole survivor of the attack who escaped by hiding in the parish church.
s were added during this building phase and probably date from 1400. A rood loft was added in the latter half of the 15th century, and the chancel roof was raised with its clerestory being added at the same time.
At some (unrecorded) time between the dissolution of the monasteries and the end of the Commonwealth, 17 of the misericords were removed, leaving nine. In the 19th century one misericord was added which may be the work of Canon H.J.S. Burrell, a former vicar who was a noted woodcarver.
The 19th century saw some extensive renovation, with the roofs being renewed, and the clerestories being repaired. A vestry was added on the north side in 1867, and further restoration was carried out in 1875.
Further works have been carried out in the 20th century, with the addition of a chapel in the north aisle, containing an Elizabethan altar table. In 1973 the bell tower was strengthened.
There are some pictures and a description of the church at the Cambridgeshire Churches website .
James Paice
. At the 2005 general election
, the Conservatives won a majority of 8,624 and 26,374 votes in the constituency. The Liberal Democrats
won 17,750 votes and Labour
11,936.
Balsham is in the South Cambridgeshire local government district. The village is part of a ward that also comprises Carlton
, Castle Camps
, Horseheath
, Shudy Camps, West Wickham, West Wratting
and Weston Colville. As at the 2007 local elections
, the two seats on the district council were held by the Conservatives.
and Suffolk
. The town is 9 miles (14 km) south east of the city of Cambridge
. The larger village of Linton
is to the west, and smaller villages of West Wickham and West Wratting lie to the south and east.
The village is sited on a ridge which runs from east to west, reaching 380 feet (116 m) at its eastern edge. From the village, the ground falls away to open countryside.
, the Balsham parish had a population of 1,641.
opposite the village green.
. Buses run approximately every two hours between Haverhill and Cambridge. The A11 road runs within 2 miles (3 km) of Balsham, providing easy links to Stansted Airport and London
. The nearest railway stations to Balsham are and on the West Anglia Main Line
to , and which connects several lines including the Hitchin-Cambridge Line to .
.
, and bowls
teams.
is published each afternoon and occasionally contains news about the village, while the Haverhill Echo appears every Thursday and offers more comprehensive coverage. The Saffron Walden Reporter is a free newspaper delivered weekly to every residence in the village, and is the main source of local property listings. Balsham Review is a monthly parish magazine with local news, sporting reports, and advertisements. Local radio stations include BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
and Heart Cambridge. There is no cable television
in the village, but broadband internet access is available in the form of ADSL
.
Village
A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet with the population ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand , Though often located in rural areas, the term urban village is also applied to certain urban neighbourhoods, such as the West Village in Manhattan, New...
and civil parish in the county of Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire is a county in England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the northeast, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to the west...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
which has much expanded since the 1960s and is now one of several dormitory settlements of Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. The village is south east of the centre of Cambridge beyond the A11 road and also within comfortable driving distance of Newmarket and Haverhill
Haverhill, Suffolk
Haverhill is an industrial market town and civil parish in the county of Suffolk, England, next to the borders of Essex and Cambridgeshire. It lies southeast of Cambridge and north of central London...
where many residents work and shop.
History
In 1010, Balsham was totally destroyed by VikingViking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
raiders. A sign on the village green commemorates the sole survivor of the attack who escaped by hiding in the parish church.
Holy Trinity Church
The current church has a mix of dates, with the bell tower being the oldest part, dating from the 13th century. The chancel dates from the early 14th century, whilst the nave with its clerestory dates from the late 14th - the 26 stalls with their misericordMisericord
A misericord is a small wooden shelf on the underside of a folding seat in a church, installed to provide a degree of comfort for a person who has to stand during long periods of prayer.-Origins:...
s were added during this building phase and probably date from 1400. A rood loft was added in the latter half of the 15th century, and the chancel roof was raised with its clerestory being added at the same time.
At some (unrecorded) time between the dissolution of the monasteries and the end of the Commonwealth, 17 of the misericords were removed, leaving nine. In the 19th century one misericord was added which may be the work of Canon H.J.S. Burrell, a former vicar who was a noted woodcarver.
The 19th century saw some extensive renovation, with the roofs being renewed, and the clerestories being repaired. A vestry was added on the north side in 1867, and further restoration was carried out in 1875.
Further works have been carried out in the 20th century, with the addition of a chapel in the north aisle, containing an Elizabethan altar table. In 1973 the bell tower was strengthened.
There are some pictures and a description of the church at the Cambridgeshire Churches website .
Governance
Since 1987, the Member of Parliament for South East Cambridgeshire, covering Balsham and surrounding towns and villages, has been the ConservativeConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
James Paice
James Paice
James Edward Thornton "Jim" Paice MP is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He is the Member of Parliament for South East Cambridgeshire, and was first elected in the 1987 general election...
. At the 2005 general election
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....
, the Conservatives won a majority of 8,624 and 26,374 votes in the constituency. The Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
won 17,750 votes and Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
11,936.
Balsham is in the South Cambridgeshire local government district. The village is part of a ward that also comprises Carlton
Carlton, Cambridgeshire
Carlton is a village near the eastern boundary of the county of Cambridgeshire in the east of England. It is in the civil district of South Cambridgeshire.There are some pictures and a description of the church at the Cambridgeshire Churches website....
, Castle Camps
Castle Camps (village)
Castle Camps is a village in Cambridgeshire, England, south-east of Cambridge and near to the borders of Suffolk and Essex and to the town of Haverhill....
, Horseheath
Horseheath
Horseheath is a hamlet in Cambridgeshire, England, situated a few miles south-east of Cambridge, between Linton and Haverhill, on the A1307 road....
, Shudy Camps, West Wickham, West Wratting
West Wratting
West Wratting is a village and civil parish 10 miles southeast of Cambridge in Cambridgeshire. At above sea level, it can claim to be the highest village in Cambridgeshire, although the Gog Magog Hills are a little higher....
and Weston Colville. As at the 2007 local elections
United Kingdom local elections, 2007
The 2007 UK local government elections were held on 3 May 2007. These elections took place in most of England and all of Scotland. There were no local government elections in Wales though the Welsh Assembly had a general election on the same day. There were no local government elections in Northern...
, the two seats on the district council were held by the Conservatives.
Geography
Balsham is located at 52°7′54"N 0°19′22"E in south east Cambridgeshire, near the county boundaries with EssexEssex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
and Suffolk
Suffolk
Suffolk is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in East Anglia, England. It has borders with Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south. The North Sea lies to the east...
. The town is 9 miles (14 km) south east of the city of Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
. The larger village of Linton
Linton, Cambridgeshire
Linton is a village in rural Cambridgeshire, England, on the border with Essex. It has been expanded much since the 1960s and is now one of many dormitory villages around Cambridge. The railway station was on the Stour Valley Railway between Cambridge and Colchester, now closed. The Rivey Hill...
is to the west, and smaller villages of West Wickham and West Wratting lie to the south and east.
The village is sited on a ridge which runs from east to west, reaching 380 feet (116 m) at its eastern edge. From the village, the ground falls away to open countryside.
Demography
As of the 2001 censusUnited Kingdom Census 2001
A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK Census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194....
, the Balsham parish had a population of 1,641.
Landmarks
Prince's Memorial is a full-sized bandstandBandstand
A bandstand is a circular or semicircular structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts...
opposite the village green.
Transport
There is a limited local bus service running through the village operated by StagecoachStagecoach Group
Stagecoach Group plc is an international transport group operating buses, trains, trams, express coaches and ferries. The group was founded in 1980 by the current chairman, Sir Brian Souter, his sister, Ann Gloag, and her former husband Robin...
. Buses run approximately every two hours between Haverhill and Cambridge. The A11 road runs within 2 miles (3 km) of Balsham, providing easy links to Stansted Airport and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The nearest railway stations to Balsham are and on the West Anglia Main Line
West Anglia Main Line
The West Anglia Main Line is one of the two main lines which run from London Liverpool Street, the other being the Great Eastern Main Line. It runs generally north from London, through the towns of Cheshunt, Broxbourne, Harlow, Bishop's Stortford and Audley End station before reaching Cambridge,...
to , and which connects several lines including the Hitchin-Cambridge Line to .
Education
The Meadow Community Primary School on the High Street provides for primary school children aged from 4 to 11. The school had 288 pupils as of 2007. Children from the surrounding villages West Wratting, West Wickham, and Weston Colville also attend the school, travelling there by bus. Children of secondary school age travel to nearby Linton Village CollegeLinton Village College
Linton Village College is a comprehensive Community College with foundation and Business and Enterprise College status in Linton, South Cambridgeshire. - Feeder schools :From the ages of 4 to 11, pupils are educated at their local village primary schools...
.
Culture and sports
The Church Institute used to host a number of groups and societies. However, in recent years, the Women's Institute and local pantomime groups are more likely to meet at the school. The Holy Trinity Church holds two services every Sunday and communion every Wednesday. The church also plays host to two yearly concerts by the village choir, the Balsham Singers The village has a large recreation ground and bowling green used by football, cricketCricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
, and bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
teams.
Media
Balsham is covered by several local newspapers. The Cambridge Evening NewsCambridge Evening News
The Cambridge News is a British daily newspaper published each weekday and on Saturdays. It is distributed from its parent company Cambridge Newspapers Ltd's Milton base which was opened in 1991 as a print works, and became the Evening News main operational hub in 1998...
is published each afternoon and occasionally contains news about the village, while the Haverhill Echo appears every Thursday and offers more comprehensive coverage. The Saffron Walden Reporter is a free newspaper delivered weekly to every residence in the village, and is the main source of local property listings. Balsham Review is a monthly parish magazine with local news, sporting reports, and advertisements. Local radio stations include BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire is the BBC Local Radio service for the English county of Cambridgeshire. It originally broadcast from studios on Hills Road close to the train station in Cambridge - which have now moved to a new multi-million pound centre at the Cambridge Business Park on Cowley Road - ...
and Heart Cambridge. There is no cable television
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
in the village, but broadband internet access is available in the form of ADSL
Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line
Asymmetric digital subscriber line is a type of digital subscriber line technology, a data communications technology that enables faster data transmission over copper telephone lines than a conventional voiceband modem can provide. It does this by utilizing frequencies that are not used by a voice...
.
External links
- Cambridgeshire County Council
- South Cambridgeshire District Council
- http://www.choirsites.co.uk/balshamsingers/