Worleston
Encyclopedia
Cheshire East
Cheshire East is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England.The borough was established in April 2009 as part of the 2009 structural changes to local government in England, by virtue of an order under the Local Government and Public Involvement in...
and the ceremonial county of Cheshire
Cheshire
Cheshire is a ceremonial county in North West England. Cheshire's county town is the city of Chester, although its largest town is Warrington. Other major towns include Widnes, Congleton, Crewe, Ellesmere Port, Runcorn, Macclesfield, Winsford, Northwich, and Wilmslow...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The village lies 2½ miles north of Nantwich
Nantwich
Nantwich is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The town gives its name to the parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich...
and 3 miles west of Crewe
Crewe
Crewe is a railway town within the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. According to the 2001 census the urban area had a population of 67,683...
. The civil parish also includes the settlements of Beambridge, Rease Heath, Mile End and Rookery, with a total population of a little over 400.
History
Ancient parishes of Cheshire
The Ancient Parishes of Cheshire refers to the group of parishes that existed in Cheshire, roughly within the period of 1200–1800. Initially, the ancient parishes had only an ecclesiastical function, but reforms initiated by King Henry VIII, developed by Queen Elizabeth I and expanded by...
of Acton
Acton, Cheshire (ancient parish)
Acton was an ancient parish in the Nantwich Hundred of Cheshire, England.At one time it included the townships of Acton, Aston juxta Mondrum, Austerson, Baddington, Brindley, Burland, Cholmondeston, Edleston, Faddiley, Henhull, Hurleston, Poole, Stoke, Worleston, most of Coole Pilate, parts of...
, and St Mary's Church, Acton
St Mary's Church, Acton
St Mary's Church, Acton is an active Anglican church in Acton, a village to the west of Nantwich, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. A church has been present on this site since before the time of the Domesday Survey. The tower is the...
was the parish church. The small civil parish of Alvaston was added to Worleston in 1899, and part of the parish was transferred to Nantwich in 1936.
Geography and transport
Nearby villages include ActonActon, Cheshire
Acton is a small village and civil parish lying immediately west of the town of Nantwich in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of...
, Aston juxta Mondrum
Aston juxta Mondrum
Aston juxta Mondrum is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is about four miles north of Nantwich. The civil parish also includes part of Worleston village.-History:...
, Willaston
Willaston, Crewe and Nantwich
Willaston is a civil parish and village in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, in north-west England. It has a population of 2,277 people according to the 2001 census. It is approximately three miles west of Crewe town centre and two miles east of Nantwich...
and Wistaston
Wistaston
Wistaston is a civil parish and village in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, in north-west England. It is approximately west of Crewe town centre and east of Nantwich town centre...
. The River Weaver
River Weaver
The River Weaver is a river, navigable in its lower reaches, running in a curving route anti-clockwise across west Cheshire, northern England. Improvements to the river to make it navigable were authorised in 1720 and the work, which included eleven locks, was completed in 1732...
forms the eastern boundary of the parish, with a tributary running east–west across the parish, south of Rookery Hall
Rookery Hall
Rookery Hall is an Elizabethan-style mansion located off the B5074 road near the village of Worleston in Cheshire, England. Dating originally from 1816 but extensively altered in the late 19th century, the hall is listed at grade II...
. Other Weaver tributaries form parts of the south-eastern, western and northern parish boundaries. The Reaseheath College
Reaseheath College
Reaseheath College is a land-based further education college, mainly located in the village of Worleston in Cheshire, England. It opened in 1921....
at Rease Heath has a lake, and there are numerous small meres and ponds scattered across the farmland.
A51 road
The A51 is a road in England running from Kingsbury in Warwickshire to Chester. The road follows the following route:*Kingsbury*Tamworth*Lichfield*Rugeley *Little Haywood*Great Haywood*Weston*Sandon...
runs east–west along the southern boundary of the parish, and the B5074 road runs north–south through it, crossing the tributary of the Weaver at Rookery Bridge. The Crewe
Crewe
Crewe is a railway town within the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. According to the 2001 census the urban area had a population of 67,683...
–Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
railway line crosses the northern tip of the parish. The civil parish has relatively few public footpaths, with none to the east of the B5074; the longest footpath cuts west from the B5074 to Rease Heath.
Demographics
Landmarks
Rookery Hall
Rookery Hall is an Elizabethan-style mansion located off the B5074 road near the village of Worleston in Cheshire, England. Dating originally from 1816 but extensively altered in the late 19th century, the hall is listed at grade II...
, a grade-II-listed mansion dating from 1816, is located off the B5074 near Worleston village; it is now a hotel and restaurant. The Royal Oak public house, on the B5074 in Worleston village, is a timber-framed building dating originally from the 1730s.
The small settlement of Rease Heath (also spelled Reaseheath), adjacent to Nantwich
Nantwich
Nantwich is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The town gives its name to the parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich...
, contains Reaseheath College
Reaseheath College
Reaseheath College is a land-based further education college, mainly located in the village of Worleston in Cheshire, England. It opened in 1921....
, as well as the grade-II-listed Rease Heath Old Hall, an L-shaped farmhouse in red brick dating from the late 18th century. A moated site at Rease Heath is a scheduled ancient monument
Scheduled Ancient Monument
In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a 'nationally important' archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorized change. The various pieces of legislation used for legally protecting heritage assets from damage and destruction are grouped under the term...
.
Places of worship
Aston juxta Mondrum
Aston juxta Mondrum is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is about four miles north of Nantwich. The civil parish also includes part of Worleston village.-History:...
civil parish). A major fire in 1997 damaged the roof, chancel and organ loft; the church has since been restored. St Oswald's has been administered since 1991 as a united benefice, the Cross Country Group of Parish Churches, with St Mary's, Acton
St Mary's Church, Acton
St Mary's Church, Acton is an active Anglican church in Acton, a village to the west of Nantwich, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building. A church has been present on this site since before the time of the Domesday Survey. The tower is the...
, St Bartholomew's, Church Minshull
St Bartholomew's Church, Church Minshull
St Bartholomew's Church, Church Minshull is in the village of Church Minshull, Cheshire, England. It has been designated by English Heritage as a Grade II* listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the diocese of Chester, the archdeaconry of Macclesfield and the deanery of...
, and St David's, Wettenhall
Wettenhall
Wettenhall is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The village lies 3½ miles to the south west of Winsford and 6 miles to the north west of Crewe. The parish also includes the settlements of Chapel Green and Woodside...
. It falls into the rural deanery of Nantwich
Nantwich
Nantwich is a market town and civil parish in the Borough of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. The town gives its name to the parliamentary constituency of Crewe and Nantwich...
and the diocese of Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
. Since 2007, the vicar has been the Reverend Peter Lillicrap. A magazine, Cross Country, is circulated across all four churches.
Worleston Methodist Chapel was founded in 1871 and closed in 1969.
Education
The village is served by the nearby St Oswald's CE Primary School , originally Worleston National School, on Church Road, Aston juxta MondrumAston juxta Mondrum
Aston juxta Mondrum is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. It is about four miles north of Nantwich. The civil parish also includes part of Worleston village.-History:...
.