Collier Street
Encyclopedia
Collier Street is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Maidstone
in Kent
, England
.
The village of Collier Street includes a Church, primary school, village hall, a small business estate and several farms. St. Margaret's church forms the centre of the village and was built between 1847 and 1849. It forms part of a benefice also comprising St. Mary's in Laddingford
and St. Peter & St. Paul in Yalding
. The three villages are located within three miles of each other but Collier Street, once part of Yalding's civil parish, has been part of its own parish since 1999. The civic or civil parish of Collier Street is governed by an elected parish council and was formed following a review by Maidstone Borough Council.
Having been first built in 1860, the Church of England primary school (St. Margaret's CEP) has been enlarged several times, now to accommodate more than 100 pupils. The closest comprehensive secondary school is Mascalls School http://www.mascalls.kent.sch.uk/mascalls and there are several private schools in the area. Ex-pupils of St. Margaret's typically attend Mascalls or one of the various grammar schools in the nearest towns.
The village is in a rural location, but is close to the larger villages of Yalding, Marden
and Horsmonden
. The nearest towns are Paddock Wood
, Maidstone
, Tonbridge
and Royal Tunbridge Wells
. Collier Street itself comprises several older farms or substantial houses which existed before the majority of the village's housing was built in Victorian times, and parts of the village are still named for these houses, for example Spitzbrook and Mockbeggar. Just three old wealden roads make up the main part of the village, the main one of which has no official name but leads from Yalding in the north to Horsmonden in the south.
Historically, the village was situated in the middle of a hop-growing region. Its population swelled during the harvest as whole families, often from South-East London, arrived to help bring in the hops
. However, as foreign hops became cheaper and easier to source nearly all the farms moved to other arable production. Today the fields are home to several fruit and vegetable crops including cherries, pears, strawberries and asparagus, but the area is known more for its apple orchards - the village has been colloquially known in the past as 'The village in an orchard'. Crow Plain Farm, to the north of the village, still grows a substantial volume of hops and has a fully functional gas-fired kiln used to dry the hops. Some of the old hoppers' huts can be found amongst the local orchards, fields and gardens.
The village has a population
of less than 500 and is slightly unusual in having no shop, post office or pub. There were once at least two pubs in the village itself but these are now private residences. There are two pubs within a mile of the village however; The Woolpack in Benover to the north and The White Hart in Claygate to the south. There was once a shop at the far end of Haviker Street, but this wasn't re-instated after a fire in 1994.
Until recently, Collier Street was home to The Boarded Circuit, a Grasstrack
motorcycle racing circuit which held two or three events each season, most notably the International Bonfire Burnup. The circuit was unique in being the only fully boarded permanent Grasstrack venue in the UK. The village is also only a few miles from the Beltring The Hop Farm Country Park
, once a Whitbread farm and brewery, now a family attraction and concert venue.
Maidstone (borough)
Maidstone is a local government district with borough status in Kent, England. Its administrative centre is Maidstone which is also the County town of Kent...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, 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 of Collier Street includes a Church, primary school, village hall, a small business estate and several farms. St. Margaret's church forms the centre of the village and was built between 1847 and 1849. It forms part of a benefice also comprising St. Mary's in Laddingford
Laddingford
Laddingford is a hamlet near the village of Yalding in Kent, England....
and St. Peter & St. Paul in Yalding
Yalding
Yalding is a village and part of Yalding civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England.The village is situated six miles south-west of Maidstone at a point where the Rivers Teise and Beult join the River Medway....
. The three villages are located within three miles of each other but Collier Street, once part of Yalding's civil parish, has been part of its own parish since 1999. The civic or civil parish of Collier Street is governed by an elected parish council and was formed following a review by Maidstone Borough Council.
Having been first built in 1860, the Church of England primary school (St. Margaret's CEP) has been enlarged several times, now to accommodate more than 100 pupils. The closest comprehensive secondary school is Mascalls School http://www.mascalls.kent.sch.uk/mascalls and there are several private schools in the area. Ex-pupils of St. Margaret's typically attend Mascalls or one of the various grammar schools in the nearest towns.
The village is in a rural location, but is close to the larger villages of Yalding, Marden
Marden, Kent
Marden is a village about 13 km south of Maidstone and civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England. The parish is located on the flood plain of the River Beult near Maidstone. It is on the B2079 road linking the A229 Maidstone with the A21 at Flimwell. It has its own railway...
and Horsmonden
Horsmonden
Horsmonden is a village in Kent, on the Weald. It is situated on a road leading from Maidstone to Lamberhurst, three miles north of the latter place. The nearest railway station is Paddock Wood, Horsmonden railway station having closed in 1961.- History :It was an important centre of the medieval...
. The nearest towns are Paddock Wood
Paddock Wood
Paddock Wood is a small town and civil parish in the Borough of Tunbridge Wells and county of Kent in England, about southwest of Maidstone. At the time of the 2001 census it had a population of 8,263, and is the centre for hop growing in Kent.-History:...
, Maidstone
Maidstone
Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...
, Tonbridge
Tonbridge
Tonbridge is a market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30,340 in 2007. It is located on the River Medway, approximately 4 miles north of Tunbridge Wells, 12 miles south west of Maidstone and 29 miles south east of London...
and Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
. Collier Street itself comprises several older farms or substantial houses which existed before the majority of the village's housing was built in Victorian times, and parts of the village are still named for these houses, for example Spitzbrook and Mockbeggar. Just three old wealden roads make up the main part of the village, the main one of which has no official name but leads from Yalding in the north to Horsmonden in the south.
Historically, the village was situated in the middle of a hop-growing region. Its population swelled during the harvest as whole families, often from South-East London, arrived to help bring in the hops
Hops
Hops are the female flower clusters , of a hop species, Humulus lupulus. They are used primarily as a flavoring and stability agent in beer, to which they impart a bitter, tangy flavor, though hops are also used for various purposes in other beverages and herbal medicine...
. However, as foreign hops became cheaper and easier to source nearly all the farms moved to other arable production. Today the fields are home to several fruit and vegetable crops including cherries, pears, strawberries and asparagus, but the area is known more for its apple orchards - the village has been colloquially known in the past as 'The village in an orchard'. Crow Plain Farm, to the north of the village, still grows a substantial volume of hops and has a fully functional gas-fired kiln used to dry the hops. Some of the old hoppers' huts can be found amongst the local orchards, fields and gardens.
The village has a population
Population
A population is all the organisms that both belong to the same group or species and live in the same geographical area. The area that is used to define a sexual population is such that inter-breeding is possible between any pair within the area and more probable than cross-breeding with individuals...
of less than 500 and is slightly unusual in having no shop, post office or pub. There were once at least two pubs in the village itself but these are now private residences. There are two pubs within a mile of the village however; The Woolpack in Benover to the north and The White Hart in Claygate to the south. There was once a shop at the far end of Haviker Street, but this wasn't re-instated after a fire in 1994.
Until recently, Collier Street was home to The Boarded Circuit, a Grasstrack
Grasstrack
Motorcycle Grasstrack is a form of motorcycle racing which typically, in its current form, takes place on a flat track consisting of two straights and two bends usually constructed in a field. Mountain and hillside tracks are also common in the UK, creating more technically demanding circuits...
motorcycle racing circuit which held two or three events each season, most notably the International Bonfire Burnup. The circuit was unique in being the only fully boarded permanent Grasstrack venue in the UK. The village is also only a few miles from the Beltring The Hop Farm Country Park
The Hop Farm Country Park
The Hop Farm Family Park is a Country Park in Beltring, near East Peckham in Kent, England, is over 450 years old, and has the largest collection of oast houses in the world.-History:...
, once a Whitbread farm and brewery, now a family attraction and concert venue.