Ashill (pronounced ''Ash- ill '') is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

in the English

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

Norfolk Norfolk ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in England, located in East Anglia and officially part of the East of England region. It borders Lincolnshire and The Wash to the north-west, the North Sea to the north and eas ...

. The village is between Watton and

Swaffham Swaffham () is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Breckland District and England, English county of Norfolk. It is situated east of King's Lynn and west of Norwich. The civil parish has an area of and in the U ...

Parish

The civil parish has an area of 12.26 square kilometres and in the 2001 census had a population of 1,426 in 634 households. Update from 2021 census the population as increased to 1, 508. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

Breckland Breckland in Norfolk and Suffolk is a 39,433 hectare Special Protection Area (SPA) under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. The SPA partly overlaps the 7,544 hectare Breckland Special Area of Conservation. As a la ...

.Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001)
Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes
'

History

Ashill was originally called Asleigh, which meant a clearing in the Ash wood. The parish church of St Nicholas dates from the 14th century and stands close to the group of houses that form the oldest part of the village. The village centres on the green and a duck pond. Drovers travelling to

market would stay overnight on the green, using a shed as accommodation, whilst their cattle grazed on the green and drank from the pond.

Community

School

The original school was built using funds from Rev. Bartholomew Edwards and opened in 1848. Bartholomew was the longest-serving incumbent of a single parish, totalling 76 years in Ashill, from 1813 to 1889. The

National Society for Promoting Religious Education The National Society (Church of England and Church in Wales) for the Promotion of Education, often just referred to as the National Society, and since 2016 also as The Church of England Education Office (CEEO), is significant in the history of ed ...

built an adjoining classroom and school house in 1876 and the school name was changed to Ashill National School. The school house was taken over by Norfolk Education committee in 1957, however, this was subsequently sold on again in 1979. It was once the headquarters for the local St John Ambulance division, but has been renovated into a house. The present school building, housing Ashill Voluntary Controlled Primary School, was opened by the Bishop of Lynn, The Right Reverend David Bentley, in 1989 and caters for 119 pupils.

Shops

The local Post Office has closed, but the village has a local shop.

Amenities

The Community Centre complex was completed in the 1970s and provides Ashill with the main event hall, with a large grassed playing field for sporting activities with tennis court, basketball court and MUGA equipment as well as children's swings etc. It also houses recycling bottle and clothes banks. The Village Aid's Call-in centre was converted from the village coal store next to the pond and operates as a drop-in centre for the local community. Allotments are available from the Parish Council for a moderate rent. Ashill has facilities that cater for a wide age-range from a Toddlers club, the bowls club (indoor and outdoor) was operated from the Old Hall Leisure Centre, however, this has been closed in 2020 and both bowls clubs are seeking alternative venues in the village as at February 2021. The Hall remains open. The Lodge Care Home for the elderly is under extensive renovation with new wings being added. The Ashill Recycling Centre is open all year and operates a very good system, covering almost all waste items.

The village has its own free monthly newsletter, Ashlink Magazine, which contains local notices, announcements, detail on local events, clubs, societies and submissions from local residents.

Churches

;Anglican The parish church of St Nicholas originates from the 14th century but also features many aspects from more recent times. The north windows hold some 15th-century mediaeval glass, the chancel features 19th-century glass by

Lavers, Barraud and Westlake Lavers, Barraud and Westlake were an English firm that produced stained glass windows from 1855 until 1921. They were part of the 19th-century Gothic Revival movement that had a significant influence on English civic, ecclesiastical and domestic a ...

, whilst the roof is of 17th-century origin. The current incumbent is the Rev Jane Atkins. Bell ringing practise takes place on a Thursday night – new ringers always welcome. ;Anglican – Missionary Congregation (Extra Parishional) There is also a Charismatic Anglican congregation present in the village that operates outside of the parish system but is still a member of the Church of England. It was first planted in 1997 after a controversy over the removal of the pews to allow more room in St. Nicolas. The church moved between local community centres before buying a garage in Ashill and converting it into what is now the Well Christian Centre. The Well is not actually owned by the church but by a separate charity named "Cornerstone Building Trust" as it was decided on theological grounds it better not to be tied to just one property but have the freedom to move if need be. The church facilitates Mid Norfolk Kidzklub, folYOUTH, Intents Festival, Good companions, Women Together as well as being the founding member of the Fountain Network. The congregation is reasonably diverse in relation to the local demographics and in late 2012 saw 250–300 people on a regular Sunday morning. ;Brethren ;Methodist Ashill Methodist Church is a 92-year-old brickwork building situated in Hale Road. The chapel has now closed and is being converted to a residential building.

References

External links

Information from Genuki Norfolk
on Ashill.

1883 Kelly's Directory entry for Ashill, 1883, p.229
* {{authority control Villages in Norfolk Civil parishes in Norfolk Breckland District