Selston is a large 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 Ashfield District of

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

, England. It is situated 12 miles (19.3 km) north-northwest of Nottingham and close to the border with

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

. The village is located between the towns of Kirkby-in-Ashfield,

Sutton-in-Ashfield Sutton-in-Ashfield is a market town in Nottinghamshire, England, with a population of 36,404 in 2021. It is the largest town in the district of Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, Ashfield, four miles west of Mansfield, from the Derbyshire border and ...

, Eastwood, Alfreton,

Heanor Heanor (/ˈhiːnə/) is a town in the Amber Valley district of Derbyshire, England. It lies north-east of Derby and forms, with the adjacent village of Loscoe, the civil parishes in England, civil parish and town council-administered area of He ...

and Ripley. At the time of the 2001 census Selston Parish (which includes the settlements of Underwood, Jacksdale, Westwood, Bagthorpe, New Selston and Selston proper) had a population of 12,208 increasing to 12,596 at the 2011 census, and 12,240 for the 2021 census. Selston is bounded by

Underwood Underwood may refer to: People *Underwood (surname), people with the surname Places Australia *Underwood, Queensland, a suburb of Logan City, Australia *Underwood, Tasmania, a locality United Kingdom *Underwood, Devon, a List of United Kingdom ...

to the south, Annesley to the east, and the

border to the west. St Helen's Church dates back to 1150 AD although the exterior of the church was altered by restoration and enlargement in 1899. An older

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

church is thought to have occupied the site, and there is a

monolith A monolith is a geological feature consisting of a single massive stone or rock, such as some mountains. Erosion usually exposes the geological formations, which are often made of very hard and solid igneous or metamorphic rock. Some monolit ...

in the church yard, which may have been of ceremonial importance for pre-Christian

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

s. There is also a community church. The village is part of Nottinghamshire's Hidden Valleys area. The local

five-a-side football Five-a-side football is a version of minifootball, in which each team fields five players (four Outfield#In association football, outfield players and a goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper). Other differences from association football ...

pitch, on the site of the Leisure Centre, was opened by

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is a professional association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Founde ...

legends, Stuart Pearce and Colin Cooper. Since the year 2000 new housing estates have been built in Selston as more families requested to live in the area. The last trace of the Holland Family, responsible for the building of Matthew Holland School in Selston, was removed when David Holland, great grandson of Matthew, sold his greengrocer's shop. It was demolished in 2005. In 2006 the Matthew Holland School, having become a

specialist school Specialist schools, also known as specialised schools or specialized schools, are schools which specialise in a certain area or field of curriculum. In some countries, for example New Zealand, the term is used exclusively for schools specialis ...

with Visual Arts status, changed its name to the Selston Arts and Community College, and then again a few years later to Selston High School, though remaining a

comprehensive school A comprehensive school is a secondary school for pupils aged 11–16 or 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is restricted on the basis ...

. One notable resident of Selston was Stephen Cox Wood Sr, who was born in the village in 1873 before his emigration to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

as a young man. Wood's great-great-grandchildren are the American singers and songwriters

Finneas O'Connell Finneas Baird O'Connell (born July 30, 1997), also known mononymously by his first name (sometimes stylized in all caps), is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actor. The recipient of numerous accolades, he has written and pro ...

and Billie O'Connell (best known by her stage name

Billie Eilish Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell ( ; born December 18, 2001) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained public attention in 2015 with her debut single "Ocean Eyes (song), Ocean Eyes", written and produced by her broth ...

References

External links

YouTube video - parish visit journal

jacksdaleandselstoncommunitychurch.com
- local community church Villages in Nottinghamshire Ashfield District {{Nottinghamshire, state=expanded Civil parishes in Nottinghamshire

See also

References

External links