Taverham 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 below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority ...
in
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
, in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. It is approximately 5 miles (8 km) north-west of
Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the See of Norwich, with ...
. Taverham sits on the
River Wensum
The River Wensum is a chalk river in Norfolk, England and a tributary of the River Yare, despite being the larger of the two rivers. The river is a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest and Special Area of Conservation.
The Wensum is ...
. Taverham forms part the wider
Norwich Built-up area.
In 2001, Taverham had a population of 10,233. It has seen recent population growth with the building of
Thorpe Marriott, a new residential development that straddles the boundary with the neighbouring village of
Drayton. The patron saint of Taverham is
St Walstan
Walstan (recorded as Walston in some sources) was an Anglo-Saxon prince, known for the miracles which occurred during and after his life after he became a farm worker. He is a patron saint of farm animals and agricultural workers, who once v ...
who according to legend lived and worked in the village in the 11th century. By 2013, the area of Taverham had an approximate population of 14,121.
Amenities
Taverham has two state run infant schools: Ghost Hill Infant and Nursery School, and Nightingale First School, and a public (privately owned) prep school: Taverham Hall School. Taverham Junior School (formerly St Edmund's Middle School and Taverham Middle School) educates children between the ages of 7 and 11 years.
Taverham High School
Taverham High School is a secondary school and sixth form with Academy (English school), academy status, located in Taverham in the English county of Norfolk. As well as serving Taverham, the school has a catchment area (human geography), catchme ...
, as well as serving Taverham, has a
catchment area
In human geography, a catchment area is the area from which a location, such as a city, service or institution, attracts a population that uses its services and economic opportunities. Catchment areas may be defined based on from where people are ...
that includes the adjoining villages of
Felthorpe
Felthorpe is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is located east of Dereham and north-west of Norwich.
History
Felthorpe's name is of mixed Anglo-Saxon and Viking origin and derives from an amalgamation of ...
and
Ringland.
There are a variety of small shops in Taverham, and the Taverham Nursery Centre has a large selection of shops (such as craft,
jewellery
Jewellery ( UK) or jewelry (U.S.) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes. From a wester ...
, paper, kitchenary, pine furniture etc.).
Taverham also has a village hall, library, recreational ground (park), church, scout and guide hut (which also serves as the home of the local day-care centre), several takeaway shops and two pubs: the ''Silver Fox'' and, in Thorpe Marriott, the ''Otter''. Set in woodland on the Ringland Road, Taverham, is ''Roundwood'', an indoor bowling centre with bar and function room.
Taverham Brass Band is based in the village, providing entertainment across Norfolk and beyond, and performing at the bi-annual "Proms in the Park" concert "Exploding Brass!" held at Taverham Hall. 2004 was the band's 30th anniversary year, with the first of the October concerts (15 October 2004) falling exactly 30 years to the day from the inaugural committee meeting.
2015 saw the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Taverham Newsletter. The Newsletter which is run by volunteers is delivered free also by volunteers to all the homes and businesses in Taverham.
Church of St. Edmund
![Taverham-g2](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fb/Taverham-g2.jpg)
Parts of
St Edmund's Church are believed to be pre-
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
- part of the
nave
The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...
, and the slightly later base of the tower, also notable for its round body but octagonal top, where it had to be rebuilt. It is a Grade I
listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
. A church was standing in Taverham in 1086 when it was listed in the
Domesday
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
survey.
History
The villages name means 'Red homestead/village', perhaps referring to some decoration or a place where
pigment
A pigment is a colored material that is completely or nearly insoluble in water. In contrast, dyes are typically soluble, at least at some stage in their use. Generally dyes are often organic compounds whereas pigments are often inorganic compo ...
was made. The exact location of the meeting-place of the Taverham hundred is unknown.
The first recorded mention of Taverham is thought to have been made in the time of
Edward the Confessor
Edward the Confessor ; la, Eduardus Confessor , ; ( 1003 – 5 January 1066) was one of the last Anglo-Saxon English kings. Usually considered the last king of the House of Wessex, he ruled from 1042 to 1066.
Edward was the son of Æth ...
. It also appears in the
Domesday Book
Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
.
A school existed in Taverham very early on, from at least the 13th century.
In the 19th century Taverham was a major producer of
paper
Paper is a thin sheet material produced by mechanically or chemically processing cellulose fibres derived from wood, rags, grasses or other vegetable sources in water, draining the water through fine mesh leaving the fibre evenly distributed ...
. Some of the paper which was produced at Taverham Mill was used in producing ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
'',
Bank of England
The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government of ...
banknotes and the ''
Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a com ...
''. It also served the
University Press
A university press is an academic publishing house specializing in monographs and scholarly journals. Most are nonprofit organizations and an integral component of a large research university. They publish work that has been reviewed by scholars ...
at
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...
. In 1830 the paper mill, the property of the Ansted family and under the management of John Burgess, husband of Elizabeth Ansted, was attacked during the
Swing Riots; a gardener, Robert West, was
transported to Australia
Between 1788 and 1868, about 162,000 convicts were transported from Britain and Ireland to various penal colonies in Australia.
The British Government began transporting convicts overseas to American colonies in the early 18th century. When ...
for his part in the riot. The mill closed in 1899.
On 5 October 1944, a
V-2 rocket
The V-2 (german: Vergeltungswaffe 2, lit=Retaliation Weapon 2), with the technical name ''Aggregat 4'' (A-4), was the world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed ...
exploded in woods near Taverham.
[https://www.v2rocket.com/start/deployment/timeline.html Timeline of V2 rocket strikes Oct 1944)]
Local government representation
Taverham is part of Broadland District and is represented on Broadland District Council by four councillors covering two electoral wards. Taverham South Ward covers everything south of the Fakenham Road except Cypress Close and Highland Road. Taverham North Ward includes much of Thorpe Marriott, all of the parts of Taverham that are on the Fakenham Road and north of it, plus Highland Road and Cypress Close.
Taverham also has a county councillor representing the Taverham electoral division. This includes all of the Parish of Taverham.
Notable residents
* As well as St. Walstan, the successful singer and songwriter
Cathy Dennis
Catherine Roseanne Dennis (born 25 March 1969)Gregory, Andy (2002) ''International Who's Who in Popular Music 2002'', Europa; , p. 133 is a British singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She was the vocalist for D Mob, which had the su ...
, and the
tennis
Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent ( singles) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball ...
player and
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
all lived in Taverham.
hails from Taverham. She has won Silver and Bronze Paralympic medals and Bronze in world championships.