Thurcaston is a village and former

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 ...

, now in the parish of

Thurcaston and Cropston Thurcaston and Cropston is a civil parish in Leicestershire, England. As its name suggests, it consists of the villages of Thurcaston and Cropston. The parish had a population at the United Kingdom Census 2001, 2001 Census of 2,076,Charnwood district, in

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

, England. It was the home of Bishop

Hugh Latimer Hugh Latimer ( – 16 October 1555) was a Fellow of Clare College, Cambridge, and Bishop of Worcester during the Reformation, and later Church of England chaplain to King Edward VI. In 1555 under the Catholic Queen Mary I he was burned at the s ...

. It borders the villages of Anstey and

Cropston Cropston is a village and former civil parish, now in the parish of Thurcaston and Cropston, part of the Borough of Charnwood in Leicestershire, England. It is on the edge of Charnwood Forest, and lies close to Bradgate Park. In 1931 the parish ...

, as well as the Leicester suburb of

Beaumont Leys Beaumont Leys is a suburb and electoral ward in north-western Leicester, in the Leicester district, in the ceremonial county of Leicestershire, England. The population of the ward at the 2011 census was 16,480. Locally, Beaumont Leys is usual ...

. The

Rothley Brook The Rothley Brook is a left bank tributary of the River Soar in Leicestershire, England. Course It first becomes noticeable after Thornton Reservoir, near the village of Thornton in the National Forest. It then flows through Desford and Ra ...

flows through the village. The A46

Leicester Western Bypass Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

runs close to the village, separating it from

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

, Birstall, and

. The village of Thurcaston has existed since at least the 8th century AD, and includes a church and several old houses, along with a very small

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...

Chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

. In general, there are few commercial properties, but there exists a

pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...

, ''The Wheatsheaf Inn,'' and an electrical showroom, ''Tebbatts Electronics''. There is a single bus service, the 154 run by

Centrebus Centrebus is a bus company based in Leicester operating services in Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland. Centrebus have a 51% shareholding in High Peak Buses and since December 2019 through c ...

at a maximum frequency of every hour. The previous service, the 55, was shut down in the late 2000s. Large fields between the Great Central Railway line and the houses of the residents of Leicester Road form a popular place for walking dogs and horses. A planned housing development is currently being discussed with Charnwood Borough council, upon which will see the erection of up to 50 dwellings, community centre and park, including sustainable drainage system with access off Mill Road, the large area of land is to the east off Mill Road.

Civil parish

On 1 April 1935 the parish of Cropston was merged with Thurcaston, parts of

was also merged, on 7 August 1989 the parish was renamed "Thurcaston & Cropston". In 1931 the parish of Thurcaston (prior to the merge) had a population of 336.

Richard Hill Primary School

The village school is Richard Hill Primary School, which was founded in 1715 by Richard Hill, a resident of the village. Originally Richard Hill Primary School was located further up Anstey Lane but after expansion into the Memorial Hall in the early 1960s, it was moved further towards Leicester Road in 1968, after accepting more students from Cropston and All Saints/Hall Farm Road. It was further extended by the addition of two classrooms in 1970. In recent years Richard Hill has had varied results in League Tables. Thurcaston children go to The Martin High School in the neighbouring village of Anstey from the age of 11 to 16, and

The Cedars Academy The Cedars Academy is a co-educational secondary school and sixth form located in Birstall in the English county of Leicestershire. History The school opened in 1959 as the Longslade Grammar School, which became a comprehensive before 1966. Lo ...

and Rawlins Academy for 11–18.

References

Villages in Leicestershire Former civil parishes in Leicestershire Borough of Charnwood {{Leicestershire-geo-stub