Willowby is a lightly populated locality in the

Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, situated in the heart of the City of Canterbury local government district of Kent, England. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. ...

region of New Zealand's

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

. It is situated in Mid-Canterbury, south of Ashburton, the major town of the area. Other nearby settlements include Hinds and

Lynnford Lynnford is a lightly populated locality in the Mid-Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island. It is situated between Hinds and Eiffelton on the banks of the Hinds River, which reaches the Pacific Ocean not far to the southeast, between t ...

to the southwest,

Eiffelton Eiffelton is a lightly populated locality in the Mid-Canterbury region of New Zealand's South Island. Geography Eiffelton is situated on the Canterbury Plains near the Hinds River, which reaches the Pacific Ocean in nearby Longbeach. The ...

to the south, and

Huntingdon Huntingdon is a market town in the Huntingdonshire district in Cambridgeshire, England. The town was given its town charter by King John in 1205. It was the county town of the historic county of Huntingdonshire. Oliver Cromwell was born there ...

to the east.

Demographics

Willowby is part of the Eiffelton statistical area.

Economy

The primary economic activity around Willowby is

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

Education

Until 2000, primary education was provided by Willowby School. That year, three local schools merged to form Longbeach School, which is situated at the former site of Willowby School. It caters for students in years 1-8 and has 120 pupils and five teachers.Longbeach School
"About Us"
Retrieved 22 January 2008.

Environment

Willowby is located on the Canterbury Plains between the

Ashburton River / Hakatere The Ashburton River / Hakatere is a river in the Canterbury region of New Zealand, flowing across Mid Canterbury from the Southern Alps to the Pacific Ocean. The official name of the river was amended to become a dual name by the Ngāi Tahu Claims ...

and Rangitata rivers. The

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

is a short distance away, with Eiffelton and Waterton between Willowby and the coastline. At the turn of the 21st century, local efforts were improving the quality of Willowby's environment. A barren shingle pit was converted into the Willowby Community Reserve, and other projects have been undertaken with the assistance of local government.Ministry for the Environment
"Busting waste benefits Willowby community"
Retrieved 22 January 2008.

Religion

Willowby formerly had its own

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 ...

church. It was founded in 1876 and closed in 1992. Its stained glass windows are now at the Baring Square Methodist church in Ashburton, and a tapestry created by a member of Willowby Methodist Church to celebrate its centenary in 1976 was given to Tinwald's Methodist church.June Barrett
"Preserving History"
''Ashburton Online''. Retrieved 22 January 2008.

Services

Willowby has its own volunteer rural

fire fighting Firefighting is the act of extinguishing or preventing the spread of unwanted fires from threatening human lives and destroying property and the environment. A person who engages in firefighting is known as a firefighter. Firefighters typicall ...

unit. It covers a catchment between the Ashburton and Hinds rivers and was founded to serve the local farming community, especially during dry summers. It has 21 members, and as part of the national rural fire service, it can provide assistance and back-up to other volunteer units in the surrounding region.Heather Chalmers
"Long Service Recognised"
''Ashburton Guardian'' (11 December 2007).

Transport

Willowby is situated off major transport routes.

State Highway 1 The following highways are numbered 1. For roads numbered A1, see list of A1 roads. For roads numbered B1, see list of B1 roads. For roads numbered M1, see List of M1 roads. For roads numbered N1, see list of N1 roads. For roads numbere ...

and the Main South Line

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

pass nearby, through

Winslow Winslow may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Winslow, Buckinghamshire, England, a market town and civil parish * Winslow Rural District, Buckinghamshire, a rural district from 1894 to 1974 United States and Canada * Rural Municipality of Winslo ...

to the northwest.

References

{{Ashburton District, New Zealand Ashburton District Populated places in Canterbury, New Zealand