Wokefield

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Wokefield
Hamlet and civil parish
Wokefield Park, Manor House - geograph.org.uk - 23954.jpg
Wokefield Park
Berkshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Wokefield
Location within Berkshire
Population416 (2011 Census) [1]
OS grid reference SU677660
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town READING
Postcode district RG7
Dialling code 0118
Police Thames Valley
Fire Royal Berkshire
Ambulance South Central
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Berkshire
51°23′39″N1°01′33″W / 51.394138°N 1.025798°W / 51.394138; -1.025798 Coordinates: 51°23′39″N1°01′33″W / 51.394138°N 1.025798°W / 51.394138; -1.025798

Wokefield is a hamlet and civil parish in the West Berkshire district of Berkshire, England, south of Reading. The parish includes the hamlets of Goddard's Green and Bloomfield Hatch. It also includes part of the former parish of Sulhamstead and Grazeley.

Contents

Geography

To the north of the parish are Burghfield and Burghfield Common, to the east is Shinfield, and to the south are Stratfield Mortimer and Mortimer Common. It lies between 40 m (130 ft) and 95 m (312 ft) above sea level.

Wokefield Common

Wokefield Common - Pine Forest May 2017 Wokefield Common - Pine Forest May 2017.jpg
Wokefield Common - Pine Forest May 2017

Wokefield Common is an area of mixed woodland on the northern border of the parish. It has been declared a Wildlife Heritage Site by West Berkshire Council's Countryside Service, and is described as a quiet site with a network of paths leading through tall pine and broadleaf woodland, ponds, small areas of heather and rich wet gullies. Of particular significance are the heathland areas which support rare species including slowworms, grass snakes and adders. [2] The 60-hectare (0.60 km2) site is jointly managed by the Countryside Service, the landowner and Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. [3] The main entrance is on Goring Lane on the outskirts of Burghfield. [4] Several public bridleways and public footpaths cross the common.[ citation needed ] There are several smaller woods and coppices, including Pitchkettle Wood, Rookery Wood, Bell Copse and Pond Wood. Much of the rest of the parish is agricultural and there are several farms in the parish.[ citation needed ]

Watercourses

Burghfield Brook lies at the northern border of Wokefield Common. A feature of this watercourse is Pullens Pond, formed where the brook is dammed by a forest access road within the common. To the east of this area the brook continues into a small valley, Burghfield Slade, which contains a larger reservoir. It then continues to the northeast, leaving the parish, and feeds into Foudry Brook. Lockram Brook runs northeast through the parish via Millbarn Pond, joining Burghfield Brook near Grazeley Green.

Wokefield Park

The 18th-century mansion of Wokefield Park was the home of Alfred Palmer in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It later served as St Benedict's School before becoming a community home. It is now a hotel and conference centre with its own golf course. [5] The building is a Grade II* listed building. [6]

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Pingewood is a hamlet in the civil parish of Burghfield, to the south of Reading, in the English county of Berkshire. It lies to the Southwest of Burghfield Bridge The name Pingewood derives from the old Celtic word 'pen' meaning head, peak, tip or end. The 'ge' is a contraction of the Celtic word for wood, 'coed'. When the Saxons moved into the area in the 5th century, they did not understand the meaning and added their own descriptive word 'wood' on the end.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foudry Brook</span> River in Hampshire and Berkshire, England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wokefield Park</span> 18th-century country house in Berkshire, England

Wokefield Park is an 18th-century country house, situated in the parish of Wokefield, near Mortimer, in the English county of Berkshire. It is currently run as an events venue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sulhamstead</span> Village and civil parish in England

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Burghfield is a village and large civil parish in West Berkshire, England, with a boundary with Reading. Burghfield can trace its history back to before the Domesday book, and was once home to three manors: Burghfield Regis, Burghfield Abbas and Sheffield. Since the 1980s the population of Burghfield has nearly doubled with the construction of many new housing estates, making it a dormitory for Reading, Newbury, Basingstoke and the M4 corridor which crosses the north of the parish.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blakenhall, Cheshire</span> Human settlement in England

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grazeley</span> Human settlement in England

Grazeley is an area covering the small villages of Grazeley in the civil parish of Shinfield and Grazeley Green in the civil parish of Wokefield, 4 miles (6.4 km) south of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. To the east is the village of Spencers Wood, to the west is Wokefield and to the south is Beech Hill.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goddard's Green, Berkshire</span> Hamlet in England

Goddard's Green is a hamlet and part of the civil parish of Wokefield in Berkshire, England. The settlement lies between the villages of Burghfield Common and Mortimer Common, and is located approximately 5.5 miles (8.9 km) south-east of Reading. The Garth and South Berks Hunt had kennels here until 2002.

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Lockram Brook is a small stream in southern England. It rises near the Berkshire village of Mortimer, and is a tributary of Burghfield Brook.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burghfield Brook</span> River in England

Burghfield Brook is a small stream in southern England. It rises in Wokefield Common between the Berkshire villages of Mortimer and Burghfield Common. It is a tributary of Foudry Brook, which it joins near Hartley Court Farm, just to the south of the M4 motorway.

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Clayhill Brook is a small stream in southern England, in the county of Berkshire.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bucklebury Common</span> Common in Berkshire, UK

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Padworth Common Local Nature Reserve</span>

Padworth Common Local Nature Reserve is a 28-hectare (69-acre) Local Nature Reserve on the edge of the hamlet of Padworth Common, between Reading and Newbury in Berkshire. It is owned by West Berkshire Council and managed by Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.

References

  1. "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
  2. "Burghfield Parish Council Village Design Statement: Consultation Draft: November 2010" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 July 2011. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
  3. "Wokefield Common | Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust". Bbowt.org.uk. 27 August 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  4. "West Berkshire Council - Wokefield Common". www.westberks.gov.uk.
  5. "De Vere Wokfield Estate". De Vere Hotels. Retrieved 27 February 2022.
  6. Historic England (14 April 1967). "St Benedict's School (Grade II*) (1135957)". National Heritage List for England .

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