Urchfont

Urchfont is a rural village and civil parish in the southwest of the Vale of Pewsey and north of Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, about southeast of the market town of Devizes. The hamlet of Cuckoo's Corner is in the northwest of the village; the parish includes the hamlets of Wedhampton ( ) and Lydeway ( ). The population of the parish at the 2011 census was 1,075. Urchfont village lies mostly to the north of the B3098 road which connects Market Lavington to the A342 Devizes-Upavon road. The parish narrows as it extends southeast onto Salisbury Plain and into the military training area.

Urchfont is a rural village and civil parish in the southwest of the Vale of Pewsey and north of Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, about southeast of the market town of Devizes. The hamlet of Cuckoo's Corner is in the northwest of the village; the parish includes the hamlets of Wedhampton ( ) and Lydeway ( ). The population of the parish at the 2011 census was 1,075. Urchfont village lies mostly to the north of the B3098 road which connects Market Lavington to the A342 Devizes-Upavon road. The parish narrows as it extends southeast onto Salisbury Plain and into the military training area. ===Origin of the name=== The name of Urchfont is often thought to derive from the phrase "Church Fountain" and is possibly derived from Latin fons meaning 'spring, fountain, well' (cf. fount), or the first element may be a lost personal name such as Eohric. Over 100 variations of the spelling are recorded; e.g. Lerchesfonte (1086), Erchesfonte(e) (1175, 1605), Erkesfonte (1175), Archesfunte (font) (1179, 1376, 1426), Ur(i)chesfunte (1242, 1289), Orchesfunte (1259), Orcheffunte (1428), Archfounte al. Urshent (1564), Urchefount al. Urshent (1611), Urshent al. Erchfont (1695). ==Governance== The civil parish elects a parish council. It is in the area of Wiltshire Council, a unitary authority, which is responsible for all significant local government functions. ==Amenities== There is a primary school, Urchfont C of E Primary School. There is a family-run dental practice, Urchfont Dental Care, offering private and NHS services. The village has tennis courts, a cricket pitch and a skittle alley (within The Lamb Inn pub). Urchfont Cricket Club played in the Wiltshire County Cricket League until 2017, and now play "friendly" matches against local teams. The Wessex Ridgeway long-distance footpath runs north–south through Urchfont village; to the south it turns west to follow the northern scarp of the Plain towards Westbury. ==Notable people== Sergeant Thomas Gray VC was born in Urchfont in 1914¹. An Air Observer/Navigator in the Royal Air Force, he was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross after he was killed in action in 1940. The cricket scorer Bill Frindall (nicknamed 'The Bearded Wonder') lived at Urchfont until his death. Revd. William Noyes (1568–1622), Anglican clergyman of Puritan teachings, was brought up at Urchfont; he was rector of Cholderton, Wiltshire from 1602. Singer Elvis Costello has owned a summer home in the village since the late 1990s. == Urchfont Scarecrow Festival== The Urchfont Scarecrow Festival (a registered charity) was the first of its kind in Wiltshire. While other Wiltshire villages have established festivals on a similar model, the Urchfont festival predates them, having been established in 1997¹. The idea was first brought to the village by a resident who saw a similar festival in Derbyshire. In its entire history, the festival has been cancelled three times: once in 2001 because of the threat from Foot and Mouth disease and in 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19. Apart from those cancellations the 25 festivals to date have taken place on the weekend of the first bank holiday in May and have grown to become a major local event attracting thousands of local and national visitors while raising money for local charities and good causes. Around 50 themed scarecrows made by villagers are displayed around the village, and visitors can buy a trail map which provides clues as to the identity of each scarecrow. There is also a children's trail and the village is a buzz with festivities, food and drink marquees, and activities. Past festivals have included: 1997 – 2000 – No theme 2001 – Cancelled due to Foot and Mouth outbreak 2002 – Characters for the Young at Heart 2003 – Professions 2004 – Book Titles 2005 – Songs & Music 2006 – The Good, The Bad & The Ugly 2007 – Film Titles 2008 – Scarecrow Pursuits 2009 – Musicals – Stage & Screen 2010 – Pairs 2011 – Advertisements 2012 – A, B, C 2013 – Singers 2014 – Myths & Legends 2015 – At the Oscars 2016 – A World of Firsts 2017 – From the Sublime to the Ridiculous 2018 – It's Showtime! 2019 – Back to the 80s 2020 and 2021 – Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic 2022 – World of Colour 2023 – The West Country 2024 – Icons of the Silver Screen 2025 – Titles 2026 - Musicians ==References== ==External links== Urchfont Parish Council

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1352821382 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.