Staverton, Wiltshire

History

Staverton developed near a crossing point of the Bristol Avon, on a road between Trowbridge and Holt. The road bridge may date from the 15th century and was rebuilt in the 18th, 19th and 20th centuries. The Avon forms the entire north and west boundary of the parish, while its tributary the Biss is the boundary in the southwest. The Kennet and Avon Canal, built in 1804, is the boundary to the south and southeast.

The early settlement was around a watermill and on the nearby higher ground near the church. The Old Bear Inn is from the early 19th century, and there are two rows of three-storey weavers' cottages from the 18th or 19th.

An Ordnance Survey map of 1958 shows only the school and roadside dwellings south of the village, between the railway and the canal. Later in the 20th century much housing was built here, followed by a marina for canal users, with waterside houses and apartments. These developments made the built-up area contiguous with Hilperton, on the other side of the canal. The population of the parish increased from 453 at the 2001 census to 1,868 in 2011.

Railway

The Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway was opened through the parish in 1848, linking the Great Western Main Line with Trowbridge and Westbury, and forming a route from London to southwest England.

In 1905 a small station called Staverton Halt was opened south of the village, near where the road passed over the line, largely to serve workers at Staverton Mill which at that time was a condensed milk factory. The halt closed in 1966 but the line remains open.

Religious sites

A chapel of ease at Staverton was recorded in the 14th century, belonging to the church of St James at Trowbridge. The chapel dedicated to St Paul was rebuilt and enlarged on the same site in 1826 and became a church in 1839 when Staverton became a separate ecclesiastical parish. The porch was added in 1861. The church closed in 2011 due to dwindling numbers, and was offered for sale.

A Wesleyan Methodist chapel was built in 1824 and closed in 1985.

Local government

The civil parish elects a parish council. It is in the area of Wiltshire Council unitary authority, which is responsible for all significant local government functions.

Staverton was a tithing of the ancient parish of Trowbridge, and became a separate civil parish in 1894.

Amenities

Staverton Church of England Primary School was opened in 1996, replacing an 1880 National School building which is now used by an independent school. Staverton School can accommodate 310 pupils aged between 4 and 11. Facilities include two hard surfaced play areas, a nature area, school library, ICT suite and a shared school field with a pavilion and tennis courts.

The village has a pub, the Old Bear Inn. Widbrook Wood is just outside the parish, on the other side of the Biss.

Staverton Mill

There has been a mill on the River Avon at Staverton since at least the 11th century, when it was mentioned in the Domesday book. Over the centuries the mill has been used for corn and for fulling woollen cloth; later the site became a rubber factory belonging to Stephen Moulton. As of 2015 it is the location of a Nestlé breakfast cereal factory, operated by subsidiary Cereal Partners UK (CPUK). The large, landmark chimney at the factory was removed in November 2011.