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West Woodhay
West Woodhay
Village and civil parish
	St Laurence's Church, with West Woodhay House in the background
	West Woodhay Location within Berkshire
Area	14.75 km2 (5.70 sq mi)
Population	122 (2011 census including Combe)
• Density	8/km2 (21/sq mi)
OS grid reference	SU396632
Civil parish	West Woodhay;
Unitary authority	West Berkshire;
Ceremonial county	Berkshire;
Region	South East;
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	NEWBURY
Postcode district	RG20
Dialling code	01488
Police	Thames Valley
Fire	Royal Berkshire
Ambulance	South Central
UK Parliament	Newbury;
	List of places UK England Berkshire 51°21′58″N 1°25′55″W / 51.366°N 1.432°W

West Woodhay (/ˈwʊdi/ "woody") is a rural scattered village and civil parish in West Berkshire, England. At the 2011 census it had 59 households.

Geography

The area is more elevated compared to the rest of the county of Berkshire and the district. It is undulating and has the main source of the River Enborne. It has a border to the south with Hampshire and is centred 3 miles (4.8 km) west south-west of Newbury, between Inkpen and East Woodhay. The eastern slopes of Walbury Hill, the highest point in South East England fall within its bounds as is the adjoining West Woodhay Down, a Site of Special Scientific Interest.^[2]

Places of Interest

West Woodhay House

Located west of the village is West Woodhay House, which is a Grade I listed building, that was erected in 1635. Notable residents of the house have included poet and politician Benjamin Rudyerd, soprano Susannah Cibber and the notorious prankster Horace de Vere Cole.^[3]

St Laurence's Church

The present church, St Laurence's, is the third church to stand in the village,^[4] with the first record of a church in West Woodhay in 1332.^[5] By the early 18th century, the medieval building was in a damaged state, and was replaced in 1717 by a new church.^[5] This church was located in the grounds of West Woodhay House, and was designed by John Vanbrugh.^[4] The 1717 building was demolished and replaced in 1882/3 with the current church, designed by Arthur Blomfield,^[6] which stands on a slightly different site to the church preceding it. The current Grade II listed church is built in flint and Bath stone, and consists of a chancel, aisleless nave, south porch and bell tower on the south side.^[6] The tower contains two bells, one of which is from the 1717 church, cast by the foundry in Aldbourne. A Willis Organ was added in 1902. The church today forms part of the Church of England Walbury Beacon benefice.^[4]

Motte

The remains of a small medieval motte lie in woodland near the village centre. The mound is 30 feet (9.1 m) in diameter, and 8 feet (2.4 m) high.^[7] Pottery found near the motte suggests possible occupation between the 12th and 14th centuries,^[8] and it may have been used as a moated hunting lodge.^[9] There is no indication of building on the central mound. It was excavated in the 1880s (possibly after being mistaken for a barrow),^{[citation needed]} and excavated again in 1935–6.^[8]

Demography

**2011 Published Statistics: Population, home ownership and extracts from Physical Environment, surveyed in 2005^[1]**
Output area	Homes owned outright	Owned with a loan	Socially rented	Privately rented	Other	km² roads	km² water	km² domestic gardens	Usual residents	km²
Civil parish	12	7	1	33	6	0.096	0.025	0.061	122	14.75

References

^ ^a ^b Key Statistics: Dwellings; Quick Statistics: Population Density; Physical Environment: Land Use Survey 2005
^ "Magic Map Application". Magic.defra.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2017.
^ "Parishes; West Woodhay". British History Online. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c "St Laurence's West Woodhay". www.walburybeaconbenefice.org.uk. Church of England. Archived from the original on 25 December 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ ^a ^b "West Woodhay". www.british-history.ac.uk. British History. Archived from the original on 28 February 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Church of St Laurence". www.historicengland.org.uk. Historic England. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ "Monument no. 228809". www.pastscape.org.uk. Historic England. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ ^a ^b "West Woodhay Motte". www.heritagegateway.org.uk. Heritage Gateway. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
^ "Woodhay Castle". www.berkshirehistory.com. Berkshire History. Archived from the original on 26 September 2020. Retrieved 26 September 2020.