The Parish of Edgmond sits in the north east of the Shropshire countryside about 2 miles from Newport and 8 miles from Telford and the historic town of Wellington. For many years Edgmond was part of Shropshire County but since 1974 has been included in the Borough of Telford & Wrekin.
Edgmond Parish includes not only the village of Edgmond but also the hamlets of Adney, Calvington, Caynton, The Buttery, Edgmond Marsh and Sidlington.
Edgmond is the most extensive parish in Telford and Wrekin, but has the smallest number of households. Click here to view the latest Ward Profile (the Ward covers a wider area than the Parish). Telford & Wrekin Council has more information here.
Harper Adams University is in the centre of the Parish. Originally opening as an Agricultural College to 6 students in 1901, this thriving University now has upwards of 2500 undergraduate students and offers a broad range of food and agricultural based courses.
The village has many facilities and amenities. St Peter’s Church holds an annual Clipping Service in July, which involves the whole congregation linking arms around the building - the longest uninterrupted such service in the Country.
18,000 years ago Shropshire was covered by an immense sheet of ice up to 1km thick. As this moved south-east it ground the surface of the solid bedrock to a fine ‘flour’ known as glacial till. When the ice melted, sand, gravel and small boulders were washed out over the surface and the landscape was further moulded into hummocks and hollows which resulted in the combination of well drained agricultural land and more poorly drained clay soil and peat deposits we have today. Outcrops of the Triassic sandstone bed rock have been quarried in several places in the parish for stone which has been used in many local buildings. The Rock Hole is the name given to a sandstone quarry to the SW of the village. It is a locally important geological site (LGS).
The discovery of a bronze axe head in the 1980’s suggests Bronze-Age (2000BC) activity in the area - probably on the lighter sandy soils in the north of the parish and the Iron Age settlement at Wall Farm on the edge of what would have been fenland of The Weald Moors is only just outside the Parish.Roman finds from within the village suggest a fairly high-status dwelling, although its exact position is unknown.
Wikipedia states that the name ‘Edgmond’ comes from the Anglo-Saxon for ‘edge of marsh’ while other sources suggest it comes from a local Dane who’s name was Eckmond or Eigmond and that the name was originally ‘Ekmund-es-dune’ or ‘Ecmond’s Hill’.
There are two pubs - The Lion (currently closed) and The Lamb.
The Telford & Wrekin maintained playing field and sports pavilion is in the centre of the village, with cricket & football pitches set out depending on the time of year. There is a playground for young children behind the Bowling Club and a fenced multi-purpose games area next to the sports pavilion.
The Post Office is housed in the Village Stores on the High Street in the centre of the village. The popular St Peter’s School is an attractive and purpose-built primary school. The children's day nursery is operated by Edgmond Owls.
The village has a large Village Hall available for hire.
The village also has many areas for walking and biking including a walk through the area known locally as The Rock Hole, an old sandstone quarry from which the rock used to build the Church was probably taken.
A popular canal walk down to Newport partly follows a now isolated arm of the Newport canal. The remains of this canal run through the south of the parish and are included in a long term restoration plan by the Shrewsbury & Newport Canals Trust.
Just before the Norman Conquest of 1066, Edgmond was held by a Saxon called Leuuin or Lewin. After the Norman Conquest, Edgmond was given by the king to Roger de Montgomery, Earl of Arundel & Shrewsbury to hold as a royal manor. It was a holding of considerable importance and size. Its prosperity was partly due to the rich agricultural land and also due to the large lake that occupied the area to the south of the parish, stretching across to what is now Longford, that provided plentiful supplies of fish.
The Church of Edgmond is not mentioned in Domesday in 1086. If it was not founded in Saxon times, it must owe its origin to Earl Roger, who within eight years of the compiling of the Domesday Book, gave it to his newly founded Abbey of Shrewsbury. The oldest visible part of the church is the nave where there is some early Norman stonework. Much of the nave is 13th Century. The chancel is early 14th century and the aisles are 14th/15th century. The early Norman font is a beautiful reminder of the many generations of babies baptised here.
There are a few other buildings of architectural and historical note in the parish. Listed buildings include Provost’s House, Manor House, The Haven and Egremont House.
Turners Lane has half-timbered cottages, a well and a Victorian drinking fountain at the High Street end. Many of these buildings are located in the Edgmond Conservation Area. More details of this area, and a full character appraisal of it, can be found here. There is a map of the Conservation Area available here.
Edgmond Hall is a Georgian country house set in 18 hectares of gardens, fields and woods. Once owned by the Hill family and subsequently owned by the Bodenham family it is now an Outdoor Education Centre for Sandwell Borough Council.
On 10 January 1982, in Edgmond, the lowest temperature weather record for England was broken at -26.1°C (-15.0°F). This record is still held today.
There are few famous names linked with Edgmond. Here are just two of them.
Charlotte Sophia Burne moved to Summerhill in 1854. She became well known as a Shropshire Folklorist and was the first Woman President of the Folklore Society and the first woman editor of Folklore.
Ozzy Osbourne is reputed to have lived on the High Street for a short time. However, further research has drawn a blank so perhaps this is just a modern myth!
With it’s proximity to the good schools in Newport and pleasant rural location, Edgmond is a popular place to live. We are lucky to still have a Village Shop, a school and local pubs. All these amenities help create a sense of community and provide a place to gossip and exchange news. Edgmond is a very good place to live.
Sundial on St Peter's Church
Caynton Gorse
Caynton Manor
Pond Lane
Stubble field
Play area
