Riverhead, Kent
Encyclopedia
Riverhead, a one-time small village and now a village part of the built-up area to the north of the town Sevenoaks
, is also a civil parish
in the Sevenoaks
District of Kent
, England
. The parish has a population of around 2500. The parish stretches from Chipstead Lake and the River Darent in the north to Mill Bank Wood in the south.
There is a cricket ground in Riverhead at the top of Worship's hill, in which a daily pre-school operates.
Riverhead contains two schools, Amherst Primary School (headmaster the Mr. Wiltshire), and Riverhead Infants' School. On Saturdays, there is Saturday morning football club at Amherst school, open to the students there. There is a nursery, part of Bright Horizons' Teddies Nursery group, where Riveread Infants school was until 2002, the rest of the site is a new housing estate.
The parish church is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin; its architect was Decimus Burton
.
Behind the church is an area known as the sand pits, it is popular amongst the young people in Riverhead. The area features a steep sandstone cliff, an open field, woodland, and a park.
The village is an exuberant and flourishing place. Every year there is the Village Fete and Carnival on the local common, held by the 3rd sevenoaks scout group. The Riverhead Parkland offers a great open space to walk and play, set in a wealden greensand vale, between the new Riverhead Infants School and Brittains Lane.
There are two pubs in Riverhead, The Bullfinch (McMullen & Sons
) and The Riverhead (Harvester)
. The village also boasts an old fashioned sweet shop and milkshake bar located on London Road. The village has a great butchers on The Square, Batchelors, a small family run business. The speciality of the shop is a spicy sausage from a South African recipe called 'Boerewors'.
There are also range of shops on the White Hart Parade and London Road, including a couple of boutiques, a small art gallery, restaraunte (Malaysian cuisine, called Longhouse), an empty double shop whereOddbins
once was, a dry cleaners and educational suppliers. The parade gets its name from a pub that was once there.
On London Road, there is also a power-tools, car and machinery hiring shop, Rawstone hire; in addition there is a funeral directors, which is still temperarily closed from a fire about mid 2011.
At the north end of the village is Tesco Extra and a range of other shops such as Bathstore
, a tile store (on the site where an aquamarine retailer was until early 2011) and Majestic Wine
. There is also an Aston Martin
and Jaguar
dealership. The Barratt
built Lakeside Place estate, built on the former Marley Tiles site in the mid 1990s, sits rather pleasantly on the banks of Chipstead Lake.
Digital television has been available in all parts of Riverhead since 2006 from Blue Bell Hill
for Kent & Sussex tv tranmissions, which is also now broadcasting in HD. Viewers for this free service need to ensure their aerial is pointing eastwards.
Sevenoaks
Sevenoaks is a commuter town situated on the London fringe of west Kent, England, some 20 miles south-east of Charing Cross, on one of the principal commuter rail lines from the capital...
, is also a civil parish
Civil parish
In England, a civil parish is a territorial designation and, where they are found, the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties...
in the Sevenoaks
Sevenoaks (district)
Sevenoaks is a local government district covering the western most part of Kent in England. Its council is based in the town of Sevenoaks. It was formed on 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, by a merger of the Sevenoaks Urban District, Sevenoaks Rural District and part of Dartford...
District of Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The parish has a population of around 2500. The parish stretches from Chipstead Lake and the River Darent in the north to Mill Bank Wood in the south.
There is a cricket ground in Riverhead at the top of Worship's hill, in which a daily pre-school operates.
Riverhead contains two schools, Amherst Primary School (headmaster the Mr. Wiltshire), and Riverhead Infants' School. On Saturdays, there is Saturday morning football club at Amherst school, open to the students there. There is a nursery, part of Bright Horizons' Teddies Nursery group, where Riveread Infants school was until 2002, the rest of the site is a new housing estate.
The parish church is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin; its architect was Decimus Burton
Decimus Burton
Decimus Burton was a prolific English architect and garden designer, He is particularly associated with projects in the classical style in London parks, including buildings at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and London Zoo, and with the layout and architecture of the seaside towns of Fleetwood and...
.
Behind the church is an area known as the sand pits, it is popular amongst the young people in Riverhead. The area features a steep sandstone cliff, an open field, woodland, and a park.
The village is an exuberant and flourishing place. Every year there is the Village Fete and Carnival on the local common, held by the 3rd sevenoaks scout group. The Riverhead Parkland offers a great open space to walk and play, set in a wealden greensand vale, between the new Riverhead Infants School and Brittains Lane.
There are two pubs in Riverhead, The Bullfinch (McMullen & Sons
McMullens Brewery
-History:McMullens was founded in 1827 in Railway Street, Hertford. As the business grew larger it moved first to Mill Bridge in 1832 and then to Old Cross in 1891. A modern brewhouse was built in 1984. In 2002, the business was valued at £176m...
) and The Riverhead (Harvester)
Harvester (restaurant)
Harvester Restaurants is a popular family farmhouse-style licensed restaurant chain with more than 170 outlets in the United Kingdom.-History:-Courage:...
. The village also boasts an old fashioned sweet shop and milkshake bar located on London Road. The village has a great butchers on The Square, Batchelors, a small family run business. The speciality of the shop is a spicy sausage from a South African recipe called 'Boerewors'.
There are also range of shops on the White Hart Parade and London Road, including a couple of boutiques, a small art gallery, restaraunte (Malaysian cuisine, called Longhouse), an empty double shop whereOddbins
Oddbins
Oddbins is a United Kingdom-based wine and alcohol retail chain, established in 1963 by Ahmed Pochee.-History:In 1963, entrepreneur Ahmed Pochee starts up a small business delivering bin-ends and oddments of wine to the restaurants and clubs of London's West End...
once was, a dry cleaners and educational suppliers. The parade gets its name from a pub that was once there.
On London Road, there is also a power-tools, car and machinery hiring shop, Rawstone hire; in addition there is a funeral directors, which is still temperarily closed from a fire about mid 2011.
At the north end of the village is Tesco Extra and a range of other shops such as Bathstore
Bathstore
Bathstore.com Ltd., trading as Bathstore is a specialist bathroom retailer and is the largest in the United Kingdom. Bathstore was originally started in the early 1990s by Patrick Riley and Nico de Beer, with the idea to bring quality design led bathrooms into a wider retail arena...
, a tile store (on the site where an aquamarine retailer was until early 2011) and Majestic Wine
Majestic Wine
Majestic Wine plc is the United Kingdom's largest retailer of wine by the mixed case. -History:Majestic Vintners was founded by Sheldon Graner in 1980...
. There is also an Aston Martin
Aston Martin
Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a British manufacturer of luxury sports cars, based in Gaydon, Warwickshire. The company name is derived from the name of one of the company's founders, Lionel Martin, and from the Aston Hill speed hillclimb near Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire...
and Jaguar
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
dealership. The Barratt
Barratt Developments
Barratt Developments PLC is one of the largest residential property development companies in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1958 as Greensitt Bros. but control was later assumed by Sir Lawrie Barratt. It was originally based in Newcastle upon Tyne but is now located at David Wilson's former...
built Lakeside Place estate, built on the former Marley Tiles site in the mid 1990s, sits rather pleasantly on the banks of Chipstead Lake.
Digital television has been available in all parts of Riverhead since 2006 from Blue Bell Hill
Blue Bell Hill
Blue Bell Hill is a chalk hill between Maidstone and Rochester in the English county of Kent. It overlooks the River Medway and is part of the North Downs. Settlements on the hill include Walderslade; and Blue Bell Hill and Kit's Coty villages...
for Kent & Sussex tv tranmissions, which is also now broadcasting in HD. Viewers for this free service need to ensure their aerial is pointing eastwards.