St Stephen-in-Brannel
Encyclopedia
St Stephen-in-Brannel (known locally as St Stephen's or St Stephen) is a civil parish and village in central Cornwall
, United Kingdom
. St Stephen village is four miles (6.5 km) west of St Austell
on the southern edge of Cornwall's china clay district.
In medieval times the parish lay within the royal manor of Brannel. St Dennis and St Michael Caerhays
were daughter churches. From the 16th century the rectors resided at the latter so that it came to be regarded as the mother church. Other settlements in the parish include Whitemoor
, Currian and Nanpean
.
The church was dedicated to St Stephen by Walter Bronescombe, bishop of Exeter
on 20 August 1261. The church has a nave and two aisles; the exterior stonework is all of granite. The tower is built of granite blocks and contains a peal of 8 bells, originally cast by Taylor's of Loughborough
. The font is Norman.
Mining has had a large impact on the growth of the area. St Stephen grew with the discovery by William Cookworthy
of clay deposits in the surrounding area during the 18th century. Uranium was mined at South Terras Mine, a short distance from the village between 1870 and 1930 and in 1996 the mine was notified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest
. Tregargus Quarries to the north west of the churchtown is a Geological Conservation Review
site and designated a SSSI in 1951.
St Stephen continues to grow, with new housing schemes being proposed and accepted. The need for affordable housing in the village has seen the use of greenfield sites surrounding the village, which has met with some controversy between residents and developers because of the impact on privacy and wildlife.
Amenities in the village include the Brannel Surgery, St Stephen Churchtown Primary School, Brannel School (secondary), a community centre, two public houses and two shops, one of which is also the post office.
The ground is equipped with a football pitch, cricket wicket, bowls green, all weather pitch and sports pavilion which can be used for sports including football and tennis.
In 2007 the recreation ground opened a new playground and skateboarding facilities after fundraising to replace the old equipment.
Sports clubs include a bowls
team who play on the bowling green at the recreation ground, a cricket
team who play their home games at the recreation ground and make use of the new pavilion opened in 2001, and two football teams within St Stephen FC, who play their home games on their pitch in the recreation ground. There are also a number of other sports clubs which make use of the sports hall and other facilities at Brannel School.
St Stephen also has a Scout
group, 1st St Stephen, who share a meeting place with 1st Treviscoe-St Stephen Guide
group at Trethosa. St Stephen Pantomime Company produce a show annually, which is performed in the community centre hall and can attract audiences of up to 200 people per night. The pantomime features cast, chorus and relies on backstage help from people only in the village and the immediate surrounding area, and usually starts performing on the last week of January annually. In 2005 the pantomime celebrated its 60th anniversary with the performance of Snow White.
St Stephen Churchtown Primary was opened in 1984, after the school moved from the centre of the village to a new school building, which has continued to grow over recent years. The school currently has over 250 pupils across 11 classes.
Brannel School opened in 1961 and currently has over 700 pupils on roll. The school recently revealed plans for a new building, involving the demolition of structures on the old site. This was completely separate to the government programme 'Building Schools for the future' and therefore became unaffected when the coalition government scrapped the programme. The new school will cater for up to 750 pupils which includes pupils who may require access to the Area Resource Base (ARB) - a special wing of the school to cater for pupils with special educational/medical needs. This area is fully integrated in to the new school giving its pupils the individual support they may sometimes need, while still allowing access to the main school when able/required.
Brannel was named a 'Beacon School' by the government in 2000, and became a specialist college for English and the Performing Arts in 2005.
Two other villages in Cornwall are dedicated to St Stephen; St Stephen by Launceston and St Stephen by Saltash
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. St Stephen village is four miles (6.5 km) west of St Austell
St Austell
St Austell is a civil parish and a major town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated on the south coast approximately ten miles south of Bodmin and 30 miles west of the border with Devon at Saltash...
on the southern edge of Cornwall's china clay district.
In medieval times the parish lay within the royal manor of Brannel. St Dennis and St Michael Caerhays
St Michael Caerhays
St Michael Caerhays is a civil parish and village in Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village is situated approximately seven miles south-southwest of St Austell....
were daughter churches. From the 16th century the rectors resided at the latter so that it came to be regarded as the mother church. Other settlements in the parish include Whitemoor
Whitemoor
Whitemoor is a village in the St Stephens parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.-Whitemoor Community Primary School:Whitemoor Community Primary School is a small village primary school, situated between St Dennis and Nanpean in the Clay Area of Cornwall.The school has actually been in...
, Currian and Nanpean
Nanpean
Nanpean is a village in the civil parish of St Stephen-in-Brannel in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is situated on the B3279 road approximately four miles northwest of St Austell in the heart of 'clay country', the china clay quarrying area of mid-Cornwall.Nanpean church was built in 1879...
.
The church was dedicated to St Stephen by Walter Bronescombe, bishop of Exeter
Bishop of Exeter
The Bishop of Exeter is the Ordinary of the Church of England Diocese of Exeter in the Province of Canterbury. The incumbent usually signs his name as Exon or incorporates this in his signature....
on 20 August 1261. The church has a nave and two aisles; the exterior stonework is all of granite. The tower is built of granite blocks and contains a peal of 8 bells, originally cast by Taylor's of Loughborough
Loughborough
Loughborough is a town within the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. It is the seat of Charnwood Borough Council and is home to Loughborough University...
. The font is Norman.
Mining has had a large impact on the growth of the area. St Stephen grew with the discovery by William Cookworthy
William Cookworthy
-Bibliography:*Early New Church Worthies by the Rev Dr Jonathon Bayley*Cookworthy's Plymouth and Bristol Porcelain by F.Severne Mackenna published by F.Lewis...
of clay deposits in the surrounding area during the 18th century. Uranium was mined at South Terras Mine, a short distance from the village between 1870 and 1930 and in 1996 the mine was notified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
. Tregargus Quarries to the north west of the churchtown is a Geological Conservation Review
Geological Conservation Review
The Geological Conservation Review is produced by the UK's Joint Nature Conservation Committee and is designed to identify those sites of national and international importance needed to show all the key scientific elements of the geological and geomorphological features of Britain...
site and designated a SSSI in 1951.
The village
The growth of the village meant that it soon sustained many services including: a police station, bank and bakery at different times.St Stephen continues to grow, with new housing schemes being proposed and accepted. The need for affordable housing in the village has seen the use of greenfield sites surrounding the village, which has met with some controversy between residents and developers because of the impact on privacy and wildlife.
Amenities in the village include the Brannel Surgery, St Stephen Churchtown Primary School, Brannel School (secondary), a community centre, two public houses and two shops, one of which is also the post office.
Recreation
The recreation ground was opened in 1924, and houses a number of clubs and organisations including the village football, cricket and bowls teams, and also Telstar Youth Club.The ground is equipped with a football pitch, cricket wicket, bowls green, all weather pitch and sports pavilion which can be used for sports including football and tennis.
In 2007 the recreation ground opened a new playground and skateboarding facilities after fundraising to replace the old equipment.
Clubs and societies
The parish is home to many sports teams, societies and clubs.Sports clubs include a bowls
Bowls
Bowls is a sport in which the objective is to roll slightly asymmetric balls so that they stop close to a smaller "jack" or "kitty". It is played on a pitch which may be flat or convex or uneven...
team who play on the bowling green at the recreation ground, a cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
team who play their home games at the recreation ground and make use of the new pavilion opened in 2001, and two football teams within St Stephen FC, who play their home games on their pitch in the recreation ground. There are also a number of other sports clubs which make use of the sports hall and other facilities at Brannel School.
St Stephen also has a Scout
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
group, 1st St Stephen, who share a meeting place with 1st Treviscoe-St Stephen Guide
Guide
A guide is a person who leads anyone through unknown or unmapped country. This includes a guide of the real world , as well as a person who leads someone to more abstract places .-Guide - meanings related to travel and recreational pursuits:There are many variants of...
group at Trethosa. St Stephen Pantomime Company produce a show annually, which is performed in the community centre hall and can attract audiences of up to 200 people per night. The pantomime features cast, chorus and relies on backstage help from people only in the village and the immediate surrounding area, and usually starts performing on the last week of January annually. In 2005 the pantomime celebrated its 60th anniversary with the performance of Snow White.
Education
St Stephen incorporates two schools, one catering for primary years and one for secondary.St Stephen Churchtown Primary was opened in 1984, after the school moved from the centre of the village to a new school building, which has continued to grow over recent years. The school currently has over 250 pupils across 11 classes.
Brannel School opened in 1961 and currently has over 700 pupils on roll. The school recently revealed plans for a new building, involving the demolition of structures on the old site. This was completely separate to the government programme 'Building Schools for the future' and therefore became unaffected when the coalition government scrapped the programme. The new school will cater for up to 750 pupils which includes pupils who may require access to the Area Resource Base (ARB) - a special wing of the school to cater for pupils with special educational/medical needs. This area is fully integrated in to the new school giving its pupils the individual support they may sometimes need, while still allowing access to the main school when able/required.
Brannel was named a 'Beacon School' by the government in 2000, and became a specialist college for English and the Performing Arts in 2005.
See also
- People from St Stephen-in-Brannel.
Two other villages in Cornwall are dedicated to St Stephen; St Stephen by Launceston and St Stephen by Saltash