Flamstead | |
---|---|
Flamstead shown within Hertfordshire | |
Population | 1,306 (2011 Census) |
OS grid reference | TL078145 |
Civil parish |
|
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | ST ALBANS |
Postcode district | AL3 |
Dialling code | 01582 |
Police | Hertfordshire |
Fire | Hertfordshire |
Ambulance | East of England |
EU Parliament | East of England |
Flamstead is a village and civil parish in northwest Hertfordshire, England, close to the junction of the A5 and the M1 motorway at junction 9. The name is thought by some historians to be a corruption of the original Verulamstead.
Flamstead stands on a ridge above the River Ver, which runs on its north side; to the south the village extends downhill to the adjoining hamlet of Trowley Bottom. The first documented record of the village was in 1006, and it was also recorded in the Domesday Book eighty years later. In the Middle Ages it was important enough for a market and fair to be held there, though it is now mainly a dormitory village for neighbouring towns, several of which can be reached by bus from the village. The current population is around 1,306.
From a distance the village is dominated by the parish church of St Leonard, with its characteristic "Hertfordshire Spike" spire. St Leonard’s (Church of England) is believed to stand on the site of a ninth-century Saxon chapel, though the oldest parts of the present structure date from around 1140. Features of interest include mediaeval wall paintings, the Saunders Memorial of 1670, and a fine fifteenth century rood screen. The village also has a Methodist church,
Other notable buildings in Flamstead include the almshouses in the High Street, built in 1669; the Three Blackbirds pub opposite (one of four in the village), partly dating from the sixteenth century; and several attractive cottages of similar age. Flamstead has 65 listed buildings.
Flamstead has a pre-school and a primary school, though older local children have to travel to secondary schools elsewhere in Hertfordshire. The present school dates from the late 1950s, and the previous school building adjacent to the churchyard is now used by the pre-school and also as the Village Hall.