Feckenham

Feckenham is a village in the county of Worcestershire, England. It lies some three miles south-west of the major town of Redditch. Feckenham is around twelve miles north-east of the ancient city of Worcester.

History

Feckenham village arose because it straddled the ancient saltway track between Alcester and Droitwich (later a Roman road, now the modern B4090 road), and the early stretches of the Bow Brook.

Feckenham Forest once covered a substantial area of Worcestershire. It was used as a Norman royal hunting forest, and there was a royal hunting lodge near the village.

During the industrial revolution, needlemaking was a very common occupation in the village.

Independence Hoax

In July, 2006 residents of Feckenham claimed to have unearthed an 800-year-old scroll, written by Henry III, which decrees the village should remain independent forever.

They have created their own currency and set up tight border controls to keep out any immigrants.

Apparently they will be lowering taxes and cutting VAT to bring down the price of alcohol.

Ian Bellion, who is now a Liete of the Village, said: 'We'll be lowering taxes and cutting VAT to bring down the price of a pint so trade in the village pubs will be booming. Beer prices have been too high for too long. We wish we'd discovered the scroll earlier.'

The scroll was uncovered when residents dug up the village square to plant some new trees.

It was later revealed that the declaration of independence was a hoax that was concocted to involve locals in a town festival. Villagers followed through with the tongue-in-cheek idea and created their own national flag, t-shirts, and moved to get rid of the government's infamously high alcohol tax.Fact|date=February 2007

Notable architecture

The church is St. John the Baptist, dating from the 1250s, which currently has a peal of eight bells. The church overlooks a fine English village cricket ground.

The Catholic church is the St. John Fisher and Thomas More.

The village is noted for its Georgian, black and white half-timbered buildings, and other structures of note.

Activities and attractions

There are a wide variety of community activities, groups, sports and rural show events in the village, including a two-day horse show.

Feckenham Wylde Moor is an area of wetland with two bird-watching hides. The village has two pubs.

The village is an easy 15-mile drive from the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon.

port

The village of Feckenham has a Cricket & Football pitch.

On 26 August 2007 Feckenham Cricket Club's ground was used to host the final match of the five match series of the India v England Blind Cricket tour after the Worcester CC pitch was flooded earlier in the summer. Unfortunately England lost.

Transport

The A441 is one mile east of the village, and the M5 motorway is about five miles west.

The nearest railway station is Redditch.

The National Cycle Network Route 5 can be reached around 2.5 miles north of the village.

The long-distance public footpath, "The Monarch's Way", passes nearby, and is marked on OS maps.

External links

* [http://www.feckenhamfirst.com Feckenham C. of E. First School - Our vision is to develop in every child: A Passion for Learning, a Love of Life, in a School that Cares!]
* [http://www.feckenodeon.co.uk FeckenOdeon - local cinema society]
* [http://www.feckenham.com Feckenham village information site]