Church Lawford

Coordinates: 52°23′N 1°20′W / 52.38°N 1.33°W / 52.38; -1.33

Church Lawford
Church Lawford  Church Lawford shown within Warwickshire
Population	c.750
OS grid reference	SP449763
District	Rugby
Shire county	Warwickshire
Region	West Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	COVENTRY
Postcode district	CV23
Dialling code	024
Police	Warwickshire
Fire	Warwickshire
Ambulance	West Midlands
EU Parliament	West Midlands
UK Parliament	Rugby and Kenilworth
List of places: UK • England • Warwickshire

Church Lawford is a village in Warwickshire. It is located just under 2.5 miles (4 km) west of the town of Rugby and 4.5 miles (7 km) east of Coventry. The village lies north of the railway between the two and is also north of the main road, the A428. To the north is the River Avon.

The first reference to the village is in the Domesday book of 1086 when the manor house and the mill (now disused) are mentioned. The first parish church, dedicated to St Peter, was built in the 13th century. The current parish church, also St Peter's, was built in 1874. It was earlier in that century that Henry Wadsworth Longfellow wrote his poem "The Village Blacksmith". Church Lawford along with Cambridge, Massachusetts is said to be the inspiration for the poem as the poet visited England for a three-year trip. There was a RAF training station situated just over 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the village from 1941 until 1955. There were primary schools in the village between the early 1900s and 1996. The first closed in 1964 and was replaced by a second school which itself shut just over thirty years later.

The village is often mentioned along with the neighbouring village of Long Lawford to the east and the hamlet of King's Newnham to the north although they are completely separate settlements. The population of Church Lawford and King's Newnham combined is around 800. There is an industrial unit business centre to the south of the village. It was opened in 1990. Units range in size from 55 to 218 square metres. The village plant nursery is quite well known locally.

Source and External links

• Church Lawford official website
• Church Lawford Village Hall
• More information on the RAF station
• Neighbourhood population and demographic statistics from the UK Census 2001
• Contact details for parish meetings