Welcome to Cheselbourne
CLICK FOR 2021 CENSUS DATAIntroduction
Cheselbourne (sometimes spelled Chesilborne or Cheselborne) is a village and civil parish in Dorset, England, situated in the Dorset Downs, 7 miles (11 km) north-east of Dorchester. The parish is at an altitude of 75 to 245 metres (approximately 250 to 800 feet) and covers an area of 1,175 hectares (2,900 acres); the underlying geology is chalk. In the 2011 census the parish had a population of 296.The village, which contains a mix of buildings of different ages and styles, is spread along four lanes which meet here. It has a public house called the Rivers Arms. The 13th- to 14th-century parish church has a pinnacled tower with battlements, numerous gargoyles and a canonical sundial. In 1086, in the Domesday Book Cheselbourne was recorded as Ceseburne; it had 36 households, 10 acres (4.0 ha) of meadow and one mill. It was in the hundred of Hilton and the lord and tenant-in-chief was Shaftesbury Abbey.Cheselbourne used to be the site of a tradition known as "Treading in the Wheat", in which young women from the village would walk the fields on Palm Sunday, dressed in white.At Lyscombe Farm in the northwest of the parish are the remains of an early 13th-century chapel. The nave was once used as a bakehouse and then a farmworker's dwelling. In 1957, a Dutch barn was built over the ruins.
Parish Information
Parish statistics
Area |
1,248 hectares |
|---|---|
Population |
305 (2021) |
Density |
24 people/km2 |
Mean age |
45.7 |
Ward |
Chalk Valleys |
District |
West Dorset |
Postcodes |
DT2 |
ONS ID |
E04003522 |
Council
Contact details for Cheselbourne Parish Council, including current councillors, precept data and election results.
Education
View educational establishments in Cheselbourne Parish. Data includes OFSTED rating and current appointed governors.
Business
Business directory listing local businesses operating within Cheselbourne Parish.
Planning
View recent planning applications submitted for Cheselbourne Parish.
Property
Price paid data for all property sold in Cheselbourne Parish since 2018. Includes average prices for each property type.
Heritage
Local heritage sites, historic churches, heritage pubs plus local heritage initiatives for Cheselbourne Parish.
Local News
Hosted and licensed by ITV News
Elderly couple trapped in bedroom as fire breaks out | ITV News
Published: 11th Jan 2024
Hosted and licensed by Dorset Echo
Drake's Lane, Cheselbourne to close for railing repairs
Published: 15th Jul 2023
Hosted and licensed by BBC
Cheselbourne church: Thieves strip £60,000 of lead from roof
Published: 17th Mar 2020