DAUNTSEY PARISH PLAN 2007-2012 The Village at the dawn of the Millennium DAUNTSEY PARISH PLAN 2007-2012 Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2 Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 3 Chapter 2: THE PAST - HISTORY OF THE VILLAGE 4 Chapter 3: THE PRESENT - THE VILLAGE TODAY 7 Chapter 4: THE OPINIONS OF THE RESIDENTS 10 CONCLUSIONS 16 Chapter 5: THE ACTION PLAN 17 Acknowledgements: Grateful thanks to: The Parish Plan Steering Committee Department of the Environment, Food Community First for their support and consists of Ellen Blacker, Margaret and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) Community advice throughout the project. Buggins, Gina Compton, Sue Dixon, First, for funding the majority of the Bob Dixon and Di Wood. project and their advice and assistance.. The residents of the Parish who took the time to complete the questionnaire and Pam and Nigel Hutchings (Aitch Design), North Wiltshire District Council (NWDC) feedback valuable comments during the for the production of this brochure. Area 1 Committee and Dauntsey Parish project. Council for additional funding and continuing support. November 2007 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Dauntsey is situated to the west of for publication in October. Further advice Swindon in North Wiltshire. In 2005, was taken throughout from Community following the Annual Parish meeting, open First and North Wiltshire District Council. to all Parishioners, Community First invited support for the concept of producing As far as possible, the Parish Plan adopted a Parish Plan. The purposes of the Plan the themes of the North Wiltshire were to focus on the needs and concerns Community Plans drawn up by the of the Parish, encourage greater cohesion Northern Community Area Plan and the amongst the local population and guide Malmesbury and Villages (Area 1) for the development of facilities and amenities Wiltshire to allow commonality in the within the Parish. Following a public analyses of the needs of the Villages in the meeting a volunteer Steering Group was northern part of the County. The main formed and financial support for the themes in this Plan are: • Malmesbury • Swindon development of the Plan was sought and · The Local Economy approved with the main contribution from DAUNTSEY · Communications DEFRA, Community First. • · Transport and Traffic Chippenham • · Crime and Community Safety Marlborough In early 2006 an extensive questionnaire ·Housing and the Built Environment was delivered to every household and the • Trowbridge results were collated and analysed by the · Countryside and Land Based Issues - Steering Group. The results were made Environment WILTSHIRE available at the main social event, Dauntsey · Community Care Feast, in July 2006 and useful feedback · Village Amenities and Facilities discussions were held with visitors to the (including Leisure, Sport and Social) • exhibition stand. The draft Plan was again Salisbury circulated to all households in summer It is hoped that the Parish Plan for 2007 2007 together with an invitation to modify to 2012 will be accepted and adopted by or extend the contents. A special stall was the Dauntsey Parish Council and that it Reproduced from Ordnance Survey map data by permission manned at the 2007 Dauntsey Feast to will serve to assist them in the develop- of the Ordnance Survey © Crown copyright 2001 obtain further direct feedback and ment of the Parish in the coming months opinions before the Plan was finally sent and years. The Village is divided by the M4 2 Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION Dauntsey Village is located in North The houses range in size and age from low attendances at Church Services. The Wiltshire some 6 miles from the ancient small Alms Houses to the Dauntsey Park Brinkworth Earl Danby’s Lower School in town of Malmesbury and a similar House and from thatched and farm Dauntsey is, however, thriving and distance from Wootton Bassett. The major cottages to bungalows, semi-detached, expanding and it attracts young people town of Swindon is 12 miles away. The detached and council-built homes. The from outside the Parish. Its new Hall has M4 Motorway allows swift access to the 15 new-build houses and 4 affordable given the Village a facility it has lacked South, East and West and London homes being built at present also include and it is hoped that it will become a focus Heathrow, Bristol, Birmingham and office buildings in the same development. in the reinvigoration of Village life and a Cardiff airports are all less than 90 minutes The pre-Norman Church has a newly means of bringing the geographically split away by road. However, the Motorway restored Doom Board within it, one of population together. was built straight through the Parish. only 5 in the country, but struggles with As a result, Dauntsey is a ‘disjointed’ Malmesbury Village with a scattering of its 200 houses Swindon and DAUNTSEY - ‘the in five main clusters on both sides of the Wootton Bassett Disjointed Village’ Motorway, each grouping being about a Earl Danby’s Primary School M4 A schematic plan of mile away from the others. The Parish ‘Church Lane’ and Hall covers some 1348 hectares and includes Dauntsey Village, Dauntsey Church ‘The Green’ several working farms, formerly dairy but and Doom Board showing the pockets of housing separated now mainly beef. The river Avon flows by the Motorway. through one part of the Village and in Phone Box earlier times the Village had links by canal ‘Sodom Lane’ and railway to the surrounding district. They are long gone, together with the M4 Phone Box Village shop, garage and Post Office, but ‘St James’ the Public House is still in use. The majority of inhabitants have lived in the Roads community for a long time, but few work M4 Motorway in the Village and local farms. Many Peterborough Arms Railway Housing clusters residents commute to work outside the Railway ‘The Lock’ Lyneham Key places Village and local area, and a significant Chippenham and Calne in the Village number work from their homes. 3 Chapter 2 THE PAST - THE HISTORY OF THE VILLAGE The first mention of Dauntsey was in 850AD Residents Bells of Saint James the Great when King Ethelwulf granted the village to Dauntsey has had some interesting The Reformation resulted in the removal Malmesbury Abbey. Records in 1377 residents: Henry Danvers, Earl Danby and destruction of many bells including show 111 poll tax payers; today we have founded both a hospital in Malmesbury the three in Dauntsey in 1553. Henry approximately 450 on the Electoral Roll. and a School in the village in 1631. Sir Danvers built the present Church tower in John Danvers, who inherited the Estate in 1630 and it now has a peal of five bells Domesday Book 1644, went on to become an MP the hung on bail bearings in an iron frame. The Village is featured in the famous following year and was one of the The earliest bells were cast by Nathaniel Domesday Book of 1086-7. The book said signatories on the death warrant of King Boulter in Bristol in 1632. The other bells that “The Church itself holds Dantesie. It Charles I. Considerable rumours circulate were installed in 1673, 1848 and 1926. paid geld (Old English money or tax regarding his final resting place! More The weight of the tenor bell ‘Come when I assessment) for 10 hides (the hide was a recently, at the turn of the last century, the call to serve God all’ has been estimated standard unit for the assessment of tax, estate was owned by the Meux family. It is to be 14 hundredweight (700 kilos) being the amount of land which would reputed that Lady Meux owned, and even support a household divided into 4 rode to hunt, on an elephant! Doom Board virgates). There is land for 6 ploughs (8 ox The 14th Century Doom Board was plough teams are needed to work the land Parish Church discovered in the 19th Century after being of 1 plough). Robert holds it of the Abbot. The Parish Church of St James the Great hidden and forgotten. It is a rare antique In demesne (demesne is land held whose could date back to before the Norman and has very recently been restored. It product is devoted to the Lord rather than Conquest of 1066, but is known to have depicts the last judgment and it is only his tenants) are 2 ploughs and 2 slaves; been given away by Malmesbury Abbey one of five left in the country. It was used and 10 villans (villagers) and 11 cotsets in 1086, reclaimed in 1177 and gifted to to put the fear of God into people, (cottage dwellers) and 3 cottars (cottagers) the Lord of the Manor before 1263. It was graphically showing what happens to the with 4 ploughs. There is a mill rendering named St James the Great of Dauntsey in good and evil after dying. The good are 20 Shillings and 12 acres of meadow and 1763. There are memorials to the Bisset shown rising out of their graves, being woodland half a league long and as much family, Mordaunts, Joan Dauntesey, and received by St Peter and given the keys to broad. It was and is worth 6 Pounds.” Henry Danvers Earl of Danby. The East Heaven, while the evil are driven out by window was commissioned by Lady an angel with a sword into the flaming Meux in memory of her husband in 1900. jaws of a monster depicting Hell. There was also a Victorian Providence Chapel in the Village. It is now a private residence. 4 Alms Houses Dauntsey has records of Alms houses being present in the village in 1420. Today’s building dates from 1865 and has 6 houses. To qualify for help, the person had to be over 50, have been born in the village or lived three years there, ‘be able to recite the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer and the Ten Commandments’ and be unable to support themselves without help.