Launched 09/04/2011
Latest update
Elham beat off stiff competition for the title of Kent Village of the year 2011 organised by Action with Communities in Rural Kent.
Censuses for outlying communities in the parish will be rolled out gradually. Check out the stats page for interesting facts and
trivia about the village. We still need your help so please send us any information relating to Elham that may be of interest.
Elham resident Les Ames in action for England against the West Indies in 1939. He was one of the finer wicketkeeper - batsmen and played for Kent CCC.
The Abbot's Fireside is one of the older buildings in the village and probably dates back to the mid fifteenth century.
Audrey Hepburn (neé Rushton) lived in Orchard Cottage (Five Bells) for five years in her childhood (1935-1940) and attended the local village schools. She took ballet lessons and dreamed of becoming a prima ballerina. I wonder what became of her?
Dave Lee opens Elham's brand new playground with a sensory garden and a pretty flower meadow created by the Play for Elham charity. 21st November 2010
The machine breaking that led to the riots of August 1830 onwards started in the Elham Parish, writes our historian Derek Boughton, who has made a lifetime's study of the subject.
Elham residents were prominent in the gangs that sought out the new fangled threshing machines and destroyed them. Some of them cost the not inconsiderable sum for the day of £100. Full Story
The National School was given the present Voluntary Aided status under the provisions of the 1944 Education Act. It is officially known as Elham Church of England (Voluntary Aided) Primary School. The school was founded and continues to be governed by the Church of England through its appointed Trustees. The State - through the Local Education Authority - (i.e. K.C.C.) finances the day-to-day running costs and maintains the interior - while the Diocesan Board manages capital projects and premises. The school is very much part of the church here in the village - and is committed to the teaching of the Christian faith. The pupils regularly take part in services - including Eucharist - and the vicar takes a weekly Assembly in the school. The Methodist Minister also attends on occasions. Elham Primary School
News in Brief. FAITHFUL SERVICE On our front page is announced the death of Constance Emma Rigden, of Elham, Kent, the former governess and devoted friend for 51 years of the family of the late Dr. and Mrs. Vere Nicoll. Brigadier & Mrs Fryer (she was daughter of H W Selby-Lowndes, Master of East Kent Hunt from 1900).
He was a pupil of Bodley and Garner. A second cousin to Elham resident (Robert) Anthony Eden (PM 1955-1957), he started as an architect, but concentrated increasingly on the design of church fittings and stained glass, setting up a studio in Red Lion Square, London around 1910. He was an advocate of clear, crisp use of colour (cf his work at Trevethin). This combination followed the principles of the Art Workers Guild, to which he belonged. At the end of St. Mary's church are the organ loft, font cover and baptistry, all designed by F.C. Eden, who restored the church in the early 1900s. He also designed the west window of the south aisle as part of a larger scheme which was not completed. There appears to be a connection with the incumbent vicar, Alard de Bourbel. F.C.Eden's uncle Henley Eden played cricket for The Easter Club alongside Alard's father Augustus. There is reference to a game in 1853 against St. John's Wood at Lord's in which both played. Augustus also played a first-class match for the MCC. F.C.Eden
At the end of St. Mary's church are the organ loft, font cover and baptistry, all designed by F.C. Eden, who restored the church in the early 1900s. He also designed the west window of the south aisle as part of a larger scheme which was not completed.
There appears to be a connection with the incumbent vicar, Alard de Bourbel. F.C.Eden's uncle Henley Eden played cricket for The Easter Club alongside Alard's father Augustus. There is reference to a game in 1853 against St. John's Wood at Lord's in which both played. Augustus also played a first-class match for the MCC.