| Holmer Green | |
|---|---|
 Christ Church parish church | |
  Holmer Green Location withinBuckinghamshire | |
| Population | 4,077 (2001 Census)[1] |
| OS grid reference | SU904971 |
| Civil parish | |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | High Wycombe |
| Postcode district | HP15 |
| Dialling code | 01494 |
| Police | Thames Valley |
| Fire | Buckinghamshire |
| Ambulance | South Central |
| UK Parliament | |
| Website | Little Missenden Parish Council |
| |
Holmer Green is avillage in thecivil parish ofLittle Missenden, inBuckinghamshire, England. It is next toHazlemere, about 3 miles (5 km) south ofGreat Missenden.
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Holmer Green is named after themanor of Holmer that covered a significant part of the parish of Little Missenden in theMiddle Ages. The early history of the village is essentially one of people moving out of Little Missenden over the centuries and settling on a large area ofheath (now vanished) known as Wycombe Heath or Holmer Heath. The 'Holmer' part of thetoponym was first recorded asHoleme in 1208 and is probably derived fromOld English. It is commonly thought[by whom?] to derive from 'mere in a hollow' which would refer to Holmer Pond. However, there are certain factors that do not support this theory and the-mer element may actually translate to an Old English word meaning 'boundary'. The 'Green' part of the name refers to a large and ancient Green, probably dating from the 13th century that used to exist here but was reduced to a size of only 4 acres (1.6 ha) in 1854.[2]
The site of the original medievalmanor house of Holmer remains obscure, although local historians McLain-Smith and Riches have suggested its location at amoated site in nearby Colemans Wood where they have excavated medievalpottery.[citation needed]
The oldest houses are The Old Rookery, Hollands Farm and Penfold, all of which probably date from the early 16th century when the hamlet thrived due tosheep farming. The Grade II-listed,[3] brick and flint, Holmer Ridings, now a manor and equestrian facility, was built ca. 1728 as a hunting lodge and has been fully restored.[4]
In the hundred years between 1850 and 1950, the village became well known locally for its cherry orchards,[5] and there remain many references[citation needed] to orchards and cherries in road names and house names.
In 2008 the village formally celebrated 800 years of recorded settlement.
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The village underwent housing development during the 1960s and early 1970s and now has about 4,000 inhabitants (almost double that of neighboring Little Missenden).[6] The big developments of the 1960s and 1970s included an expanded range of shops around Turners Place, the Winter's Way estate, the Fox Road and Harries Way estate and the Holmer Court estate (Clementi Avenue). A significant number of newcomers to the village came fromMiddlesex during that period.
The village has two centres: a commercial centre based around the shops and central crossroads; and a community-oriented centre based around The Common featuring two churches, thevillage hall, a school, apub, a children's playground, and The Common itself.
Holmer Green's most desirable roads range from older roads like Watchet Lane and Penfold Lane through to newer developments like Mead Park. The village's most famous residents are television presenterFern Britton and her husband,celebrity chefPhil Vickery.
Residents jealously guard the village's independence from theWycombe-basedurban sprawl next door.[citation needed] Maintenance of an independent community separate from the Wycombeconurbation has been helped not only by the village's historic connections with the Missendens,Penn Street andAmersham but also by the presence in the village of a full range of amenities including: pre-schools; primary and secondary schools; three differentChristian denomination churches (Church of England,Baptist,Methodist); a dental practice; three pubs (The Bat and Ball, The Earl Howe and The Old Oak); two social clubs (The British Legion and Holmer Green Sports Association); and significant sports facilities. The village lost its onlyGP practice in 2018 when the lease on the surgery premises expired.
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The sporting activities hosted by the Holmer Green Sports Association (HGSA) are an important feature of village life.Football is particularly popular and very well established:Non-League football teamHolmer Green F.C. celebrated its centenary in 2008 and there are numerous football teams for all age groups – male and female – that play on the four scaled football pitches and two mini pitches.
The grounds and facilities at HGSA in Watchet Lane have been used to host training sessions for England teams and forWycombe Wanderers, and have recently been awardedFA Community Charter status. Football matches and training sessions for some village teams are also held on The Common. Wycombe Wanderers are in League One.
Other sports at HGSA are: a Padel Tennis club and facilities consisting of two Padel tennis courts which were built in 2021; aSquash club and courts; aCricket club and cricket square; and aShort Mat Bowls club with a 3-rink outdoor green.
Surrounded as it is byMetropolitan Green Belt countryside, Holmer Green village is well placed forwalking,horse riding, and cycling – the Chiltern Heritage Cycling Trail runs right through the centre of the village.[7]
Afunfair is held on The Common for several days in May and September.[citation needed]
Holmer Green has several pre-schools including: Holmer Green Methodist Pre-School; the Cherry Tree Pre-School; the Village Centre Pre-School; and Playmates Day Nursery.
Holmer Green First School (ages 4–7) and Holmer Green Junior School (ages 7–11) are part of a cluster of local primary schools used by Holmer Green families. A significant proportion of villagers use the Holmer Green schools while others make use of spare places at Little Kingshill School and theChurch of England schools at Penn Street andGreat Kingshill.
In 2006 Holmer Green Junior School led this cluster of schools atKey Stage 2 and came joint-tenth in the county for aggregated score.[10] Previously, Little Kingshill School led the group. All four primary schools are consistently in the top half of KS2 results in Buckinghamshire.
Most Holmer Green children who are not selected forgrammar school under Buckinghamshire's11+ selective system go to eitherHolmer Green Senior School or to theSir William Ramsay School (in Hazlemere) which share a common catchment area. A smaller number go to theMisbourne School and theAmersham School despite both being out of catchment.
Local pupils selected for grammar school at age 11 – about a third of all those who sit the test – have customarily attended Amersham andChesham schools:Dr Challoner's Grammar School (boys),Dr Challoner's High School (girls) andChesham Grammar School (mixed). New catchment areas were implemented by Buckinghamshire Local Education Authority in 2004 so that selected pupils may now attendThe Royal Grammar School (boys),Beaconsfield High School (girls), orWycombe High School (girls). Some selected pupils still choose to attend Chesham Grammar School andJohn Hampden Grammar School (boys) despite both now being out of catchment. In recent years, Year 7 children who qualify for grammar school under Bucks' late transfer procedure[11] (known colloquially as "The 12+") have been able to win places at Chesham Grammar School.[12]
A number ofprivate schools are available in nearby villages and towns.The Gateway School[13] (primary), theClaires Court Schools[14] (for which there is a coach to & from Holmer Green) andPipers Corner School[15] (primary and secondary girls) are popular with villagers who choose the independent sector.
It is said that Holmer Green people enjoy an unusually wide choice of schools.[16]
According to the2001 Census, 77.8% of Holmer Green's population is Christian, while both Sikhism and Buddhism have 0.2% each. 0.3% of Holmer Green's inhabitants identified as Jewish, while 0.6% identified as Muslims. Alternative religions made up 0.1% of the population, while 14% identified as atheists and 75 did not state a religion. This overwhelming majority of Christians is also reflected in the places of worship. While, previously, Holmer Green has had 3 Churches, an Anglican church, a Baptist church and a Methodist church, following Covid-19 the Methodist church announced that it would be shutting down. Then, it announced it final closure was not guaranteed and as of 2024, its current and future status is currently ambiguous to even its own churchgoers. Meanwhile, the Baptist church focuses on bringing Children into the church, partnering often with the next door Holmer Green Junior School, running events such as messy church, in which children do activities and can participate in small prayer sessions or passage reading. Furthermore, the Baptist church focuses a lot on making themselves family friendly, such as focusing greatly on their christenings. Finally, the Anglican church, officially Christ's church, focuses much more on Adults and the elderly moving into the village and giving them a place of worship. This is further reinforced by doing burial services in the only grave yard in the village in the land surrounding the church building itself, also owned by Christ's church. Nearby as well are two more churches nearby in Hazlemere, an Anglican one, called the Holy Trinity Church and another Methodist church, run by the same organisation as the one in Holmer Green itself, known as the Hazlemere Free Methodist Church. Finally there is a nearby church in Widmer end known as the Church of the Good Sheppard, with no clear denomination. Catholics and other religions must travel into nearby High Wycombe, Chesham or Amersham, where a plethora of Catholic Churches, Mosques and other places of worship exist.
Holmer Green is near theA404 road, which links junctions of theM4,M40 andM25 motorways.
Being only a short drive from both Amersham to the east, and High Wycombe to the south-west, the village is suitably located forcommuting into London by main line trains on theChiltern line which takes about 40 minutes, or on theMetropolitan line which is slower. Some of the working population commute to London every day. The proportion of London commuters is however lower than some surrounding villages – most villagers work in Buckinghamshire,Berkshire orHertfordshire.[citation needed] The village is about 25 minutes' drive fromLondon Heathrow Airport and an hour's drive fromGatwick,Luton, andStansted airports.
Regular bus services operated byCarousel Buses andArriva Shires & Essex connect Holmer Green to High Wycombe, Amersham and Chesham.[17]
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Seven parish councillors represent Holmer Green on Little Missenden's thirteen-seatparish council which has offices at Rossetti Hall in Holmer Green. The councillors are formally independent of political parties.[18] Holmer Green has long elected twoConservative district councillors to the Conservative-runChiltern District Council. Holmer Green is also represented by Conservatives at County and Parliamentary levels.
Holmer Green has been part ofChesham and Amersham Parliamentary Constituency since its creation in 1974. Between 1950 and 1974, the village formed part of the largerSouth Buckinghamshire constituency, and prior to 1950, it was a part of the historicAylesbury constituency. As such, the village was last represented by a non-Conservative in 1923, when theLiberalThomas Keens was elected.
It is not however entirely accurate to say that Holmer Green has never been represented by aLabour MP. Until quite recently, the far south-west corner of Holmer Green around the appropriately-named Wycombe Road was actually a part ofHughenden parish,Wycombe District and thereforeWycombe constituency. This peculiarity had resulted from the village's steady growth towards Hazlemere and across an oldHundred and parish boundary. Between 1945 and 1951, Wycombe and therefore a handful of Holmer Green houses were represented by Labour MPJohn Edwin Haire.[19]
The peculiarity was addressed and the village finally unified inside Little Missenden parish, Chiltern District and Chesham and Amersham constituency following the movement of the administrative boundary to the top of Sawpit Hill in 1987.[20]
The 2011 proposals for parliamentary constituency boundary changes has kept Holmer Green in Chesham and Amersham constituency.[21]
| Holmer Green ward | Chiltern borough | England | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 4,077 | 89,228 | 49,138,831 |
| Foreign born | 4.4% | 9.3% | 9.2% |
| White | 97.8% | 95.5% | 90.9% |
| Asian | 1.1% | 2.8% | 4.6% |
| Black | 0.4% | 0.3% | 2.3% |
| Christian | 77.8% | 74.7% | 71.7% |
| Muslim | 0.6% | 1.9% | 3.1% |
| Hindu | 0.0% | 0.5% | 1.1% |
| No religion | 14.0% | 15.0% | 14.6% |
| Unemployed | 1.7% | 1.7% | 3.3% |
| Retired | 16.4% | 14.6% | 13.5% |
The2001 Census recorded Holmer Green'selectoral ward as having a population of 4,077. The ethnicity was 97.8% white, 0.5% mixed race, 1.1% Asian, 0.4% black and 0.2% other. The place of birth of residents was 95.6% United Kingdom, 0.5% Republic of Ireland, 0.9% other Western European countries, and 3% elsewhere. Religion was recorded as 77.8% Christian, 0.2% Buddhist, 0% Hindu, 0.2% Sikh, 0.3% Jewish, and 0.6% Muslim. 14% were recorded as having no religion, 0.1% had an alternative religion and 7% did not state their religion.[1]
The economic activity of residents aged 16–74 was 39.9% in full-time employment, 14.1% in part-time employment, 12.5% self-employed, 1.7% unemployed, 2.5% students with jobs, 2.8% students without jobs, 16.4% retired, 7.3% looking after home or family, 1.7% permanently sick or disabled and 1.2% economically inactive for other reasons. The industry of employment of residents was 17% retail, 15.6% manufacturing, 7.9% construction, 19.5% real estate, 9.1% health and social work, 6.9% education, 5.6% transport and communications, 4.1% public administration, 2.6% hotels and restaurants, 3.8% finance, 1.1% agriculture and 6.8% other. Compared with national figures, the ward had a relatively high proportion of workers in real estate and construction. There were a relatively low proportion in public administration, hotels and restaurants. Of the ward's residents aged 16–74, 21.5% had a higher education qualification or the equivalent, compared with 19.9% nationwide.[1]
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