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| Churston Ferrers | |
|---|---|
 Churston Ferrers, with St Mary's Church and Churston Court (left, west of church), viewed from south-east | |
  Churston Ferrers Location withinDevon | |
| OS grid reference | SX9056 |
| Unitary authority | |
| Ceremonial county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | BRIXHAM |
| Postcode district | TQ5 |
| Dialling code | 01803 |
| Police | Devon and Cornwall |
| Fire | Devon and Somerset |
| Ambulance | South Western |
| UK Parliament | |
| 50°24′00″N3°33′25″W / 50.400°N 3.557°W /50.400; -3.557 | |
Churston Ferrers is an area and formercivil parish,[1] in the borough ofTorbay,Devon, England, situated between the south coast towns ofPaignton andBrixham. Today it is administered by local government as the Churston-with-Galmpton ward of the Torbayunitary authority area. It contains the coastal village ofChurston, the now larger village ofGalmpton and theBroadsands area.
The place-name 'Churston Ferrers' is first attested in theDomesday Book of 1086, where it appears asCercetone, meaning 'church town or settlement'. The manor was held by Hugh de Fereris in 1303, according toFeudal Aids records, giving the second part of the name.[2]
Churston Ferrers was acivil parish in theTotnes Rural District until 1 April 1968 when the parish was abolished. The more built-up northern part of the parish, including the village itself, became part of the new parish andcounty borough of Torbay. The more rural southern part was transferred to the parish ofKingswear.[3][4]
Churston residents tend to associate mostly with Brixham, though those in the northern part of the Churston-with-Galmpton ward often think of themselves as part of Paignton.[5]
Churston railway station is on thePaignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway from whichsteam trains run daily. It is served by the frequent "Hop 12" service between Brixham and Newton Abbot operated by Stagecoach South West. In Churston Ferrers is situated the well regardedChurston Ferrers Grammar School.
The president of Churston Ferrersgolf club isRay Reardon, theWelsh six-time world snooker champion and formerworld number onesnooker player.Churston Court, the formermanor house of Churston Ferrers and today a hotel, is aGrade II* listed building situated to the immediate west of the parish church. Within the parish, off the Brixham Road, is situatedLupton House, aPalladianCountry house. Both houses were seats of the Yarde-Buller family, createdBaron Churston in 1858.
The novelistAgatha Christie was a regular guest of Lord Churston at Churston Court. In herHercule Poirot mysteryThe A.B.C. Murders, the third murder takes place in Churston. Agatha Christie commissioned the installation of a stained glass window on the eastern side of the parish church in the 1950s.[6]
