| Little Downham | |
|---|---|
  Little Downham Location withinCambridgeshire | |
| Population | 2,589 (2011) |
| OS grid reference | TL518841 |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | Ely |
| Postcode district | CB6 |
| |
Situated in the east ofCambridgeshire, the village ofLittle Downham is located 3 miles (5 km) north of the city ofEly. The Parish of Downham comprises Little Downham andPymoor. It has an approximate population of 2660 with approximately 35 miles for footpaths around the parish.[1] The population was measured at the 2021 Census as 3,028.[2] It was one of only two sites in Cambridgeshire to be covered by theSurvey of English Dialects.
In theDomesday Book of 1086 the village is calledDuneham. At the time theFens were mostly flooded, and the village is on a small rise of solid ground (visible today), so there may have been 'dunes' there.
In a map from 1648 (above), 'Downham' is shown at the north-west edge of theIsle of Ely, hence its historic name of 'Downham-in-the-Isle'.
The village's church, dedicated toSt Leonard, dates back to the 12th century, though it has been considerably modified since and restored multiple times.[3]Kelly's Directory, a British business andtrade directory, recorded in 1929 that "The church of St. Leonard is a structure of rubble in the TransitionNorman andEarly English styles, consisting ofchancel,clerestoriednave of five bays, aisles, south porch and an embattled western tower, withpinnacles, containing 4 bells, two of which are dated 1659: the clerestory windows are very small and are deeply splayed internally : the inner porch doorway is a good example of Transition Norman : in thechancel is anarcaded doublepiscina with cinquefoil-headed arch, but portions of the arch and one basin have been cut away to admit the insertion of a window: therood screen is of carved oak: the chancel was restored and avestry and organ chamber erected in 1890, at a cost of £1,144: in 1897 and 1899 extensive restorations were carried out at a cost of £800: the church had been previously reseated, and now affords 300 sittings: the north aisle was restored in 1912. Theregister dates from the year 1558, but is not continuous."[4]
Little Downham'sVillage Hall is aGrade II-listed building and was constructed in 1779 "on the site of the formerguildhall as both a boys' school and the villageworkhouse. In 1886 the workhouse was altered to become a girls' school and the building remained in use as a school until 1960. Theinfants school was on a separate site in what is now the allotments and the site is marked with a plaque. A new school was built nearby on land donated by thefeoffees and this building has since been replaced on the same site. The current village hall was opened in 1974 and has undergone major refurbishment in that time."[5]
The village contains the grade II listed remains of the old Bishop's Palace formerly used by theBishops of Ely.
Little Downham Local Nature Reserve is situated adjacent to the Bishop's Walk. It consists of three sections of land, measuring a total of 17 acres (6.6 hectares), and is the first designated Local Nature Reserve inEast Cambridgeshire.[6][7]
The village retainsVictorian Grade II-listedpub andThai restaurant (The Plough Inn, now officially called Thai Plough), a recently refurbished hotel, bar, and restaurant (The Anchor Inn), a church, avillage shop andpost office, afish and chip shop, a car dealership, and Grade II-listed Village Hall. The village also has apreschool andprimary school as well as a sports area purchased by the council in the early 1960s which includes apavilion andcricket ground, threefootball pitches,tennis courts, abasketball court,BMXdirt track, youth shelter andplayground.[8]
Each year a village fete is staged in June and in the same month aMedieval Fair is held just outside the village. In September the local primary school organises a Scarecrow Fair that sees the village lined with Scarecrows for the week building up to the fair. The annual Ely New Year's Eve10k Race, organised by Ely Runners, both begins and ends in Little Downham. The 2011 race featured 700 runners and involved one circuit of the fen around Little Downham.[9]
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