Location:
Chilton is situated immediately to the east and north-east of
the ancient market town of Sudbury in Suffolk,a few miles north of
the Essex border.It is a rural and semi-rural area with the heart
of it given over to arable fields intersected by a network of
footpaths.
It is bordered by the Chilton industial estate to the west,the
A134 and the parish of Great Cornard to the south,the rural
parishes of Great Waldingfield and Newton Green to the east and
Chilton Airfield and Long Melford Parish to the north.
Features:
Whilst interdependent with Sudbury, which has gradually expanded
towards it, Chilton has a long and proud tradition of its own. It
sees itself as one of Sudbury's green lungs where walkers and their
dogs come to refresh and exercise themselves along the many
walkways between the fields or across the
airfield
. The airfield was used extensively during the
second world war as a base for USAF bomber squadron and there
is a small war memorial at the entrance to commemerate the
pilots and crews who did not survive. Today the airfield is
largely given over to farming, grain storage in the old
aircraft hangers and light industry, though some of the
runways remain.
Other features include the 15th Century St. Mary's Church, which
sits in grand isolation between two fields,the original village
around it having disappeared. (For further details see HISTORY) The
Church has been made redundant and is now in the care of The Church
Conservation Trust. Well attended services are held three
times a year (For further details see St. Mary's Church)
Not far from the Church is the grade 11 listed Chilton Hall and
its listed garden, particularly beautiful in the Spring when purple
aubretia flowers along the walls of the moat.
The majority of the farm land is owned by Suffolk County Council
who purchased many farms in Suffolk at the end of World War 1 and
most of the land is still farmed by tenant farmers who make a
significant contribution in keeping the Parish as a pleasant,rural
open space.
There are approximately 150 dwellings in Chilton and most of
these are alongside the B115 between Sudbury and Great Waldingfield
and near the A134. Styles range from Victorian cottages and
farmhouses to traditional Dutch roofs, some thatch and more modern
bungalows and executive style houses.
Chilton's part of the industrial estate contains a number of
units, both large and small, including the Royal Mail Sorting
Office for the area and Mauldon's Brewery, the home of Black Adder
Ale!
Chilton has no Shop, Post Office, School or Public House, all of
these being available in Sudbury or the villages nearby. But much
is about to change!
The Future:
Currently, the Chilton area is the subject of a major Local Plan
enquiry which includes the building of up to 700 new homes (mostly,
though not all within the Parish boundary), the planting of a large
community woodland, the construction of shopping, community
and sports facilities and further areas given over to light
industry.(See Chilton Woods Development) The Parish is also to be
the home of Sudbury's new Community Hospital and the health and
social care campus that will surround it (see New Hospital).
This would enlarge both the human and traffic population
considerably and whilst the Parish Council supports Sudbury's
necessary expansion we remain mindful of the increased pressures on
the local infrastructure and protective of Chilton's environmental
heritage.