Swalecliffe

 ( Villages In Kent ) 

Swalecliffe is a part of the ribbon development of the north Kent coast between Whitstable and Herne Bay in Southeast England. It forms Swalecliffe ward of City of Canterbury Council.

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History The Doomsday book provides an early record of Swalecliffe: There is no mention of a church, but when the old church was demolished in 1875 there were traces of an earlier building. This may have been an early phase of the Norman church, but Whitley says that "it seems highly probable that the original church was a Saxon Foundation". Sketches of the old church appear to show Norman windows along with later features.

Throughout the later Middle Ages there are records of gifts to the church for a variety of purposes. There is little other information about the village. The church records do however record periods of frost, floods and gales to which a sea-facing, low-lying land would be subject. In the winters of 1812 and 1813 the sea froze in the Thames Estuary.

Swalecliffe's only mention in Edward Hasted's monumental history of Kent records the gift in 1581 of a farm called "Bodkin's" (worth £11 6s 8d) to Gonvyle and Caius college in Cambridge University. Most of the money (£10 13s 4d) was used to fund four scholars.

In 1861, the parish was in extent with a population of 168.1861 Census. Summary quoted in The description in the National Gazetteer of 1868 reads:

In 1931, the civil parish had a population of 427. On 1 April 1934 the parish was abolished to form Whitstable. It is now in the unparished area of Whitstable.

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Transport The Ramsgate branch of the Chatham Main Line runs south of Swalecliffe which is served by Chestfield & Swalecliffe railway station.

The Thanet Way runs between Swalecliffe and the neighbouring settlement of Chestfield and provides access to the main transport network.

There used to be an aerodrome at Swalecliffe, but its location is unknown. According to the Airfields of Britain Conservation Trust it functioned from prior to August 1946 up to , however there is a picture taken on 28 June 1934 which purports to be at Swalecliffe Aerodrome. There is a report of a "Flying Circus" visiting the aerodrome in 1935.

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Recreational facilities The ponds, stream and sea are all centres for birdwatching. In 2016 158 species of birds were recorded by members of Kent Ornithological Society.

To the north of the village the links provide a recreational resource and include a skatepark. Part of the Saxon Shore Way footpath runs along the coast here.See Ordnance Survey maps of the area.

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Healthcare provision Swalecliffe Community Day Service provides support for people with learning disabilities both at Swalecliffe Day Centre and by organising outings to other facilities in the area.

==Gallery==

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Notes

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Bibliography

• (no ISBN)

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External links

• The Beacon Church
• Swalecliffe Baptist Church
• St John's Church, Swalecliffe (Anglican)

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