View source for Brockham

{{Short description|Village and parish in Surrey, England}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox UK place
| country = England
| official_name = Brockham
| map_type = Surrey
| coordinates = {{coord|51.233|-0.286|display=inline,title}}
| population = 2,198
| population_ref = "2021"
| area_total_km2 = 6.9
| os_grid_reference = TQ2049
| civil_parish = Brockham
| shire_district = [[Mole Valley]]
| shire_county = [[Surrey]]
| static_image_name = Brockham - geograph.org.uk - 847331.jpg
| static_image_caption = Brockham viewed from the [[North Downs Way]]
| static_image_2_name = Brockham Big Field - geograph.org.uk - 292983.jpg
| static_image_2_caption = Brockham Big Field: football and rugby with light surrounding woodland ([[National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty|NT]])
| region = South East England
| constituency_westminster = [[Dorking and Horley (UK Parliament constituency)|Dorking and Horley]]
| post_town = BETCHWORTH
| postcode_district = RH3
| postcode_area = RH
| dial_code = 01737
}}

'''Brockham''' is a village and [[civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in the [[Mole Valley]] district of [[Surrey]], England. It is approximately {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} east of [[Dorking]] and {{convert|4|mi|km}} west of [[Reigate]].  The village lies south of [[Box Hill, Surrey|Box Hill]], with the [[River Mole, Surrey|River Mole]] flowing west through the village.  At the time of the 2021 census, it had a population of  2,198 .<ref name=ons>[http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk Key Statistics; Quick Statistics: Population Density] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030211201309/http://www.neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/ |date=11 February 2003 }} [[United Kingdom Census 2011]] ''[[Office for National Statistics]]'' Retrieved 21 November 2013</ref>

==Name==
Brockham, originally 'Brook-ham' (bend in a brook) is so called from the Anglo Saxon meaning 'river meadow by the brook' and is first recorded in 1241.<ref>Oxford Dictionary of English Place-Names</ref>

==Landmarks==
On a spur of land to the north west of the village stands [[Betchworth Castle]], originally built by Richard FitzGilbert on land granted to him by [[William the Conqueror]] soon after the [[Norman Conquest|Norman]] invasion in 1066, but later replaced by a [[medieval]] house which was probably built in the mid-to-late 14th century. Only a few ruins survive today.<ref>{{Cite news |title= Betchworth Castle ruins made safe for Surrey visitors |date= 8 February 2012 |work= BBC News |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-16945942 |access-date= 4 October 2023 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last= Roberts |first= Stephen |date= 16 June 2020 |title= Exploring the history of Surrey's seven castles |work= Great British Life |url= https://www.greatbritishlife.co.uk/homes-and-gardens/places-to-live/22572900.exploring-history-surreys-seven-castles/ |access-date= 4 October 2023 }}</ref>

Christ Church, the parish church is relatively recent in origin, having been commissioned in 1847 by Sir [[Henry Goulburn]], who served as both [[Chancellor of the Exchequer]] and [[Home Secretary]].<ref>[http://www.brockhamvillage.co.uk/about/about_history/about_parish.htm Brockham church history] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517074155/http://www.brockhamvillage.co.uk/about/about_history/about_parish.htm |date=17 May 2008 }}</ref>

==Village green==
The village green is a focal point for the village. Once popular for its [[cricket]] matches – [[WG Grace]] is said to have played there<ref>{{cite web |title= W.G. Grace & Surrey |date= 13 May 2019 |publisher= RH Uncovered |url= https://www.rhuncovered.co.uk/w-g-grace-surrey/ |access-date= 4 October 2023 }}</ref> – it is a focal point of a [[Guy Fawkes Night]] bonfire every year on the closest Saturday to 5 November. It has been at times, the UK's largest bonfire and firework display, and was first recorded in 1886.<ref>[http://www.brockham.org/top-menu/bonfire.aspx Brockham bonfire] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110911071954/http://www.brockham.org/top-menu/bonfire.aspx |date=11 September 2011 }}</ref> Around 20,000 people gather round the village green, over 4 tonnes of fireworks typically light up the sky and the event is widely regarded by local residents as the highlight of the Mole Valley's calendar.  Dorking Rugby Club on Kiln Lane, opens for the event, as the Club House is near to the bonfire. In the 20 years to 2023, almost £450,000 has been raised by the event in aid of local organisations and charities.<ref>{{Cite web |title= Brockham Bonfire - 4th November 2023 |url= https://www.brockham.org/brockham-bonfire |date=23 September 2023 |publisher= Brockham Parish Council |access-date= 4 October 2023 }}</ref>
There is also an annual Victorian fair weekend in mid-July, with a village picnic and live music performances on the Saturday evening, also showcasing local talent.

==Industry==
Agriculture previously provided most of the employment for villagers, although further work was to be found in the nearby Brockham Hills from the mid-19th century, when they were quarried for [[chalk]] and hearthstone – an operation run by the Brockham Brick Company Limited until 1911 and by the Brockham Lime and Hearthstone Company until 1936 when the works closed.<ref>[http://www.brockhamvillage.co.uk/about/about_history/about_limeworks_reading.htm About Brockham Brick Company] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080516232146/http://www.brockhamvillage.co.uk/about/about_history/about_limeworks_reading.htm |date=16 May 2008 }}</ref>

From 1945, [[Beecham Group|Beecham]] Research Laboratories Ltd (which merged with SmithKline in 1989, then with Glaxo, to become [[GlaxoSmithKline]] in 2000) operated from [[Brockham Park]] at the southern end of the village.
In 1959, Brockham Park became famous when Beecham scientists there discovered the penicillin nucleus, [[6-APA]] (6-aminopenicillanic acid); this discovery allowed the synthesis of a number of new semisynthetic [[Penicillin#Members|penicillins]].
In 1959, Beecham marketed pheneticillin, followed shortly by [[methicillin]] (or meticillin), which is active against the bacterium ''Staphylococcus aureus'' ('golden staph').<ref>From Pills to Penicillin: The Beecham Story –
by H. G. Lazell, Published by Heinemann - London (1975)</ref>  In time some bacterial strains developed resistance to these antibiotics, such as the [[MRSA]] (for methicillin-resistant ''Staphylococcus aureus''). The site became Beecham's Chemotherapeutic Research Centre.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=VvA1L-LcC98C&pg=PA170 New Scientist January 1977]</ref> The site is now a housing estate.<ref>{{Cite web |url= https://find-an-architect.architecture.com/clarke-butterfield-architects/london/brockham-park |title= Brockham Park |publisher= RIBA |access-date= 4 October 2023 }}</ref>

In August 2018, retrospective planning permission was granted by [[Surrey County Council]] for a secondary [[petroleum|oil]] [[Borehole|wellbore]] in Brockham.<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-surrey-45126034 Surrey councillors approve secondary oil wellbore at Brockham] 9 August 2018, ''bbc.co.uk/news'', accessed 27 February 2019</ref>

==Education==
Brockham Primary School merged with The Acorns Infant School in nearby Betchworth in 2010 to create a new combined primary school now named The North Downs Primary School.<ref>{{Cite web |title= North Downs Primary School |date= 6 May 2020 |orig-date= 20 December 2019 |publisher= Leigh Parish Council |url= https://leigh-surrey.org.uk/directory/north-downs-primary-school/ |access-date= 4 October 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title= North Downs Primary School Inspection report |publisher= Ofsted |url= https://files.ofsted.gov.uk/v1/file/1957619 |access-date= 4 October 2023}}</ref>

==Governance==
There are three tiers of local government covering Brockham, at parish, district, and county level: Brockham Parish Council, Mole Valley District Council, and Surrey County Council.

Until 1933, Brockham formed part of the civil parish of [[Betchworth]], which was administered as part of the [[Reigate]] Rural District. A civil parish of Brockham was created on 1 April 1933 and transferred to the [[Dorking]] Urban District. This parish was classed as an urban parish and so did not have its own parish council, but was directly administered by Dorking Urban District Council.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Youngs |first1=Frederic A. |title=Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Volume 1: Southern England |date=1979 |publisher=Royal Historical Society |location=London |isbn=0-901050-67-9 |page=474}}</ref> Dorking Urban District was abolished to become part of Mole Valley district on 1 April 1974, and the urban parishes it had contained, including Brockham, became [[unparished area]]s. A new parish of Brockham, this time with its own parish council, was created on 1 April 1982.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Mole Valley (Parishes) Order 1981 |date=1981 |url=https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/12389/mole-valley-parishes-order-1981.pdf |access-date=11 February 2022}}</ref>

[[Surrey County Council]] elected every four years, has one representative, from Buckland for Dorking Rural:
* Helyn Clack, conservative who participates in these committees:
** Cabinet Member for Community Services and the 2012 Games decisions
** People, Performance and Development
** The Mole Valley local committee (obligatory)<ref>[http://online.surreycc.gov.uk/members/membook.nsf/vwWebLookupMembersbyOrdID/13902?opendocument Surrey Councillor details Surrey Councillor details]</ref>
The second party forming the main local opposition in the 2013 election, was the [[Liberal Democrats (UK)|Liberal Democrats]] gaining 1,527 votes versus the winning candidate's 1,810.<ref>[[2013 Surrey County Council election]]</ref>

2 councillors sit on [[Mole Valley]] borough council, who are:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"|Election!!Member<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/index.cfm?articleid=9543 |title=Mole Valley Councillors. Retrieved 28 April 2012 |access-date=28 April 2012 |archive-date=17 April 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417192650/http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/index.cfm?articleid=9543 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/media/pdf/n/7/District_Results_2011.pdf |title=Mole Valley Results 2009–11 |access-date=28 April 2012 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304102430/http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/media/pdf/n/7/District_Results_2011.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref>!!
Ward
|-
|style="background-color: {{party color|Conservative Party (UK)}}" |
|2011
|John Muggeridge || Brockham, Betchworth & Buckland
|-
|style="background-color: {{Yellow}}" |
|2010
|Paul Potter || Brockham, Betchworth & Buckland
|-
|}

==Demography and housing==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+ '''2011 Census Homes'''
|-
!Output area !!Detached  !!Semi-detached!!Terraced!!Flats and apartments!!Caravans/temporary/mobile homes!!shared between households<ref name=ons/>
|-
|(Civil Parish)||402 || 505 || 170 || 104 || 10 || 0
|}
The average level of accommodation in the region composed of detached houses was 28%, the average that was apartments was 22.6%.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
|+ '''2011 Census Key Statistics'''
|-
!Output area !!Population !!Households !!% Owned outright !!% Owned with a loan!!hectares<ref name=ons/>
|-
|(Civil Parish)||2,868||1,191   ||43.0% ||39.2%||690
|}
The proportion of households in the civil parish who owned their home outright compares to the regional average of 35.1%.  The proportion who owned their home with a loan compares to the regional average of 32.5%.  The remaining % is made up of rented dwellings (plus a negligible % of households living rent-free).

==Nearest settlements==
{{Geographic Location
|title     = '''Neighbouring areas of Surrey'''
|Northwest = [[Westhumble]]
|North     = [[Box Hill, Surrey|Box Hill]], [[Headley, Surrey|Headley]]
|Northeast = [[Walton-on-the-Hill]]
|East      = [[Betchworth]] and [[Buckland, Surrey|Buckland]]
|Centre    = Brockham
|West      = [[Dorking]]
|Southwest = [[North Holmwood]]
|South = [[Newdigate]]
|Southeast = [[Leigh, Surrey|Leigh]]
}}

==References==
<references/>
* Oxford Dictionary of English Place Names

==External links==
{{Commons category|Brockham}}
* [http://www.brockham.org.uk/ Brockham Green home page]
* [https://www.brockham.org/ Brockham Parish Council]
* [http://www.brockhamhistory.org/ Brockham History home page]
* [http://www.molevalley.gov.uk/index.cfm?articleid=1334 Mole Valley District Council]
* [http://www.northdowns.surrey.sch.uk/ North Downs Primary School]
* [http://www.badgerland.co.uk/pictures/book_covers/childrens/brock_the_badger.html]
* [http://www.bvhc.org.com/ Brockham Village Hall Club]
* {{Exploring Surrey's Past |place=Brockham}}

{{Mole Valley}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Villages in Surrey]]
[[Category:Mole Valley]]
[[Category:Civil parishes in Surrey]]