Key facts
OS grid ref: SU1734
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Postcode: SP4
Post town: Salisbury
Unitary Authority: Wiltshire
Parliamentary Constituency: Salisbury
The Winterbournes
The Winterbournes are a cluster of picturesque, historic villages dotted across stunning farmland in the Bourne Valley, including Winterbourne Dauntsey, Winterbourne Earls, Winterbourne Gunner and the hamlet of Hurdcott. They are around five miles to Salisbury – a 15-minute drive.
There’s a vibrant local community in the Winterbournes and the parish website lists lots of facilities and activities happening all year-round. There are pétanque tournaments at the Winterbourne Arms, a choir and a drama group, a historical society, the High Post golf course, a cricket club, allotments, a day centre and active Scouts and Guides for youngsters.
Winterbourne Earls has a CE primary school and there’s a bus service in the village operated by Salisbury Reds.
A mobile Post Office and mobile library visit, and there’s a link scheme for collecting prescriptions and for help with travel to hairdressers and healthcare appointments. There are three churches and a community hall, Glebe Hall, which also has a recreation ground next door, called Glebe Lands, on Vicarage Lane.
The local is The Winterbourne Arms serving food and a warm welcome including home cooked food and a Sunday carvery.
History
The history of the Winterbournes is intertwined with its farming heritage. Its origins can be traced to Anglo Saxon times when settlements were formed around the river and the fertile lands that surrounded it.
Even the name Winterbourne is derived from the river – named because its upper reaches often dried up in summer, to flow again in winter.
The villages are mentioned in the Domeday Book, and St Michael’s Church in Winterbourne Earls dates back to the 12th Century with its Norman architecture.
The three Winterbournes were separate entities, named after Gonnora de la Mare, Roger Danteseye and the Earl of Salisbury, who held the manors in the 13th Century. In 1934 they were formed into the civil parish of Winterbourne, together with Hurdcott.
Walking and cycling
The locals are proud of their network of footpaths, and walking in the Winterbournes is stunning.
If you’d like to explore The Winterbournes on foot then this trail from Wiltshire Walks is a four-mile option from Winterbourne to Berwick Bassett and back.
