Hale

Hale is a small village overlooking the River Avon in a stunning, wooded location on the Hampshire/Wiltshire border and close to the New Forest.

The village is around 10 miles from the cathedral city of Salisbury with its shops, restaurants, bars, heritage, culture and amenities. The train from here to Waterloo takes less than 90 minutes. Fordingbridge in the New Forest is just five miles away and Southampton, including its airport, is around 35 minutes away.

Thatched cottages are dotted around Hatchet Green in the centre of the village where wild New Forest ponies graze.

The Green is a dedicated site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Conservation Area which was taken over by the Parish Council when no owner could be traced. It is home to ak, ash, birch, holly, lawson cypress, chestnut and hawthorn trees.

Next to Hale, the stunning common of Hale Purlieu, an area of heath and valley bog, is managed by The National Trust. The word ‘purlieu’ means ‘disafforested’ or not subject to forest law. It was only included in the boundary of the New Forest in the mid 1960s.

This is a village with a strong sense of community and commitment to its environment. The Victorian school building is still home to the primary school. There’s a parish council website, Neighbourhood Watch and a village hall as well as the local Redlynch and Hale Cricket Club.