Upham Village, Hampshire UK
Upham Lies between Winchester and Portsmouth, about 10 miles from the centre of Southampton, and on the edge of the South Downs.
Upham Parish (which includes the surrounding area), has a population of about 620 and 254 houses.
Upham is a lively community with primary school, church, shop, Village Hall and 2 pubs (and even its own brewery!). It has a range of active societies and a successful football club.
The village has two centres. The original hamlet of Upham lies on the higher ground in the centre of the Parish. Now a conservation area, it contains the Church, the village recreation ground, the village pond and The Brushmakers Arms. Lower Upham lies about 2 kilometres to the south west on the main road from Winchester/Colden Common to Bishops Waltham. The Village Hall, and the Alma pub are in Lower Upham, from which bus services run.
These two centres are joined by Upham Street, a winding lane with other narrow lanes branching off it at the top, middle and bottom. The thriving Upham C of E aided Primary School is on Upham Street.
A popular starting point for country walks, Upham is surrounded by attractive countryside and much of the village now lies within the South Downs National Park. Much of the farmland is arable but there is extensive pasture for sheep, pigs, cattle and horses.
The Parish is crossed by an extensive network of footpaths including longer distance paths the Monarch’s Way, Pilgrims’ Trail and King’s Way. In the south of the parish King’s Way and the Pilgrims’ Trail partly use the course of the former Roman road from Winchester to Portchester, which passes between Upham and Lower Upham. From the footpaths around the upper part of the village there are panoramic views to the Isle of Wight, New Forest, Winchester and along the South Downs.
Parish Plan
It aims to find out what features, local characteristics, facilities and services are valued by people in the village. It also aims to identify local problems and issues which need to be tackled. This information will then enable us to create a document which makes clear how we want our community to develop in the future and to create an action plan to achieve this vision.
Village Design Statement
This is currently being updated. It is a way for local communities to propose guidelines for the design of any new development that may take place in their area. Once updated, the VDS will help architects, developers and all those involved in making design decisions to have a better understanding of what is distinctive about Upham. It will also be used by both Winchester City Council and the South Downs National Park in evaluating planning applications
History
The chalk uplands around Upham once pastured the sheep flocks of Bronze- and Iron-age man, whilst the flints were in plentiful supply for their stone age predecessors. Springs which bubble from the eocene clay have always been an important feature of the downlands and the name ‘Upham’ suits the village as the suffix ‘ham’ can mean both ‘Village’ and ‘a meadow on, or near a stream’.
Setting
Upham is surrounded by farmland of high quality. All of the Parish to the North and East of the B2177 from Colden Common to Bishops Waltham lies in the South Downs National Park, much of the remainder is designated as an Area of Special Landscape Quality.
