Aslackby and Laughton


Aslackby and Laughton is a civil parish in the South Kesteven district of Lincolnshire, England. According to the 2001 census the parish had a population of 243, in 102 households. increasing slightly to 251 in 118 households at the 2011 census. It consists of the village of Aslackby, the hamlet of Laughton, and scattered farms, and part of the hamlet of Graby.

Aslackby

Aslackby is a small village extending westwards from the A15 road between Rippingale and Folkingham, about halfway between Sleaford and Bourne.
Aslackby Grade I listed Anglican church is dedicated to St James. The chancel is Early English, largely rebuilt 1856, with the tower and nave, Perpendicular. The ecclesiastical parish is Aslackby, part of The Billingborough Group of the Lafford Deanery
There is a dining club, The Templars, for long-term residents, and a local history society.

History

The Aveland, a moat said to be the meeting place for the Wapentake of Aveland is in the parish. There is documentary evidence for a settlement called Avethorpe, from the Domesday survey onwards, but no actual location is known.
In 1164 the Knights Templar established a preceptory at Aslackby, from where their local estates were managed, and which resulted in high-status village buildings. However, with the transfer of the preceptory to the Hospitalers it was no longer needed, and little now remains.
In the 1940s, Folkingham Airfield was developed close to Temple Wood. It was from there that parts of Operation Market were flown.

Laughton

The hamlet of Laughton lies less than to the north of Aslackby. West Laughton at its south-west is the site of a deserted medieval village.

Employment

Most work in the area remains agricultural, with further employment at an equestrian centre, a public house, and a metal tube manufacturing company. Commuting to Grantham, Sleaford or Bourne for work is common.

Gallery