Croxton Kerrial


Croxton Kerrial is a village and civil parish in the Melton borough of Leicestershire, England, south-west of Grantham, north-east of Melton Mowbray, and west of the Leicestershire boundary with Lincolnshire. The civil parish, which includes the village of Branston had a population of 530 at the 2011 census.

History

In medieval times, Croxton Abbey, a Premonstratensian house, lay within the locality. The manor of Croxton was granted by King Henry III in May 1242 to Bertram de Criol or Crioill, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, from whom the name "Kerrial" is derived. Nicholas de Crioll, a successor to Bertram as Warden of the Cinque Ports, married the heiress of William de Auberville the younger, whose grandfather in 1192 founded the Premonstratensian abbey of Langdon, near West Langdon, Kent as from Leiston Abbey in Suffolk, which had been founded by his father-in-law Ranulf de Glanville in 1183. On 28 December 1246 the king granted a Monday weekly market to Nicholas de Crioll, and his heirs, at his manor of Croxton, and a yearly fair on the vigil, feast and morrow of St Barnabas.

Governance

Lying across the historic county boundaries of Leicestershire and Lincolnshire from a very early time, Croxton Kerrial once formed an ancient parish within the hundred of Framland.
From 1894 to 1935, Croxton Kerrial formed part of the Belvoir Rural District, when it was amalgamated into Melton and Belvoir Rural District, both of which were within the administrative county of Leicestershire.
In 1974, as part of the provisions of the Local Government Act 1972, Croxton Kerrial was transferred into the newly created non-metropolitan district of Melton, while remaining within the county of Leicestershire.

Geography

Croxton Kerrial can be described as hilly, its highest point being 500 ft above sea level. Much of the land surrounding Croxton Kerrial is arable farmland.
Nearby places are Knipton and Harston, Belvoir Castle, Hungerton, Eaton and Sproxton. South Croxton is a separate village and civil parish in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, named to reflect its position south of Croxton Kerrial.
A local landmark is the Croxton Water Spout, part of an old water system sourced from a local spring, which was refurbished in 2003 as part of the Millennium celebrations.

Education and worship

Croxton Kerrial Church of England Primary School converted to academy status in 2013 under the Leicester Diocese Charitable Trust. An Ofsted report in June 2015 graded the school as good. It had a roll of 73.
The Anglican church, part of the Diocese of Leicester, is dedicated to both Saint Botolph and Saint John the Baptist. There is a former Methodist chapel in the village.

Sport

Croxton Kerrial currently has one senior football team, CK Dons, which plays in the Leicester and District Football League.
Croxton also has a Sunday cricket team, which plays in the GMCA Division 3.
South-west of the village is the disused Croxton Park race course. Its last meeting was held on 2 April 1914.