Stanstead is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. The name Stanstead comes from the Old English for "Stony place". Located off the B1066, it is around from Sudbury, and is part of Babergh district. It is about from Glemsford, from Hadleigh, and from Lavenham.
Etymology The name Stanstead is Anglo Saxon for "stony place" and it is easy to appreciate how this came about when viewing the surrounding fields, particularly in the lower part of the village, which are strewn with glacial flint. There is much evidence of earlier Iron Age and Roman settlements in the surrounding area.
Geography Stanstead is situated in Glem Valley to the north east of Sudbury. The Parish borders Long Melford in the west, Glemsford to the south, Boxted to the east and Shimpling to the north.
The village is T-shaped; the lower half of the settlement (Lower Street) follows the B1066 along the bottom of the valley past the old Stanstead osier beds. The upper part of the village is reached by a 30-metre climb up the hill past Stanstead Hall towards the church and a cluster of houses, a small green and then on to Upper Street and Blooms Hall Lane.
Governance Stanstead lies in the Babergh district of the shire county of Suffolk. The three tiers of local government are administered by
Suffolk County Council Babergh District Council Stanstead Parish Council
Transport Shimpling is served by one bus service operated by Hedingham & Chambers:
Education The village is served by Hartest CEVCP School, a primary school currently catering for pupils aged 5–11.
Older children attend Sudbury Upper School and Arts College.
Demography According to the Office for National Statistics, at the time of the United Kingdom Census 2001, Stanstead had a population of 316 with 127 households.
Population change Population growth in Stanstead from 1801 to 1891 Year 1801 1811 1821 1831 1841 1851 1881 1891 Population 258 284 341 353 387 412 369 368Source: A Vision of Britain Through Time
Population growth in Stanstead from 1901 to 2001 Year 1901 1911 1921 1931 1951 1961 2001 Population 326 265 291 270 247 276 316Source: A Vision of Britain Through Time
Notable former residents Robert Calef (1648 - 1719), cloth merchant in colonial Boston and author. Edmund Rice (c.1594 – 1663), politician and founder of Marlborough, Massachusetts
Listed buildings
References
External links
Parish Council website St James's Church Suffolk Churches