Hockley, a Civil Parish and a Large Village in the Essex County, England
The town of Hockley is also a civil parish in the English county of Essex. It is a large village located in the middle of Southend-on-Sea and Chelmsford. More explicitly, it sits between Rochford and Rayleigh. It became known when the railway came in the 1890s. Many of its residents at present commute to London. The urban area of the village spills over the neighbouring parish of Hawkwell while there is still a large forested area in the town called Hockley Woods.
Food, Shopping and Accommodation in Hockley
The village boasts of three pubs; The Spa, The White Hart and The Bull, and sixteen restaurants, cafes and clubs. Diners have a choice of British, Chinese Indian, Turkish and Italian cuisine. Near this town, there are twenty hotels for visitors to chose from.
Things to See and Do in Hockley
Important structures in the village include the St Peter and Paul Church which is a Grade II listed building. The church has a nave that could have been constructed before the 12th Century, a tower that dates back to the 14th Century, and a chancel added in the 13th Century. The octagonal upper half of the church was added at a later date. The church tower has three bells made by different people but all in the 1600s. One was fabricated by Miles Gray in 1626; another was done in 1657 by John Hodgson and the third by James Bartlett in 1684.
At the north-west centre of the village where the church is located, another Grade II listed structure is found, a Victorian pump room. The pump room was designed by John Lockyer in 1842 and was intended to be a spa for the medicinal spring found by Robert Clay in 1838. Later, it was utilised as a Baptist chapel, and at present, it houses a factory. The Bullwood Hall prison which was shut down in 2013 was also built in Hockley.
It also has the Lawn Tennis Club based in Folly Lane and the Woods is the venue of the Woods Parkrun participated in by more than 100 runners weekly.