Roudham and Larling

Roudham and Larling is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of 15.20km2 and had a population of 278 in 119 households at the 2001 census, increasing to a population of 301 in 119 households at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of Breckland. River Thet flows next to Roudham and Larling.HistoryThe parish of Roudham and Larling is formed from the two ancient parishes which centred round the churches of St Andrew in Roudham and St Botolph in Larling. Up until 1894 all the duties usually performed by a local government were fulfilled by the churches, until the Local Government Act of 1984 which created civil parishes alongside ecclesiastical ones. The two parishes were known as separate ones for many years until 14 August 2000 at the request of Breckland council who declared for a Notice of the Change of the Parish Name, making the civil parish now be more commonly known as Roudham and Larling.The name Roudham has been thought to be derived from the old English meaning 'homestead where rue plants are grown.' A decline in population during the late Medieval period meant the village was abandoned and is now considered one of the best examples of a deserted Medieval settlement in Norfolk. After extensive archaeological research and the research into medieval findings it appears that the village of Roudham was thriving off the production of flint tools such as scrapers and arrowheads. For the early part the parish was a busy place, and judging by many barns and farmhouses it would have been heavily involved in agriculture. In the 19th century the Norfolk Railway opened which had a major impact on commuting into the area as well as the significant improvements in trade. The railway is still in use and has connections to the major towns and villages nearby.