Weavering

Weavering is a village, mainly consisting of parts of the Grove Green and Bearsted Park housing Estates, centred on Weavering Street, within the borough of Maidstone, Kent in South East England that was formerly farmland. At the 2014 Census the population of the village was included in the civil parish of Thurnham.History of WeaveringThe settlement grew from the small hamlet of Weavering Street. Prior to the housing development, residents of this road tended to class themselves as part of Bearsted, hence even today, many residents of this road include Bearsted in their address, despite technically being part of Weavering.The name, Weavering can at least be traced back to the early 20th century, as it can be seen on Ordnance Survey maps from the time, however, it is likely the name is much older, as houses dating from the Middle Ages are present on the Weavering Street, suggesting it has ancient origins. What is now the housing estate one formed part of a vast, formerly prosperous and rich country estate, which had passed through several owners, most notably perhaps, the Whatman family, who are often mentioned in the history of Maidstone. Weavering, as the area is today, covers the old market farm, which made up the eastern side of the estate. Similarly, the nearby Vinters Park housing estate, covers former wheat and hop fields to the west. The land in between, currently around 90acre, is maintained as a local nature reserve, Vinters Valley Nature Reserve. The old manor house once stood in this nature reserve, but was burnt down around 1960, just after much of the land was sold to housing developers. Today, the remaining part of the estate is owned by Kent County Council, but is leased to the reserve trust.