North Pickenham

Houghton on the Hill is a deserted medieval village and former civil parish, now in the parish of North Pickenham in the Breckland district of Norfolk, England, notable for its Grade I listed church. The only surviving buildings are a farm and St Mary's church. The church was rescued in the 1990s after being left in a ruinous state. During the restoration some wall paintings dating from about the time of the Domesday Book were discovered; these are the earliest-known large-system wall paintings in the country. The restoration was driven by the efforts of one man, Bob Davey MBE. The church is supported by a charitable trust 'The Friends of St Mary's', who open the church on a regular basis and provide guided tours. In 1931 the parish had a population of 21.

Holme Hale railway station was located in Holme Hale, Norfolk, near Swaffham. It was on the Great Eastern Railway line between Swaffham and Thetford, and closed in 1964.

Royal Air Force North Pickenham or more simply RAF North Pickenham is a former Royal Air Force station located 3 miles (4.8 km) East of Swaffham, Norfolk, England. It was originally opened in 1944 and finally closed in 1967.

South Pickenham is a small village and civil parish in the Breckland district of mid Norfolk, East Anglia, England. It has an area of 758 hectares (2.93 square miles) and it had a population of 101 in 40 households at the 2001 census. This had dropped to an estimated 85 as at the 2007/2008 Breckland yearbook. The Parish Council Tax (Band D) 1 April 2007 was £28.75. It was once in the Hundred of South Greenhoe. At the 2011 Census the village population had again fallen to less than 100 and was included in the civil parish of Cockley Cley. The village is about 4 miles south east of Swaffham and 2 miles from its sister village North Pickenham. The village is centered on the Grade-II listed Pickenham Hall, still the landlord for much of the village, which is owned by the Arumugam Packiri family. The original hall was designed by William Donthorne but between 1902 and 1905 architect Robert Weir Schultz extensively rebuilt and enlarged the hall, incorporating the previous house, in the style of the Arts and Crafts movement. The military training area Stanta lies to the south of the parish. The historic church, All Saints, is one of only 124 existing round-tower churches in Norfolk, 185 nationwide and 5 within a 9-mile radius.The restored church of Saint Mary's at Houghton on the Hill is nearby. Historically part of North Pickenham since 1725, a Pastoral Order was raised transferring it to South Pickenham as a Chapel of Ease in 1992. The 46 mile Peddars Way runs to the east, within the parish boundaries, aside the course of the River Wissey. South Pickenham Estate Co. Ltd., a large arable and livestock farming company, is based in the village.

Holme Hale is a village situated in the Breckland District of Norfolk and covers an area of 1069 hectares (4.13 square miles) with an estimated population of 444 as of UK census 2001. The village lies 1+1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) south of Necton and 5+1⁄2 miles (8.9 km) by road east from Swaffham. Holme Hale is served by St Andrews church in the Benefice of Necton.It once had a railway station on the line between Swaffham and Thetford. The station and goods sheds are now private dwellings and form part of the satellite hamlet of Holme Hale Station Road. Holme Hale Hall opens its gardens for the charitable NGS.Holme Hale hosts an ADSL broadband enabled telephone exchange serving approx. 1,464 residential premises and 59 non-residential premises.

Necton is a village situated on a turning off the A47 main road between Swaffham and East Dereham in the Breckland district of mid-Norfolk. As at the 2001 census it had a population of 1,865 residents and an area of 15.48 km2 (5.98 sq mi), increasing to a population of 1,923 at the 2011 census. It has a number of facilities including a primary school, playing field, social club, pub, post office a shop, a butchers and a Co-op and fuel station at the top of the village along the A47. The place-name 'Necton' is first attested in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as Nechetuna and Neketuna. The name means 'town or settlement by a neck of land'. (Necton is situated at the foot of a ridge.) All Saints' church, dating from the 14th century, although its tower was rebuilt in the 19th century, is at the centre of the village in the Benefice of Necton. It is a grade I listed building. One of its main attractions is the hammerbeam and archbraced nave roof with its carved angels. In the churchyard is a 14th-century grade II* listed table tomb reputed to be that of the Countess of Warwick. There is an old mill dating back to 1782 that was in full working order until the 1960s. Necton tower mill had been converted into a single-storey dwelling with a flat roof by 1970, and it is presently a retail facility. Necton Diner was a filming location for the locally-set film The Goob (2014). An electricity substation planned in the parish is seen as vital to the harnessing of offshore wind-generated power, connecting turbines in the North Sea to the National Grid.

Ashill (pronounced Ash- ill ) is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is between Watton and Swaffham.

Sporle with Palgrave is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of 17.21 km2 (6.64 sq mi) and had a population of 1,038 in 442 households at the 2001 census, including East Lexham but the population reducing to 1,011 in 453 households at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, it falls within the district of Breckland.

Sporle railway station was located on the line between Swaffham and Dunham. It opened with the line in 1847 and was temporarily the terminus of the line from Swaffham while building works were being completed towards Dereham (the next section of the line opening the following year). The station served the parish of Sporle with Palgrave and was short-lived - the station closed three years after opening in 1850.

Saham Toney is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is 14.5 miles (23.3 km) north of Thetford, 27.3 miles (43.9 km) west of Norwich and 101 miles (163 km) north-east of London. The village lies 13.1 miles (21.1 km) west of the town of Attleborough. The nearest railway station is at Attleborough for the Breckland Line which runs between Cambridge and Norwich. The nearest airport is Norwich International Airport. The civil parish has an area of 16.51 km2 (6.37 sq mi) and in 2001 had a population of 1,565 in 680 households, reducing to 1,507 in 679 households at the 2011 Census. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of Breckland.[2]