A VILLAGE near Uttoxeter has received national recognition after being named as one of the best places to live in the country.
Abbots Bromley has received the accolade from The Sunday Times, which has listed it among the most desirable places to set up home.
Renowned for its age-old tradition of the horn dance, which is held in the village every year and dates back 1,000 years, the village was chosen by the newspaper which looked to find the country’s best areas based on criteria including transport links, natural beauty, crime rates and property prices, as well as school league tables and employment figures.
Within close range of Uttoxeter, Burton and Lichfield, the village, which has also won numerous ‘Best Kept Village’ awards in recent years, appeared in The Sunday Times’ Best Places to Live supplement on Sunday.
Darren Harris, originally from Stoke-on-Trent, and wife Gill, who hails from London, set up home in Abbots Bromley three years ago when they took over the running of the Coach and Horses pub, in High Street, and they told the Advertiser they have loved every second.
Mr Harris said: “It’s a fabulous place, it’s a safe place to live, everybody knows everybody, and as the owner of a pub, walking down the street there’s always somebody saying hello.
“There’s a lot to do too, we have a cricket club and a football club, and we’re right in the middle of Burton, Lichfield and Uttoxeter.
“It’s a very picturesque village, house prices haven’t really been altered by the credit crunch, it’s such a popular place to live. We’re a very close-knit village.”
Parish councillor Roger Jarman also spoke of the community spirit and the safe feel of the village as reasons why Abbots Bromley is such a nice play to live.
He said: “There is a community spirit and one of the nice things is it is one of those villages where you can walk about at night with no fear.
“It is a very safe village.
“We also have a great school in the Richard Clarke First School, as well as Abbots Bromley School.
“We have playgrounds for the children and generally if you want to do anything there is a club or society in the village which will cater for it.
“We also have a high number of listed buildings down the high street meaning the village has remained largely unspoilt over the years.”
However, the Sunday Times article did cause some confusion where it spoke of the ‘village tradition’ of well dressing, a famous event in neighbouring Newborough.
Mr Jarman added: “We were certainly confused by that.
“Maybe that is a good idea and we should get a well!”
