Burbage, Leicestershire

Leofric, Earl of Mercia, gave the village of Burbage to Coventry Abbey in 1043. At that time it was valued at two shillings. By the time of the Domesday Book in 1086, its value had risen to £4. There were 1¼ hides of land (around 150 acres (0.61 km²)) with two ploughs. Twenty villagers held two smallholdings, with two slaves and eight ploughs. Burbage also had a meadow, measuring a furlong in length and width (about 40,500 square metres). The village also owned woodland half a league by four furlongs (2.2 square kilometres).

In 1564 the diocesan returns show a population of 57 families within Burbage and six at Sketchley. Burbage, for many centuries a small farming community, remained very thinly populated. In the census of 1801 there were 1098 inhabitants. It was not until the twentieth century that the population exceeded 2000.

During the English Civil War the village's proximity to Hinckley drew it to the attention of raiding parties from the local parliamentary garrisons in north Warwickshire. A list of claims submitted by the constables of Burbage and Sketchley to the Warwickshire county committee, in June, 1646, reveals that Captain Flower’s troop from the Coventry garrison took twenty strikes of provender valued at £1, sent off to Stoney Stanton, and availed themselves of free quarter worth £18.10. Captain Willington's cornet from the Tamworth garrison took a mare, saddle and bridle from John Watkin, while Captain Willington's soldiers took a horse worth £5 from Thomas Bodington.(SP28/161)

Burbage was also the birthplace, in 1608, of John Cook. Cook went on to become Solicitor-General of the Commonwealth of England and lead the prosecution of King Charles I for High Treason, resulting in Charles' execution and, ultimately, his own.

By 1953, the population had risen to 3,983, and by 1958 there were more than 5,000 on the electoral roll; this rapid growth was largely due to the expansion of Sketchley Hill housing estates. In 2001 the population of Burbage was 14,324.

The leading barrister and judge Ann Curnow QC was born here, and so was the mathematician R. Cotes (1682-1716).

Burbage is a suburb of the larger urban area of Hinckley and is part of Hinckley and Bosworth borough. The old Burbage village is now a small part of a large parish which also includes the village of Sketchley and some large and small residential estates. It is less than a mile from the M69 (which links that M6 to the M1) and the A5.

Burbage has a small library which was threatened with closure in 2015, due to a cost-cutting strategy by the county council.[2] In 2016, a group of community volunteers from the area were successful in submitting plans to take control of the running of the library. The group also gained CIO (charitable incorporated organisation) status and have since made improvements to the library's facilities.[3][4]

There is a primary school, an infant school, a junior school and a high school. The 1st Britannia Scout Group (which includes Beaver Scout, Cub Scout, Scout and Explorer Scout sections) on Britannia Fields, There is a farmers market every first Saturday of the month.

Burbage Common and Woods are in the north-east corner of the Parish. This is a country park run by the borough council. Its history as a grazing area dates back to at least the Domesday Book of 1086. It is now a 200-acre (0.81 km²) park popular with, amongst others, birdwatchers, walkers and horseriders. It is free to enter and is open dawn to dusk every day.[5]

The nearest railway station is Hinckley which is approximately 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the centre of Burbage, and on the boundary between Burbage and Hinckley.

A yearly summer street carnival and fete is organised by the Burbage Carnival Committee, whose purpose is to raise funds to donate to local causes. The event and has raised over 1/2 million pounds. The carnival committee runs the Burbage bonfire and fireworks display, held on Britannia Fields, to support local charities.

The Freestyle Burbage community events project, a crowd-sourced and crowdfunded programme of events organised and run by local residents, was started in 2013 by residents in the Sketchley Hill and Lash Hill area. It folded in 2018 due to lack of support.

The highest rank local football team is NKF Burbage who play in the .[6]

• Media related to Burbage, Leicestershire at Wikimedia Commons
• Map sources for Burbage, Leicestershire
• Burbage History Timeline
• The Freestyle Burbage community events project
• The Burbage carnival supports local charities every year
• The annual local charity firework display
• The annual Burbage Community Arts Festival BCAF
• Burbage Methodist Church - Windsor Street, Burbage
• Burbage Scouting's information
• Burbage Heritage and History group
• Hollycroft Park - The area's premier park for Horticulture, Music, Sport, and Culture
• Some info on Burbage Common from the borough council website
• Burbage and Hinckley Explorer Scouts