Upton Cheyney

Upton Cheyney
Upton Cheyney United Reformed Church
Upton Cheyney is located in Gloucestershire
Upton Cheyney
Upton Cheyney
Location within Gloucestershire
Population140 
OS grid referenceST6969
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
PoliceAvon and Somerset
FireAvon
AmbulanceSouth Western
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Gloucestershire
51°25′37″N 2°26′35″W / 51.427°N 2.443°W / 51.427; -2.443

Upton Cheyney is a village near to Bitton and Bristol in South Gloucestershire, England, in the parish of Bitton.[1] It has a population of about 140 in 60 households.[2] Upton Cheyney was designated as a conservation area on 24 October 1983.[3]

The name Upton Cheyney is thought to be derived from 'upper farmhouse'. Most of the buildings in the village were built between 1690 and 1830.[3]

Upton Cheyney United Reformed Church was established in 1834 as Upton Cheyney Chapel, building on a congregation that met in the home of William Clark, a local farmer.[4][5] Objectors who believed the parish church in Bitton was adequate had taken out a court injunction blocking the construction, which was eventually overturned by the Court of King's Bench in London.[6] In 1948, the Congregational Union of Gloucestershire and Hertfordshire became the trustees, and in 1966 a covenant was agreed with the Congregational Union of England and Wales which merged into the United Reformed Church in 1972.[7] The chapel closed on 10 September 2023.[8]

In 1849, a school was created at the back of the chapel for about forty local children. In 1894 this was replaced by a separate school with two classrooms built by the local school board, which closed in 1981.[9]

  1. ^ "The Parish". Bitton Parish Council. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  2. ^ "Upton Cheyney Data & Access Profile" (PDF). South Gloucestershire Council. November 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Upton Cheyney Conservation Area" (PDF). South Gloucestershire Council. Retrieved 13 July 2023.
  4. ^ Jones, Ignatius (1947). "16 Upton Cheyney". Bristol Congregationalism City And Country. Arrowsmith. ASIN B006YSXYBO. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  5. ^ Historic England. "United Reformed Church, Wick Lane (Grade II) (1116816)". National Heritage List for England.
  6. ^ Clark, W T (10 September 1934). "A statement about the building of Upton Cheyney Chapel" (DOC). Upton Cheyney United Reformed Church. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  7. ^ Williams, Muriel (11 September 2011). "A History of Upton Cheyney Chapel" (DOC). Upton Cheyney United Reformed Church. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  8. ^ "Chapel Closure". Upton Cheyney United Reformed Church. 27 September 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
  9. ^ "Upton Cheyney School". Bitton Parish History Group. 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2023.