Watlington, Norfolk

Watlington
St Peter and Paul Church, Watlington
Watlington is located in Norfolk
Watlington
Watlington
Location within Norfolk
Area6.93 km2 (2.68 sq mi)
Population2,455 (2011 Census)
• Density354/km2 (920/sq mi)
OS grid referenceTF619111
Civil parish
  • Watlington
District
Shire county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townKING'S LYNN
Postcode districtPE33
PoliceNorfolk
FireNorfolk
AmbulanceEast of England
List of places
UK
England
Norfolk
52°40′24″N 0°23′35″E / 52.67342°N 0.39309°E / 52.67342; 0.39309

Watlington is a village, civil parish and electoral ward in the English county of Norfolk. It covers an area of 6.93 km2 (2.68 sq mi) and had a population of 2,031 in 852 households at the 2001 census,[1] the population increasing to 2,455 at the 2011 Census.[2] It is in the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.

The villages name means 'farm/settlement of Hwaetel's/Wacol's people' or perhaps, 'farm/settlement at Wateling (= Wattle/thatching place)'.[3]

It is situated some 1.2 mi (1.9 km) from the east bank of the River Great Ouse, 7.5 mi (12.1 km) south of the town of King's Lynn and 37 mi (60 km) west of the city of Norwich.[4]

The village is directly served by Watlington railway station (on the Fen Line between Cambridge and King's Lynn) which is situated 0.62 mi (1.00 km) from the centre of the village. Amenities in the village include a public house, Post Office and medical centre with pharmacy. There is also a sports and social club, village hall and church to the north east of the village.

A small nature reserve named 'Watatunga' opened to visitors in July 2020, offering guided buggy tours amongst '170 acres of woodland, grassland and lakes'. This occupies a vast area directly situated between Watlington and the nearby A10 trunk road.[5]

  1. ^ Census population and household counts for unparished urban areas and all parishes Archived 2017-02-11 at the Wayback Machine. Office for National Statistics & Norfolk County Council (2001). Retrieved 20 June 2009.
  2. ^ "Parish/Ward population 2011". Retrieved 30 August 2015.
  3. ^ "Key to English Place-names".
  4. ^ Ordnance Survey (1999). OS Explorer Map 236 - King's Lynn, Downham Market & Swaffham. ISBN 0-319-21867-8.
  5. ^ "Guided Tours". Watatunga. 11 February 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.