Conservation Area: Warkton conservation area (DNN12382)

Warkton is a fine example of an estate village which has benefited from centuries of care by the Boughton Estate, there having been only two principal landowners in the last thousand years. During this period the size and shape of the village has remained remarkably constant, most properties being set along the main street and its southern loop, the church forming a very strong focus with open paddocks on its north and south sides. Although cottages have been rebuilt from time to time, this has always been carried out sympathetically and there are very few buildings later than the 19th century. Warkton is a village that can be comprehended in one glance from vantage points along the A43, yet within the village there is a fine combination of enclosure with outward views especially to the west.Progression through the village is well articulated. The western approach over the River Ise bridge leads to a clear village entry, with Moorfields Farm on one side, opposite a good group of thatched cottages. Then follows the Village Hall (former school) and the open view of the church with the street (all streets are un-named) leading round to the south, rejoining the main thoroughfare at the Village Green where stands the still-active Village Smithy. The village plan, together with almost consistent use of vernacular building materials and the existence of significant groups of trees, gives Warkton its very special character, recognised by virtually the whole village being included in the present conservation area. Warkton and Weekley are the study villages nearest to Kettering in a north-easterly direction, the town centre being less than two miles away from both settlements. Warkton is located just east of the main A43 trunk road from Kettering to Stamford, the road through the village continues eastwards to Grafton Underwood, Slipton and Twywell, with a link also to Barton Seagrave. Public footpaths run from Warkton southwest to the Ise lodge Estate, Kettering, and north-east to Weekley. Set on quite sharply rising ground east of the River Ise, springs and ground water from wells helped to establish the settlement, the edge of the valley to the east providing shelter from the cold east winds. In short, Warkton has a very pleasant aspect. Very fine, too, is the prospect of the village from the A43 on the edge of Kettering to the west. This vantage point for viewing Warkton can be enjoyed across the fields, the cottage spread with the church as the focal point and always the Boughton Estate avenue of tall trees a fine backdrop, silhouetted on the lip of the valley.

Record last edited

Aug 24 2020 3:07PM