Area Guide: The Hertfordshire hamlet of Kinsbourne Green

A Kinsbourne Green manor house (Image: Archant)

While it may seem to be fully absorbed into Harpenden, Kinsbourne Green is very much a place in its own right, with local amenities including a post office, a dentist and a garage door shop.

Its easy access to the M1 and Harpenden train station make the location ideal for commuters, while it also benefits from proximity to the neighbouring town’s shops, bars and restaurants.

Kinsbourne Green at sunset (Image: Archant)

Property

Properties currently on the market range in price from £450,000 for a two-bed cluster home to £1,650,000 for a six-bed, 3,170 sq ft detached property. According to Righmove, the average selling price for a Kinsbourne Green property during 2016 was £761,587, on a par with Harpenden’s £753,442.

Schools

A farmhouse across the common (Image: Archant)

Kinsbourne Green is close to some of Harpenden’s most popular state schools - but they’re also among the area’s most oversubscribed. For primary students, Wood End and Roundwood are both rated ‘outstanding’ by Ofsted. Roundwood Park is the closest secondary school, and is also rated ‘outstanding’.

Pubs

There were once four pubs in Kinsbourne Green, but only The Fox remains. The Whip is now a house known as Whip Cottage, The First and Last was demolished in 1974 and Charlie’s - originally known as The Harrow - was knocked down last year. The Fox. formerly known as The Smyth Arms - is a busy, family-friendly gastropub with a modern British/Mediterranean menu.

One of the roads that run through the common, near Harpenden and Kinsbourne Green (Image: Archant)

Church

St Mary’s was built in 1869 as a combined church and school - but while the school closed in 1955, the church remains at the heart of the Kinsbourne Green community. It has a Sunday school for children aged three to 11 and a trained pastoral team that visit people in need in the community. Fund-raising events include the Harvest Supper, the annual fete and regular quizzes. The church is widely known for its charity work and has made donations to organisations such as the Jeel al-Amal Boys’ Home in Jerusalem.

There was once a methodist church in Kinsbourne Green, though declinding numbers resulted in its closure in 2002. The church was sold to developers in 2003 and houses were subsequently built on the site.

St Mary's church (Image: Archant)

Littlefield Farm

Littlefield Farm has been selling Christmas trees for over 25 years. They sell two types, the Nordmann Fir and the Norway Spruce, the traditional Christmas tree. Furthermore, they provide excellent service, offering hot apple punch on the weekends alongside their own home-grown apples. They were awarded the Local Farmer Christmas Tree Grower of the Year award in 2005 and later procured a tree for Number 10 Downing Street.

Kinsbourne Green Lane, near the common (Image: Archant)

The Turner’s Hall Fire

Drama and controversy ensued on the night of November 4 1826, when a fire began in the lamb house at Turner’s Hall Farm, and later spread to the stable and the barn. The fire consumed the stables, the barn - which was full of corn - and the majority of the livestock.

While everyone on the farm grounds was distracted, a band of gypsies from the nearby heath looted the manor house. They also took the most valuable contents, such as jewellery and furniture, and even looted the wine cellar, drinking it all.