Henlow is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

in the

Central Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created in 2009. Formation Central Bedfordshire was created on 1 April 2009 as part of a structural reform of local government in Bedfor ...

district of the county of

Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council ...

, England, about south-east of the county town of

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

. The name Henlow is believed to derive from the old English ''henna hlaw'', meaning in old English "hill of birds" or “hill frequented by birds”. At the 2011

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

the population of the village was 2,253, and 3,815 for the parish.

Village

Henlow is mentioned (with a degree of dispute recorded) in the

Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manus ...

. The entry reads: ''Haneslau(ue)/Hanslau(e): Herfast from

Nigel d'Aubigny Nigel d'Aubigny (''Neel d'Aubigny'' or ''Nigel de Albini'', died 1129), was a Norman Lord and English baron who was the son of Roger d'Aubigny and Amice or Avice de Mowbray. His paternal uncle William was lord of Aubigny, while his father was an ...

; Hugh from Walter of Flanders; Widder and Bernard from Azelina, Ralph Tailbois' wife (Hugh de Beauchamp claims from her, stating it was never in her dowry); Alric. 2 mills.'' The parish includes

RAF Henlow RAF Henlow is a Royal Air Force station in Bedfordshire, England, equidistant from Bedford, Luton and Stevenage. It houses the RAF Centre of Aviation Medicine, the Joint Arms Control Implementation Group (JACIG), elements of Defence Equipment ...

and that part of

Henlow Camp Henlow Camp is a village in Bedfordshire, England. RAF Henlow was first established in the area during World War I. Henlow Camp as a civilian settlement has grown up around the station since this time. Though Henlow Camp is part of the Henlow c ...

situated east of the A600 road. While

is located near Henlow, it is nearer to the village of

Stondon Stondon is a civil parish located in the Central Bedfordshire district of Bedfordshire, England. The parish includes the settlements of Lower Stondon and Upper Stondon. The name "Stondon" derives from the Saxon word meaning Stone Hill. The pa ...

. The civilian settlement of

has grown up near to the RAF station. There is a health farm in Henlow at Henlow Grange, part of the Champneys group. The parish church, Grade I listed, and parts of which are from the 12th century, is dedicated to St Mary the Virgin.

References

External links

Parish Council's comprehensive websiteChurch websiteRaynsford VC Lower School's football club website
{{authority control Villages in Bedfordshire Civil parishes in Bedfordshire Central Bedfordshire District