Old Heath is a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

that is south-east of

Colchester Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian. Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

, England. Old Heath has existed since

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

times and was originally called 'Old Hythe' because it was the first port of

, before Hythe (called Newehethe in 1311) took over: hythe derives from the

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...

word for 'landing place'.

Logo

The logo depicts a ship sailing upon the waves and bears two sails each with a coat of arms. Old Heath is derived from the original Old Hythe or the first Port of Colchester which was located within the parish boundaries of Old Heath. The Port on this location can be traced back to Saxon times. The ship, therefore, represents the fact that Old Heath was the port and still has an active Quayside at King Edward and Haven Quays, both located in the parish. More modern political boundaries have tended to count this part of Old Heath with the part generally known as 'The Hythe' in the Parish of New Town as if they were all part of the same community (which politicians call Harbour) but this is not so and the parish boundaries are clearly marked by our 'Welcome to Old Heath' signs. Old Heath developed as a separate village beyond the boundaries of Colchester. The two sails of the ship carry the Arms of Colchester and St. Barnabas. Colchester's Arms represent the 'True Cross' of Jesus because it is believed that St. Helena (Patron Saint of Colchester) visited Colchester. St. Helena claimed to have discovered the true cross upon which Jesus was crucified when she was visiting the Holy sites in and around Jerusalem. St. Helena was the mother of the Emperor Constantine and Colchester was a Roman City. The forward sail is the Coat of Arms of St. Barnabas who is the Patron Saint of Old Heath. St. Barnabas is known as 'The Son of Consolation' and it may be that he became Patron for Old Heath because we were located in the poor part of what was becoming the big and rich Town of Colchester. St. Barnabas is said to bring comfort and hope to the poor. This sign appears on all buildings for community use in Old Heath, on the signs welcoming you into the parish from every direction and all on correspondence from the Vicarage and from the Community Task group.

Churches

Old Heath Congregational Church Old Heath Fingringhoe Road Colchester Essex UK

Old Heath has a parish church (CofE) called St Barnabas's and also a small Congregational Chapel known as the '

tin tabernacle A tin tabernacle, also known as an iron church, is a type of prefabricated ecclesiastical building made from corrugated galvanised iron. They were developed in the mid-19th century initially in the United Kingdom. Corrugated iron was first us ...

'. The original church of St Barnabas was demolished in 1949 after being declared unsafe. The Congregational Chapel was subject to a planning application for demolition in December 2014, which was refused. See

here Here is an adverb that means "in, on, or at this place". It may also refer to: Software * Here Technologies, a mapping company * Here WeGo (formerly Here Maps), a mobile app and map website by Here Television * Here TV (formerly "here!"), a TV ...

for more details, and document references about the building.

Services

Old Heath has four regular bus services to and from Colchester town centre, a post office, a local Co-op., a butcher, a baker and a greengrocer. It also has a fish and chip shop to the south of the village, and a small garage. Old Heath's primary school children are served b
Old Heath Primary School
which was awarded a 'good' status by

OFSTED The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a Non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial department of Government of the United Kingdom, His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament of the U ...

.'OFSTED Report – 8 July 2010', http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/oxedu_reports/download/(id)/122759/(as)/114710_347847.pdf Old Heath is also home to a military firing range, that the public are allowed to access when the red flag is not flying.

Representation

Old Heath is currently represented by three Labour councillors at a Borough level; Lee Scordis, Adam Fox and Michael Lilley. It is also represented by Lee Scordis at County Council.

Note Worthy Publics

- Luca Ryland

References

External links

St. Barnabas Parish Church

Old Heath Parish website

Old Heath School
{{Colchester