Penley () is a village in the County Borough of

Wrexham Wrexham ( ; ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in the North East Wales, north-east of Wales. It lies between the Cambrian Mountains, Welsh mountains and the lower River Dee, Wales, Dee Valley, near the England–Wales border, borde ...

, in

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

close to the border with

Shropshire Shropshire (; abbreviated SalopAlso used officially as the name of the county from 1974–1980. The demonym for inhabitants of the county "Salopian" derives from this name.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West M ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, and had a population of 606 as of the 2011 census. The village was, until 1974, in an

exclave An enclave is a territory that is entirely surrounded by the territory of only one other state or entity. An enclave can be an independent territory or part of a larger one. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is s ...

of the ancient county of

Flintshire Flintshire () is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, the Dee Estuary to the north-east, the English county of Cheshire to the east, Wrexham County Borough to the south, and Denbighshire to the west. ...

known as ''

Maelor Saesneg , also known as English Maelor, comprises one half of the Maelor region on the Welsh side of the Wales-England border, being the area of the Maelor east of the River Dee. The region has changed counties several times, previously being part of C ...

''. ( English: "English Maelor"), sometimes called "''Flintshire Detached''", which was administered from

Overton-on-Dee Overton () or Overton-on-Dee is a village and Community (Wales), community in Wrexham County Borough, Wales. A former ancient borough, borough and market town, it is situated close to the England–Wales border, Welsh-English border on the edge ...

. Between 1974 and 1996, Penley was in the short-lived county of

Clwyd Clwyd ( , ) is a preserved counties of Wales, preserved county of Wales, situated in the north-east corner of the country; it is named after the River Clwyd, which runs through the area. To the north lies the Irish Sea, with the English cerem ...

. Penley lies on the path of the long-distance walk, the '' Maelor Way''.

Church and parish history

Penley Church was originally built in 1538. The timber structure was replaced by a brick one in 1793. This was demolished in 1893, and the current church was completed in 1899; it was

consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

in 1902, and dedicated to

Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cr ...

. Penley was originally part of the

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of Ellesmere in neighbouring

, but it became a separate parish towards the end of the

Commonwealth A commonwealth is a traditional English term for a political community founded for the common good. The noun "commonwealth", meaning "public welfare, general good or advantage", dates from the 15th century. Originally a phrase (the common-wealth ...

period. In early 1661, it reverted to being part of the parish of Ellesmere, after the Restoration of Charles II. In 1860, it again became a separate parish. It was then in the English

Diocese of Lichfield The Diocese of Lichfield is a Church of England diocese in the Province of Canterbury, England. The bishop's seat is located in the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Saint Chad in the city of Lichfield. The diocese covers of seve ...

until 1920, when following the

disestablishment The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular s ...

and disendowment of the

Church in Wales The Church in Wales () is an Anglican church in Wales, composed of six dioceses. The Archbishop of Wales does not have a fixed archiepiscopal see, but serves concurrently as one of the six diocesan bishops. The position is currently held b ...

, it was transferred to the Welsh

Diocese of St Asaph The Diocese of Saint Asaph is a diocese of the Church in Wales in north-east Wales, named after Saint Asaph, its second bishop. Geography The Anglican Diocese of St Asaph in the north-east corner of Wales stretches from the borders of Cheste ...

, where it remains. Penley was home to the Penley Community Hospital, which cared for

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

ex-servicemen who settled in the area. It closed in 2002.

Schools

Penley has one primary school and one secondary school. The primary school, known as the Madras School, was built in 1811 by George Kenyon II,

Baron Kenyon Baron Kenyon, of Gredington, in the County of Flint, is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain. It was created in 1788 for the lawyer and judge Sir Lloyd Kenyon, 1st Baronet. He served as Master of the Rolls and as Lord Chief Justice of Englan ...

of Gredington. Penley's secondary school, The Maelor School, was built in 1957 and serves the rural communities on both sides of the border. It has had excellent

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

results over the last few years with a high percentage of pupils getting A*s; it was awarded the title of the "most improved

secondary school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...

in North Wales" from the Curriculum Authority for Wales in 2006.

Notes

External links

www.geograph.co.uk : photos of Penley and surrounding areawww.penleyvillage.co.uk : Penley e-Noticeboard
{{Wrexham Villages in Wrexham County Borough

Church and parish history

Schools

Notes

Further reading

External links