Keresley is a village and civil parish in the City of Coventry, West Midlands, England, about 5 miles (8 km) north of Coventry city centre. According to the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 791. Keresley and Keresley End are two separate areas; Keresley is in Coventry, while the slightly more rural Keresely End, also known as Keresley village or Keresley Newlands, is in Warwickshire, with the exception of Thompsons Road in the village, which comes under the Coventry boundary. The village features two grocers shops, two bus stops, a beauty salon, primary school, doctors surgery, a fish and chip shop, a small church, a post office, library, park, garden centre and community centre.

History

For most of its history, Keresley was a combination of two further villages: Keresley Green was the most northerly and first to exist, but it was Keresley Heath to the south which was developed the most with the building of schools and the church of St. Thomas. However, in 1911 the construction of a colliery by the Warwickshire Coal Company near to Keresley Green brought the focus of development back to that area. It wasn't until 1974 that the two parts of Keresley lost their separate identities and became united, with the closure of the colliery following in 1996.

Keresley parish is largely rural and contains some beautiful ancient woodland. Coventry City Councils wildlife surveys which include Keresley parish, have classified much of the area as an "A" grade - "An area of very high natural history value, containing several varied habitats and a wide diversity of plants and animals". The area has a lot of footpaths which make it accessible to the public and is probably one of the few areas of Coventry where you can hear skylarks. Despite this Coventry City Council propose the area can be developed as an "Eco" suburb with 3000 homes, and a separate estate of new properties is currently being built, as of January 2010.

Etymology

The etymology of the word Keresley suggests that it is Saxon in origin, meaning that the name could originate from the 7th century, although the village was not cited in the Domesday Book of 1086.

The -ley suffix is shared by many villages in the country, and means a clearing in the woods. This means that Keresley was clearing in the Forest of Arden. And the Keres- prefix is thought to either be a corruption of the Saxon word for cress or someones name, meaning together either: The cress clearing, or 'Mr.' Cress's Clearing.

Parish Church

The Church of England parish church of Saint Thomas is just off the Tamworth Road (B4098). It was designed by the Gothic Revival architect Benjamin Ferrey in the Early English style and built in 1844-45. The bell tower has a ring of six bells. St. Thomas's is a Grade II* listed building.

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  St Thomas' Church, Keresley.

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  The tower of St Thomas' Church.

Notable residents

The actor Clive Owen and the cybernetics professor Kevin Warwick were born in Keresley. Also from Keresley is Roddy 'Radiation' Byers guitarist of 1980s ska band The Specials.

Sources

• Pevsner, Nikolaus; Wedgwood, Alexandra (1966). The Buildings of England: Warwickshire. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. ISBN 0 14 0710 31 0. 

Coordinates: 52°26′N 1°32′W / 52.433°N 1.533°W / 52.433; -1.533