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Stifford
Stifford parish church
StiffordLocation within Essex
OS grid reference	TQ599778
Unitary authority	Thurrock
Ceremonial county	Essex
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	GRAYS
Postcode district	RM16, RM17, RM20
Dialling code	01375, 01708
Police	Essex
Fire	Essex
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Thurrock
List of places UK England Essex 51°29′49″N 0°18′11″E / 51.497°N 0.303°E / 51.497; 0.303

Stifford is an area and former civil parish in the town of Grays in Thurrock, Essex, England. Historically a single village, the area was broken up by the construction of the A13 in the 1900s and is now divided by the road into three communities, the urban areas of South Stifford and Stifford Clays and the small village of North Stifford. In 1931 the parish had a population of 2188. On 1 April 1936 the parish was abolished to form Thurrock.

Origin of name

The place name Stifford is first recorded in Domesday as Stiforda and means "path ford". The ford was across the Mardyke which flows through North Stifford before joining the Thames at Purfleet. Stifford gives its name to the Stifford Clays housing estate built in the late 1950s.

North Stifford

The original parish church (St Mary the Virgin) is located within North Stifford. The church is originally 12th century with later 13th, 14th and 19th century alterations and extensions, and is a Grade I listed building. The church contains several interesting medieval monumental brasses. William Palin who was rector between 1834 and 1882 wrote the earliest local histories devoted solely to the Thurrock area - Stifford and its Neighbourhood (1871) and More about Stifford and its Neighbourhood (1872). Palin was followed in 1980 by The Stifford Saga by Doreen Dean and Pamela Studd and in 2012 The Idyll in the Middyl by Cliff and Jan Cowin. The North Stifford Village sign was unveiled on 1 July 2011

South Stifford

South Stifford is a small residential area in the town of Grays which separates the town centre from West Thurrock and Lakeside Shopping Centre. It serves as a residential hub for the people who work at the local factories and surrounding retail areas, however it has recently been overshadowed by the huge housing estate of Chafford Hundred.

Education

South Stifford has one primary school, Stifford Primary School.

References

1. "Stifford". Visitor UK. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
2. "North Stifford Village". 2006. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
3. "Population statistics Stifford AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 24 December 2021.
4. "Relationships and changes Stifford AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 24 December 2021.
5. PH Reaney, The Place-Names of Essex, (CUP, 1969)
6. Village web site
7. "CHURCH OF ST MARY THE VIRGIN, Non Civil Parish - 1111611 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 22 June 2022.
8. Christopher Harrold, Exploring Thurrock (Thurock Local History Society, 2008)
9. The Idyll in the Middyl by Cliff and Jan Cowin - publishers web site (2012)
10. ^ "Detailed information about each planning area: primary schools" (PDF). Thurrock Council. Retrieved 19 January 2024.

• Former civil parishes in Essex
• Thurrock