Useful Information

Local Information

Well Hill lies close to the Darent Valley, near Sevenoaks, in Kent. It is in the Greenbelt which encircles London. Did Queen Elizabeth the First create the first London Greenbelt when she decreed in 1580 that no building could be erected within 3 miles of the city walls? Queen Elizabeth I was known to hunt deer in the many woods that surrounded and encompassed Well Hill, especially near to where The Lodge (formally The Red Deer) bar on the Lullingstone Golf Course now resides. More recently, Greenbelts were proposed in 1944 and when they became a reality Well Hill was included. Thus, Well Hill has always been in the Greenbelt.

Well Hill is a heavily preserved area as, apart from being in the Greenbelt, it is:

• part of the Kent Down's Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty - an AONB as the planners refer to it.
• a Special Landscape Area

Broadband

There are three ways to get Broadband in Cockerhurst, Park gate and Well Hill. One is via the copper telephone wires from the home to the BT exchange. This is known as the local loop. Another is via the copper telephone wires from the home to a local BT cabinet (the green structures that are found all over the country). This is known as the sub-loop. The final way is via a radio link to a Call Flow receiver. All methods have there pros and cons.

Local Loop

This is provided by BT and many other companies. Other companies just lease the line from BT and rely on BT to fix any physical line problems. Broadband is typically very slow in our area due to the distance homes are from the BT exchange. It is unlikely that speeds in excess of 1Mb/s will be obtained.

Sub-Loop Unbundling

By running a fibre optic cable to a cabinet (sub-loop unbundling) the distance from the home to the fibre optic network is dramatically reduced which, in turn, results in faster Broadband speeds. Only Call Flow Solutions provide this service (since 2012) to Park Gate and Well Hill. Speeds obtained appear to be in the range of 10Mb/s to 20Mb/s. Call Flow do not appear to work out of office hours so support and fault reporting can be difficult at times.

Radio Link

A small radio transmitter/receiver is placed on the home. It uses radio to communicate with a base station in Crockenhill where it then uses a very fast fibre optic connection to the Internet. Only Call Flow Solutions provide this service (since 2012) to Cockerhurst, Park Gate and Well Hill. Speeds obtained appear to be in the range of 10Mb/s to 20Mb/s. Call Flow do not appear to work out of office hours so support and fault reporting can be difficult at times.

Local Pubs

Bo Peep

It has two bars and a large beer garden. The restaurant is open every day. At the cross roads of Holybush Lane, Maypole Road, Hewitts Road and Chelsfield Lane - TQ 491 636 - BR6 7QL - 01959 534457 (information correct as of March 2007). One way to get to it, which also avoids most of the roads, is to go to the end of Well Hill Lane where there is an access point into Hollows Wood on the right. Almost immediately after entering the wood there is a path to the right. Take this path, which goes downhill. In 250 metres at the path cross roads, turn right. Follow this path for 300 metres until it reaches the road (Chelsfield Lane). Turn right and in 300 metres you are at the Bo Peep. From the end of Well Hill Lane to the pub takes less then 10 minutes - its all downhill. The return journey from the Bo Peep to Well Hill Lane takes about 9 minutes.

Five Bells

A welcoming country pub that dates back over 300 years. It has two bars and a large beer garden - children most welcome. The restaurant has both smoking and non-smoking areas and is open every day for lunch and from Wednesday to Saturday for evening meals up to 9.15 pm. Our Sunday roast is well known for its quality and well worth a visit You can be sure of a warm welcome from the owners, Adrian & Kay Stone & all the staff. CHURCH ROAD, CHELSFIELD VILLAGE BR6 7RE TEL: 01689 821044 (information correct as of December 2006)

Rock and Fountain

Permanently closed in 2007.

Kent Hounds

Permanently closed in 2005

Local Churches

There is the Well Hill Mission Church which is associated with the St Martin of Tours Church in Chelsfield village. The rector is the Rev John Tranter - 01689 825 749

Map of Well Hill

To view a map of Well Hill on Google.

Biggin Hill

Well Hill is close to Biggin Hill and often get overflown. If you want to see what has overflown or to make a noise complaint go to Biggin Hill Airport Tracking. For help using the tracking site, go to London Biggin Hill Airport Community web site.

Well Hill Weather

See the historical weather data for Well Hill.

Well Hill News

Some local news can be found from local newspapers and the BBC.

Notice boards

One is located at the fork in Well Hill. A second one is in the grounds of the Kent Hounds car park near the bottle, tin, and paper banks.

Bottle, tin, and paper banks

These are situated in the car park of the Kent Hounds. There are no paper banks as Sevenoaks District Council will take paper and cardboard in their white recycling sacks.

Refuse Collection

Most of Well Hill village has a Friday collection. Areas that require the small dustcart will have a Monday collection around 8am. The areas that will require the small dustcart are:

• Well Hill Lane
• Parts of Well Hill (the road) near the Well Hill Lane/Rock Hill cross-roads and near the Mission Church.

For further information contact the Sevenoaks District Council on 01959 565489 / 565490.

Hawstead Lane, Jubilee Road and Rock Hill in the London Borough of Bromley have a Thursday collection. For further information contact the London Borough of Bromley on 020 8464 3333.

Useful phone numbers

See the phone numbers page.

Local Companies

See the list of companies providing services in the area.

Famous People

E. Nesbit

Author of the Railway Children lived nearby at Knockholt and the story is believed to have been inspired by the construction of the local railway cuttings and tunnels.

Brass Crosby (1725-1793)

Brass Crosby lived at Court Lodge, Church Road, Chelsfield, Kent for 21 years. A plaque is fixed to an oak post on a grass verge in Church Road, fronting the Coach House with Court Lodge behind. He had a famous battle with the House of Commons over publishing Parliamentary debates. In 1771 he had brought before him a printer who dared publish reports of Parliamentary proceedings. He released the man, but was subsequently ordered to appear before the House to explain his actions. Crosby was committed to the Tower of London, but when brought to trial several judges refused to hear the case and after protests from the public Crosby was released. No further attempts have ever been made to prevent the publication of debates now known as Hansard. The encounter with the House of Commons resulted in the saying, "as bold as brass".

World War 2

See Well Hill in action during World War 2.