Hawkinge is situated approximately 12 miles from the city of Canterbury and 3 miles from the seaside town of Folkestone in the county of Kent. The village itself is nestled on top of the North Downs overlooking views of the Romney Marsh and Channel.  Such is the location of the village that it is not a place for people to live if they don't like fog and even snow!  Pea-soupers during the winter are common and thick, but snow is fairly infrequent these days.  One advantage of being so high is that Hawkinge will be unlikely to flood when the polar ice caps melt (unless you believe that nonsense from the film Waterworld).

There have been settlements in Hawkinge as long ago as bronze age times, but most people will probably know Hawkinge for the role it played during the second world war. Hawkinge was the closest operational airfield to occupied France and played a major role in defending our skies during the Battle of Britain. Such was the closeness of Hawkinge to the enemy, it was not unusual for areas of the village to be shelled as well as bombed. The airfield enabled squadrons of Spitfires and Hurricanes to scramble quickly to intercept the advancing bombers.

Today Hawkinge no longer has such a role to play as the airfield was closed during the 1960s and since then the majority of the aerodrome has been, or at least is proposed to be, developed. Such is the scale of the development work at Hawkinge, it is probably the largest development in the southeast of England if not the country. The only oasis of the former airfield (apart from a few buildings) exists where the Kent Battle of Britain Museum is located. However, the legacy of the aerodrome lives on in the form of asbestos, pipe mines, German bombs and other contaminated land that has to be cleared before developers can start their next phases of building. The majority of the people who have bought houses on the aerodrome are blissfully unaware that this has been going on whereas others are scared to dig in their gardens. Leaving ticking alarm clocks in people's flower beds is frowned upon by the local residents.

The village itself can boast a thriving row of shops, two schools (one is currently in temporary buildings while the permanent classrooms are being built), a village hall, a cricket club, a church, three pubs in the vicinity, and two riding schools. Reported crime is minimal according to the local bobby so if you have any report it!

Regular events include garden shows, horse shows, parish council meetings (which can sometimes be quite entertaining), jumble sales and other homely activities you would expect from such a place.  November 5th turns Hawkinge from a quiet area into what can only be described as the front line on the Somme.  Not because of the mud, but because of the varying array of fireworks that people let off, and we are not talking sparklers.  Christmas sees the holding of the annual carol concert and also the competition to see who can waste the most electricity by decorating their houses with lights.  So far, this year's prospective winner appears to have crucified a snowman to the outside of their house.

A new community centre has recently been started near the village green and is progressing well, but this will still probably fall short from giving the facilities needed to keep the residents of this growing village happy and occupied. Stirling work is done at the youth club on Wednesdays and with the army cadet force/scouts/guides etc., but unfortunately it is not enough to keep the wandering bands of youths occupied 24/7.

Photographs taken by Terry Scott

If you have something you would like included on this web-page then please drop an e-mail to info@hawkinge.com and I will put it on here.

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