Winterborne Stickland is a village and civil parish in the county of Dorset in southern England. It lies about west of the town of Blandford Forum. In 2013 the civil parish had an estimated population of 520. In the 2011 census the parish, combined with the smaller neighbouring parishes of Winterborne Clenston to the south and Turnworth to the north, recorded a population of 653. Winterborne Stickland is sited in a winterbournevalley in the Dorset Downs, which gives rise to the first part of its name. The second part "Stickland" is derived from sticol, Old English for "steep". Blandford Forest is a scattered area of woodlands northwest of Blandford Forum that is located within a 10 km radius of Winterborne Stickland.
History
The Domesday book records the canons of Coutances, Normandy, as the tenant-in-chief in 1066 with no change by 1086, after the conquest. In the Pimperne Hundred, the village had 12 villagers, 20 smallholders, 5 slaves, 9 ploughlands, 4 lord's plough teams, 4 men's plough teams, 3.75 lord's lands, pasture of 26 by 4 furlongs, woodland of 5 by 4 furlongs and 1 mill valued at 12 shillings and 5 pence. The annual value to the lord was 15 pounds in 1086. The 37 households place Winterborne Stickland in the largest 20% of settlements recorded.
The church
The parish Church of St Mary is a Grade I listed building. The nave and chancel date from the thirteenth century, the tower from around 1500 and the south porch from the sixteenth century. Restoration work took place in 1892. The building is constructed of bands of stone and flint and there is a north tomb chamber. The tower is on the west end and is in two stages; it has diagonal buttresses, pinnacles and a parapet surrounded by battlements. The interior is plastered and whitewashed and has a possibly medieval ribbed wagon roof. The font, hexagonal pulpit and the panelling in the tomb chamber are eighteenth century. The screen between the chancel and tomb chamber may use parts of the fifteenth centuryrood screen. There are various seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth century monuments, and the table tomb in the tomb chamber is dedicated to Thomas and Barbara Skinner.
The village
To the north of the village is a children's playground, cricket pitch and football pitch with clubhouse. To the north of that a small orchard of apple, pear and plum trees has been planted. Many of the thatched cottages in the village are listed buildings.
