Barton-under-Needwood Today

The village is attractive and has managed to retain its character despite the new developments, with new estates being built south of Main Street. Much of the settlement lies in the shallow valley of Barton Brook. One of its main features is the number of large Victorian mansions that survive and give an air of elegance to the street scenes. Georgian, half-timbered and Regency houses also remain, as does the Tudor manor house of Blakenhall in the south west of the parish and a fifteenth century building in Brookside Road with its fine brick chimney and old leaded glass. The parish church of St James is, because of its historical and ecclesiastical merit, a building of national importance. Development since 1945 has all but eliminated open space within the village. Before then agricultural land extended into the heart of the village with the main settlement of dwellings along Main Street, Station Road, Dunstall Road and Wales Lane.

The story behind the growth of Barton-under-Needwood is really the story of communications in the Trent valley. It lies on the line of the old Roman Rykneld Street, which ran north from Lichfield to Burton. As traffic as increased, so has the importance of the village. The importance was especially noticeable as the Trent and Mersey canal and Birmingham to Sheffield railway line extended along the valley. Although today with the closure of the railway station, it is the busy A38 that takes commuters from the village to places such as Burton on Trent, Derby, Lichfield, Stoke on Trent, and Birmingham. 

The village has three schools, catering for infant, junior and secondary pupils. The Infant and Junior Schools retain the name of Thomas Russell, the London Draper who established the endowed free grammar school in 1593. This building was replaced in 1885. The John Taylor High School, which bears the name of the most famous of the 16th century triplets, is a large secondary school, built in 1957, with a catchment area covering the surrounding villages. The Junior School was built in 1968, leaving the original Victorian school to only cater for infants. Direct links between the Thomas Russell School and the Drapers' Company of London were severed in the late 19th century. But the links were renewed in 1993, when the Drapers' Company visited the village to commemorate the quatercentenary of the death of Thomas Russell and the founding of his school. They unveiled a plaque on the Thomas Russell Infant School and have endowed an annual bursary of £100 to each of the three schools of the village.

For the pre-school children there are a number of nursery and playgroups. A youth club, a library, and an adult education centre complement these establishments. The St James Church Hall and the Village Hall also serve the needs of the community. Churches of four denominations, the Church of England, the Roman Catholic, the Methodists and the Christadelphian's cater for the religious needs of the village. In Short Lane there is a Health Centre and a Cottage Hospital with the main hospital for the area situated in Burton on Trent. To complete the needs of the sick there are a Chemist and a Dentist in Main Street. There are a variety of shops in the village predominantly in Main Street with a small shopping mall at Oak Road.

Residents and visitors have a choice of seven splendid public houses well worth visiting. There is the Royal Oak, in Bar Lane. Closer to the village centre in Main Street is the Middle Bell Inn and the Red Lion. Lower down Main Street is the Shoulder of Mutton and in Station Road is the Three Horseshoes. At Barton Gate, an old entrance to the Needwood Forest, is the Top Bell and nestling by the Trent & Mersey canal is the Barton Turns. One can also imbibe at the Barton Bowls Club and the Holland Sports Club. Most of the public houses have restaurant facilities or serve food. There are two restaurants on the A38 Lichfield Road with adjoining motels. Accommodation may also be found at two bed and breakfast establishments on Main Street.

The village is a vibrant community and supports an extensive and varied range of activities. The village culture is endowed with several active clubs and societies that make full use of the Village and Church Halls as well as the John Taylor High School. Leisure time is also enriched with an abundance of sporting facilities at the Holland Sports Club, the Barton Bowls Club, the two halls and schools. The Angling fraternity has a choice of fishing on the village pond, the Trent & Mersey canal or the River Trent. A marina is being built beside the Trent and Mersey Canal at Barton Turn; the development incorporates a landscaped area with three ponds and paths through newly planted woodland.

The beneficence of William Key is still carried out today under the auspices of the trustees for the Henry Warford and William Key Charities. Renting the land at Bonthorne and the land at Lincroft raises the income of the William Key charity. One of the conditions of the charity, which is still observed, is that the vicar, at present the Reverend Tony Wood, still preaches a sermon on Good Friday for which he is paid the princely sum of 50 pence (ten shillings) by the charity. All the old charities of Barton-under-Needwood were amalgamated into the Eleemosynary Charities in 1902 for administration and are managed by a body of trustees. They still continue today to serve the needy of the village, the net income being given to the poor and elderly of the village at Christmas by the Trustees.

There are a number of yearly events occurring in the village, the more notable ones being the Shrovetide pancake race in February down the middle of Main Street, the Holland Sports Club Gala in June, the Open Gardens weekend in July, the village Horticultural show in September, the Barton Bonfire organized by the Scouts in November, the Remembrance Parade and the Festival in the Forest also in November.