Headcorn
| Headcorn | |
|---|---|
Main Street, Headcorn | |
Location within Kent | |
| Population | 3,241 (2001) 3,387 (2011 Census) |
| OS grid reference | TQ837439 |
| Civil parish |
|
| District | |
| Shire county | |
| Region | |
| Country | England |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | ASHFORD |
| Postcode district | TN27 |
| Dialling code | 01622 |
| Police | Kent |
| Fire | Kent |
| Ambulance | South East Coast |
| UK Parliament | |
Headcorn is a village and civil parish in the borough of Maidstone in Kent, England. The parish is on the floodplain of the River Beult south east of Maidstone.
The village is 8 mi (13 km) southeast of Maidstone, on the A274 road to Tenterden. In addition to the parish church, dedicated to saints Peter and Paul, there are Baptist and Roman Catholic churches.
There is a small airfield located nearby, where there is an aviation museum and a parachuting centre. Headcorn Parachute Club is the only skydiving club in Kent and is home to national champions and world-record holders.
Headcorn railway station is on the Kent Downs line between London and Dover. It was opened on 31 August 1842. On 1 December the same year, the South Eastern Railway opened the second section of its main line onward to Ashford. By 1844, trains were running from London to Dover. In June 1865 Charles Dickens was involved in a serious railway accident to the west of the village in Staplehurst on a bridge over the River Beult.