I visited Cawthorne, South Yorkshire's ‘poshest’ village, and discovered shops, cafés and bizarre local secret

South Yorkshire has some great places to live.

But according to the Daily Telegraph, the poshest of them all lies in Barnsley, with the village of Cawthorne, named in a list of the 48 poshest in Britain.

But when I went to the village to find out what it was like to live there, I found that although residents agree it’s a great place to live, those living in Cawthorne don’t regard it as posh. In fact, those talking to The Star in the village were more likely to describe it as ‘quirky’.

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The village, nestled in Pennine countryside, but just a few minutes drive from the M1, has tradition written large all over its streets. Just on the edge of Cannon Hall Farm, recently made famous for its Channel Five shows The Week on the Farm, as soon as you enter the village you feel you could be in a Yorkshire picture postcard.

Parking up on Church Street, the first thing you see is an art gallery and gift shop. Walking up the street, a possible sign of a community that looks after its own can be seen, in the form of street lights which bear signs announcing which resident has sponsored them.

Among the stone cottages, there are also some archetypical village buildings – the traditional village church, complete with tower, the village pub, and the nearby primary school, with the sound of young voices at play time filling the village air.

Traditional sweet shop in post office

The village post office could not look more traditional. With an old fashioned red phone box outside, walking inside is like stepping into a living heritage museum. Owner Chris Scorah has fitted out his store with wooden shelves, lined with traditional sweets in jars, a sweet shop combining with the regular post office functions.

Then there is the parish hall, the two clubs, as well as another church, and a cricket club. The parish notice board describes children’s Christmas parties, with a defibrillator just alongside it – a piece of medical equipment in a village which does not have a GP surgery within its boundaries. And perhaps most quirky of all, is that the village has its own museum, the star attraction of which is a goat with two heads, something of a local secret that few know of in the wider South Yorkshire area.

Mr Scorah, who was brought up in the area, says children visiting the museum always seemed to come out talking about the two-headed goat, a taxidermical exhibit, despite the great range of items in the volunteer-run museum, which does not open every day.

He took over the shop 11 years ago. He loves the village and was not surprised to hear that the Daily Telegraph had rated it highly, among the poshest places to live in the UK, in a list published by The Telegraph.

‘Most desirable’ villages

According to recent research by property agent Savills, the exhaustive list includes villages from up and down the country that were deemed “most desirable” in terms of costs and the lifestyle they offer. Cawthorne, Average house price £552,000 is famous for its historic Cannon Hall as well as its ties to the aristocratic Spencer family, who once owned large swathes of the local area.

The Telegraph’s top 48 "most desired" villages were chosen based on a combination of highest housing values, best lifestyle facilities, connectivity, and chocolate-box appeal along with trendy amenities like yoga studios, cycling shops and running clubs.

Along with general stores that offer zero-waste refill stations for domestic supplies and homemade ready meals and vegetable boxes, there is also the juxtaposition of an authentic architectural aesthetic (the older the better) around a green. History, a strong sense of self, and a sense of community are also important.

Mr Scorah said he thought a big part of the attraction of the village was that it still had so many of its facilities, in an era of shop closures, and pubs being demolished. He described as a good example of a rural Yorkshire village.

Cannon Hall Farm

He said: “We’ve got things here that have perhaps disappeared from other traditional villages. We’re lucky to have a little junior school that still runs, we’ve got the pub that’s still here, the clubs, antique centre, museum. So we have quite a good community. We’re lucky that we still have brownies, rainbows, things that I would associate with a Yorkshire Village, from the Museum up to the Hall itself.”

Of the description of the village as posh, he said: “It made me laugh, as I think that’s how Cawthorne is perceived, because where it is and articles, but I think it you hark back and look at the history of Cawthorne, I think it probably was perceived as posh. I think now, in my mind, it’s more quirky, its more just traditional. I think that’s a fairer word of how I see it.”

"I think it’s a nice safe environment, and people know each other. People like to have things on their doorstep that they can go to and join and use.”

Cannon Hall World War Two

Chris Harrison, who runs the Spencers Arms pub and restaurant, on Church Street, has lived in Cawthorne since childhood. His dad, a Canadian soldier, based at Cannon Hall during World War Two, stayed in the area after meeting a local girl during his time in Yorkshire.

Of Cawthorne, he said: “I love it. It’s my home since I was a small boy and it’s where I’d always come back to. The people are very friendly, there’s lovely countryside nearby. Barnsley Football Club is always in my heart and that is only four miles down the road, and we’ve got a lovely village pub and a lovely community.”

Dean Lydon was brought up in the village. He spoke to the Star while visiting. He said: “For me, it’s the community of the village. It’s retained a sense of community for the last 40 years that I know of.

"Every time I’ve been back, be that visiting friends or family, it’s pretty much stayed the same. People are very protective of the village, and very proud of it, and rightly so.”