CONDOVER PARISH COUNCIL
RYTON
Great Ryton is a small village less than 1 mile to the northeast of Dorrington. Together with the neighbouring hamlet of Little Ryton and Ryton Grove, the combined community is often referred to as simply “Ryton”. The village has a pub, a small red-brick chapel and a modern village hall.
Close to the pub, The Fox inn, is the Ryton Village Pump and well. Ryton didn’t have a mains water supply until 1963. Villagers relied entirely on the Village Pump. In the winter of 1962/63, the well and pump froze leaving the local community dependent on water brought in from Shrewsbury. Condover Parish Council has recently restored Ryton Village Pump as a central historic feature for the village and the Parish as a whole.
Ryton Village Hall has many features to help reduce its carbon. There is an air source heat pump coupled with solar thermal roof panels and a 3.0 kW Photovoltaic system to provide all the under floor space heating and hot water. Recycled newspaper insulation is incorporated in to both the walls and roof cavity. Timed low voltage lighting is used throughout. The Village Hall is a popular venue for wedding parties and other events, including the rural cinema, Flicks in the Sticks.
CLERK & COUNCILLORS
RYTON VILLAGE PUMP
Until 1963, when piped water was eventually brought to Ryton, there were known to be three public pumps in the village that supplied water to residents who did not have access to a private pump of their own. Two of these pumps are believed to have been installed in the 1890’s. Only one remains today, complete and undamaged, and can be found on the kerbside at the front of The Fox Inn in Little Ryton.
This pump and the site on which it sits has recently been restored and an information board has been erected which outlines a brief history of water in the village. A small booklet offering a more detailed history has also been produced which is illustrated with photographs of times gone by when collecting water for daily use was a regular chore! This booklet is free and available on request.
The renovation project has been sponsored by Condover Parish Council.
