The Changing Village: East Anglia

Programme Outline

The programme looks at how and why village communities are changing. It concentrates on Thurston, in Suffolk, an East Anglian village about four miles east of Bury St Edmunds. Through the eyes of two teenagers and their families, it explores how the village has changed since 1800. Ben and Emily are two Year 9 pupils who attend the 13-18 Upper School in Thurston. While Ben comes from a family who have farmed near Thurston for generations, Emily’s parents are newcomers to Thurston who live in the village but work in Bury St Edmunds.

The programme explores the following key ideas:
a) settlements change their form and function over time;
b) there are many reasons why settlements grow and decline;
c) the goods and services provided in settlements change with demand;
d) the road pattern often remains the same but buildings frequently change their function over time.