Essex's 'most isolated village' where the nearest shop is an hour away

People living in the most-isolated village in Essex face a walk of more than an hour to reach their nearest shop. EssexLive previously revealed that data from the ONS analysed how long it takes to travel to key services such as GPs, food shops and major transport links, as well as schools.

The data revealed that those living in Steeple faced a more than one hour walk to a primary school, while the nearest secondary school was a two-hour walk away and the nearest shop is an hour away.

The study examining the ONS data ranked every one of 32,844 neighbourhoods in England - which contain roughly the same number of people (around 1,500) - based on how long the ONS says it takes an average person to reach key services.

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That includes primary and secondary schools, GP surgeries and food shops, plus major railway stations and major airports, by foot, bike, public transport and car. 'Major' airports are those with at least one per cent of UK air traffic, while 'major' rail stations are those which are considered, for official purposes, to be national or regional hubs.

In Steeple, it's more than an hour's walk to the nearest food shop, taking around one hour and 10 minutes to reach on foot. The nearest GP surgery is an hour and 15 minutes' walk away, while the nearest hospital is two hours away by foot or bike. If driving, it would take nearly 50 minutes to reach the hospital.

But for those living in Bush Fair, Harlow - Essex's most well-connected area - the picture couldn't be more different. It takes only four minutes to walk to the nearest primary school, and 12 to reach the nearest secondary school.

The nearest doctor's surgery is only a five minutes walk away. The hospital takes a little while longer to get to, at a 41-minute walk, although that’s cut down to 12 minutes in the car, and you can walk to the nearest food shops in just four minutes. Meanwhile, Stansted Airport is 51 minutes away by public transport or 25 minutes by car - and the train station at the airport can also be reached in the same time.