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The Parish of West Walton is in the County of Norfolk, approximately 12 miles from King’s Lynn and 4 miles from Wisbech (in Cambridgeshire).

 

The Village Sign of West Walton is located in the Church Paddock adjacent to St Mary’s Church and depicts several aspects of West Walton’s Village history.

The first wooden village sign was unveiled by Henry Bellingham M.P. in the presence of the Mayor and Mayoress of King’s Lynn, along with invited Guests and Villagers of West Walton on the 12th May 1990 and was subsequently dedicated by The Rev. Geoffrey Howard.  A new metal sign was commissioned in 2020 and installed in December 2020.

The Sign is in the form of a Heraldic Shield with the chequered pattern at the top representing the Coat of Arms of William de Warrenne, who was a Standard Bearer to William the Conqueror.  William de Warrenne was given the Manor of West Walton for services rendered at the Battle of Hastings.  It was William De Warrenne who brought monks of the Cluniac Order to England; where they were later associated with the building of St Mary’s Church and the Tower; that is also depicted on the Village Sign.

Also included in the Village Sign; superimposed over the chequered pattern is the Coat of Arms of the Repps family who were associated with the village between 1500 and 1660.  Their family tomb is in St Mary’s Church; in the north east corner of the north aisle.

The three sheep on the sign is a reference to the Domesday Book which records that at the time of completing the record, there were several hundred sheep in the village.

The history associated with the Village Sign was researched by Dr. C. E. Elliott who obtained a plaque from the Doomsday Association; which is now fixed beneath the sign.

A second plaque is also affixed commemorating the resilience of the community during the Covid-19 pandemic, the design incorporates the skills of a recent graduate from Norwich University of the Arts, Ruby Douglass, and the wording from a team at Norwich’s National Centre for Writing.  The plaque was presented to West Walton by the Deputy Lieutenant for Norfolk, Nicholas Pratt in December 2021.