Balcombe: a Sussex village of viaducts, woods and modern history

Balcombe is a village and civil parish in West Sussex, between Haywards Heath and Crawley, within a landscape of woodland, rolling pasture and river valleys. The village has older origins, but much of its later identity was shaped by the coming of the railway in the 19th century. Just south of the village stands the Ouse Valley Viaduct, completed in the early 1840s and widely regarded as one of the most elegant railway viaducts in Britain. In more recent history, Balcombe became nationally known in 2013 as a focal point in the debate over exploratory drilling and fracking in southern England.
Population: 1,903 inhabitants (2021 census).
Distance: about 5 miles south of Crawley and 3 miles north of Haywards Heath.
Traditions and culture: the village has an active community life, a strong local history tradition and a cultural identity rooted in the Sussex Weald.
Highlights: Ouse Valley Viaduct, St Mary's Church, Balcombe Lake, the surrounding woodland walks and the historic village centre.