Although the Charnwood Forest is almost 700 miles froma Spain holiday, it will be found on the earliest of maps, it is merely in the last three decades that Charnwood has lent its name to the local authority responsible for one of England’s most pleasant shire areas. Covering 108 square miles of North Leicestershire, Charnwood carves out a triangle between Derby, Nottingham and Leicester and is easily accessible with good rail and road links.

The largest town is Loughborough and, though famed for its University and Colleges, it is a busy commercial centre with modern industries such a pharmaceuticals and electrical engineering contrasting with the older art of bell manufacturing. The River Soar, flowing north to the Trent, bisects the District and provides two very different landscapes; to the east of the Soar are some of England’s most unspoiled villages on the rolling contours of the Leicestershire Wolds, whilst to the west the much older landscapes of the Charnwood Forest provides some of the oldest rock formations to be found anywhere in the British Isles.

The area is rich in history and heritage and places to visit for the discerning tourists. The world’s largest bellfoundry and museum, a prestigious main line steam railway, much used by period film makers, architecture raging from a 9th century Saxon cross to a 151 feet Carillon are just mere tasters of the area’s heritage. It is the birthplace of the “nine day” Queen of England, a Civil War poet, one of England’s best known historians, Lord Maucaulay, and was also home to Robert Bakewell, the innovative 18th century farmer.

On the fringe of the area is the Castle Donington Race Circuit, venue for major international sporting events, whilst golfers pit their skills against several courses in the District.