Birch, Essex

For other uses, see Birch (disambiguation).

Birch is a village and civil parish in the City of Colchester district of Essex, England. It is located approximately 5 miles (8 km) south-west of Colchester and 17 miles (27 km) north-east of the county town of Chelmsford. The village is in the parliamentary constituency of North Essex. There is a parish council.^[2]

Birch
St. Peter's Church
Birch Location within Essex
Population	873 (2011)[1]
OS grid reference	TL944201
Civil parish	Birch
District	City of Colchester
Shire county	Essex
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	COLCHESTER
Postcode district	CO2
Dialling code	01206
Police	Essex
Fire	Essex
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Witham
List of places UK England Essex 51.8458°N 0.8215°E / 51.8458; 0.8215

The parish incorporates the hamlet of Heckfordbridge.

It is only 2.5 miles (4 km) from Abberton Reservoir.

The parish church of St. Peter and St. Paul is a Grade II listed building, but has been derelict since it closed in the late 20th century.^[3] In 2023 it is threatened with demolition as the Church of England cannot afford to repair it.

According to the 2001 census, Birch had a population of 817, increasing to 873 at the 2011 Census.^[1]

Governance

Birch forms part of the electoral ward called Birch and Winstree. The population of this ward at the 2011 Census was 5,651.^[4]