In the rural idyll south of Billericay, is the civil parish Little Burstead. The parish which centres the village, The Parish Church of St Mary, sits overlooking the River Crouch and the Thames Valley. The area is awash with woodland, pastures, and picturesque countryside. Due to this rustic and rural locality, Little Burstead’s housing stock largely consists of country houses with an abdundance of land. There has been recent sale of plots in the local area, and residential development is underway.

Although now Little Burstead is seen as a pastoral offshoot of the more urbanised Billericay, Little Burstead is actually the ancient origin of the nearby town. There was a Roman fort in Blunts Hill, and although none of this remains, there have been Roman coins and pottery found dating from AD 69 and AD 636! This fort was razed by the Anglo-Saxon’s and renamed ‘Burghstede’ meaning ‘fortified place’ in Saxon. The area’s history is long and varied, and has a particular history with Puritanical Protestantism.

This history of Puritan dissent is most strongly associated with the pilgrim Christopher Martin, who travelled from Amsterdam to the Plymouth Colony in New England on the Mayflower ship. Although departing from Amsterdam, Martin originally resided in Billericay, and was at one time appointed the churchwarden of Great Burstead. His religious dissenting views landed him an arrest on behalf of the behaviour of his son and step-son, and is one of the catalytic factors in his decision to voyage to America. This has led to a long-time association of Little Burstead with the pilgrims!

Nowadays Little Burstead is renowned for it’s idyllic locale and pastoral landscapes. As a result of this, development of the area is slow and largely self-funded. There are currently plots on the market available for residential development however these plots are high-budget, and pertain to bungalow lots. With its proximity to Billericay and the rail connections, combined with its bucolic setting, Little Burstead is brimming with charm.