Feniton & Whimple

Feniton and Whimple are neighbouring parishes in East Devon, lying along the corridor between Exeter and Honiton. Feniton sits on the main railway line and close to the A30, giving the villages regular rail and road links to Exeter and the wider county. Farming shapes the local economy: dairy and arable fields sit alongside cider orchards. Whimple keeps a long-standing wassail each January, when residents gather to sing over orchard trees and kindle a bonfire at the village green — a tradition tied to cider production and orchard care.

The area is a patchwork of lanes, hedgerows and small woods, crossed by public footpaths and bridleways used by walkers and cyclists. Each village has a village hall, a primary school and at least one public house, and local clubs run football, cricket and allotments. Smaller hamlets and farmsteads sit within the parish boundary, and local conservation work focuses on hedgerow management and river-edge habitats. Regular services and community events keep the parishes at the centre of rural life in this part of East Devon.