North Ockendon

North Ockendon sits in the unitary authority of Thurrock, on the edge of agricultural lowland that slopes toward the Thames estuary marshes. The village retains a rural plan of lanes, hedged fields and smallholdings, with the M25 and A127 close by but outside the core settlement. South Ockendon lies to the west and the wider parish contains grazing marshes crossed by drainage channels and occasional sluice gates that control water at high tides.

The local parish church stands near the village centre and incorporates medieval masonry within later repairs, serving as a long-standing meeting point for the community. Footpaths and bridleways run across fields and along drainage ditches, linking farms, a handful of cottages and isolated barns. Birdwatchers and walkers use the marsh margins to see wintering and passage waders, and the pattern of straight drainage channels gives the landscape a functional character tied to centuries of land management.