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{{Short description|Village and parish in West Sussex, England}}
{{For|the Ham class minesweeper|HMS Pagham}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox UK place
| official_name            = Pagham
| country                  = England
| civil_parish             = Pagham
| region                   = South East England
| static_image             = St Thomas a Becket's Church, Pagham (NHLE Code 1353906).JPG
| static_image_caption     = St Thomas à Becket Church
| population               = 5941
| area_total_km2           = 9.88
| population_ref           = (Civil Parish.2011)<ref name=ons>[http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk Key Statistics; Quick Statistics: Population Density] [[United Kingdom Census 2011]] ''[[Office for National Statistics]]'' Retrieved 10 May 2014</ref>
| os_grid_reference        = SZ886975
| coordinates              = {{coord|50.77083|-0.74479|display=inline,title}}
| post_town                = BOGNOR REGIS
| postcode_area            = PO
| postcode_district        = PO21
| dial_code                = 01243
| constituency_westminster = [[Bognor Regis and Littlehampton]]
| london_distance          = {{convert|57|mi}} [[Boxing the compass|NNE]]
| shire_district           = [[Arun District|Arun]]
| shire_county             = [[West Sussex]]
| website                  = http://www.paghamcouncil.co.uk/
}}
'''Pagham''' is a coastal village, Anglican [[parish]]<ref name="GENUKI">{{cite web|title=GENUKI: Pagham, Sussex|url=https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/SSX/Pagham|access-date=5 November 2023}}</ref> and [[civil parishes in England|civil parish]] in the [[Arun District|Arun]] district of [[West Sussex]], England, with a population of around 6,100.  It lies about two miles to the west of [[Bognor Regis]].
==Demography==
Pagham is part of the [[Wards and electoral divisions of the United Kingdom|electoral ward]] called Pagham and Rose Green. The population of this ward at the 2011 census was 7,538.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ukcensusdata.com/pagham-and-rose-green-e05007594#sthash.5Lkyf1iQ.dpbs|title=Pagham and Rose Green ward population 2011|access-date=14 October 2015}}</ref>
The village can be divided into three contiguous neighbourhoods (merging seamlessly as one [[nucleated village|clustered village]]):
*Pagham Beach, coastal area, developed in the early 20th century,
*Pagham, the original 13th-century village
*'''Nyetimber''', originally a separate village but has now been subsumed as part of a Local Authority rationalisation and the growth of the area.
==History==
Pagham was a significant settlement at the time of the [[Domesday Book|Domesday survey]] of 1086 with 154 households.<ref>{{cite web|title=Open Domesday: Pagham|url=https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/SSX/Pagham|access-date=5 November 2023}}</ref>
In 1861 the parish, which is in the [[Diocese of Chichester]],<ref>{{cite web|title=The Parish Church of St Thomas à Becket, Pagham|url=http://paghamchurch.org/|access-date=5 November 2023}}</ref> extended to {{convert|4376|acre}}, with a population of 988.<ref name="GENUKI" />
==Landmarks==
[[File:Pagham Harbour Local Nature Reserve information board - close-up - geograph.org.uk - 2257397.jpg|thumb|left|Map of Nature Reserve]]
The [[Site of Special Scientific Interest]] known as [[Pagham Harbour]] is to the southwest; almost one quarter of the area falls within the parish.<ref name="Ref_">{{cite web|title=SSSI Citation: Pagham Harbour |publisher=Natural England |url=http://www.english-nature.org.uk/citation/citation_photo/1000620.pdf |access-date=4 April 2009}}</ref> The harbour and surrounding land is of national importance for both flora and fauna. The [[shingle beach|shingle]] [[spit (landform)|spit]] is of geological interest.
A [[Phoenix breakwater]], a concrete caisson that was intended to be part of a [[World War II]] [[Mulberry Harbour]], is visible in the bay at low tides.
==Buildings and facilities==
Many of the original Pagham Beach dwellings are bungalows constructed from old railway carriages - most of these have been later rebuilt using sturdier construction methods.
The parish church of St Thomas à Becket is a Grade I [[listed building]]; it contains three 1911 windows by the leading painter and designer [[Edward Arthur Fellowes Prynne]], which were restored in 2011.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hammond |first1=Elaine |title=Church windows restoration 10 years ago was like 'friends coming home' |url=https://www.chichester.co.uk/heritage-and-retro/retro/church-windows-restoration-10-years-ago-was-like-friends-coming-home-3136508 |access-date=15 January 2022 |publisher=Chichester Observer |date=February 2021}}</ref>
Pagham is home to ale and beer pubs 'The Lamb', 'The Lion' and 'The Bear' as well as the 'Inglenook Hotel'.
==Sport and leisure==
[[File:Lord_of_the_Rings.png|thumb|120px|Colin Cooper (left) and entry in the 2023 Pagham Pram Race]]
Pagham has a [[Non-League football]] club [[Pagham F.C.]] who play at Nyetimber Lane. The village has a [[cricket]] team, who play at [[Pagham Cricket Club Ground|the cricket ground at Nyetimber Lane]]. [[Sussex County Cricket Club]] played two [[first-class cricket|first-class]] matches there in the 1970s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Grounds/11/680.html|title=Ground profile: Pagham Cricket Club Ground|website=CricketArchive|access-date=20 August 2012}}</ref>
Pagham is the home of the Pagham Pram Race which is the oldest [[pram race]] in the world. The race is run on Boxing day every year at 11am whatever the weather. Thousands of people line the streets of Pagham to watch the wacky contestants navigate the 3 mile course, drinking 3 pints of beer en route. All the money raised by the Pram Race is distributed to local good causes. The most successful fancy dress racer is Colin Cooper, who has won 2 best fancy dress awards alongside his teammates.<ref>{{cite web|title=Pagham Pram Race|url=https://www.paghampramrace.com/race-winners-2022}}</ref>
==Notable people==
James Byden, [[Joe Biden]]'s paternal fourth great-grandfather was christened at the church of St Thomas à Becket in Pagham, on November 15, 1767.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.chichester.co.uk/news/people/joe-biden-will-be-first-us-president-have-sussex-ancestry-3034906|title='Joe Biden will be the first US president to have Sussex ancestry'|access-date=April 3, 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/581807a7e93790eca35af9d6/james-biden-baptism-sussex-pagham-1767-11-15?locale=en|title=Pagham Parish Register |website=FreeReg |access-date=March 24, 2021}}</ref> He was the son of Richard Byden, Biden's paternal fifth great-grandfather, and his wife Susan. The parish register notes that they were from [[Wymering]] where Richard appears to have been buried in 1808.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.freereg.org.uk/search_records/5817ffd0e93790ec75a4b486/richard-biden-burial-hampshire-wymering-1808-11-13?locale=en|title=Wymering Parish Register|website=FreeReg |access-date=March 24, 2021}}</ref>
The motor racing drivers [[John Watson (racing driver)|John Watson]] and [[Derek Bell (racing driver)|Derek Bell]] lived in Pagham. Watson won five Formula One Grand Prix. Bell won the Le Mans 24 hour race five times.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.goodwood.com/grr/f1/goodwoods-local-racing-heroes/ |title=Goodwood’s local racing heroes |date=July 13, 2020}}</ref>
==See also==
*''[[Crabb v Arun District Council]]'' [1975],<ref>[http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/1975/7.html EWCA Civ 7]</ref> a leading [[English property law|property]] and [[easement]]s case which concerned a seller's assurance, in this case, of access from a public highway to neighbouring land in Pagham
*[[Nyetimber Mill]]
*[[Nyetimber (electoral division)]]
==References==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
{{Commons category|Pagham}}
*[http://www.picturesofengland.com/England/West_Sussex/Pagham/pictures Pictures of Pagham]
*[http://www.paghamparishcouncil.gov.uk Pagham Parish Council web site.]
*[http://paghamchurch.org/ The Parish Church of St Thomas à Becket, Pagham]
*[https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/eng/SSX/Pagham Further historical information and sources] on [[GENUKI]]
{{Arun}}
{{authority control}}
[[Category:Arun District]]
[[Category:Villages in West Sussex]]
[[Category:Populated coastal places in West Sussex]]
[[Category:Beaches of West Sussex]]