| Country: | England |
| Coordinates: | 51.9022°N 0.1434°W |
| Official Name: | Farnham |
| Population: | 410 |
| Population Ref: | (2011) |
| Shire District: | Uttlesford |
| Shire County: | Essex |
| Region: | East of England |
| Post Town: | BISHOP'S STORTFORD |
| Postcode District: | CM23 |
| Postcode Area: | CM |
| Dial Code: | 01279 |
| Os Grid Reference: | TL474248 |
| Static Image Name: | St. Mary the Virgin church, Farnham, Essex - geograph.org.uk - 154563.jpg |
| Static Image Caption: | St. Mary the Virgin church, Farnham |
Farnham is a small village in Essex, England, situated near Bishop's Stortford. The main features are Farnham Church of England Primary School, the church and the Three Horseshoes pub in Hazel End, which some consider a hamlet in its own right. The population was 410 at the 2011 census and had increased to 418 in the 2021 census[1] It is divided up into several areas, such as Farnham, Hazel End, Bell's Cottages, Saven End and Farnham Green.The name is derived from the Fernham (Hamlet in the ferns).
Farnham is mentioned in the Domesday Book as one of the settlements in Clavering hundred.[2]
Farnham C of E Primary School is a primary school in Farnham, Essex, England. Farnham Primary School is located on the Essex/Herts county border, within two miles (3 km) of Stansted Mountfitchet and Bishop's Stortford, and takes pupils from both counties.[3]
Founded in 1874, Farnham primary is Essex's smallest school with about 50 pupils in 2023. It has three classes: Willow (from Reception to Year 1), Silver Birch (from Year 2 to Year 4) and Horse Chestnut (Year 5 to Year 6). Children graduating from Farnham mostly attend secondary schools in Bishop's Stortford and it lies within Joyce Franklin High school's priority admissions area.[4]
The school is in federation with the larger nearby Rickling Church of England Primary School, where pupils visit weekly for curriculum enrichment activities, including art, gardening, drama, yoga and sports. Both schools share an executive head and deputy head. The deputy head teaches Horse Chestnut class in Farnham.[5]
Farnham primary enjoys consistently good SATS results. In 2013, 100% of Year 6 pupils achieved Level 4+ and 50% achieved Level 5 in mathematics and reading.[6] This compares very favourably with the national average and out-performs most schools in the area.[7]
In 2014, the school was the subject of a high-profile campaign to keep it in Farnham and prevent it from moving to nearby Stansted Mountfitchet, as proposed by Essex County Council and the Diocese Board of Education for Chelmsford.[8] [9] The proposals were unanimously opposed by the parish councils of Farnham and Stansted and the Farnham parochial church.[10] In response, the school governors voted to reject the proposals.[11]