South Stoke, West Sussex
South Stoke is a rural village and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England. It is centred two miles north of Arundel also on the west bank of the River Arun and on the edge of Arundel Park. It is reached by road, footpath or river from Arundel. A footpath also leads to North Stoke on the east bank. The civil parish, which includes the hamlet of Offham, covers an area of. At the 2011 Census the population of the village was included in the civil parish of Houghton.
The parish church, Saxon in origin, is dedicated to St Leonard. Offham has a large pub.
History
Offham was listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as having 18 households, comprising 8 villagers, 5 cottagers and 5 slaves, with plough land, woodland, a fishery and two mills, all valued at 8 pounds 10 shillings. South Stoke itself had 14 households and a church valued at 4 pounds. Human population reverted to medieval levels after 1806 when common land was enclosed to make Arundel Park, depriving unlanded villagers of sheep-grazing land. Some of this was returned to woodland after a few centuries of being used as pasture.Amenities
Offham has a pub with outdoor seated area, the Black Rabbit.The Monarch's Way long-distance footpath crosses the western edge of the parish between Houghton and Arundel.