Did you know that...
Sarratt has the only commercial watercress farm in Hertfordshire. The River Chess passes through the area and offers great conditions for the cultivation of watercress. Sarratt Bottom is a meadow of the River Chess and a site of special scientific interest. It features plants such as meadow foxtail, common spike-rush, and sweet vernal grass. Hedgehogs and wetland birds live here. There is no public road to the meadow.
The Church of the Holy Cross dates from the 12th century. Supposedly, Roman tiles were used to build this church in 1190. The area that formed around the church is called Church End and the 17th-century settlement that formed one mile away from the church is called Sarratt Green. The old Baptist Chapel and the Providence Mission Hall have been transformed into private houses. The independent pre-school Sarratt Ducklings received outstanding from the Office for Standards in Education in 2015. It is also a registered charity. The primary school in this WD3 area can be found at the intersection of Church Lane and The Green.
Sarratt and the Draper of Watford is a book by author John le Carre and former KGB colonel Mikhail Lyubimov. The book was part of an event that raised funds for local charities. Other John le Carre books feature Sarratt as the location of the nursery, the fictional agent training center. The area was used as a filming location for Miss Marple: Murder Most Foul starring Margaret Rutherford, children’s TV series Just William, The Woman in Black movie, and the Demon Headmaster TV series. The church featured in Four Weddings and a Funeral. Victorian actor Sydney Valentine lived at Pear Tree Cottage on this side of North London. He presided over the Actors’ Association and established the standard contract for actors in the West End.