The Sign
The village sign was made by Brian Gaze and Harry Stebbing and erected in 2007. The sign is double sided with the top main frame depicting the church of St Ethelbert flanked by flora on both sides. The bottom of the sign is split into three panels and different on both sides.

Side 1: On the left is the village stream beside The Street complete with mallards and the pub's brick sign which is thought to be the gate way to Hessett Hall. Centre is the Valentine sugar beet hoe behind a tractor and a cock pheasant in the foreground. On the right is John Bacon with pyx from the church who was main benefactor in and around the village in the 16th century.

Side 2: On the left is the Five Bells public house. Centre is a farmer ploughing the field in the traditional way with a horse, and again the pheasant is present. On the right are two sheep reflecting the name Heteseta, as it was originally, derives from Old English to mean ‘fold (for animals) with a hedge’ and the wool trade.

The Name and Population
The population was 515 at the 2011 census. It was called Heteseta in the Domesday Book and Heggeset in 1225. The Name means "The fold (for animals) with a hedge", from Old English.

Other Points of Interest

Not only is the pub (Five Bells) itself a Listed Building; the pub sign is also Grade II Listed. The building was constructed in several phases in the 16th & 17th centuries. Note: the pub has been closed since 2015 and still not back in January 2024. The name of the pub reflects the number of bells in the church, and both the pub and church are C14 buildings.

Hessett St Ethelbert church