The village of Great Ponton is situated approximately 4 miles from the market town of Grantham and has a population of around 300. A large percentage of the villagers are retired and a fair few of the others are self employed. Fourteen new starter homes have been built in recent years and also several large houses on a former farm yard.
All houses in the village receive a copy of the bi-monthly parish magazine The Quintet News; local traders are encouraged to advertise in this. At the East end of the village the Cringle Brook flows into the river Witham which eventually goes to the City of Lincoln. The main East Coast London to Edinburgh railway line also passes close to the East end of the village. A few of the houses in the village are on the West side of the A1 trunk road as is ponton Main garage; they are served by a foot bridge over the dual carriageway.
We have a very good Church of England school with excellent OFSTED reports, a new classroom is shortly to be built to accommodate more children, at the moment they use our community centre for activities.
The entrance to the village is dominated by Ellys Manor House and Holy Cross church which is notable by the fiddle weather vane on one of the tower pinnacles, there is a very interesting tale about this. The tower was built in 1519 by Anthony Ellys using money from the wool trade. The font is believed to be Saxon and the Chapel and Chancel is over 600 years old. The lead on most of the roof was stolen in 2004/5 and replaced with money from insurance and a generous donation from an ex parishioner. It is now protected by an elaborate alarm system and smart water.
The Village Centre which is built on land owned by the parish council has an active committee with regular functions and social events, including new age kurling, line dancing, quiz night and many others. It is also available for bookings for weddings and private parties.
We also have a large playing field which is used by local football and cricket clubs, we have recently planted 630 trees around the perimeter with help from a woodland creation grant, and installed picnic benches and seats. The long term plan is to build a pavilion to enhance the facilities.
In June 2018 the Parish Council were successful in their bid to buy the piece of land adjacent to the church and playing field locally know as The Paddock. This will eventually become an extended area for leisure with the addition of picnic benches etc.