About the roads
Culvey Close
Culvey Close is a short cul-de-sac, but the presence of the Social Club at one end and the Country Club at the other help to explain the presence of the double yellow lines in the picture. The odd numbers 1-13 were built in about 1968 by local builder Ronald Billings. The even numbers 2-6 and all 10 houses of Broomfields were added later. Culvey Close is a mixture of link-detached and detached houses, Broomfields is all detached houses. I am not certain of the origin of the road's name. Like a lot of Billings Roads, the surface is constructed of durable concrete.
All the land on the south side of the road was owned by the Country Club, who applied in 1966 to build 8 houses. Dartford Rural District Council agreed with the proviso that they only build 7. These were built in 1968 by prolific local builder Ron Billings (builder of Parkfield, Bramblefields and Round Ash Way estates also, amongst others). It appears that buyers paid for the land and buidlings separately - the sale of one plot was £1,500 and it doesn't mention a house, and the price would have been too low even for 1968.
Historically, Culvey Close lies on land belonging to Fairby Farm. When Small Owners Limited bought the estate in 1912 they broke the land up into smallholdings. The odd numbered houses and the road were part of the smallholding bought by James Hollick in 1913. The land passed through a number of owners before being bought by the Country Club in 1944. The Country Club conveyed most of the land to Ronald Billings in 1967. There was no purchase price, instead Mr Billings agreed to build numbers 11 and 13 free of charge on the land retained by the club. They are understood to still own number 13.
At the end of the road is Hartley Country Club, opened in 1934. It has strong cricket and petanque teams, but also offers tennis, squash and a bar/restaurant. It is a private club and details of membership can be obtained from their website, which also gives details of facilities and history.
Broomfields
Originally the north side of the road was the depot for Ellerby's Transport and beyond that a house accessed from Ash Road called Broomfields. In the 1990s they moved out and Broomfields with the remaining (even numbered) houses in Culvey Close were built in 1993 on the site of the yard and Broomfield by Crest Homes (Southern) Limited.
Facts about the Roads