A Brief History of Botcheston

Known once as Bocharston or Bocheston, the hamlet of Botcheston did not exist at the time of the Domesday survey. It was once in the parish of Ratby but from around 1936, Botcheston has been part of the parish of Desford. Seven miles north of Leicester, the hamlet contained 500 acres and had just 37 people in 1846.

Botcheston is a rural community. There is no church in Botcheston and the school was closed in 1931 but there is a public house. The Greyhound has only existed since the mid nineteenth century but is still in business. Botcheston has also been home to Desford Boys School, an Industrial School for difficult boys but that has been closed since 1978. The presence of the school inflated the population figures because it housed about 200 boys. Now it is an attractive hamlet with a very nice pub.