Daws Heath, Rayleigh

Daws Heath contains a large area of woodland in eastern Thundersley, part of Castle Point near Southend-on-Sea in Essex, England. It is traversed by the Daws Heath Road and St Michael's Road. Daws Heath provides a semi-rural escape for local towns and villages and their residents as they walk, cycle or drive out of Castle Point, as Daws Heath Road has fields and woodland on both sides of the road with a small scattering of houses. Going down Daws Heath Road it is not uncommon to see rare-breed cattle, sheep and horses. Daws Heath is surrounded by Greenbelt and Woodland which are a buffer to stop the local villages merging by development. West Woods, nearly 80 acres of mixed woodland, was purchased from the Church of England in 2009, securing continued public access to these woods; public support in the Daws Heath area is very strong especially on green belt and woodland preservation. The area has established neighbourhood watch schemes, Church Groups and Greenbelt Protection Groups. Daws Heath contains The Deanes, and is linked to a local Sixth Form College in Thundersley, now part of USP College. ()