A little Shropshire town with a big heart - I discovered why locals love it in Much Wenlock

The streets are lined with timber-framed Tudor buildings nestled among impressive Georgian and Victorian siblings. There are cobbles and holy wells and the odd whipping post and set of stocks thrown in for good measure. 

If there isn't already bunting thrown up to celebrate some sort of local or national holiday, you feel like there is bunting up. In fact, I left certain there was bunting, only to look back through the photographs to be surprised there wasn't.

With a walk through the town having invoked in me a craving to dance around a maypole, I don't believe there is any other way of more adequately describing Much Wenlock than as quintessentially English.

There are only around 3,000 people who call it home, which gives the place more of a village feel than that of a town.

We're usually lucky if people stop and say much to us when we're questioning them on the streets, but in the charming town of Much Wenlock, I felt like I could have asked them for a tour of their homes and been welcomed in with tea and cake.

"I always say it takes two hours to post a letter. You never need to be lonely," said Chris de Souza, 72 - who was almost immediately interrupted with a "Hi Chris!" from a passing friend.

Unphased, she carried on: "There's always a neighbour that will help - we're very, very lucky to live in a bit of good old-fashioned England."

Accompanying Chris, was Jacky Walter, 75, who moved to the town eight years ago from Wolverhampton.

"It's such a lovely place, we've got everything we need right here," she said, before throwing out a "Hello, see you tomorrow!" to a different passerby.

Community spirit was the theme of most of the responses to my prying, including Jody Anderson, 43, who was enjoying a cup of coffee on the town square with his dog Bliss.

"Everyone knows each other. Someone's always got your back. It's a lovely community," he said.

Mary Nicklin, owner of the antique shop, Memories, agreed, citing a recent operation that had friends and almost-strangers offering to do her shopping or walk her dogs.

"Everyone comes out to help you if you need any help - it's just marvellous," she said.

While some locals lamented the loss of a couple of stores and the town's bank, most took pride in the array of independent businesses still hanging on in the rocky economic climate.

Jane Powis, 53, took over the running of Much Wenlock fruit and veg market just last week, after working on the stall for 20 years.

She said: "We get a lot of support from local people, everyone is so friendly. This market is important to a lot of people, we want to keep them in the town not drive them out to supermarkets."

Local recommendations:

Visit: The ancient ruins of Much Wenlock Priory are a must for any visitor, with gorgeous grounds that are free to enter for English Heritage members (£6.80 if not). If you're not looking to spend money, Much Wenlock is a walkers paradise - just look down at the paving stones and follow the Wenlock Olympian Trail markers on a 1.3 mile walk around the town. 

Food & Drink: The George & Dragon Inn - described as a "real English pub", it comes highly recommended from locals and is rated as the number one restaurant in Much Wenlock on TripAdvisor - with reviewers gushing over their "amazing" Sunday roasts.