Barkham dates back to 951, when a Saxon thane gave Bloreham to the monks of Abingdon Abbey.

[3] In 1630 and 1655, the inhabitants petitioned the constable of Windsor Castle against enclosures made by Richard Arrowsmith who, under licence from James I, had built a hunting lodge and formed a deer park at Bear Wood.

However most of the population lives in the north-east of the parish, around the post office, or in the Arborfield Garrison, which is largely in Barkham.

It is a rural parish, mostly consisting of dairy farmland and woods, despite being surrounded by the town of Wokingham and the large villages of Winnersh, Arborfield Cross and Finchampstead.

[6] The bell-tower has a ring of four bells cast in 1863 by John Warner and Sons[9] of Cripplegate in the City of London.

[4] He published his findings in 1785 in the form of a book called Cases of Labourers in Husbandry Stated and Considered.

With William Page he co-edited three Berkshire volumes of the Victoria County History, which were published in 1907, 1923 and 1924.

[12] Barkham Village Residents’ Association (“BVRA”) was formed in 1987, initially in response to a Planning Application for housing development within the Coombes - a woodland rich in a diversity of wildlife and designated an area of special scientific interest.

After the threat to the Coombes subsided, the BVRA continues to contribute to Barkham's community spirit by running social events and the production of a quarterly newsletter and website.

[13] Bohunt School Wokingham, opened at Arborfield Green in Barkham parish in 2016, is a mixed-sex independent academy.