[5] The parish church, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, was "established" in the 12th century as a chapel for the Knights Hospitallers of the adjacent Heather Preceptory which was founded before 1199.

[6][7] The current church dates from the early 14th-century, and is a Grade II* Listed Building.

[9] To the north of the village, it was the called the Long Moor open cast coal mine.

[10] Following restoration, the 76 hectares (190 acres) mine site was acquired by the Woodland Trust.

Heather was for 63 years the home of David Taylor,[9] Labour MP for North West Leicestershire from 1997 until his death in 2009.