At the time of the dissolution of the Monasteries which began in 1536, Sir Thomas Audley, who in turn became speaker of the House of Commons and Lord Chancellor, appropriated the manors of Rye and Blind Knights, together with the Mill and the patronage of the benefice.

Within the churchyard of St John the Baptist lie the graves of Arthur Cecil Alport (a South African physician who first identified the Alport syndrome in a British family in 1927), Cuthbert Alport (a Conservative Party politician, minister and life peer) and General Sir Ivo Vesey (a British Army officer who served as Chief of the General Staff in India from 1937 to 1939).

Layer de la Haye is among the villages which suffered damage from the 1884 Colchester earthquake.

There has been a church building at its location since at least 1128, when it was mentioned in documents, although some of the fabric appears to be earlier than that date.

[4] The church is part of the benefice of Thurstable and Winstree, a group of eight parishes covering an area to the south of Colchester.

[5] Part of Abberton Reservoir is located within the parish, and Essex Wildlife Trust manage a visitor centre which is accessed from Church Road, Layer de la Haye.

[7] The buildings at the treatment works are good examples of International Modern Movement structures.

Despite concerns over vandalism and anti-social behaviour, the village is generally regarded as a safe and happy place to be.