Aylesford is a village and
civil parish on the River Medway in Kent, 4 miles NW of
Maidstone in England.
Originally a small riverside settlement, the old village
comprises around 60 houses, many of which were formerly
shops. Two pubs, a Post Office and four small independent
shops remain. Aylesford has expanded rapidly over the past
thirty years to gain a population of around 5,000.
The Parish of Aylesford covers more than seven square miles,
stretching north to Rochester Airport estate and south to
Barming, and has a total population of over 10,000, with the
main settlements at Aylesford, Eccles, Blue Bell Hill
Village and (part of) Walderslade.
Aylesford Newsprint, a long-established major employer in
the area, is the largest paper recycling factory in Europe,
manufacturing newsprint for the newspaper industry.