Church Stretton is a market town in Shropshire, England, 13 miles (21 km) south of Shrewsbury as well as 15 miles (24 kilometres) north of Ludlow. The population in 2011 was 4,671. The community was nicknamed Little Switzerland in the late Victorian as well as Edwardian period for its landscape, and also came to be a health spa. The regional geology includes some of the oldest rocks in England and a noteworthy fault is called after the town. Today, Church Stretton is a busy market community in the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The mineral water removal and also bottling plant on Shrewsbury Road (understood locally as the 'Pop Works'), has actually been running because 1883; given that 2004 it has actually given Princes with mineral water. It is a noteworthy regional employer as is the polymer laboratories off Essex Road, currently had by Agilent Technologies (up until 2009 by Varian). There is a designated light industrial park between the A49 and also the train line, referred to as Crossways, with a variety of companies, most of which are in the motoring trade, including an independent petrol/diesel filling up terminal. The town benefits from tourist, which is a development sector in the area, as well as bring in regional profession. A recent study revealed that the community has some 50 retail electrical outlets, 44 of which are individually owned, with a varied series of shop types. [48] These consist of 2 butchers, several outdoor tasks shops, a baker, a delicatessen, numerous clothes and footwear stores, three banks, as well as 2 grocery stores (Co-op as well as Spar). There is a big vintages market, situated in a former malthouse on the corner of Sandford Avenue and Easthope Road. There are 4 pubs, an in addition to a number of coffee shops as well as little dining establishments. In June 2011 the town was officially declared to be a "Fairtrade Town" with 34 organisations selling fair trade products. There is a tiny art gallery in the previous resort on the edge of Shrewsbury Road as well as Sandford Avenue. The community also has a number of professional services, such as solicitors, accounting professionals and estate agents, verifying its standing as a local centre of company. The town remains to gain from its reputation as a health club community, and a preferable location to live, especially in retired life. House costs are above the area average and also have seen comparable boosts in recent times to other medical spa towns in the UK.