"Haw" is an old word for "lock gate", and it is possible that New Haw developed following the installation of the "new" lock gate in 1653, near The White Hart pub.The Grade II Listed New Haw lock-keeper's cottage dates from 1782 but was heavily rebuilt with steel strengthening beams added above the ground floor windows after a gas explosion and fire in 1982. It appeared as Mr. Bedford's "Cherry Cottage" in the 1964 science-fiction film First Men in the Moon, based loosely on the H.G. Wells novel of the same title published in 1901. There is a little evidence of New Haw's history. The original village was a hamlet of Woking, around Crockford Park farm, bordering Addlestone. Several aeroplanes are believed to have crashed in New Haw during the early decades of the 20th century. On 25 May 1912, an Avro Type F cabin monoplane landed upside down on nearby Addlestone Moor. Photographic evidence of this accident is held by Brooklands Museum. The village centre lies around the junction of Woodham Lane and the Scotland Bridge Road roundabout and on the northwest side of the latter, until recently, a well-established motor vehicle sales business occupied an original 1930s garage, petrol station and workshop known for many years as "Woodham Motors". Although the front of the premises have been somewhat altered in recent years, the pre-war brick-built central two-story clock tower with large two-bay workshop behind survive in good condition and make an interesting local landmark. With the commuter boom of the 1950/60s, New Haw expanded further southwest down Woodham Lane towards West Byfleet and Woodham and a popular shopping area for local residents is The Broadway, where a number of shops, public houses and restaurants are located.
Churches
In 1873 All Saints School was founded as a school for Poor Persons, probably with a grant from John Marshall-Paine, who had previously lived at Sayes Court, Addlestone. The school opened in 1874 and included accommodation for 92 pupils. School records show that there were frequent absences during harvesting or at other times when help was needed on the farms. Conditions at the school were far from ideal. The schoolroom was often in need of repair, and during the winter of 1906 temperatures plummeted to 1 °C, and at one time the teacher of the infants was herself only 11 years old. In 1911 the school became All Saints' Church. It is part of the diocese of Guildford. All Saints' New Haw has a thriving congregation including a range of youth activities and a full programme of events for all ages. In 2009 Bosco's and Claire's Cafe were added to the church buildings.
Amenities
The village has a number of open spaces. The largest is Heathervale Park, a green space bordering the Basingstoke canal. Fullbrook School offers local residents athletic facilities, including a gym, football pitches, and tennis courts. There are a number of public houses throughout the area: the Black Prince on Woodham Lane and Scotland Bridge Road roundabout, the Station next to West Byfleet railway station, and The White Hart adjacent to the Wey Navigation on New Haw Road roundabout with Woodham Lane and Byfleet Road.
Education
Local schools include: New Haw Junior School, Fullbrook School, the Grange Community Infant School, and the Grove nursery.
Transport
The M25 motorway passes, without junctions for more than 3 miles, through the west of the village. The main north-south road, the A318 road in New Haw is one of few A-roads in the South East to have narrow sections for HGVs at the bridge crossing the Wey Navigation and with a sharp bend on the turn-off for Woodham. The route also has fixed and mobile speed cameras. The village's railway stations are West Byfleet and Byfleet and New Haw, which was originally called West Weybridge. These stations are on the slow Waterloo to Woking service, but West Byfleet station has access to several quicker services. Numerous bus services run through the village, most run by Travel Surrey, who also have their depot in the area.
