Aspley Heath village was designated a conservation area in 1994. In 2009, Mid Bedfordshire District Council published an appraisal of the conservation area, which stated Aspley Heath is "characterised by large detached houses set in extensive grounds". Church Road is described as being bordered by hedgerows of holly.[3]
St Michael's Church is the parish church. The ecclesiastical parish is named Woburn Sands and officially came into existence on 4 November 1867, prior to the formation of Aspley Heath civil parish. The land was provided by the Duke of Bedford.[5] The architect was Henry Clutton, who also designed St Mary's Church, Woburn.[6] Consecration of the church and the churchyard took place on 22 September 1868 and was presided over by Harold Browne, the Bishop of Ely.[5] The coursed limestone church building is Grade II* listed and features many windows with "curious" tracery.[7]
A National School existed in the village by 1863 and became a board school upon the establishment of the Aspley Heath School Board in 1885. It became a council school following the passing of the Education Act, 1902 and finally closed in 1981.[8] The Knoll Preparatory School operated from 1891 to 1974 in a what was previously a private residence in woodland at the far end of the village. The building reverted to a private dwelling after the school closed and was later converted into apartments.[9]
The Heath was used as a pasture for grazing sheep at its inclosure in 1761.[3] In May 1874, Dr Prior, medical officer of the local Board of Health said that Aspley Heath used to be "a wild stretch of elevated ground, largely covered in ling, and tenanted by a few squatters, who occupied huts of a most primitive description". His report set out the room dimensions of two cottages, reported a lack of adequate ventilation for the number of occupants, and stated that water was supplied by a well 200 yards distant.[10] Dr Prior reported in 1878 that one family was living in a railway carriage on a secluded part of the heath; he certified the residence unfit for habitation.[11] In a retrospective The Fenny Stratford Times of 8 March 1883 said the squatters were the poor of Aspley parish, who were refused aid and had been directed to look for sustenance on the heath by working the natural materials there — digging sandstone, fuller's earth and peat, and felling fir poles — and to make themselves homes and grow vegetables on their plots.[12] In 1883 at a public meeting held to discuss the future governance of Aspley Heath, it was shown that only three poor persons remained on the heath, that plots had been bought by the wealthy, and legal means were being pursued to remove the few remaining cottagers.[13]
The village has two public houses, the Fir Tree Inn and The Royal Oak. The Fir Tree Inn dates back to 1829. It was owned by Allfrey & Lovell, a Newport Pagnell brewery from 1876 and was taken over by Bedford brewers, Charles Wells in 1927.[14] The earliest recorded licensee of The Royal Oak is from 1876. It was owned by Newland & Nash, Bedford brewers from 1890 then Wells and Winch of Biggleswade from 1922 until that brewery was taken over by Greene King in 1961.[15]
The parish is elevated and small in population and area. The open landscape of Wavendon Heath was transformed by the planting of thousands of Scotch firs in the last quarter of the 18th century.[16] Aspley Heath civil parish was created in 1883; prior to this the area was part of Aspley Guise parish.[n 1][17] Three years after its creation, Aspley Heath parish was extended to 600 acres (240ha) by a transfer of land from Wavendon parish.[18]
Historical population
Population of Aspley Heath parish taken from national censuses.
↑ William Page, ed. (1912). "Parishes: Aspley Guise". A History of the County of Bedford: Volume 3. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 24 June 2013.
The City of Milton Keynes is a unitary authority area with both borough and city status, in Buckinghamshire. It is the northernmost district of the South East England Region. The borough abuts Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire and the remainder of Buckinghamshire.
Leighton Buzzard is a market town in Bedfordshire, England, in the southwest of the county and close to the Buckinghamshire border. It lies between Aylesbury, Tring, Luton/Dunstable and Milton Keynes, near the Chiltern Hills.
Bletchley is a constituent town of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is situated in the south-west of the city, and is split between the civil parishes of Bletchley and Fenny Stratford and West Bletchley. In 2011, the two parishes had a combined population of 37,114.
Bow Brickhill is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is bounded to the north, west and east by the Milton Keynes urban area, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) east of Fenny Stratford, 1.5 miles (2.4 km) west of Woburn Sands and 4 miles (6.4 km) south-east of Central Milton Keynes.
Little Brickhill is a village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. Located immediately to the west of the A5, it is just outside and overlooking the Milton Keynes urban area, about 5 miles (8.0 km) south-east of Central Milton Keynes, 2 miles (3.2 km) south-east of Fenny Stratford, and 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south-east of Woburn, Bedfordshire. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 407.
Wavendon is a village and civil parish in the south east of the Milton Keynes urban area, in Buckinghamshire, England.
Woburn Sands is a town that straddles the border between Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire in England, and is part of the Milton Keynes urban area. The larger part of the town is in Woburn Sands civil parish, which is in the City of Milton Keynes, Smaller parts of the town are in the neighbouring parishes of Aspley Guise and Aspley Heath. The meandering boundary between Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire means the Lower and Middle Schools that serve all of the town are both in Aspley Guise CP. Bedfordshire Police and Thames Valley Police both deal with law enforcement issues in the town. At the 2011 Census, the population of the civil parish (only) was 2,916, that of the built-up area was 5,959. Woburn Sands, Aspley Guise and Aspley Heath each has its own centre but together the three settlements are a contiguous built-up area.
Woburn Sands railway station serves the town of Woburn Sands and the village of Wavendon in the City of Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire, England. The station is on the Marston Vale line between Bedford and Bletchley, about 4 miles (6.5 km) east of Bletchley station. The station is served by local trains to Bletchley and Bedford using Class 150 multiple units. This station is one of the seven stations serving the Milton Keynes urban area.
Bow Brickhill railway station is a railway station that serves the civil parishes of Bow Brickhill and Walton in the City of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. It is on the Bletchley — Bedford Marston Vale line, about 2 miles (3.25 km) east of Bletchley.
Aspley Guise is a village and civil parish in the west of Central Bedfordshire, England. In addition to the village of Aspley Guise itself, the civil parish also includes part of the town of Woburn Sands, the rest of which is in the City of Milton Keynes in Buckinghamshire. Together with Woburn Sands and Aspley Heath, it forms part of the Milton Keynes urban area. It is centred 6 miles (9.7 km) east southeast of Central Milton Keynes and 1 mile (1.6 km) south of the M1 junction 13. It has its own railway station on the Marston Vale Line, and an historic centre with 29 listed buildings.
Fenny Stratford is a railway station that serves the Fenny Stratford area of Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire. It is on the Marston Vale line that links Bletchley and Bedford, about one mile east of Bletchley railway station.
Aspley Guise railway station serves the village of Aspley Guise in Bedfordshire, England. It is on the Bletchley – Bedford Marston Vale Line. The station is served by West Midlands Trains local services, operating under the London Northwestern Railway brand. The services operate using Class 230 diesel-electric multiple unit trains which are upcycled London Underground D78 Stock. It is one of the seven stations serving the Milton Keynes urban area, albeit the only one located outside the City of Milton Keynes and Buckinghamshire.
Heath and Reach is a village and civil parish near the Chiltern Hills in Bedfordshire, England. It is 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Leighton Buzzard and 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Woburn and adjoins the county boundary with Buckinghamshire. Nearby places are Leighton-Linslade, Great Brickhill and the Duke of Bedford's Woburn Abbey, Woburn Safari Park and Woburn Golf Club.
Husborne Crawley is a small village and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, located close to Junction 13 of the M1 motorway. The village touches the borders of the Woburn Abbey estate on one side, and the village of Aspley Guise on the other. The meaning of the Husborne element of the towns name is "warrior stream" and the Crawley element means "crow clearing". It appears as Hussheburn Crawele, in 1421.
Central Bedfordshire is a unitary authority area in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. It was created in 2009.
Henry Clutton was an English architect and designer.
Walter Butler Stonebridge FRIBA was an architect, Diocesan Surveyor for Ely and St Albans and afterwards Surveyor for the Archdeaconry of Bedford. He was president of the Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and Huntingdonshire Society of Architects in 1932.
Woburn was a rural district in Bedfordshire, England from 1894 to 1900, covering Woburn and surrounding parishes.
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