Bradwell, Norfolk

Bradwell
Church of St. Nicholas, Bradwell
Bradwell Location within Norfolk
Area	9.74 km2 (3.76 sq mi)
Population	11,628 (2021)
•  Density	1,194/km2 (3,090/sq mi)
OS grid reference	TG504038
District	Great Yarmouth
Shire county	Norfolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	GREAT YARMOUTH
Postcode district	NR31
Dialling code	01498
Police	Norfolk
Fire	Norfolk
Ambulance	East of England
UK Parliament	Great Yarmouth
List of places UK England Norfolk 52°34′28″N1°41′39″E / 52.57432°N 1.69406°E / 52.57432; 1.69406

Bradwell Village Sign

Bradwell is a village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village is immediately to the west of, and largely indistinguishable from, the built-up urban area of the town of Great Yarmouth.

History

Bradwell's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for a 'broad spring or stream.' ^[1]

Bradwell is not featured in the Domesday Book. ^[2]

There are numerous listed farm buildings in Bradwell. These include Bradwell Hall (Eighteenth Century) ^[3] with an accompanying barn ^[4] , Old Hall Farmhouse (Seventeenth Century) ^[5] and Church Farmhouse (Eighteenth Century) ^[6] with an accompanying barn. ^[7]

During the Second World War, Bradwell was hit by several Luftwaffe air raids designed to hit Great Yarmouth, however, the craters from the bomb damage were filled in after 1945. There were also searchlight batteries and pillboxes built in Bradwell during the war. ^[8]

Geography

The civil parish has an area of 9.74 km² and according to the 2021 census, Bradwell has a population of 11,628 people which shows a large increase from the 10,528 people recorded in the 2011 census. ^[9]

The A143, between Gorleston-on-Sea and Haverhill, bisects Bradwell.

St. Nicholas' Church

Bradwell's parish church is dedicated to Saint Nicholas, is located on Church Walk and is also one of the 185 surviving English Round-tower churches, built before the Norman Conquest. The church boasts a Fifteenth Century font which shows clear signs of an iconoclastic attack in the Seventeenth Century. ^[10]

Education

Bradwell's' schools include: Hillside Primary School, Homefield Church of England Primary and Nursery School, Lynn Grove Academy, Wroughton Academies and Woodlands Primary and Nursery School.

Parish Council and Local Government

For the purposes of local government, the parish today falls within the district of Great Yarmouth. However prior to the Local Government Act 1972, the parish was within Lothingland Rural District in Suffolk.

Bradwell Parish Council has responsibility for a number of amenities within the village, and will make representations to the borough council, county council, police and others to secure improvements to services within the village. Its 'base' is the Leo Coles Pavilion, located on the Green Lane Playing Field site – its meetings take place there, and the clerk's office is situated there. The council publishes a twice-yearly newspaper, The Bradwellian, which is delivered to every household in Bradwell by a team of volunteers. [11]

Governance

Bradenham is part of the electoral ward of Lothingland for local elections and is part of the district of Great Yarmouth.

The village's national constituency is Great Yarmouth which has been represented by the Reform UK's Rupert Lowe since 2024.

War memorial

Bradwell's War Memorial is an obelisk made from red granite located on Church Walk. ^[12] It bears the following names for the First World War and the Russian Civil War: ^[13]

Rank	Name	Unit	Date of Death	Other Commemoration / Burial
Maj.	Percy Wiltshire	251st (Siege) Battalion, Royal Field Artillery	25 May 1917	British Cemetery, Avesnes
ST1	Herbert J. Adams	HM Submarine L55	4 June 1919	Haslar Naval Hospital Cemetery
L/Cpl.	Walter J. C. Moore	1/5th Battalion, Norfolk Regiment	19 April 1917	Jerusalem Memorial
SH	John J. Amis	HM Trawler Nadine	1 September 1915	Chatham Naval Memorial
DH	Alfred C. Howes	HM Drifter Hilary II	25 March 1916	Chatham Memorial
DH	Robert J. Willis	HM Drifter Masterpiece	10 May 1915	New Cemetery, Larne
DH	Henry S. Parfitt	HM Trawler Jay	11 August 1917	Chatham Memorial
DH	George I. Bessey	HM Trawler Reserve	27 February 1917	Chatham Memorial
Dvr.	Ernest W. Shorten	Army Service Corps	25 March 1919	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell
Pte.	Harry Delph	1st Battalion, Essex Regiment	15 December 1915	Helles Memorial
Pte.	Harry C. Breeze	34th (County of London) Battalion, London Regiment	13 May 1918	Bagneux British Cemetery
Pte.	Frederick W. Chaplin	Queen's Royal Regiment	July 1919	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell
Pte.	Frederick C. Amis	3rd Battalion, Royal Sussex Regiment	10 July 1918	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell
Spr.	Roland J. Tubby	4th (Provisional) Company, Royal Engineers	4 May 1916	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell
Mr.	Arthur W. Bailey	HM Trawler Reserve	22 January 1918	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell

And, the following for the Second World War:

Rank	Name	Unit	Date of Death	Other Commemoration / Burial
F/Lt.	Roger Cook	No. 168 Squadron RAF	3 January 1944	Communal Cemetery, Cambrai
Lt.	Michael H. C. Bellamy	2nd Battalion, King's Shropshire Light Infantry	13 October 1944	War Cemetery, Overloon
Sgt.	William D. Palmer	No. 408 Squadron RCAF	15 May 1942	Churchyard, Tranebjerg
Sgt.	Roy C. Bailey	Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve	29 January 1945	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell
AB	John H. Cooper	HM Shore Installation Pembroke	30 July 1943	St. Nicholas' Churchyard, Bradwell
L/Cpl.	Robert A. Brown	2nd Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment	10 May 1940	Communal Cemetery, Essars
Gnr.	Herbert W. Tubby	4th (Maritime) Regiment, Royal Artillery	21 April 1943	Plymouth Naval Memorial
Gnr.	Charles A. Mace	4th Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery	15 December 1940	Halfaya Sollum War Cemetery
Gdsm.	Charles H. J. Marler	3rd Battalion, Irish Guards	1 October 1944	Jonkerbos War Cemetery
Tpr.	Christopher J. O. Ball	Royal Armoured Corps	12 September 1942	Alamein Memorial
Mr.	Roland R. George	East Dudgeon Lightship	29 January 1940	Magdalen Cemetery, Gorleston-on-Sea

Notable residents

• Mervyn King, professional darts player.
• Sophie McKinna, British Olympic shot putter. ^[14]

References

1. "Key to English Place-names". kepn.nottingham.ac.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
2. Domesday Book. (1086). Retrieved November 6, 2022. https://opendomesday.org/map/
3. "BRADWELL HALL, Bradwell - 1372901 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
4. "BARN AT BRADWELL HALL FARM, Bradwell - 1305240 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
5. "OLD HALL FARMHOUSE, Burgh Castle - 1172254 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
6. "CHURCH FARMHOUSE, Bradwell - 1051007 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
7. "BARN AT CHURCH FARM, Bradwell - 1172214 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
8. "Bradwell-(Parish-Summary) - Norfolk Heritage Explorer". www.heritage.norfolk.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
9. "Bradwell (Parish, United Kingdom) - Population Statistics, Charts, Map and Location". www.citypopulation.de. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
10. "Norfolk Churches". www.norfolkchurches.co.uk. Retrieved 14 November 2024.
11. Bradwell Parish Council. (2022). Retrieved November 6, 2022. http://www.bradwellparishcouncil.gov.uk/
12. Imperial War Museum. (2022). Retrieved November 7, 2022. https://www.iwm.org.uk/memorials/item/memorial/81119
13. "War Memorial – Bradwell Parish Council" . Retrieved 14 November 2024.
14. Maclean, Jack; Gordon-Farleigh, Neve (4 August 2024). "Animal rescue career is dream for former Olympian". BBC News . Retrieved 15 August 2024.

External links

• St Nicholas Church, Bradwell
• St Nicholas on the European Round Tower Churches Website

• Map sources for Bradwell, Norfolk.