Goldington

Last updated

Goldington
Goldington Green War Memorial.jpg
Goldington Green war memorial, 2018
Bedfordshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Goldington
Location within Bedfordshire
Population8,603  [1]
8,662 (2011 Census.Ward) [2]
OS grid reference TL076510
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town Bedford
Postcode district MK41
Dialling code 01234
Police Bedfordshire
Fire Bedfordshire and Luton
Ambulance East of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Bedfordshire
52°08′49″N0°25′39″W / 52.14695°N 0.42756°W / 52.14695; -0.42756

Goldington is part of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. It encompasses much of the historic village and parish of Goldington that was merged with Bedford in 1934, although some parts of the old village are within the neighbouring Newnham ward. It also includes two modern estates that are part of Renhold parish.

Contents

The boundaries of Goldington are approximately The Spires and Aspire estates to the north, Norse Road to the east, Goldington Road to the south, with Church Lane and Bow Hill to the west. The northern part of the area is sometimes known as Elms Farm.

History

Before becoming part of Bedford town, Goldington was a separate village which grew up along the road between Bedford and Cambridge, more recently known as A428 road. St Mary's Church in Goldington has parish registers going back to 1559.

In August 1645 Major Walter Baskerville, a Royalist cavalry Officer, was killed in a skirmish in Goldington. Goldington Hall (a small mansion) was built in the 1650s. The Hall was rebuilt in 1874. [3]

In 1931 the parish had a population of 1440. [4] On 1 April 1934 the parish was abolished with the southern part of the merged with Bedford and the northern rural parts becoming part of Ravensden and Renhold. [5] The area was greatly expanded to the north in the 1960s and 70s, seeing the return of some of the original parish lost in 1934. This expansion included the development of the Elms Farm estate and the Church Lane shopping parade. The Poppyfields estate was developed in the area in the 1990s.

In the 21st century The Spires and Aspire housing estates have been constructed on the northern boundary of Goldington. These newer estates are in the civil parish of Renhold.

After many years as a pub, the old Goldington Hall became semi-derelict and was the scene of a small fire in 2008. [3] It is now a private residence.

Coplan Estates [6] were appointed to re-develop the Church Lane shopping area in 2006, and an old pub called The Century was demolished in 2008. However the recession of the late 2000s delayed further progress. Phase one of the regeneration saw the Aldi supermarket being constructed at the site and this opened in summer 2010. An Iceland supermarket and medical centre were opened in 2015, with the Church Lane Community Centre refurbished in 2016.

The Queens Tavern pub on Queens Drive was closed in 2017 and replaced with a Co-op Food store.

Goldington Castle, a motte-and-bailey castle, was built sometime after 1066, but is not actually in Goldington despite its name. The castle is located in the neighbouring area of Newnham.

Governance

The majority of Goldington is not part of a civil parish, with all community services under the direct control of Bedford Borough Council. Goldington elects two councillors to Bedford Borough Council. The seats were won in 2015 by Anthony Forth and Jade Uko of the Labour Party. The Spires and Aspire estates are in the area covered by Renhold Parish Council to which they elect one councillor, at a by-election in 2018 Labour councillor Darren Rayner was elected unopposed.

Economy

There are three shopping parades in Goldington at which most shops and services are located -

The first is Goldington Square on Church Lane which includes an Aldi supermarket, a branch of Iceland, a Co-op store and post office, a hairdressers, a fish & chip shop, a bookmakers, a branch of Subway, a medical centre and a community centre.

Goldington's second shopping hub is on Queens Drive, which has a small convenience store, a post office, a chemist, a hairdresser, a butcher's shop, a laundrette, a Co-op convenience store, a fish & chip shop, petrol station and GP Surgery.

There is a small shopping parade on The Fairway with a convenience store, The Sportsman pub and a butchers shop. A greengrocer and fish and chip shop have closed and now stand empty.

There are still a few shops and pubs along the old village High Street (i.e. Goldington Road) including a small Londis supermarket. There is a small independent supermarket on Elliot Crescent.

To the eastern side of Goldington is the Elms & Viking Industrial estate. This large business park (between Goldington Road and Norse Road) houses many firms, including Enterprise Holdings, E.ON UK, GE Healthcare and the East of England Ambulance Service.

Education

Since the alteration of ward boundaries in 2011, and the relocation of Putnoe Primary School, there are no schools within the ward. The ward is served by Putnoe Primary School, The Hills Academy, Goldington Green Academy and Renhold VC Primary School for primary school age pupils. Goldington Academy and Mark Rutherford School serve the area for secondary school age pupils.

Religious sites

St Mary's Church (Church of England) is a grade II* listed building, [7] located on Church Lane [8]

Community facilities

Church Lane Community Centre is located on Goldington Square, Church Lane. [9] Goldington Green is the area's largest open space, and is situated on Church Lane and Goldington Road. Goldington Bury cricket ground is situated next to Goldington Green. Goldington Bury is the home ground of Bedford Cricket Club.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stagsden</span> Village in Bedfordshire, England

Stagsden is a small but historic village and civil parish located in the Borough of Bedford, northwest Bedfordshire, England, near the Buckinghamshire border. Situated around 4 miles (6.4 km) west of Bedford town centre on one of the main routes between it and Milton Keynes, the village was bypassed by the A422 in April 1992, to allow the increasing amount of traffic to avoid the 30 mph speed limit in Stagsden.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brickhill</span> Human settlement in England

Brickhill is a civil parish and electoral ward within northern Bedford in Bedfordshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Silsoe</span> Village in Bedfordshire, England

Silsoe is a village and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England. The village used to be on the main A6 road but a bypass around the village was opened in 1981 at a cost of £1.6m.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">North Bedfordshire (UK Parliament constituency)</span> Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1983–1997 & 2024 onwards

North Bedfordshire is a county constituency in Bedfordshire. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system, from the 1983 general election until it was abolished for the 1997 general election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilstead</span> Village in Bedfordshire, England

Wilstead is a village and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, just off the A6 Bedford to Luton road, about five miles south of Bedford town centre, and within the Borough of Bedford. The name of the village has been spelled in many different ways, including Wilshamstead and Wylhamstead. Wilstead is now the usual name of the village, but the civil parish is named Wilshamstead. The council estimated the population of the parish at 2,550 in 2005. Most of the inhabitants live in the main village, but some live in other hamlets and isolated houses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Broadwater, West Sussex</span> Human settlement in England

Broadwater is a neighbourhood of Worthing, in the borough of Worthing in West Sussex, England. Situated between the South Downs and the English Channel, Broadwater was once a parish in its own right and included Worthing when the latter was a small fishing hamlet. Before its incorporation into the Borough of Worthing in 1902 Broadwater also included the manor of Offington to the north. It borders Tarring to the west, Sompting to the east, and East Worthing to the south-east.

Riseley is a village and civil parish located in North Bedfordshire, England. The village name has had alternative spellings in the past such as Rislau, Riseleg, Riselai and Risely, however all these spellings are considered archaic. It has a population of 1,284 according to the 2001 census, increasing to 1,286 at the 2011 Census, and is near the villages of Bletsoe, Sharnbrook, Swineshead, Pertenhall, Keysoe, Thurleigh and Melchbourne. The nearest town to Riseley is Rushden in the neighbouring county of Northamptonshire, approximately 8 miles away to the north west. The county town of Bedford is approximately 9 miles to the South of Riseley. The village has one watercourse, which is a tributary of the River Ouse, flowing through it known locally as the 'Brook' around which in medieval times the village was built.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renhold</span> Human settlement in England

Renhold is a village and civil parish located on the River Ouse, in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England. The parish church is situated some 4 miles (6.5 km) east-north-east of Bedford town centre. The former Bedfordshire County Council estimated the population of Renhold to be 1,800 in 2005, and forecast an increase to 2,320 by 2010.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Husborne Crawley</span> Village in Bedfordshire, England

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.

Putnoe is an electoral ward on the northern side of Bedford, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cauldwell, Bedford</span> Area of Bedford, England

Cauldwell is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">De Parys</span> Human settlement in England

De Parys is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harpur</span> Area of Bedford, England

Harpur is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kingsbrook, Bedford</span> Human settlement in England

Kingsbrook is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Castle, Bedford</span> Electoral ward and area in Bedfordshire, England

Castle is an electoral ward and area of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Newnham, Bedford</span> Area of the town of Bedford, England

Newnham is an electoral ward and area within the town of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ravensden</span> Human settlement in England

Ravensden is a village and civil parish located in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England.

This is an outline of Sport in Bedfordshire, a county in England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brackenstown, Swords</span> Neighbourhood of Swords in Ireland

Brackenstown is a neighbourhood in the north Dublin suburb of Swords in Ireland. It developed in west Swords on the north side of the Ward River. It developed along the Brackenstown Road, which runs from Swords to the townland of Knocksedan. Brackenstown was initially part of the Finglas-Swords social housing expansion, where the estates of St.Cronans, Glasmore, and Brackenstown Village were constructed. It was estimated that over 5,000 people benefited from this, primarily being relocated from Gardiner Street. Following its construction, Brackenstown's address was Finglas, Dublin 11. This was due to a social divide between the native people of Swords Village, not wanting the association with the rise in antisocial behaviour in Brackenstown. Gangland feuds once ruled the area upon its construction and its ties to Finglas Village were stronger than to Swords. Following the Celtic tiger, and the large expansion of Swords. Brackenstown became surrounded by a new sprawling Dublin suburb, and modernly is a small area located in the major Dublin city suburb of Swords. Brackenstown has shops, including a supermarket and a pub, and is adjacent to the Ward River Valley Park. Brackenstown is also a parish in the Fingal North deanery of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Dublin.

References

  1. Neighbourhood Statistics. "Neighbourhood Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  2. "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 5 November 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Bedford Timeline". galaxy.bedfordshire.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 October 2007. Retrieved 9 January 2008.
  4. "Population statistics Goldington AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  5. "Relationships and changes Goldington AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  6. https://www.coplanestates.com/ Coplan Estates
  7. Historic England. "Church of St Mary the Virgin (Grade II*) (1321043)". National Heritage List for England . Retrieved 9 August 2014.
  8. "Home". www.stmarygoldington.org.uk.
  9. "Church Lane and Goldington Community Centre". Bedford.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 August 2012.