Great Denham

Last updated

Great Denham
Bedfordshire UK location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Great Denham
Location within Bedfordshire
Population1,553 (2011 Census) [1]
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
Country England
Sovereign state United Kingdom
Post town BEDFORD
Postcode district MK40
Dialling code 01234
Police Bedfordshire
Fire Bedfordshire and Luton
Ambulance East of England
UK Parliament
List of places
UK
England
Bedfordshire
52°08′04″N0°30′53″W / 52.134444°N 0.514722°W / 52.134444; -0.514722

Great Denham is a village and civil parish located in Bedfordshire, England, on the western outskirts of Bedford. The village is the location of Bedford Golf Course.

Contents

History

Great Denham is on the banks of River Great Ouse, in a loop carved out by the river flow. It has evidence of Neolithic settlement as well as Roman and Saxon presence in the form of coins, pottery and other implements.

By the 7th century, the Great Denham area had been absorbed into the Saxon kingdom of Mercia. In 886 the Saxons and Vikings fixed a formal boundary between them, along the rivers Thames, Lea and Great Ouse. Great Denham was thus on the border between the Danelaw and Saxon England, which remained hostile adversaries. England was eventually united as one kingdom. St James Church, just over the border of Great Denham in the neighbouring village of Biddenham, was first constructed in the Norman period. [2]

The Great Denham loop of the river remained undeveloped farmland until the Bedford Golf Course was built in the 1990s, together with a 'golf village', with all roads named after golf courses. It was part of Biddenham parish until April 2007, when the new Parish of Great Denham was created. It covers around 3 km2.

Community facilities

There is a small parade of shops on Anglia Way which includes a Sainsbury's Local supermarket, fish and chip shop, beauty salon, a charity shop, cafe, estate agents and off licence with a post office. There is a GP surgery with ProHealth Clinic located inside it on Kingswood Way, and a Community Hall on Saxon Way. The Ouse Valley Way footpath runs through the village. A new bridge across the Great Ouse opened in 2010 which connects the village with Kempston. The country park is a green space providing paths for walking, running, cycling and a number of football pitches available to book for both senior and junior 11-a-side and also a smaller 7-a-side pitch. A sports pavilion provides changing facilities for those using the sports pitches. It is managed by Bedford Borough Council.

Great Denham Primary School opened as part of the development in September 2012. [3]

Great Denham Parish Council was created in April 2007 and has nine members elected every four years. The village is represented on the borough council by Jim Weir.

Related Research Articles

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

Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of its urban area, including Kempston and Biddenham, was 106,940. Bedford is also the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford, a unitary authority that includes a significant rural area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buckingham</span> Town in Buckinghamshire, England

Buckingham is a market town in north Buckinghamshire, England, close to the borders of Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire, which had a population of 12,890 at the 2011 Census. The town lies approximately 12 miles (19 km) west of Central Milton Keynes, 19 miles (31 km) south-east of Banbury, and 24 miles (39 km) north-east of Oxford.

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

Kempston is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England, situated around 2 miles (3.2 km) south-west of Bedford town centre. It had a population of 19,330 in the 2011 census, and forms part of the wider Bedford built-up area. The River Great Ouse separates it from the Queen's Park area of Bedford.

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

Little Barford is a hamlet and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England about 7 miles (11 km) northeast of the county town of Bedford.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fulford, North Yorkshire</span> Village and civil parish in North Yorkshire, England

Fulford is a historic village and civil parish on the outskirts of York, in the York district, in the ceremonial county of North Yorkshire, England. Fulford is located 2 miles (3 km) to the south of the city, on the east bank of the River Ouse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borough of Bedford</span> Unitary authority area in Bedfordshire, England

The Borough of Bedford is a unitary authority area with borough status in the ceremonial county of Bedfordshire, England. Its council is based in Bedford, its namesake and principal settlement, which is the county town of Bedfordshire. The Bedford built-up-area is the 71st largest in the United Kingdom and comprises the boundaries of the pre-1974 Bedford Municipal Borough, the town of Kempston and the village of Biddenham, with the BUA surrounded by a rural area with many villages. 75% of the borough's population live in the Bedford Urban Area and the five large villages which surround it, which makes up slightly less than 6% of the total land area of the Borough.

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

Bromham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, situated around 3 miles (4.8 km) west of Bedford town centre.

Sharnbrook is a village and civil parish located in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, situated around 7 miles (11 km) north-west of Bedford town centre.

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

Great Barford is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England, around 5 miles (8.0 km) north-east of Bedford town centre. It lies on the River Great Ouse at grid reference TL129523. It is twinned with Wöllstein, Germany. The village is bypassed by the busy A421 road on the way between the M1 near Milton Keynes and the A1 near St Neots.

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

Biddenham is a village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, located around 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Bedford town centre near the A428 road. It forms part of the wider Bedford urban area.

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

Pavenham is a small village and civil parish on the River Great Ouse in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, about 6 miles (10 km) north-west of Bedford. Village amenities consist of St Peter's Church, a pub, Village hall, tennis Club, Cricket Club and golf club. The village is home to many clubs and societies including an active WI.

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

Felmersham is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford in Bedfordshire, England, on the River Great Ouse, about 7 miles (11 km) north west of Bedford. As a civil parish, it includes the hamlet of Radwell, and is sometimes known as Felmersham with Radwell, and has a population of about 800, and is circumscribed by the Great Ouse on the north, east and south. Other nearby places are Sharnbrook, Odell, Pavenham and Milton Ernest. Felmersham with Radwell was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as a parish within the Hundred of Willey. John de Burnham, later Lord High Treasurer of Ireland, was parish priest here in the 1330s.

<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.

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">Hundred of Willey</span> Historical land division in Bedfordshire, England

The Hundred of Willey is a historical land division, a hundred in the northwest corner of Bedfordshire, England. Its northwestern boundary is the county border with Northamptonshire, and its southwestern boundary the border with Buckinghamshire. Some of its parishes and settlements lay on the River Great Ouse which flows through the hundred.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harrold, Bedfordshire</span> Village and civil parish in England

Harrold is a village, civil parish and electoral ward in the Borough of Bedford within Bedfordshire, England, around nine miles north-west of Bedford. The village is on the north bank of the River Great Ouse, close to the county boundaries of Buckinghamshire and Northamptonshire and is the site of an ancient bridge, linking the village with Carlton with Chellington on the south bank. Immediately to the east of the village is Odell. Across the bridge is Carlton.

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

Queens Park is an electoral ward and area of Bedford, England, west of the town centre. The community was established in the 1890s and has been described as Bedford's first industrial suburb. Nowadays, it is diverse and multicultural with many specialist shops and businesses including international supermarkets and delis. Places of worship include an Anglican church, two mosques and one of the largest Sikh temples in the United Kingdom.

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

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

Roxton is a small village and civil parish in the Borough of Bedford, Bedfordshire, England about 7 miles (11 km) north-east of the county town of Bedford.

References

  1. "Civil Parish population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  2. "Great Denham Parish Council | History of Great Denham". Archived from the original on 19 April 2018. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  3. "Great Denham Primary School". Greatdenhamprimary.org.uk. Retrieved 6 August 2012.