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Shepshed | |
---|---|
![]() St Botolphs Church, Shepshed | |
Location within Leicestershire | |
Population | 13,505 (2011) |
OS grid reference | SK475195 |
District | |
Shire county | |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | LOUGHBOROUGH |
Postcode district | LE12 |
Dialling code | 01509 |
Police | Leicestershire |
Fire | Leicestershire |
Ambulance | East Midlands |
UK Parliament | |
Shepshed ( /ˈʃɛpʃɛd/ ), often known until 1888 as Sheepshed, [1] (also Sheepshead – a name derived from the village being heavily involved in the wool industry) is a town in Leicestershire, England with a population of around 14,000 people, measured at 13,505 at the 2011 census. [2] It sits within the borough of Charnwood local authority, where Shepshed is the second biggest settlement after the town of Loughborough.
The town is twinned with the Parisian suburb of Domont.
The town originally grew as a centre for the wool trade. [3] However, since the construction of the M1 motorway nearby, it has become a dormitory town for Loughborough, Leicester, Derby and Nottingham. It was officially a village until recently [ when? ] and claimed to be Britain's largest, and also claimed to have the highest number of pubs per head of population in the country. As of 2019, however, it is home to only ten public houses.
There has been much controversy about the origin of the name of the town.[ citation needed ] The earliest form is Scepeshefde Regis as mentioned in the Domesday Book, which means "(King's) hill where sheep graze", but since then there have been many changes until the present form, Shepshed, was adopted in 1888. [4] The addition of the suffix 'Regis' signifies that there was once a royal lodge in the area.
Very little information about the settlement on the site of Shepshed appears before the Domesday Book but the name is certainly Anglo-Saxon: local history books claim that Shepshed has two of the oldest roads in the country, Ring Fence and Sullington Road, the latter being an ancient British track named after the goddess Solina. Anglo-Saxon Shepshed cannot have been much more than a hamlet in a large district of forest. However, succeeding centuries provide an abundance of historical material.[ citation needed ] The prosperity of medieval Shepshed was based on the wool industry and "Well Yard" on Forest Street may well be a corruption of "Wool Yard", where Bradford wool merchants congregated to buy from local inhabitants. In addition, there is considerable evidence to suggest that a weekly market was held, at least until the 14th century.[ citation needed ]
The 11th century Parish church of St Botolph (the westernmost parish church in England to bear the name)[ citation needed ] and its land the Oakley Wood was originally given to Odo of Bayeux, half-brother of William the Conqueror, after the Norman conquest in 1066. The ownership of the estate reverted to the Crown a number of times including in 1534. A wood carving exists in the church depicting a visit of Queen Elizabeth I though it is at present unclear if the Queen ever came to Shepshed itself, but if she did, it would have been the farthest north that she travelled in the country.[ citation needed ] The older part of the town is still centred on the church.
The church's original patronage came from Leicester Abbey. Between 1699 and 1856, however, the patrons were the Phillips family of Garendon Hall. This family has been Lords of the Manor since its purchase by Sir Ambrose Phillips (1637–1691) in 1683. Garendon Hall (demolished 1964 [5] ) was built on the site of Garendon Abbey, a prominent Cistercian house which was founded in 1133 by Robert de Beaumont, 2nd Earl of Leicester and survived until its dissolution by Henry VIII in 1536. Garendon Abbey, whose economy was largely based on sheep farming, was one of the most important possessor of granges in Leicestershire. [6]
The 18th century saw the enclosure of the common lands around Shepshed. There had been enclosures in the 15th and 16th centuries,[ citation needed ] but towards the end of the 18th century the last remaining common land, approximately 2,000 acres (8 km²), was enclosed and divided among the principal commoners of the village. Much destruction was caused in the town when in 1753, 85 bays of buildings were destroyed by fire which had happened at what is now known as Hallcroft named after the school which had been burnt down in the fire.
There were many changes during the 19th century. Shepshed was briefly linked by canal to Loughborough, and to the coalmines of West Leicestershire when the Charnwood Forest Canal was opened in 1798, but success was only short lived. By 1804 the canal had proved an uneconomic venture and was abandoned, though modern roads and footpaths still follow the course it took through Shepshed. [7] The Charnwood Forest Railway (nicknamed the Bluebell Line on account of the proliferation of the flower) was opened in 1883, [8] but regular passenger services ceased in 1931. However, the goods service did not close until 1963. Shepshed railway station no longer stands though part of the old line forms a bridleway between the town and Thringstone including the now redundant viaduct at Grace Dieu.
Shepshed had a riot on election day in 1868, two hundred policemen were brought into the village the next day and 33 arrests were made (13 of the rioters being sentenced to 3 months imprisonment). Upon release they were met at the boundary by the local brass band and feted as heroes.[ citation needed ] On 31 December 1915 a German Zeppelin was seen over Shepshed.[ citation needed ]
Hind Leys Community College educates pupils from 14 to 19, in the town, and includes pupils not only from Shepshed, but also from local towns and villages such as Loughborough, Kegworth, Belton, Castle Donington, Diseworth, Long Whatton and Tonge. Pupils aged from 10 to 14 attend the recently rebuilt Shepshed High School. There are four primary schools in the town, and three of these feed into Shepshed High School; Oxley, St Botolph's and Newcroft. The final primary school, St Winefride's, caters for Roman Catholic pupils until the age of 11, after which most of them transfer to De Lisle College 11–19 school in Loughborough.
Shepshed is located adjacent to junction 23 of the M1 motorway. The closest railway station is Loughborough railway station. East Midlands Airport is also less than 5 miles away.
Shepshed is serviced by Arriva Midlands services 16/16A and 126/127 with frequent buses into Loughborough and Coalville and Paul S Winson Coaches route 129 between Loughborough and Ashby. [9]
Skylink Nottingham-Coalville operated by trentbarton also links the village with East Midlands Airport and Nottingham. [10]
The town is represented in the Midland Football League by Shepshed Dynamo F.C., who play at the Dovecote Stadium on Butthole Lane. Ingles FC (formed in 1972) also have two football teams. The 1st team ground shares with Shepshed Dynamo at the Dovecote stadium while the reserves are based at Little Haw Lane. The club has progressed rapidly since 2013 with back to back promotions and now the first team currently play in the Leicestershire Senior League with the reserves in the Leicestershire Combination.
Shepshed Cricket Club was formed in 2015 [11] from the merger of the towns 2 existing cricket teams; Shepshed Town [12] and Shepshed Messengers. Shepshed Town was established in 1869 and in recent years has been ranked among the top clubs in Leicestershire. [13] Following the merger, the club will field 4 senior sides as well as Under 15, Under 13 and Under 11 sides.
The major Rugby side in the town is Shepshed RFC. who train and play on the Hind Leys Campus. Founded in 1985, they won the LRU Division 4 in 2014 and the LRU Division 3 in 2015. [14]
Shepshed has a retained fire station, part of Leicestershire and Rutland Fire and Rescue Service, serving the town from the fire station on Charnwood Road. The station, which opened in 2002, replaced the previous station built on the same site in 1951 [15] and was initially opened as a combined Police and Fire Station. The Police station was quickly downgraded to an office and then withdrawn completely, leaving Shepshed without a Police Station for the first time in many decades. LF&RS took over the entire building and now operate a training centre alongside the retained station. In front of the station is a memorial to two Shepshed Police Officers who were murdered in the line of duty in 2002 [16] [17] and two long-serving firefighters, one of whom died en route to a fire call in 2006. [18]
The station operates a Scania pumping appliance and a Command Support Vehicle. [19]
Shepshed has a town twinning relationship with Domont, Val-d'Oise, France.[ citation needed ]
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands, being within the East Midlands. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warwickshire to the south-west, Staffordshire to the west, and Derbyshire to the north-west. The border with most of Warwickshire is Watling Street, the modern A5 road.
Loughborough is a town in the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England, seat of Charnwood Borough Council, and home to Loughborough University. The town had a population of 59,933 in 2011 census, and an estimate of 67,956 in 2019, making it the second largest settlement in Leicestershire, It is close to the Nottinghamshire border and within short distances of Leicester, Nottingham, East Midlands Airport and Derby. The town has the world's largest bell foundry – John Taylor Bellfounders – which made bells for the Carillon War Memorial, a landmark in the Queens Park in the town, of Great Paul for St Paul's Cathedral, and for York Minster.
East Midlands Airport is an international airport in the East Midlands of England, close to Castle Donington in northwestern Leicestershire, between Loughborough, Derby and Nottingham ; Leicester is to the south and Lincoln north east. It serves the whole East Midlands region of Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Derbyshire. The airfield was originally built as a Royal Air Force station known as RAF Castle Donington in 1943, before being redeveloped as a civilian airport in 1965.
Belgrave is an area, suburb, electoral ward, and administrative division of the city of Leicester, England.
Burton on the Wolds is a village in Leicestershire, England situated on the B676 road 3 miles (4.8 km) west of the A46 and about the same distance to the east of Loughborough. In the 2011 census, the population was measured at 1,218. The Parish Council of Burton on the Wolds, Cotes and Prestwold serves the village and its two neighbouring hamlets. The local borough council is Charnwood.
Mountsorrel is a village in Leicestershire on the River Soar, just south of Loughborough with a population in 2001 of 6,662 inhabitants, increasing to 8,223 at the 2011 census.
Birstall is a large village and civil parish within the Charnwood borough of Leicestershire, England. It is three miles north of Leicester city centre and is part of the wider Leicester Urban Area.
Loughborough is a constituency in Leicestershire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Jane Hunt, a Conservative. From 2010 until 2019, it was represented by Nicky Morgan who served under the governments of David Cameron, Theresa May and Boris Johnson. In 2020, she was elevated to the Peerage and became a member of the House of Lords. The constituency is a considered a bellwether, as it has reflected the national result at every general election since February 1974.
Stapleford is a town and civil parish in Nottinghamshire, England, 5.6 miles (9.0 km) west of Nottingham. The population at the 2011 census was 15,241.
Barrow upon Soar is a large village in northern Leicestershire, in the Soar Valley between Leicester and Loughborough, with a population at the 2011 census of 5,856.
Loughborough railway station is a Grade II listed railway station in the town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, on the Midland Main Line, 111 miles (179 km) north of London St Pancras. The station is north-east of the town centre.
Hathern is a small village and civil parish in the Charnwood district of Leicestershire, England. The village itself is located in the north of the district, and is just north of Loughborough. It is served by the A6. The parish has a population of about 1,800. Nearby places are Dishley, Long Whatton, and Zouch, over the border in Nottinghamshire. Residents of the village have, in recent years, campaigned to prevent the green "wedge" separating Loughborough, Shepshed and Hathern from being built on. The village is home to the Swift Sock Factory, one of only a small number of independent sock manufacturers left in the UK.
Ellistown is a village about 2 miles (3 km) south of Coalville in North West Leicestershire, England. It is named after Colonel Joseph Joel Ellis who died in 1885. The population from the 2011 census was included in the civil parish of Ellistown and Battleflat.
Garendon Abbey was a Cistercian abbey located between Shepshed and Loughborough, in Leicestershire, United Kingdom.
The Charnwood Forest Railway was a branch line in Leicestershire constructed by the Charnwood Forest Company between 1881 and 1883. The branch line ran from Coalville to the town of Loughborough.
Kinchbus is a bus operator in Loughborough, England. It is a subsidiary of the Wellglade Group.
Skylink is the brand name for bus services that serve East Midlands Airport in Leicestershire. Services are presently operated by Kinchbus and trentbarton, both a part of Derbyshire based Wellglade Group.
Snells Nook Halt railway station was a station on the Charnwood Forest Railway. Near the village of Nanpantan, on the outskirts of Loughborough, Leicestershire.
Shepshed railway station was a station on the Charnwood Forest Railway. Near the town of Shepshed, Leicestershire.