Stockley Park | |
---|---|
Stockley Business Park | |
London borough | |
Ceremonial county | Greater London |
Region | |
Country | England |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | UXBRIDGE |
Postcode district | UB11 |
Dialling code | 020 |
Police | Metropolitan |
Fire | London |
Ambulance | London |
UK Parliament | |
London Assembly | |
Stockley Park is a business estate and public country park located between Hayes, Yiewsley and West Drayton in the London Borough of Hillingdon. In August 2020 it was listed in the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England as Grade II. [1]
Stockley Park became the home of the video assistant referee (VAR) hub in 2019, and as a result is sometimes used as a metonym for the VAR in English domestic football. [2] [3]
Stockley Park is home to multitude of companies and corporations including Apple Inc., Gilead Sciences, Canon Inc., Sharp Corporation, Toshiba, Verifone, Samsonite, and Marks and Spencer. [4]
Stockley Country Park has a network of footpaths and bridleways in its 274 acres (111 ha) of parkland. [5] The Gould Green Riding School provides horse riding lessons in the Country Park. [6]
Stockley Park Golf Club has a 18-hole championship golf course with a bar and restaurant. [7]
In the Stockley Park Arena area there is a Nuffield Health fitness and wellbeing gym, Costa Coffee, Greggs, and Subway.
Travelodge London Stockley Park is an 80-room hotel with a café. [8]
The park is served by three London bus routes: [9]
The Great Western Main Line runs to the south of Stockley Park. Hayes & Harlington railway station is located 1.2 miles (1.9 km) to the southeast. The Elizabeth Line operates a stopping service between Reading and Shenfield or Abbey Wood as well as to Heathrow Terminal 4. West Drayton railway station is located 1.1 miles (1.7 km) southwest of Stockley Park. It has the same services as Hayes and Harlington station with the exception of the service to Heathrow Terminal 5. [9]
Heathrow Airport lies 3.5 miles (5.6 km) south of Stockley Park. [9]
The land which became Stockley Park lay in two ancient Middlesex parishes, Hillingdon Parish in the west and Harlington Parish in the east. In the Harlington Parish what became the eastern part of Stockley Park was within the estate of Dawley Manor and later the Dawley Wall farm. [13] In Hillingdon Parish the land lay within Colham Manor.
After the cutting of the Grand Junction Canal (renamed Grand Union Canal in 1929) land was leased for brick-earth and later gravel and sand extraction. When deposits were exhausted some of the pits that were produced were used to deposit waste by barge from London. [1] [14] With the development of the Park in 1984-1985 approximately five million tonnes of waste was moved in the creation of the business park, the largest civil engineering contract involving landfill transfer in Europe. [1]
The estate was developed by Stanhope and designed by Arup Group from 1984. A Phase II development was added between 1990 and 1998. [1]
Stockley Park takes its name from the former hamlet of Stockley. "Stockley" is believed to be a portmanteau word derived from Cowley stock, the generic name given to the locally produced brick in West Middlesex. [8] The hamlet of Stockley came into being with the renaming of the hamlet of Starveall (or Starvhall) in 1912.
Starveall was located in the ancient parish of Hillingdon, lying south of the Grand Junction Canal. The name is a common and possibly humorous description in central southern England for land of poor fertility - (Starve all). [15]
By the middle of the 19th century a significant brickfield has been established to the west of Starveall farm. An arm known as Starveall dock (and also as Pocock's or Broad's dock) was cut from the Grand Junction Canal to service the brickfield. In 1872 it was extended south of the farm into the Parish of West Drayton, reaching a distance of 1120 yards from the mainline of the canal. [16] In 1879 the leaseholder of Starveall, Samuel Pocock, stated he made 15-20 million bricks per year there. [17] In 1884 Pocock conveyed his interests to Clement Burgess Broad and George Harris, of South Wharf, Paddington. [18]
The hamlet of Starveall continued to grow. However by 1911 its descriptive name must have been of concern to its inhabitants as on 1 January 1912 Broad & Co issued a circular stating the following:
The Directors of Broad and Co., Ltd beg to inform you that in response to the general desire of their tenantry, and others concerned at Starvhall, West Drayton, to have a 'more suitable designation of the place and works than that of "Starvhall" and "Starvhall Brickfields," they have decided, as from this date, to rename the place "Stockley" and the works to be known as "Stockley Works." [19]
Starveall was located within the Yiewsley Urban District and Broad & Co unilateral renaming of Starveall caused some disquiet at the Council meeting on Tuesday 9 January 1912. It was pointed out that Broad & Co had thought that they could rename Starveall without sanction and afterwards had realised their mistake and had written to the council asking them to pass a resolution confirming their action. Council member Mr J.A. Holland stated "It is entirely out of order: they ought first to have applied to this Council." However there was general agreement with the name change. Vice-Chairman of the council Mr T. Hancock stated "he saw no reason why the name should not be altered. Starveall was not a correct name, for nobody had been starved there." [20]
Starveall was subsequently expunged, with Starveall Road, Starveall Farm, Starveall School, Starveall Church Mission hall, Starveall Football Club, Starveall Dock, and Starveall Brickworks all being renamed Stockley. The only reference to Starveall today lies on the canal network managed by the Canal & River Trust. The Grand Union Canal Bridge 195 is still known as Starveall Bridge. [21]
During the First World War the Royal Naval Air Service had barracks at their Stockley Depot. Approximately 70 men of Stockley served in the armed forces in the war with 11 giving their lives in the conflict. A war memorial tablet bearing their names was erected outside the mission hall which was unveiled in a ceremony on 6 January 1921. [22]
Stockley continued to be a centre of brick production through the 1920s. However the resources of brick-earth began to become depleted. By 1930 the Stockley brickworks were producing only two million bricks a year. In 1935 the brickworks was closed down.
The hamlet of Stockley, without its raison d'être , diminished after this time and the area was absorbed into an expanding West Drayton. Today Stockley Close Industrial estate lies where the centre of the hamlet once stood. To the industrial estate's east and south lies a truncated 409-yard section of the Stockley Dock. Some of the buildings of Stockley Farm remain and to its west lies a small local park, Stockley Recreation Ground.
Cowley is a village contiguous with the town of Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon. A largely suburban village with 16 listed buildings, Cowley is 15.4 miles (24.8 km) west of Charing Cross, bordered to the west by Uxbridge Moor in the Green Belt and the River Colne, forming the border with Buckinghamshire. Cowley was an ancient parish in the historic county of Middlesex.
Harlington is a district of Hayes the London Borough of Hillingdon and one of five historic parishes partly developed into London Heathrow Airport and associated businesses, the one most heavily developed being Harmondsworth. It is centred 13.6 miles (21.9 km) west of Charing Cross. The district adjoins Hayes to the north and shares a railway station with the larger district, which is its post town, on the Great Western Main Line. It is in the west of the county of Greater London and until 1965 it was in the south-west corner of the historic county of Middlesex.
Harmondsworth is a village in the London Borough of Hillingdon in the county of Greater London with a short border to the south onto London Heathrow Airport and close to the Berkshire county border. The village has no railway stations, but adjoins the M4 motorway and the A4 road. Harmondsworth was in the historic county of Middlesex until 1965. It is an ancient parish that once included the large hamlets of Heathrow, Longford and Sipson. Longford and Sipson have modern signposts and facilities as separate villages, remaining to a degree interdependent such as for schooling. The Great Barn and parish church are medieval buildings in the village. The largest proportion of land in commercial use is related to air transport and hospitality. The village includes public parkland with footpaths and abuts the River Colne and biodiverse land in its Regional Park to the west, once the grazing meadows and woodlands used for hogs of Colnbrook.
Uxbridge is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated 15.4 miles (24.8 km) west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxbridge formed part of the parish of Hillingdon in the county of Middlesex, and was a significant local commercial centre from an early time. As part of the suburban growth of London in the 20th century it expanded and increased in population, becoming a municipal borough in 1955, and has formed part of Greater London since 1965.
Yiewsley is a large suburban village in the London Borough of Hillingdon, England, 2 miles (3 km) south of Uxbridge, the borough's commercial and administrative centre. Yiewsley was a chapelry in the ancient parish of Hillingdon, Middlesex. The population of the ward was 12,979 at the 2011 Census.
The London Borough of Hillingdon is the largest and westernmost borough in West London, England. It was formed in 1965 from the districts of Hayes and Harlington, Ruislip-Northwood, Uxbridge, and Yiewsley and West Drayton in the ceremonial county of Middlesex. Today, Hillingdon is home to Heathrow Airport and Brunel University, and is the second largest of the 32 London boroughs by area.
Hayes is a town in west London. Historically situated within the county of Middlesex, it is now part of the London Borough of Hillingdon. The town's population, including its localities Hayes End, Harlington and Yeading, was recorded in the 2021 census as 93,928. It is situated 13 miles (21 km) west of Charing Cross, or 6.5 miles (10.5 km) east of Slough. Hayes is served by the Great Western Main Line, and Hayes & Harlington railway station is on the Elizabeth line. The Grand Union Canal flows through the town centre.
Uxbridge is a London Underground station in Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. The station is the terminus of the Uxbridge branches of both the Metropolitan line and the Piccadilly line. The next station towards London is Hillingdon. The station is 15.5 miles (25 km) west of Charing Cross and is in Travelcard Zone 6. The closest station on the Chiltern Line and Central line is West Ruislip, accessible by the U1 and U10 buses. The closest station on the Elizabeth line is West Drayton, accessible by the U1, U3, U5 and 222 buses. Uxbridge was formerly the terminus of a branch of the District line which ran from Ealing Common; the Piccadilly line took over in 1933.
West Drayton is a suburban town in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It was an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex and from 1929 was part of the Yiewsley and West Drayton Urban District, which became part of Greater London in 1965. The settlement is near the Colne Valley Regional Park and its centre lies 1.9 miles (3 km) north of Heathrow Airport.
Hillingdon is an area of Uxbridge within the London Borough of Hillingdon, centred 14.2 miles (22.8 km) west of Charing Cross. It was an ancient parish in Middlesex that included the market town of Uxbridge. During the 1920s the civil parish bore a rapid, planned increase in population and housing, and was absorbed by Uxbridge Urban District in 1929. It has formed part of Greater London since 1965.
Longford is a suburban village in the London borough of Hillingdon, England. It is immediately northwest of London Heathrow Airport, which is in the same borough. It is the westernmost settlement in Greater London, very close to the borders of both Berkshire and Surrey.
Hayes & Harlington is a railway station serving the west London districts Hayes and Harlington in the London Borough of Hillingdon. It is 10 miles 71 chains down the line from London Paddington and is situated between Southall and West Drayton.
Uxbridge was a seat returning one Member of Parliament (MP) of the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 1885 to 2010. Its MPs elected were: Conservative Party candidates for 107 years and Labour Party candidates for 18 years. The closing 40 years of the seat's history saw Conservative victory — in 1997 on a very marginal majority in relative terms.
Yiewsley and West Drayton was a local government district in Middlesex, England from 1929 to 1965. Its area became the south-west of the London Borough of Hillingdon.
The Uxbridge branch line was a railway line to Uxbridge in the historical English county of Middlesex, from the Great Western Railway main line at West Drayton. It opened in 1856 as a broad gauge single line, 2+1⁄2 miles (4 km) long. It was converted to standard gauge in 1871. Two other branch lines were later built to Uxbridge, but without making a connection.
Lake Farm Country Park is an expanse of green belt land approximately 60 acres in size fringed by trees and the Grand Union Canal, situated in the south of Hayes in the London Borough of Hillingdon. Its formal status as a country park dates back to September 2002.
The Norman Leddy Memorial Gardens in Hayes is one of Hillingdon Borough's designated gardens of excellence. In September 2010, the Gardens earned a gold award for Best London Small Park in the London in Bloom competition.
The coat of arms of the London Borough of Hillingdon is the official symbol of the London Borough of Hillingdon. They use elements from the coats of arms of the four previous districts. It is described as:
Arms: Per pale Gules and Vert an Eagle displayed per pale Or and Argent in the dexter claw a Fleur-de-lis Or and in the sinister claw a Cog-Wheel Argent on a Chief Or four Civic Crowns Vert.
Crest: On a Wreath of the Colours issuant from a Circlet of Brushwood Sable a demi-Lion Gules with wings Argent the underside of each wing charged with a Cross Gules and holding between the paws a Bezant thereon a Mullet Azure.
Supporters: On the dexter side an Heraldic Tiger Or gorged with an Astral Crown Azure and charged on the shoulder with a Rose Gules charged with another Argent barbed and seeded proper and on the sinister side a Stag proper attired and gorged with a Circlet of Brushwood and charged on the shoulder with two Ears of Rye slipped in saltire Or.
Motto: Forward.