Iver

Iver /ˈaɪ.vər/ is a large civil parish in Buckinghamshire, England. In addition to the central clustered village, the parish includes the residential neighbourhoods of Iver Heath and Richings Park.

Iver

Iver's three similar settlements form a jointly administered community. Footpaths run to the Colne Valley regional park, the train station and branch into the Chiltern Hills, London and the London Loop.
Iver
Location within Buckinghamshire
Area20.1 km2 (7.8 sq mi)
Population11,119 (2011)[1]
• Density553/km2 (1,430/sq mi)
OS grid referenceTQ0381
Civil parish
  • Iver
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townIVER
Postcode districtSL0
Dialling code01753
PoliceThames Valley
FireBuckinghamshire
AmbulanceSouth Central
UK Parliament

Geography, transport and economy

Part of the 43-square-mile Colne Valley regional park, with woods, lakes and land by the Grand Union Canal. Most of the open land is classified as Metropolitan Green Belt.

Surrounding the Ivers are neighbouring villages and towns of Fulmer, Denham, Gerrards Cross and Wexham. Also nearby are Langley in Berkshire and Uxbridge and West Drayton in Hillingdon.

The Ivers are well connected, with public transport and motorway links.

Nearest motorway links are Junction 15 and 16 M25 motorway, Junction 4 and 5 M4 motorway, including the Thorney Interchange, whereby to the North of the Ivers is Junction 1 M40 motorway as well as the A40, which is parallel to the M40.

With the Great Western Main line and soon Crossrail (Elizabeth Line) passing through Iver, Richings Park and Thorney are less than 0.5 miles (0.80 km) from Iver railway station, with Langley railway station and Uxbridge tube station nearby.

Two significant employers in the parish are the Ridgeway trading and warehousing estate in Richings Park and Pinewood Studios in Iver Heath.

History

In the Domesday Book of 1086 the whole area was recorded as Evreham or homestead by the brow of a hill and it was in the possession of a man called Robert Doiley.

Postcard of Iver Village

In 1351 the area was granted a Royal charter to hold a weekly market. This charter was confirmed 110 years later in 1461.

Iver

Iver village on the Uxbridge to Langley road has a pre-Domesday foundation and Neolithic pottery fragments and other artefacts have been discovered. The village church has shards of a Saxon window, and elements dating from the 15th century, 16th century and 17th century can be seen. The village has numerous houses from the 16th and 17th centuries.

Iver Heath

Iver Heath is the location of Heatherden Hall, a Victorian estate with spectacular grounds. It was purchased by Lt. Col. Grant Morden, a Canadian financier, who transformed the mansion by adding a huge ballroom and Turkish bath. During the 1930s it became a retreat and private meeting place for politicians and diplomats. The agreement to form the Irish Free State was signed at Heatherden Hall. The Church of St Margaret was built in 1862. Iver Heath itself is centred on a triangle of roads. The village post office is on the Slough Road to the south, while a parade of shops used to be found along Church Road to the north. Slough Road and Church Road are connected by Bangors Road North to the east.

Richings Park

Richings Park was once the estate of Lord Bathurst. Richings Park mansion, very briefly the home of RAF Bomber Command, was destroyed during World War II, and its site is now a residential area with its own shopping facilities. The cellars of the house are still visible in fields now overlooking the M4.

Black Park Country Park & Langley Park Country Park

Black Park adjoins the Pinewood Studio complex. It has a lake that extends over 13 acres (5.3 ha).[2] Due to its proximity to Pinewood Studios, Black Park was used for outdoor sequences in some of Hammer's Dracula films, a number of Carry On films, the Gerry Anderson Sci Fi series UFO and in the 1964 James Bond film Goldfinger.

To the south, Black Park is separated from Langley Park by the A412 / Uxbridge Road. Langley Park covers 130 acres (0.53 km²) and is known for its rhododendron and azalea-filled Temple Gardens.

There’s also a viewpoint whereby Windsor Castle can be seen in the midst.

Pinewood Studios
Main article: Pinewood Studios

Pinewood Studios is a major British film studio to the immediate west of the developed land of Iver Heath, which is in all other respects residential. The studios have hosted many productions from blockbuster films to UK television shows, commercials and pop music promos. The Superman and James Bond film franchises have used the film studios which provides tours of its museum.

Pinewood was built on the estate of Heatherden Hall, a large, attractive Victorian house with spectacular grounds. The Pinewood estate had previously been purchased by Lt. Col. Grant Morden, a Canadian financier and MP for Brentford and Chiswick. He spent a fortune transforming the mansion into a showpiece home, adding refinements such as a huge ballroom, a Turkish bath and an indoor squash court. Due to its seclusion, the house was used as a discreet meeting place for high-ranking politicians and diplomats. Here the agreement for the Anglo-Irish Treaty was signed. When Grant Morden died in 1934 the estate was purchased at auction by Charles Boot, who had recently inherited a large construction firm from his father, Henry Boot, who died in 1931. Within twelve months Charles had formed a partnership with J. Arthur Rank, who transformed the mansion into the office building for a film studio complex. He based his new studios on the latest Hollywood designs of that era. Charles Boot named the complex Pinewood Film Studios, a reference to the many pine trees in the area. The entrance to the studio is on Pinewood Road.

Activities and facilities

Iver Heath Drama Club

Established by John Hargreaves in 1948, the Iver Heath Drama Club contributed to the construction of the current village hall. The group puts on plays and pantomimes. In 2008, it celebrated 60 years by performing The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe.[3]

As of May 2014, the club has over 40 regularly active members who are aged between six and eighty years of age. The club is run by volunteers using a not-for-profit charitable framework and is funded entirely by profits from shows, membership fees and donations. The members come from the Iver area and are from a wide array of backgrounds and abilities.[3]

In March 2014 Matthew Streuli, the then Vice-Chairman of the club, was presented with a Runner-up Community Champion Award by the Chairman of South Bucks District Council, Councillor Santokh Chhokar.[4]

Since 2008, Pinewood has been the club's main sponsor. Pinewood Studios Group has helped with rent and co-funded the 60th birthday pantomime Jack and the Beanstalk, which played to over 300 people in January 2009. It was co-sponsored by South Bucks District Council. The 2014 Pantomime was Cinderella which over the course of six shows was seen by almost 500 people.[5]

The Evreham Sports Centre

The Sports Centre is based in Iver, which is in the south of the District. The centre is run by Greenwich Leisure Limited. Facilities include a multi purpose sports hall, dance studio, lounge (with adjoining kitchen), sunbed, outdoor floodlit synthetic surface pitch, grass soccer pitches and a changing facility and fitness suite with equipment including a nautilus tread climber. The fitness suite contains pieces of equipment designed to be accessible to those persons with limited mobility.

Evreham Adult Learning Centre

Adjacent to the Sports Centre on the border of Iver Heath and Iver, this facility is a former secondary school which hosts independent and Council-run events and courses. These include Zumba, Slimming World, Pottery, Guitar and Woodwork. The venue also hosts the Tiny Toes Nursery and a Youth Centre.[6]

Demography
2011 Published Statistics: Population, home ownership and extracts from Physical Environment, surveyed in 2005[1]
Output areaHomes owned outrightOwned with a loanSocially rentedPrivately rentedOtherUsual residentskm²
Civil parish14621720569377431111920.09

Notable people

See also

References
  1. Neighbourhood Statistics 2011 census, Accessed 2 February 2013
  2. "Explore georeferenced maps - Map images - National Library of Scotland". maps.nls.uk. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
  3. Iver Heath Drama Club
  4. South Bucks District Council Website
  5. IHDC Newsletter
  6. Buckinghamshire Adult Learning
  7. "Prince and Princess Michael of Kent". The Official Website of the British Monarchy. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  8. "Introduction: Ralph Hancock". Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  9. "Obituary: Captain John Fairey". telegraph.co.uk. The Daily Telegraph. 23 July 2009. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  10. The Gentleman's magazine, Volume 103, Part 1. 1833. p. 559. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  11. "Interview with Brian Muir". Retrieved 3 February 2012.
  12. "Nash, John Biography". The Bookroom Art Press. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
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