Kingsbrook

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

Kingsbrook

Oasis Beach Pool, located in Kingsbrook
Kingsbrook
Location within Bedfordshire
Population9,134 [1]
9,035 (2011 Census. Ward)[2]
OS grid referenceTL067482
Unitary authority
Ceremonial county
Region
CountryEngland
Sovereign stateUnited Kingdom
Post townBEDFORD
Postcode districtMK42, MK44
Dialling code01234
PoliceBedfordshire
FireBedfordshire and Luton
AmbulanceEast of England
UK Parliament

The boundaries of Kingsbrook are approximately the River Great Ouse and Priory Country Park to the north, Cambridge Road and the A421 to the south and east, with Redwood Grove and Willow Road to the west.

The Fenlake and Silver Jubilee neighbourhoods are both part of the Kingsbrook ward, as is the Priory Business Park and the Cambridge Road Industrial Estate. Kingsbrook is the largest ward (in terms of population) in Bedford.

History

There is evidence of a late Neolithic or early Bronze Age settlement and ritual site, located next to the Bunyan Centre in Kingsbrook. Excavations in 1995 uncovered three skeletons and a complete Beaker pot.[3]

There was some settlement in the northern part of Kingsbrook (by the river) in the 19th Century. However the area was not properly developed until the 20th Century, with the construction of the Silver Jubilee neighbourhood in the 1930s, which was named after the Silver Jubilee of King George V in 1935.[4] The final part of southern Kingsbrook was settled by the 1970s, and named Fenlake.

Governance

Kingsbrook is an unparished area of Bedford, with all community services under the direct control of Bedford Borough Council. Kingsbrook elects two councillors to Bedford Borough Council, currently, after the 2015 election, one is Labour and the other Liberal Democrat.

Economy

There are many local shops and services located on London Road, including a supermarket, petrol station, post office, bakery and a Mecca Bingo hall. There is a large Tesco superstore sited on Cardington Road, as well as the Barns Hotel.[5]

There are two large business parks in Kingsbrook. The first is the Cambridge Road Industrial Estate which houses many companies including Fujifilm. The second is Priory Business Park on Cardington Road, which houses many other firms including the head offices of Autoglass[6] and the National Hairdressers' Federation.

Education

There is one primary school in Kingsbrook - King’s Oak Primary School located on Canvin Way and Oak Road. King’s Oak Primary School was formed in September 2014 from an amalgamation of Stephenson Lower School (Canvin Way)[7] and Harrowden Middle School (Oak Road).[8][9]

The main secondary school in Kingsbrook is Bedford Academy sited on Mile Road.[10]

Religious sites
Jubilation Centre

Community facilities

Kingsbrook's open spaces include Jubilee Park on Canvin Way, and Fenlake Meadows on Cardington Road. There are two community centres in the area - The first is Scott Hall Community Centre located on Barford Avenue,[14] and the second is the Jubilation Centre situated on Moulton Avenue.[15]

The Oasis Beach Pool (a public swimming pool) is situated on Cardington Road. The Bunyan Centre is a leisure centre situated on Mile Road. The centre acts as a main sports venue for the whole of south Bedford.

References
  1. Neighbourhood Statistics. "Neighbourhood Statistics". Neighbourhood Statistics. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  2. "Bedford Ward population 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 5 November 2016.
  3. "Bedford Timeline: Modern - Digitised Resources - Bedfordshire's Virtual Library". Galaxy.bedfordshire.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 7 February 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  4. "'A brief history of Bedford' by Tim Lambert". Localhistories.org. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  5. The Barns Hotel Archived December 17, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  6. http://www.autoglass.co.uk/ Autoglass
  7. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 16 May 2014. Retrieved 23 July 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  8. Published on Tuesday 21 February 2012 09:23 (21 February 2012). "Major schools shake-up confirmed - Education". Bedford Today. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  9. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 23 July 2014.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  10. "The account you were looking for doesn't exist".
  11. "Welcome to our parish".
  12. "Jubilation Centre · Bedford Borough Council".
  13. "Home".
  14. "Scott Hall Community Centre". Bedford.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 29 August 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  15. "Jubilation Centre". Bedford.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
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